The No. 17 North Carolina wrestling team struggled to score points against Stanford in its second dual meet of the season on Saturday. Despite an impressive showing from redshirt sophomore Clay Lautt, the Tar Heels lost seven of their 10 matches in a 21-11 loss in Stanford, Calif.
What happened?
In the 125-pound bout, redshirt first-year Joey Melendez was topped by Stanford’s Jackson DiSario in a tightly contested match, 8-5. Melendez went out to a quick 2-0 lead and never trailed until DiSario scored a takedown late in the third period to take the match.
UNC stormed back to take the lead in the second bout of the night, with redshirt sophomore Jaime Hernandez scoring a major decision over Stanford’s Brandon Kier, 15-5, giving North Carolina a 4-3 lead.
In the first of three matches that the Cardinal would win by one point, No. 13 Real Woods of Stanford defeated redshirt sophomore Zach Sherman in the 141-pound bout. Sherman picked up a late takedown, only to have Woods escape as time expired, completing a 3-2 victory for Stanford.
Once again, North Carolina responded strongly following a loss, with redshirt first-year Michael Goldfeder scoring a 9-5 victory over Steve Abbate. Goldfeder initially fell to a 2-0 deficit but stormed back with a series of takedowns to secure the victory.
Going into the next two bouts, North Carolina carried a 7-6 lead and had two ranked wrestlers coming up.
In the 157-pound division, No.16 A.C. Headlee was upset by unranked Tyler Eischens in a close 4-3 bout. Following that loss, No. 17 Kennedy Monday fell to No. 8 Shane Griffith after getting off to a 4-0 lead. Monday conceded nine consecutive points and suffered a loss that put the Tar Heels in a 12-7 hole.
Lautt continued his dual meet success from last week, earning a major decision over Jared Hill, 14-6, to put UNC within one point of Stanford heading into the final three matches.
