SPARKS - One night after getting dry-gulched early in the Class 4A state wrestling championships, Carson's "Four Horsemen" - seniors Travis Lamborn, Owen Craugh, Kyle Banko and Robbie Bozin - went for one last ride at Spanish Springs High School.
Lamborn took a 4-1, double-overtime victory over Bonanza's Daniel Wosick in the 160-pound finals to become the first Senator since Nick Shine (in 2004) to win a state championship and Craugh (112), Banko (130) and Bozin 125) each rallied from their early-round defeats to claim third place in their respective divisions to guide Carson to a seventh-place finish with 58.5 points.
Mojave ended Cimarron-Memorial's four-year reign, taking first with 136 points. Cimarron-Memorial was second with 112 points, followed by Las Vegas (79), Damonte Ranch (72), Fallon (60), Green Valley (59) and Galena (52). Douglas was 10th, with 31 points.
Wosick went up, 1-0, on a second-period escape, but Lamborn tied it with his own escape in the third to force overtime. Neither wrestler had any luck in the first OT and Lamborn rode out Wosick, who was on bottom, for the first 30 seconds of the second overtime.
Lamborn escaped from the bottom in his half of the second OT and added a takedown for the win.
"He was real defensive," Lamborn said of Wosick, who attempted one takedown in the first two periods. "I didn't want to do his thing. I couldn't get him until the end. I wrestled perfect. I didn't make any mistakes. The jinx is over."
The jinx Lamborn was referring to was his history of finishing in third place in big tournaments, beginning in middle school and continuing into high school.
"I feel great," Lamborn said. "I'm glad I went out my senior year with a bang. I won my last five tournaments. It feels like I thought it would - I just can't explain it. My senior year was perfect. I'm going to sit back and enjoy it."
Lamborn was also on Carson's football team, which made it to the playoffs in his senior year. Senators coach Shane Quilling joined first-year Carson wrestling coach Tyson Thivierge and several of Lamborn's parents in a celebratory scrum/hug-a-thon after the match.
"I knew I would get him in the match or in overtime," Lamborn said. "I knew he was getting tired. The longer the match went, the better for me. That's guts. Every morning coach has us run at 6:15. Guts and glory."
Thivierge looked overjoyed and grew emotional talking about Lamborn and his other wrestlers, who rebounded after a tough first day.
"Travis just showed what he was capable of," Thivierge said. "He wrestled solid throughout the match. He knows when to attack. He wrestled his match. That's what I told him before - 'Wrestle your match.' The guy tried to catch him underneath.
"It's a guts program. That's what it's about. That's why we run at 6 a.m. You can't take anything away from Travis. Now we're forever linked. He's my first state champion. I can tell my grandchildren about him."
It was a bittersweet moment for Thivierge as he talked about his departing seniors, including those he labeled the Four Horsemen.
"I wish we had more time together," he said. "This last week closed in fast. I'm going to miss them tremendously. Last night we got back to the room and I told them, 'It's not over by a long shot. You got something to prove.' And they did.
"They never hung their heads because they wouldn't be able to be up on the (first-place) podium. I wish I had more time with them. Each one of them deserves a title. Travis said it: 'Guts and glory.' They had great matches. I'm going to miss these guys. They made a big impact on me."
Bozin, who has been filming his senior wrestling season for his senior project said there was one lesson he could take from the first-day loss to the third-place finish.
"You never quit," Bozin said. "Never give up. After losing you don't say, 'I'm done. I don't want this.' I never gave up. I always had heart."
Inother championship matches:
• 103 pounds: Cimarron-Memorial's Britian Longmire took a 10-5 decision over Palo Verde's Jonny Cronin.
• 112: Damonte Ranch's Jordan O'Neal defeated Mojave's Jake Evans, 6-2.
• 119: Galena's Doug Del Porto topped Palo Verde's Glenn Terrano, 6-4.
• 125: Green Valley's Edgar Hernandez improved to 62-0 on the season with pin (3:45) over Mojave's Tolin Garcia.
• 130: Bishop Gorman's Steven Hernandez pinned Fermin Carrillo, of Las Vegas, in 3:53.
• 135: Cimarron-Memorial's Nicholas Harris took an 11-8 decision over Mojave's Colby Evans.
• 140: Las Vegas' Jarell Price went two overtimes in beating Green Valley's Jeremy Padilla, 4-3.
• 145: Fallon's Trevor DeBraga scored a 17-2 technical fall over South Tahoe's Elliot Pekar.
• 152: Palo Verde's Kyle Barrett went to overtime to notch a 7-5 decision over Trey Edmunds of Damonte Ranch.
• 171: Zach Hocker, of Las Vegas, scored a 7-5 decision over Chazz Mitchell, of Cimarron-Memorial.
• 189: Mojave's Reggie Powers improved to 61-0 on the season with his 15-8 decision over Zach Williams, of Las Vegas.
• 215: Galena's Nick Williams pinned (3:19) Durango's Victor Matthews.
• Heavyweight: Fallon's Lyle Garder, who weighed in at 223 pounds, gave up 48 pounds to Cimarron-Memorial's Neil Spencer, but took a 6-1 decision.