The Union Pines wrestling team hits the road tonight, traveling to Wilson where it will face Havelock High School in the first round of the state dual team 3-A playoffs.

The Viking grapplers are hoping to compete twice tonight. If the Vikings, the second seed from the Cape Fear Valley Conference, defeat Havelock they will face the winner of a match between Hunt High School and Washington High.

Havelock won the Coastal 3-A/4-A Conference and is 21-2. The Vikings are 20-9 on the season. Hunt High School is the No. 1 seed from the Eastern Carolina Conference, while Washington is a wildcard entry from the Coastal Carolina Conference.

Union Pines first-round match with Havelock begins at 6 p.m. If they were to win, the second round would commence after the match between Hunt and Washington.

Over the weekend the Vikes placed second in the conference tournament. Southern Lee took first with 237 points, followed by Union Pines with 210. Western Harnett finished in a distant third with a point total of 124.5

"The tournament went well for us," said Union Pines head coach Matt Ragsdale. "We had seven wrestlers in championship finals and five in the consolation finals."

Vikings Brandon Berry (119 pounds), Trey Weliver (130) and Kaleb Rierson (215) all placed first in their respective weight divisions. Union Pines also had four grapplers claim runner-up honors, including Jayden Lindsey (103), Daniel Deardorff (112), Randy Stevens (125) and Graham Haulsee (189).

Contact F.W. Manning II at 639-5481 or by e-mail at fwm2@nc.rr.com