North Carolina's Doubles on the Diamond dual against Michigan (photo courtesy of Jeffrey Camarati/UNC athletics)When I moved to Virginia from Nebraska after college, I came with the expectation of living here for two years before moving on to my next adventure. Fast forward 16 years and now, Charlottesville has been my home for more than a decade. All three of my children have been born and raised here; it's a part of their identity and mine. Waking up to the news yesterday morning was nothing short of crushing. I have lived in Charlottesville through the highs of everything that makes this town special and the lows of murders and riots painting our town in the national spotlight. Three young men lost their lives. Life will never be the same for their families, their friends, their teammates and their classmates. This has become all too common and an unfortunate reality. In my years as a teacher and a coach, I have lost students and athletes to violence, and have seen them on both sides of the weapon. It is a feeling you cannot describe, and one you hope others will never have to feel.
I ask that we turn to the UVA community with support, understanding and compassion in this incredibly difficult time. I don't know what UVA athletics and the wrestling schedule will look like in the coming days and weeks; but it takes a backseat to the safety and healing of the athletes, coaches, students and staff of the university. Say a prayer if you pray, and keep the UVA community in your thoughts as they reckon with this tragic event.
ACC Week 2 Recap
Duke:
The Blue Devils traveled to Charleston, SC for the Battle at the Citadel this weekend. Earning top honors on the weekend was Jonah Neisenbaum who had a stellar performance at 285. Also earning a spot on the podium was Logan Agin, who took 3rd at 125. Rounding out the placers, at 133 Drake Doolittle topped teammate Christian Colman to finish 3rd and Colman in 4th. The Blue Devils will travel to the Keystone Classic in Philly next weekend.
#16 Pittsburgh:
The Panthers traveled one state west to take on Cleveland State in a Friday night dual. Pittsburgh put on a show, blanking CSU 36-0 on the strength of five major decisions. Micky Phillippi (133) earned the first bonus points, then the Panthers had a run with Tyler Badgett (149), Dazjon Casto (157), Holden Heller (165), and Luca Augustine (174) all picking up an extra team point in the middle of the lineup. Casto, Holden Heller, Luca Augustine and Reece Heller all picked up their first dual win for the Panthers in the dual. Pittsburgh will host two duals this weekend: against Maryland on Friday night and in-state rival Lehigh on Saturday; both of these duals will have some solid matchups.
#16 Pitt 36 Cleveland State 0
125: Colton Camacho (Pitt) maj. dec. Pino Dipierro (CSU), 10-1
133: #8 Micky Phillippi (Pitt) maj. dec. Jake Manley (CSU), 17-7
141: #1 Cole Matthews (Pitt) dec. Hunter Olson (CSU), 9-3
149: Tyler Badgett (Pitt) maj. dec. Douglas Terry (CSU), 11-2
157: #11 Dazjon Casto (Pitt) maj. dec. Ryan Granger (CSU), 15-3
165: #15 Holden Heller (Pitt) maj. dec. Daniel Patten (CSU), 15-7
174: Luca Augustine (Pitt) maj. dec. Tate Geiser (CSU), 18-6
184: #24 Reece Heller (Pitt) dec. #33 DeAndre Nassar (CSU), 3-2
197: #9 Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. Anthony Perrine (CSU), 9-2
285: Jake Slinger (Pitt) dec. Daniel Bucknavich (CSU), 3-1
#18 North Carolina:
The Tar Heels had a busy and unconventional weekend of wrestling. They wrestled Campbell on Friday night in the Battle at Bragg then were back to Chapel Hill on Sunday to host Michigan in Doubles on the Diamond.
Campbell put on a fantastic event at Ft. Bragg and the stream from UFC Fight Pass was top-notch. There were some minor hiccups, but they were dealt with quickly and professionally. Jack Wagner picked up his first ranked win of the weekend over Anthony Molton; Lachlan McNeil also picked up a big win over a ranked opponent with a major decision over a very dangerous Shannon Hanna. This dual also saw Jayden Scott and Nick Fea picking up their first dual wins as Tar Heels. They rounded out the dual with three straight wins from Clay Lautt, Gavin Kane and Max Shaw.
On Sunday, the Tar Heels hosted Michigan in an outdoor dual on the baseball field at Boshamer Stadium. The setup was fantastic and the weather provided a great setting for an afternoon dual. It was a back-and-forth dual with Michigan winning six to North Carolina's four matches. Jack Wagner continued his hot weekend with his second win over Jack Medley. Sincere Bailey wrestled a great match against #3 Will Lewan and nearly pulled off a major upset. Joey Mazzara got the nod at 165 for the dual and wrestled an incredible match to get the win. Clay Lautt picked up his second win on the weekend with a decision over a very stingy Max Maylor and Max Shaw wrapped his weekend with a second win over Jaden Bullock. I was very impressed with Shaw over the weekend. I think he is making some great strides in his development and can play a big role in the success of the Tar Heels this season.
#18 North Carolina 24 #29 Campbell 10
125: Jack Wagner (UNC) over #24 Anthony Molton (Campbell) 10-6 Dec
133: Gabriel Hixenbaugh (Campbell) over #18 Joey Melendez (UNC) 7-3 Dec
141: #22 Lachlan McNeil (UNC) over #21 Shannon Hanna (Campbell) 11-2 MD
149: Jayden Scott (UNC) over Callum Sitek (Campbell) 5-1 Dec
157: #30 Troy Nation (Campbell) over Wil Guida (UNC) 7-6 Dec
165: Nick Fea (UNC) over Riley Augustine (Campbell) 10-0 MD
174: #5 Clay Lautt (UNC) over Cole Rees (Campbell) 2-1 Dec
184: #12 Gavin Kane (UNC) over Shane Quick (Campbell) 16-4 MD
197: Max Shaw (UNC) over Levi Hopkins (Campbell) 8-4 Dec
285: #13 Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) over Brandon Whitman (UNC) 13-4 MD
#8 Michigan 23 #18 North Carolina 12
125: Jack Wagner (UNC) over Jack Medley (MICH) 5-4 Dec
133: #5 Dylan Ragusin (MICH) over Jaime Hernandez (UNC) 20-5 TF
141: #14 Cole Mattin (MICH) over #22 Lachlan McNeil (UNC) 9-3 Dec
149: #22 Chance Lamer (MICH) over Danny Nini (UNC) 6-3 Dec
157: #3 Will Lewan (MICH) over Sincere Bailey (UNC) 3-2 Dec
165: Joey Mazzara (UNC) over Zack Mattin (MICH) 7-3 Dec
174: #5 Clay Lautt (UNC) over Max Maylor (MICH) 4-1 Dec
184: #14 Matt Finesilver (MICH) over #12 Gavin Kane (UNC) 4-0 Dec
197: Max Shaw (UNC) over Jaden Bullock (MICH) 3-2 Dec
285: #3 Mason Parris (MICH) over Brandon Whitman (UNC) Fall 2:30
#12 North Carolina State:
The Wolfpack headed north to Pennsylvania for a busy weekend. They participated in Journeymen WrestleMania in duals against Lock Haven and Nebraska, then took part in the Journeymen Classic on Sunday.
The Wolfpack handled Lock Haven pretty handily, and some shenanigans dropped two points from the Lock Haven team total to make it look even more lopsided. Kai Orine picked up his first win of the season in the dual, as did Donald Cates with his tech fall at 165. In addition to Cates, the Wolfpack picked up BONUS from Jackson Arrington, Trent Hidlay, Isaac Trumble and Owen Trephan. Ryan Jack and Ed Scott both won by decision.
In the second dual of the day, the Wolfpack controlled the much-anticipated dual with Nebraska. Kai Orine earned a ranked win over Boo Dryden in sudden victory, followed by Ryan Jack extending his winning streak over a ranked Brock Hardy. Also, adding ranked wins were Isaac Trumble and Tyrie Houghton. Ed Scott dropped a tough match to Peyton Robb in the rematch of the blood round battle from last season. Jackson Arrington, Donald Cates and Trent Hidlay also picked up wins in the Wolfpack victory over the Huskers.
#12 NC State 32 Lock Haven 4
125: No. 13 Anthony Noto def. No. 21 Jarrett Tromble (NCSU); 0-3 (SV1)
133: Kai Orine (NCSU) def. Gable Strickland: 6-2
141: No. 20 Ryan Jack (NCSU) def. Ty Linsenbigler; 4-1
149: Jackson Arrington (NCSU) def. Connor Eck: 16-1, tech fall
157: No. 6 Ed Scott (NCSU) def. J.T. Hogan; 8-6
165: Don Cates (NCSU) def. Aiden Gaugler; tech fall
174: Tyler Stoltzfus def. Brock Delsignore (NCSU); 6-8
184: No. 3 Trent Hidlay (NCSU) def. Colin Fegley; 18-3, tech fall
197: No. 18 Isaac Trumble (NCSU) def. Brad Morrison; 10-1, major dec.
285: No. 24 Owen Trephan (NCSU) def. Ethan Miller; 18-5, major dec.
#12 NC State 23 #17 Nebraska 10
125: Jacob Van Dee def. Jarrett Trombley (NCSU); 7-3 dec.
133: Kai Orine (NCSU) def. No. 26 Boo Dryden; 6-4 (SV1)
141: No. 20 Ryan Jack (NCSU) def. No. 29 Brock Hardy, 9-7 dec.
149: Jackson Arrington (NCSU) def. Dayne Morton, 11-5 dec.
157: No. 4 Peyton Robb def. No. 6 Ed Scott, 2-8 dec.
165: Don Cates (NCSU) def. Adam Thebeau, 7-2 dec.
174: No. 3 Mikey Labriola def. Brock Delsignore (NCSU), 13-5 major dec.
184: No. 3 Trent Hidlay (NCSU) def. Nathan Haas, TF 6:26
197: No. 18 Isaac Trumble (NCSU) def. No. 24 Silas Allred, 9-2 dec.
285: Tyrie Houghton (NCSU) def. No. 28 Cale Davidson, 5-4 dec.
The Wolfpack sent out a lot of their younger wrestlers for the Journeymen Classic on Sunday. They were highlighted by undefeated performances from Jacob Cox (125), Finn Solomon (149), and Alex Faison (165). Finishing the day with one loss was Jackson Arrington (149) who lost to All-American Kyle Parco, Aaron Faison (157), Dylan Fishback, and Owen Trephan (285). Trephan was 3-1 on the day with his lone loss to a very good Yarislau Slavikouski of Harvard.
NC State will be back in action at the Journeymen Armbar at the Armory in Albany, NY next weekend where they will face Illinois and Central Michigan.
Virginia:
The Hoos wrestled in Boone on Saturday in the Appalachian Invite and the Appalachian Open with wrestlers participating in both events.
In the Appalachian Invite bracket, the Hoos brought home two titles and nine placewinners. Neil Antrassian earned the title and 184, while Michael Battista took the honors at 197. Haydn Danals claimed second at 184, falling to Antrassian in the finals. Justin McCoy had a great day in Boone; he knocked off a tough Hunter Garvin (Stanford) before beating #13 Will Formato (App State) in the semifinals. He faced NCAA Champion and 2x All-American Shane Griffith in the finals, where he fell by decision. Finishing in third place were Garrett Grice (133) and Jarod Verkleeren (149). Gabe Christensen (285) and Vic Marcelli (174) finished in fourth, while Jake Keating (157) finished in fifth; Kyle Montaperto (125) and Kyren Butler (141) ended the day in 6th place.
In the Open division, the Hoos earned four titles: Keyveon Roller (133), Nick Hamilton (165), Rocco Contino (174) and Jessie Knight (285) all finished atop the podium. Finishing in second were Gavin Cagle (157), Hudson Stewart (174) and Griffin Gammell (184). Patrick McCormick (125), Mason Stefanelli (149), Nic Sansone (157) and Robby Patrick (184) all finished in 3rd place while Dominic Isola (157) and Ethan Weatherspoon (HWT) finished in 4th.
The Hoos are scheduled to host Northwestern in a dual at Memorial Gym on Sunday evening. I will keep the InterMat readers informed of any potential changes to that schedule.
#14 Virginia Tech:
The Hokies had a Top-10 dual Friday night in Columbus, falling short in their opening dual against the Buckeyes.
The action kicked off with Caleb Henson pulling off a major upset over two-time All-American Sammy Sasso. Henson continues his undefeated start and has now made the nation aware that he is a force at 149. Clayton Ulrey fell to Paddy Gallagher, while filling in for Bryce Andonian. After this match was a streak of incredibly tight, one-score matches. Conor Brady dropped a 3-1 decision to former high school teammate and All-American Carson Kharchla. This was followed by Mekhi Lewis beating All-American Ethan Smith by one takedown for the second year in a row. In another battle of All-Americans, Hunter Bolen dropped a 4-2 decision to Kaleb Romero at 184. Andy Smith wrestled a good match, but came up short in a 3-1 decision to Gavin Hoffman.
In a match that had 6:30 of little action, the final 30 seconds of the match at 285 were a hectic scramble that saw Tate Orndorff spinning behind Hunter Catka for the 3-1 win. Coach Robie challenged the call, and asked for a review of Orndorff grabbing the singlet, stopping Catka from being able to get behind for the takedown. While it can be seen in other video and pictures, the officials stated that they could not see it from the camera angle in the review and awarded the win to Orndorff.
Virginia Tech would win two of the final three matches to end the dual. Eddie Ventresca dropped a 3-1 decision to Malik Heinselman at 125. The Hokies were able to end the dual on two very positive notes, however. Sam Latona wrestled an incredible match against Jesse Mendez to pick up the 3-2 decision. In the final bout of the evening, Tom Crook continued his amazing start to his true freshman year by picking up his first dual win as a Hokie. Crook dominated fellow Tampa native Nic Bouzakis en route to a 14-6 major decision.
The Hokies are back in action at the Keystone Classic in Philly this weekend.
#4 Ohio State - 18 #14 Virginia Tech - 13
125: #11 Malik Heinselman DEC #25 Eddie Ventresca, 3-1
133: #19 Sam Latona DEC #11 Jesse Mendez, 3-2
141: #16 Tom Crook MAJ DEC Nic Bouzakis, 14-6
149: #27 Caleb Henson DEC #2 Sammy Sasso, 5-3 SV
157: #22 Paddy Gallagher DEC Clayton Ulrey, 14-8
165: #6 Carson Kharchla DEC #29 Connor Brady, 3-1
174: #2 Mekhi Lewis DEC #6 Ethan Smith, 3-2
184: #4 Kaleb Romero DEC #9 Hunter Bolen, 4-2
197: #14 Gavin Hoffman DEC Andy Smith, 4-2
285: #7 Tate Orndorff DEC #18 Hunter Catka, 3-1
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