KALAMAZOO – As the Hudson wrestling team turned away from the post-dual handshake, the Tigers pivoted and raced back to their fans at Wings Event Center on Saturday with four fingers extended in the air.  

On many of those wrestlers' fingers, three rings proudly took their spots, leaving one finger without.

Not anymore, as Hudson won its fourth-straight Division 4 championship with a 45-25 victory over Climax-Scotts/Martin in the title match. 

"This is an unreal feeling,” 138-pound senior Julien Kimling said. "I remember my first one with that great group of seniors. We just strived to be like that group. They were great leaders, they started us off with number one, and now we are here with number four. It's an unreal feeling.”

Longtime Hudson coach Scott Marry, who has won more championship rings than fingers during his tenure leading the Tigers, said it's a joy every year to watch his wrestlers enjoy their successes after a long season. 

"It is so fun to coach the spirit that these boys have," said Marry, who now has led Hudson to 12 team titles. "They have a farmer's mentality. They get up with the chickens and don't go to bed until the crickets are out. They don't stop."

And like he says year after year, Hudson wrestling is community and generational.

"It's hard to describe the community we have back at Hudson," Marry said. “It's like a little slice of paradise. God takes good care of us." 

Whatever they are doing in Hudson as far as wrestling, it's working. 

Led by Kimling, the Tigers won nine of the 14 matches against a very game CSM team. 

Kimling had one of eight wins that ended with bonus team points for the Tigers. He won by major decision over a talented Seth Toris 10-2. 

Bonus points is how Hudson made its way to the Finals, scoring wins over Roscommon in the Quarterfinals 75-3 and Clinton in the Semifinals 47-18. 

"There is just a family feeling here, the love for each other," Kimling said. "We talked about this all weekend, the love for each other, the love for the sport and the love for God and everything all above us."

Climax-Scotts/Martin coach Mike Reitz saw the camaraderie of Hudson up close, and was impressed. But he was still happy that his team hung so tough with the premier program in Division 4. 

"Who would have thought with two matches left to go we were still in it,” said Reitz, whose team ended its year with a 26-2 record. "We came in ranked number three, battled in the Semifinals, and then the boys showed up and battled in the Finals. I couldn't ask for any more. A couple of matches didn't go our way, but credit to them."

CSM defeated second-seeded St. Louis in the Semifinals 30-25 and Union City in the Quarterfinals 47-28.    

With the three wins his team picked up this weekend in Kalamazoo, Marry now sits at 946 over his 37 years leading the Tigers.

But he doesn't want to hear that. 

"We don't care about wins,” Marry said. “We care about kids."

Click for this weekend’s Division 4 meet summaries.

PHOTOS (Top) Hudson’s Julian Kimling, left, has his arm raised in victory Saturday afternoon at Wings Event Center. (Middle) CSM’s Logan Gilbert, right, faces off against Hudson’s Chase Clark at 120 pounds. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)