Lewis Falls Just Short of National Title, Hokies place 8th in NCAA’s

By Ryan Duvall

Staff Writer

March 20, 2022

It was almost heartbreaking in a way. To see someone accomplish so much, and fall short of their ultimate goal by a matter of seconds.

Well, this is how No. 2 Mekhi Lewis (174-pounds) of No. 8 Virginia Tech’s (9-4, 4-1 ACC) weekend went in Detroit, Michigan.

Lewis, the 2019 national champion at 165 lbs, came into Little Caesars Arena for the NCAA wrestling championships looking to prove everyone wrong.

Everyone who doubted him after his 2020-2021 season was cut short due to a torn pectoral, and those same doubters who questioned if he would be able to have success after moving up a weight class.

But the junior was 20-1 coming into the tournament, having won the 2022 ACC championship at his new weight, and was awarded the two-seed out of 32 qualifiers in his class.

Lewis proved he was deserving of the seeding, dominating his way to a national championship bout in a crowded and competitive weight class.

The grappler took out No. 31 Dennis Robin (West Virginia), No. 18 Lance Runyon (Northern Iowa), and for the third time this season, North Carolina’s No. 10 Clay Lautt in the first three rounds.

Onto the semi-finals, Lewis would have a tougher time, as the top four seeds were all that remained on the 174-pound side.

But, with Mekhi, there was no fear. His penultimate match against No. 3 Logan Massa (Michigan) was a good one. It was tied at one coming into the third period, until the VT wrestler got Massa into a pin that would result in a fall, and Lewis advancing to his second national championship bout.

Lewis, just by making a title bout appearance had accomplished so much, and he knew it too, as he jumped into the arms of head coach Tony Robie, and assistant Jared Haught. It just meant more to Lewis, who had been through so much, and was full of emotion.

Then, in the Friday night press conference, Lewis revealed, “people don’t know I almost quit.”

One simple sentence expressed how much he had fought, not only on the mat, but in life to get back to the top. It seemed as if it were meant for Mekhi Lewis to be a 2022 NCAA champion.

But No. 1 Carter Starocci (PSU) said not so fast. The top grapplers of the 174-pound weight class duked it out in a battle for the ages, where Starocci would come out on top thanks to riding time.

The final match went to sudden victory overtime tied at four apiece. Each wrestler picked up a point through an escape, but Starocci had managed to take a few seconds of riding time, which was enough to cap off his undefeated season and crown the Nittany Lion a national champion for the second straight season.

Lewis finished the year at 24-2, as an All-American, ACC champion, and NCAA runner-up.

Lewis would be one of three Hokies named an All-American, as No. 4 Korbin Myers (133-pounds) and No. 11 Bryce Andonian (149-pounds) were given the prestigious honor after placing in the top eight of their weight classes.

The efforts of the three All-Americans, along with the other five Virginia Tech wrestlers who were in Detroit led the school to an eighth place finish, at 52.5 team points.

Penn State won the tournament handily, recording 131.5 team points, while going a remarkable 5-0 in championship bouts. The NCAA’s were dominated by the Big Ten, which had five of the top six squads in 2022.

The Hokies managed to crack the top ten for the first time since 2018, and paced all ACC competition, with NC State placing 10th, UNC 18th, and Pitt 24th.

Outside of Lewis, the Hokie who had the best showing of the 2022 NCAA tournament was clearly Bryce Andoinan.

Andonian came in as the 11-seed, and after getting bounced by runner-up Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) in the semi-finals, would fight through wrestlebacks to claim third place in the 149-pound class.

Meanwhile, three Hokies finished out their collegiate wrestling careers in Detroit. Myers, No. 15 Hunter Bolen (184-pounds), and No. 1o Nathan Traxler (285-pounds) all wrestled their final matches in maroon and orange.

Myers placed sixth, but Bolen and Traxler were eliminated in the consolation brackets.

No. 24 Sam Latona (125-pounds), No. 28 Collin Gerardi (141-pounds), and No. 28 Connor Brady (157-pounds) were all unable to place on the podium, as they were defeated in the consolation brackets as well.

With the 2021-2022 season now behind them, the Hokies will look forward to next season. Three prominent starters will be gone, but Coach Robie has a plethora of recruits coming in that should keep Virginia Tech among the top programs in the country.

Tech finishes the season at 9-4, 4-1 ACC. The Hokies were second in the ACC in both the regular season and postseason, and finished eighth nationally at the 2022 NCAA championships.