Auburn had an ace in the hole Saturday night during the South Puget Sound League North Division sub-district wrestling tournament at Kent-Meridian High.

And as luck would have it, that ace just so happened to be the best wrestler in the entire league and possibly the state — 189-pound star Jake Swartz.

Needing a pin to officially seal the tournament title, Swartz provided just that, dispatching Kentlake’s Zach Hogan in 2:16, giving the Trojans an insurmountable team lead over rival and North Division champion Tahoma.

“Before the match, my coach (John Aiken) told me to go out there and get a pin,” said Swartz, who improved to 29-1 this season and 141-12 for his career. “I’m just glad to do what I could for my team because we all worked really hard. It’s pretty cool knowing I can make a difference.”

It was just enough difference to help the Trojans distance themselves from the second-place Bears. Auburn took home the team title with 338 points followed closely by Tahoma (334). Kentwood finished a distant third with 258.5 points followed by Kentlake (240).

Auburn entered the championship round clinging to a 324-316 advantage over Tahoma in the team race. Both teams had seven wrestlers in the finals and were paired up at 171 and 215.

Tahoma’s Nick Bayer, who won the 160-pound state title last year and who now competes at 171, got the Bears to within two points (332-330) with a 9-6 decision over Dylan Rutledge.

Then Swartz delivered the pin that pushed the Trojans over the top.

Auburn’s Aiken felt pretty comfortable with the title on the line and his top wrestler ready to take charge.

“We felt pretty good about that,” Aiken said. “We knew what was going on. We were watching what was happening with their guys and projecting what we might be able to do. You project it far enough along and then have Jake in there as your swing guy and you feel pretty good about things.”

Of course, Swartz would not have been in that pivotal position had it not been for teammates Kelly Maughan (125) and Graham Davis (152). Maughan knocked off Jefferson’s Ivan Mukomol, 4-1. Five matches later, Graham defeated Jefferson’s Zeke Nistrian, 7-4.

“I wanted to battle for my team so we could get the league championship,” said Maughan, who improved to 25-4 this season. “It has been our motivation ever since the dual (last week when Tahoma beat Auburn, 42-17).”

The top five wrestlers in each weight class punched tickets to next Friday and Saturday’s regional tournament at Snohomish High. The top five wrestlers in each weight class from the regional tournament advance to state, which is slated for Feb. 20-21 at the Tacoma Dome.

Auburn and Tahoma each advanced a sub-district high 14 wrestlers to the regional tournament followed by Kentwood (9), Kentlake (8), Kentridge (7), Kent-Meridian (6), Auburn Riverside (6) and Thomas Jefferson (6).

The tournament win for the Trojans was in doubt throughout Saturday as a computer glitch led to incorrect team scores during much of the tournament. It wasn’t until the final match of the tournament — when Kentwood’s Nathan Herrick outlasted Auburn’s Nick Conlan 5-4 in triple overtime — that officials were able to declare a team winner.

“It is what it is,” Tahoma coach Chris Feist said. “Auburn came out and wrestled great. They made a lot of good adjustments from our dual. They wanted it more than our kids did. They came out here and wrestled harder than Tahoma tonight and it showed. That’s why they beat us.”

While Swartz helped the Trojans bring home top honors, Auburn Riverside’s Michael Turner (119) also continued to shine.

The senior, a three-time state participant, pinned Kentwood’s Eric Alonzo in 4:55 to secure the 119-pound crown.

“I feel like I am starting to come along and hopefully I can bring home a medal from state this year,” said Turner, who improved to 31-4 this season.

Turner was the lone Auburn Riverside wrestler to advance to the championship round.

Team scores: 1, Auburn 338; 2, Tahoma 334; 3, Kentwood 258.5; 4, Kentlake 240; 5, Thomas Jefferson 196.5; 6, Kentridge 161; 7, Kent-Meridian 126; 8, Auburn Riverside 125; 9, Federal Way 27.

Championship round: 103: Ruben Navejas (KW) md. Jesus Valdez (K-M), 13-0. 112: Nick Aliment (KR) d. Hayden Petersen (KW) 7-2. 119: Michael Turner (AR) p. Eric Alonzo (KW), 4:55. 125: Kelly Maughan (A) d. Ivan Mukomol (TJ), 4-1. 130: Jordan Higa (T) d. Billy Creighton (KW), 6-4. 135: Tyler Lamb (T) wins by injury default. 140: Cody Quinn (KW) p. J.R. Rea (T) 2:47. 145: Austin Carrillo (KL) d. John Buban (T), 6-4. 152: Graham Davis (A) d. Zeke Nistrian (TJ) 7-4. 160: Greg Eley (KL) p. Michael Karpstein (A), :29. 171: Nick Bayer (T) d. Dylan Rutledge (A), 9-6. 189: Jake Swartz (A) p. Zach Hogan (KL), 2:16. 215: Konner Knudtsen (T) d. Chris Young (A), 8-6, OT. 285: Nathan Herrick (KW) d. Nick Conlan (A) 5-4, 3 OT.