OVIEDO – Fleming Island High’s wrestling team did what they were supposed to do as far as winning a third region 1-3A title, advance a handful of wrestlers to the March 3-4 state meet and put their hat in for the chase of a Class 3A title to South Dade High School, the defending and 10 times Class 3A champion.

“We just didn’t wrestle well, especially in that “Blood Round” where we lost matches we should have won,” said Fleming Island coach P.J. Cobbert, referring to “Blood Round,” the consolation semifinals matches that create the final two of four wrestlers to advance to the state championships. “There’s three matches we lost by like one point. We have to wrestle to win those tough matches, regardless of the calls made which make it close. We wrestle our way and dominate, we should win. We did not dominate.”

Cobbert’s team, second in Class 3A last year to South Dade, not only won the region 1-3A team title with 219.5 points, far ahead of runnerup Hagerty High’s 156.5 and third place finishers Flagler Palm Coast at 135.5. Oakleaf finished 12th with 42.5 points based off a region title from senior Ryan Rosano, his first. The win was Cobbert’s third consecutive region title.

Fleming Island will send just four wrestlers as region champions; Briar Jackson at 113, still unbeaten at 59-0 Paul Detwiler at 170, Ryan Smenda at 220 and Jose Concepcion at 285 with four more as top four finishers; Lou Gagliardo, fourth at 106; Albie Snedaker, second at 113; Jacob Sandoval, second at 126; Jaquan English, second at 132 and Tyler Williams, fourth at 138.

Cobbert’s dismay at close losses included a double overtime 5-4 semifinal loss for Gagliardo to Hagerty’s Ryan Rowland, last year’s 106 runnerup; Williams’ 6-4 loss to Hagerty’s Ethan Woods in the 138 semifinal and Luke Chop’s 5-4 loss in the 152 semifinal to Logan Perkins of Hagerty.

For Oakleaf High School, senior Ryan Rosano defeated Fleming Island’s Albie Snedaker 3-0 for the 120 title to advance. The Knights had six wrestlers advance from districts; freshman Addiert Escobar at 106; Ethan Gustillo at 138, who lost to region champion Michael Martins of Flagler Palm Coast in his semfinal; Trent Carroll at 145; Lavell Jones at 160 and Isaiah Graham at 170, who lost in the consolation semifinal to Keyshon Talley of Apopka 7-2.