No. 12 Hokies Thump North Carolina 33-3

Duncan Irvine

Staff Writer

January 26, 2024

Virginia Tech's Sam Latona was one of nine Hokies to win their bouts in a 33-3 demolition of North Carolina. (Virginia Tech Athletics)

BLACKSBURG – On Friday night, the No. 12 Virginia Tech (5-3, 1-0 ACC) wrestling team set the tone for conference play by defeating North Carolina (7-6, 0-1) 33-3 in its conference opener. 

Despite losing the first bout, Tech went on to win the next nine, pulling off multiple upsets, including No. 14 Tom Crook’s electric 5-4 win over No. 5 Lachlan McNeil.

The action kicked off at 184 pounds, where Virginia Tech’s TJ Stewart dueled North Carolina’s No. 23 Gavin Kane. Kane was one of the Tar Heels’ best chances to score team points, as he was the only ranked wrestler to take on an unranked foe. 

Stewart got out to a 6-1 lead by the end of the first round, but two third-round takedowns by Kane brought the match level at eight. The match went to sudden victory, where Kane quickly reminded everyone why he is nationally ranked, tanking down Stewart almost immediately. 

Virginia Tech looked to lick its wounds at 197 pounds, where No. 26 Andy Smith faced off against UNC’s No. 19 Max Shaw.

Tied 1-1 in the final round, Smith eked out a takedown, which was enough to get him a 4-2 victory, evening the team score at three.

With the chance to seize momentum for the rest of the match, Heavyweight No. 21 Hunter Catka wasted no time showing UNC’s Cade Lautt who was the boss. He took down Lautt four times and accumulated almost two minutes of riding time, earning a 14-5 major decision win. 

At 125 pounds, No. 6 Cooper Flynn added to the Hokies’ 7-3 lead with a 4-2 victory over No. 29 Spencer Moore. He scored an early takedown and didn’t let up, holding on for the win as the pair traded escapes.

The Hokies were cruising, now up 10-3.

Tech’s No. 11 Sam Latona then kept the good vibes rolling against UNC’s Jace Palmer at 133 pounds.

He dominated Palmer, nearly pinning him in the second round, and securing a 19-3 technical fall victory in the third. 

141 pounds saw North Carolina’s other best chance for points, with No. 5 Lachlan McNeil taking on the Hokies’ No. 14 Tom Crook.

Crook, trailing virtually the entire match, took down McNeil with just over 30 seconds left in the match. He clamped down and held on to win 5-4 as the crowd erupted.

“Just business as usual,” Crook said. “I was down and I needed a takedown. You think about scoring points.” 

He was asked about what it was like to have the raucous Hokie diehards behind him.

“I’ve wrestled a good bit of matches in Cassell, and that was my first big win. I probably celebrated a little too much, but it felt good, it felt really good.”

The Tar Heels’ fate was all but sealed, trailing 18-3 with no ranked wrestlers left on the board.

With all the momentum in the world on his side, Tech’s No. 2 Caleb Henson dominated UNC’s Wil Guida, winning 18-3 via technical fall, extending the Hokies’ team lead to 23-3. 

At 157 pounds, Clayton Ulrey filled in for the injured Bryce Andonian for Tech. His opponent was Sonny Santiago. 

The first point of the match came in the second round with a Santiago escape. Ulrey followed this up with an escape of his own to start the third. The pair grappled all through the final round, with Ulrey scoring a takedown with under ten seconds to go, winning 4-1 and putting the Hokies up 26-3.

No. 23 Connor Brady took the mat for Tech at 165 pounds where he faced off against Isaias Estrada. A last-second takedown in the second period was enough for a 4-2 victory.

In the final bout of the night, No. 2 Mekhi Lewis took on UNC’s Tyler Eischens at 174 pounds. Lewis made things rather unexciting, dominating Eischens en route to an 11-3 major decision.

“This is where we want to be, at our best. This is really where we wanted to be hitting our stride,” Tech head coach Tony Robie said. “The first part of the year is about going out and competing, the backside of the year is about making adjustments and fine-tuning things.”

Virginia Tech moves to 5-3 on the year in dual meets and opens up conference play with a win. It travels to Charlottesville next Friday to take on Virginia.

With the defeat, North Carolina drops to 7-6 on the year and 0-1 in conference play. They return home to Chapel Hill to take on Navy this Sunday.