North Carolina wrestling hosted the ACC Wrestling Championships at Carmichael Arena on Saturday. The Tar Heels finished the night with two ACC champions, six medalers and seven of their nine competing wrestlers earning a bid to the NCAA tournament.
At 133, first-year Zach Sherman, who was ranked No. 5 in the bracket, was eliminated from championship contention in the first round. In consolation matches, Sherman dropped his first match to N.C. State's Tariq Wilson, but still managed to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament by winning his fifth place match.
At 141, redshirt sophomore A.C. Headlee (No. 3 seed in the bracket) made it to the second round before falling to Virginia Tech’s Brent Moore. In consolation matches, Headlee fell in the first round to Duke's Jeremiah Reitz. This eliminated his chances for a spot in the NCAA tournament.
At 149, redshirt senior Troy Heilmann started No. 1 in the bracket. After securing a bid to the NCAA tournament with a win in the second round, Heilmann went on to win his bracket with a takedown in the final seconds of the championship match — becoming the ACC champion of the 149 weight class.
At 157, No. 3 seed and redshirt first-year Kennedy Monday fell to Duke’s Mitch Finesilver in the second round. Following the loss, Monday went on to win his consolation bracket, placing third in the overall bracket and earning himself a spot at the NCAA tournament.
At 165, redshirt first-year Josh McClure (No. 5 seed) fell to Pittsburgh’s Jake Wentzel in the first round. With that loss, he was eliminated from both ACC and NCAA championship contention. In consolation matches, McClure fell to Virginia's Andrew Atkinson in the first round.
At 174, redshirt senior Ethan Ramos, who started at No. 2 and got a first round bye, landed a place in the NCAA tournament with his second round win. Ramos won the championship round with a 10-4 decision — becoming ACC champion in the 174 weight class.
At 184, redshirt junior Chip Ness (No. 3 seed) made it to the second round before falling to N.C. State’s Pete Renda. Ness won his consolation bracket—placing third in the 184 bracket and landing a spot in the NCAA tournament.
At 197, senior Danny Chaid, the No. 3 seed in the bracket, fell in the second round to N.C. State’s Michael Macchiavello. In consolation matches, Chaid also won his bracket. This earned him a third place finish overall and a spot in the NCAA tournament.
