Carolina earned victories in six of the ten weight classes, including pins by Corey Mock at 157 pounds and Zac Bennett at 197. Other Tar Heels to capture victories were Pat Owens (133), Thomas Scotton (165), Andre Petroski (174) and Antonio Giorgio (184).
The match began at 125 pounds, and NC State jumped out to an early 3-0 lead when Pedram Rahmatabadi defeated Nick Shields 6-4. Shields gained an early advantage with a takedown, but Rahmatabadi took a 4-2 lead in the second period with a three-point near fall. A Shields reversal tied the bout at four, but an escape by Rahmatabadi and a minute of riding time gave the Wolfpack the decision.
Carolina evened the match at 133 pounds when Owens overcame an early 4-0 deficit to beat Dale Shull 10-4. Shull jumped out front with a takedown and a near fall, but Owens responded with reversals in both the first and second periods. The duo entered the third period tied, but Owens registered a two-point and a three-point near fall to take control and win the bout.
The Wolfpack regained the lead at 141 pounds when Darrius Little recorded a 5-2 victory over Mike Rappo. Little took Rappo down in the first period and kept the lead throughout. Rappo pulled within 3-2 early in the third period, but Little clinched the bout with a late takedown. With NC State leading 6-3, top-ranked 149-pounder Darrion Caldwell jumped out to an early 4-0 lead and never looked back in defeating Carolina’s Nick Stabile. The Tar Heel senior earned a late reversal, but Caldwell took a 7-3 decision to give the Wolfpack a 9-3 advantage.
Mock knotted the match at nine when he pinned Colton Palmer at 5:43 in the 157-pound weight class. After falling behind 2-0, Mock registered an escape and a takedown to take the lead before gaining a two-point near fall at the second period buzzer to take a 5-2 lead. After choosing bottom and escaping to begin the period, Mock pinned the Wolfpack junior 43 seconds into the third period.
Carolina took its first lead of the night at 12-9 when Scotton snapped a six-match losing by narrowly defeating Nijel Jones, 6-5. Scotton held a 4-1 lead after two periods due to a first-period takedown and a second-period reversal. The senior extended that lead to 6-2 and seemingly took control of the bout after a takedown with 0:56 remaining. However, Jones earned two points due to stalling and recorded an escape to pull within one, but Scotton fended off the comeback and took the contest.
Petroski extended the Carolina lead with an intense 4-2 overtime victory over NC State’s Quinton Godley. Godley grabbed the lead with a second-period reversals but escapes by Petroski in both the second and third periods tied the bout. The match went to a sudden victory period, where Petroski earned a takedown at 0:35 to increase the Carolina lead to 15-9.
Carolina pulled ahead 18-9 when Giorgio defeated Pat Carey at 184 pounds. The reigning ACC Co-Wrestler of the Week, Giorgio jumped out front 4-0 with a takedown and a near fall in the first period. The freshman extended the advantage to 6-1 with a reversal in the second period and then withstood a late rally from Carey to win 9-5.
Bennett clinched the match for the Tar Heels when he pinned KaRonne Jones at 197 pounds. The Johnstown, Pa., native took control early with a takedown and a three-point near fall, then ended the contest at 1:41 to record his ninth victory in 10 matches and his third consecutive fall.
At heavyweight, Carolina freshman Ben Brooks was defeated in a tight 3-2 affair by Wolfpack sophomore Eloheim Palma. Palma used a first-period takedown to grab a lead that Brooks could not overcome, bringing the final score to 24-12.
The Tar Heels are back in action Saturday when they host Edinboro at 1 p.m. Saturday at Carmichael Arena.
Results:
125 – Pedram Rahmatabadi (NCSU) dec. Nick Shields (UNC), 6-4 (NCSU 3-0)
133 – Pat Owens (UNC) dec. Dale Shull (NCSU), 10-4 (Tied 3-3)
141 – Darrius Little (NCSU) dec. Mike Rappo (UNC), 5-2 (NCSU 6-3)
149 - #1 Darrion Caldwell (NCSU) dec. Nick Stabile (UNC), 7-3 (NCSU 9-3)
157 – Corey Mock (UNC) pins Colton Palmer (NCSU), 5:43 (Tied 9-9)
165 – Thomas Scotton (UNC) dec. Nijel Jones (NCSU), 6-5 (UNC 12-9)
174 – Andre Petroski (UNC) dec. Quinton Godley (NCSU), 4-2 (SV) (UNC 15-9)
184 – Antonio Giorgio (UNC) dec. Pat Carey (NCSU), 9-5 (UNC 18-9)
197 – Zac Bennett (UNC) pins KaRonne Jones (NCSU), 1:41 (UNC 24-9)
HWT – Eloheim Palma (NCSU) dec. Ben Brooks (UNC), 3-2 (UNC 24-12)
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