By KEVIN ECKLEBERRY

Daily News

BREMEN – Callaway High’s wrestling team finished second in the Area 4-AA tournament on Saturday to qualify for the state duals in Macon.

Callaway opened with a 66-15 victory over Booker T. Washington before beating Temple 66-9.

In the championship match, Callaway fell to Bremen 48-28.

Callaway’s first-round opponent in the state duals will be Dodge County, and those two foes will meet on Thursday in Macon.

Callaway has qualified for the state duals for the second consecutive season.

A year ago, Callaway made it to state for the first time, and it posted a 1-2 record.

Callaway head coach Jason Boatman felt his wrestlers headed into the area tournament with a high degree of confidence, and that showed up on the mat.

“It’s a different expectation going into that day from last year,” Boatman said. “Last year, you’re a little bit anxious, because you’ve never gone before. This year, we treated it the same way, but our older guys they knew what they had to do when we got there. They were a little bit more familiar with the situation. They had a great week of practice and just went into that day just ready to compete.”

Facing Bremen, Callaway competed hard but came up short against a strong team.

“They’ve improved a lot since last year,” Boatman said of Bremen. “They’re really good. We gave them a fight, but they’re a little bit stronger than us in a few areas, at least on that day.”