FARGO -- Before the Class B state wrestling tournament started, Hettinger senior Zach Morast was eager to meet up with Harvey senior Bobby Bartz.
He got his wish.
Morast used an 8-4 major decision over South Border senior Tyler Meidinger to propel himself into the 215-pound finals Friday at the Fargodome.
"I'm always looking at my next match," Morast said. "I'm wrestling about the smartest I have in my life."
The struggle between Meidinger and Morast was due to contrasting styles. Meidinger, who has a short and stocky frame, proved to be a tough matchup for the long and tall build of Morast.
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"If I tried to go on top of him, I knew I could be thrown," Morast said about the two in the neutral position.
Morast broke a scoreless tie in the second period with a takedown and two nearfall points to go up 4-0. From there, Morast controlled the tempo and pulled out the win. Morast said he's excited for the chance to win a state title.
"It hasn't sunk in yet," Morast said. "I'm sure tonight I'll feel it."
Morast's win helped Hettinger hold on to a top-10 finish after day two. The Black Devils are in 10th in the team standings with 58.5.
Oakes is running away with the meet as the Tornadoes have 141 points. They also captured the state dual championship, beating Lisbon 42-22.
The Broncos are second in the individual standings as well with 95 points.
Napoleon (92.5), Rolla-Rock Lake-St. John (90) and Carrington (88) rounded out the top five.
Also making his first finals appearance is Killdeer senior Corde Fredericks, who squeezed out a 3-2 decision over Hillsboro senior Jake McLean.
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"I tried to take as many shots as I could," Fredericks said. "It worked out."
Tied 1-1 after both wrestlers logged escapes in the first two periods, McLean opened himself up and Fredericks took advantage, taking him down in the final minute. With 15 seconds to go, Fredericks allowed an escape, but McLean failed to take him down.
It was sweet revenge for Fredericks, who didn't place when he was a sophomore because McLean beat him in a placement-qualifying match.
Though the win was nice for Fredericks, it wasn't enough. He wrestles Napoleon senior Damon Weigel (40-1) in the finals.
"I'm looking for the finals," Fredericks said. "I feel really good. I wasn't nervous or anything."
Beulah-Hazen had two semifinalists, but a late pin by R-RL-SJ's Mitch Laducer kept junior Jared Weinand from advancing at the 140-pound class. Nonetheless, the Miners still have 112-pound senior Ben Maliske, who broke the state record at his weight class for pins in a season (29) by sticking Linton-HMB junior Paul Rohrich in 2 minutes, 41 seconds.
Maliske meets R-RL-SJ senior Nathan Tandeski in the finals, which are set to start at 2 p.m. today.
