In its final regional wrestling appearance, Skyview captured the team championship at the Kachemak Conference tournament Saturday at Nikiski High School.

The Panthers accumulated 234.5 points, 29 more than runner-up Houston, and qualified 12 wrestlers to the Class 1-2-3A state meet next weekend at Anchorage Christian Schools.

Skyview High School hosted it’s last wrestling dual meet on Saturday afternoon, and the gym sent off its wrestlers with a 60-17 dual win over the Homer Mariners in front of the fans and supporters for the final time.

For head coach Neldon Gardner, who was honored in a celebration after the competition in the commons area outside the gym, the dual felt like just another meet in a long line of competitions throughout the years.

The moment Neldon Gardner stepped into the brand new Skyview High School in 1990, he did not quite envision that he would leave as the only wrestling coach the school ever knew.

Of course, he also didn’t envision the school would only be open for 24 years.

“Well I knew I was going to do it for a long time,” Gardner said at the Luke Spruill Duals at Kenai on Tuesday. “This is 31 years of coaching for me. When I graduated college, that’s what I wanted to do, was coach. I love it.”

With the constant changing of weather conditions, wax selection and varying terrain, cross-country skiing places a premium on adaptation.

Each year, every high school ski team in the state is invited to send a varsity team of competitors to the state meet, which is a three-day event in late February. This year, it will be held from the Feb. 21 to 23 at Kincaid Park in Anchorage.

Not only is three days of racing a tasking endeavour on the body, but to cap off a 3.5-month season — high school’s longest — with such an event only adds to the strain.