Chattanooga 28, Missouri Valley College 21; No. 12 Missouri 32, Chattanooga 7

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The Chattanooga wrestling team split a pair of non-conference matches in Columbia, Mo., today.  The Mocs downed Missouri Valley College (28-21) before falling to No. 12 Missouri (32-7).  UTC was led by freshman Demetrius Johnson and junior Cody Cleveland who both posted two wins on the day.  Chattanooga moves to 7-7 on the season, but is still 1-0 in Southern Conference action. 

The Mocs took on MVC in the first dual match of the afternoon, coming away with six individual wins.  Johnson started the day at 125 with a strong 10-8 decision over senior NAIA All-American and second-ranked Billy Exline. 

Sophomore Josh Statum kept the momentum going with a 9-0 major decision over Jesse Knott.  Junior Cody Cleveland pinned his opponent, Eric Graham (6:51) for his fourth fall of the season. 

Junior Joey Knox (157) and senior Seth Garvin (165) both won their individual matches against Missouri Valley.  Chattanooga was forced to forfeit both the 184 and 197-pound classes against the Vikings, but still managed the 28-21 win. 

UTC was scheduled to wrestle Big East power West Virginia.  However, the Mountaineers were forced to pull out of the duals at the last minute. 

Johnson continued his strong day with 12-7 decision over Missouri’s Troy Dolan.  He evens his season record at 3-3 with two wins on Sunday. 

Cleveland, ranked eighth in this week’s Intermat rankings at 141, posted a solid result over No. 12 Marcus Hoehn.  He scored four points with a 14-5 decision, giving UTC a 7-3 lead after three matches.  Cleveland is now 14-4 on the year.

Unfortunately for the Mocs, it was the last win of the duals.  Forfeits at 174 and 197 kept UTC from having any chance at holding on to the lead.  The Tigers eventually wrapped up a 32-7 win. 

The SoCon season gets back in action next weekend when Chattanooga travels to Appalachian State and UNC-Greensboro.  The Mocs take on the Mountaineers in Boone, N.C., on Saturday, Jan. 24, at 6:00 p.m. (E.S.T.).  UTC then heads to UNCG for a 1:00 p.m. match on Sunday, Jan. 25, in Greensboro, N.C.

The Mocs’ next home match is Friday, Jan. 30, against The Citadel and Campbellsville.  Action begins at 6:00 p.m. in McKenzie Arena.

Virginia 35, Appalachian State 9

CHARLOTTESVILLE,Va. - Appalachian State University wrestling jumped out to a 9-0 lead but couldn't hang on as they fell to Virginia 35-9 in a non-conference match in Charlottesville Sunday afternoon.

Appalachian (5-11) started fast as sophomore Austin Annas won his first-career dual match with a 5-4 decision over Wyatt Anderson.  The Mountaineers incresed the lead to 9-0 with a Frank Celorrio forfeit victory.

Virginia (7-7) countered the fast start by winning the final eight matches, but the Apps did not go quietly.  Mike Kessler wrestled a top-20 ranked opponent for the second time in three days, and held his own in a 6-3 loss to No. 20 Nick Nelson.  At 149, freshman Savva Kostis dropped a 13-6 decision to Peter Ferrara, while Chip Powell, wrestling up a weight class at 157, fell to No. 20 ranked Jedd Moore.

Freshman Kyle Blevins lost a hard fought 3-2 decision to Mike Sewell.  Dylan Temple also lost a close match to No. 17 ranked Rocco Caponi.

125: Austin Annas (ASU) dec. Wyatt Anderson (UVa), 5-4; UVa 0, ASU 3

133: Frank Celorrio (ASU) wins by forfeit; UVa 0, ASU 9

141: No. 20 Nick Nelson (UVa) dec. Mike Kessler (ASU), 6-3; UVa 3, ASU 9

149: Peter Ferrara (UVa) dec. Savva Kostis (ASU), 13-6; UVa 6, ASU 9

157: No. 20 Jedd Moore (UVa) pinned Chip Powell (ASU), 6:37; UVa 12, ASU 9

165: Mike Sewell (UVa) dec. Kyle Blevins (ASU), 3-2; UVa 15, ASU 9

174: No. 10 Chris Henrich (UVa) tech fall Antionne Jones (ASU), 16-1; UVa 20, ASU 9

184: No. 17 Rocco Caponi (UVa) dec. Dylan Temple (ASU), 2-0; UVa 23, ASU 9

197: No. 19 Brent Jones (UVa) pinned David Pritz (ASU), 2:32; UVa 29, ASU 9

285: Calvin Cardillo (UVa) wins by forfeit; UVa 35, ASU 9

North Carolina 29, Davidson 10

BELMONT ABBEY, N.C. ? In their final contest before beginning a run of three-straight conference matchups, the Davidson wrestling team fell to ACC-power North Carolina, 29-10, Saturday evening at the Wheeler Center on the campus of Belmont Abbey College.

After falling behind 3-0, Davidson (3-8) took an early lead when sophomore Alex Radsky dominated his match at 133 on the way to a 12-1 major decision to give the Wildcats a 4-3 advantage. In the 141-pound weight class, Vitaly Radsky dropped a hard-fought 6-5 overtime decision to give the Tar Heels back the lead.

Freshman David DeCamp recorded his first career pin at 149 when he dropped his opponent in 2:10, putting the Wildcats back up in the team standings, 10-6. However, UNC?regained the points lead the following match, and would hold onto the top spot for the remainder of the contest on their way to the 29-10 overall lead.

The ?Cats will now return home for a pair of back-to-back Southern Conference clashes when they take on VMI this Sunday, Jan. 25, at John M. Belk Arena. The match is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.

125 Justin Shields (UNC) def. Ben Altman (DC), 7-1, 3-0 UNC
133 Alex Radsky (DC) Maj. Decision vs. Mike Robinson (UNC), 12-1, 4-3 DC
141 Jake Shaw (UNC) def. Vitaly Radsky (DC), 6-5 OT, 6-4 UNC
149 David DeCamp (DC) pins Chris Woltz (UNC) 2:10, 10-6 DC
157 Thomas Ferguson (UNC) Tech Fall vs. Carl Sandercock (DC), 17-0, 11-10 UNC
165 Keenan Duffie (UNC) Tech Fall vs. Thomas Jasterzbski (DC),19-2, 16-10 UNC
174 Robert McCarthy (UNC) def. Tyler Mullen (DC), 7-4, 19-10 UNC
184 Ben Fiacco (UNC) Major Decision Kevin Cook (DC), 11-2, 23-10 UNC
197 Andrew Cekuta (UNC) def. Jorge Estrada (DC), 4-2, 26-10 UNC
285 Justin Dobies (UNC) def. Charlie Wolff (DC), 7-3, 29-10 UNC