It was an emotional moment for Madison coach Scott Padelford when Matt Brown pinned Vincent Tzeo of Washington Academy in the Class C 285-pound championship finals.

“Matt became Madison’s first state champion in the 12 years of the program,” said Padelford. “We’ve had quite a few second-place finishers, but he is my first champion.”

Padelford started the Madison team in 2003.

Brown, a sophomore, had struggled with injury during the year and was considered a longshot to win a state title.

But he improved greatly during the year, Padelford said.

“Ryan Malcolm, who was a three-time state runner-up for me at heavyweight, came in during Christmas break and worked with Matt. That helped a lot,” Padelford said. “He was just 15-18 going into states and had missed most of the two weeks leading up to the states due to a shoulder injury, but he had pinned the defending state champ at the Mid-State tournament, so I knew he had the potential to win it. I just told him ‘just do what you have been working hard at all year’.”

Brown entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed but pinned top-seeded Dalton Sawtelle of Monmouth in the semifinals to set up the finals match against Tzeo.

Madison, which finished 7th in the team race, also had John Boardman (170) place second and Ryan Cass (182) place third.

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Although the state championship tournaments have been contested, individuals who finished in the top four in their respective weight classes still have more wrestling to do. On Saturday, the New England Qualifier will be held at Veteran’s Memorial Gym in Sanford.

The tournament determines who will represent Maine at the New England Championships in North Andover, Mass on March 6 and 7. That honor goes to the top-three finishers in each weight class.

This marks the second year that the Maine Principals’ Association has held a qualifying tournament. Prior to that, state champions in Class A, B, and C received an automatic bid to the tournament.

A qualifying tournament is nothing new to Winslow coach Kris Segars, who hails from Connecticut, a state that has long had a qualifier in place.

“It’s what I was accustomed to,” said Segars. “Having a qualifier is the only way Maine can showcase its best wrestlers.”

Winslow will have four wrestlers competing in the qualifier. Devin Vigue (113) and Ryan Fredette (170) will each be one of the top three seeds in their weight classes by virtue of winning state titles. Nat Beckwith (220), who finished second and Patrick Hopkins (160), who finished third, will also vie for the opportunity to advance to the New England tournament.

“I’m very glad I have the opportunity to wrestle in it,” said Hopkins, a sophomore. “I think it’s a lot fairer than just having the winners of each class (Class A, B, and C) head to New Englands. I have nothing to lose, so I’m just going to give it my all and hopefully something good will come from it. If not, I can use it as a learning experience for my next two seasons.”

Local state champions Cody Craig (Skowhegan), Zeko Caudill (Cony), Jacob Nichols (Nokomis), Danny Buteau (Oak Hill), Peter Del Gallo (Gardiner), Calvin Thompson (Monmouth) and Matt Brown (Madison) will also enter the tournament as one of the top three seeds.

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Former Nokomis wrestler Rusty Wilson is continuing his time on the mat as a member of the University of Maine wrestling club. UMaine is only in its second season as a part of the National Collegiate Wrestling Association (NCWA) club system, but is making its mark on the national scene. UMaine is currently ranked ninth out of 134 clubs in the most recent NCWA Coaches poll.

“I really enjoy being a part of the team,” said Wilson. “It’s a great group of close guys who all work very hard. Everyone is supportive and pushes me to perform to my best ability.”

Wilson recently finished third in the 184-pound weight class at the recent 2015 North Atlantic Wrestling Invitational at the University of Southern Maine. Plymouth State won the team championship with 98 points followed closely by UMaine with 94 points.

“I was happy with the way I wrestled,” said Wilson. “Even more so I was very happy with the way the team wrestled. I think the tournament really showed how far we have advanced as a team since the beginning of the season, to be able to compete with NCAA teams.” The host University of Southern Maine, Plymouth State and Daniel Webster College are all NCAA Division III programs which competed at the event.

Wilson also has placed second at tournaments held at the University of Connecticut and the University of New Hampshire this season. He is looking forward to the 22-team Northeast Conference tournament which will be held March 1st at the University of New Hampshire. The top six finishers in each weight class will automatically qualify for the NCWA National Championships in Allen, Texas on March 12.

“We are confident that we will place highly among the Northeastern NCWA teams,” he said. “We will be working and pushing each other to be better until the tournament, which is what we do best.”