Seven Virginia Wrestlers to Compete in NCAA Championships

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March 18, 2015

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia wrestling team looks to conclude its 2015 season on a high note as it competes in the NCAA Championships Thursday through Saturday (March 19-21) at Scottrade Center in St. Louis. The 2015 ACC Champions will send seven wrestlers to the event.

Broadcast Information
The ESPN family of networks will provide coverage of every bout of the 2015 NCAA Championships. All six sessions of the event will air live on ESPNU or ESPN, while ESPN3 will have live feeds of every mat, starting with separate feeds from all eight mats in each of the first three sessions.

ESPN will televise the semifinals on Friday night and the finals on Saturday night, while ESPNU will have coverage of the Thursday sessions, Friday quarterfinals and Saturday medal round.

A link to live brackets also will be available at VirginiaSports.com, while live updates will be provided on the Virginia Wrestling Twitter account, @UVaWrestling.

2015 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships
Schedule of Events – All Times Eastern
Thursday (March 19)
First Session – Noon (ESPNU/ESPN3)
Pigtails & First Round
Second Session – 7 p.m. (ESPNU/ESPN3)
Wrestleback Pigtails, Wrestleback First Round & Second Round

Friday (March 20)
Third Session – 11 a.m. (ESPNU/ESPN3)
Quarterfinals & Wrestleback Second and Third Rounds
Fourth Session – 8 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN3)
Semifinals & Wrestleback Fourth and Fifth Rounds

Saturday (March 21)
Fifth Session – 11 a.m. (ESPNU/ESPN3)
Wrestleback Semifinals & Third, Fifth and Seventh-Place Rounds
Sixth Session – 8 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN3)
Championships Finals

2015 Virginia NCAA Qualifiers
Weight: Seed/Name (Overall Record)
125: Nick Herrmann (15-7)
133: No. 12 George DiCamillo (26-7)
141: Joe Spisak (17-7)
157: Andrew Atkinson (17-12)
165: No. 4 Nick Sulzer (26-2)
157: No. 5 Blaise Butler (18-4)
197: Zach Nye (17-7)

Cavaliers at the NCAA Championships
Virginia is sending seven wrestlers to the NCAA Championships, all automatic qualifiers by virtue of their finishes at the ACC Championships. This marks the seventh straight year that at least six UVa wrestlers have qualified for NCAAs.

UVa owns five straight top-30 team finishes (15th in 2010, t23rd in 2011, t28th in 2012, 21st in 2013, 23rd in 2014). Virginia’s best finish at NCAAs was a 10th-place tie in 1957. This marks the 34th year Virginia has had at least one qualifier at NCAAs.

Cavaliers Boast 16 All-Americans in Program History
Sixteen Virginia wrestlers have earned All-America honors in the program’s history, with nine coming in the last 11 years, including seven during Steve Garland‘s tenure as head coach. UVa has had at least one All-American in five of the last six seasons. Nick Sulzer earned his second straight All-America honor at 165 last year with a fourth-place finish.

UVa’s best individual finish is second by heavyweight Henry Jordan in 1957 and current UVa head coach Steve Garland (125 pounds) in 2000.

Sulzer Looks to Finish UVa Legacy on Top
Looking to finish his career as a three-time All-American, senior Nick Sulzer has moved into second place on the all-time wins list at Virginia. Sulzer is looking to join Chris Henrich as the lone three-time All-Americans in program history.

With 116 career wins, Sulzer is tied with Henrich (2008-11) for second on the all-time UVa wins list. A two-time All-American, Sulzer is 26-2 this year and 116-25 in his career, including a 58-7 mark in UVa duals.

Virginia Claims First ACC Championship Since 2010
Virginia claimed its fifth ACC team championship and first since 2010 when it won the title on March 8 in Pittsburgh. UVa scored 85.5 points as it easily outdistanced the field; Pitt was second with 71 points. All 10 UVa competitors scored points and finished in fourth place or better. Six Cavaliers reached the finals. George DiCamillo (133) and Nick Sulzer (165) each earned their second ACC individual championships.