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LEXINGTON - After 16 years at the Frankfort Convention Center, the state wrestling championships moved to a new venue this year.

The dirt show floor inside Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park was covered with temporary flooring and allowed for six wrestling matches to take place at once.

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“It’s like everything else, it probably could use a little fine-tuning here and there, but what a showcase facility to let these kids have those premier matches in,” Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) commissioner Julian Tackett said before Saturday’s finals.

The 5,700-seat arena opened in 2010 for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. The KHSAA signed a three-year agreement to hold the state championships at the venue, Tackett said.

“This place has a little room to grow for the fanbase,” Tackett said. “We’ve got a huge percentage of our kids that actually compete in wrestling are competing in the state tournament. I don’t know how much more realistic growth there is, but this is certainly a better way to culminate the year.”

Crowds for both days of the state meet were strong. Saturday’s crowd of 4,917 was the largest ever for the state finals.

ERVIN ENDS RUSCHELL’S REIGN: Ryle senior T.J. Ruschell returned to the finals after winning the 119-pound title last year. His opponent in the 126-pound final was Union County sophomore Brock Ervin, the top-ranked wrestler in the weight class, according to KentuckyWrestling.com, and last year’s state champion at 112 pounds.

Ervin won the match, 5-4.

HEY JUDE: Simon Kenton junior Hiero Chamblee entered the state meet ranked 15th in the 170-pound weight class. He reached the finals where he lost 6-3 to J.J. Jude of Johnson Central.

Signed to play football at Eastern Kentucky University, Jude became the state’s all-time leading rusher this past season and is ranked No. 1 in his wrestling weight class. He finished the season 53-0.

LOCAL ROUNDUP: Of the 17 wrestlers from Northern Kentucky who reached the semifinals in their weight classes, title hopes were dashed for seven.

Simon Kenton freshman Elijah Owens finished fourth at 106 pounds. Ryle advanced three juniors to the semifinals - Gus Adams (fifth at 113 pounds), Keegan North (sixth at 120 pounds) and Corey Ahern (third at 132 pounds).

Simon Kenton junior Joey Parrott finished fourth at 120 pounds.

Campbell County sophomore Sean Fausz lost to Union County sophomore Brock Ervin at 126 pounds. Ervin won the 112-pound title last year and returned to the finals on Saturday. Fausz finished third.

Dixie Heights senior Charlie Cornett lost to top-rated Larue County senior Drew Newberry in the 220-pound semifinals and finished fifth.

In other results: Walton Verona sophomore Clay Brown lost his quarterfinal match but wound up winning third place at 120 pounds. Simon Kenton junior Drew Harris (132) suffered a second-round loss but came back to finish fifth while teammates David Bergman and Colin Patrick finished seventh at 195 and 285 pounds.

Dixie Heights senior Anthony Castellano rebounded from a second-round loss at 126 pounds to finish fifth. Teammate Austin Jackson, a sophomore, wound up eighth at 138 pounds after losing his first-round match. Boone County junior Sam Steele lost his second-round match Friday but finished eighth in the 182-pound weight class.