JACKSON TWP — Zane Frund spent over a year grinding away in practice, waiting for a chance to take on his first wrestling varsity match.

The 120-pound Seneca Valley senior, who had never wrestled at any level before last year, had his opportunity Tuesday night.

Typically a defensive wrestler, Frund tried his hand at being aggressive.

His strategy paid off, as he pinned North Allegheny’s Jaemin Lee in 1 minute, 47 seconds at William Paul Gymnasium.

Frund, scoring his first varsity victory at age 17, helped the Raiders earn their first win over the Tigers since 1982.

“I wasn’t really focused on who the team was,” said Frund, who won a handful of junior varsity matches last season. “I wanted to go out and wrestle and show how hard we’ve been working. That’s why I won.

“I was focused on wrestling and not focused on it being NA and how people think they are a better team.”

Scoring a win over the Tigers is a big deal for Seneca Valley.

North Allegheny, which had five starters out of the lineup against the Raiders, has won or shared the section title in 26 of the past 30 seasons.

The Raiders’ 37-36 win on tiebreaking criteria sets Seneca Valley up as the favorites in Section 3-A.

Raiders coach Kevin Wildrick doesn’t want the win to overshadow what he wants the team to accomplish.

“I don’t want this to be the focus of the season, I want this to be a stepping stone,” Wildrick said. “I want to see where we can improve and we have a long road to go. I don’t want to look back at the season and all I have to say is boy it’s great we beat NA.”

The Tigers forfeited two matches against the Raiders, who needed those when the match finished tied at 36.

The fourth tiebreaking criteria is which team has the most wins by forfeit/falls/disqualifications, which Seneca Valley had a 5-4 edge in.

That’s where Frund’s pin made a big difference.

His offensive game hadn’t always been strong, but he scored a takedown 30 seconds into the first period.

“Usually when I wrestle I have an issue with taking shots, often people have better defense,” Frund said. “Instead of being defensive, I wanted to take him down as soon as I could.”

Frund became a wrestler because he has friends on the team and wanted to find a way to stay active.

He put in the time and earned an opportunity.

Then he played a role in one of the Raiders’ biggest wins in years.

“He is always interested in asking questions and interested in how to improve,” Wildrick said. “He has also had to develop some thick skin because when you aren’t experienced you have a tendency to have some tough days.”