North Carolina overcomes early deficit to down Duke wrestling 25-15
By Winston Lindqwister | February 9, 2017In what was expected to be a tight meet, Duke found itself searching for answers at the end of another frustrating night on the mat.
In what was expected to be a tight meet, Duke found itself searching for answers at the end of another frustrating night on the mat.
The Cavaliers overcame a 10-9 deficit heading into intermission by winning four of the last five bouts on their way to a decisive 23-14 win at Card Gym Sunday afternoon.
Last year, Gardner-Webb pulled ahead in the last bout to beat the Blue Devils 19-18, with Boyce Cornwell defeating Duke’s Brendan Walsh, but the Bulldogs dug a little too deep of a hole this time.
After coming back from a 16-6 deficit Thursday against Old Dominion, Duke couldn’t scrap together enough late magic to finish a second straight comeback bid, falling 26-13 to No. 5 Virginia Tech after dropping the final four bouts.
Redshirt junior heavyweight Jacob Kasper flipped the momentum with a 57-second pin, sparking an improbable Blue Devil comeback that stopped Duke's season from going further off the rails.
Unfortunately for Duke, not even a major decision from their nationally-ranked heavyweight could salvage a victory at Navy.
The No. 20 Mountaineers defeated Duke 25-11 at Card Gymnasium in one of the Blue Devils’ four home matches of the season.
Seeking their third straight win at N.C. State, the Blue Devils got off to a fast 6-0 start on the No. 10 team in the nation. But the Wolfpack responded by winning the night's final eight bouts to leave no doubt in a second straight rout against Duke.
After opening their 2017 dual season in convincing fashion Sunday, the Blue Devils now hope to carry that momentum into ACC action.
In the early days of the new year, the Blue Devils have already left their mark by making history with their first individual Southern Scuffle title in program history.
Duke's wrestling, men's basketball, field hockey and football teams all had notable wins against North Carolina in 2016.
Coming off of a loss against Oregon State in its season opener, the Duke wrestling team endured another nail-biting 25-17 loss against No. 18 Wisconsin on Friday in spite of a determined comeback effort.
After falling to the Beavers 22-20 in Boone, N.C., Saturday, Duke will host No. 18 Wisconsin Friday.
Duke will open its dual schedule Saturday at the Mountaineer Duals, hosted by Appalachian State, with bouts against No. 15 Oregon State and Belmont Abbey.
A little less than a year has passed since Jacob Kasper decided to redshirt his junior season in an attempt to qualify for the 2016 Olympics in Rio. In that time, the Lexington, Ohio, native has faced some of the world's best competition everywhere from Colorado to Russia.
Duke will travel to Roanoke, Va., to compete in the two-day Hokie Open tournament hosted by Virginia Tech.
Redshirt senior Conner Hartmann led the way for No. 22 Duke at Madison Square Garden in New York at the NCAA Division I championships, garnering his third straight All-America honors at 197 pounds and becoming the first Blue Devil to reach the podium in three consecutive seasons with his seventh-place finish.
No. 22 Duke will send four grapplers to New York to square off against the nation’s best in search of a title at Madison Square Garden in the NCAA championships Thursday through Saturday.
The Blue Devils scored 33 team points en route to a fifth-place finish, headlined by a second straight ACC title at 197 pounds for No. 5 Conner Hartmann and a second consecutive runner-up finish for No. 9 Mitch Finesilver—this year at 149 pounds after placing second last season at 133 pounds.
After an entire season of hard work, some coaches may find it difficult to motivate their squads to get to practice and finish the season strong.