North Carolina's 184 lber Gavin Kane (photo courtesy of Sam Janicki; SJanickiPhoto.com)Virginia at Duke
The Hoos traveled to Durham for a Saturday afternoon tilt with the Blue Devils and won 8 of 10 bouts to come out on top 30-9. It was a good bounce-back match for Virginia after a rough outing against NC State last week. The Blue Devils kept several matches close but were only able to pick up wins from the Finesilver brothers on the day.
125: Patrick McCormick vs. Ty Naquin
This match started slow but was all McCormick--especially in the 3rd period. He picked up one takedown in the first and second to enter the third up 5-0. In the third, he tallied four takedowns, including one in the last 5 seconds-to finish an impressive 18-3 tech fall. 5-0 UVA
133: #20 Brian Courtney vs. Drake Doolittle
While Courtney controlled this match, it was the best I have seen Doolittle look in any of his ACC matches. He was able to counter some of Courtney's scrambles and held him off from a couple turns that looked inevitable. Courtney finished with an 8-2 decision win. 8-0 UVA
141: Dylan Cedeno vs. Patrick Rowland
Cedeno was dominant in this match--even more so than the scoreboard showed. He got a takedown in the first 15 seconds and rode out the first period. Similar story in the second. In the third, he picked up two takedowns to stretch the lead enough to earn the major decision 11-1. Cedeno put up nearly five minutes in riding time and Rowland seemed to have no answer underneath, but Cedeno was unable to get any turns. 12-0 UVA
149: #31 Jarod Verkleeren vs. #14 Josh Finesilver
The first period here was a scramble-fest; three deep shots by Finesilver all ended in extended scrambles, but no points. Finesilver got an escape and clean takedown to start the second and after a long scramble, Verkleeren was able to finish a shot to get the takedown at the buzzer to tie it at three going into the third. Finesilver put on a strong ride in the final period and stopped several reversal opportunities for Verk. With 30 seconds left, Verkleeren got to a standing position while Finesilver had a claw ride--Finesilver lifted and returned Verk to his back and picked up the fall for the Blue Devils. 12-6 UVA
157: #27 Jake Keating vs. Wade Unger
This was a very well-wrestled match on both sides. After a scoreless first period, Unger took the 1-0 lead after a quick escape. Keating finished a clean single leg and rode out for the last 1:10 of the second. Keating got the quick escape in the third to make it 3-1. Unger upped the pace and started attacking relentlessly. He was in deep several times and nearly had a takedown at the buzzer, but Keating was able to stand before Unger got control. With the riding time, it was a 4-1 Keating decision. 15-6 UVA
165: #23 Justin McCoy vs. Gabe Dinette
This was a good rebound match for McCoy--his attack rate was higher, his shots were crisp and his go-behinds worked the whole match. McCoy got three takedowns on his way to a controlling 8-3 decision. Unger still looks hungry and is wrestling well--I think he could throw a wrench in the bracket at ACCs. 18-6 UVA
174: Justin Phillips vs. #16 Matt Finesilver
This match felt like it lasted 45 minutes in real-time with multiple blood time stoppages for Phillips that really impacted the flow of the match. Finesilver was very aggressive throughout and got to several shots, but Phillips showed solid scrambling ability and kept him from finishing on multiple occasions. Finesilver completed two takedowns cleanly and added an escape and a riding time point to win a 6-0 decision. He had a strong ride in both the second and the third, but between Phillips' defense and blood, Finesilver was unable to put together any turns. 18-9 UVA
184: #25 Michael Battista vs. Vince Baker
After back-to-back losses to Gavin Kane and Trent Hidlay, Battista came out aggressive and ready to prove a point. He was much more aggressive this match and wrestled the type of match that he was successful with to start the season. He had three first-period takedowns and two more in the second before pouring it on in the third. Battista was up 10-4 with 2:45 of riding time entering the third; he added four more takedowns and nearly finished a fifth at the buzzer while working for the tech fall but finished with a 21-7 major decision. 22-9 UVA
197: #17 Jay Aiello vs Kaden Russell
Aiello came in on a mission and went to work early on Russell, who is generally scrappy and very tough defensively. Aiello picked up two takedowns, a four-point nearfall and a stall point in the first to open a 9-1 lead early. He then got a reversal to start the second and put on a punishing ride, picking up two more back points. Two more takedowns in the third sealed the tech fall 17-2 for Aiello. Much like Battista, Aiello is a much more dangerous wrestler when he is the aggressor and pushes the match's tempo; both are great finishers and have big gas tanks. 27-9 UVA
285: #32 Quinn Miller vs. Jonah Niesenbaum
Going into the dual, I expected this to be a tight match between two wrestlers who are stylistically very similar and these two came through with a solid match to end the dual. Scoreless first period with a deep shot from Miller fended off by Niesenbaum. They traded escapes in the second and third periods to knot it up at one. With just over a minute left, Miller snagged a beautiful ankle pick to get the takedown and nearly parlayed it into a turn as well. He rode out the period to win the match and the dual for the Hoos. 30-9 UVA
#17 North Carolina at #9 Virginia Tech
The Tar Heels traveled to Blacksburg coming off back-to-back dual wins over Virginia and Pittsburgh. There were some big matches highlighted before the dual--Sherman-Andonian, Lautt-Lewis and Kane-Bolen--that were all very entertaining matches in very different ways. The match mainly went chalk with an upset at 184 for the red-hot Gavin Kane. The Hokies won 7 of 10 matches to take the dual in front of a great crowd at Cassell Coliseum on senior night to take the dual 23-11.
125: Spencer Moore vs. #20 Sam Latona
Latona continued his second-half surge against Moore, who has proven himself to be a tough test, especially for a true freshman. Latona got two takedowns in the first to start the match. After a quick escape in the second, Moore hit a double to get his first takedown. Latona added another takedown to go into the third up 8-3. Latona added one more takedown after a funky little scramble and nearly added another at the buzzer, while working for the major, but finished with a 10-5 decision. 3-0 VT
133: #21 Joe Heilmann vs #5 Korbin Myers
Heilmann came into the match fresh off a big win over Micky Phillippi to match up with Myers, who is undefeated in the ACC. Great action in the first, with many positional adjustments being made. Myers got the first takedown off elbow control--he does this as well as anyone in the country. Myers rode out the first, then got a quick escape and immediate takedown to start the second. Myers controlled the rest of the match with a great ride and another takedown in the third. He wasn't able to finish the major but looked excellent in all positions against a tough Heilmann. 6-0 VT
141: #9 Kizhan Clarke vs. #22 Collin Gerardi
Clarke dropped his first match of the year last week to Cole Matthews and seemed intent on getting back on track against Gerardi. He drove through a strong double leg to get the opening takedown. The match was pretty even for the next four minutes, with both trading escapes to start the second and third. Clarke iced the match with another great double from space to finish the 6-4 decision. 6-3 VT
149: #17 Zach Sherman vs. #5 Bryce Andonian
I had this match circled for the potential fireworks; they are both wrestling incredibly well right now and both of them got after it from the whistle. The action started early in this one! Andonian came up to a seatbelt position from a shallow shot and punched through the underhook to take Sherman straight to his back on the edge. Sherman hit a strong bridge to drive them both out, but not before Andonian got the four-count to take an early 6-0 lead. After the escape, Sherman picked up his own takedown to bring the score to 7-3 going into the second. Andonian escaped to start the second and Sherman added another takedown from space to go into the third 9-5. Sherman got the quick escape in the third and was in on two deep shots, but Andonian was able to scramble out to create a stalemate. On a third deep double, Andonian draped over the top and hit a beautiful Winn Dixie to get the danger count takedown and adjusted to get a four-count to blow open the match at the end and pick up the major decision 16-6. 10-3 VT
157: #5 Austin O'Connor vs. #26 Connor Brady
These two came into the match on very different trajectories; O'Connor was on a 12-match winning streak while Brady had dropped his last two ACC matches. O'Connor made sure that his streak didn't end with a dominant performance. The first period was slow with a takedown and dominant ride by O'Connor. He broke open the match with a reversal and three takedowns in the second to go up 10-3. In the third, he added six (!) takedowns, as well as two stall points and a riding time point, to finish a dominant tech fall 25-10. 10-8 VT
165: Isaias Estrada vs. Clayton Ulrey
165 has been the most inconsistent weight for the Tar Heels and this week, they pulled the redshirt of Estrada in hopes that he could add some stability against a very scrappy Ulrey. Estrada was 10-3 in open competition coming into the match and wrestled well. Ulrey picked up two takedowns in the first, one at the buzzer, to take a 4-1 lead early. Estrada showed a strong top game riding out Ulrey in the second. Estrada grabbed an early escape in the third but was unable to finish any shots in the third; Ulrey won by a 4-2 decision. 13-8 VT
174: #9 Clay Lautt vs #3 Mekhi Lewis
This was one of the marquee matches coming into the dual; Mekhi was undefeated and Lautt was on a nine-match win streak and both have looked great this season. The most significant difference in this match was Mekhi's speed and incredible ability to finish go-behinds. Lewis got the first takedown of the match off a quick elbow pass go-behind; Lautt got an escape after a short ride to move it to 2-1. Lewis put on an impressive ride in the second to keep Lautt down for the full two minutes. Lewis got a quick escape in the third and countered a Lautt shot to get another go-behind takedown. With the riding time, Lewis finished with a controlling 6-2 decision. 16-8 VT
184: #18 Gavin Kane vs. #10 Hunter Bolen
Another big battle at 184 between All-American Hunter Bolen and a surging Gavin Kane. The first period was busy but scoreless--several shots by each wrestler were defended well. Kane got the first point with an escape in the second; Bolen countered with an early escape in the third. It looked like we may get our first takedown in the third with Kane in on two deep shots, but Bolen was able to keep him from finishing. In sudden victory, Kane was able to get to a clean single leg and finish the takedown and win the 3-1 decision. This was a great match and I'm interested to see a potential rematch at ACCs. 16-11 VT
197: Mark Chaid vs. #28 Dakota Howard
We were expecting to see a ranked matchup with #31 Max Shaw, but the Tar Heels instead sent out Mark Chaid to square off with Howard. Howard got the first points on a double leg that Chaid nearly countered with an elevator, while Howard drove in. He was able to scramble through and finish the takedown. It was a lot of Howard from there on out. He picked up another takedown in the first and two more in the second to go into the third up 8-4. He added an escape, a takedown, a stall and a riding time point to finish out an 13-5 major decision. 20-11 VT
285: Brandon Whitman vs. #14 Nathan Traxler
In one of the more touching moments of the dual, Traxler's dad surprised him to walk out for Senior Day. Traxler has made the most of his year in a Hokie singlet and came into the dual at 15-1 with an 11 match winning streak. He controlled the bout throughout, but it wasn't his most dominant performance in Cassell as he took the match over Whitman 5-1. Whitman has looked better the last two weeks--he picked up a win over Slinger last week and put up a good fight against a very tough Traxler. 23-11 VT
#4 NC State at #22 Pittsburgh
The Wolfpack made the eight-hour bus ride to Pittsburgh (well documented by Trent Hidlay) to face the Panthers. The matches basically went chalk based on rankings, but for the second week in a row, Isaac Trumble came through with a big upset at 197. The Wolfpack took care of business and won the dual 26-9.
125: #14 Jakob Camacho vs #30 Gage Curry
After a slow start, the scoring went wild late in the first. Camacho got the first takedown-Curry escape. Repeat. Then Curry got a takedown and rode out the last ten seconds to go into the 2nd tied at four. After an escape and takedown in the second, Camacho opened up the scoring in the third. Camacho added a takedown and a four-point nearfall to break it open, before adding a stalling point to get the major 15-6. 4-0 NCS
133: #14 Kai Orine vs. #9 Micky Phillippi
The first period was scoreless, but Phillippi did a great job of establishing his control ties and it seemed to slow Orine down. After an escape to start the second, Phillippi continued to press in with the control and nearly got a takedown on the edge, but Orine fended it off well. Phillippi put on a great ride in the final period to pick up riding time before Orine got the escape. He added a takedown on a go-behind from Orine's shot at the end to win 4-1. 4-3 NCS
141: #24 Ryan Jack vs. #8 Cole Matthews
Matthews continued his hot streak against a stingy Ryan Jack, but it was a fight to get it done. The first period was scoreless and they traded escapes to start the second and third periods. Both of them picked up the pace at the end of the third and Ryan fired off a few shots from space; Matthews caught Ryan in a front headlock on one of these shots and was able to get the go-behind with 13 seconds left and rode out for the 3-1 win. 6-4 Pitt
149: #3 Tariq Wilson vs. Dan Mancini
Wilson came out of the gates attacking in this match; he was in on a shot within the opening 30 seconds for the only takedown in the first period. Mancini had a tremendous second period--he had a strong ride for the first minute plus and was able to hold off Wilson on a good shot late in the second. Wilson picked up an escape and another takedown midway through the third. After the escape, Mancini got in on a single leg and during the scramble to finish, he and Wilson hit heads and opened a gash above Wilson's eye. Wilson gutted out the last 30 seconds of handfighting and surrendered a takedown to Mancini on the edge at the buzzer to finish with a 6-5 win. 7-6 NCS
157: #11 Ed Scott vs. #19 Elijah Cleary
Cleary was on the attack early and picked up the first takedown. Scott countered with his own takedown and rode out the first to amass 1:45 in riding time. The only points scored in the second were an escape by Scott and a penalty point for stalling on Cleary. There were a couple good scrambles in the third, but no points were scored. Scott picked up the 6-2 decision with riding time. 10-6 NCS
165: #22 Thomas Bullard vs. #16 Jake Wentzel
Wentzel got out to an early lead with a takedown and a long ride to end the first. Bullard earned a reversal to start the second and got one swipe, but not quite enough to get nearfall. Bullard then put on a strong ride to stay on top for the rest of the second. He also picked up a stalling point to be up 3-2 into the third. Wentzel got a quick escape in the third to tie it up. There were some shallow shots from both sides to finish the third but no scores, so it headed to sudden victory. In the extra period, there were some attempts from the upper body, but again no points on the board, so we moved to rideouts. Wentzel rode out the first 30 second period to start and was able to get an escape in the second half and fend off a couple attempts from Bullard to get the 4-3 win. 10-9 NCS
174: #4 Hayden Hidlay vs. Hunter Kernan
Hidlay made quick work of Kernan, picking up a first-period tech fall. He got an early takedown and four sets of four near-fall points to get the 18-0 BONUS before the first buzzer. 15-9 NCS
184: #3 Trent Hidlay vs. Gregg Harvey
Trent opened the match with a strong double leg and rolled out of bounds after locking up a tilt. After a Harvey escape, Hidlay got another takedown on the edge and held Harvey for a two count to go up 8-1 early; he picked up one more takedown in the first to enter the second up 10-3. Hidlay added an escape and two additional takedowns in the second to open a 15-4 lead. In the third, he tacked on three more takedowns to finish the 22-7 tech fall. 20-9 NCS
197: #16 Isaac Trumble vs #6 Nino Bonaccorsi
Coming off a big upset last week against Jay Aiello, Trumble made lightning strike twice, knocking off Bonaccorsi. Bonaccorsi was in deep in the first, but Trumble was able to use his length to fend off the takedown to keep the period scoreless. Trumble put on a very impressive ride to keep Bonaccorsi down the whole second period. Nino nearly had a reversal at the end of the period, but Trumble was able to hold on to the leg to maintain control. Trumble chose neutral for the third and he was able to fight off a two-minute barrage of Bonaccorsi shots to earn the 2-0 upset win. 23-9 NCS
285: #26 Tyrie Houghton vs. Jake Slinger
Slinger opened up the match with a shot on the whistle to get the first takedown. After a short ride, Houghton got a reversal and finished the period on top. Slinger had a strong ride for the first minute of the second before Houghton got the escape and was right back in to get his second takedown. Houghton added two more takedowns in the third to take the 9-4 win to finish the dual. 26-9 NCS
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