With three former Danbury wrestlers in the starting lineup, No. 6 North Carolina State won their second straight match with a dominating 40-3 win over No. 26 Appalachian State on Friday in Boone, N.C., before more than 1,000 fans in the Varsity Gym.
Jakob Camacho (125), Ryan Jack (141) and A.J. Kovacs (165) were all in the starting lineup for North Carolina State. Camacho and Jack graduated from Danbury High while Kovacs attended Danbury High for a few years before graduating from Iona Prep.
“I think (tonight) kind of showed us where we’re at, the things we need to fix and the things we need to work on,” Appalachian coach JohnMark Bentley said. “We just never really got going tonight. I don’t want to totally downplay that (North Carolina State) is a really, really good team. I’m going to give them credit. They’re ranked third, and they may be the second-best team in the country, especially in a dual meet. They just don’t have any weaknesses.”
Kovacs, who won a wrestleoff by a point last weekend and a second wrestleoff with a five-point move in OT, outlasted NCAA qualifier Will Miller, 5-4 of App State.
Miller delivered a three-point takedown midway through the first period and moved ahead 4-2 with an escape 12 seconds into the third period. Kovacs took a 5-4 lead on a takedown with 48 seconds remaining and stayed on top for the remainder of the match.
Former Danbury High wrestler Jakob Camacho (125, right) won by tech fall against No. 26 Appalachian State Friday night in Boone, N.C. (Photo courtesy NC State Wrestling)
Camacho won by tech fall at 125 thanks to a 19-3 win over Chad Bellis. Jack made his season debut at 141 with a 20-6 win over Kaden Keiser.
The Wolfpack opened the season on Thursday night with a 48-0 win over Presbyterian with Camacho and Kovacs earning victories. Camacho won by forfeit while Kovacs won his 18th collegiate match with an 18-1 decision by technical fall.
The Wolfpack have six wrestlers with top-10 national rankings and three returning All-Americans. Jack is ranked No. 9 in the country and Camacho coming in at No. 12 at 125 pounds. Kovacs is ranked No. 33 at 165 pounds.
North Carolina State returns to action Saturday at the WragleMania tournament on Saturday, Nov. 11 in Bethlehem, Pa., against Purdue and Bloomsburg. On Sunday, NC State will wrestle in the Journeyman Classic tournament in Bethlehem.
Sacred Heart opens their season Nov. 11 when they travel to Wrangle Mania to face Long Island University and Bloomsburg. The Pioneers will also compete in the Journeyman Classic the following day.
No. 3 NC State 40, No. 25 Appalachian State 3
At Boone, N.C.
149: #7 Jackson Arrington (NC) tech fall #25 Cody Bond (A), 19-3
157: #5 Ed Scott (NC) def. #20 Tommy Askey (A), 13-6
165: #33 AJ Kovacs (NC) def. Will Miller (A), 5-4
174: #22 Alex Faison (NC) def. Luke Uliano (A), 6-3, OT
184: #29 Dylan Fishback (NC) pin Tomas Brooker (A) 1:30
197: #5 Trent Hidlay (NC) tech fall Hunter Adams (A), 19-4
HWT: #8 Owen Trephan (NC) def. Jacob Sartorio (A), 2:08
125: #12 Jakob Camacho (NC) tech fall Chad Bellis (A), 19-3
133: Ethan Oakley (A) def. Jarrett Trombley (NC), 4-2.
141: #9 Ryan Jack (NC) def. Kaden Keiser (A), 20-6
Records: NC State 2-0, Appalachian State 0-1
Attendance: 1,000
