The state wrestling championship quests for the three remaining Chronicle Country teams came to an end on Feb. 8. 

Gilbert, River Bluff and Chapin were all defeated in Lower and Upper State final matchups on the road.

The Eagles were the closest to advancing as their Class 5A Upper State final with Fort Mill came down to the final match. After trailing 27-3, Chapin won three of the next four matches by pinfall to get within two points.

The two teams exchanged pinfalls in the heavyweight classes before Fort Mill claimed the 106-pound matchup by decision to win 36-31.

The Yellow Jackets will now face Summerville, which defeated River Bluff 39-24. In eliminating the Gators for the second straight year, the Green Wave opened with four consecutive pinfall victories to take a 24-0 lead.

River Bluff managed to win four matches by decision, including three straight at 160, 170 and 182. Summerville's Mason Ayers sealed the victory for the Green Wave with a pin at 195 pounds.

With a comfortable lead, Summerville forfeited for the final two matches.

It was also déjà vu for Gilbert as it met Aynor in the Class 3A Lower State final. This time, it was at the home of the Blue Jackets who once again earned a state final appearance with the 53-18 win.

In front of a spirited home crowd, the Blue Jackets won six matches via pin and another two by major decision, riding bonus points to punch their ticket to Saturday’s state finals match.

“These guys don’t quit, and I just love that about them,” Aynor head coach Billy Jones said after the win. “When the odds are stacked against them, they continue to push through. They didn’t quit, matches went our way, and it was just a great night.”

Aynor opened up the night with a pair of pins from Jaret Edwards (113 pounds) and Stephen Carroll (120 pounds) to ignite momentum early.

Gilbert bounced back at the next two weights, posting two first-period pins of their own, including one within the first two minutes from Leo Iniguez at 132 pounds to tie the match at 12.

The road team was able to light a spark — but after that bout at 132 pounds, the Blue Jackets were simply relentless.

Aynor went on to win 10 of the last 11 bouts, picking up the lower state crown in convincing fashion.

“We were behind each other all night," Gilbert head coach Mitch Hudson said. "We had 30 people weigh in tonight, and 29 people were always supporting that one on the mat. I think that’s the secret to a good team. But Aynor had that too. They have a solid team. It was as good as we could be tonight, but it just wasn’t enough.”

Aynor will face defending state chanpion West-Oak in the Feb. 11 final at Dreher High School. The Warriors are coached by former longtime Lexington head coach Derek Strobel. 

With the team season over, up next are the individual qualifiers which take place Feb. 17-18, followed by the championships Feb. 24-25 at the Anderson Civic Center.

Joe Wedra of the Horry Independent contributed to this report.