JohnMark Bentley, a redshirt junior, is the No. 8 wrestler in the 149-pound weight class.
As they go, so go the four-time defending ACC champion Tar Heel wrestling team. Tuesday night in Reynolds Coliseum, Bell and Bentley won. And so did UNC, beating N.C. State 16-14.
In the second match of the night, with the Tar Heels (2-2, 1-0 in the ACC) down 3-0 to the Wolfpack (4-6, 0-1), Corey Bell (14-3) faced Dustin Kawa
(7-8) in what looked to be an easy match.
It was anything but.
With 30 seconds remaining, Bell trailed 3-2. "I was nervous," he said. "Usually when I am losing, I end up losing the match. I may have come back once before."
But Bell did come back, although he did get a little help from the referee.
With 20 seconds left in the third period, the official called stalling on Kawa, who had already been warned once for practicing the illegal tactic. Bell was awarded one point as well as the momentum that he needed.
With five seconds until the match ended, he charged Kawa and performed a takedown, for which he was awarded two points, giving him the 5-3 victory and tying the match.
