The Panthers were second to only Star Valley at the regional wrestling tournament Friday and Saturday and qualified 16 wrestlers for this weekend’s state tourney in Casper.

The meet, hosted by Mountain View, saw the Braves of SVHS win with 264.5 team points to Powell’s 193. Cody landed third with 123.5. Following in order were Lyman, Riverton, Pinedale, Mountain View, Jackson and Lander.

Regional champions for the Panthers were Colt Nicholson (106), Seth Horton (152) and Carson Olsen (220).

Nicholson and teammate Nate Balderas finished 1-2 at 106.

“It was nice to see an all-Powell final,” said PHS head coach Nate Urbach, adding that both Nicholson and Balderas “wrestled well” on the weekend.

Horton won his bracket with a 6-2 decision over Riverton Wolverine Tray Hyatt with the title on the line.

“Seth Horton looked good, he was dominant,” Urbach said; Horton “wrestled really well” and “steady,” the coach said. “He’s got a good motor.”

Olsen was immoveable on his bracket, too.

“He looked good and took care of business,” the coach said of the PHS senior. Olsen “wrestled a tough kid in the finals,” but held his ground and pinned Lyman’s Matthew Wolfard (31-10) in 4:26 to take the title.

Placing second in addition to Balderas were Corey Linebaugh (138) and Bo Dearcorn (170). Matthew Seckman took third at 182. Finishes of fourth were earned by Weston Thomas (113), Emma Karhu (120) and Dallas Oliver (285).

Those 10 plus six more — Logan Werner (113), Trevor Feller (126), Evan Habeck (126), Colby Bennett (138), Riley Bennett (145) and Lannon Brazelton (160) — made the cut for the state tournament this Friday and Saturday at the Casper Events Center. That’s where retiring coach Urbach will lead his final PHS team in pursuit of a 3A state championship; at regionals, he was named the Class 3A West Coach of the Year.

One glaring absence from the state tournament roster is Michael Maddox, a 132-pound leader both on the mat and in the room for Urbach’s Panthers.

Maddox pinned Paxton Garner of Lyman in 1:12, but suffered a head injury in the quarterfinals and forced to forfeit the rest of his matches.

Urbach explained Maddox is in concussion protocol and cannot wrestle at state.

“I feel horrible. He worked hard all year,” only to be taken out of state his senior season, Urbach said, adding, “Unfortunately, that’s part of being in a combative sport.”

Though he cannot support his teammates on the mat, Maddox will be very much involved this weekend.

“He is now officially transferred from athlete Maddox to assistant/assistant coach Maddox,” Urbach said with a chuckle. “I gave him a roll of tape and told him to start acting like a coach.”

Werner also suffered an injury — costing him “a good chance at third,” Urbach said — but is set to compete.

“Weston Thomas has come far,” the coach added, “and Emma [Karhu] had a good tournament.”

Linebaugh similarly had a good event and “wrestled well” while facing a tough competitor in the finals, Urbach said.

“Riley Bennett had a real good second day. He wrestled his heart out,” he said, and “Matthew Seckman had a great week” that featured “a couple gutty wins.”

Oliver, the Panther big man, “Has been a surprise for us this year,” said his coach. “He never wrestled varsity before,” struggling in 2A while in Lovell and “Now he’s got a shot to be a medalist” this weekend at state, Urbach said. Oliver “doesn’t have a ton of experience, but he gives you everything he’s got every time on the mat,” the coach said, adding, “You have to cheer for kids like that.”

Urbach predicts a tight team race in 3A this year.

“This needs to be our best weekend. We need to do everything to get ourselves ready to go. A lot of that is mental” in addition to getting “as much rest as we possibly can.”

Physically, he said, “we’ll go fairly hard Monday and Tuesday, then back off a gear and rest Wednesday and Thursday.

Star Valley is clearly the favorite, but anything can happen at state.

“When we lose a guy like Maddox we need to extend; kids need to get those points back a little bit at a time,” Urbach said. “The kid who might have scored six points needs to score 10.”

The National Anthem is set for 8:55 a.m. Friday with matches to begin five minutes later on nine mats. Saturday wrestling resumes at 9:30 a.m. on the Casper Events Center arena floor. Matches for third and fifth are slated for 1 p.m. with the championship finals at 3:45.