The Virginia wrestling team will look to get back on the winning track -- or mat -- this Sunday at noon, when the Cavaliers face Ohio State at Memorial Gymnasium.
In their last match at the Virginia Duals on Saturday against North Carolina, Virginia lost a close match, 20-18. Ohio State also wrestled at the Virginia Duals, finishing with a 2-2 record, the same as the University.
Overall, Virginia's record is 5-3. The team has yet to start ACC play, as the North Carolina match did not count toward the ACC standings.
"It's a Big Ten team," Virginia coach Lenny Bernstein said. "Ohio State always had traditionally a great team. This year they're a bit down but being a bit down, still, for Ohio State is very, very tough."
The Buckeyes (3-5) are an interesting match-up for Virginia. Carrying on the Heartland tradition, Big Ten teams typically boast deeper and more physical wrestling squads.
A key match-up for the Cavaliers will be that of Eric Albright (20-6), a freshman in the 133 lb. class.
"I've known my kid for awhile," Albright said of his Buckeye counterpart. "I've known him through national tournaments. He's a freshman too, and in one of the rankings right now he's ranked 13th in the country and I just broke the top 30. Last week I was 29, so he's up there pretty good. We match up a lot the same, we're built the same, and we have pretty much the same style so it should be like a pretty tough match. I'm looking forward to it. I've been working hard, so we'll see how that goes."
Albright's opponent is Reece Humphrey, a first-year wrestler who the Buckeyes stole from neighboring Indiana. Humphrey currently sports a 22-7 overall record. He posted a 3-1 record at the Virginia Duals.
One opponent both Albright and Humphrey have in common is Jared Royer of UNC. Both Albright and Humphrey defeated Royer at the Virginia Duals, Albright 5-4 and Humphrey 13-5.
Bernstein commented on the importance of Albright's "toss up" match.
"He has a very tough match this coming weekend against another freshman," Bernstein said. "If we can win some of those toss-up battles, and I consider that a toss-up, then I think we have a good chance to beat them this weekend. But if it goes the other way, it's going to be a tough, tough weekend for us. But we're ready for them. We've been progressing and getting better, and our freshman, sophomores are getting a little bit more battle-tested."
After facing Ohio State, the Cavaliers begin the ACC portion of their schedule. A rematch with North Carolina is up first, this time a home match on Jan. 27 at 7 p.m.
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