No. 8 NC State wrestling fell 18-16 as No. 16 Pittsburgh’s comeback victory was secured in the final moments in Reynolds Coliseum on Sunday afternoon.
After six bouts, the Wolfpack (14-3, 2-1 ACC) took a 16-4 lead in front of an excited crowd, but the Panthers (9-3, 1-2 ACC) pounced back by winning the final four matches, outscoring the Wolfpack 14-0 during that stretch.
“Having that kind of crowd is big,” head coach Pat Popolizio said. “And getting the support we’ve been getting and these guys got to show up and do their part. Unfortunately, having a couple of guys out and a little banged up, it didn’t work in our favor.”
Starting in the 125-pound bout, redshirt freshman Zurich Storm got the Pack off to a hot start. The 13-6 decision was controlled by Storm the whole bout as he was able to slam Pitt’s Brendon Fenton to the ground on multiple occasions to take a 3-0 team lead.
In the 133-pound bout, redshirt freshman John Devine could only score via escapes as he was defeated by Pitt’s No. 5 Mickey Phillipi 17-5 in a major decision. NC State’s usual starter at this weight class, redshirt sophomore Tariq Wilson, hasn’t wrestled since sustaining an injury against Ohio State in early January.
“Another week of rest, I think [Wilson] will be ready to go,” Popolizio said. “And obviously he has a big impact on our lineup.”
Emotions flared in the 141-pound bout when in the third period, tied 2-2, redshirt senior Jamel Morris knocked Pitt’s Lorenzo Bentley onto the reporter’s table. The match went to OT and Morris and the Wolfpack fans erupted in celebration when Morris secured the final takedown, winning the bout 4-2.
The Pack kept things rolling at 149 as No. 8 graduate Justin Oliver won the only major decision of the afternoon for NC State in a 15-7 decision over Pitt’s Robert Lee.
“I felt a lot better than I have in my past few matches here, just getting some things together,” Oliver said. “Got turned in the third period; Obviously that was a scary moment, but was able to fight out of it and still end up getting the major.”
In the 157-pound bout, No. 4 redshirt sophomore Hayden Hidlay narrowly pulled off a 3-2 decision over Pitt’s No. 11 Taleb Rahmani. Hidlay struggled to establish takedowns, a consistent problem the Pack found itself with over the course of the match.
NC State would get its final win of the afternoon in the 165-pound bout as redshirt sophomore Thomas Bullard won a 6-1 decision over Pitt’s Thomas O’Brien. Thomas Bullard controlled the tempo for most of the bout after securing the initial takedown with a leg sweep late in the first period.
The 174-pound bout marked the turning point for Pitt as Gregg Harvey defeated NC State’s No. 20 redshirt sophomore Daniel Bullard in a 6-4 decision. The bout was fraught with cautions and warnings as three penalty points were awarded between the two teams.
After that, the Panthers couldn’t be stopped, winning the final three bouts over No. 3 redshirt sophomore Nick Reenan, No. 20 redshirt senior Malik McDonald and freshman Deonte Wilson. Reenan lost 8-0 to No. 13 Nino Bonaccorsi, McDonald gave up a last-second takedown to fall 5-4 and Wilson was dominated 17-5 by his ranked opponent.
Although this was the final match inside Reynolds, the Pack moves on to face No. 15 UNC-Chapel Hill on Friday in another ranked matchup.
“The passion with the fans and the amount of support that there is within this program is incredible,” Oliver said. “Especially coming from another program and still gaining that support right away was something I’ll never forget and I’m super grateful to be a part of.”
