This story has been changed to correct the names of two suspended Foxcroft Academy wrestlers.

FRYEBURG – Foxcroft Academy outdueled archrival Dexter to capture it second consecutive Class C wrestling state championship Saturday.

The Ponies finished nine points ahead of the Tigers in the 21-team meet at the Ada Cram Wadsworth Arena.

The team scores were Foxcroft 157.5, Dexter 148.5, Bucksport 128, Dirigo 123, Winslow 65, Lisbon 47, Madison 45.5, Mt. View 43, Washington Academy 43, Piscataquis Community 25, Fort Kent 24, Calais 18.5, Woodland 14, George Stevens Academy 12.5, Spruce Mountain 12, Monmouth Academy 10, Mattanawcook Academy 6 and Hall-Dale 3.

The Ponies competed without Todd Francis, who wrestles at 152, and heavyweight Alex Sedore. Both were suspended following an incident that occurred at the team hotel prior to the meet.

“That shows the character of this team,” Foxcroft Academy Coach Luis Ayala said. “When things went bad, they stepped up. The kids could have given up but they never gave up.”

Foxcroft’s remaining 12 wrestlers picked up the slack.

“We knew it was going to be a fight,” said Wesley Stinson, who won his second individual state title for the Ponies. “Nothing was given to us. It was a fight to the end and we wrestled tough.”

Going into the championship round, Dexter held a five-point lead, but Foxcroft freshman Brooks Law held off Tyler Salsbury of the Tigers for a 5-0 decision in the 113-pound weight class — the first of four head-to-head matches between the squads in the championship round.

Dexter regained the lead when Aaron Webber pinned Reilly Lombardi of Dirigo in the third period of the 126-pound final.

But the Ponies narrowed the gap when junior Forrest Law, Brooks’ older brother, earned a 4-2 decision over Andy Adams of Dexter at 138 pounds.

Foxcroft then moved back into a narrow lead when Stinson scored all of his points in the third period to pull out a 3-0 win against Andrew Levensalor of the Tigers in the 145-pound final. A year ago, Stinson won the Class C state title at 152 pounds.

Corey Bjornson nailed down the victory for Foxcroft when he rolled to a 9-1 win against A.J. McLaughlin of Dexter in the 182-pound final.

“We have a great bunch of captains and they really got the team ready,” Ayala said. “The experience that we had going to some tough tournaments really paid off. We’ve been to bigger tournaments so coming up here the kids felt relaxed. They know what it takes to get to this point.”

Staff Writer Paul Betit can be contacted at 791-6424 or at:

pbetit@pressherald.com

Twitter: PaulBetitPPH