Virginia Tech Wrestling: 2026 NCAA National Championships Day 2 Recap

Heading into the second day of the national tournament, No. 6 Virginia Tech had two wrestlers in the quarterfinals and six searching for a podium finish in the consolation brackets. After a relatively underwhelming Thursday, the Hokies looked to bounce back in a big way. Behind standout performances from true freshmen Aaron Seidel and Collin Gaj and solid outings from the middleweights in consolations, Virginia Tech made up some ground that it lost on Thursday.

125 pounds

No. 2 Eddie Ventresca entered Friday morning's bout with Princeton's No. 10 Marc-Anthony-McGowan seeking his third All-American nod. To this point in the tournament, Ventresca had managed to skate by in two tightly-contested matches on Thursday.

His bout with McGowan was tied at one as time expired in the third period, forcing the seventh extra time bout of this season for the Hokies' lightweight. After a scoreless sudden victory period, the match headed to tiebreakers. McGowan was issued his third caution before the clock even started in the period, handing Ventresca a point. McGowan rode out Ventresca, though, and quickly escaped in his 30 second period, putting the onus on Ventresca to score. Despite taking several shots, Ventresca wasn't able to close it out and dropped the bout on riding time differential.

The Hokies' lightweight made his second appearance of the day against a familiar foe: NC State's No. 12 Vincent Robinson. Ventresca entered the bout 4-0 all-time against Robinson, with two of those wins coming this season. Every match in this series has come down to the wire, and this one was no different. Tied 1-1, the bout headed into sudden victory, territory in which Ventresca has made hay all season; he defeated Robinson twice in extra time earleir this year. On Friday night, though, Robinson finally got his revenge, as he outmaneuvered Ventresca in front of the NC State corner and secured the match-winning takedown to deny the Hokies' standout his third career All-American nod.

133 pounds

True freshman No. 4 Aaron Seidel looked to continue his incredible start to the national tournament, after he punched his ticket to the Round of 8 courtesy of tech falls in the first and second rounds. His opponent, Arizona State's No. 5 Kyler Larkin, however, was the most talented wrestler he'd faced since he squared off against Oklahoma State's No. 1 Jax Forrest in February. That didn't seem to matter to Seidel, as he quickly got to work and secured takedowns and back points at will, dictating the pace throughout. He went on to clinch a 16-1 technical fall in the second period to become just the third true freshman All-American in program history.

His win lined up a highly-anticipated rematch against Forrest in the semifinals on Friday night. Heading into the bout, Siedel owned an 0-3 record against Forrest dating back to high school. It was Forrest's match from the opening whistle in this one, as well. The Cowboys' sensational freshman dominated Seidel 14-3 to secure his spot in the finals on Saturday night.

Seidel will look to wrestle back for a place in the 3rd place bout on Saturday morning.

149 pounds

Fellow true freshman, No. 4 Collin Gaj, went 1-1 on Thursday, dropping his second-round matchup with Nebraska's No. 20 Chance Lamer. Gaj couldn't get into his offense and was out-worked by the more experienced Cornhusker late in the bout. On Friday morning, however, he looked like his former self, scoring early and and often while displaying his riding ability in a dominant 13-1 major decision over Little Rock's No. 19 Brock Herman.

The freshman was back out there a little later on, against NC State's No. 5 Koy Buesgens in a rematch of the ACC title bout in Blacksburg several weeks ago that Gaj won 2-1 in tiebreakers. Gaj also downed the Wolfpack wrestler 4-1 and 6-0 earlier this year. This bout, like those before it in this series, didn't take long to heat up. Gaj secured an early takedown and two back points after a lengthy scramble and Virginia Tech challenge. Buesgens responded with an escape, but Gaj hit right back with one of his own. In the third period, Gaj used a combination of tough riding and quickness to evade Buesgens' offense to clinch it 6-1 and advance to the blood round with All-American honors on the line.

His opponent in that match, Cornell's No. 2 Jaxon Joy, was no stranger. The Big Red wrestler defeated Gaj 5-1 in the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational last fall. Gaj looked to score early but Joy kept his distance. Entering the second period down 1-0, Gaj kept his foot on the gas. His effort paid off with neutral-danger takedown and four back points to take a 7-2 lead that would ice the match and earn himself All-American honors. He's just the fourth ever true freshman at Virginia Tech to accomplish the feat. He joined Seidel in doing so, who cemented his place in the Hokies' history books earlier in the day by doing the same.

In his final bout of the night, Gaj faced Penn's No. 3. Cross Wasilewski. After giving up an early takedown and being unable to get out from under the Quaker, Gaj finally escaped in the waning moments of the first. Gaj then rode out Wasilewski for the entire second period to establish a riding time advantage. After an extended back-and-forth in the final period, the duo was tied at four to force sudden victory. Soon after the whistle, Gaj worked an angle and found a takedown to cement his place in Day 3's action.

157 pounds

In his fourth national tournament, No. 14 Ethan Miller looked to bounce back after dropping his second-round bout against Cornell's No. 3 Meyer Shapiro, 5-1. Squaring off against Indiana's No. 29 Bryce Lowery, he did just that, setting the pace early with a takedown and an escape. After Lowery countered with a takedown later in the period, Miller reacted quickly, sidestepping the Hoosier and locking up a cradle that he used to secure a fall in front of the Hokies' corner.

Miller said the move wasn't necessarily part of his approach, but it fit his style of wrestling is.

"My mindset going into today was just go out there and put up points and dominate," he explained. "I did that in my first match. I just got to my offense early, but then he tagged me with a takedown. So I saw I had to go get another one. He made a mistake and I locked it up. There wasn't a game plan really. I just went out there and did me."

His second bout was a matchup with Penn's No. 6 Jude Swisher. Swisher was on the gas early. He took a 3-0 lead into the second where he scored again, depriving Miller of any opportunity to initiate offense on his terms. Miller worked hard but couldn't tame Swisher's attacks. His final NCAA tournament ended with an 8-3 decision.

The defeat bookended Miller's career. Despite spending just one season in Blacksburg, the Kansas City native was grateful for the time he spent there.

"I take risks and bet on myself, which a lot of people don't do," he said. "That's what led me to Blacksburg. I came here to do great things, and I'm very grateful for the coaches bringing me in. I'll remember the guys who I trained with every day the most. When I look back years from now, I couldn't be more grateful for a place than that."

Wearing a custom "Miller Time" snap-back—a reference to the nickname given to him upon his arrival at Virginia Tech—the Hokies' middleweight was visibly emotional as he celebrated Collin Gaj's victory over Wasilewski in the tunnel of Rocket Arena. In a quiet voice that dripped with bittersweet fondness, he reflected on his legacy, not just as a Hokie, but as a wrestler.

"I truly just showed how hard I worked," he said. "I might not have shown it at the national tournament, but I showed that to myself. I might not be recognized for that, but I went out there and grinded every match. That's just the style that I have. I'm just a Midwest dude who goes out there and grinds to win. I may not be there best guy out there, but I'm still me."

174 pounds

In his first bout of the day, No. 25 Sergio Desiante looked to advance to the blood round against Bucknell's No. 10 Myles Takats.

Following the lead of his teammates, Desiante pushed the pace early but couldn't score in the first three minutes. In the second, he landed a takedown on the far corner of the mat, but Takats made a nice move to get behind Desiante and secure a reversal. With the score 4-2 in Desiante's favor entering the final period, Takats escaped to cut into the deficit, but wanted more. He took a long range shot that didn't quite land, which allowed Desiante to find an angle and force a scramble that prevented Takats from threatening again. Desiante took the bout, 4-3.

His second bout was against Cornell's No. 2 Simon Ruiz. Desiante was on his heels almost from the start. Ruiz scored a takedown in the opening period and didn't let up. Desiante evaded fairly well, but couldn't match Ruiz's pace. The Big Red's middleweight took the match 8-3.

184 pounds

No. 14 Jaden Bullock entered his first match of the day with a 1-1 record, after defeating Edinboro's No. 19 Jared McGill 6-5 and falling short against Minnesota's No. 4 Max McEnelly 12-6 on Thursday. His first match of the day was against Northern Iowa's No. 29 Nick Fox.

After a scoreless first period, he rode out Fox for the entire second frame, a strength of his game as of late. He then escaped to open the third frame to take a 1-0 lead. Fox later scored a takedown on the edge of the mat with 32 seconds remaining in the final period, putting Bullock's tournament in jeopardy. But he escaped to cut into the lead, and with his riding time advantage, he forced sudden victory, which remained scoreless. In tiebreakers, Bullock jumped out quickly and evaded takedown attempts. For good measure, he rode out Fox for the second half of the tiebreakers to take the contest 2-1.

Rejuvenated, Bullock later took the mat against Oklahoma State's No. 22 Zack Ryder. After a scoreless first period, Bullock jumped out to a 1-0 lead. The officials stopped the match with 21 seconds left in the second frame due to an apparent medical emergency happening at the scorer's table. After the delay, Bullock took his slim margin into the third period and started on top. Ryder deftly fought Bullock's hands and managed an escape to tie it. Ryder then lunged and caught Bullock by the waist and appeared to have the winning takedown, but Bullock sprawled and avoided defeat as the clock showed zeroes. For the second time in as many matches, Bullock's match headed to sudden victory, except this time it wouldn't be as kind to him. Both wrestlers jostled for position until Ryder used a chest wrap to affect Bullock's balance and secure a match-winning takedown right in front of the Oklahoma State corner, which cheered in unison with the many 'Pokes faithful in attendance.

197 pounds

Coming off an emotional fall over Wisconsin's Wyatt Igham late in Thursday's final session, No. 4 Sonny Sasso hoped to continue his redemption arc after being upset by Arizona State's No. 29 Colton Hawks in the opening round. Sasso's opponent, Ohio's No. 19 Zayne Lehman, didn't agree, however. The Hokies' upperweight pushed the pace early and nearly scored a takedown midway through the opening three minutes, but couldn't finish it. Lehman made him pay later in the third period with a takedown in front of the scorer's table that ultimately proved decisive, ending his tournament.

285 pounds

The Hokies' heavyweight, No. 16 Jimmy Mullen, took his 1-1 record into Thursday morning's session looking to join his teammates in their quest for a podium finish.

Slated to battle Wyoming's No. 19 Christian Carroll, Mullen took the mat with a chip on his shoulder after losing to top seed Yonger Bastida of Iowa State via technical fall late on Thursday. Carroll opened the scoring with a flurry of takedowns, grabbing a 6-0 lead with 40 seconds remaining in the first period. A challenge from the Virginia Tech corner froze the action for several minutes, but after the restart, the Cowboys' All-American redoubled his efforts, seizing a decisive 12-7 lead heading into the third period. For good measure, Carroll scored once more to take it by major decision, 16-7.

Seidel and Gaj will wrestle in Saturday morning's Session 5. The action kicks off at 11:00 AM ET.