NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion wrestling team (6-9, 4-2 MAC) earned three ranked victories against No. 7 Virginia Tech (10-1, 1-1 ACC), but was eventually defeated by the Hokies, 23-9 in a dual where the program celebrated its alumni and honored former Monarch Jamie Kelly.
"I told our guys coming into this match that they'll need to battle through each position," head coach Steve Martin said after the loss. "For the most part, most of the guys did it, but they just didn't smell the kill."
Three Monarchs came away with ranked victories over their Hokie counterparts in the dual, one of which came from unranked senior Kenan Carter, who defeated No. 23 Bryce Andonian at 149 pounds.
Carter found himself trailing early on in the bout after Andonian earned two takedowns in the first period. Carter managed to earn escapes on both attempts to bring the score to 4-2 after one. The ranked Hokie started the second period with a reversal to take a four-point lead, but Carter managed to narrow his deficit to just one point, earning an escape point and a takedown later on in the frame. The Aurora, Illinois native completed the comeback in the third period, earning three more points plus the riding time advantage to earn a hard-fought 9-6 win by decision.
In the 125-pound bout to start the match, No. 14 Killian Cardinale earned a 2-1 decision over No. 13 Joey Prata to give ODU an early 3-0 lead. Each wrestler earned escape points, but Cardinale, the reigning Mid-American Conference (MAC) East Division Wrestler of the Week, managed to accumulate one minute and 11 seconds of riding time to add another point and seal the victory.
In between Cardinale's and Carters matches, No. 12 Collin Gerardi came away with a 9-5 win by decision over freshman Shannon Hanna II at 133 pounds and No. 13 Mitch Moore edged No. 18 Sa'Derian Perry in a 6-5 decision in the 141-pound bout.
The third and final victory for the Monarchs came in the 157-pound battle between No. 11 Larry Early and No. 13 B.C. LaPrade, where Early came out on top, 3-1. After the three regulation periods, the ranked combatants were tied at one apiece thanks to escape points earned on both sides. The deadlocked score forced an overtime period and with six seconds remaining in the sudden-victory round, the All-American Monarch managed to bring down LaPrade to give his team a 9-6 lead going into intermission.
After the halftime break, Virginia Tech won the final five bouts of the contest to propel the Hokies to their 23-9 victory. At 165 pounds, senior Shane Jones was taken down three times by three-time All-American and No. 5 David McFadden in an 8-2 loss.
At 174 pounds, No. 28 Cody Hughes held on to a 4-2 victory over Monarch freshman Alex Cramer. Hughes earned two takedowns in the first period, but that was the only points he would earn, as Cramer held him scoreless in the final two frames. Cramer just couldn't find a way to take down his ranked opponent in the final round, coming away with a loss.
No. 2 Hunter Bolen held Antonio Agee to just two points at 184 pounds to earn a 7-2 win by decision.
Stanley Smelter clinched the victory for Virginia Tech, earning a 14-5 win by major decision over Timothy Young at 197 pounds to bring the score to 19-9. The match ended with another major-decision victory for the Hokies, this time coming with a No. 17 John Borst 13-0 victory over junior Will Hilliard in the heavyweight bout.
"Overall, you have to hand it to Tech, that's why they're a top-10 team," Martin mentioned. "I thought the crowd was great, I thought the recognition for Jamie Kelly and his family was great and I thought our alumni were great, but we just didn't come away with the win."
Up Next
The Monarchs will be back at Chartway Arena for their next match when they take on Drexel on Monday, February 10 at 7 p.m.
Box Score
Virginia Tech 23 – Old Dominion 9
125: #14 Killian Cardinale (ODU) dec. over No. 13 Joey Prata (VT) 2-1
133: #12 Collin Gerardi (VT) dec. over Shannon Hanna II (ODU) 9-5
141: #13 Mitch Moore (VT) dec. over #18 Sa'Derian Perry (ODU) 6-5
149: Kenan Carter (ODU) dec. over #23 Bryce Andonian (VT) 9-6
157: #11 Larry Early (ODU) dec. over #13 B.C. LaPrade (VT) 3-1 (SV-1)
165: #5 David McFadden (VT) dec. over Shane Jones (ODU) 8-2
174: #28 Cody Hughes (VT) dec. over Alex Cramer (ODU) 4-2
184: #2 Hunter Bolen (VT) dec. over Antonio Agee (ODU) 7-2
197: Stanley Smeltzer (VT) MD over Timothy Young (ODU) 14-5
285: #17 John Borst (VT) MD over Will Hilliard (ODU) 13-0
Wrestling Celebrates Alumni, But Falls to No. 7 Virginia Tech, 23-9
Unranked senior Kenan Carter defeated No. 23 Bryce Andonian at 149 pounds.