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CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - The 12th-ranked and seventh-seeded Virginia Tech wrestling squad rolled to a 30-10 win over 17th-ranked, but unseeded, Central Michigan Saturday morning in the first round of the NWCA/Cliff Keen National Duals inside the UNI-Dome on the campus of Northern Iowa. With the win, the Hokies advance to the quarterfinals of the event and move to 9-2 on the year.

At 125 pounds, 11th-ranked Jarrod Garnett trailed late, but pulled out a 5-1 win over Christian Culliman, After a scoreless first period, Garnett rode Culliman for over a minute in the second period before Culliman escaped for a 1-0 lead. In the third period, Garnett reversed him to take a 2-1 lead and got back points at the end and a point for riding time to clinch the 5-1 win. At 133 pounds, it was a battle of two top-10 wrestlers in Tech’s eighth-ranked Devin Carter and CMU’s ninth-ranked Scotti Sentes. Carter dominated the first period with three takedowns and a nearfall combination. In the second period, Carter picked up two more takedowns and led 12-3 heading to the final stanza. Sentes rode Carter the whole third period, but it wasn’t enough as Carter picked up the 12-3 major decision.

Fifth-ranked Chris Diaz dominated at 141 pounds, using three takedowns and two reversals to earn a 14-5 major decision over Scott Mattingly. For the senior, it was his 99th career win.

Ninth-ranked Brian Stephens struggled, but picked up a 4-2 decision over Donnie Corby thanks in part to a late takedown in the third period. Jesse Dong, ranked fifth in the country at 157 pounds, picked up a first-period pin, sticking Eric Cubberly at the 2:50 mark. At 165 pounds, 14th-ranked Pete Yates picked up pair of first-period takedowns and got a three-point nearfall in the second period to take a 7-1 lead into the third. There, Yates got an escape, a takedown and picked up a point for riding time to record the 11-1 major decision over Ryan Cubberly.

Fifth-ranked Ben Bennett got the Chippewas on the board with a 9-0 major decision over Nick Vetterlein at 174 pounds. Tommy Spellman, ranked 16th at 184 pounds, fell behind 3-0 in the first period to Chad Friend, but bounced back quickly to tie it up and eventually picked up the 4-3 win. At 197 pounds, Chris Penny wrestled a nice match in picking up a 7-2 win with a pair of takedowns and a reversal. Tech forfeited at heavyweight to third-ranked Jarod Trice to account for the final score.

“I think it was a good way to start off,” head coach Kevin Dresser said. “A couple of guys didn’t feel great, for whatever reason, but we pushed through it. Overall, we’re where wee need to be right now. We wanted a shot at Oklahoma State and we’re going to get it here in a couple of hours.”

For Tech, it marked its first win at the National Duals as the Hokies went 0-2 in their only other appearance at the event.

With the win, the Hokies move to 9-2 on the year and will face second-ranked and second-seeded Oklahoma State in the quarterfinals later Saturday. The Hokies and Cowboys will square off at 4 p.m. (Eastern), 3 p.m. local time. OSU downed Purdue in the first round.

#12 Virginia Tech 30, #17 Central Michigan, 10
125: #11 Jarrod Garnett (VT) dec. Christian Culliman, 5-1
133: #8 Devin Carter (VT) maj. dec. #9 Scotti Sentes, 12-3
141: #5 Chris Diaz (VT) maj. dec. Scott Mattingly, 14-5
149: #9 Brian Stephens (VT) dec. Donnie Corby, 4-2
157: #5 Jesse Dong (VT) fall Eric Cubberly, 2:50
165: #14 Pete Yates (VT) maj. dec. Ryan Cubberly, 11-1
174: # 5 Ben Bennett(CMU) maj. dec. Nick Vetterlein, 9-0
184: #16 Tommy Spellman (VT) dec. Chad Friend, 4-3
197: Chris Penny (VT) dec. Craig Kelliher, 7-2
285: #3 Jarod Trice (CMU) wins by forfeit

For updates on Virginia Tech wrestling, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_Wrestling).