The Virginia wrestling team dropped its first ACC match of the season against No. 4 NC State Friday night at Memorial Gymnasium. It was the second match of the season for the Cavaliers (1-1, 0-1 ACC) following a dominant performance against Gardner-Webb last Saturday.
NC State (3-0, 1-0 ACC) opened up the night with a major decision victory from sophomore Jakob Camacho in the 125-pound weight class. Virginia responded with a decision victory from senior Louie Hayes at 133 pounds, cutting the deficit to 4-3.
The Wolfpack extended their lead with three consecutive victories from senior Tariq Wilson, freshman Ed Scott and senior Hayden Hidlay at 141, 149 and 157 pounds, respectively. At that point, NC State was in control of the match with a 14-3 lead.
Junior Jake Keating pulled off an upset for the Cavaliers in the 165 division, knocking off senior Thomas Bullard by decision. Senior Jay Aiello was the only other winner for the Cavaliers, notching a tight 2-0 decision victory in the 197-pound division.
The final score was 23-9 in favor of the Wolfpack, with the Cavaliers’ three wins coming from Hayes, Keating and Aiello — who all remained undefeated this season.
“Obviously, give credit to NC State,” Coach Steve Garland said. “They are a really tough team and ranked really highly for a reason. That dual meet was a lot more competitive than the final score indicated. Most of the bouts were straight up dog fights – even the ones we lost.”
Virginia returns to action Friday with another difficult match against No. 8 Virginia Tech. The match is slated to begin at 5:00 p.m. at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg.
Read More
Cavaliers show up and show out in wire-to-wire victory against Notre Dame
By Sofie Keppler | 1 hours agoA win as momentous as this — especially with the matchup’s history — could not have arrived at a better time for Virginia, especially on a night celebrating the legendary Coach Debbie Ryan.
Snow or shine, men’s lacrosse gets the job done in a 19-14 victory in its season opener against Colgate
By Sam Chun | 8 hours agoThe Cavaliers, who hope to play their final game at Scott Stadium, opened the season Sunday in a spectator-free George Welsh Indoor Football Practice Facility. Safe from the icy and frigid conditions, Virginia put on an offensive clinic, matching its highest goal total since hanging 19 on the Raiders to start the 2025 season.
The Cavaliers depart Conway with a Kickin’ Chicken mercy-rule sandwich for the road
By Ben McNiff | 18 hours agoReliable stars and inexperienced talent played their parts in running the table in Conway after a devastating loss to open the season.
