RALEIGH, N.C. – After an undefeated regular season and its fourth ACC Dual Meet Championship, Virginia Tech wrestling seeks its fifth ACC tournament title at the 2021 ACC Championships hosted by NC State Sunday.
The Hokies (9-0, 5-0 ACC) capped off their seventh undefeated regular season with a 27-12 win over Pitt on Feb. 12 and were ranked No. 3 in the country in the final NWCA Coaches Poll Tuesday. Three Hokies competing Sunday ended the regular season undefeated themselves: Hunter Bolen (8-0), Sam Latona (8-0) and Korbin Myers (6-0). Bolen and Latona earned the top seed of their weight class while Myers is seeded second at 133 pounds, each earning first-round byes as Top-2 seeds.
Including the three undefeated Hokies, Tech has five wrestlers advancing to the semifinals as a Top-2 seed. Joining Myers as No. 2 seeds are Bryce Andonian and Mekhi Lewis at 149 and 165 pounds, respectively.
The other five Hokies will begin wrestling when the championships start at 11 a.m. The eight-hour stretch leading up to the finals can be streamed on ACC Network Extra, with the finals being broadcast on ACC Network when they get underway at 7 p.m. Live results will also be available throughout the tournament.
CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
First Round - 11 a.m. (ACC Network Extra)
Semifinals – 1 p.m. (ACC Network Extra)
Consolation Semifinals – 3:30 p.m. (ACC Network Extra)
Consolation Finals – 5 p.m. (ACC Network Extra)
Championship Finals – 7 p.m. (ACC Network)
NCAA AUTOMATIC QUALIFIERS
125 – 3
133 – 4
141 – 3
149 – 3
157 – 4
165 – 3
174 – 3
184 – 3
197 – 3
285 – 4
CONFERENCE SWEEPS
• Hunter Bolen, Sam Latona and Korbin Myers each went undefeated through the conference season, with Bolen being the only Hokie to go a complete 5-0.
• Myers defeated three straight ranked ACC opponents when he defeated Louie Hayes, Jaime Hernandez and Jarrett Trombley is succession, all by major decision.
• Latona went 4-0 in the ACC this season in his first year as a starter. The two-time ACC Wrestler of the Week defeated Jakob Camcho 7-4 to clinch the dual for the Hokies.
ACC SEEDING
• The Hokies have five wrestlers earning first-round byes at the 2021 ACC Championships, including No. 1 seeds Hunter Bolen and Sam Latona.
• Bryce Andonian, Mekhi Lewis and Korbin Myers were each seeded second in their respective brackets. Andonian and Lewis will have a shot at redemption as their only losses this season came to wrestlers seeded first in their weight classes. Myers finished the season undefeated at 6-0.
• Seeded third are 157-pound starter Connor Brady and heavyweight Hunter Catka. In his first season as a starter, Brady went 3-2 in ACC play this season and 5-3 in dual matches. Catka is 7-1 on the season with a 4-1 record in dual meets, including 2-1 in ACC duals.
• Rounding out the remaining seeds for the Hokies are Dakota Howard (No. 4 at 174 pounds), Sam Hillegas (No. 5 at 141 pounds) and Andy Smith (No. 5 at 197 pounds).
BOLEN LOOKS TO REPEAT
• Hunter Bolen was the only Hokie to win an individual ACC title at the 2020 ACC Championships, defeating Trent Hidlay 2-1 in the 184-pound final.
• This season, Bolen's been dominant, not allowing an opponent takedown all year. He defeated Hidlay for the third time in his career in a 2-1 decision earlier this season.
• Bolen is ranked as the No. 1 184-pound wrestler in the country in each of the InterMat, FloWrestling and TrackWrestling rankings. He's also been the No. 1 choice in both NCAA Coaches Rankings.
• The Floyd, Virginia native was the only Hokie to go 5-0 in the ACC season.
ONE FOR ONE?
• Six of the 10 Hokies competing at the 2021 ACC Championships Sunday do so for the first time in their career.
• Redshirt sophomore Dakota Howard, redshirt freshmen Connor Brady and Sam Latona, and true freshmen Hunter Catka, Sam Hillegas and Andy Smith will all wrestle in the conference tournament for the first time.
• Latona is the highest seeded of the bunch, coming in at No. 1 in the 125-pound weight class, followed by Connor Brady and Hunter Catka, each seeded third in their brackets. Howard (No. 4), Hillegas (No. 5) and Smith (No. 5) round out the group of championship newcomers.
