In a span of two days, after 420 hard-fought matches, Flathead qualified 13 wrestlers at the western AA divisional tournament in Kalispell, Feb. 7-8, to go to state in Billings this weekend.
At divisionals, teams could enter two wrestlers in each weight class, and the top eight from each weight class qualified for state.
The western division consists of seven schools: Helena High and Helena Capital, Butte, FHS and the three Missoula schools - Big Sky, Hellgate and Sentinel.
"I think we could have placed more people," said senior Mike Richeson, who finished fifth at 125. "If you were drawn in a really tough bracket, it was tough to place."
Although Flathead didn't have any divisional champs, FHS was led by senior Ashley Sharpe, who fell in the finals to the top-ranked heavyweight, Andy Petek of Helena High.
"I didn't expect to do that good," said Sharpe, a first-year wrestler. "Things just went well."
After defeats in the semifinals, three wrestlers rebounded to take third in the consolation finals: junior Dustin Townsend, 135; Chad Cattron, 152; and junior Justin Kasberg, 160.
After a 4-4 tie at the end of three periods, Cattron's match went into overtime where he went on to win 8-4.
"(Cattron) got a double-leg takedown," said coach Jeff Anderson. "In overtime, the first takedown takes the match."
In another close match, junior Rob Brekke came back after trailing 9-0 to win 14-13.
"He just wrestled wide-open and got the job done," said Anderson. "He does a good job, believing he can always win matches."
After winning three matches to get to the consolation finals at 135, Townsend learned he would have to face junior Kyle Nelson, his own teammate. Townsend won in a 6-5 decision.
"Neither of us warmed up," said Townsend. "We knew we couldn't get fired up facing each other."
Other Braves who qualified were sophomore Derek Nelson, 105, fifth; sophomore Jeremy LaPorte, 112, fifth; junior Rob Brekke, 130, seventh; and sophomore Rich Cattron, 140, seventh. Placing in the top eight in the heavier weights were sophomore Jon Parkinson, 171, fifth; senior Dan Eaves, 189, fifth; and sophomore Sean Stotts, 189, fifth.
Flathead will miss some much needed points at state from sophomore Corbin Eystad, and seniors Ryan Sullivan and Beau Morin who are out due to injuries, said Anderson.
"It would be nice to finish in the top six," said Anderson. "If we could finnish middle of the pack, we will be doing pretty good."
Said Sharpe: "We have a lot of good guys in the state tournament. Hopefully, we will come back with medals."