Pitt Wrestling Set for 2016 ACC Championship

March 5, 2016

Match Notes | #ACCWrestle Central | Buy Tickets

PITTSBURGH - The Pitt wrestling team is set to compete in its third ACC Wrestling Championship Sunday, March 6 hosted by the University of Virginia. Action is set to begin at 11 a.m. at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Va.

The Panthers earned runner-up finishes at the past two ACC Championships and have produced four individual champions. Pitt wrestlers Dom Forys (2), LJ Bentley (3), TeShan Campbell (3) and Ryan Solomon (3) have earned top-three seeds entering the weekend. Full brackets can be viewed here.

ESPN3 will broadcast all of the matches of the 62nd Annual ACC Wrestling Championship, streaming action from both mats in the preliminary rounds.

LAST TIME OUT

The Panthers split their last two dual meets of the regular season after defeating then-ranked No. 20 Virginia, 19-17, before falling to Clarion on criteria.

REGULAR SEASON WRAP-UP

Pitt finished the regular season 10-7 overall and 2-3 in conference duals. The Panthers found success at the Fitzgerald Field House going 7-3, while recording a 0-4 record on the road.

After a major upset over No. 15 Wisconsin on Dec. 12, Pitt jumped into the USA Today/NWCA Coaches Poll at No. 20. The Panthers remained among the top 25 for the following eight weeks, reaching as high as No. 16.

In dual action, Forys was the top performer on the mat, compiling an impressive 15-2 record and 24-2 ledger overall. The Pittsburgh native finished 5-0 in ACC action and 2-0 over ranked opponents.

SCOUTING THE TOP SEEDS

133 pounds - Dom Forys - No. 2 seed

Forys enters the postseason with a team-best 24-2 overall record and went 5-0 in conference duals. The Pittsburgh native is set to face the No. 3 seed Dennis Gustafson of Virginia Tech in the quarterfinals. One win by Forys will guarantee him a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

The two last met in early February as Forys won in a 14-4 major decision. Gustafson captured the 133 pound title in 2014, while at last year's championship, Forys, who wrestled at 125 pounds, finished third.

125 pounds - LJ Bentley - No. 3 seed

Bentley compiled an impressive 16-8 overall record in his first season as a Panther and finished 2-2 against ACC opponents. The Twinsburg, Ohio, native is set to face the No. 6 seed Anthony Bosco of North Carolina. This will be the first meeting between the two wrestlers.

174 pounds - TeShan Campbell - No. 3 seed

Campbell recorded a 17-8 overall record and 3-2 mark in ACC action. Making his first appearance at the Championship, Campbell will take on the No. 6 seed Alex Schenk of Duke. The two foes will meet for the first time on Sunday. The Pittsburgh native has big shoes to fill as the last two titles at 174 pounds were claimed by current volunteer assistant coach and two-time All-American Tyler Wilps.

285 pounds - Ryan Solomon - No. 3 seed

Solomon rounds out the No. 3 seeds for Pitt. The Milton, Pa., native will face the No. 6 seed Cory Daniel of North Carolina, who he defeated in a 9-5 decision earlier this season in Chapel Hill. Two wins by Solomon will guarantee him a ticket punched to Madison Square Garden.

At last year's Championship, Solomon fell to eventual NCAA Champion Nick Gwiazdowski of NC State in the final round.

NCAA RELEASES CHAMPIONSHIPS QUALIFIER ALLOCATIONS

On Feb. 25, the NCAA released the qualifier allocations for the 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships with the ACC receiving 34 automatic spots across the 10 weight classes. Each qualifying tournament was awarded spots per weight class based on current year data. Each wrestler was measured on the following: Division I winning percentage at the weight class; rating percentage index (RPI); and coaches ranking.

The table below breaks down the number of qualifiers for each weight class in the ACC.

125	133	141	149	157	165	174	184	197	285	Total
4	3	4	2	3	5	2	3	5	3	34

LATEST NCAA COACHES' PANEL AND RPI

Five Panthers remain in the third of four NCAA Coaches' panel and RPI.

Weight	Name	Coaches' Panel Rank	RPI
125	LJ Bentley, Fr.	25	26
133	Dom Forys, So.	19	16
165	Cody Wiercioch, RS-So.	23	19
174	TeShan Campbell, Fr.	29	26
285	Ryan Solomon, RS-So.	18	19

EYES ON THE GARDEN

The 2016 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City March 17-19. Prior to making the trip to the Big Apple, fans can tune into the Selection Show Wednesday, March 9 at 6 p.m. on NCAA.com to get a first look at the brackets. Qualifiers to the national tournament will also be released throughout the day on social media and NCAA.com.

#H2P

For updates throughout the postseason follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Fans can also follow @ACCWrestling and #ACCWrestle on Sunday throughout the Championship.

University of Pittsburgh Athletics

Pitt Wrestling Set for 2016 ACC Championship

Players Mentioned

LJ Bentley

TeShan Campbell

Dom Forys

Ryan Solomon

Cody Wiercioch

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