DULUTH — It had been more than 40 years since an Effingham County school won a state championship — of any kind.

Saturday evening, there was not one, not two nor three state championships won by Effingham student-athletes — there were four at the Gwinnett Center. The Effingham County High School wrestling team won its first state championship, capturing the Class AAAA title, and three wrestlers from the county also won individual titles. Effingham County senior Josh Barnhill won the first state title, winning the 112-pound division. South Effingham junior Robbie Collum followed with a win in the 140-pound division finals and Effingham County’s Kevin Ulmer beat rival Alex Wendell of South Effingham to win the crown in the 130-pound class.

“I told everybody when I came here,” Rebels coach Chris Hardin, “‘2009 state champs.’ I knew exactly what we had and what I was coming for. It’s 2009, and we’re state champs.”

The Rebels finished with 99.5 points, 18.5 ahead of Whitewater High School, and claimed the county’s first state championship since the 1968 Central High School girls basketball team won the Georgia Interscholastic Association Class AA championship.

Effingham became the first school south of Macon to win a state traditional wrestling championship in either Class AAAAA or AAAA.

“That’s a great thing,” said South Effingham coach Tom Onorato of the Rebels’ title, “not just for Effingham (County High School) or South Effingham but for all of Effingham and for all of south Georgia wrestling.”

South Effingham’s wrestling team, fourth a year ago in Class AAA, was fourth in its first Class AAAA state traditionals tournament.

For the complete story on Effingham's road to the finals, visit here. 

For the complete story on South Effingham's trip to the state finals, click here.