North Carolina
Duke
Carolina Cruises Past Duke 29-9
February 4, 2003 | Wrestling
Feb. 4, 2003
DURHAM, N.C. - The University of North Carolina wrestling team defeated arch rival Duke 29-9 in Cameron Indoor Stadium tonight. The Tar Heels jumped out to a 16-0 lead and never relinquished it as they earned a point for UNC in the Carlyle Cup standings. UNC now leads the standings 12.5-7.0. Carolina improves to 7-3, 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference, while Duke falls to 6-7, 0-1 ACC.
In the opening match, Freshman Brian Baglio (York Haven, Pa.) scored a take down in the second period and added an escape for a 3-1 decision over Duke's Adam Benetiz to give Carolina its first lead, 3-0. Senior Chris DiGuiseppe (Holland, Pa.) came out scoring two take downs in 30 seconds for a 5-0 advantage after one period. DiGuiseppe (12-9, 3-1 ACC) had a near fall in the second period gaining three more points en route to a major decision and four points for the Tar Heels to push the score to 7-0.
Red-shirt sophomore Nick Royer (Cary, N.C.) appeared for the first time this season for Carolina at 157 pounds and made the most of his opportunity. Royer had two take downs in the first frame against Duke's Ben Balmages and almost came up with a pin in the second period as he earned his first collegiate victory of his career, 9-6.
In the most anticipated match of the evening, senior Jimmy O'Connor (Woodbine, Md.) had a take down in each of the first two periods against the Blue Devils' Mike Mitchell as he led 4-0. The third period lived up to the hype as Mitchell responded with an escape and a take down to cut the deficit to 5-3. O'Connor gained an escape for another point as he earned his 18th victory of the season with an 8-3 decision.
At 174 pounds, red-shirt sophomore Mark Canty (Gahanna, Ohio) pushed his win streak to eight with a 12-8 decision over the Blue Devils' Tim Marcantonio to give UNC a 16-0 lead in the match. Duke's Tom Cass used a near fall in the second period to score three points and upset No. 20 Dusty Heist (Meadville, Pa.) with a 7-3 decision at 184 pounds to get the Dukies on the scoreboard, 16-3.
In the seventh match of the night, freshman David Dashiell (Chesapeake, Va.) snapped a two-match losing streak scoring three take downs as he had a major decision over Duke's Andrew Herbert 10-2. North Carolina earned six points via forfeit at 285 pounds and lost six points via forfeit at 125 pounds as the Tar Heels led the Blue Devils 26-9.
Sophomore Evan Sola (Wernersville, Pa.) extended his winning streak to seven on the season and improved to 8-0 in the ACC in his career with a12-5 decision over the Blue Devils' Andy Soliman.
North Carolina will travel to Annapolis, Md., Saturday, Feb. 8, to face the United States Naval Academy in a non-conference matchup. The match is scheduled to start at 5 p.m.
North Carolina 29 vs. Duke 9
125 pounds - Tom Hoang wins by forfeit
133 pounds - NC Evan Sola DEC DU Andy Soliman, 11-5
141 pounds - NC Brian Baglio DEC DU Adam Benetiz, 3-1
149 pounds - NC Chris DiGuiseppe MD DU Brandon Foose, 10-2
157 pounds - NC Nick Royer DEC DU Ben Balmages, 9-6
165 pounds - NC Jimmy O'Connor DEC DU Mike Mitchell, 8-3
174 pounds - NC Mark Canty DEC DU Tim Marcantonio, 12-8
184 pounds - DU Tom Cass DEC NC Dusty Heist, 7-3
197 pounds - NC David Dashiell MD DU Andrew Herbert, 10-2
Hwt. - Ryan Adams wins by forfeit
*Match started at 141 pounds
Players Mentioned
