Jan. 17, 2009

Hokies move to 11-0 win pair of victories

BOONE, N.C. – Winning 18 of 19 matches contested, the Virginia Tech wrestling team broke several school records Friday night in winning a pair of dual matches at Varsity Gym on the campus of ASU. The Hokies opened the evening with a 36-4 over Appalachian State, and followed that up with a 47-0 blanking of Campbell to move to 11-0 on the year.

The story of the night was the records broken by the team. With 19 more wins, the Hokies have now combined to win 269 matches on the season, breaking the old mark of 256 set by the 2004-05 team. With a tournament this weekend and 12 dual meets left, that record will be shattered by season’s end. Tech wrestlers have recorded 50 major decisions (old record was 38 in 1979-80) on the year and 23 tech falls (old record was 17 in 2000-01). Both are new school records. The record for dual meet wins by a team is 16 by the 2004-05 squad, while the record for individual dual meet wins is 128 in 2004-05 (Tech has 92 now) and the record for pins in a season is 63 in 2004-05 (Tech has 57).

Maryland Falls Short at No. 11 Oklahoma, 22-15

NORMAN, Okla. - The University of Maryland wrestling team had a good showing at No. 11 Oklahoma Friday, giving itself a chance to win going into the last match, but fell short against the Sooners, losing 22-15.

The Terrapins (3-6-1) led after six matches, but the Sooners (13-0) took three of the final four to seal victory.

In the opening match, Brendan Byrne battled No. 11 Joey Fio to the end at 125 pounds, but lost by the slightest of margins, 2-1. James Knox had to fill in for Steven Bell at 133 pounds, losing 6-1 to Brian Shelton.

Down 6-0, No. 14 Alex Krom brought the Terps even at 141 pounds, pinning Seth Vernon in 4 minutes, 40 seconds. However, the Sooners gained most of those six points back at 149 pounds, as No. 15 Kyle Terry earned a five-point technical fall over Steve Fehnel.