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Sam Deseriere has been unflappable all season as the Mullen senior pursues a repeat Class 3A heavyweight聽championship. He is 39-0 after an聽18-7 major decision over Valley’s Tristan Stoos on Thursday at the state wrestling tournament at the Pepsi Center.

Also in the 285-pound bracket in Class 3A is another Sam who looks equally capable of making a championship run. Bayfield senior Sam Westbrook, who improved to 39-0 with a first-period pin of Lamar’s聽Austin Hall, is aiming for the top of the podium after his third-place finish among heavyweights last year.

“Those two guys are clearly the best in their weight class this season, and the prospect of them meeting in the finals is really exciting for fans,” Mullen coach Vince Massey said. “It’s a big arena when you get out there to compete, but they’ve both been here before, and each is more than capable of keeping things in front of him on the way to Saturday night’s finals.”

Deseriere and Westbrook are the only undefeated wrestlers left in Class 3A, and聽Deseriere sent Westbrook home each of the past two seasons. Last year, it was by way of a 10-5 decision in the quarterfinals. And the season before, Deseriere won 5-2 in a consolation match.

Deseriere is hungrier than ever as another showdown with Westbrook looms. He embraced a no-days-off mentality during the offseason, and is hyper-focused on staying in the moment 鈥� “I don’t even look at the names of the guys I’m wrestling,” he said 鈥� as he prepares for a quarterfinal match against Delta junior聽Logan Church (39-2) on Friday.

“Last year I went just completely crazy with my training in the summer, because I want to win this one so bad,” said Deseriere, who has an offer from CSU-Pueblo but is undecided on his college plans.聽“All that work and conditioning is paying big dividends now, because I can shoot as much as I want. I’ve been shooting 20, 30 times a match, and not聽many people can stop those shots.”

Deseriere and Westbrook聽have different styles out on the mat, and that was magnified Thursday in their opening-round matches. Deseriere used a lethal combination of聽speed and finesse to wear down his opponent over three periods, while the Hulk-like Westbrook used brute strength to post a quick pin.

That advantage in strength is something Westbrook, who has won the majority of his matches this season by pin, clearly has capitalized on. Westbrook is set to face Denver North聽senior聽Josias Chavez in the quarterfinals, with a potential semifinal showdown after that against Sheridan senior聽Ricky Ayala (21-5), who took home the 220聽title last year.

“A lot of this year’s success comes from my work ethic, because I’ve been dreaming of a state title聽since I started wrestling,” said Westbrook, who will be an offensive lineman for the CSU-Pueblo football team. “But last year I was a bit too aggressive at state, and that caused me to make some mistakes. So that taught me to be smarter when I wrestle, and that’s allowed me to stay undefeated coming into the tournament.”

Both wrestlers are worthy of being a state champion, but only one can stand atop the podium. Who that ends up being depends largely on the mental approach of Deseriere and聽Westbrook the rest of the tournament, an intangible that should be relatively easy to control because of their confidence and calm demeanor under the bright lights of the Pepsi Center.

“Being relaxed is key,” Deseriere said. “For the next few days, you’ll find me in the stands playing games on my phone, just hanging out until I come down to the mats and I flip that switch.”