It took Colin Hedash 6:48 to finally score a takedown against Hazleton's Jared Kay Tuesday night in the 171-pound finals at the Bethlehem Holiday Wrestling Classic. Fortunately, for Hedash, that one takedown in overtime was just enough to knock off the defensive Kay 3-1.

Hedash's tournament title was the glowing light from a two-day wrestling festival at Liberty, where Northern Lehigh came away with the best finish of the three Times News area participants, taking 13th overall with 91.5 points.The Bulldogs finished two spots behind Colonial League counterparts Pen Argyl (11th, 95.5) and Saucon Valley (12th, 92.5), while Lehighton came in 18th with 62 points and Northwestern rounded out the area team's with 38 points to finish 25th out of 28 schools.All points aside, the two that mattered the most, was the takedown Hedash record with 12 seconds left in overtime to register his victory."It took me long enough," said Hedash about finally scoring offensive points against Kay. "He [Kay] was more of a short, stocky build and he was real strong and hard to get around. I just knew that I had to keep changing the pace and working the angles to keep away from his strength."Hedash showed he was the more talented wrestler right from the beginning, as the light-footed Bulldog plunged his way deep on a single leg early in the first period. However, Kay muscled off his attempt and would shrug a second offensive opportunity by the Northern Lehigh junior later in the period.Kay's defensive stance prompted a stalling warning in the second period, when Hedash took a 1-0 lead following an escape. The two found themselves grid locked at 1-1 apiece after Hedash granted Kay a neutral position to start the third.But, with the seconds dwindling down on the clock in overtime, Hedash knew he didn't want to make things last any longer."I was taking a lot of sloppy shots and I wasn't countering too well," Hedash said. "I just didn't want to give him [Kay] any more time or opportunities to win. It's not the greatest win, but I'm happy with taking first place."Nikko Stevens (140) and Craemer Hedash (152) were the other two Bulldogs to medal, as both took fourth in the consolation round.Stevens lost a 1-0 affair to Rex Lutz of Pen Argyl, while Hedash outwrestled Northampton's Austin Sommer, but couldn't get the takedown needed to surprise the K-Kid, losing 3-2.Lehighton also had three place winners, paced by Jacob Hoats (103) and Briar Stern's (HWT) sixth place finishes. David Lucykanish (152) took seventh for the Indians.Northwestern's Dylan Long (112, 6th) and Eddie Faust (125, 8th) rounded out the area medals.With state title aspirations in the mind of the elder Hedash, he hopes that Tuesday's championship is a stepping stone towards bigger things this season."Winning a state championship is the only thing I'm thinking about," he said. "It's all I've been really working for this year and this is definitely a step in the right direction."