File photo – Brandon Hillegeist in action at last month’s McKinleyville tournament.

It took them a while to get going this season, but the McKinleyville Panthers are coming off their most impressive showing yet at the two-day No Guts No Glory wrestling tournament in Sacramento last week.

Five Mack grapplers placed in the top seven in their brackets, including senior Willy Baumgarten, whose only loss came against the No. 11 wrestler in the state.

As a team, the Panthers placed 13th out of 60 teams at the big tournament which was hosted by Natomas High School.

“That was a pretty good showing for such a young team,” head coach Virgil Moorehead said. “It was a good two days of wrestling.”

The team got off to a slow start this season, in large part because so many of them were involved in the Panthers’ playoff run in football, and also because of the prevailing sickness that has affected just about every team in every sport this winter.

But the Panthers are coming together at an opportune time, with the H-DNL dual meet season kicking off this week.

“That was the first real healthy team performance we had,” Moorehead said of last week’s tournament.

After his loss, Baumgarten battled back to place third in the 132-pound bracket, and he wasn’t the only Panther to impress over the two days.

Junior Jace Thomson competed at 152 pounds and placed fifth, while three Mack sophomores all got some valuable experience with top-seven finishes.

At 126 pounds, Brandon Hillegeist placed fifth, while Lucas Dickey was sixth at 145 and Damarius Thompson was seventh at 132.

The Panthers’ scheduled league dual meet opener at Del Norte was postponed on Wednesday because of the weather and power outrages around the North Coast.

As of Wednesday afternoon, it appears as if that meet, which also includes Ferndale, will take place on Friday instead.