COLUMBUS — Two-time defending Division III champion Delta came into Saturday’s state dual team championships looking for another title.

Central Catholic, which had qualified for the third time to the Division II state tournament, desired a first state crown.

Delta accomplished its goal by overcoming a 23-point deficit to two-time state runner-up Dayton Christian en route to a 44-33 victory in the D-III final at Ohio State University’s St. John Arena.

Cental’s pursuit was halted again by D-II defending champion St. Paris Graham, but this time in the final. The Irish had to settle for a runner-up finish after St. Paris Graham topped Central 49-12.

Delta and St. Paris Graham became the first three-time state wrestling dual team champions.

However, the Panthers’ state-title run provided the most thrills after Dayton Christian dominated the lower weights against Delta and built a 33-10 lead with only six matches remaining.

The Panthers swept the final six matches to lock up another state championship.

“We would have liked to have not let it get quite that out of hand,” Delta coach Anthony Carrizales said. “We knew they were going to be able to score some points, but we were hoping the bleeding wasn’t going to be that bad.”

Jesse Beverly (160 pounds), Ryan Patchin (170), Mark Francis (182), Jacob Wolford (195), Devon Richards (220), and Chance Veller (285) collected victories to close out the match for the Panthers.

Richards’ pin of Andrew Zimmer at the 3:35-mark of the 220-pound match put Delta ahead 38-33 and was the first time the Panthers led in the match since Drew Mattin (106) opened the finals with a pin for the Panthers.

“It felt good to go out there and do what I did,” Richards said of his victory. “I knew all I had to [do] was win, but I just wanted to make it better for the team [and get the pin], so we can win by more.”

Veller, who recorded two pins earlier in the day, earned a win in the fnals by forfeit due to Dayton Christian not having a wrestler to go at 285.

Central’s attempt at knocking off St. Paris Graham came up short, but not completely disappointing for the Irish. They took home the second-place trophy.

“I’m proud of what we were able to accomplish,” Central coach Tony Guerra said. “It’s an honor to make it down three years in a row. I thought we went out and we competed today.”

Central’s Nate Hagan (138), Lucas Beauch (182), and J’Quan Fisher (285) won their matches against St. Paris Graham.

Fisher capped his day by pinning St. Paris Graham’s Brandon Hays at the 1:34-mark of their match. It was his third pin of the day after recording a pin in the quarterfinals and finals.

“Overall, it was a good day,” Fisher said. “We competed, but [St. Paris Graham] is a beast. They know how to wrestle.”

The Panthers and Irish looked strong in the quarterfinals and semifinals.

Delta dominated Mohawk 64-6, winning 13 of the 14 matches to start the day. Chance Veller, Jacob Wolford, Ross Rayfield, Jake Spiess, Dylan Rogers and Jesse Beverly registered pins to lead Delta to the rout.

Ryan Patchin and Dustin Marteney scored major decisions to help the Panthers’ cause.

Delta found it to be a little more difficult in the semifinals against Milan Edison, but overcame a slow start to come away 35-22 victors.

Edison owned a 13-9 lead after five matches.

The Panthers overcame the deficit by winning six of the final nine matches against Edison, including a 13-1 major decision for Dustin Marteney over Edision’s Alex Neuberger at 138, which tied the team score at 13-all.

Jesse Beverly’s 11-0 rout of Jake Staggs at 160 put Delta ahead 20-16 and the Panthers didn’t look back from that point.

Ryan Patchin followed with a pin at 170 to extend the Panthers’ lead over Edison to 26-16.

Mark Francis (182) and Veller (285) also collected wins to complete the scoring for the Panthers against Edison, solidifying another state finals match appearance for Delta.

Central reached the finals for the first time by disposing of Hamilton Ross 48-27 in a quarterfinals matchup and turning back Uhrichsville Claymont in a semifinal clash by a 41-30 result.

Central won six of the final seven matches against Hamilton Ross to score a 48-27 victory, overcoming a 24-16 deficit .

The Irish won nine of the matches against Claymont to secure their first berth into the D-II finals match.

J’Quan Fisher capped the semifinal for the Irish by making quick work of Jarrett Aubiel, scoring a pin in 57 seconds.

Contact Donald Emmons at: demmons@theblade.com, 419-724-6302 or on Twitter @DemmonsBlade.

First Published February 15, 2015, 5:04 a.m.