After Pleasant Valley’s Evan Gillespie and Andrew Mihalichko lost their opening round bouts at the PIAA Northeast Regional Class 3A tournament Friday night, head coach James Weiss didn’t have a sense of panic.

Wrestling in the consolation rounds wasn’t new for the Bears’ duo, but being at regionals was a first for both, which may have showed on day one.

The risk of being in the consolation bracket during Friday’s night cap showcased the highs and lows at Liberty’s Memorial Gymnasium.

Mihalichko (285) recouped mentally from an 8-0 major decision loss to Selinsgrove’s Jack Peters in the round of 16 with a 2-1 win over Will Riley of Academy at Palumbo.

Gillespie’s fate wasn’t the same at 215, as his season came to an end with a 6-1 SV defeat to East Stroudsburg South’s Jasiah Rodriguez in the consolation round.

Being rookies to the regional scene presents nerves that all wrestlers are prone to. Unfortunately, only Mihalichko survived the night in Bethlehem.

“They can both throw on a stoic face, but there’s nerves,” Weiss said. “It’s their first time and it’s probably the biggest tournament they’ve ever wrestled at. I think they just needed some time after those [opening] losses. That’s what every athlete needs because there’s nothing I was going to tell them to change what happened.”

Gillespie pinned Rodriguez in the quarterfinals last week at districts, but couldn’t get his offense going in the rematch.

Both wrestlers settled for a 1-1 draw going into sudden victory, where Rodriguez scored the winning takedown and back points for a revenge win.

His first match of the day wasn’t any better, as he got pinned by Crestwood’s Lincoln Bibla in 4:19.

Mihalichko was fortunate to score the winning escape in the third period after Riley locked hands in the period, giving the PV senior the point that became the difference between winning and going home.

“I stayed smart in the ties and had good defense on his shots,” said Mihalichko. “I thought it was a good performance. It was so important for me to bounce back after losing. This is my senior year and I want to be on that podium.”

Wrestling picks back up at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday with the second round of consolations. Two wins will push Mihalichko to the Giant Center.

“Andrew needs to dig into his tool box and not just stay with what he’s comfortable with,” said Weiss. “He’s got other tools, but he was sticking with his highest percentage things and that’s just nerves really.”

Jim Thorpe’s Aidan Sterling did not participate in Friday’s action after qualifying for regionals with a fourth place finish at districts a week ago at 215.

Sterling was scratched from the tournament on Wednesday, which pushed East Stroudsburg South’s Jasiah Rodriguez into the tournament after taking sixth at districts.

The Jim Thorpe senior finishes his senior season with a 31-3 record.