BLACKSBURG - The Virginia Tech wrestling squad, fresh off a runner-up finish at the NWCA National Duals, will take its program-high ranking of No. 4 and put it to the test this weekend, wrestling a pair of matches. The Hokies will open up ACC competition on Saturday at the University of North Carolina. The match will begin at 1 o’clock inside Carmichael Arena. On Sunday, Tech will host its home opener, taking on Clarion at 7 p.m. inside Cassell Coliseum.
Tech is 11-3 overall after going 3-1 at the National Duals last weekend, upsetting No. 2 Oklahoma State and No. 4 Wisconsin. The Hokies have seven wrestlers ranked in InterMat’s latest Top 20 - Jarrod Garnett 13th at 125 pounds; Devin Carter eighth at 133 pounds; Chris Diaz 14th at 141 pounds; Brian Stephens eighth at 149 pounds; Jesse Dong fifth at 157 pounds; Pete Yates 14th at 165 pounds; and Tommy Spellman 19th at 184 pounds.
UNC is 4-4 overall after getting beaten by No. 19 Rutgers last weekend, 28-6 on the road. Clarion is 2-0 and wrestles at UNC Saturday right after the Hokies and Tar Heels finish up. UNC has no wrestlers ranked while Clarion features No. 12 James Fleming at 157 pounds. Dong, ranked fifth in the country at 157 pounds, will take on Fleming in the featured bout of the night.
Virginia Tech is also ranked No. 3 in the country as a dual meet squad by W.I.N. Magazine.
The Hokies finished last year’s ACC play with a 4-0 mark. After going 5-0 last year and finishing the 2007-08 season with a win, the Hokies have won 10 consecutive ACC dual meets. Tech’s last ACC loss was to NC State on Feb. 15, 2008.
North Carolina will have live stats for free at UNC's web site. For the Clarion match, live stats can be found here and an audio-only broadcast can be heard on Hokies All-Access.
Below are the probable lineups for all three squads, as submitted by the coaching staff.
#4 Virginia Tech (11-3, 0-0 ACC)
125: #13 Jarrod Garnett (18-5)
133: #8 Devin Carter (20-5)
141: #14 Chris Diaz (20-5)
149: #8 Brian Stephens (19-6)
157: #5 Jesse Dong (6-0)
165: #14 Pete Yates (18-4)
174: Matt Epperly (9-7)
184: #19 Tommy Spellman (12-7)
197: Chris Penny (9-14)
285: David Marone (10-5)
North Carolina (4-4, 0-0 ACC)
125: Nick Shields (1-4)
133: Pat Owens (12-9)
141: Danny Lopes (20-10)
149: Daniel Helena (5-10)
157: Corey Mock (24-11)
165: Thomas Scotton (22-9)
174: Andre Petroski (14-10) OR Thomas Ferguson (15-9)
184: Antonio Giorgio (14-9) OR Nick Tenpenny (9-11)
197: Zac Bennett (16-9)
285: TBD
Clarion (2-0)
125: Thomas Gowing (2-8) OR Trey Hicks (1-5)
133: Joe Waltko (18-4)
141: Cameron Moran (10-6)
149: Anthony White (14-6)
157: #12 James Fleming (20-2)
165: Bekzod Abdurakhmonov (15-4)
174: Scott Joseph (8-10)
184: Steven Cressley (10-8)
197: Alex Thomas (10-6) OR Clint Podish (13-5)
285: Quintas McCorkle (15-7)
Virginia Tech will also send 14 wrestlers to Millersville University on Sunday for the Shorty Hitchcock Memorial Classic. They are:
125: Ty Mitch (unattached)
133: Tom Reynolds (unattached)
133: Erik Spjut (unattached)
141: Zach Neibert
149: Cameron Hurd
149: Nick Murray (unattached)
157: Harrison Hightower (unattached)
157: Taylor Knapp (unattached)
157: Matt Tusick
165: Chris Moon
174: Nick Vetterlein
184: John Dickson
184: Angelo Malvestuto (unattached)
197: Bobby Lavelle
For updates on Virginia Tech wrestling, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_Wrestling).