DEVILS LAKE — The Devils Lake boys’ wrestling team took care of business in its final home dual on Tuesday.

Despite losing two matches by decision, each by one point — including the opening match of the evening — the Firebirds largely dominated the West Fargo Packers. Wesley Fisk, Mitchell Gerhardt and Owen Lindstrom each recorded a pin in a 44-24 victory.

Easton Encinas, who returned midseason from an injury, recorded a gutsy win by decision. Tucker Bennett secured a technical fall after leading 18-0 in the second period of his match.

“It was a great testament to faith this season, because we’ve battled a lot of injuries this year,” Devils Lake head coach Brendon Flynn said. “Lots of kids have been in and out of the lineup, and we’re finally getting healthy again. It’s just a testament to these kids and their perseverance and overcoming adversity this year.”

Cooper Dahm opened the dual with a loss in the 107 weight category. He was up 6-0 after two periods, with a takedown in each. But his opponent achieved a four-point near-fall with less than 20 seconds left to narrowly win by decision, 8-7.

Devils Lake trailed 3-0.

Four consecutive wins fueled the Firebirds to a lead. Fisk won by a pin in the first period, and Ryan Samuelson won by forfeit in an open spot.

Gerhardt led 10-2 at the end of the first period of his match in the 127 weight category, with three takedowns and an escape. His lead was trimmed to 13-7 by the third period after a West Fargo reversal and a takedown. But Gerhardt made his own reversal, then came up big when it mattered most.

“We call them 50-50 matches, where you’re kind of not sure. It could go either way,” Flynn said. “And that was one of those ones that we had to win to make sure we secured the dual tonight.”

Gerhardt pinned his opponent with 40.8 seconds left in his match. He grinded his way through the match to finish it with six points for Devils Lake.

“Mitchell just came out with a lot of confidence and wrestled free and had fun, and got the job done,” Flynn said.

Lindstrom (133) won with a pin in the second period, while already leading 10-0 in his match. His six points extended the Firebirds’ lead to 24-3.

Lindstrom, a senior committed to Bismarck State College, now has 169 career wins and 125 pins. Those are both school records.

“It just comes down to his preparation and mindset,” Flynn said. “Owen expects to win when he goes out on the mat… He’s very disciplined when it comes to how he works. Everything he does in and off practice, like his diet and everything… You get your confidence from practice, and he works his butt off. And it’s all coming together for him at the right time.”

Daniel Charboneau took a close loss by decision in the 139 to end the team’s winning streak. He led 3-1 after the first period, but it was tied 4-4 after the second period. A third-period escape gave West Fargo the edge it needed, as Charboneau didn’t achieve any points in the final two minutes.

After the loss by decision, Devils Lake was still up by a comfortable 24-6.

Bennett (145) cruised through his match. He led 11-0 after the first period and secured the technical fall with an 18-0 lead in the second period. He had two takedowns and three near-falls.

The Packers were open in the 152 weight category, so Coby Dronen Levitt won by forfeit. The score was up to 35-6.

Logan Charboneau struck first in the 160 match, going up 3-0 on a takedown. But West Fargo got back into it with a two-point reversal, and it was all moot as the Packers won by a pin.

Devils Lake was open in the 172, narrowing the score to 35-18.

Encinas, competing in the 189, came up with perhaps the most important win of the evening, completely eliminating any slim comeback hopes the Packers might have had. His match was scoreless for almost the entire first period, but he got a takedown right before the buzzer to grab a 3-0 lead.

He made another takedown in the second period to go up 6-0. But a reversal in the second period and an escape in the third slowly chipped his lead down to 6-3.

As the clock ticked in the third period, Encinas achieved a crucial takedown to give him some breathing room, now at 9-3. His opponent merely got one more escape, and so Encinas, with a score of 9-4, got the win by decision.

“Just a great, gutsy performance by him tonight,” Flynn said. “We bumped him up, and that was the best matchup for him tonight. And he just did what he had to do, and stayed focused and finished the match. And that’s what it’s about.”

Devils Lake led 38-18, and it was effectively over.

Braxton Rance didn’t get a chance to show off his dominance, as the Packers were open in the 215 weight category. In the final match of the evening, Jeremiah White took a loss by pin in the 285. But it was still a 20-point margin of victory for the Firebirds.

Devils Lake travels to Fargo South on Thursday, Feb. 6., for its final action of the regular season. The East Region Tournament is on Feb. 15, followed by the state tournament from Feb. 20-22.

“The boys are starting to peak at the right time,” Flynn said. “We’re competing with all the guys we need to. We’re making gains, and that’s where it counts… Us going back to state duals is a big deal for us, so it’s just a lot of that trust in the process. When you start the season, you can’t see the finish line. And now we’re starting to see the finish line. So starting to get excited and getting ready to compete.”