Takedown Report

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3rd Season, Column 25; Its the Title, not the Tarheel State; Princeton scratches their Ivy Itch; Medium Notes on the Big Boys; ‘Cue the Local Angle; and SoCon News
RALEIGH, BUIES CREEK, CHAPEL HILL AND BOONE STAKE CLAIMS AS WRESTLINGS SOUTHERN EPICENTER
Have there ever been headier moments in the state of North Carolinas college wrestling history? One might have to look far to find this many teams reaching this level of success the same season. In the span of about 10 days Campbell, NC State, App State and UNC locked down regular season conference titles or runner up positions in the SoCon and the ACC. Cary Kolats Camels beat App State 20-13. Against the Mountaineers the score was 16-13 heading into the last match. Coach Kolat mentioned in a post match interview(1) that the Camels knew, with a loss, the teams were headed to a contest decided by criteria. Nationally ranked 133LB Noah Gonser, the senior transfer from the assassinated Eastern Michigan program, made sure that didn’t happen. His 11-2 major decision win over defending conference champion Codi Russell locked down the 9th win of the season for the Camels. Kolats crew got a second MD victory from 184LB Andrew Morgan to help offset the Mountaineers Matt Zovitovskis MD over scrappy Matt Dallara. Even bigger, the Camels took both of the matches decided by 1 point. 5 of Campbells wrestlers are unbeaten in conference action. After the 38-6 weekend win over VMI Campbell will finish with no worse than a tie for first. They’ll finish first as they will send Davidson to their 6th straight defeat to close the regular season for both teams. Campell will be 11-2 this year having only lost to Top 10 ranked Pitt and Top 5 ranked Arizona State. And the team Campbell beat out for this years crown? Appalachian State is 8-3 and a prohibitive favorite over VMI in the Mountaineers last dual. Top 15 Campbell, Top 10 UNC and Top 5 NC ST are the only teams to beat the Mountaineers this year. Only the undefeated WolfPack won by double digits over App State, and for the 2nd straight year the ‘Eers will host the SoCon tournament. Meanwhile, the Tar Heels secured their place in the ACC silver seat, rebounding from their loss to NC ST by toppling fellow Top 10 conference foe Pitt. At 13-2 UNC faces 2 formidable foes to finish the regular season. The conference road match against Virginia, followed by a two days later meeting with Arizona State, is a brutal run to the finish for Coach Coleman Scotts Tar Heels. Except that NO ONE in Carolina Blue feels like this season will end anywhere short of the Tar Heels highest national finish in a quarter century. UNC is young with only 157LB AC Headlee leaving after this year. The final 4th of this Fab 4, NC State, sits on the precipice of team history. They are 14-0 with 3 straight Top 10 wins. Unless the meteor hits or the coronavirus ravages Raleigh, the WolfPack will make swift work of Duke and finish as one of just 2 unbeaten teams in the country. Special times indeed for “The Title State”.

WHEELBARROW, SCRIPT GET FLIPPED AMONGST THE IVY
The unvarnished truth, a 92 match win streak, and an 18 year record were all broken a short week or so back as Chris Ayres Princeton Tigers short circuited the Iron Giant of the Ivy League. Princeton’s 19-13 triumph over Rob Kolls mighty Cornell squad broke the Big Reds near double decade on the Ivy League wrestling title and an unbeaten streak nearly 100 league contests long. It also validated, in its own way, BOTH coaches unwavering dedication to the sport and their athletes. Ayres decade long plus struggles to raise the Tigers from far below wrestlings Mendoza line to League Championship and Top 10 status deserves more than news stories.(2) Somebody somewhere needs to make a damn movie or a 3 act play out of this saga, folks. Or both. While Princetons future is unwritten but appears very shiny and the past is a pain filled lesson their present can barely fit under the National Christmas Tree. The Tigers have tangled with superpowers OK ST and Iowa and held their own as well as anyone and better than most. It’s going to get even better now that 3X AA Matt “MK Ultra” Kolodzik is out of his Olympic redshirt and on course for a 149LB title run. Thought here …. rest of the story at https://morewrestlingplease.wordpress.com/2020/02/18/3rd-season-column-25-its-the-title-not-the-tarheel-state-princeton-scratches-their-ivy-itch-medium-notes-on-the-big-boys-cue-the-local-angle-and-socon-news/?mc_cid=2452563664&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

March 20, 2020 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized