Wesley Baltrus, right, of Mountain Valley tries to take down Cole Tomuschat of Scarborough during a 285-pound match at the Spartan Wrestling Annual Tournament on Saturday at Sanford High School. Dave Dyer/Kennebec Journal

SANFORD — The new year just started, but for Maine high school wrestling teams, the end of the regular season is near, and postseason competition is three weeks away.

Grapplers at the Spartan Wrestling Annual Tournament — or SWAT, for short — took advantage of the two-day tournament to refine their skills in preparation of conference meets, scheduled for the end of January. The Class A and B championships are scheduled for Feb. 15 at The Colisee in Lewiston.

“I use a lot of matches in the tournament to try new things that I might use in the postseason that may work well for me,” said Massabesic sophomore Evan Boulard.

Wells and Marshwood each had two individual champions. Kylan Berry (113) and Cody Bubler (157) led the Hawks, while William Martinez (190) and Eli Potter (215) led the Warriors. The remaining Maine individual title was won by Joseph Lathwood (165) of Biddeford/Thornton Academy.

Shawsheen Valley Technical High School of Billerica, Mass. won the team championship with 244 points, followed by St. John’s Prep of Danvers, Mass. (220) and Danbury High School of Connecticut (184.5). Massabesic and Camden Hills were the highest-scoring Maine teams, tied for fifth with 141.5 points.

Boulard wrestled at 126 pounds as a freshman last season and helped the Mustangs win the Class A championship.

Now wrestling at 132 pounds, Boulard is a veteran on a team in transition that lost a large number of seniors to graduation.

“I feel confident in our team, I think we can go pretty far,” Boulard said. “We look good for a young team; there’s a lot we can improve on. But I think we can get that top three finish at states.”

For Massabesic coach Joe Eon, the SWAT is not only an opportunity to face top teams in Maine — Noble, Marshwood, Camden Hills, Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln and defending Class B champion Wells were among schools that competed — but top competition from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Rhode Island that the Mustangs could see at the New England championships in March.

“I’m still trying to get some bad habits out of (the wrestlers), I’m still trying (to get them to improve), there’s always room for improvement,” Eon said. “I want them to stay on the uphill slope and peak at the right time. There’s still some competition out there before we hit the conference championships. But I think we’re progressing well, and I think we’ll be all right.

“It’s nice to see other competition, we (usually) try to get out of state as much as we can. I don’t like to wrestle the same guys over and over again. It almost works counterproductive in a way, because (other teams) figure out how you’re wrestling and kind of close that gap. I like to expose (the team) to other techniques and what other teams are doing, so they can see that different level of competition.”

Eon isn’t alone. Noble traveled to Sanford with a split squad, with the other half competing at the Minickiello Wrestling Tournament in Keene, New Hampshire.

“It’s a great opportunity for us to get some other guys in,” Noble coach Kevin Gray said. “That’s kind of our philosophy, to try to get as many matches as possible for these guys who are in the practice room and putting in the work, get them some matches throughout the year.

“The last few weeks, you’re just trying to get some good competition, this tournament is definitely a great one and you get some good teams coming in,” Gray continued. “It’s just a matter of getting some data points for some guys and seeing where they’re at, look at some things they need to work on and try to get that sprint (to the postseason).”

Mattanawcook made the trip from Lincoln — 424 miles, round–trip — for the chance to compete.

“It’s a good eye-opener for the kids,” Mattanawcook coach Matt Landry said. “We’ve got a fairly young team this year. Making that jump from middle school to high school, I want them to jump right into it so they can see what high school wrestling is all about. These are great places to do it.”

Mt. Ararat/Brunswick sophomore Evan Kowalsky, a New England qualifying champion at 113 pounds last year, is doing situational work in an effort to find continued success in the postseason, this time at 120 pounds.

“I might focus on some legs, just as another (move) to put in my toolbox,” Kowalsky said. “I need to work a lot on top, too. I can’t hold kids down (throughout a match) and I can’t use the armbar all the time.”