In a match decided by the wrestling equivalent of inches, it was Hugar who had the last laugh. A late third-period reversal gave the Red Raider a gritty 2-1 win as Montgomery rolled over Hughesville, 57-9.

“Usually, he and I have a pretty close match. We know each other’s moves because we’ve been wrestling each other since, like, third grade. I’ve wrestled him all the way up through,” Hugar said.

After a scoreless first period, Hugar looked poised to ride our Woolever in the second period. But Woolever found a way to get to his feet late in the period, and got his head cleared with just one second remaining on the clock to take a 1-0 lead to the final period.

Hugar got to his base numerous times in the third period, but Woolever was repeatedly able to flatten him out on the mat. He never stopped working, though, and founding a golden opportunity to turn in for a reversal, and got the reversal with just 20 seconds remaining in the match. Hugar, who had already been called for stalling during the second period, needed to ride out Woolever for the final 20 seconds to secure the victory. He did just that, and got the biggest win of his young career.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent At 189 pounds, Montgomery's Josh Knoebel wrestles Hughesville's Colton Gavitt during Wednesday's dual.

“At first, I was just going to go for the escape, and then I just saw that opportunity, his leg came through, and I just grabbed it, and I just put all my effort into it,” Hugar said.

Montgomery coach Denny Harer loves how far his young heavyweight has come after a freshman year that saw him advance to the District 4 Class AA tournament a year ago.

“Being young up on varsity last year was a big learning curve for him. So having this another year under his belt, he’s made some huge gains,”Harer said. “We’re really excited about the year for him.”

There was plenty to be excited about up and down the lineup for Harer and the Red Raiders Wednesday. They won 11 of the 13 weight classes, and all ten of their contested wins were bonus point victories. The Red Raiders are as deep as any team in District 4, on paper, and that showed.

The dual started at 189 pounds and Josh Knoebel wasted no time setting the tone for Montgomery. He used three takedowns and two full sets of back points to win by technical fall over Colton Gavitt early in the second period. And, a match later, Gage Furman overcame giving up two takedowns to win by technical fall (24-9) at the 5:46 mark.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent At 189 pounds, Montgomery's Josh Knoebel wrestles Hughesville's Colton Gavitt during Wednesday's dual.

Manny Stotlzfus earned a fall in just 22 seconds, and Ian Marquette won by forfeit at 114 to bring the score to 25-0. Talented freshman Gabe Oberheim looked sensation both on his feet and on top in a 68-second technical fall win over Hunter Stevens, and Carter Finck won by fall over Joseph Laubacher in 2:26.

At 133, the Spartans would get on the board in a big way. In matchup of 30-plus match winners as freshmen last year, Ethan Wodrig used a late takedown and three back points to turn an 11-9 lead into a 15-10 win. And after Montgomery’s Carden Wagner pinned Alex Smulek in the first period, Hughesville would get another win when Wesley Harvey pinned Jayden Rupert at the 3:27 mark at 145.

But that’s all the Spartans would get. Three straight tech falls by AJ Kroft, Brandt Harer and Trace Furman closed the dual out in emphatic fashion

“I’m pretty pleased. Our guys are in the middle of a weight cut and then I bumped them up another weight tonight to wrestle. So, I was very pleased with what I saw,” Harer said.

Montgomery 57, Hughesville 9

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Hayden Rupert goes for a pin on Montgomery's AJ Kroft during Wednesday's bout at 145.

189: Josh Knoebel (M) tech fall Colton Gavitt, 16-1, 2:30. 215: Gage Furman (M) tech all Jakob Charles, 24-9, 5:46. 285: Evan Hugar (M) dec. Colton Woolever, 2-1. 107: Manny Stoltzfus (M) pinned Kellan Smith, 0:22. 114: Ian Marquette (M) by forfeit. 121: Gabe Oberheim (M) tech fall HUnter Stevens, 17-1, 1:08. 127: Carter Finck (M) pinned Joseph Laubacher, 2:26. 133: Ethan Wodrig (H) dec. Liam Seeley, 15-10. 139: Carden Wagner (M)pinned Alex Smulek, 1:17. 145: Jayden Rupert (H) pinned Wesley Harvey, 3:27. 152: A.J. Kroft (M) tech fall Brogan Sherwood, 15-0, 3:13. 160: Brandt Harer (M) tech fall Kile Hartman, 18-2, 0:39. 172: Trace Furman (M) tech fall Landon Puderbach, 20-5, 5:11.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Hayden Rupert puts a hold on Montgomery's AJ Kroft in the 145 pound bout.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Hayden Rupert puts a hold on Montgomery's AJ Kroft in the 145 pound bout,

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent At 139, Montgomery's Carden Wagner wrestles against Hughesville's Alex Smulek.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent At 139, Montgomery's Carden Wagner wrestles against Hughesville's Alex Smulek.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Carter Finck takes down Hughesville's Ethan Wodrig in the 127 pound bout.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Hughesville's Ethan Wodrig wrestles against Montgomery's Liam Seeley during their bout at 133 pounds.