March 9, 2000

Red-shirt freshman Skyler Holman has been impressive all season at 125 pounds for the North Carolina wrestling team, and his outstanding season only got better last weekend at the ACC Tournament. In the most anticpated showdown at the ACC Tournament, Holman (who entered the match ranked No. 7 in the nation at 125 lbs.) pinned fifth-ranked Steve Garland at 2:16 of the 125-pound title bout for the ACC championship. It marked Holman's second consecutive victory over Garland after losing to the UVa. senior in their first meeting in January at the Virginia Duals.

After Holman's win, he moved to No. 6 in the national rankings and now stands 33-2 on the year. In dual meets, Holman posted a team-best 12-1 record. He has also won five matches by fall.

Holman's emergence this season as a red-shirt freshman has been pivotal to Carolina's success given that UNC coach Bill Lam opted to red-shirt standout Chuckie Connor this year. In 1999, Connor fell just one match shy of earning All-America status at 125 lbs., an honor Holman will seek to attain in just his first trip to the NCAA Championships.

Holman took first-place honors early in the year at the East Stroudsburg and Carolina Opens. At the Penn State Open in December, Holman suffered an 8-5 loss to Michigan State's Chris Williams en route to a fourth-place finish at that tournament, but Holman blanked Williams 7-0 later in the month at the prestigious Midlands Tournament in Chicago.

Holman enters next week's NCAA Championships in St. Louis, Mo., on a 13-match winning streak. He will be joined at NCAAs by four other Tar Heels. Matt Kenny (Hwt.), Corey Bell (174), Brad Byers (133) and Clint Osborn (197) will also be representing the four-time defending ACC champion Tar Heels at the Kiel Center.