WELLS — The defending Maine Class A and Class B wrestling champions went back-and-forth on Wednesday with the 2017 Atlantic Invitational championship on the line.

In the end, Class A powerhouse Marshwood racked up 178.5 points to edge Class B champion Wells which finished second with 148 points in the 12-team field.

Nokomis finished third with Kennebunk and Mountain Valley finishing in a tie for fourth place. Biddeford came home in 10th place in the annual tournament, which was rescheduled after last weekend’s ice storm forced Wells to postpone the event.

Both Marshwood and Wells finished with three individual champions. Liam Coomey (126), Dave Spinney (145) and Dylan Strong (170) all captured titles for the team champions from South Berwick.

“It was good for us … we have a lot of young, first-year varsity wrestlers, and they’ve been at it for about a month-and-a-half and this was a really good day for those guys,” said Marshwood coach Matt Rix, who saw all 11 of his wrestlers place in the top four. “Everybody on the team placed, and it was a good showing for those guys to see how important it is even though you don’t win the tournament, you’re contribution is still very important.”

Wells was led once again by its upperweights as Michael Wrigley brought home the crown at 182 pounds, Nolan Potter captured the title at 220 and Sean McCormack-Kuhman steamrolled his way to the top of the podium at 285.

The Warriors got second-place finishes from Craig Chase (106), Devin Chace (152) and Drew Peters (170), and Ryan Norton grabbed a third-place finish at 120.

“I think we did alright. I had one kid that didn’t wrestle … and he was actually a number one seed so that could of helped make it a little closer,” said Wells coach Scott Lewia, who was impressed with Chase and Chace. “I had two (underclassmen) who were kind of a surprise, they both were in the finals, and that was unexpected.”

While Lewia was surprised by his younger wrestlers, he was not shocked to see Wrigley, Potter and McCormack-Kuhman come away with titles.

“My upper kids just continue to do what they’ve been doing all year,” Lewia said.

The Warriors will have a quick turnaround as they head to the always tough Noble Tournament on Friday and Saturday.

“That will obviously be a lot tougher for my younger kids, but the three big guys all placed last year,” said Lewia. “Sean and Nolan won it last year and Michael came in second, so I know they expect to do pretty much the same. If I can get a couple of my other kids in there, you never know.”

Kennebunk was led by junior Alden Shields, who picked up a fall over Marshwood freshman Sean Moriarty in the 113-pound final. Shields would pick up three pins on his way to the title.

“Alden wrestled great. There’s very little doubt that I have when Alden gets on the mat and what he’s capable of doing,” said Kennebunk coach Steve Young.

Young was happy to see Shields get a win over Moriarty, who is one of the best freshman in the state.

“(Alden is) a smart wrestler. He knows what the situation is. I mean every wrestler is bound to make a mistake, but he’s really able to limit it, and when he does he’s able to wrestle back from it and not let it overcome and wrestle a smart match. You saw him do that with Sean, who is a great wrestler and you can’t take anything away from Sean and what he’s done as a freshman on the varsity level. For Alden to go out and compete the way he did today was a testament to what he’s able to do.”

The Rams would also get a second-place finish from Cole Dickenson at 138 pounds, and Sean Radel (106), Alvaro Huezo Coto (160) and Brady Lamontagne (182) all finished in third place.

“We’ve got a really strong tournament team. The kids are doing really well and it’s a big improvement from the past,” Young said. “We’ve got a great group of kids that are just wrestling pretty well right now. They’re not quitting, they’re not giving up in tough situations, they are wrestling back when they need to and those (consolation) matches are crucial for a good team finish.”

Josiah Garcia led Biddeford with a third-place finish at 145 pounds, while teammate Peyton Bissonnette ended the day in fourth place at 120.

The other champions from Wednesday’s tournament were Mountain Valley’s Vinny Deroche (106), Nokomis’ Josh Brown (120), MCI’s ZyAnthony Moss (132), Mountain Valley’s Anthony Mazza (138), Nokomis’ Quinton Richards (152), Medomak’s Elias Miller (160) and Mountain Valley’s Darin Buono (195).

Biddeford, Kennebunk, Massabesic and Sanford will all join Wells at the Noble Tournament this weekend.

 — Sports Editor Pat McDonald can be reached at pmcdonald@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 322. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.

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