Sunday, February 28
Raleigh, N.C.
All Day
Pitt
vs
2021 ACC Wrestling Championship
Panthers Claim Two Titles at ACC Wrestling Championship
2/28/2021 10:00:00 PM | Wrestling
RALEIGH, N.C.—The University of Pittsburgh wrestling team crowned two ACC champions and automatically qualified four student-athletes to the 2021 NCAA Championships on a busy Sunday of action at the ACC Championship hosted by NC State at Reynolds Coliseum.
Senior Jake Wentzel defended his ACC individual championship in the 165-pound weight class thanks to a pair of wins without conceding any points, and junior Nino Bonaccorsi won his first ACC title with a dominating performance in the 197-pound division.
Both top seeds entering the tournament at their respective weight classes, Wentzel and Bonaccorsi backed up that ranking impressively.
Wentzel defeated North Carolina's Kennedy Monday 1-0 and used his outstanding top game to pick up a 4-0 decision over Virginia's Jake Keating in the championship match at 165.
Bonaccorsi displayed relentless attacking in his two wins: an 8-2 semifinal triumph over NC State's Nick Reenan and a convincing 10-4 final coronation against Virginia's Jay Aiello.
Having seen his team produced multiple ACC champions for the third straight season, Pitt head coach Keith Gavin highlighted the performances of Wentzel and Bonaccorsi.
"It's always good to bring home champions," Gavin said. "It's cool that Jake repeated and we're obviously excited for Nino to get his first title. Overall, today was like the entire past year. You didn't know what to expect. Some guys performed really well; others could have done better. But we're hoping to get five qualifiers and see what we can do at NCAAs in a few weeks."
Junior Micky Phillippi was denied a third straight ACC title in the final by Virginia Tech's Korbin Myers. Phillippi dropped a 3-1 decision to Myers after defeating Virginia's Louie Hayes 10-3 in the semifinals. Despite not earning another ACC crown, Phillippi qualified for the NCAA Championships for the third time and will likely enter with a top-10 seed at 133 pounds.
Sophomore Cole Matthews also qualified for the NCAA Championships again by placing third at ACCs for the second consecutive year – this time storming his way through the consolation bracket.
Matthews went 3-1 on Saturday, winning his opening match against Virginia Tech's Sam Hillegas before dropping his semifinal bout against NC State's Tariq Wilson. Things clicked for Matthews in the consolation matches as he earned lopsided major decisions over Duke's Patrick Rowland and Virginia's Brian Courtney, who had beaten Matthews earlier this season.
Senior Gregg Harvey was the other Pitt wrestler to earn a win Sunday as the 184-pounder avenged his dual loss to Virginia Michael Battista before giving top-seed Hunter Bolen from Virginia Tech all he could handle in a match that Harvey dictated.
Harvey then advanced to the third-place match with a major decision over Duke's Vincent Baker before suffering a defeat to North Carolina's Devin Kane. Harvey's fourth-place ACC finish means he will hope to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships.
Freshmen Colton Camacho, Mick Burnett, Jared McGill and Austin Cooley each went 0-2 on Sunday.
The Panthers finished the 2021 ACC Championship in fifth place as a team with 45 points scored.
Here is a full listing of Pitt results from the 2021 ACC Wrestling Championship:
Colton Camacho, 125 Pounds
QF: Logan Agin (Duke) dec. Colton Camacho (Pitt), 3-2
Cons. SF: Patrick McCormick (UVA) dec. Colton Camacho (Pitt), 2-1
Micky Phillippi, 2nd, 133 Pounds, NCAA Qualifier
SF: Micky Phillippi (Pitt) dec. Louie Hayes (UVA), 10-3
Final: Korbin Myers (VT) dec. Micky Phillippi (Pitt), 3-1
Cole Matthews, 3rd, 141 Pounds, NCAA Qualifier
QF: Cole Matthews (Pitt) dec. Sam Hillegas (VT), 3-2 (TB1)
SF: Tariq Wilson (NC State) dec. Cole Matthews (Pitt), 6-2
Cons. SF: Cole Matthews (Pitt) maj. dec. Patrick Rowland (Duke), 10-2
Cons. Final: Cole Matthews (Pitt) maj. dec. Brian Courtney (UVA), 14-5
Mick Burnett, 149 Pounds
QF: Ed Scott (NC State) dec. Mick Burnett (Pitt), 3-2
Cons. SF: Josh Finesilver (Duke) dec. Mick Burnett (Pitt), 4-2
Jake Wentzel, 1st, 165 Pounds, NCAA Qualifier
SF: Jake Wentzel (Pitt) dec. Kennedy Monday (UNC), 1-0
Final: Jake Wentzel (Pitt) dec. Jake Keating (UVA), 4-0
Jared McGill, 174 Pounds
QF: Dakota Howard (VT) dec. Jared McGill (Pitt), 8-6 (SV1)
Cons. SF: Vic Marcelli (UVA) dec. Jared McGill (Pitt), 3-1
Gregg Harvey, 184 Pounds
QF: Gregg Harvey (Pitt) dec. Michael Battista (UVA), 3-2
SF: Hunter Bolen (VT) dec. Gregg Harvey (Pitt), 3-1
Cons. SF: Gregg Harvey (Pitt) maj. dec. Vincent Baker (Duke), 10-2
Cons. Final: Devin Kane (UNC) maj. dec. Gregg Harvey (Pitt), 11-3
Nino Bonaccorsi, 1st, 197 Pounds, NCAA Qualifier
SF: Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. Nick Reenan (NC State), 8-2
Final: Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. Jay Aiello (UVA), 10-4
Austin Cooley, Heavyweight
QF: Andrew Gunning (UNC) dec. Austin Cooley (Pitt), 1-0
Cons. SF: Quinn Miller (UVA) dec. Austin Cooley (Pitt), 8-6 (SV1)
At-large bids, seeding and brackets for nationals will be announced by the NCAA at a later date ahead of the 2021 NCAA Wrestling Championships, which will be held in St. Louis from March 18-20.
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Senior Jake Wentzel defended his ACC individual championship in the 165-pound weight class thanks to a pair of wins without conceding any points, and junior Nino Bonaccorsi won his first ACC title with a dominating performance in the 197-pound division.
Both top seeds entering the tournament at their respective weight classes, Wentzel and Bonaccorsi backed up that ranking impressively.
Wentzel defeated North Carolina's Kennedy Monday 1-0 and used his outstanding top game to pick up a 4-0 decision over Virginia's Jake Keating in the championship match at 165.
Bonaccorsi displayed relentless attacking in his two wins: an 8-2 semifinal triumph over NC State's Nick Reenan and a convincing 10-4 final coronation against Virginia's Jay Aiello.
Having seen his team produced multiple ACC champions for the third straight season, Pitt head coach Keith Gavin highlighted the performances of Wentzel and Bonaccorsi.
"It's always good to bring home champions," Gavin said. "It's cool that Jake repeated and we're obviously excited for Nino to get his first title. Overall, today was like the entire past year. You didn't know what to expect. Some guys performed really well; others could have done better. But we're hoping to get five qualifiers and see what we can do at NCAAs in a few weeks."
Junior Micky Phillippi was denied a third straight ACC title in the final by Virginia Tech's Korbin Myers. Phillippi dropped a 3-1 decision to Myers after defeating Virginia's Louie Hayes 10-3 in the semifinals. Despite not earning another ACC crown, Phillippi qualified for the NCAA Championships for the third time and will likely enter with a top-10 seed at 133 pounds.
Sophomore Cole Matthews also qualified for the NCAA Championships again by placing third at ACCs for the second consecutive year – this time storming his way through the consolation bracket.
Matthews went 3-1 on Saturday, winning his opening match against Virginia Tech's Sam Hillegas before dropping his semifinal bout against NC State's Tariq Wilson. Things clicked for Matthews in the consolation matches as he earned lopsided major decisions over Duke's Patrick Rowland and Virginia's Brian Courtney, who had beaten Matthews earlier this season.
Senior Gregg Harvey was the other Pitt wrestler to earn a win Sunday as the 184-pounder avenged his dual loss to Virginia Michael Battista before giving top-seed Hunter Bolen from Virginia Tech all he could handle in a match that Harvey dictated.
Harvey then advanced to the third-place match with a major decision over Duke's Vincent Baker before suffering a defeat to North Carolina's Devin Kane. Harvey's fourth-place ACC finish means he will hope to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships.
Freshmen Colton Camacho, Mick Burnett, Jared McGill and Austin Cooley each went 0-2 on Sunday.
The Panthers finished the 2021 ACC Championship in fifth place as a team with 45 points scored.
Here is a full listing of Pitt results from the 2021 ACC Wrestling Championship:
Colton Camacho, 125 Pounds
QF: Logan Agin (Duke) dec. Colton Camacho (Pitt), 3-2
Cons. SF: Patrick McCormick (UVA) dec. Colton Camacho (Pitt), 2-1
Micky Phillippi, 2nd, 133 Pounds, NCAA Qualifier
SF: Micky Phillippi (Pitt) dec. Louie Hayes (UVA), 10-3
Final: Korbin Myers (VT) dec. Micky Phillippi (Pitt), 3-1
Cole Matthews, 3rd, 141 Pounds, NCAA Qualifier
QF: Cole Matthews (Pitt) dec. Sam Hillegas (VT), 3-2 (TB1)
SF: Tariq Wilson (NC State) dec. Cole Matthews (Pitt), 6-2
Cons. SF: Cole Matthews (Pitt) maj. dec. Patrick Rowland (Duke), 10-2
Cons. Final: Cole Matthews (Pitt) maj. dec. Brian Courtney (UVA), 14-5
Mick Burnett, 149 Pounds
QF: Ed Scott (NC State) dec. Mick Burnett (Pitt), 3-2
Cons. SF: Josh Finesilver (Duke) dec. Mick Burnett (Pitt), 4-2
Jake Wentzel, 1st, 165 Pounds, NCAA Qualifier
SF: Jake Wentzel (Pitt) dec. Kennedy Monday (UNC), 1-0
Final: Jake Wentzel (Pitt) dec. Jake Keating (UVA), 4-0
Jared McGill, 174 Pounds
QF: Dakota Howard (VT) dec. Jared McGill (Pitt), 8-6 (SV1)
Cons. SF: Vic Marcelli (UVA) dec. Jared McGill (Pitt), 3-1
Gregg Harvey, 184 Pounds
QF: Gregg Harvey (Pitt) dec. Michael Battista (UVA), 3-2
SF: Hunter Bolen (VT) dec. Gregg Harvey (Pitt), 3-1
Cons. SF: Gregg Harvey (Pitt) maj. dec. Vincent Baker (Duke), 10-2
Cons. Final: Devin Kane (UNC) maj. dec. Gregg Harvey (Pitt), 11-3
Nino Bonaccorsi, 1st, 197 Pounds, NCAA Qualifier
SF: Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. Nick Reenan (NC State), 8-2
Final: Nino Bonaccorsi (Pitt) dec. Jay Aiello (UVA), 10-4
Austin Cooley, Heavyweight
QF: Andrew Gunning (UNC) dec. Austin Cooley (Pitt), 1-0
Cons. SF: Quinn Miller (UVA) dec. Austin Cooley (Pitt), 8-6 (SV1)
At-large bids, seeding and brackets for nationals will be announced by the NCAA at a later date ahead of the 2021 NCAA Wrestling Championships, which will be held in St. Louis from March 18-20.
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