BLACKSBURG, Va. – (via HokieSports.com) No. 9 Virginia Tech won seven of 10 bouts and used three upsets to take down No. 25 North Carolina, 21-9, in front of 3,015 at Carilion Clinic Court on Saturday night.
The Hokies (13-2, 3-0 ACC) saw three unranked grapplers defeat ranked Tar Heels (8-9, 2-1 ACC); Brent Moore over No. 16 A.C. Headlee, 3-2, Ryan Blees over No. 6 Troy Heilmann in sudden victory overtime, 3-1, and Hunter Bolen by major decision over No. 13 Ethan Ramos, 14-6.
Seniors Jared Haught and Dennis Gustafson both won by decision in their final matches at Cassell Coliseum.
Gustafson got the Hokies on the board with a workmanlike 6-0 win at 133 and Brent Moore followed with a wild 3-2 victory over 18th-ranked Headlee that gave Tech the lead for good, 6-3. Moore was leading 1-0 and had riding time locked with the clock winding down before Headlee reversed for two and would’ve tied the score at 2-2 at the end of regulation. The Hokies challenged and officials rules that Moore had escaped after the take down, giving him a point and a 3-2 decision with riding time.
The momentum carried over to the bout at 149 where Blees converted on a single leg takedown in sudden victory overtime to take a 3-1 decision. The reigning Co-ACC Wrestler of the Week, Blees has won 14 of his last 15 matches since dropping down to 149. Heilmann is the highest ranked opponent Blees has defeated this season.
After the Tar Heels eeked out a win at 157 with No. 16 Kennedy Monday topping Solomon Chishko, his first collegiate match at that weight, the Hokies would go on to win four straight between 165 and 197. One of those was the lone bonus point victory of the night on either side from Bolen.
Bolen led 5-2 with 1:30 left but the 13th-ranked Ramos was able to battle back and tie the score at 6-6. With riding time in Bolen’s favor, Ramos let Bolen escape with under 15 seconds left, looking for the match-clinching takedown. Ramos got in on a shot but Bolen was able to come out on top for two and pick up four near fall with the clock expiring, giving him a 14-6 major with riding time.
The Hokies return to action on Sunday, Feb. 11, when they travel to Charlottesville to take on Virginia at 1 p.m.
No. 9 Virginia Tech 21, No. 25 North Carolina 9
125: James Szymanski (UNC) dec. Ryan More (VT), 10-3
133: #18 Dennis Gustafson (VT) dec. Zach Sherman (UNC), 6-0
141: Brent Moore (VT) dec. #16 A.C. Headlee (VT), 3-2
149: Ryan Blees (VT) dec. #6 Troy Heilmann (UNC), 3-1 (SV OT)
157: #16 Kennedy Monday (UNC) dec. Solomon Chishko (VT), 3-1 (SV OT)
165: #3 David McFadden (VT) dec. Josh McClure (UNC), 11-6
174: Hunter Bolen (VT) MD #13 Ethan Ramos (UNC), 14-6
184: #8 Zack Zavatsky (VT) dec. #17 Chip Ness (UNC) (13-6), 4-3
197: #2 Jared Haught (VT) dec. #16 Danny Chaid (UNC), 6-2
285: #18 Cory Daniel (UNC) dec. #17 Andrew Dunn (VT), 3-2