Eight Cavaliers Begin NCAA Championship Competition Thursday
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Eight members of the Virginia wrestling team begin competition at the NCAA Championships on Thursday (March 18) with opening-round action at 11 a.m. from the Enterprise Center in St. Louis.
Competing for the Cavaliers are Patrick McCormick (Poquoson, Va.) at 125 pounds, Louie Hayes (Orland Park, Ill.) at 133 pounds, Brian Courtney (Athens, Pa.) at 141 pounds, Justin McCoy (New Paris, Pa.) at 157 pounds, Jake Keating (Naperville, Ill.) at 165 pounds, Vic Marcelli (Massillon, Ohio) at 174 pounds, Jay Aiello (Chantilly, Va.) at 197 pounds and Quinn Miller (Lilburn, Ga.) at heavyweight.
Aiello and Hayes each earned their third NCAA Championship berth, while McCoy and Miller have earned their second bid. Courtney, Keating, McCormick and Marcelli all earned their first NCAA Championship bid in 2021.
VIRGINIA QUALIFIERS BY WEIGHT CLASS: Seed/Name (Overall Record)
125: No. 32 seed Patrick McCormick (8-5)
133: No. 10 seed Louie Hayes (10-4)
141: No. 20 seed Brian Courtney (9-4)
157: No. 16 seed Justin McCoy (9-2)
165: No. 12 seed Jake Keating (10-3)
174: No. 30 seed Vic Marcelli (8-5)
197: No. 11 seed Jay Aiello (9-2)
HWT: No. 20 seed Quinn Miller (9-2)
HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
All rounds of the 2021 NCAA Wrestling Championships will be carried on the ESPN family of networks and streamed through the ESPN app. In addition to the coverage on the networks, ESPN will be providing mat-by-mat streaming coverage of the entire event with dedicated streams of each individual mat through the finals. Primary streaming links and live stats will be available at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can also get updates by following the program’s official Twitter account (@UVAWrestling).
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS/BROADCAST NETWORK
Thursday, March 18
First Round 11 a.m. ESPNU
2 p.m. ESPNU
Second Round 6 p.m. ESPN2
9 p.m. ESPN2
Friday, March 19
Quarterfinals 11 a.m. ESPNU
3 p.m. ESPNU
Semifinals 8 p.m. ESPN
Saturday, March 20
Medal Rounds 11 a.m. ESPN2
Finals 7 p.m. ESPN
* All broadcast times and networks are subject to change. All times are Eastern Time.
EIGHT CAVALIERS COMPETING IS SECOND MOST IN PROGRAM HISTORY
The eight bids earned by Virginia wrestlers is the second most in program history, tying the number of wrestlers to receive bids in the 2014 and 2010 seasons. The Cavaliers had a program-record nine wrestlers selected to compete in the 2013 NCAA Championships.
LAST TIME OUT AT THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
With the 2020 NCAA Championships being canceled due to COVID-19, the last time the Cavaliers took the mat at the NCAA Championships turned out to be an exciting one as Virginia notched its fourth finalist in program history. Jack Mueller advanced to the finals at 125 pounds in Pittsburgh, giving the Hoos a fourth finalist overall and the second in three years. George DiCamillo advanced to the finals at 141 pounds in the 2017 NCAA Championships in St. Louis. Virginia had five wrestlers qualify for the 2019 event.
The Cavaliers had six wrestlers qualify for the 2020 NCAA Championships that were canceled.