The wrestling team opened its season last night at Reynolds Coliseum with a double-header against Campbell and Liberty and finished the night at 2-0.

N.C. State knocked off Campbell 34-13 first and then followed it up with a 29-6 rout of Liberty.

Liberty’s six points resulted from a forfeit at 184 pounds because the Wolfpack had no one to fill the weight class.

But despite having to start some reserves, coach Carter Jordan said he was pleased with the effort of the team for the first time out.

“We had three of our second team guys in there — and four if you count [sophomore] Ryan Goodman not being in the lineup,” Jordan said. “We’ll be glad to have our full lineup back next week, hopefully. But I was really pleased.”

Junior Kody Hamrah, however, was not pleased with his personal performance. “I’m not where I should be. I got a lot of work to do,” he said.

Last year Hamrah injured his knee early in the season and missed a large chunk of the year because of it.

Asked about the health of his knee, he said, “It’s getting there.”

Hamrah, the defending ACC champ at 157 pounds, lost his first match but rebounded to take his match against Liberty.

“He just didn’t wrestle in the first match and the kid from Campbell did a nice job,” Jordan said. “At this level you got to come every [match].”

Of the seven State wrestlers which won both of his matches, freshman Darrion Caldwell stood out the most.

Caldwell, wrestling in his first collegiate match, scored two pins – the only wrestler on the team to do so – with the first one coming in just 13 seconds.

After the match Jordan praised the debut of the 141-pound freshman.

“Wow. Wow,” Jordan said of Caldwell. “He told me he was going to do that. If he can keep pinning people through next weekend, I’m going to let him coach. He’s a confident kid.”

Caldwell said he was somewhat unsure about his first college match before it started, but that he just did what came naturally to him once he got on the mat.

“It was a good experience. Going out there, I didn’t know what to expect,” Caldwell said.

“Our [team] is real tough, so I knew our competition would be somewhere on that level. But I didn’t think I would pin him that quickly. But that’s what I do. I pin people.”

Despite his success and confidence in his ability, Caldwell said after the match he still has a lot to learn to be a good college wrestler.

“I know I [have] got to work a lot harder” he said. “These matches were a test, but it wasn’t a test as to whether I could go all three periods.”

The Pack is next in action at Chapel Hill for three matches Saturday, Nov. 18 against Big Ten opponents Wisconsin, Purdue and Northwestern.