Trey Hoppe started the comeback with a 5:15 pin over Elijah Clark.
Jet Wayne followed suit at 152, sticking Tanner Hall of Century in 5:11.
Tyler Logan pulled the Panthers within 26-22 when he rolled to an 11-3 decision over Rochester’s Elijah Hollins at 160 pounds.
Dillon Parpart gave NRHEG its first lead of the match at 170, needing just 50 seconds to put Isaiah Domally on his back.
At 182, Nick Bartness won an injury default to put the Panthers up by eight points.
Both teams forfeited the final three bouts to make the 34-26 final.
NRHEG faced Stewartville in the semifinals. The Tigers crushed Rochester Mayo 58-22 in the opening round.
NRHEG jumped to a 9-0 lead by winning the first two matches. Matt Butler started things at 106 with a first-period fall will 11 seconds remaining.
At 113, Cole Lenort captured a tough 4-2 verdict over Joey Thompson of Stewartville.
The Tigers bounced back with six straight wins to open up a 30-9 advantage. The closest of NRHEG’s losses in that stretch was Peterson’s 5-0 loss at 126.
But, the Panthers were far from finished. They won the final six matches to earn the victory.
Logan started things with a 2:50 pin over Stewartville’s Aaron Clark at 160.
At 170, Parpart captured a 7-3 verdict over Travis Capelle of the Tigers.
Bartness picked up a huge win at 182, edging Stewartville’s Jamie Gehring 5-4.
Keith Maxon pulled the Panthers within 40-27 with a first-period fall (1:19) over Troy Bailey.
Zeke Erickson put NRHEG on top with a 34-second pin against Stewartville’s Dawson Grotjohn at 220.
With the match on the line, Wyatt Fitterer stuck Kyle Lipkie of the Tigers in 1:35.
Powerful Simley won 12 of 14 weight classes to cruise to a 59-9 victory over the Panthers in the championship match. Simley is ranked fourth in the state.
Simley decided things in a hurry, winning the first nine matches to take a 47-0 lead.
Parpart captured the first NRHEG win at 170. He decisioned Alex Kirchert 6-2.
Todd Erickson was the only other Panther winner, taking the 285 match. Erickson needed just 54 seconds to put Simley’s Marcos Andrade on his back.
Bartness and Maxon had the only other close matches against Simley. Bartness dropped a 17-12 verdict, while Maxon was on the short end of a 15-12 decision.
“Simley is a powerhouse,” said Larson. “We gave them our best effort, but they are tremendously good.”
Parpart won all three of his matches during the day, while Erickson and Fitterer were both 1-0.
Bartness and Logan both went 2-1 for the day.
“We have several skills to improve on, but our competitive spirit was there,” said Larson. “If our wrestlers continue to work as hard as they have been, I can’t wait to compete again.”
NRHEG returns to action Dec. 12 when Medford comes to town for the Gopher Conference opener.
