Wrestling Closes Out 2024 At Soldier Salute

Marco Tocci
125-pound bout
University of North Carolina Wrestling v Greensboro College
Carmichael Arena
Chapel Hill, NC
Monday, November 25, 2024

Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati

December 28, 2024 | Wrestling

CORALVILLE, Iowa - The North Carolina wrestling program closes out the calendar year this weekend, sending 12 wrestlers to compete in the two-day Soldier Salute event.

Tournament Information
Date/Time: Sunday, December 29 and Monday, December 30 - All Day
Location: Xtream Arena - Coralville, Iowa
Watch: BTN+
Results: SmoothComp

Tournament Schedule - All times EST
Sunday, December 29
Session 1: 11 AM - 3 PM
Session 2: 4:30 PM - 9:30 PM

Monday, December 30
Session 3: Noon - 4 PM
Session 4: 6 PM - 8:30 PM

Soldier Salute History
• The Tar Heels return to Soldier Salute for the third-straight season.
• A year ago, Lachlan McNeil (2nd), Sonny Santaigo (4th) and Tyler Eischens (4th) all placed in the tournament for Carolina.

Previewing The Field
• Carolina is one of 12 teams in the event, being the lone ACC school in the field.
• In addition to the 23rd-ranked Tar Heels, Iowa (2nd), Nebraska (4th), Minnesota (7th), Northern Iowa (10th), Iowa State (13th), South Dakota State (14th), and Missouri (19th) appeared in the final NWCA Coaches Poll of 2024.

Tar Heels In The Polls
• Entering the weekend, six Tar Heels are ranked in the weekly InterMat Wrestling rankings:
- 125: Spencer Moore - No. 23
- 133: Ethan Oakley - No. 13
- 149: Lachlan McNeil - No. 6
- 157: Sonny Santiago - No. 26
- 174: Joshua Ogunsanya - No. 19
- 184: Gavin Kane - No. 16
• As a team, Carolina is ranked No. 23 in the NWCA Coaches Poll.

Carolina Lineup
125: Marco Tocci
133: Elias Navida
141: Nick O'Neill
149: No. 6 Lachlan McNeil
157: Laird Root, Joey Showalter
165: Omaury Alvarez, Collin Carrigan
174: No. 19 Joshua Ogunsanya, Cade Tenold
184: Jake Dailey
197: Robert Platt