Takedown Report

NORTH CAROLINA STATE WRESTLING 2023-24

Pack Rallies Back, But Early Pins Sink NC State Wrestling In Rare Dual Loss
NC State wrestling suffered a rare dual defeat Tuesday, despite winning six individual bouts against Ohio State
NC State found itself in a rather unfamiliar position as the Wolfpack walked off the mat at the Collegiate Wrestling Duals in Nashville Tuesday night. The Pack was on the wrong end of the scoreboard in the final dual of the event.
Starting with wins over Lock Haven (34-6) and #28 Northern Iowa (25-16), the marquee match-up of the day was the top-10 showdown with #9 Ohio State.
The Pack, and all fans watching from home, were shell-shocked with the start of that dual. The Buckeyes stormed out to an 18-0 lead after only the first three bouts, all resulting in Ohio State pins. 
Barely 15 minutes into the dual, the Pack found itself in a deep hole. “You rarely see a dual start like that,” NC State head coach Pat Popolizio said from the Nashville airport Wednesday morning. 
NC State battled back, chipping away at the lead, beginning with Jackson Arrington’s 5-3 win against All-American Dylan D’Emilio at 149. Three straight wins for the Pack brought the team score to 18-9 going into 174 pounds. 
The Buckeyes got a key win from Rocco Welsh at 174 with a takedown in the final seconds to jump ahead 21-9 with three bouts left. Again, the Pack had hope and knew bonus points were needed down the stretch. Another decision at 184 pounds was followed by a tech fall from Trent Hidlay at 197, drawing the score to 21-17 with only heavyweight left.
In a top-20 battle, NC State came away with another decision from Owen Trephan over Nick Feldman, but it was not enough as Ohio State claimed a 21-20 victory. With that result, NC State dropped only its fourth dual over the last five seasons – compared to 57 wins dating back to the 2019-20 campaign. 
“I was extremely impressed with the way we competed and fought to battle back,” Popolizio said. “We have all been in dual meets before, but getting down 18-0 after only three matches might be like football going into halftime down 50-0.  “We responded, put ourselves in position to almost win, and that speaks volumes to the culture of our program. I did like the response from our guys.”
The response by NC State was winning six of the final seven matches against the Buckeyes. “Always grateful to compete with the best,” Popolizio posted on X (formerly Twitter after the event). “Did not get all the wins this time, but guys showed a lot of grit and composure fighting back. Love what this team stands for!”
Now, the Wolfpack will take some time off for the holidays. “We are going to get back, and give the guys a few days,” Popolizio said. “We need some rest right now. We have traveled a ton of miles on the road to start this season. Everybody is at the point of needing some downtime.  “Once we all get back to Raleigh after this break, we are going to get ready for our first home dual of the season (vs. Oklahoma State) … story at … Flowrestling.org/Pack-rallies-back-but-early-pins-sink-nc-state-wrestling-in-rare-dual-loss

January 3, 2024 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized