MARIETTA - Pope and Sprayberry both advanced to the semifinals of the Region 5AAAA duals after Friday's action at the Hound Pound.

The teams reached that point under different circumstances.

The top-seeded Greyhounds, who are seeking their first 5AAAA crown after winning three straight 6AAAAA titles, pounded quarterfinal opponent South Paulding right from the start en route to a 60-12 victory.

Preston Markwell and Louis Lombardi won the first two bouts via pin at 125 and 130 pounds, respectively, to get the Greyhounds, who received a first-round bye, off to a quick start.

Pope earned seven pins from its wrestlers, including Jake Henson (140), Joseph Arcieri (152), Joey Tabaccino (171), Wesley Smith (189) and Tyler Haskin (103).

Wrestling in only his second match after returning from an injury, Brooks Climmons captured a technical fall win at 160. Curran McMahon (215) won via forfeit, while T.J. Collins (112) and Tucker Coltek (119) won by decision and major decision, respectively.

Pope will face last year's Area 5AAAAA duals champion, East Paulding, in today's semifinal.

"We started out the match in the right way," Pope coach Jim Haskin said. "Our 125-pounder, Preston Markwell, who's only a sophomore, got a big pin right out of the gate, and the guys just kept rolling. Kids got pins. There were a couple of losses, but, all in all, we wrestled well.

"We have some young guys on this team, but they're all working hard and they know how to win. It means a lot to me to see that they're all giving a solid effort out there."

While Pope rolled to a win, Sprayberry struggled in its quarterfinal before taking a 40-31 victory over Paulding County. The Yellow Jackets rallied from an 18-6 deficit to take a 34-18 lead with four bouts remaining, but only found themselves leading 34-31 heading into the final contest at 119 pounds.

After a scoreless first period, David Anderson escaped from his oppponent, then proceeded to score a takedown and a second-period pin at 3:41 to clinch the match for the Yellow Jackets, who will face No. 2 seed Alexander in the semifinals.

Corey Hursch (135), Stephen Ogletree (152), and Seth Fox (171) each won via pin for Sprayberry, which topped Villa Rica 66-12 in the first round. Nathan Tranter (160) and Brett Haley (215) won by forfeit. Collin Schalk (189) recorded a major decision.

"We lost every key match, but pulled an upset at the end with Anderson," Sprayberry coach Gary DeHaven said. "We didn't wrestle our best match, but we're in the semifinals. Getting the forfeit at 160, and Fox winning at 171, was huge for us. That was a big part of the match.

"We got through that and got what we needed later to win."

Kell beat Lithia Springs 72-12 in the first round, but fell 43-30 to Alexander in the quarterfinals.

Alec Stringer (140), Michael Lattizori (152), Matt McCrory (160), Chris Gaines (215), Cody Ashway (112) and Ryan Mullaly (119) posted wins for the Longhorns against Alexander.

"We had some matches that could have gone either way, and a couple I thought we should have had," Kell coach Steve Lattizori said. "But I like where we are as a team. We have to be mentally ready to go (today)."

Kell fell to today's consolation bracket, where it will face either Chapel Hill or Hiram.

Osborne lost its first-round match against South Paulding and will take on Paulding County in the consolations.