Yes, its true. For the first time in five years, the Hermiston Bulldogs didnt win the Class 5A division at the Oregon Wrestling Classic.

For those in shock, thats fine. Be in shock.

But, like any season in any sport, theres more to the season than just one tournament.

For those who of you that are having a hard time with this, theres really no need. The Dawgs are fine.

The state championship is not on the line at the Classic, and until Hermiston has been removed from the Class 5A throne in the Memorial Coliseum in Portland, they are still the kings.

Granted, most teams dont dominate a single tournament like the Dawgs have the Classic over the years, but the fact remains that winning isnt easy. Especially in high school, winning multiple championships of any tournament is tough and the way the Dawgs have done it has been simply and utterly silly.

Dallas, the team that defeated the Dawgs 34-25 in the final at the Classic, is an extremely talented bunch of guys. Hermiston head coach Curt Berger called them a great team and the Dragons will be one of the teams looking to snatch the gold from Hermistons hands come state tournament time.

Dallas is really coming after us hard, Berger said. Winning the state title wont be easily. It never is.

Dallas solidified its place in the discussion as one of the real threats to Hermiston in the team title race at state, but like Berger said, winning a state wont be easy for anyone.

We could be first and we could be fifth depending how the numbers work out, Berger said. It will definitely be a tight race.

The Dawgs, with injuries and other circumstances that have kept some wrestlers off the mat, still havent put together their best lineup, at least from the coaching staffs perspective.

If Im the rest of Class 5A, Im still worried about the Hermiston Bulldogs.

Dallas put together a fantastic dual match to beat them, and they should be proud of what they did (something five years worth of opponents couldnt do, beat Hermiston) but the work isnt done for the Dragons. I am sure they know that.

If you use past finishes and this years results to project a state tournament mock finish, the numbers are heavily weighted toward the Hermiston end of the state spectrum. The state tournament is a numbers game if you qualify a bunch of guys, your chances of winning go up with every single wrestler. Hermiston will send plenty of guys to Portland.

Moving forward, Berger said the next couple weeks will be interesting. While they arent sure what they are going to do with a tournament in Hillsboro on Jan. 21 since the team is kind of beat up with various ailments and injuries, he knows hell put his best on the Resers Tournament of Champions mat if possible.

Its the one chance every season Hermiston gets to have a crack at Class 6A titan Roseburg, and this year it will have an added subplot with Dallas also at the tournament.

Berger said it could be easier to take out Dallas at the TOC because the tournament is bigger numbers-wise than the 5A tournament.

More competitors mean more people to pick-off opponents along the road to the championship, but when flipped around it also means a Dawg or two could bow out earlier than expected.

So fans, dont put yourself under house arrest or climb in your oven over this tournament. The Dawgs wrestled well, but it just so happened Dallas was better on that day. My hat is off to them.

Who is the better team? Well find out February 27, but my gut feeling says its the guys wearing purple and gold.

Billy is the sports editor for the Hermiston Herald. Contact him by e-mail at bgates@hermistonherald.com. You can also follow him on Twitter under the handle @BillyGatesHH.