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OVERTON -- Another road trip to still another Nevada state championship event ... and this one is huge for the Pahrump Valley wrestling team.

It is the last Class 3-A competition for the Trojans, who have dominated Southern Nevada wrestling for the last four years, but have yet to claim a state championship. In the 2008-2009 school year, Pahrump Valley will be a member of the Class 4-A Sunset Region Southwest Division.

In 2007, Coach Craig Rieger's team was oh, so close, when the Trojans finished second, just eight points behind four-time winner Spring Creek, in the finals at Spanish Springs High School in Sparks.

The 2008 state tournament will be contested Saturday, starting at 9 a.m., in the Moapa Valley High School gym here.

For Elliott Owens, Elias Armendariz, Josh Armendariz, Paul Miller, Chris DeMille, Kyle Abreu, James Chapman, Steven Schmidtg, Ande Floyd, Zach Weldon, Joe Colucci, Pierce Henkel and Frank Lopez, the state tournament is the final chapter in what has been a sensational season.

The Trojans went 8-0 in Southern League matches for the third straight season and were 29-3 in all duals. Their only losses were to Class 4-A power Las Vegas Cimarron-Memorial, San Clemente (Calif.) and 4-A Southwest's Spring Valley.

In the Kiwanis Invitational at Spring Creek in mid-January, the Trojans ran across the Spartans -- and edged them by 1.5 points to finish third in that prestigious, physically exhausting tournament. Only North 4-A Churchill County Fallon and an Idaho team finished ahead of the Trojans.

But the state finals have infinitely more at stake than a regular season invitational, even if that tournament attracted some of the best teams in three states. The tournament here is for bragging rights in Nevada; memories of successes here will have an enduring quality.

Elias Armendariz (45-4 at 112 pounds) is going after a school-record fourth consecutive state championship. 'Kansas' Chapman won the 2007 title at 135 pounds; he is 48-6 this season at 145.

Elliott Owens, a 103 freshman, is 33-11 in his rookie season ... Josh Armendariz is 23-18 at 119 ... Paul Miller is 17-16 at 125 ... Chris DeMille is 34-15 at 130 ... Kyle Abreu is 29-19 at 140 ... Steven Schmidt is 17-10 at 152 ... Ande Floyd is 36-14 at 160 ... Zach Weldon is 51-2 at 171 ... Joe Colucci is 34-15 at 189 ... Pierce Henkel is 41-9 at 215 ... Frank Lopez is 46-3 at 285.

That level of success for each of those wrestlers will be infinitely enhanced by performing at peak efficiency in the state tournament.

Wish them well, Trojan fans ... and if you can, make the trek to Overton and watch them in action.

P.S. The Pahrump Valley Trojans play their final 3-A regular-season home games of the season -- and in school history -- tonight against Moapa Valley. Fill up the gym and root them on to victories.