CITRUS HEIGHTS — One second Andrew Naleway was on his back floundering and 10 seconds later he was standing in the center circle with his hand raised as a Pioneer Valley League champion.

The Placer High sophomore scored a second-round pin against Bear River’s Chris Hankins to highlight a first-place effort for the Hillmen Thursday at the Pioneer Valley League Wrestling Championships.

Naleway won the 112-pound title, helping Placer take the team championship.

“I went for a shot and I didn’t really follow through like I’d been practicing and he put me on my back,” Naleway said. “I knew he was a really good wrestler on top, but I knew he had a tendency to get too high up. I just waited for him to shift and then I went for the throat.”

Two matches later, Naleway’s good friend Joe Thornton held off Mesa Verde’s Anthony Torres to claim the championship at 125. Mitchell Maddox followed with a victory in the 130 title match.

Bear River, which placed third as a team, got a tough break when senior Josiah Georgeson lost 5-4 in the title bout at 145. Georgeson was in position to get a third-round pin when the referee blew the whistle because of blood on Georgeson’s face.

Bruins senior Jarrett Paoletti helped make up for Georgeson’s loss with a superb effort in the following match. He broke open a close match against Lincoln’s Renard Shaw to score an 11-4 decision for the title at 152.

“In the third period I had to go — try my hardest and leave it all on the mat and I did,” Paoletti said. “This means a lot to me because last year I got second place in league on a weird call at the end and it feels good to come back and show I belong.”

Placer juniors Carl Pavich (135) and Jake Styler (215) both placed second. Dalton Richardson (119), Aaron Maddox (140), Steven Cox (145), Tyler Hickman (160) and Daniel Weathers (171) all earned bronze medals.

The top four finishers in each weight division advance to next week’s Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV Championships at Whitney.