The Virginia wrestling team continued its hot streak with authority this weekend, demolishing Millersville, 34-10, Saturday afternoon and dominating UNC-Greensboro, 41-8, in the nightcap. With the wins, Virginia improved its overall record to 7-5 and scored its seventh victory in its last eight matches.
"Overall, I'm pretty pleased," Virginia coach Lenny Bernstein said. "We had a nice performance from a couple of guys."
In the first dual meet, Virginia sprinted out to a 25-0 lead through five matches, en route to steamrolling the Marauders. In the final match, senior heavyweight Josh Etu pinned his opponent at 1 minute, 16 seconds to seal the victory.
Virginia freshman Brian Sticca continued to impress, winning both of his matches Saturday, including a comeback 9-7 win over UNC-Greensboro's Tony Stewart.
"He's definitely a special freshman," Bernstein said. "He's gutsy and has a lot of heart. He still has a lot to learn, but he can beat a lot of kids with what he already knows. And his attitude is tremendous."
Sticca's two victories gave him 24 on the season, leaving him five wins short of the Cavalier freshmen record with five matches remaining. His win against Stewart started a Virginia landslide that UNC-Greensboro could not withstand. Junior Joe Alexander followed with a 10-4 victory at the 133-pound weight class, and senior Bob Seidel scored a technical fall at 141, dismantling Greensboro's Wes Gibson, 20-3. Alexander's victory was his second in the day. Against Millersville he pinned Corey Packer in 1:28.
"Joe Alexander looked more like himself," Bernstein said. "He's had some injuries, but now he's starting to get his weight under control, and he did well."
After Seidel's victory, the Cavaliers won four of the next six matches by forfeit. UNCG's Nate Parmenter and Steve McClamrock won the other two, bringing the score to 35-8. In the last match, Etu again flattened his opponent, pinning Spartan heavyweight John Kimble in 37 seconds. Kimble never had much of a chance, as Etu used his patented headlock to gain an early advantage.
"Of course, Josh Etu had two headlocks," Bernstein said. "He's known for them. The first one, the guy went from one side of the mat to the other."
After the match, Bernstein spoke proudly of his senior leaders.
"It's huge for those guys, some of whom are fifth-year seniors," Bernstein said. "Knowing that they had to put it on the line, and having some success, justifies their decisions."
Echoing his coach, Seidel talked about the importance of veteran leadership for the team's success.
"It's real important to have senior leaders," Seidel said. "Coach has talked to us seniors and captains and told us to try and stay positive throughout the season. The season is a roller coaster, and we need to maintain a certain level of stability emotionally."
While Saturday's victories provided cause for celebration, the Cavaliers did not have much time to revel in their success. They headed for Norfolk Sunday to take on Old Dominion.
"The reason I set the matches up like this is because a lot of national tournaments are three day tournaments," Bernstein said. "You have to make weight for three days. These matches were training for further down the road."
Virginia hopes to benefit from such training next week, as it hosts ACC rivals N.C. State and Duke. N.C. State perennially has been the leader of the pack in the conference, so a victory would cement the surging Cavaliers as the ACC's best team.
"The success feels good," Seidel said. "We need to keep the ball rolling, next week especially with two ACC matches, and hopefully land on our feet."
In Sunday's action, Virginia traveled to Norfolk and defeated Old Dominion, 34-13, for the Cavaliers' fourth consecutive dual meet win and seventh out of eight. Against ODU, Virginia took seven of 10 bouts.
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