Weston Keleher got his first taste of the Helias-Jefferson City wrestling rivalry Saturday.
What did he think?
"It's a little sour," Keleher said after the Crusaders dropped a 47-22 decision to the Jays in the third-place matchup in the Missouri Duals at Rackers Fieldhouse.
While he would have liked to win, Keleher wanted to see more out of his team in the dual, no matter the final score.
"Helias vs. the Jays, I thought our intensity should have been a little higher than it was," he said. "It wasn't like we wrestled horrible, but we didn't wrestle as good as we could or should have. They were ready, we weren't."
Helias won five matches against Jefferson City.
Gavin Adams won by fall at 106 pounds for the Crusaders, while Aleksey Salaz won 15-1 major decision at 126. Jack Lage at 113 and Randy Salaz at 138 both posted victories by decision, while Dustin Luebbert won by forfeit at 160.
The Crusaders and Jays will meet again Jan. 16 at Fleming Fieldhouse
"The good thing is we have that sour taste in our mouths from today," Keleher said. "The big one is in January and when there are thousands of people there yelling and screaming, that will be the fun one."
Fourth is the best finish for the Crusaders in several years at the Duals.
"We competed very well at times," Keleher said. "But as a whole, we looked a little sluggish and that's all on me. I need to work more on technique in the practice room.
"But it's just the middle of December and there's a long way to go this season."
Helias finished second in the Blue Division behind Neosho with a 3-1 record in duals. After going 1-1 on Friday night, Helias defeated Owensville (72-9) and Grain Valley (43-36) on Saturday morning.
The dual against Grain Valley decided the division runner-up and a spot in the semifinals. It also came against a future district foe.
"We got the sense that we can compete in that district when I think a lot of people don't think we can," Keleher said.
One of the biggest victories in that dual came from Gage Lock at 120, who won by a second-period fall.
"He's tiny for that weight class, he's probably two classes smaller, but he battled and got a pin," Keleher said. "That was a big win for us."
Helias then fell 48-23 to Lebanon in the semifinals to go to the third-place match.
Neosho defeated Lebanon 39-23 for the championship.
Lage and Randy Salaz both finished 6-0 in the two-day tournament for Helias, while Adams and Luebbert were both 5-1.
Helias is back in action Wednesday night in a tri-dual against Borgia and Pacific at Rackers Fieldhouse. Action will begin at 6 p.m.