ACC Weekend Preview (1/24/25)

We have a full slate of ACC action this weekend after a smaller conference schedule last week. ACC Friday Night Duals on ESPN also kicks off this week with Duke hosting Virginia Tech. We will also see Pittsburgh traveling to North Carolina State on Friday. In Sunday action, Virginia is making the cross-country trip to face Stanford. North Carolina will be off this weekend. 

#9 Virginia Tech at Duke

125: #5 Eddie Ventresca v Ethan Grimminger OR Riley Rowan

133: #18 Connor McGonagle v Raymond Adams 

141: #10 Sam Latona v  Noah Kochman OR Christian Colman 

149: #1 Caleb Henson OR Chris Bacchioni v  Sean O'Donnell OR Peter Chacon  

157: #10 Rafael Hipolito, Jr. OR Luke Robie v Logan Ferrero 

165: #23 Mac Church v #29 Aidan Wallace OR Nick Tattini  

174: #24 Lennox Wolak v Gaetano Console  

184: #28 TJ Stewart v David Hussey 

197: Sam Fisher v  Kwasi Bonsu 

285: #14 Jimmy Mullen v  #29 Connor Barket 

There are a couple matches I have my eye on here, mostly to see how they bounce back from a loss. The biggest head-to-head match is at 285 where we will see a ranked versus ranked matchup of the dual in #14 Jimmy Mullen against #29 Connor Barket. I think 165 will be one to watch; Wallace had a great run at the Scuffle and showed flashes of his potential, while Church is coming off an overtime loss to #8 Will Miller in a 30-minute, review-plagued match. We have seen Wolak on a slide as of late, he will be looking to right the ship as they continue in ACC competition. Both squads have multiple options listed, so we may see some different starters than usual; I wouldn’t expect to see Henson back until next week, though he is listed as a possibility.

#15 Pittsburgh at #8 NC State

125: #25 Nick Babin v #3 Vince Robinson or Louie Gill

133: Tyler Chappell v #12 Kai Orine or Troy Hohman

141: Anthony Santaniello or Briar Priest v Tyler Tracy

149: #21 Finn Solomon or Kade Brown v #29 Koy Buesgens 

157: #25 Dylan Evans v #14 Ed Scott

165: Jared Keslar v #28 Derek Fields or Luke Ahrberg

174: #20 Luca Augustine v #18 Matty Singleton

184: #15 Reece Heller v #11 Dylan Fishback

197: #11 Mac Stout v #26 Christian Knop or Andrew Macchiavello

285: #13 Dayton Pitzer v #4 Isaac Trumble

This has the makings of a solid dual, especially at the upperweights. The Panthers have relied on their final four weights for comeback wins in their last two duals and all of them will face a tough test tonight. As we saw in their matchup against Stanford, there are a couple wrestlers out and that could make a huge difference in the team score. I think the atmosphere in Reynolds could play a big role in the dual tonight, it’s a tough place to build momentum as a visiting team and the Panthers will need some momentum to make a run through this lineup. 

There are a few big matches to keep an eye on - 149 is a sneaky good match that could be a pivotal win for either team. The run through the upper weights will be excellent. Singleton and Augustine have both put together solid seasons so far and this is very much a toss-up, as is the next match at 184 with Reece Heller and Dylan Fishback. 197 leans to the Panthers and 285 leans to the Pack, but could very possibly be a preview of the ACC title match at heavyweight. I expect a fun dual tonight in Raleigh. 

#16 Stanford vs. Virginia 

125: --  v #31 Keyveon Roller 

133: #6 Tyler Knox v #27 Gable Porter OR Kyle Montaperto

141: #21 Jason Miranda v #20 Dylan Cedeno OR Kyren Butler OR Luke Roberts

149: #7 Jaden Abas v  #30 Jack Gioffre 

157: #29 Grigor Cholakyan v Michael Gioffre OR Nick Sanko

165: #16 Hunter Garvin v #19 Nick Hamilton OR Mason Stefanelli 

174: #4 Lorenzo Norman v Michael Murphy 

184: Tye Monteiro v. Griffin Gammell OR Justin Phillips 

197: #24 Nick Stemmet v Steven Burrell Jr OR Ethan Weatherspoon 

285: #33 Peter Ming v Gabe Christenson 

The Hoos will make the first trip west to Palo Alto to be the first ACC opponent on The Farm in wrestling. Unfortunately, after talking to Coach Garland today, we aren’t going to see UVA at full strength. Several starters will not be making the trip due to an illness making its way through the team - two of the three typical UVA starters from California will not be making the trip. 

The good news is that we will likely see two big matchups that will have major ACC implications. Both Jaden Abas and Hunter Garvin were out last week against Arizona State, but they should both be available on Sunday; Nick Hamilton has been out for the Hoos recovering from an injury but should also be making his return. This means we will have a solid All-California matchup at 149. Jaden Abas will square off with Jack Gioffre--these two have not met in college, but Jack’s twin brother Michael knocked off Abas at the Southern Scuffle in 2023. 165 will pit the reigning ACC champion Nick Hamilton against the highest-ranked ACC wrestler at the weight and returning All-American Hunter Garvin. Garvin holds a 1-0 record against Hamilton, knocking him out of the NCAA tournament last season. This is a very possible ACC title matchup.