And those lineup holes came back to bite Montoursville in a big way, as the Warriors dropped the dual meet, 43-20, Tuesday night at Montoursville.

“It was a good effort on our part. (Mifflinburg’s) got a really nice team that we’ve seen coming up for the last few years, so definitely congratulations to them. They put out a great performance tonight, great effort on their part,” Montoursville coach Matt Yonkin said. “They’re a well-coached team, and we gave it a hard-fought battle. The matchups weren’t in our favor. It didn’t really work out for us. We’re down a couple of guys, so I’m not upset about this one.”

The dual started at 121 pounds which was a tough place for the match to start for the Warriors to build momentum. The heart of the Mifflinburg lineup took control of the dual quite quickly.

At 121, Griffin Walls got the Wildcats off to a great start, polishing off a tech fall over Coltyn Wagner at the 5:26 mark to put Mifflinburg up 5-0. And at 127, Jack Gramly pinned Brody Bower just before the second-period buzzer sounded as the Wildcats took a 11-0 lead.

Mason Murray of Montoursville tries to escape Landon Tucker of Mifflinburg during their match at 215 pounds at Montoursville High School. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

The marquee match of the night was at 133 between Montoursville’s three-time state qualifier Teli Bobotas and two-time Mifflinburg state placewinner Bradley Wagner. Wagner controlled the match from start to finish, using two first-period takedowns, and another in the third to win 10-3, with Bobotas avoiding a major decision loss in the final 15 seconds of the bout with an escape.

“There’s a lot to learn from that match, and they’re going to see each other again, more than likely, throughout the postseason. So we’ll see that matchup again a lot,” Yonkin said. “You can take a lot away from it. We’ll sit back and look at it. But that was definitely a good learning moment for Teli, and you have to stay at it. So you’re going to expect a good matchup.”

At 139, returning state placewinner Ben Straub put Mifflinburg up 20-0 with a first-period fall over Haze Mullen. And, after being put on his back with a big lead in the second period and coming with inches of being pinned, Lane Kenamond kept the Wildcat win streak coming by beating Kaden Kleinman 14-6 to go up 24-0. Grayden Schuck won via an 11-2 major decision over Hunter Gee, and Mifflinburg received a forfeit at 160 to go up 34-0.

Montoursville finally got on the board via returning state runner-up Gage Wentzel at 172, as he clinched a 16-1 technical fall win, with the final takedown due to Wentzel leaping over his opponent. And, Hayden Harvey followed that up with a technical fall win of his own over Jaxon Felmy, turning Felmy for nearfall points multiple times en route to a 17-1 win at the 3:12 mark. Mifflinburg would put an end to the run as state title contender Landon Tucker pinned Mason Murray in 1:11 to put the Wildcats up 40-10.

At 285, Warrior Gabe Vanderwall wrestled arguably his best match of the year, escaping to tie the bout at one late in the third period against Landon Moser, who came in at 23-7 on the year so far. But Moser was able to get a reversal in the tiebreak, and Vanderwall was unable to score as Moser won, 3-1.

Teli Bobotas of Montoursville tries to take down Bradley Wagner of Mifflinburg during their match at 133 pounds at Montoursville High School. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

At 107, Montoursville star lightweight Branden Eisenhour pinned Collin Roman in 1:41. And, to close the dual meet out, freshman Ethan Amato wrestled up a weight class and won impressively over Landon Shemory, 16-3.

“(Amato’s) a great kid. He’s been working hard, and his progress from the start of the season has been tremendous. He’s definitely a team favorite, so we’re excited to see him do well,” Yonkin said. “He and Eisenhower both at 107 give us some options to control matchups. And he’s somebody we’re relying on. We’re able to lean on him, and he steps up to the occasion when he has to.”

While it’s no doubt a setback for Montoursville, who lost for just the second time all season, Yonkin knows the most important thing for his team right now is to get healthy.

“We’ve got to get healthy. That’s the biggest thing we’ve got to do. We’ve got to get healthy, so we’ll spend the next couple of weeks working on recovery, fine-tuning some technique and position stuff, and we’ll do everything we can to make ourselves as ready as possible,” Yonkin said

Mifflinburg 43, Montoursville 20

Kaden Kleinman of Montoursville tries to pin Lane Kenamond of Mifflinburg during their match at 145 pounds at Montoursville High School. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

121: Griffin Walls (Mi) tech fall Coltyn Wagner, 20-4, 5:26. 127: Jack Gramly (Mi) pinned Brody Bower, 3:57. 133: Bradley Wagner (Mi) dec. Teli Bobotas, 10-3. 139: Ben Straub (Mi) pinned Haze Mullen, 1:42. 145: Lane Kenamond (Mi) maj. de.c Kaden Kleinman, 14-6. 152: Gradyn Shuck (Mi) maj. dec. Hunter Gee, 11-2. 160: Wesley Smith (Mi) by forfeit. 172: Gage Wentzel (Mo) tech fall Oliver Patte, 16-1, 5:17. 189: Hayden Harvey (Mo) tech fall Jaxon Felmey, 17-1, 3:12. 215: Landon Tucker (Mi) pinned Mason Murray, 1:11. 285: Landon Moser (Mi) dec. Gabe Vanderwall, 3-1 TB. 107: Branden Eisenhour (Mo) pinned Collin Roman, 1:41. 114: Ethan Amato (mo) maj. dec. Landen Shemory, 16-3.

Hunter Gee of Montoursville tries to score points on Gradyn Shuck of Mifflinburg during their match at 152 pounds at Montoursville High School. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Gage Wentzel of Montoursville controls the action against Oliver Patte of Mifflinburg during their match at 172 pounds at Montoursville High School. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Gage Wentzel of Montoursville wins his match against Oliver Patte of Mifflinburg at 172 pounds at Montoursville High School. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Hayden Harvey of Montoursville controls the action against Jaxon Felmey of Mifflinburg during their match at 189 pounds at Montoursville High School. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Brandon Eisenhour of Montoursville wins his match against Collin Roman of Mifflinburg during their match at 107 pounds at Montoursville High School. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Ethan Amato of Montoursville controls the action against Landen Shemory of Mifflinburg during their match at 114 pounds at Montoursville High School. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette