POCATELLO - It didn't take long for the Highland wrestling team to find a little extra motivation in its 47-25 win over rival Pocatello on Thursday night at Highland.

In the third match of the night, the Rams' 112-pounder Anthony Esplin faced off against Tyler Praska with the dual tied 6-6. Midway through the match, Esplin suffered a neck injury and had to take an injury timeout to regroup.

The sophomore recovered, though, and both wrestlers pushed themselves beyond exhaustion in the tight contest.

With 20 seconds remaining, the standing-room only crowd in Highland's auxiliary gym erupted when Esplin pulled away for an 11-6 decision to give the Rams a lead they would never give up.

"It really fired me up," said 119-pound junior Brenn Schiess. "He fights so hard every week, and he gets better and better every week. He's a great training partner, and he's like a brother to me."

In the past, the rivalry showdown between Highland and Pocatello came down to the last few matches, but Schiess and the rest of Rams removed all doubt early by following Esplin's emotional victory with five straight wins by pin or technical fall.

"This is a stepping stone, and we need to keep the intensity going," said Highland senior 130-pounder Tallen Bannister, who won by technical fall over Sean McClellan. "Tonight, I don't know. We just kicked butt. All our guys came out and showed the hard work that they've been putting in the room."

Along with Schiess' pin of Eddie Millward and Bannister's domination, juniors Jacob Hall (125), Nathan Nelson (135) and James Esplin (140) picked up pins during the streak.

By the time sophomore Pocatello's Matt Okelberry won a 17-9 major decision over freshman Andre Lopez in the 145-pound match, the Indians trailed 38-10.

"They just kicked our butts for about six weights in a row, and we didn't wrestle good," said Indians coach Todd Praska. "They just came out more aggressive and more physical. They were the better team tonight. There's no doubt about that."

Still, the Indians finished the dual strong, winning three of the four contested matches after Okelberry's triumph.

The highlight of that closing stretch was the 160-pound match between Pocatello's Abner Cook and Highland's Justin Allen. The two seniors wrestled to a near stalemate most of the way before Cook - the defending 4A state 145-pound champion - prevailed in a 6-4 decision.

"When you have two good kids, you want 'em to wrestle each other," Praska said. "Whoever (Cook) wrestles at state is gonna be gunning for him, and he's gotta be ready to open up and score points."

Dallas Warren picked up a pin at 171, and Wes Howard matched the feat at 215 for the Indians.

The strong finish wasn't enough, though, because of the domination the Rams showed in the lower and middle weight classes.

"Poky's a great team. I don't have anything but good things to say about them," said Highland coach Travis Bell. "To be able to come out beat 'em nine matches to five is a great momentum booster for us. Last year, Poky knocked us off, and it was hard to take."

With their victory, the Rams improved their dual record to 14-1, while the Indians fell to 11-4.

"It's a wake-up call," Praska said. "If not for the kids, then definitely for the coaches."

Highland 47, Pocatello 25

103 Brennan Bell (H) pin Taylor Higbee 3:16

112 Anthony Esplin (H) dec. Tyler Praska 11-6

119 Brenn Schiess (H) pin Eddie Millward 4:30

125 Jacob Hall (H) pin Chris Beall 3:34

130 Tallen Bannister (H) tech. fall Sean McClellan 17-1

135 Nathan Nelson (H) pin Dillon Rice 1:54

140 James Esplin (H) pin Billy Potter 4:49

145 Matt Okelberry (P) maj. dec. Andre Lopez 17-9

152 Ethan Hall (H) dec. Dylan Brigham 14-10

160 Abner Cook (P) dec. Justin Allen 6-4

171 Dallas Warren (P) pin Zack Deloera 3:52

189 Dillon Filiaga (H) forfeit

215 Wes Howard (P) pin Kasey Hacking 3:44

HWT Trevor Rupp (P) pin Gaylen Edmo 1:56