DON McDERMOTT / PVT The Pahrump Valley High School wrestling team won its fourth consecutive Southern Nevada Class 3-A regional title Saturday, entertaining a home crowd by claiming seven individual titles as well. The state tournament is Saturday at Moapa Valley High School in Overton. Advertisement

With seven individual title matches remaining in the Southern Nevada Class 3-A Regional Wrestling Championships Saturday, Pahrump Valley shared the lead with archnemesis Mesquite Virgin Valley.

"We knew it was going to be close ... Virgin Valley is strong in the lower weights," said Craig Rieger, the Trojans' veteran coach. "But," the PVHS mentor said, smiling, "we knew we were stronger in the upper weights."

And after the final seven finals were completed, the Trojans' superiority in six of the classes proved decisive. Pahrump Valley ended its two-decade run in Class 3-A by winning its fourth consecutive regional team title; the Trojans scored 238.5 points to 196.5 for Virgin Valley.

In the 2008-2009 school year, Pahrump Valley will be in the Class 4-A Sunset Region, Southwest Division. And with the departure of the Trojans, so ends an intense seven-year rivalry between Pahrump Valley and Virgin Valley -- two of the most principled and spirited wrestling schools in Nevada, as well as their coaches -- Rieger and Leon Durbin.

Virgin Valley, after dominating Southern 3-A wrestling for more than a decade, finished second to the Trojans for the fourth consecutive season, in both the dual-meet regular season and in the regionals, this year contested in the Pahrump Valley High School gym.

A big crowd was in attendance throughout the day, as the Trojans closed out the second of three segments this season.

The finale is Saturday at Moapa Valley High School in Overton, where the state championships will be up for grabs. Action begins at 9 a.m., with the finals in 14 weight classes slated to start at 5 p.m.

Pahrump Valley will send 13 wrestlers -- including seven regional champions -- to Moapa Valley.

The Trojans' primary challengers, defending state and Northern champion Spring Creek, will have 16 wrestlers competing.

The Spartans had four individual champions as they scored 253 points. Winnemucca Lowry -- Spring Creek's traditional rivals -- finished second with 211 points.

Pahrump Valley's champions were:

Senior Elias Armendariz, at 112 pounds; he is in a quest for his fourth consecutive state championship.

Senior James Chapman at 145; the wrestler nicknamed 'Kansas' was the state 135 champion in 2007.

Junior Ande Floyd at 160. His match against Virgin Valley's Brady Eaton produced the sportsmanship move of the season by an opposing coach.

Eaton was obviously in distress after he was dominated by Floyd in the first period (the Bulldog senior had undergone shoulder surgery before the season).

Durbin stopped the match before that injury was aggravated, but Eaton's status for the state tournament is to be determined.

Junior Zach Weldon at 171, who will be out to improve on a third-place finish in the state tournament in 2007.

Junior Joe Colucci at 189, who is having a banner season for the Trojans.

Pierce Henkel at 215. Pound for pound, this junior is one of the more aggressive wrestlers on the PVHS roster.

Frank Lopez at 285. A senior, he uses strength and patience to wear down opponents.

Also going to Moapa Valley will be freshman 103-pounder Elliott Owens, 119 junior Josh Armendariz, 125 junior Paul Miller, 130 junior Chris DeMille, 140 senior Kyle Abreu and 152 junior Steven Schmidt.

All were second-place finishers, except Schmidt, who was third.

NOTES -- Other teams scoring in the South: Boulder City, 122; Moapa Valley, 65.5, and Faith Lutheran, 52 ... In the Northern regionals, Yerington had 169, Fernley 136, Incline 130, Truckee (Calif.) 81.5, Dayton, 69, and Sparks, 46.5.

Trojans at the state tourney

First-round matches for the Pahrump Valley wrestling team Saturday at the Nevada Class 3-A State Championships, at Overton Moapa Valley High School:

103 pounds -- Elliott Owens, freshman, vs. Cody Feliciano, Incline freshman.

112 -- Defending 112 state champion Elias Armendariz, senior, vs. Tyrell Cummings, Yerington freshman.

119 -- Josh Armendariz, junior, vs. Blaine Tibbals, Yerington freshman.

125 -- Paul Miller, junior, vs. Jacob Miller, Sparks junior.

130 -- Chris DeMille, junior, vs. Riley Warren, Incline junior.

135 -- No entry.

140 -- Kyle Abreu, senior, vs. Jake Manzo, Winnemucca Lowry junior.

145 -- 2007 135-pound champion James Chapman, senior, vs. Jordan Kendall, Spring Creek junior.

152 -- Steven Schmidt, junior, vs. Tanner Schmidt, Lowry junior.

160 -- Ande Floyd, junior, vs. David Holloway, Yerington sophomore.

171 -- Zach Weldon, junior, vs. Taylor Hunt, Fernley sophomore.

189 -- Joe Colucci, junior, vs. Robert Snider, Yerington freshman.

215 -- Pierce Henkel, senior, vs. Bret Workman, Boulder City senior.

285 -- Frank Lopez, senior, vs. Travis Stoffel, Fernley senior.