Pitzer gets nod for showdown with Virginia Tech
Facing what might be its biggest dual meet in years, the No. 24 Pitt wrestling team should field its best lineup on Friday night.
Coach Keith Gavin told Panther-lair that Dayton Pitzer will wrestle at No. 7 Virginia Tech on Friday night, even if the outcome of the dual meet has been decided.
“Dayton’s going to wrestle the next three weekends, regardless,” Gavin said, pointing to home duals with North Carolina and Iowa State next weekend and a trip to North Carolina State on Feb. 10. “It’s three good weekends of opponents for him. It’s good for his individual development.”
The UNC/Iowa State duals only count as one date in the eyes of the NCAA, meaning Pitzer would still be able to redshirt this season if he and the coaching staff decide to go that route. When Pitzer was recruited to Pitt, the plan was to redshirt this season and add weight to his 220-pound frame. That hasn’t happened, but it has hardly mattered as he dominated Lehigh’s Nathan Taylor in his first college match, then upset returning NCAA finalist Cohlton Schultz and two-time All-American Trent Hillger on his way to a second-place finish at the Midlands Tournament. Pitzer hasn’t taken the mat since then, but will on Friday night on the road against a top-10 team in a nationally televised dual.
While the Panthers are facing a very good Hokies team, there is a chance that the dual could come down to the final bout. If the dual is wrestled in order, that would be pit Pitzer vs. two-time PIAA champ Hunter Catka.
“Hunter Catka is an athletic heavyweight, so that will be a good test for him,” Gavin said.
The Hokies will undoubtedly be a good test for the Panthers. Virginia Tech has wrestlers ranked in all 10 weight classes – although there’s a good chance Pitt will see unranked Cooper Flynn at 125 instead of No. 27 Eddie Ventresca. Either way, the Panthers will be looking for a win from unranked Colton Camacho.
“I think that’s a big one,” Gavin said. “No matter who Colton wrestles, I think it will be close.”
Pitt features ranked wrestlers at every other weight except 174, meaning there will be eight ranked-vs.-ranked matchups. Virginia Tech looks to have significant advantages at 157 and 174, but many of the others could be tossups.
“This could be a really tight dual or they could run away with it if we don’t show up,” Gavin said. “I just think we have little margin for error in this dual. We need everybody to do a good job. It’s certainly possible. There’s going to be a lot of close matches in the dual.”
Pitt underperformed in losses to Maryland and West Virginia this season as well as a close win over Columbia. Coming off a 37-0 victory over Buffalo and a 25-6 win at Virginia in their ACC opener, have the Panthers figured out how to find some consistency?
“I sure hope so,” Gavin said. “This is our first dual where we’re the underdogs. I think sometimes in those other ones where we lost it’s easier to come out flat when you’re expected to win. It shouldn’t happen, but it did. Hopefully, our guys wrestle with some fire (on Friday). It’s an opportunity and they’re the underdogs.”
The Hokies beat the Panthers 24-12 last year at the Field House. Just like Pitt, this Virginia Tech team is much different than that one. Sam Latona and Connor Brady are each up a weight class and six other Hokies that wrestled that night are either no longer in Blacksburg or are not projected to wrestle on Friday.
That doesn’t mean the Hokies are any weaker. Bryce Andonian, who is up to 157, didn’t wrestle in that dual and 141-pounder Tom Crook and 149-pounder Caleb Henson are two of the top true freshmen in the country.
Out of the projected starters, Nino Bonaccorsi and Andy Smith are the only two to have met previously. Bonaccorsi beat Smith 8-1 in 2021.
Pitt will be looking for its first win over Virginia Tech since 2020, when Bonaccorsi – then “just” a redshirt sophomore – upset Hunter Bolen to spark an 18-13 victory for the Panthers in the final dual meet before the pandemic.
This will mark Pitt’s first appearance on “Friday Night Duals” on the ACC Network since last year’s loss to N.C. State. This is the fourth year that the network has shown “Friday Night Duals.”
“The ACC Network has helped out all of the programs,” Gavin said. “The conference has been getting better every year. It just helps. We’re getting more eyes on it. Virginia Tech and N.C. State’s match last weekend was great. It’s great for everyone.”
No. 24 Pitt at No. 7 Virginia Tech
PROBABLE LINEUPS
7 p.m. Cassell Coliseum, Blacksburg, Va.
ACC Network
125-Colton Camacho, RS-Jr., 12-6 vs. #27 Eddie Ventresca, RS-Fr., 11-6 OR Cooper Flynn, RS-Fr., 15-5
133-#7 Micky Phillippi, RS-Sr.*, 8-1 vs. #5 Sam Latona, RS-Jr., 19-4
141-#3 Cole Matthews, RS-Sr., 12-1 vs. #12 Tom Crook, Fr., 13-5
149-#29 Tyler Badgett, RS-So., 14-7 vs. #9 Caleb Henson, Fr., 15-3
157-#33 Dazjon Casto, Sr.*, 5-5 vs. #5 Bryce Andonian, Sr., 4-0
165-#23 Holden Heller, RS-Sr., 8-4 vs. #25 Connor Brady, RS-Jr, 10-6
174-Luca Augustine, RS-Fr., 10-6 vs. #3 Mekhi Lewis, RS-Sr., 12-1
184-#19 Reece Heller, RS-Jr. vs. #7 Hunter Bolen, RS-Sr.*, 15-3
197-#2 Nino Bonaccorsi, RS-Sr.*, 9-0 vs. #22 Andy Smith, Jr., 11-5
285-#5 Dayton Pitzer, Fr., 5-1 OR Jake Slinger, Sr., 8-5 vs. #23 Hunter Catka, RS-So., 13-4
*– Includes extra season of eligibility due to COVID