Regardless, Diaz was up to the test and was determined to bring a medal home Saturday from Xcel Energy Center.

With a concise win over Minnewaska Area’s Chase Smith in a Class A, 120-pound fifth-place match Saturday, Diaz was able to do that.

“It means a lot,” Diaz said of winning a fifth-place medal. “I’ve been working for this all year, finally got here, didn’t let the losses get to me, just kind of moved on and got the next best thing.”

Diaz and Smith, the seventh- and eighth-ranked Class A wrestlers at 120 pounds, respectively, had different paths to the fifth-place match.

Staff photo by Travis Rosenau Wabasso’s Chase Irlbeck, bottom, wrestles Long Prairie-Grey Eagle-Browerville’s Tate Twardowski during a Class A consolation quarterfinals matchup at 182 pounds Saturday at Xcel Energy Center.

Diaz earned a win in the opening round Friday before falling to Blackduck-Cass Lake-Bena’s Donovan Schmid in the winner’s bracket semifinals.

Schmid ended up ending his season undefeated at 46-0 with a Class A state title Saturday with an overtime win over Simon Kruse of St. Clair/Mankato Loyola.

After the loss to Schmid, Diaz then had to win a second match Friday in a wrestleback over Frazee’s Blake Sonnenberg to wrestle again Saturday.

Smith dropped his first match on Friday and had to win his way into Saturday with a wrestleback. He then defeated Tracy-Milroy-Balaton/Westbrook-Walnut Grove’s David Schuh in the consolation quarterfinals before falling to Wyatt Novitzki of Holdingford in the consolation semifinals, setting up the fifth-place match with Diaz.

Diaz wasted no time against Smith, getting a takedown less than 10 seconds into the first period. Diaz then worked Smith into an arm bar pin attempt and got the pin in 1:34.

“I was just doing the stuff that’s been working,” Diaz said of hiw win over Smith. “I just did a nice fireman’s [takedown], just got a bar from there and it was over.”

Diaz opened the consolation quarterfinals with a 6-0 decision over Brayden Burmeister of Pipestone Area, getting a takedown in the first period, a reversal in the second and a takedown in the third.

Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg freshman Trey Gunderson was waiting for Diaz in the consolation semifinals, however, and was determined to shake off his earlier 4-3 semifinals loss to Saint Clair/Mankato Loyola’s Simon Kruse.

That loss to Kruse was Gunderson’s first of the year.

Gunderson scored first with a takedown late in the first period, but Diaz reversed Gunderson to tie the match at 2-all after one. Gunderson chose to start the second period from the bottom and quickly gained an escape point 11 seconds into the period.

Gunderson then added a takedown in the final 30 seconds of the period to go up 5-2. Diaz was then unable to respond in a scoreless third period as Gunderson earned a 5-2 decision to move on to a third-place match.

Diaz then cruised by Smith in the fifth-place matchup.

CLASS A AREA ROUNDUP

Also from the area, Wabasso’s Chase Irlbeck saw his prep career come to a close early on Saturday with a loss to Long Prairie-Grey Eagle-Browerville senior Tate Twardowski in the consolation quarterfinals. Twardowski got an early 2-0 lead with a takedown in the first period before reversing Irlbeck early in the second for a pin in 2:27.

Irlbeck ends his senior year with a 33-16 record.

Lake Crystal Wellcome Memorial Area’s Ryder Antony was pinned by West Central Area-Ashby-Brandon-Evansville’s Owen Gruchow in the consolation bracket on Saturday, ending Antony’s time in the state tourney with a 1-2 finish.