BLACKSBURG – After another strong season, head coach Tony Robie and the Virginia Tech wrestling team head to the 2022 NCAA Championships from March 17 – 19 at Little Caesar's Arena in Detroit.
Action begins Thursday at 12 p.m. EST and will continue for three days, with the Championship Finals on Saturday at 7 p.m. on ESPN. The championships' coverage will feature every mat, every match with a subscription to WatchESPN. Hokie fans can follow all the action on twitter as well at @hokieswrestling.
TV SCHEDULE (all times are EST)
Thursday | 12 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. | ESPNU
Thursday | 7 p.m. – 10:30 p.m. | ESPN2
Friday | 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. (Quarterfinals) | ESPNU
Friday | 8 p.m. – 11 p.m. (Semifinals) | ESPN
Saturday | 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. (Placement Matches) | ESPNU
Saturday | 7 p.m. – 11 p.m. (Finals) | ESPN
TECH QUALIFIERS
125: Sam Latona (24)
133: Korbin Myers (4)
141: Collin Gerardi (28)
149: Bryce Andonian (11)
157: Connor Brady (28)
174: Mekhi Lewis (2)
184: Hunter Bolen (14)
285: Nathan Traxler (10)
The Hokies head to Detroit with eight wrestlers – the same number they had in their program-record, fourth-place finish in 2016. Tech has had at least eight qualifiers in eight of the last nine championships.
As the 2 seed at 174, Mekhi Lewis is the highest seeded Hokie and ties program history as only the third ever 2 seed. Lewis joins teammates Hunter Bolen and Sam Latona as the only 2 seeds in program history.
Two-time ACC Champion Korbin Myers qualified for the NCAA Championships for the fifth time in his career. Myers is joined by graduate transfer and fellow ACC Champion Nathan Traxler who also became a five-time NCAA qualifier. Traxler is 19-2 in his time as a Hokie and 97-30 in his career.
ALL-AMERICAN STREAK
Tech's lineup to Detroit features four All-Americans – Sam Latona (125, 6th 2021), Korbin Myers (133, 4th 2021), Mekhi Lewis (165, 1st 2019), and Hunter Bolen (184, 7th 2021). The Hokies will look to continue their streak of three or more All-Americans for nine years straight. Only four other programs can make the same claim (Penn State, Iowa, Oklahoma State, and Cornell).
RECORD VS QUALIFIER FIELD
- Five of the eight Tech qualifiers have winning records against fellow qualifiers in the field.
- Nathan Traxler has a team-high nine wins, Mekhi Lewis and Korbin Myers both have eight, Hunter Bolen has six, and Bryce Andonian has five.