No. 22 Wrestling Hands No. 13 Maryland Its First Loss, 22-14
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The 22nd-ranked Virginia wrestling team victory at six weight classes in scoring a 22-14 upset win over No. 13 Maryland Sunday afternoon in front of boisterous crowd at Memorial Gymnasium. In handing the Terrapins their first loss of the season, UVa earned a share of the ACC regular-season championship for the first time since 2006.
This marks the highest-ranked opponent that Virginia (7-1, 4-1 ACC) has defeated in program history and, in doing so, UVa defeated the Terrapins (13-1, 3-1) for the first time since Feb. 17, 2006, snapping a streak of five straight dual losses to Maryland. The Cavaliers have tied for the regular-season crown with Virginia Tech, while Maryland still has one match remaining.
The Cavaliers got off to a strong start Sunday, winning the first five weight classes to jump out to a 16-0 advantage. UVa sealed the dual win at 184 pounds when Jon Fausey (R-So., Dalmatia, Pa.) reversed Ty Snook and put him on his back for the pin, sending the large Cavalier contingent into a frenzy.
“Without question it’s the biggest dual win in our program’s history,” Virginia head coach Steve Garland said. “Not only because this is the top-ranked team we have ever beaten, but the history behind it is even bigger. We had never beaten Maryland since I have been here as head coach. We’ve lost some crazy, close matches to them, so it’s great to get that weight off our back.
“We found a way to win today. It was the effort we saw from top to bottom – the best I’ve seen from any team here. I’m so happy and proud of our guys. I was amazed to see how in the zone they were. It was just a huge day for us.”
Virginia also scored bonus points at 149 pounds, where Gus Sako (So., Cleveland, Ohio) won by major decision, 10-2, over Ben Dorsay. The Cavaliers got a big upset at 157 pounds, as Jedd Moore (R-Jr., Mount Vernon, Ohio) knocked off No. 11 Kyle John, 5-3.
The Cavaliers picked up three straight wins by decision to start the day. In a battle of ranked foes at 125 pounds, 10th-ranked Matt Snyder (R-Jr., Lewistown, Pa.) dominated in a 7-0 decision over No. 19 Shane Gentry of Maryland. Snyder (18-3) scored a takedown in the final minute of the first period, then built a 6-0 lead in the second after taking Gentry (13-4) down and later tilting him for the two-point near fall. Gentry was able to hold Snyder off in the third to avoid the major decision, although Snyder accumulated 2:35 in riding time to pick up another point.
In another key match, Matt Nelson (R-Sr., Pittsburgh, Pa.) battled back after giving up a first-period takedown and defeated Geoffrey Alexander, 4-2, at 133. Alexander (19-9) built up 1:20 in riding time before Nelson (15-3) escaped late in the first. After choosing the down position in the second, Nelson reversed Alexander and maintained the advantage the rest of the period. Alexander chose down to start the third, but Nelson rode him the entire period and built up 2:19 in riding time to seal the win.
Ninth-ranked Nick Nelson (R-Sr., Pittsburgh, Pa.) picked up a solid 5-2 win over Frank Goodwin at 141 and improved to 19-2 before Sako (14-5) jumped out to a big early lead at 149, finishing the major decision with the riding time point after racking up 2:53 of riding time against Dorsay (13-9).
Moore (16-5) claimed the big upset of the day when he outlasted John (18-9) at 157. Moore never trailed in the bout; he scored a first-period takedown and held a 2-1 lead entering the final period. John escaped to start the stanza, but Moore responded by taking John down with a minute left and then building 1:27 in riding time. John escaped with a few seconds remaining before Moore held him at bay to give UVa a 16-0 lead.
The Terrapins won their first bout at 165, although it was a battle to the end as second-ranked Josh Asper remained undefeated and improved to 21-0 with a 4-3 decision over No. 14 Nick Sulzer (R-Fr., Cleveland, Ohio). Asper built up 1:12 of riding time in the first period after taking Sulzer (19-5) down, and maintained his advantage from the top position for 31 seconds in the second before Sulzer scored an escape point. Sulzer shot in just before the buzzer to take Asper down and grab a 3-2 lead. Asper was able to escape eight seconds into the third and held off Sulzer the rest of the period, clinching the riding time point to win, 4-3.
The Terps made it two in a row when No. 15 Jimmy Shertock earned an 11-3 major decision over Vinny Waldhauser (Fr., El Dorado Hills, Calif.) at 174. Shertock clinched the major with the riding time point after accumulating 3:49 in advantage time.
Fausey (17-3) picked up a takedown a minute into his bout with Snook, then rode him for the remainder of the period. After taking the down position to start the second, Fausey quickly reversed Snook, tilted him and got him on his back to seal the pin in 3:21. The win by fall gave UVa six points and a 22-7 lead while clinching the team win.
Maryland finished strong by winning the final two classes. At 197 fifth-ranked Christian Boley (26-1) notched an 11-2 major decision over Ryan Malo (Sr., Georgetown, Mass.) before No. 8 Spencer Myers (18-5) earned a 6-1 decision over Derek Papagianopoulos (7-2) in the heavyweight class.
Virginia wrestles another tough foe on Saturday as Rutgers visits Charlottesville for a 6 p.m. dual at Mem Gym.
No. 22 Virginia 22, No. 13 Maryland 14
125: No. 10 Matt Snyder (Virginia) dec. No. 19 Shane Gentry (Maryland), 7-0; UVa 3-0
133: Matt Nelson (Virginia) dec. Geoffrey Alexander (Maryland), 4-2; UVa 6-0
141: No. 9 Nick Nelson (Virginia) dec. Frank Goodwin (Maryland), 5-2; UVa 9-0
149: Gus Sako (Virginia) major dec. Ben Dorsay (Maryland), 10-2; UVa 13-0
157: Jedd Moore (Virginia) dec. No. 11 Kyle John (Maryland), 5-3; UVa 16-0
165: No. 2 Josh Asper (Maryland) dec. No. 14 Nick Sulzer (Virginia), 4-3; UVa 16-3
174: No. 15 Jimmy Sheptock (Maryland) major dec. Vinny Waldhauser (Virginia), 11-3; UVa 16-7
184: No. 14 Jon Fausey (Virginia) pinned Ty Snook (Maryland), 3:21; UVa 22-7
197: No. 5 Christian Boley (Maryland) major dec. Ryan Malo (Virginia), 11-2; UVa 22-11
285: No. 8 Spencer Myers (Maryland) dec. Derek Papagianopoulos (Virginia), 6-1; UVa 22-14