Wrestling coaches talk about how the back door can make a team win or lose a tournament.

Free State High coach Darrell Andrew certainly is a believer.

The Firebirds placed a tournament-high six wrestlers in the finals of the Class 6A regional wrestling tournament Saturday at LHS, but didn’t get any back-door help — consolation-round wins — and finished third. Shawnee Mission West’s 153 points easily topped Shawnee Mission North (121.5), FSHS (118) and Lawrence High (114).

“When you put six in the finals and no points from the back door, it’s very tough to bring home a trophy,” Andrew said. “I feel bad that we didn’t do better in the back door.”

Still, the Firebirds qualified six wrestlers for Friday and Saturday’s state tournament in Wichita and earned three individual titles. Junior Matt Somers won at 125 pounds, along with seniors Kyle Frank (171) and Nick McGovern (189).

The Firebirds’ other qualifiers were juniors Brett Shoffner (152) and Jeremy Bustamante (275) and senior Grant Steinbach (215).

LHS qualified six for state and had individual champs in seniors Aaron Madill (160) and Kenny Poeverlein (275).

But surprisingly, senior Chris Hultine (152) and junior Clayton Kellerman (215), two of their weights’ top seeds, didn’t qualify.

“I feel like we did fairly well until the semifinals,” LHS coach Mark Dulgarian said. “I’d like to believe we can finish off a little bit better than we did.”

Dulgarian was pleased that the other qualifiers — freshmen Chris Cates, Brandon Halpin and Nolan Kellerman and sophomore Pharouk Hussein — were all underclassmen, boding well for the Lions’ future.

Free State High's Matt Somers, right, takes a shot from Lawrence High's Pharouk Hussein in the championship match at 125 pounds. Somers won the match by 9-3 decision at a Class 6A regional Saturday at LHS.

The Lions’ present, though, seems to be Poeverlein and Madill.

Poeverlein improved to 28-2 this season, including a finals’ win against Bustamante.

“Bustamante’s a great kid and a great friend — I like to call him a friend — and with a match like this, it’s bragging rights for the next 365 days,” Poeverlein said.

Madill, meanwhile, improved to 37-0, tying Sean Patton’s school record for wins in a season. He defended his regional title by pinning Shawnee Mission West’s Heath Groom.

But when it comes to the undefeated mark, Madill is conflicted.

Aaron madill of Lawrence High turns Shawnee Mission West's Heath Groom before pinning him in the second round of the Class 6A regional wrestling tournament. Madill won the 160-pound weight class Saturday at LHS. Madill, 37-0, will be the first city wrestler ever to enter the state tournament undefeated when it begins Friday at Wichita.

“It feels good. That just goes with the other accomplishments I’ve had this year,” he said, but then added. “At state, anything can happen.

“You know the records don’t mean anything if I don’t win four matches next Friday and Saturday. The last 37 won’t matter.”

Free State’s McGovern, who improved to 27-8 this season by taking a 7-5 decision against Shawnee Mission West’s Tom Gay, thinks the same way. After all, he lives with the city’s last state champ. His dad, Ken, won in 1978.

“I try not to think about that,” McGovern said. “I’ve had a pretty good year and hopefully I can win next week. It’s something I’ve been working for and preparing for my whole life.”