Virginia To Host Chattanooga And VMI In Weekend Duals
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia wrestling team (5-2) returns to action at home this weekend with a pair of dual matches, hosting Chattanooga (4-6) at 7 p.m. on Friday (Jan. 17) and VMI (4-7) at 1 p.m. on Saturday (Jan. 18). Both matches are at Mem Gym and admission is free to the public.
Both duals will be streamed on ACCNX and have live stats provided by TrackWrestling. Links to both live stats and the broadcast are available at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also get updates by following the program’s official Twitter account (@UVAWrestling).
VIRGINIA WRESTLERS IN THE RANKINGS
The Cavaliers have three wrestlers ranked at their weight classes in the latest edition of the InterMat rankings. Senior Jack Mueller (Dallas, Texas) leads the way as the second-ranked wrestler at 125 pounds. Junior Jay Aiello (Chantilly, Va.) is ranked No. 8 at 197 pounds, while junior Louie Hayes (Orland Park, Ill.) is ranked No. 19 at 133 pounds.
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE HOOS
The Cavaliers are coming off a runner-up finish at the Virginia Duals last weekend when Virginia picked up wins over Kent State and Old Dominion before dropping a hard-fought contest with Rider in the finals. Aiello, Quinn Miller (Lilburn, Ga.) and Michael Murphy (Lookout Mountain, Tenn.) all went undefeated at the Virginia Duals. Aiello and Miller went 3-0, while Murphy went 2-0 on day two of the competition. Aiello’s wins included a 6-1 decision over No. 10 Ethan Laird of Rider, while Miller turned in two bonus-point victories.
SPENCER TURNS IN DECISIVE WINS
The second NCAA statistical rankings have been released and the standings confirm something Cavalier fans have already known – when Denton Spencer (Waverly, Ga.) picks up a win, it’s usually in dominating fashion. Spencer ranked sixth nationally in falls, tallying eight wins by pin in a combined total of 12:58.
VIRGINIA PROBABLE LINEUP
125: No. 2 Jack Mueller OR Patrick McCormick
133: No. 19 Louie Hayes
141: Brian Courtney
149: Denton Spencer OR Michael Murphy
157: Justin McCoy
165: Sam Martino OR Krystian Kinsey
174: Victor Marcelli
184: Michael Battista
197: No. 8 Jay Aiello
HWT: Quinn Miller
CHATTANOOGA PROBABLE LINEUP
125: Fabian Gutierrez
133: Colton Landers OR Franco Valdes
141: Aidan Murphy OR Mason Wallace
149: Tanner Smith
157: Tyler Shilson
165: Drew Nicholson
174: Hunter Fortner
184: Matthew Waddell OR Ben Stacey
197: Rodney Jones
HWT: Grayson Walthall
A LOOK AT THE MOCS
Chattanooga enters the weekend with an overall record of 4-6 and is coming off a dominant 34-5 victory over Gardner-Webb this past weekend at home. A pair of wrestlers placed for the Mocs at the Southern Scuffle over the break as sophomore Tanner Smith took fifth at 149 pounds, while sophomore Matthew Waddell was fourth at 184 pounds. Sophomore Colton Landers was 4-1 at the Southern Scuffle at 133 pounds, but was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to illness.
VIRGINIA VS. CHATTANOOGA
The Cavaliers and Mocs have faced each other five times with Virginia holding a 4-1 lead in the all-time series. The last meeting between the two teams came in the 2016-17 season with the Cavaliers taking a 34-11 win at Chattanooga. Mueller is the only current Cavalier to have wrestled against the Mocs in a dual match.
VMI PROBABLE LINEUP
125: John McGarry
133: Clifton Conway
141: Noah Roulo
149: Job Chishko
157: William Lawrence
165: Jon Hoover
174: Neal Richards
184: Max Gallahan
197: Zachary Brown
HWT: Robbie Adelstein OR Chris Beck
A LOOK AT THE KEYDETS
VMI enters the weekend with a 4-7 record on the season and is coming off a dual-match loss to Sacred Heart in the Keydets’ last outing. Neal Richards and Job Chishko are two wrestlers to watch for VMI at 149 and 174 pounds, respectively. Richards is 25-6 on the season and is 10-1 in dual matches. He was an NCAA qualifier a year ago after being named Southern Conference Wrestler of the Year and SoCon Tournament Most Outstanding Wrestler.
Chishko is 17-13 on the season and has gone 5-5 in dual matches.
VIRGINA VS. VMI
The Cavaliers and the Keydets will meet for the 55th time in program history when the two teams face off on Saturday. Virginia holds a 30-24 lead in the all-time series and won the meeting between the teams a season ago. The Cavaliers won 40-5 at VMI last season with the lone victory in the dual for VMI coming from NCAA qualifier Neal Richards.
UP NEXT FOR THE HOOS
Virginia is on the road next weekend to open ACC competition with a match at No. 5 NC State (8-0). The Cavaliers and Wolf Pack will face off on Friday, Jan. 22, in a 7 p.m. dual. The dual will be streamed on ACCNX from Reynolds Coliseum.