Ohio State wrestling opened its season in impressive fashion.
The Buckeyes took down the No. 3-ranked team in the country in their own arena on Friday night, earning a 24-12 victory over Virginia Tech at the Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Ohio State took six of the night’s 10 bouts with five different Buckeyes defeating higher-ranked wrestlers and three Buckeyes earning bonus points to propel the scarlet and gray to victory.
The biggest upset came in the night’s opening match when redshirt freshman Brendan McCrone earned an 11-3 major decision over Virginia Tech’s Eddie Ventresca, the fourth-ranked wrestler at 125 pounds, to give the Buckeyes an early 4-0 lead.
The Ohio State bench reacts to Brendan McCrones 11-3 major decision over Virginia Techs Eddie Ventresca at 125 pounds. pic.twitter.com/cJHnJtkQ4u
— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) November 11, 2023
Jesse Mendez earned Ohio State’s second win of the night and five points for the Buckeyes with an 18-3 technical fall victory over Hunter Mason at 141 pounds.
After a pair of wins by the Hokies tied the match at 9-9, unranked Buckeye senior Isaac Wilcox earned a 6-5 decision over 16th-ranked Hokie Connor Brady at 165 pounds to put the Buckeyes back in front by three points.
Virginia Tech’s Mekhi Lewis knotted the match back up at 12-12 with a 4-2 win over Ohio State’s Carson Kharchla at 174 pounds, but the Buckeyes wouldn’t surrender another point after that.
Freshman Ryder Rogotzke gave Ohio State a six-point lead with a win by fall over 21st-ranked Sam Fisher at 184 pounds. 19th-ranked Luke Geog followed that up with an 11-7 decision over 14th-ranked Andy Smith at 197. 20th-ranked heavyweight Nick Feldman delivered the final upset of the night and clinched the victory for the Buckeyes when he earned a 3-2 victory over No. 16 Hunter Catka with a late takedown.
| WT | No. 7 Ohio State at No. 3 Virginia Tech | OSU | VT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 125 | Brendan McCrone (OSU) def.No. 4 Eddie Ventresca (VT) | MD, 11-3 | 4 | 0 |
| 133 | No. 7 Sam Latona (VT) def. No. 14 Nic Bouzakis (OSU) | D, 7-5 | 4 | 3 |
| 141 | No. 5 Jesse Mendez (OSU) def. Hunter Mason (VT) | TF, 18-3 | 9 | 3 |
| 149 | No. 4 Caleb Henson (VT) def. No. 5 Dylan D'Emilio (OSU) | D, 10-5 | 9 | 6 |
| 157 | No. 6 Bryce Andonian (VT) def. No. 16 Paddy Gallagher (OSU) | D, 7-4 | 9 | 9 |
| 165 | Isaac Wilcox (OSU) def. No. 16 Connor Brady (VT) | D, 6-5 | 12 | 9 |
| 174 | No. 3 Mekhi Lewis (VT) def. No. 7 Carson Kharchla (OSU) | D, 4-2 | 12 | 12 |
| 184 | Ryder Rogotzke (OSU) def. No. 21 Sam Fisher (VT) | F, 5:35 | 18 | 12 |
| 197 | No. 19 Luke Geog (OSU) def. No. 14 Andy Smith (VT) | D, 11-7 | 21 | 12 |
| HWT | No. 20 Nick Feldman (OSU) def. No. 16 Hunter Catka (VT) | D, 3-2 | 24 | 12 |
With a marquee season-opening win under their belts, the seventh-ranked Buckeyes will look to keep the momentum going when they host Edinboro in their home opener on Sunday at noon in the Covelli Center. The dual will be broadcast on Big Ten Network+.
