The state wrestling tournament’s championship round was yet to come on Saturday night, but two major trophies could have been handed out.

Southeast Polk clinched the Class 3A team title in Friday’s semifinal session, and Lisbon locked up 1A in Saturday’s consolation rounds. Don Bosco and Sibley-Ocheyedan were the only teams capable of catching the Lions, but four afternoon place-winners pushed coach Brad Smith’s team over the top.

Cedar Rapids Xavier’s Josh Gerke reacts after falling to Valley’s Grant Stotts in their 145 pound match Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017 during the class 3A opening round at the 2017 State Wresting Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017 during the class 3A opening round at the 2017 State Wresting Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

The win is Lisbon’s 15th in the traditional tournament, but its first since 1993. It also gives Smith 11 championships as a coach, tying him with Waterloo West’s Bob Siddens for most in state history.

“We’ve got a lot of salt on our shoulders from last year,” Lisbon’s freshman finalist Cael Happel said. “We wanted to get it done this year. Everyone is wrestling lights out right now.”

The only title still up for grabs entering Saturday’s championship matches is in 2A, where New Hampton and Solon will race to the finish. The Spartans held a 91.5-88 lead after the consolation rounds, but New Hampton has three finalists to Solon’s two, including a head-to-head match at 126 between Michael Millage (23-1) and Solon’s Drew West (54-1).

Valley’s Grant Stotts looks up at the time as he wrestles Cedar Rapids Xavier’s Josh Gerke in their 145 pound match Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017 during the class 3A opening round at the 2017 State Wresting Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

Comeback kids

Five wrestlers bounced back from first-round tournament losses to maximize their consolation experiences. After drawing Valley’s defending champion Grant Stotts in the 145-pound bracket, Cedar Rapids Xavier’s Josh Gerke dropped his opener and had to reassess his 3A goals. He then reeled off five straight victories to finish third in the class.

“Thursday night was tough. Really tough,” Gerke said. “A title has been my goal since elementary school. But we had good talks and decided that I’d rather look back on getting third than losing the rest of the way.”

The four others that agreed: Valley’s Connor Corbin at 195, Glenwood’s Caleb Sanders at 285, West Liberty’s Will Esmoil at 106 and West Delaware’s Mitchell Mangold at 145 in 2A. Both Corbin and Mangold avenged their opening day losses on the backside of the bracket.

“The most nerve-wracking thing was the blood-round, because I didn’t want to come all this way for nothing,” Gerke said.

Six other wrestlers made it to the consolation final and finished in fourth place.

Seven Metro place-winners

The seven Des Moines wrestlers who qualified for the state tournament in 3A were all place-winners on Saturday afternoon. Lincoln’s three grapplers and North’s one all made it to the seventh-place match, while East’s young trio made it extra round. Freshman Brock Esplain finished fifth at 126, sophomore Deville Dentis dropped a Friday semifinal and finished sixth, but sophomore Matthew Jordan won four straight consolation fixtures and ended his tournament fourth at 132.

Team Scoring:

After Saturday’s consolation session

Class 3A: 1. Southeast Polk 154.5; 2. Fort Dodge 114; 3. W.D.M. Valley 109; 4. Western Dubuque 83; 5. Indianola 72.

Class 2A: 1. Solon 91.5; 2. New Hampton 88; 3. Davenport Assumption 75; 4. Creston/Orient-Macksburg 74.5; 5. Ballard 66.

Class 1A: 1. Lisbon 92; 2. Don Bosco 76; 3. Sibley-Ocheyedan 75; 4. Alburnett 57.5; 5. Underwood 56.5.

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