Senior captain Dustin Roemer led the Pinecrest wrestling team to a fourth-place finish in the WRAL Wrestling Invitational held at Athens Drive last weekend.

The long-running event featured 36 teams, including top teams from Georgia and Virginia. Jefferson High School from Georgia won the team championship with 256 points, knocking out the four-time reigning champions from Parkland, who finished second.

The Patriots were in the event for the first time, and proved they could hold their own with the fourth-place finish, behind Virginia’s Ocean Lake High School, with 164 points.

Roemer, currently ranked No. 1 in the state at 152 pounds in the 4-A division, had impressive performances in all five of his matches.

Beating all of his opponents, including Jefferson’s Cain Finch, with pins earned him the most and fastest pins awards of the tournament, along with the championship of the 152-pound weight class.

Freshman Irvin Enriquez, currently ranked fourth in the state at 106, earned a runner-up title for the Pats.

Other Patriots earning high finishes were junior Luke Fetla, ranked sixth in the state at 220, and sophomore Rider Excell, ranked seventh at 160, both finished in third in their respective weight classes.

Pinecrest will hold a home quad-meet tonight.

It will travel to the Tiger Holiday Classic for a two-day tournament in Chapel Hill on Dec. 28-29.