University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
The Citadel
Seniors Lead Tar Heels to Victory in Regular Season Finale
February 21, 2010 | Wrestling
Feb. 21, 2010
CHARLESTON, S.C. - North Carolina and The Citadel split the ten individual contests in Sunday's dual meet, but late pins by UNC seniors Dennis Drury and Jeremy Shaw triggered a 21-16 Tar Heel victory in the final dual meet of the 2009-10 season for both teams. With the decision, Carolina caps its recent hot streak by registering its fourth win in five matches. The Tar Heels complete dual action with a 7-8-1 record while the Bulldogs end their campaign at 9-6.
Along with wins from the 19th-ranked Drury (197 pounds) and Shaw (133), the Tar Heels also received victories from Jon Burns (149), Nick Tenpenny (184) and Ziad Haddad (heavyweight). Shaw, Drury and Haddad all extended win streaks that either tie or mark season highs. Dating back to a January 23 win over Navy's Ben Levin, Shaw has now won six consecutive bouts. Meanwhile, Drury and Haddad have come out on top in five straight contests.
The match kicked off at 141 pounds, where Carolina's Rocco Wellek, who was filling in for normal starter and 2009 national qualifier Mike Rappo, dropped a heartbreaking 3-2 decision to Nick LaFevre. Burns quickly helped the Tar Heels rebound with a 4-0 shutout victory over Derek Royster. The result knotted the score at three after two matches.
The Citadel then ripped off three straight decisions to give them a 12-3 lead. The first of those came at 157 pounds when No. 16 Thomas Scotton was upset by Turtogtokh Luvsandorj 3-0. Next, UNC's Daniel Helena was narrowly defeated by Pierre Frazile by a 6-5 score at 165 pounds. Helena, whose only previous action this year had come at 149 pounds, was wrestling up after an injury to regular Kyle Kiss. The third straight Bulldog victory came when J.C. Oddo outlasted Thomas Ferguson 7-3.
Trailing by nine, Carolina responded with three victories of its own to gain the lead. Tenpenny turned the tide with a 7-2 victory over Kelby Smith. No. 19 Drury then tied the score again when he pinned Justin Sparrow with just 37 seconds remaining in the third period. The fall was Drury's tenth of the season and 21st of his career. Haddad gave the Tar Heels their first lead of the match at 15-12 when he continued his hot streak by beating Odie Delaney 9-4.
The Citadel answered quickly, regaining the lead when Richard Alarcon took a major decision over Brian Bokoski 9-0. With the Bulldogs leading 16-15, the dual came down to the 133-pound bout. Shaw killed the suspense quickly when he pinned Giazzi Segarra in just 1:39. The pin was Shaw's fourth of the season and third in the last five times he has taken the mat. With the result, Shaw gave Carolina the 21-16 victory and snapped The Citadel's win streak at five.
North Carolina 21, The Citadel 16
141: Nick LaFevre (CIT) dec. Rocco Wellek (UNC), 3-2 (CIT 3-0)
149: Jon Burns (UNC) dec. Derek Royster (CIT), 4-0 (Tied 3-3)
157: Turtogtokh Luvsandorj (CIT) dec. #16 Thomas Scotton (UNC), 3-0 (CIT 6-3)
165: Pierre Frazile (CIT) dec. Daniel Helena (UNC), 6-5 (CIT 9-3)
174: J.C. Oddo (CIT) dec. Thomas Ferguson (UNC), 7-3 (CIT 12-3)
184: Nick Tenpenny (UNC) dec. Kelby Smith (CIT), 7-2 (CIT 12-6)
197: #19 Dennis Drury (UNC) pinned Justin Sparrow (CIT), 6:23 (Tied 12-12)
HWT: Ziad Haddad (UNC) dec. Odie Delaney (CIT), 9-4 (UNC 15-12)
125: Richard Alarcon (CIT)) maj. dec. Brian Bokoski (UNC), 9-0 (CIT 16-15)
133: Jeremy Shaw (UNC) pinned Giazzi Segarra (CIT), 1:39 (UNC 21-15)
Players Mentioned
