Cumberland Valley's Patrick Duggan sat along the boards on the Giant Center floor.
There was no smile. No celebration. Duggan was a little winded and had a look of disgust on his face.
All this, and he won. But when you are a wrestler the caliber of Duggan, you expect more.
It's not that his performance was poor in a 7-2 quarterfinal win over North Hills' Drew Walker. It just didn't meet his standards. Especially considering it came during the PIAA Wrestling Championships.
"I'm trying to hold weight, and it drains you," Duggan said. "I'm just not wrestling my best right now, but I keep going for six minutes.
"I could have easily stopped, but I have to battle to the end and was able to do it in that match."
Duggan held a narrow 3-2 lead in his 132-pound bout with time ticking away in the third period. The Eagles sophomore looked gassed, but he mustered enough strength to secure another takedown and two near-fall points.
The bad news is that Duggan was in a tight match late. The good news is that he was still able to close out the decision with a flurry despite not having his best stuff.
"Knowing I'm not wrestling my best and still winning, it feels good," Duggan said. "It shows me what I'm capable of if I wrestle better."
Duggan will need to be better in his 9 a.m. semifinal match Saturday against Connellsiville's Ethan Kenney.
A year ago, Duggan made it to the semifinals before losing to Blue Mountain's Corey Keener and eventually finished fourth.
"I'm very motivated," Duggan said. "They will have to kill me to win. I'm going as hard as I can for the full six minutes.
"[Ethan Kenney] is a solid kid, but I've wrestled a lot of top kids and know I can beat him."
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