A pair of heavyweights will square off at the Greater Berrien County Invitational at St. Joseph High School Saturday.

Niles will be looking for its fifth straight county championship, while Lakeshore will be in search of its 27th title.

The Vikings, who are 11-1 on the year, come into the tournament with a full head of steam after winning the Lakeshore Super Duals last Saturday, which included a 31-24 victory over previously undefeated Rockford.

Niles and Lakeshore are beginning a stretch of the season that could have them meeting up multiple times over the next three weeks.

“This is the first round of a four-round fight,” Niles coach Todd Hesson said. “We will see.”

The Vikings and Lancers have not faced each other yet this season, although they are traveling partners in the SMAC West Division.

That all changes Saturday on an individual level at the Greater Berrien County Invitational. The Vikings and Lancers then go head-to-head on Wednesday at Niles for a SMAC West Division match before meeting up against at the SMAC individual tournament hosted by Portage Central Feb. 4.

Niles and Lakeshore are in opposite brackets for the Division 2 team district tournament at Edwardsburg on Feb. 8.

Hesson said in order to successfully defend their title, the Vikings are going to need to score points in every weight class.

“We need to try to match some of their champions, win some head-to-head matches and get some help from other schools.”

That other school could be Edwardsburg, which completed a perfect 9-0 Wolverine Conference dual meet season with a win over perennial powerhouse Allegan.

The Eddies are the first team to beat the Tigers in a conference match since 1999, a stretch of more than 150 consecutive victories.

Niles has entered extra wrestlers at some weight classes according to Hesson, hoping to have a few more match ups with the Lancers.

“This is the first time we have actually wrestled any Lakeshore matches except early at Allegan,” he said. “The multiple match ups at the end of the season usually benefit the team with less experience. So in some cases it may help some of our kids.”

Hesson would like to save some things for the Lancers should they meet up for the district championship, but seeing them multiple times over the next couple weeks makes that tough.

“It is difficult not to show some of your cards seeing each other this often,” he said. “Although, both teams will still have some options at the final dual.”

Niles seniors Brenden Hall and Mitchell Findeisen are both defending champions at the county meet.

Hall is 18-3 on the year and Findeisen 20-0.

The Vikings are hoping that Cade Stephenson (15-5) at 119 and Andrew Flick (19-1) at 125 can contend for individual titles.

The Lakeshore-Niles rivalry has always been a heated one.

That rivalry got a bit hotter when former Lakeshore wrestlers Ryan and Austin Franco transferred to Niles during the Christmas break and were ruled eligible to wrestle for the Vikings last Friday.

Ryan was 3-0 at the Lakeshore Super Duals, while Austin was 4-0. Austin is a defending county champion and a two-time state placer.

Edwardsburg has a pair of defending champions in Austin Cline at 160 and Joey Hess at 171 pounds.

Wrestling is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m.