North Carolina
Virginia Tech
Carolina Grapplers Downed By Virginia Tech
January 22, 2012 | Wrestling
Jan. 22, 2012
BLACKSBURG, Va. - Despite a pin from sophomore Zac Bennett the North Carolina wrestling team dropped a conference dual at Virginia Tech Sunday by a 29-12 margin. Joining Bennett in the win column were Corey Mock and Thomas Ferguson who each claimed decision wins.
Corey Mock got the Tar Heels off to a good start with an 8-6 decision over Virginia Tech's Cameron Hurd at 157 pounds and gave Carolina a 3-0 lead.
The eighth-ranked wrestler in the country at 165 pounds, Virginia Tech's Pete Yates, bested senior Kyle Kiss by a 9-0 margin to give the Hokies their first lead of the day as the major decision gave them a 4-3 advantage.
Chris Moon helped extend that lead to 7-3 as he registered a 6-1 decision against Alex Utley at 174 pounds for the win.
The Tar Heels roared back into the dual with back-to-back wins from Thomas Ferguson and Zac Bennett. Ferguson posted an 8-2 decision win over John Dickson at 184 pounds before Bennett pinned Nick Vetterlein at 197 pounds with just nine seconds remaining in the first period. Bennett's pin pushed the Tar Heels in front at 12-7 at the midway point.
The Hokies answered at heavyweight as Chris Penny earned a major decision win over Frank Abbondanza to cut the Tar Heel lead to 12-11 before Ty Mitch posted a major decision of his own against Josh Craig at 125 pounds to put VT in front 15-12.
Devin Carter came into Sunday's dual as the top-ranked wrestler in the country at 133 pounds and lived up to the billing as he claimed a 22-7 technical fall over Brock LiVorio boosting Virginia Tech's lead to 20-12.
In a battle of nationally-ranked wrestlers at 141 pounds Virginia Tech's Zach Neibert bested UNC's Evan Henderson as the sophomore pinned the freshman in the second period. The pin clinched the dual for the Hokies providing a 26-12 margin with one bout remaining.
The final bout of the day saw Jon Burns take on Nick Brascetta at 149 pounds with Brascetta getting a late takedown to claim a 4-3 decision over Burns. The decision win gave the Hokies a final margin of 29-12 over the Tar Heels.
Carolina falls to 2-11 on the year in dual matches and 1-2 in ACC duals. Up next for the Tar Heels is a visit from Maryland on Friday, Jan. 27 at 7 p.m. followed by a dual vs. Navy on Saturday, Jan. 28 at 1 p.m.
#17 Virginia Tech 29, North Carolina 12
157 - #19 Corey Mock (UNC) over Cameron Hurd (VT) Dec 8-6, 3-0 UNC
165 - #8 Pete Yates (VT) over Kyle Kiss (UNC) MD 9-0, 4-3 VT
174 - Chris Moon (VT) over Alex Utley (UNC) Dec 6-1, 7-3 VT
184 - Thomas Ferguson (UNC) over John Dickson (VT) Dec 8-2, 7-6 VT
197 - Zac Bennett (UNC) over Nick Vetterlein (VT) Fall 2:51, 12-7 UNC
HWT - Chris Penny (VT) over Frank Abbondanza (UNC) MD 11-3, 12-11 UNC
125 - Ty Mitch (VT) over Josh Craig (UNC) MD 17-6, 15-12 VT
133 - #1 Devin Carter (VT) over Brock LiVorio (UNC) TF 22-7, 20-12 VT
141 - #20 Zach Neibert (VT) over #18 Evan Henderson (UNC) Fall 4:39, 26-12 VT
149 - Nick Brascetta (VT) over Jon Burns (UNC) Dec 4-3, 29-12 VT
Players Mentioned
