Virginia Finishes 10th at Southern Scuffle

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Jan. 2, 2015

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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The No. 16 Virginia wrestling team finished in 10th place Friday after the final day of action at the 2015 Defense Soap & Flips Wrestling Southern Scuffle at McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga, Tenn. Virginia accumulated 51.5 team points.

Nick Sulzer (R-Sr., Cleveland, Ohio) was the runner-up at 165 pounds, while Zach Nye (R-Jr., Enola, Pa.) placed eighth at 197 pounds.

The No. 2-ranked wrestler nationally at 165, Sulzer dropped an 8-2 decision in the championship match to top-ranked Alex Dieringer of Oklahoma State. It marked Sulzer’s first defeat of the season as he fell to 14-1. Sulzer rolled to a 16-2 major decision over Army’s Chandler Smith in the quarterfinals before cruising past Oklahoma State’s Chandler Marstellar in the semifinals.

Ranked No. 16 nationally at 197, Nye fell 3-1 in sudden-victory time to No. 19 Shane Woods of Wyoming. Nye dropped a 12-4 major decision to reigning national champion J’den Cox of Missouri in the quarterfinals, but bounced back to pin Cornell’s Owen Scott in the wrestlebacks. He dropped a 5-4 decision to Michigan’s Max Huntley to slide into the seventh-place bout, which was a rematch from Thursday when Nye prevailed 8-5 in the round of 16.

Ranked No. 10 nationally at 133, George DiCamillo (R-So., Highland Heights, Ohio) joined Nye and Sulzer in the quarterfinals. DiCamillo had a lead in the third period against Iowa State’s Earl Hall but Hall rallied to pin DiCamillo as part of his run to the 133 championship. DiCamillo then was eliminated in his next match by Nick Soto of Chattanooga, 12-9.

Besieged by injuries this season, Virginia saw that trend continue as four wrestlers – all starters – were forced to withdraw Friday with medical forfeits during the first session.

Virginia returns to dual competition Jan. 9-10 at the Virginia Duals, hosted at the Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Va. Brackets for the tournament will be announced Monday.

Final Team Scores (Top 10)
1. Penn State, 165
2. Missouri, 150
3. Oklahoma State, 135.5
4. Nebraska, 116
5. Michigan, 88.5
6. Cornell, 79.5
7. Lehigh, 79
8. Pitt, 72
9. Wyoming, 57.5
10. Virginia, 51.5