BUFORD -- Pablo Chavaria wasn't even supposed to be in the lineup.<br />
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But as fate would have it, the 170-pound North Hall junior found himself at the center of the storm with the Region 8-AAAA Duals title on the line Saturday afternoon at the Buford gym.<br />
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The Trojans trailed host and No. 1 seed Buford 35-31 heading into the final match and needed a pin to clinch its first-ever Region 8-AAAA Duals title.<br />
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In a move that surely will turn heads around the state, Chavaria was able to flip Buford's Tyreke LeGrant on his back late in the match for the improbable pin and virtually steal a region title out from under the Wolves, 37-35.<br />
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"I just tried to do a Peterson move and was able to get it," said Chavaria, who trailed most of the match. "It was a great feeling to be able to do this for the team. It was only my second day ever to be on the varsity. I didn't want to let anyone down."<br />
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In fact, North Hall looked cooked after Buford's Trent Ferguson pinned the Trojans' Austin Kennon at 152 with less than two seconds left in the match for a 35-28 lead with just two matches left. The Trojans needed wins in both, and one had to be a pin to win the title. <br />
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North Hall coach Stuart Cunningham was almost at a loss for words after the improbable comeback.<br />
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"Buford is so tough and they got that pin at 152 and had a lot of momentum," Cunningham said. "I didn't think it was over but I knew we had no room for error. But the kids just stepped up all day.<br />
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"They are a very resilient group. I'm not sure really how to describe it. I just know I felt so good for them and so proud of them for not giving up."<br />
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Normally on the North Hall JV squad, Chavaria was only in the lineup because of a brief suspension to the Trojans' 170 starter. It left Cunningham with few choices.<br />
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"This was a tough place to throw him out there but I thought (Pablo) stepped up. You don't really expect something like that," Cunningham said. "He's a great kid and I couldn't be happier for him." <br />
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Chavaria won his first match of the day against Madison County but was pinned in the Trojans' semifinal win over Chestatee. And he was down 2-1 to LeGrant entering the third period.<br />
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"I didn't think about any of the other matches. I knew we needed a pin so I just tried to stay in the match and wait for a chance. I got one," he said.<br />
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Chavaria would not have been in the position to win for North Hall if not for the Trojans' Gil Hoffman at 160, who was able to turn a 7-4 deficit with just 30 seconds left into an amazing 9-8 win. Hoffman was able to get a takedown and then accrue three back-points in the final moments to pull out the victory.<br />
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"Another great move," Cunningham said. "That was almost as big as the pin. We're dead if he doesn't turn that around at the end."<br />
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North Hall started the finals strong winning five of the first six matches but was only able to get two pins, by Darrien Ingram at 220 and John Martinez at 106, for a 22-6 lead. Buford's Grant Simonds got a pin at 195 for the Wolves only points early.<br />
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And then Buford dominated in the lower and middle weights. The Wolves got pins from Eli Hartley at 120, Darius Bunch earned a technical fall at 126, and Ethan Ceren (132) and Jack Barber (138) followed with quick pins to rally Buford to a 29-22 lead.<br />
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The Trojans' Michael Carew stopped the momentum briefly with a pin at 145 to pull within 29-28 before Ferguson's thrilling pin at 152.<br />
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The loss for the Wolves forced them into a second place challenge by Chestatee. The War Eagles won the third-place match with a 44-30 victory over White County. The third place team can challenge the second place finisher if the two teams did not meet during the tournament.<br />
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Buford recovered from the tough loss in the finals to beat Chestatee 38-24 to claim the No. 2 seed from 8-AAAA in next week's Class AAAA State Duals in Macon.<br />
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The semifinals were anything but a cakewalk for top seeds Buford and North Hall.<br />
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The Wolves fell behind 18-6 to White County after the Warriors posted three pins at 170, 220, and 285. Buford would rally in the lower and middleweights winning five straight matches, highlighted by consecutive pins at 113, 120, 126, and 132. White County pulled within 33-24 on a pin at 138 with three matches remaining but Buford clinched the match with a technical fall win at 145.<br />
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It was a similar road for North Hall. Chestatee opened with wins at 160 and 170 (pin) to take a quick 10-0 lead. But the Trojans answered with six straight wins, capped by three consecutive pins at 285, 106, and 113. The War Eagles, however, won three of the next four matches to claw back to within 36-28 with two matches left. North Hall got the clincher with a decision win at 145 and closed out the victory with a pin at 152.<br />
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The first round saw some tight matches. <br />
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Chestatee opened with a 46-36 win over Johnson in a matchup that came down to the final match. White County beat Stephens County 43-34 but needed a pin in the final match to preserve the victory.<br />
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The Warriors' win came just four days after falling to the Indians in a dual match.<br />
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North Hall whipped Madison County 54-25 and Buford hammered Monroe Area 78-0 to advance to the semifinals. The Wolves' posted 12 pins in the 14 matches.<br />
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In the consolation rounds, Stephens County knocked out Monroe Area 61-18 while Johnson nipped Madison County 42-30 to stay alive. White County then beat Johnson 45-34 while Chestatee had to battle from behind to hold off Stephens County 40-33 to advance to the third place match.
