Eric Ellis had the clinching victory Wednesday night and Boiling Springs is headed to the high school boys wrestling state championships for the first time.
The Bulldogs, seeded No. 2 in the Class AAAA Division 1 Upper State, knocked off No. 1 Blythewood, 38-36. After Ellis, a junior, won in the 150-pound division for a 14-point lead, Blythewood forfeited its remaining matches.
Boiling Springs will face Carolina Forest at 8 p.m. Saturday at Dreher High School in Columbia in the last match of the 2025 state playoffs. It will be the finale of five classifications, plus the first-ever girls championship which will start at 10 a.m.
Other key wrestlers for Boiling Springs are junior Luke Hillers at 120 pounds, junior Aidan Surratt at 132, junior Carlos Rios at 165 and senior Tyler Nesbitt at 285. Hillers finished third last season at the individuals’ finals, while Ellis and Nesbitt were fourth.
In the Class AAAAA Division 2 Upper State finals, Eastside lost to Fort Mill to end a streak of eight consecutive state championships.
Laurens beat No. 3 seed Travelers Rest and then No. 2 seed Fountain Inn to make state in Class AAAA. West-Oak reached the Class AAA state title match with a win against Belton-Honea Path. Union County and Palmetto also made the Upper State semifinals. Chester beat Liberty in Class AA.
How to watch SCHSL wrestling state championships
All SCHSL state championship wrestling matches will be shown live online by the NFHS Network. There is a monthly subscription fee of $11.99, but it can be canceled at any time. Tickets at the door will be $15. There is a clear bag policy.
Here’s the schedule on Saturday:
10 a.m. – Girls: Rock Hill vs. Greenwood
Noon – Class AA: Chester vs. Buford
2 p.m. – Class AAA: West-Oak vs. Aynor
NATIONAL SIGNING DAY: See the Upstate athletes National Signing Day 2025 list for all sports
4 p.m. – Class AAAA: Laurens vs. May River
6 p.m. – Class AAAAA Division 1: Fort Mill vs. Lugoff Elgin
8 p.m. – Class AAAAA Division 2: Boiling Springs vs. Carolina Forest
Todd Shanesy covers high school athletics for the Greenville News, Spartanburg Herald-Journal and Anderson Independent Mail in the USA TODAY Network. Contact him by email at todd.shanesy@shj.com. Follow him on X, formerly called Twitter, at @ToddShanesySHJ.
February 6, 2025 | Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC)
Author/Byline: Todd Shanesy, Spartanburg Herald-Journal | Section: Sports