The most highly-anticipated dual of the ACC calendar is back. Both Virginia Tech (7-2, 2-0 ACC) and NC State (12-3, 3-0 ACC) enter Friday's bout in Raleigh with a top-10 ranking a stable of talented grapplers.
Friday will be the rivals' second meeting of the season; they squared off in the National Duals Invitational back in November, during which the Hokies took care of the Wolfpack 25-9 to claim their second straight win in the series dating back to last season.
The ACC Championship has gone through either Blacksburg or Raleigh every season since 2014, and this matchup historically has had significant ramifications on the conference's dual title race and postseason tournament. The dual series has been closely contested over the last decade, as Virginia Tech holds a slight 7-5 edge since the 2015-16 season. Here's how the rivalry has looked during that span:
- 2025: 25-9 Virginia Tech (Tulsa, OK)*
- 2025: 21-10 Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, VA)
- 2024: 20-12 NC State (Raleigh, NC)
- 2023: 16-14 Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, VA)
- 2022: 21-10 NC State (Raleigh, NC)
- 2021: 17-16 Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, VA)
- 2020: 21-18 NC State (Raleigh, NC)
- 2019: 17-16 NC State (Blacksburg, VA)
- 2018: 19-15 NC State (Raleigh, NC)
- 2017: 20-14 Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, VA)
- 2016: 19-14 Virginia Tech (NC State Fairgrounds - Holshouser Building, Raleigh, NC)
- 2015: 29-9 Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, VA)
*National Duals Invitational in November 2025
As evidenced by these results, the home team has won every dual but two in the last decade, including the last six meetings. Notably, NC State hasn't lost an ACC dual at home since 2019.
The Tale of the Tape
Each team's lineup will feature at least eight ranked wrestlers:
125 - No. 3 Eddie Ventresca (VT) vs No. 5 Vincent Robinson OR Brad Yokum (NCSU)
133 - No. 7 Aaron Seidel (VT) vs No. 33 Zach Redding OR Troy Hohman (NCSU)
141 - No. 22 Tom Crook OR Drew Gorman (VT) vs No. 13 Ryan Jack (NCSU)
149 - No. 9 Collin Gaj (VT) vs No. 5 Koy Buesgens (NCSU)
157 - No. 16 Ethen Miller (VT) vs Brogan Tucker OR Luca Felix (NCSU)
165 - No. 12 Ryan Burton OR Mac Church (VT) vs No. 13 Will Denny (NCSU)
174 - No. 31 Sergio Desiante (VT) vs No. 4 Matthew Singleton (NCSU)
184 - No. 32 Jaden Bullock (VT) vs Donald Cates (NCSU)
197 - No. 17 Sonny Sasso (VT) vs No. 25 Patrick Brophy OR Cason Howle (NCSU)
285 - No. 16 Jimmy Mullen (VT) vs No. 2 Isaac Trumble (NCSU)
With the potential for so many ranked matchups, this dual could be decided by just one or two key results. The bouts to keep an especially close eye on will be those at 125, 141, 149, 165, 197, and 285 pounds.
The match at 125 will be the premier matchup of the night. Eddie Ventresca enters Friday's dual riding a nine-match win streak. He's undefeated against the 2025 National Champion Robinson, defeating the Wolfpack standout 4-1 in each of their three meetings: in November's National Duals Invitational, the 2025 ACC Championship in Durham, and their meeting in last season's dual which ended with fireworks.
EDDIE. VENTRESCA. ICE IN HIS VEINS.#Hokies 🦃 pic.twitter.com/fy4FyUYAkS
— Virginia Tech Wrestling (@HokiesWrestling) February 22, 2025
One of Robinson's two losses this season came in sudden victory against Stanford's Nico Provo by a score of 4-1. Ventresca handled Provo 5-4 a few weeks ago in the Hokies' dual against the Cardinal.
At 141 pounds is a rematch from earlier this season between Tom Crook and Ryan Jack. Both wrestlers figure to be podium finalists at the ACC Championships this spring, and the winner of Friday's meeting could determine seeding for the conference tournament. The Wolfpack grappler bested Crook 8-4 in their November meeting. Jack is 6-0 over Crook in his career.
The 149-pound bout features two more wrestlers ranked inside the top-10. Gaj has distinguished himself in his first collegiate season and enters the dual winning his last eight bouts, most recently a 2-1 decision over No. 11 Aden Valencia of Stanford. NC State's Buesgens is 17-1 this season and has three top-10 wins. He bested Gaj 4-1 during their meeting earlier this season.
Ryan Burton faces off against Will Denny for the second time this season after he defeated the NC State 165-pounder in a 15-7 major decision at the National Duals Invitational, but Denny has a 12-2 record entering Friday's meeting. This battle between two of the ACC's freshman standouts could swing the dual in either direction.
The 197-pound bout features Sonny Sasso and Patrick Brophy. Sasso's record is currently 15-5, but he's dropped his two ACC dual matches this season, against Pittsburgh’s No. 8 Mac Stout and No. 14 Angelo Posada, and looks to bounce back in the biggest dual of the year. Brophy is a 2025 NCAA qualifier who holds a 5-2 record. Sasso downed Brophy in their November meeting 12-6.
At heavyweight, Jimmy Mullen will compete against All-American Isaac Trumble, who boasts a perfect 9-0 record, including a win over No. 3 Nick Feldman of Ohio State. Trumble is a legitimate national title contender and likely will be heavily favored in this bout. Mullen has been on a hot streak as of late, winning 11 of 12 matches dating back to his last meeting with Trumble in November, which the NC State wrestler won 5-3. If the dual starts at 125 pounds, both wrestlers have experience closing out matches for their respective teams this year.
Expect a Close Match
This rivalry has come down to the wire several times over the last decade, and Friday's dual could do the same.
Just based on rankings alone, Virginia Tech appears to be slightly favored, however, rankings are decidedly not the end-all be-all in college wrestling, and especially not in a heated rivalry matchup such as this one. An upset here or there or a, unexpected bonus-point victory could very easily swing the dual's outcome in either direction. FloWrestling predicts a 17-16 Virginia Tech victory, which seems appropriate given the high-level talent possessed by both of these teams. But given the home team's winning streak in this series, a Wolfpack victory in front of a packed crowd in Reynolds Coliseum could be just as likely.
