CHAPEL HILL - Heading into the start of the ACC season last night, the wrestling team was desperately hoping to turn its season around.
But if the Blue Devils were looking for sympathy, they weren't going to find any at North Carolina's Carmichael Auditorium. The Tar Heels (5-4, 1-0 in the ACC) won the first four bouts and jumped out to a 16-0 lead en route to a 31-9 drubbing of Duke (1-8-1, 0-1).
"I'm frustrated," coach Clar Anderson said. "I thought we'd compete a little bit better. In the weights that they blew us away, we thought we were going to keep it closer, and some of the close matches all went their way."
The Blue Devils found themselves in a 10-0 hole heading into the 133-pound weight class, which featured Duke's Luke Palmisano against Brad Byers. The two dueled to a scoreless first period, but the fight quickly turned in favor of the Heels. Byers racked up four quick points and then pinned Palmisano at 1:04 in the second period to give UNC an insurmountable 16-0 lead.
"Brad Byers is a nationally ranked kid," Anderson said. "Everything was going as planned until he caught [Palmisano] in that pin. Luke was really surprised he was pinned, but I was really pleased up until then."
In the next bout, Harry Clarke finally put Duke on the board when he pinned Andrew Slack. Clarke raced to a 5-2 lead after the first period and managed his pin 1:13 into the second, which made him Duke's high scorer for the match.
"We were really pleased by Harry Clarke's performance," Anderson said. "Harry's having a tremendous season. He has a very competitive attitude, and close matches he wins, and he wins with pins. He's got that attitude that I wish I could somehow put into all the other folks."
North Carolina scored the match's next 15 points, capped by Corey Bell's technical fall of Matt Hoover in the 174-lb. weight class. Hoover was never in the bout, falling behind 9-1 after two periods. The third period was more of the same as Bell closed with a three-point near fall and a two-point near fall to win the bout 16-1.
In the match's final bout, Thomas Cass scored Duke's second win, defeating Nick Richmond 3-2. But the damage had long since been done. The loss to the Heels represents another setback on what has been a frustrating season for Anderson and the Blue Devils. Injuries have forced considerable lineup shuffling, and last night was no exception. Geoff Anderson, normally a 141-pounder, had to fill a gap at 157, where he lost by major decision.
"We've had a real rough season," Anderson said. "We got guys who are wrestling up a weight class and competing real well, some keeping the match close. I'm real pleased with the fight on our behalf, but I was wanting to steal a couple more from them."
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