When he earned the starting spot 10 bouts ago, Owings Mills' Jon Demchick (135 pounds) began to entertain visions of making a dramatic impact.
Last night against 12th-ranked Eastern Tech, his dream became a reality.
The junior's 53-second pin of Eastern Tech veteran Phil Fraley clinched a 35-34 victory and the No. 2 Eagles' ninth Class 2A-1A North regional title in a dual meet at Owings Mills.
Eastern Tech won its earlier semifinal, 40-37, over third-seeded Edgewood (8-3) of Harford County. Owings Mills beat fourth-seeded Joppatowne (8-3) by 58-12.
Demchick's win did in the Mavericks (13-3). Owings Mills will now aim for its second straight state duals crown and take a 27-match winning streak into Saturday's finals at Frederick County's Catoctin High.
"I told [coach Guy Pritzker] I was going to pin him," said Demchick, who is 14-3 as a varsity wrestler. "But I didn't expect to start at the beginning of the year, let alone win as many matches or be as big of a factor as I was tonight."
But without Demchick's dramatic finish, the Eagles might be staying home.
Owings Mills led 23-18 with six bouts left after a 35-second pin by fifth-ranked Jason Jacovsky (103 pounds, 26-2). But the Mavericks were within 23-22 after Kenny Carter (112 pounds, 20-4) scored an 18-8 upset of fifth-ranked Eric Vinores (25-2).
A 31-second pin by Owings Mills' third-ranked Rob Cooper (119 pounds, 27-1) had his team up 29-22, but it was 29-28 after consecutive decisions by Eastern Tech's state runner-up Chris Clark (125) and teammate John Mullinix (130), setting up Demchick.
It seemed the Mavericks would have an easier time as they built a 17-0 lead on a 40-second pin by Brian Summerlin (171), major decisions from Olu Awodipe (145) and second-ranked Mike Kessler (152), and a decision by top-ranked Eric Fishel (160).
The lead was the result of a lineup shuffle: Kessler (26-1), a sophomore who usually wrestles at 145, swapped with Awodipe (19-3), a senior who normally wrestles at 152. Fishel (25-0), a junior, dropped from 171, switching weight categories with Summerlin, a senior.
The Mavericks then won three straight for an 18-17 lead, with a forfeit to Jon Delair (189) and pins by Matt Balch (215) and Kenny Berlett (heavyweight) - the latter in 61 seconds.
In the end, however, the Mavericks were denied.