Zack Zavatsky Virginia Tech Wrestling
Zack Zavatsky, shown here in Cassell Coliseum against Pittsburgh, is Virginia Tech's top-ranked wrestler (per InterMat rankings) at No. 4 in the 184 pound weight class. (Photo by Ivan Morozov)

Last weekend, as expected, Virginia Tech Wrestling destroyed Duke in a road dual meet, 40-3. It was the Hokies' eighth dual meet win in a row, and it moved Virginia Tech from No. 12 in the nation to No. 11, per InterMat's Dual Meet Rankings.

Here's a look at the ACC standings heading into the weekend. (Note that Duke wrestled Appalachian State Thursday night, and that result is not included here in Duke's overall record.)

And here's a look at Intermat's rankings of ACC squads:

ACC Wrestling Rankings, Feb. 7 2019 (per Intermat)
School Rank Prev. Rank
NC State 8 9
Virginia Tech 11 12
North Carolina 16 19
Pittsburgh 17 14
Virginia 21 21
Duke NR NR

Provided the Hokies can take care of business on the road at UNC this Friday, Feb. 8 (more on that in a moment), things continue to build to a meeting with NC State in Cassell Coliseum on February 22 that will likely decide the ACC dual meet championship.

And here's another reminder: TechSideline.com invites you to attend that Friday night wrestling match vs. NC State, in an attempt to break the Hokies' home attendance record of 5,097, set during a meet with Penn State in November of 2015. Wrestling is free, and you know where Cassell Coliseum is.

David McFadden Virginia Tech Wrestling
David McFadden and the Hokies are expected to win at UNC this weekend. (Photo by Jon Fleming)

Virginia Tech Wrestling at UNC Preview

Per the rankings and records, North Carolina is the third-best of the ACC's six wrestling programs. Last weekend, the Heels edged out Pittsburgh 19-16 to knock the Panthers down a peg. This week, Virginia Tech wrestling gets a chance to do the same to UNC.

Here's a look at the projected individual matchups, with rankings (top 20 only, in bold) via Intermat.

  • 125: VT Joey Prata vs. UNC Joe Heilmann
  • 133: VT No. 12 Korbin Myers vs. UNC Gary Wayne Harding
  • 141: VT Mitch Moore vs. UNC Jaime Hernandez
  • 149: VT Ryan Blees vs. UNC No. 4 Austin O'Connor
  • 157: VT BC LaPrade vs. UNC Josh McClure
  • 165: VT No. 8 Mekhi Lewis vs. UNC Sawyer Davidson
  • 174: VT No. 8 David McFadden vs UNC Devin Kane
  • 184: VT No. 4 Zack Zavatsky vs. UNC No. 14 Chip Ness
  • 197: VT No. 7 Tom Sleigh vs. Brandon Whitman
  • Hwt: VT No. 18 Billy Miller vs. UNC Cory Daniel

The Hokies have a pronounced edge in the upper weight classes. The dual meet predictor at WrestleStat.com predicts a 25-7 Virginia Tech victory, with VT winning at 125, 133, 141, 165, 174, 184, 197 and Heavyweight. WrestleStat projects UNC to win at only the 149 and 157 classes.