North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State
#7 Virginia Tech
#8 Wolfpack Set to Face #7 Hokies in Reynolds
1/29/2026 11:13:00 AM | Wrestling
RALEIGH – Eight-ranked NC State wrestling prepares to face its conference rival, the seventh-ranked Virginia Tech Hokies, in Reynolds Coliseum. The military appreciation dual will begin at 7 p.m. in Raleigh.
Dual-Meet Info
• Start time for the dual is 7 p.m. at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, N.C.
• The dual will be streamed on ACC Network here with commentary by Rock Harrison and Shawn Kenney.
• Admission tickets for the event can be purchased here.
• Military Appreciation Night
Probable Match-Ups
#8 NC State vs. #7 Virginia Tech
125 | #1 Vincent Robinson OR Brad Yokum vs. #3 Eddie Ventresca
133 | #33 Zach Redding OR Troy Hohman vs. #7 Aaron Seidel
141 | #13 Ryan Jack vs. #17 Tom Crook
149 | #5 Koy Buesgens vs. #9 Collin Gaj
157 | Luca Felix OR Brogan Tucker vs. #16 Ethen Miller
165 | #13 Will Denny vs. #12 Ryan Burton OR Mac Church
174 | #6 Matty Singleton vs. #31 Sergio Desiante
184 | Don Cates vs. #32 Jaden Bullock
197 | #25 Patrick Brophy OR Cason Howle vs. #16 Sonny Sasso
285 | #2 Isaac Trumble vs. #16 Jimmy Mullen
*Individual rankings according to InterMat (1/27/26)
A Win On Friday Would…
• Be the 805th win in program history (805-491-19)
• Be the 271st win in Popolizio's head coaching career (270-89-2)
• Be Popolizio's 190th victory at NC State (189-37)
• Be the 27th win over the Hokies (26-21-1)
Series History
• Friday evening's dual marks the 49th meeting between the Wolfpack and the Hokies.
• The two last met in Nov. 2025 at National Duals, which resulted in a 9-25 loss for the Pack. The last time the Hokies claimed a victory in Reynolds Coliseum was in 2016.
*series records begin in 1954-55 season
Wolfpack Wrestler Highlights
• Sixth-year veteran No. 2 Isaac Trumble (Hwt) has been dominating his final year of eligibility since being cleared from his knee injury that occurred back at NCAAs in March. In just 10 matches, he has claimed eight bonus point wins and three wins over ranked opponents, most notably over No. 3 Nick Feldman of Ohio State in Columbus.
• Redshirt-sophomore No. 5 Koy Buesgens (149 lbs) has been on a tear this season, climbing to his highest-ever individual ranking in his second season in the lineup. The Minnesota native went 10-0 to start the season before losing to Ohio State's #6 Ethan Stiles by one point. He is now sitting at 17-1 with three top-10 wins.
• Freshman phenom No. 16 Will Denny (165 lbs) has put himself on the map after upsetting No. 5 Ryder Downey of UNI at the National Duals Invitational to start the year. Denny is on a 10-match win streak, which includes wins over No. 11 Paddy Gallagher of Ohio State and a major decision over No. 10 Bryce Hepner of North Carolina.
• Redshirt-junior No. 5 Matty Singleton (174 lbs) is sitting at a 12-1 record this season with six ranked wins, with his only loss being to a top-five opponent.
• Redshirt-sophomore No. 5 Vincent Robinson (125 lbs) has all eyes on him this season as he looks to defend his national title he won last March in Philadelphia. He holds a 10-2 record with both losses being to ranked opponents.
Quick Notes
• The program started the season in the top 10 of the NWCA preseason rankings, marking the at least the ninth consecutive season to do so (records going to 2017-18 season.
• On InterMat, eight wrestlers are ranked in their respective weight classes, with four of them in the top 10, headlined by Isaac Trumble at No. 2 for Hwt, coming off his All-American, fourth-place finish season.
• The roster boasts seven NCAA Qualifiers, featuring one national champion, and four All-Americans.
Around the ACC
• The ACC holds five teams ranked nationally in the top25 (No. 7 Virginia Tech, No. 8 NC State, No. 11 North Carolina, No. 14 Pittsburgh, and No. 25 Stanford).
• NC State looks to take back the ACC title this season after sharing the regular season honors with Virginia Tech and North Carolina and finishing third at the championship tournament. Prior to that, the ACC trophy lived in Raleigh for six consecutive seasons 2019-2024.
• The Wolfpack is the only ACC team to feature more than one wrestler in the top-five of their respective weight classes according to InterMat (125 #5 Robinson, 149 #5 Buesgens, and Hwt #2 Trumble). In total, 11 ACC wrestlers are found in the top-10 with NC State featuring the majority of that group with four.
@WolfpackWrestling || @PackWrestle || #PackMentality
Players Mentioned
