Hokies Take Down Wolfpack Wrestling, 24-13
Sophomore Zach Garren and freshman Kody Hamrah pick up important wins for NC State despite loss overall.
RALEIGH, N.C. – An early forfeit by NC State at 133 pounds put the Wolfpack in a hole that it wouldn’t be able to escape from, as Virginia Tech defeated the Pack,24-13 in wrestling action Saturday afternoon at Reynolds Coliesum. The loss drops NC State to 7-8, while the Hokies improved to 16-4.
Justin Staylor gave the Hokies a 3-0 advantage from the start after notching a 9-5 decision win over NC State’s Garrett Cummings at 125 pounds. Then 10th-ranked David Hoffman won by forfeit over Jeremy Hartrum at 133 to boost Virginia Tech to a 9-0 advantage. A 7-3 decision at 141 pounds by Donny Ooton over Jeff Breese moved the score to 12-0.
But then the Wolfpack would begin to mount a comeback, grabbing a 13-7 decision by Alex Hernandez over Tyde Prater at 149, followed by a 12-10 overtime victory by Kody Hamrah against Reed Carpenter. Hamrah and Carpenter were knotted up at 10-10 at the end of regulation, but with a takedown in the first overtime period, Hamrah managed to pull NC State within six, 12-6.
The two teams would split the next two matches, with Chris Stith defeating Ryan Nowicki, 3-2 at 165 pounds, while Kevin Gabrielson decisioned Shaun Guttridge at 174, 6-2.
With the score 15-9 in favor of the Hokies, 184-pounder Steve Borja gave Virginia Tech a stranglehold on the match with a pin over Jeremy Colbert in 5:13 that increased the score to 21-9. The Pack’s Zach Garren answered with a 14-5 major decision win over Tomas Ovalle at 197 pounds. The final bout of the match saw 19th-ranked Mike Faust decision Jainor Palma with the help of two late takedowns at heavyweight, 10-6.
The Wolfpack will return home to face the Duke Blue Devils on Wednesday night at Reynolds Coliseum. Match time is set for 7:30 p.m.
Virginia Tech 24, NC State 13
125 – Justin Staylor (VA Tech) dec. Garrett Cummings, 9-5
133 – # 10 David Hoffman (VA Tech) won by forfeit over Jeremy Hartrum
141 – Donny Ooton (VA Tech) dec. Jeff Breese, 7-3
149 – Alex Hernandez (NCS) dec. Tyde Prater, 13-7
157 – Kody Hamrah (NCS) dec. Reed Carpenter, 12-10 (overtime)
165 – Chris Stith (VA Tech) Ryan Nowicki, 3-2
174 – Kevin Gabrielson (NCS) dec. Shaun Guttridge, 6-2
184 – Steve Borja (VA Tech) pinned Jeremy Colbert at 5:13
197 – Zach Garren (NCS) major dec. Tomas Ovalle, 14-5
Hwt – #19 Mike Faust (Tech) dec. Jainor Palma, 10-6
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