The Pequot Lakes/Pine River-Backus Road Crew wrestling team earned its 26th win of the regular season with a 47-25 victory over the Virginia Blue Devils Thursday, March 4, in Pine River.

The Road Crew, 26-4 overall, is one victory away from tying last year’s record for most team wins in a season. They could equal or surpass the mark at this week’s Section 8-2A team tournament, with the quarterfinal and semifinal brackets taking place Thursday, March 11, in Pine River. The second-seeded Road Crew will face No. 7 Fergus Falls in the quarterfinals at 6 p.m. That winner will meet the winner between No. 3 Detroit Lakes and No. 6 Alexandria, in the semifinals at approximately 7:30 p.m.

“I don't remember a season where there are so many teams that are in the hunt,” Road Crew coach Travis Hoffarth said of the section tournament. “There are five teams that I believe have enough talent that could get the job done. With so many teams showing parity, I don't believe seeds carry as much weight as years past.

“Detroit Lakes was the early season favorite, but has since dealt with some injuries. Last year, Detroit Lakes defeated us in the (section) semifinals, and went on to place third at state. If our kids want to take the next step, they will have to rally around each other and wrestle at an elite level.”

In quarterfinal matches of the other half of the section taking place in Thief River Falls, the top-seeded Prowlers meet No. 8 Sauk Centre-Melrose and No. 4 Perham faces No. 5 Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton. The section championship match will be Saturday, March 13, in Pequot Lakes. The winner advances to the Class 2A state tournament March 25-27, in St. Michael-Albertville.

Thursday’s win over Virginia marked a few milestones for the Road Crew - like heavyweight Logan Carlson getting a pin to cap off a rally after the Blue Devils assumed an early lead.

“Virginia puts some really solid kids on the mat, so I knew they had the capabilities of building a lead on us and they did,” Hoffarth said. “Not many teams have been able to do that this year, we didn't panic and did a really good job of taking care of business from 160 pounds through heavyweight.

“The night was capped off by our lone senior, Logan Carlson, getting a pin on senior night. I was hoping to get him on the mat in front of the home crowd one last time. Logan has been stuck behind Riley Peters, our tough freshman heavyweight. So his varsity mat time was limited this year. That isn't due to Logan's capabilities though, he would be the starter on a lot of teams in the area.”

Another milestone was Parker Zutter improving to 26-4 overall, which set the record for most wins by a seventh grader in program history. Other top Road Crew records heading into sections include: Connor Tulenchik and Owen Carlson, both 29-1; Corbin Knapp 24-6; Caleb Ruhl 20-8; Easton Miller 20-10; Max Trumpold and Finnegan O'Dell, both 19-11; Riley Peters 19-8; and Austin Staricha 18-5.

Section individual competition will be Tuesday, March 16, in Pequot Lakes. The top four finishers in each bracket advance to the super region March 20, in Foley.

Road Crew results:

106: Parker Zutter 1-0

113: Easton Miller 0-1

120: Max Trumpold 0-1

126: Sean Kilpatrick 0-1

132: Owen Carlson 1-0

138: Korey Kinyon 0-1

145: Karsen Kinyon 0-1

152: Finnegan O'Dell 1-0

160: Austin Staricha 1-0

170: Connor Tulenchik 1-0

182: Trey Tuchtenhagen 1-0

195: Corbin Knapp 1-0

220: Matthew Foster 1-0

285: Logan Carlson 1-0

Road Crew topple Alexandria

On Tuesday, March 2, Class 2A’s sixth-ranked 126-pounder Owen Carlson pinned fifth-ranked Blaze Nelson of Alexandria to ignite the Pequot Lakes/Pine River-Backus to a 47-24 victory over the Cardinals in Pequot Lakes.

Road Crew results:

106: Parker Zutter 0-1

113: Easton Miller 1-0

120: Max Trumpold 1-0

126: Owen Carlson 1-0

132: Sean Kilpatrick 0-1

138: Korey Kinyon 1-0

145: Finnegan O'Dell 0-1

152: Earl Stockman 0-1

160: Chance Abraham 0-1

170: Connor Tulenchik 1-0

182: Austin Staricha 0-1

195: Corbin Knapp 1-0

220: Matthew Foster 1-0

285: Riley Peters 1-0