NORFOLK, Va. – No. 18 Old Dominion fought back from a 12-0 early deficit to No. 6 Virginia Tech, but the Monarchs fell to the Hokies by a narrow 19-15 margin. ODU will be back on the mat at 8:00 p.m. to take on the 10th-ranked Edinboro Fighting Scots for the 3rd/4th place match.
Virginia Tech took the first four bouts of the match, recording an early 12-0 lead of the Monarchs. No. 16 Brandon Jeske fell to No. 4 Joey Dance, but not without a fight. He took the All-American to sudden victory, before falling by a 3-1 decision. No. 19 Kevin Norstrem got the best of Michael Hayes, winning by a 9-3 decision, while No. 9 Chris Mecate fell to two-time All-American, No. 3 Devin Carter, by a close 6-4 margin. No. 14 Alexander Richardson lost his first match of the weekend, falling to No. 14 Sal Mastriani by an 8-1 decision.
With the Hokies leading 12-0, freshman TC Warner gave the Monarchs a spark by pinning his opponent in 2:59. Warner was trailing 2-1 in the first period, but found a strong hold and pinned Jake Spengler, earning six points for Old Dominion. No. 15 Tristan Warner followed his brother’s footsteps, recording a 7-4 decision over Chad Strube earning three more team points for ODU (12-9).
Austin Coburn fell to No. 10 Zach Epperly by an 11-1 major decision in the 174-pound bout, giving Virginia Tech a 16-9 lead with three matches left. No. 2 Jack Dechow gave ODU some momentum, taking down NCAA qualifier, No. 16 Austin Gabel, by a 6-3 decision. The Hokies led ODU by just four points with two bouts to go (16-12).
No. 26 Kevin Beazley fought a hard match at 197 pounds, coming out with a 3-2 decision and three points for ODU. He took down No. 15 Jared Haught and brought the team deficit to just one point with the heavyweights on deck. Jake Henderson represented ODU in the 285-pound bout, but fell to No. 7 Ty Walz in a close 3-1 decision.
With the heavyweight win, Virginia Tech defeated Old Dominion by a 19-15 score. The Monarchs will be back in action at 8:00 p.m. to take on No. 10 Edinboro in the 3rd/4th place match. Edinboro brings five NCAA qualifiers to the table, including three All-Americans.
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Semifinal: Virginia Tech defeated Old Dominion 19-15
125 - Joey Dance (Virginia Tech) over Brandon Jeske (Old Dominion) SV-1 3-1
133 - Kevin Norstrem (Virginia Tech) over Michael Hayes (Old Dominion) Dec 9-3
141 - Devin Carter (Virginia Tech) over Chris Mecate (Old Dominion) Dec 6-4
149 - Sal Mastriani (Virginia Tech) over Alexander Richardson (Old Dominion) Dec 8-1
157 - TC Warner (Old Dominion) over Jake Spengler (Virginia Tech) Fall 2:59
165 - Tristan Warner (Old Dominion) over Chad Strube (Virginia Tech) Dec 7-4
174 - Zach Epperly (Virginia Tech) over Austin Coburn (Old Dominion) Maj 11-1
184 - Jack Dechow (Old Dominion) over Austin Gabel (Virginia Tech) Dec 6-3
197 - Kevin Beazley (Old Dominion) over Jared Haught (Virginia Tech) Dec 3-2
285 - Ty Walz (Virginia Tech) over Jacob Henderson (Old Dominion) Dec 3-1