POTTSVILLE - Though Connor Frey had been there before, the Lehighton senior still savored the moment, lingering with friends and family.

So too, did teammate Tegan Durishin and Jim Thorpe's Kevan Gentile.When the Schuylkill League Wrestling Tournament ended Saturday night, the trio left Pottsville's Martz Hall with gold medals around their necks - Frey claiming his second straight individual title while Durishin and Gentile captured their first.Frey became a two-time league champion with a 3-0 decision over North Schuylkill's CJ Steinhilber, who he defeated in the 182-pound final a year ago.Frey scored early and never let Steinhilber get into a rhythm Saturday."I knew I was in better shape than the last time we wrestled," Frey noted. "So I just tried to stay offensive and once I got that first period takedown, I knew I could ride him out and that was all I needed. I didn't really try to score points in the second or third (periods) because I was comfortable with my lead."Individual accomplishments aside - and he certainly has plenty to his name - Frey was more proud of what his team accomplished at the two-day event."It feels good. It helps us put our name out there with this being our second year in the tournament," Frey said of the Indians, who began competing in the Schuylkill League in 2014. "A lot of people don't know what Lehighton wrestling is all about."But now that Tegan (Durishin) and I both got titles and we finished fourth here (as a team), hopefully we get some respect and people give us credit for what we're doing here."A year after dropping a 7-2 decision to Tamaqua's Dylan Rynkiewicz in the 138-pound final, Durishin made sure he wouldn't suffer a similar fate against Pottsville's Nathan Cromyak in their 145-pound bout.Durishin controlled the match by pushing the pace from the opening whistle en route to a 6-1 decision over Cromyak."Since I was always on the offensive there really wasn't much he could do," Durishin said of his strategy against Cromyak. "And I knew if I just kept on him I would be able to dominate the match."The same could be said for Gentile, who stayed in attack-mode to top Pottsville's Nick Onea 9-3 in their 106-pound final."It feels really good. I didn't get it last year, and haven't gotten it before, so I guess this is just icing on the cake," said Gentile, who took third a year ago.After seeing Gentile achieve seemingly everything else last season, including a fourth place finish at the PIAA Wrestling Championships, Jim Thorpe head coach Shawn Albert was happy to see Gentile finally stand atop the podium at the league tournament."For him, it's one more thing that he hadn't yet accomplished in his four years," Albert said. "It's another thing for him to put on his resume; another thing that he has not accomplished. I know he feels very good about it and we're very happy for him."While Gentile, Durishin and Frey were the only Times News area wrestlers to capture gold Saturday, a total of 18 others earned a spot on the medal stand.Panther Valley's Darren Goida (126) and Hunter Kennedy (138) each reached the final in their respective weight classes but came up short. Goida dropped a 4-2 decision to Pottsville's Richie Bentz. Pottsville's Luke Gardner earned a 17-2 (4:35) technical fall over Kennedy in their match.Bentz and Goida were tied at 2-2 after the second period, but Bentz was able to score in the third period to pull out the win.Despite the loss, the tournament and the spot in the final were certainly moments Goida will never forget."It felt great," Goida remarked. "That was my first parade of champions and being able to represent the team like that was pretty cool."Both Panther Valley and Lehighton finished the tournament with eight medals apiece. The Indians (134) placed fourth in the team standings, just behind North Schuylkill (135), while the Panthers (120.5) finished fifth. Blue Mountain (193.5) won the team title for the third straight year, narrowly edging host Pottsville (193).With districts just a few weeks away, Lehighton head coach Danny Williams was pleased with what he saw from his team."This really was their first action of the year that kind of simulated the postseason," Williams said. "You're working your way through a two-day tournament, taking it match-by-match, and to see guys go through an event like this and end up as champs, you know that's just setting them up for what they want to do come districts."You see the work they put in each week, every day, so it's nice to see it pay off for them."MEDALIST ... Third-place finishers from the Times News area were Lehighton's Nate Kemmerer (106), Tamaqua's Tanner McHugh (126), Panther Valley's Ali Capobianco (152), who earned a 4-0 decision over the Indians' Cody Scherer in their bout, and Jim Thorpe's Robbie Geisinger (170). Fifth-place finishers included Jim Thorpe's John Newhall (113) and Cameron Condly (152), Panther Valley's Justin Ogozalek (120), Tanner Kennedy (132) and Dylan Moyer (182). Lehighton's Dylan Schock pinned the Panthers' Xander Kern in their 160-pound fifth-place match. Xander Smith (285) also took fifth for the Indians. Finishing in sixth-place were Panther Valley's Miguel Santiago (106) and Lehighton's Logan Pagotto (113) and Zachary Kemmerer (126).ON TOP … Tri-Valley's Sammy Hepler, who took gold at 132 pounds for his third straight individual Schuylkill League title, was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler. Hepler pinned all three of his opponents.