Pitt Wrestling
Pitt Wrestling Receives Seeding for ACC Championships
Pitt wrestling received seedings for the 10 individual student-athletes at their respective weights ahead of the ACC Championships in Chapel Hill, N.C. on Sunday.
The Panthers finished the dual regular season 10-8 overall and 2-3 in the ACC. They started out the season 7-3 through the end of 2023, but lost five out of the first six duals of 2024, before winning their final two against the Rider Broncs and the Virginia Cavaliers on Feb. 22-23, respectively.
Pitt holds impressive wins on the road over then ranked No. 17 Lehigh on Nov. 19 and then ranked No. 5 Ohio State on Dec. 10. They also lost home duals to then ranked No. 5 Oklahoma State on Jan. 21, then ranked No. 24 Arizona State on Jan. 21, then ranked No. 8 NC State on Jan. 26 and No. 13 Virginia Tech on Feb. 16.
While some fans put great importance on wins and losses when it comes to duals, what matters most is postseason performance. For Pitt Wrestling, this means performing well enough at the ACC Championships to earn an automatic bid for the NCAA Championships. Performing good enough at the NCAA Championships is what coaches receive judgment on for how well they did during the season.
Pittsburgh Sports Now will provide live coverage of the ACC Championships, with yours truly, Dominic Campbell, tweeting results and doing interviews with head coach Keith Gavin and individual Pitt wrestlers.
ACC Championships/Pitt Wrestling Seeds
125 Pounds: Two automatic spots for NCAA Championships
No. 1 Jakob Camacho (NC State) (13-4 overall, 2-0 ACC)
No. 2 Cooper Flynn (Virginia Tech) (13-3 overall. 4-1 ACC)
No. 3 Spencer Moore (North Carolina) (14-4 overall, 3-2 ACC)
No. 4 Kyle Montaperto (Virginia) (9-8 overall, 1-2 ACC)
No. 5 Logan Agin (Duke) (1-4 ACC) (Beat Camacho)
No. 6 Colton Camacho (Pitt) (9-11 overall, 1-4 ACC)
Pitt redshirt senior Colton Camacho struggled throughout 2024, losing his first six matches, before taking victories in the final two duals.
This is why he comes in last at No. 6 in the ACC heading into the postseason, but the low seeding may benefit him in the long run.
He’ll face off against North Carolina No. 3 Spencer Moore in the First Round, who he only lost a 1-0 decision to. If he wins that match, Camacho will take on Virginia Tech No. 2 Cooper Flynn in the Semifinals, who he had a 1-0 lead against for most of their match, but allowed a late takedown to drop a 3-2 decision.
Camacho has the talent and expertise to defeat any wrestler, but also the propensity to lose to any wrestler as well. He has a tough draw with only two NCAA automatic bids, but he did walk on Senior Night with one more year of eligibility left. If this is truly the last year that Camacho wrestles for Pitt, he has one last shot to make the NCAA Championships.
133 Pounds: Three Automatic spots for NCAA Championships
No. 1 Kai Orine (NC State) (13-2 overall, 4-0 ACC)
No. 2 Marlon Yarbrough II (Virginia) (13-6 overall, 4-1 ACC)
No. 3 Sam Latona (Virginia Tech) (17-6 overall, 3-2 ACC)
No. 4 Vinnie Santaniello (Pitt) (14-13 overall, 1-4 ACC)
No. 5 Jace Palmer (North Carolina) (0-2 ACC)
No. 6 Raymond Adams (Duke) (1-4 ACC)
Redshirt first-year Vinnie Santaniello is in his first year starting at 133 pounds for Pitt wrestling. He struggled against ranked wrestlers, 3-12 on the season, including 0-3 in ACC duals against them.
Aside from winning tech fall against bottom seeded Duke first-year Raymond Adams, Santanilelo lost his other four ACC duals.
He faces No. 5 UNC redshirt sophomore Jace Palmer in the First Round, with the winner taking on No. 1 NC State redshirt junior Kai Orine, the reigning ACC Champion at 133 pounds. Orine also dominated Santaniello in their dual match, in a 10-1 major decision.
Santaniello did compete much better against No. 2 Virginia junior Marlon Yarbrough II, losing just 7-6, and No. 3 Virginia Tech redshirt junior Sam Latona, 6-4.
If he defeats Palmer and loses to Orine, Santaniello would likely face Adams in the consolations semifinals. A win against Adams puts him in the Third Place match for an automatic qualifier place in the NCAA Championships.
141 Pounds: Three Automatic Spots for NCAA Championships
No. 1 Cole Matthews (Pitt) (15-9 overall, 5-0 ACC)
No. 2 Ryan Jack (NC State) (16-3 overall, 3-1 ACC)
No. 3 Tom Crook (Virginia Tech) (16-6 overall, 2-2 overall)
No. 4 Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) (18-5 overall, 0-3 ACC)
No. 5 Jack Gioffre (Virginia) (14-5 overall, 2-1 ACC)
No. 6 Christian Colman (Duke) (0-5 ACC)
Redshirt senior Cole Matthews didn’t have the season he wanted to prior to ACC duals. He finished 2023 6-8 overall, after a 21-3 finish last season, which included just one regular season defeat, and looked close to dropping out of the rankings entirely.
Then, late January hit and he has won seven straight matches, including all five in the ACC, earning him the No. 1 spot at 141 pounds.
These wins came against two top five wrestlers in Wolfpack No. 4 junior Ryan Jack and Tar Heels No. 5 redshirt sophomore Lachlan McNeil, in 15-10 and 6-2 decisions, respectively.
Matthews is in his best form at the most important part of the season. It’s his last postseason wrestling as he is in his six and final collegiate year of eligibility, so this is his time to truly go for it all.
He has won the past two ACC Titles at 141 pounds and defeated Jack in the final both times, holding an impressive 5-0 record against him.
McNeill will likely serve as the first opponent for Matthews in the semifinals, a tough ask, but Matthews has the upper edge here, with a victory against him last season as well.
One win for Matthews will earn him an NCAA automatic bid, but in his final ACC Championships, he will want to finish off in first place for Pitt wrestling once again.
149 Pounds: Two automatic NCAA Automatic Spots
No. 1. Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) (24-1 overall, 4-0 ACC)
No. 2 Jackson Arrington (NC State) (16-2 overall, 3-1 ACC)
No. 3 Jayden Scott (North Carolina) (17-11 overall, 3-1 ACC)
No. 4 Finn Solomon (Pitt) (15-9 overall, 2-3 ACC)
No. 5 Michael Gioffre (Virginia) (9-6 overall, 1-0 ACC)
No. 6 Jarred Papscy (Duke) (1-3 ACC)
Redshirt first-year Finn Solomon transferred in from NC State over the offseason, as the Franklin Regional alum came back to start for Pitt wrestling at 149 pounds.
He had a great start to the season, 12-4 by the end of 2023, but has gone 3-5 since then. Granted, three of those losses have come against top five opponents in Hokies No. 2 sophomore Caleb Henson, Sun Devils No. 3 junior Kyle Parco, and Wolfpack No. 5 sophomore Jackson Arrington. Solomon also kept it close against Henson and Arrington, losing 4-2 and 10-6 respectively, showing that he can compete with two of the best wrestlers in the country.
With only two automatic bids for the NCAA Championships at his weight, Solomon needs to first beat Cavaliers sophomore No. 5 Michael Gioffre, who he majored 13-5 on Feb. 23, and then No. 2 Arrington in the semifinals. That’s a difficult task, but Solomon has the potential to beat the best, it’s more about if he can complete different moves to score points against elite wrestlers.
157 Pounds: Two automatic NCAA Automatic Spots
No. 1 Sonny Santiago (North Carolina) (13-7 overall, 4-1 ACC)
No. 2 Ed Scott (NC State) (19-5 overall, 4-1 ACC)
No. 3 Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech) (14-4)
No. 4 Jared Keslar (Pitt) (13-14 overall, 2-2 ACC)
No. 5 Dylan Cedeno (Virginia) (11-3 overall, 0-1 ACC)
No. 6 Logan Ferrero (Duke) (0-5 ACC)
Redshirt first-year Jared Keslar is 0-9 this season against ranked wrestlers in his first season starting for Pitt wrestling at 157 pounds.
That isn’t a great sign going forward for him, but it isn’t something that should deter him in Chapel Hill this weekend, despite four ranked wrestlers in the bracket at his weight class.
Keslar will face Virginia senior Dylan Cedeno in the First Round, who only wrestled once in ACC duals due to injury, but holds a No. 27 ranking from Intermat. If Keslar wins, then he takes on top seed in redshirt sophomore Sonny Santiago, who he lost an 11-4 decision to back in their dual match.
The NCAA didn’t award the conference adequately for the quality of wrestlers at 157 pounds, so Keslar needs to make the final if he wants to compete at the NCAA Championships.
165 Pounds: Two automatic spots for NCAA Championships
No. 1 Derek Fields (NC State) (14-3 overall, 4-1 overall ACC)
No. 2 Holden Heller (Pitt) (12-5 overall, 4-1 ACC)
No. 3 Connor Brady (Virginia Tech) (12-7 overall, 4-1 overall ACC)
No. 4 Nick Hamilton (Virginia) (9-7 overall, 2-3 ACC)
No. 5 Isaias Estrada (North Carolina) (7-16 overall, 1-4 ACC)
Open
The ACC figuring out how to seed 165 pounds was never an easy task for the top three in Panthers redshirt senior Holden Heller, Wolfpack redshirt sophomore Derek Fields and Hokies redshirt junior Connor Brady beating each other. They chose to put Fields at No. 1 and Holden Heller at No. 2, then Brady in No. 3.
Holden Heller will face Brady in the semifinals to start with, as Duke doesn’t have a wrestler at 165 pounds. He defeated Brady in an 11-5 decision in their match this season and 2-0 in their dual last season, but Brady defeated him 7-5 in the ACC Championships.
He must win this match against Brady to get that automatic bid for the NCAA Championships, as the ACC only has two spots at 165 pounds.
His season overall has seen streaks of great performances and some struggles. He started off 7-0 and then lost his next five matches, before winning his final five, including four straight in the ACC Duals, aside from losing to Fields.
Holden Heller is in his final season wrestling collegiately and now coming into the postseason in great form, he’ll hope to have the best finish possible to an excellent two seasons with the Panthers.
174 Pounds: Four automatic spots for NCAA Championships
No. 1 Mekhi Lewis (Virginia Tech) (13-0 overall, 5-0 ACC)
No. 2 Justin McCoy (Virginia) (16-4 overall, 3-2 overall)
No. 3 Tyler Eischens (North Carolina) (8-6 overall, 3-2 overall)
No. 4 Alex Faison (NC State) (2-3 ACC)
No. 5 Luca Augustine (Pitt) (13-4 overall, 2-2 ACC)
No. 6 Gaetano Console (Duke) (0-5 ACC)
Redshirt sophomore Luca Augustine got a poor seeding for the ACC Championships, landing in at No. 5. It’s unfortunate for him, as he’s put together a great season in his second year starting at 174 pounds for Pitt wrestling, with a 6-4 record against ranked wrestlers.
His first round opponent is NC State fifth-year Alex Faison, who has beaten him three times, twice last season and once this season in a 7-5 decision. A win for Augustine would then place him against one of the best wrestlers in the country in undefeated redshirt fifth-year Mekhi Lewis, who has won the past two ACC titles at his weight.
With four automatic bids for the NCAA Championships, Augustine can lose prior to the final and still make it in. If he defeats Faison and loses to Lewis, he would face Duke redshirt first-year Gaetano Console, who lost all five ACC matches at 165 pounds and is wrestling up a weight class. A win against Console would ensure at least a fourth place finish for Augustine, making it two years at the NCAA Championships for him.
184 Pounds: Four automatic spots for NCAA Championships
No. 1 TJ Stewart (Virginia Tech) (8-2 overall, 3-1 ACC)
No. 2 Reece Heller (Pitt) (17-5 overall, 4-1 ACC)
No. 3 Dylan Fishback (NC State) (15-6 overall, 2-2 ACC)
No. 4 Gavin Kane (North Carolina) (11-6 overall, 2-1 ACC)
No. 5 Ethan Weatherspoon (Virginia) (4-3 overall, 0-1 ACC)
No. 6 Conor Becker (Duke) (0-5 ACC)
Redshirt senior Reece Heller has had another successful season for Pitt at 184 pounds, and won four out of his five matches in ACC duals. His only loss came in sudden victory to Virginia Tech redshirt first-year T.J. Stewart on an illegal hold, otherwise he would’ve had the No. 1 seed instead of No. 2
He will most likely wrestle No. 3 Wolfpack redshirt first-year Dylan Fishback in the semifinals, who he defeated in a 4-3 decision earlier this season. A win automatically ensures an NCAA bid, but even a loss would probably put him against No. 5 Cavaliers fifth year Ethan Weatherspoon, who he defeated on technical fall.
197 Pounds: Four automatic spots for NCAA Championships
No. 1 Trent Hidlay (NC State) (22-0 overall, 5-0 ACC)
No. 2 Max Shaw (North Carolina) (16-4 overall, 3-2 ACC)
No. 3 Andy Smith (Virginia Tech) (15-7 overall, 3-1 ACC)
No. 4 Mac Stout (Pitt) (18-5 overall, 3-2 ACC)
No. 5 Krystian Kinsey (Virginia) (11-6 overall, 1-4 ACC)
No. 6 Kwasi Bonsu (Duke) (0-5 ACC)
Redshirt first-year Mac Stout only received a No. 4 seed for the ACC Championships, but he has established himself as the starter at 197 pounds the next three seasons for Pitt wrestling.
He takes on No. 5 Virginia graduate student Krystian Kinsey in the first round, who he majored 12-3 in their last match. A win sets him up for a rematch with undefeated No. 1 NC State redshirt senior Trent Hidlay, who defeated Stout on technical fall.
Stout still has a great shot to make the NCAA Championships, as a loss to Hidlay will most likely set him up with Duke first-year Kwasi Bonus, who Stout defeated on technical fall. As long as he makes the Third Place match, he’ll continue his postseason.
285 Pounds: Two automatic spots for NCAA Championships
No. 1 Owen Trephan (NC State) (15-5 overall, 4-0 ACC)
No. 2 Hunter Catka (Virginia Tech) (13-5 overall, 4-0 ACC)
No. 3 Ryan Catka (Virginia) (13-4 overall, 3-2 ACC)
No. 4 Dayton Pitzer (Pitt) (8-4 overall)
No. 5 Connor Barket (Duke) (3-2 ACC)
No. 6 Cade Lautt (North Carolina) (11-10 overall, 1-2 ACC)
Pitt wrestling gets a major boost for their chances at to finish well at the ACC Championships as redshirt first-year Dayton Pitzer will compete at heavyweight.
Pitzer dislocated his shoulder against Arizona State No. 4 redshirt junior Colton Schultz in late January, which kept him out for the entirety of the ACC schedule. Redshirt junior Geoff Magin took his place, losing all six matches during Pitzer’s absence.
He has the No. 4 seed, despite Magin’s performance, and takes on No. 5 Duke redshirt first-year in the first round. A win would put him in the semifinals against No. 1 redshirt junior NC State Owen Trephan, who beat Pitzer in sudden victory, 3-1 last season
Pitzer is a great wrestler and prior to his injury, 4-4 against ranked opponents. He needs to defeat Trephan to win an automatic bid for the NCAA Championships, but even if he loses, his high ranking (No. 13) will likely give him a chance to earn an at-large bid.
The ACC Championships will start with First Round action at 11:00 a.m. this Sunday. Semifinals begin at 1:00 p.m., consolation semifinals at 3:30 p.m., consolation finals at 5:00 p.m. and then the Finals start at 7:00 p.m.
