Hokies onto day two of National Duals Invitational with two ranked winsHokies onto day two of National Duals Invitational with two ranked wins
Wrestling

Hokies onto day two of National Duals Invitational with two ranked wins

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TULSA, OK – No. 10 Virginia Tech wrestling advanced to the second day of competition at the 2025 National Duals Invitational and will wrestle to place on Sunday. The Hokies bounced back after a close loss to No. 9 Minnesota with wins over No. 24 Wyoming and rival, No.7 NC State. Tech takes the mat again at 11AM ET on Sunday live on Flowrestling.

Close, but Not Enough

Tech opened their 2025 National Duals Invitational against No. 9 Minnesota on Saturday in the BOK Center, winning five matches including an upset get-back wins for freshman Ryan Burton over No. 10 Andrew Sparks and No. 23 Sonny Sasso over No. 17 Gavin Nelson at 197-pounds – both matches the Hokies dropped at the Southeast Open. Other Hokies notching wins were No. 17 Dillon Campbell over two-time All-American Chris Cannon at 133-pounds, at 149-pounds it was Noah Nininger with a tech fall over Rhett Koenig, and No. 18 Jimmy Mullen over Bennett Tabor at heavyweight. Despite the five wins, the Hokies fell short, 17-19, dropping to the consolation bracket to end the first session in Tulsa.

Bounced Back in a Big Way

The Hokies responded in a big way with a controlling victory over No. 24 Wyoming to stay alive on the backside. Tech picked up bonus victories from No. 4 Eddie Ventresca, Campbell, No. 17 Tom Crook, Burton, and Sasso. Mullen also picked up a ranked victory to add Tech’s tally en route to a 25-12 victory. The dual was highlighted by Sasso’s dominant 12-2 major decision over returning All-American No. 4 Joey Novak, the most notable win in Sasso’s career thus far. With the win, Tech would move on to face rival, No. 7 NC State.

The Rivalry Continues

Different location, familiar foe as the Hokies met the rival Wolfpack in the second round of consolations. Winners advance, losers go home and it was all Hokies on Saturday night. Tech won seven of the ten bouts including bonus victories from Burton, Sasso, and Mullen in a rivalry typically shy of bonus point margins. The biggest storylines were Ventresca once again taking out No. 1 Vincent Robinson to improve to 3-0 against the returning national champion and true freshman Nininger bumping up and taking out No. 4 Jackson Arrington at 157-pounds in the closing seconds. Also notching wins for the Hokies were Campbell continuing his hot run with a win over No. 18 Zach Redding and No. 22 Jaden Bullock over Don Cates at 184-pounds.

Tech resumes action in Tulsa on Sunday at 11AM ET against Illinois live on Flowrestling. Follow Hokies Wrestling on Instagram and X for all the latest Virginia Tech Wrestling updates and news.