In its final matches of the calendar year, No. 9 NC State wrestling completed a sweep across the board, taking down The Citadel, George Mason and Buffalo in Raleigh.
“We’ve wrestled a pretty demanding schedule up to this point,” said head coach Pat Popolizio. “So to see some new teams, I thought it was beneficial to these guys.”
Per usual, No. 1 redshirt sophomore Vince Robinson set the tone with tech fall wins against The Citadel and Buffalo. Robinson didn’t compete against George Mason, but the domination of his two matches backed his No. 1 ranking.
But while Robinson took both of his matches, it was No. 2 sixth-year Isaac Trumble who led the way for the Pack, securing the most dominant bonus point wins — two first-period falls and one technical fall.
“I got to my dominant positions,” Trumble said. “I love the leg turk. Trent Hidlay always looks for his underhook, and [the leg turk is] a position I always look for. I’m trying to always look for that.”
Freshman No. 15 Will Denny earned another ranked win — this time over The Citadel’s No. 30 Thomas Snipes via major decision — before winning his final two matches, a statement from one of the youngest Pack wrestlers.
“The guys we expected to win, won,” Popolizio said. “Will Denny did it in dominant fashion, and that’s what we like to see out of our true freshmen.”
Redshirt freshman Pete Winterstein competed in a new weight class in the 174-pound bout and found himself being featured in dual-action for the first time this season, both factors that likely contributed to his losses against The Citadel’s Braxton Russell and Buffalo’s Rafael Knapp — the only Wolfpack loss against Buffalo.
“We threw some guys in there in new weights, and I always like to see how those guys compete,” Popolizio said. “Even though he didn’t win his matches, Pete Winterstein wrestled really hard.”
The biggest highlight of the day came from unranked redshirt sophomore Patrick Brophy, who competed in his first match with the Wolfpack. He marked the fourth and final member of the Pack to go 3-0 on the day — along with Trumble, Denny and sixth-year Zach Redding — and got revenge on his former team, The Citadel.
Sunday’s domination gives the Pack all the momentum needed to have a successful start to the new year, and just in time. With the non-conference schedule nearly over and the ACC schedule looming, every win from here on out matters.
“I’m excited to get back and compete in the ACC,” Trumble said. “I know there are some matches that we need to get back. I lost earlier in the year and last year, and I think there’s some that I’m excited to get back one last time.”
Next up, NC State wrestling will face Virginia at home for its first ACC event of the season on Jan. 9th.
