With 14 seconds to go in the GISA Class AAA 120 state championship match, it looked like Joshua Bohannon’s great freshman season was going to end in disappointment. Bohannon trailed Beau Graydon by a single point and the nationally ranked wrestler was doing his best to stall and run out the clock.
    “I knew what he was going to do,” Bohannon said. “I was pretty desperate, so I tried one more move.”
    His last ditch effort paid off as he rolled Graydon over onto his back, notching two points and a state title as time expired.
    “It really has barely sunk in yet,” Bohannon said. “I honestly didn’t know if I had a chance to win before the match started. I got a little more confident as the match went on, but those last few seconds happened so fast that it really didn’t even register.”
    Bohannon’s state title comes in just his second year of wrestling. It also marks the second consecutive year that the family has celebrated an individual title as brother Caleb won the 170 pound state championship last season.
    “Now, I just work for next year,” Bohannon said. “I think that I still have a lot that I can improve on.”

    Portal’s girls may not be participating in the upcoming state playoffs, but junior forward Shiann Hagins certainly put a scare into opponents at the Region 3-A tournament.
    The Lady Panthers battled injuries late in the season and struggled down the stretch, but Hagins helped guide her team to wins in the first two rounds of the region tournament earlier this week.
    “Shiann is a big part of what we do,” Portal coach Cliff Hubbard said. “A lot of our offense goes through her. She stepped up big for us in some big games this week. Hopefully we’ll get a chance to play in the state playoffs, but if not, I know she’ll be a good senior leader next season.”
    Though remaining in the lineup throughout the season, Hagins was one of the dinged up Panthers.
    Battling an aching knee, Hagins helped Portal finish fourth in its sub-region. She was a key cog in a play-in win over Jenkins County Monday evening, then scored 15 as Portal defeated Wheeler County Tuesday night to advance to the tournament quarterfinals.
    “It’s a long season,” Hubbard said. “Everyone get a little banged up. You have to learn to play through it. That’s what Shiann was able to do for us. That’s part of what makes her such a good player.”