HAMPTON, Va. – The Virginia wrestling team (5-2) claimed victories at four weight classes but dropped a dual match with Wisconsin (6-1) by a score of 27-13 on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 13) at the Virginia Duals.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Wisconsin jumped out to the early lead with a pair of victories before Evan Buchanan (141) would get the Cavaliers on the board with a takedown in overtime to give Buchanan the 4-1 decision in sudden victory.

Wisconsin would get a pin at 149 before the Hoos would get another victory with a 7-3 decision from Nick Sanko at 157 pounds.

Three straight victories, including a 2-1 decision at 174 on a stalling call in the sudden victory period between No. 13 Justin McCoy and No. 18 Max Maylor, locked up the dual for the Badgers. The Cavaliers would get back-to-back wins at 197 and heavyweight from Krystian Kinsey and Ryan Catka, respectively, to close out the matchup. Both Kinsey and Catka shutout their opponents and Catka took his win by major decision.

NOTES ON THE DAY

  • This was the first meeting between Wisconsin and Virginia since 2013 and Wisconsin leads the series 5-0.
  • Ryan Catka posted his second bonus-point victory over the weekend to improve to 9-2 on the season.
  • Evan Buchanan, Krystian Kinsey and Luke Roberts all saw dual action for the first time this season with appearances against the Badgers.

UP NEXT FOR THE HOOS
Virginia will return to action on Friday, January 26, when the Cavaliers jump into ACC competition. The Hoos will travel to face Duke in the conference opener for both teams. The Cavaliers will then continue wrestling on the road that weekend with a non-conference matchup at American on Sunday (Jan. 28).

WISCONSIN 27, VIRGINIA 13
125: No. 4 Eric Barnett (UW) major dec. Kyle Montaperto, 11-1 – UW 4, UVA 0
133: Nicolar Rivera (UW) dec. Gable Porter, 10-7 – UW 7, UVA 0
141: Evan Buchanan dec. Felix Lettini (UW), 4-1 (sv-1), UW 7, UVA 3
149: No. 22 Joseph Zargo (UW) pinned Luke Roberts, 5:33 – UW 13, UVA 3
157: Nick Sanko dec. Luke Mechler (UW), 7-3 – UW 13, UVA 6
165: No. 6 Dean Hamiti (UW) tech fall Michael Murphy, 20-5 (3:22) – UW 18, UVA 6
174: No. 18 Max Maylor (UW) dec. No. 13 Justin McCoy, 2-1 (sv-1) – UW 21, UVA 6
184: No. 16 Shane Liegel (UW) pinned Dylan Newsome, 5:47 – UW 27, UVA 6
197: Krystian Kinsey dec. Josh Otto (UW), 5-0 – UW 27, UVA 9
285: Ryan Catka major dec. Gannon Rosenfeld (UW), 9-0 – UW 27, UVA 13