Ohio State leaves the Collegiate Duals looking even stronger than they did before, upsetting No. 2 NC State in a 21-20 win after beating both No. 21 Northern Iowa and Lock Haven earlier on Tuesday to improve the Buckeyes dual record to 7-1.
The Buckeyes started the dual against the Wolfpack with three straight pins over three top-5-ranked wrestlers with Brendan McCrone, Nic Bouzakis and Jesse Mendez giving the Buckeyes an early 18-0 lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.
NC State clawed back after the huge start by the Buckeyes, bringing it all down to No. 18 Nick Feldman making his first appearance since the Cliff Keen Invitational on Dec. 2. He needed to avoid losing by a major decision or worse to secure the win, and with an 8-6 loss late in the third period, Ohio State ended up beating the Wolfpack.
In the first dual of the day, Ohio State beat Northern Iowa 26-7 and took down Lock Haven 28-9 in its 5 p.m. dual.
Here’s how each weight class did in each match in each of the three duals in Nashville, Tenn.
125 pounds:
UNI: To open up the day against Northern Iowa, No. 26 McCrone won 10-8 over No. 32 Trever Anderson to set the tone.
Lock Haven: Vinny Kilkeary faced off against No. 2 Anthony Noto and lost, but he didn’t allow a bonus point, losing 10-3 and keeping the Buckeyes within 3 to start the dual.
NC State: McCrone secured likely the biggest upset Ohio State’s season, pinning No. 1-ranked Jakob Camacho to put Ohio State up 6-0 in the dual right away.
133 pounds:
UNI: No. 12 Bouzakis started his day against No. 17 Julian Farber with a 5-1 loss to tie up the dual 3-3.
Lock Haven: Andre Gonzales subbed in for Bouzakis against Lock Haven and lost to Gable Strickland 6-1 to put the Buckeyes down 6-0.
NC State: Bouzakis pulled off a huge upset of his own immediately after McCrone’s pin, and he had a pin of his own, sticking No. 5 Kai Orine, and the Buckeyes were up 12-0 after just two bouts.
141 pounds:
UNI: After his first loss of the season against Pittsburgh, No. 3 Mendez bounced back in a top-10 matchup, beating No. 9 Cael Happel in a low-scoring 5-1 decision with a takedown late in the third period and making it 6-3, Buckeyes
Lock Haven: Mendez continued his dominance with the first tech fall of the day, taking down Zack Zeamer 19-3 and brought Ohio State within one, making the dual 6-5.
NC State: Mendez kept the pin party going against NC State, sticking No. 4 Ryan Jack to put the Buckeyes up 18-0 after three matches, each against top-5 opponents.
149 pounds:
UNI: No. 5 Dylan D’Emilio had an 11-1 major decision win over Adam Allard to put the Buckeyes up 10-3 in his first match of the day.
Lock Haven: D’Emilio won his second match of the day 9-6, and Ohio State took an 8-6 lead, one they wouldn’t relinquish.
NC State: D’Emilio took the Buckeyes first loss of the dual against NC State, falling to No. 5 Jackson Arrington in a tight 5-3 decision. The Buckeyes left the match with an 18-3 lead.
157 pounds:
UNI: No. 13 Paddy Gallagher upset No. 12 Ryder Downey with an escape and a takedown in the second period to win the bout 4-1, putting Ohio State up 13-3 in the dual. Gallagher lost to Downey in the Cliff Keen tournament but came back strong in Nashville.
Lock Haven: Gallagher picked up a tech fall of his own, beating J.T. Hogan 19-4 and Ohio State took a 13-6 lead.
NC State: Gallagher lost his bout to No. 5 Ed Scott 4-2, and the Buckeyes lead was brought to 18-6.
165 pounds:
UNI: No. 21 Isaac Wilcox beat Evan Yant 4-2, only allowing two escapes and the Buckeyes went up 16-3.
Lock Haven: Bryce Hepner’s opportunity came against Lock Haven and he took advantage of it, winning his bout over Eric Alderfer 7-2.
NC State: The Wolfpack continued to scratch away at the Buckeyes lead when Derek Fields upset Wilcox 4-1, cutting the lead to 18-9.
174 pounds:
UNI: Freshman Rocco Welsh made his dual debut with a 4-1 win over Jared Simma to put the Buckeyes up 19-3 in the dual.
Lock Haven: Freshman Carter Chase subbed in for the 174-pound match against Lock Haven. He and Tyler Stolzfus needed a sudden victory period to decide the bout, but Chase lost 9-6 making the dual score 16-9.
NC State: Welsh won again, this time upsetting No. 23 Alex Faison in a 9-6 decision with a buzzer beater takedown to secure the win. The Buckeyes took a 21-9 lead with the win.
184 pounds:
UNI: Ryder Rogotzke got his chance for the Buckeyes at 184 pounds against No. 1-ranked Parker Keckeisen but wasn’t able to pull off the upset. He only allowed one bonus point for Northern Iowa and the Buckeyes left the match up 19-7.
Lock Haven: No. 16 Gavin Hoffman came close to a tech fall but settled for one bonus point with a 20-6 major decision win over Colin Fegley. 7-3 and keep NC State within reach with a 21-12 score.
NC State: Rogotzke got another chance for an upset but fell to No. 15 Dylan Fishback
197 pounds:
UNI: No. 23 Luke Geog got the bonus point back with a 14-4 major decision win over Kalob Runyon, putting the Buckeyes up 23-7 and officially securing the win.
Lock Haven: Geog was able to secure a tech fall of his own, beating Brad Morrison 21-4 and Ohio State took a 25-9 lead into the final match.
NC State: Geog fell by tech fall 22-7 to No. 4 Trent Hidlay, bringing the Wolfpack within another tech fall of winning the match, or a major decision of tying it up in the heavyweight bout.
Heavyweight:
UNI: Hogan Swenski was back in action after subbing in for Feldman against Pittsburgh, and he came back from a loss against the Panthers with an 8-2 win over Jose Valdez. The Buckeyes won the dual 26-7.
Lock Haven: Swenski won his second match also, this one over Ethan Miller 8-1 and Ohio State won the dual 28-9.
NC State: No. 18 Feldman made an appearance at the end of the day and if he did anything better than losing by a major decision, the Buckeyes would pull off the upset. The first period against No. 17 Owen Trephan was scoreless, and late into the third period it was knotted up 5-5. Feldman lost the bout 8-6, but it was enough to secure the upset victory for Ohio State 21-20.
