Macchiavello Named ACC Wrestling Scholar-Athlete of the Year

RALEIGH, N.C. - NC State redshirt-senior Michael Macchiavello, who is the NCAA national champion at 197 pounds, has been named the 2018 Atlantic Coast Conference Wrestling Scholar-Athlete of the Year and heads up the sport's 20-man All-ACC Academic Team, the ACC announced Thursday.

Macchiavello, from Monroe, North Carolina, has already completed his undergraduate degree in finance and is now a graduate student in Liberal Studies. He captured the 197-pound weight class by defeating Virginia Tech's Jared Haught with a 3-1 decision in the NCAA finals to take home the first national title for an ACC wrestler since 2015. Macchiavello and Haught became the first pair of ACC wrestlers to meet in the finals of the NCAA Wrestling Championship.

Macchiavello posted a 22-3 record on the season in leading NC State to a fourth-place tie in this year's NCAA Wrestling Championship, which tied for the highest finish by an ACC school. He was also voted by the league's coaches as the ACC's Wrestler of the Year.

He becomes just the second NC State wrestler to be named the ACC Scholar-Athlete in wrestling. Former Wolfpack two-time national champion Nick Gwiazdowski captured the honor in 2016.

"This is a phenomenal way for Michael to cap off his academic career," said NC State head coach Pat Popolizio. "His commitment to excellence and drive for greatness has certainly paid off.

"Our mission as a program is to continue to produce national champions not only on the mat but in the classroom as well. Michael exemplifies the definition of a student athlete, earning ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year is a testament to all of his hard work."

The ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards were established in September 2007 to be awarded annually to the top junior or senior student-athlete in their respective sports. Candidates for the awards must have maintained a 3.0 grade point average for their career as well as a 3.0 for each of the last two semesters.

NC State was tied for an ACC-best with five members of the 2017-18 squad named to the All-ACC Academic Team. In addition to Macchiavello, NC State also had redshirt-senior Brian Hamann, redshirt-junior Sean Fausz. And redshirt-freshmen Daniel Bullard and Hayden Hidlay among the ACC's 20-member team named. Hamann becomes a two-time honoree.

To be eligible for All-ACC Academic Team consideration, a student-athlete must have earned a minimum 3.00 grade point average for the previous semester and maintained a minimum 3.00 cumulative average during his academic career.

All five of NC State's ACC honorees were also named to the NWCA's All-Academic team.

Name	Yr.	Wt.	Major
Daniel Bullard	R-Fr.	174	Business Administration
Sean Fausz	R-Jr.	125	Electrical Engineering
Brian Hamann	R-Sr.	165	Finance
Hayden Hidlay	R-Fr.	157	Business Administration
Michael Macchiavello	R-Sr.	197	Master of Liberal Studies

Macchiavello Named ACC Wrestling Scholar-Athlete of the Year

Players Mentioned

Daniel Bullard

Sean Fausz

Brian Hamann

Hayden Hidlay

Michael Macchiavello

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