The wrestling season came to a much-needed finale Saturday as the Wolfpack finished in last place at the ACC Championships at Reynolds Coliseum.
“I know this is a bit of a letdown, but everyone should be proud of themselves and have more fuel for next year,” freshman heavyweight Eloheim Palma said of the Championships.
This season the team suffered from inexperience and injuries. The high point was a third place finish for junior Bobby Ward in the 149-weight class, the highest for the Pack at the ACC Championships.
“This is the first time in the 14 years I’ve been at N.C. State that we haven’t had a finalist,” coach Carter Jordan said. “That’s disappointing.”
Going into the ACC Championships, three wrestlers were seeded: No. 1 Bobby Ward at 149-weight class, No. 4 Ray Ward at 165-weight class, and No. 4 Quinton Godley at 174-weight class. Yet, after the first round, only freshman Dale Shull, Ward and Palma remained in the main draw and lost in the next round.
During the consolation semifinals and the fight for third place, the entire lineup was on the bracket. According to Jordan, he was discouraged by the first two rounds and expected a different outcome for the consolations.
“This round was very important for our overall mental health,” Jordan said. ” I [looked] for a lot of hustle, a lot of grit and a lot of determination. Actually, I demanded it from them.”
Jordan’s words of wisdom for the team prior to the consolations worked as the ratio of wins to losses shifted favorably.
“I think coming into the ACC’s we knew where we were compared to other teams in the ACC,” Ward said. “In the first round we didn’t wrestle as good as we should have. But afterwards Coach talked to us and we started wrestling to our abilities.”
Ward, seeded number one, came into the championship with a 23-7 overall record, and lost to No. 4 Shawn Harris of Virginia by a late takedown, 4-2. In the consolation round, Ward defeated John Burns, 5-4, after suffering an injury and continued to dominate Jon Kohler of Maryland, 10-4, to secure third place at 149.
“I was hoping to win it but I had a tough loss first match and then I had two good wins after,” Ward said. “But I took it one match at a time after my first match and just kept wrestling tough.”
Palma was the closest Pack wrestler to make the NCAA Championship with an automatic bid. Yet, after losing to No. 2 Pat Gilmore of Maryland by a 3-1 decision and wrestling back to the consolation final match, Palma lost the match by a questionable official’s call, not counting a takedown late in the third period to No. 4 Jack Danilkowicz, 3-2.
“That was really disappointing,” Jordan said of Palma’s loss. “You hate to see a kid’s trip to the national tournament come down to an official’s call. He got the first takedown, and I thought he outworked him, out hustled him.”
Both Palma and Ward have a chance to an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament announced later this week. According to Palma, his loss was difficult but he said he is pleased with his standout freshman performance this year.
“It’s tough, but I look at it like it shouldn’t have been that close. It’s my fault for not making the match a little more spread out,” Palma said. “It is what it is and I can see the mistakes I made and get ready for next season”
The Pack finished its regular season with an 8-13 (1-4 ACC) record. According to Jordan, the players are ready to put this season behind them and are excited for a full line-up of experienced wrestlers.
“These guys really worked hard all spring and are committed, great kids,” Jordan said. “It’s all about a stepping stone. We’ve got lots of kids with a lot of experience and next year cant get here soon enough.”
