Virginia Tech Wrestling: 2026 NCAA National Championships Day 1 Recap

No. 6 Virginia Tech came into the first session of the 2026 NCAA Wrestling National Championships with plenty of wind in its sails. Fresh off its second consecutive ACC title, courtesy of five individual champions, the Hokies looked to improve on its all-time best finish at the national tournament: 4th place, in 2016. With four top-5 seeds and seven in the top-20, they looked poised to do just that entering Thursday afternoon.

125 pounds

No. 2 Eddie Ventresca opened his tournament against Drexel's No. 31 Desmond Pleasant. After securing a quick takedown to open the bout, Ventresca was stymied by Pleasant, who made things tough from start to finish. Ventresca appeared to be cruising to a win, but Pleasant scored a late takedown to get within striking distance. After several extended scrambles, Ventresca eventually had his hand raised after a closer-than-expected 8-6 decision.

In the second round, Ventresca again proved that he excels in tight matches. Facing off against Illinois' No. 18 Spencer Moore, Ventresca quickly got on the board with a takedown and two swipes to take a 5-0 lead. Moore nearly rode out Ventresca on and off for the remainder of the bout. Ventresca moved on to the quarterfinals with a 5-2 decision in which he looked comfortable throughout. He'll face Minnesota's No. 3 Jore Volk, the only opponent to whom Ventresca has lost this season, on Friday morning.

133 pounds

Freshman phenom No. 4 Aaron Seidel has dominated opponents all season long, and Thursday morning was no exception. After securing a takedown soon after the opening whistle against Wyoming's No. 29 Luke Willochel, the tone was set. Seidel worked for back points and went on to earn a decisive 17-2 technical fall.

Seidel wasted little time in his second-round matchup against Northern Iowa's No. 20 Julian Farber. Seidel scored at will, racking up takedowns and bonus points whenever he wanted en route to a 22-4 technical fall. He'll face Arizona State's No. 5 Kyler Larkin in the quarterfinals.

141 pounds

In his third trip to NCAAs, No. 25 Tom Crook drew a tough draw on his side of the bracket. His opening round against Minnesota's returning All-American No. 8 Vance Vombaur proved to be too much, as he dropped the match, 14-2.

In his first bout in the consolations, Crook battled for three periods, but ran into Rutgers' No. 9 Joey Oliveri, who wrestled like he had a lot to prove. Crook dropped the bout, 8-6, to end his tournament.

149 pounds

First-time NCAA qualifier, freshman No. 4 Collin Gaj, squared off against George Mason's No. 29 Kade Cassidy to open his tournament. Wearing what appeared to be several layers of tape on his injured right ankle, Gaj initiated offense early and took a 3-0 lead and a ride-out into the second period. He replicated his first-period performance in the second frame to take a 6-0 lead into the final two minutes. Cassidy, who seemingly had had enough of Gaj's ride-out, pushed the pace and earned a takedown of his own, but it was too little too late. Gaj picked up a first-round, 9-4 victory.

In the second round, Gaj squared off with Nebraska's No. 20 Chance Lamer. The Cornhusker opened the match's scoring with a first-period takedown. Gaj, still wearing plenty of tape on his right ankle, looked for his shots but couldn't find an angle. Down 3-1 at the start of the third, Gaj needed to make something happen. Lamer kept up the pressure and ultimately stopped Gaj's title quest short with a 3-1 decision.

He'll face Little Rock's No. 19 Brock Herman in the consolation bracket in Session III in search of All-American honors in his first collegiate season.

157 pounds

In typical fashion, No. 14 Ethen Miller secured a tightly-contested match to open his fourth NCAA tournament. After a scoreless opening period, Miller rode out his opponent, Columbia’s No. 19 Kai Owen, for all but a handful of seconds in the second frame. Following more hand fighting and takedown defense from Miller, Owen pushed the pace and forced a stall call against Miller, but the Hokie had his hand raised based on riding time differential, thanks to his one riding time point.

No stranger to the big stage, Miller stepped onto the mat against Cornell's No. 3 Meyer Shapiro, needing to wrestle a flawless match to have a chance to make the quarterfinals. The Big Red's middleweight had other ideas, however, scoring a takedown within the match's opening seconds. Shapiro then rode out Miller for the rest of the first period, taking a 3-0 lead and nearly three minutes of riding time into the second frame. Shapiro opened the second with a quick escape and wisely decided to keep his distance in neutral. Miller notched an escape, but couldn't get to his offense. He fell 5-1, and looks for an All-American nod in the consolation bracket on Friday morning against Indiana's No. 29 Bryce Lowery.

165 pounds

No. 25 Mac Church came into his opening round battle with Little Rock's No. 8 Matty Bianchi as the underdog, but the redshirt sophomore wasn't intimidated to begin his second trip to the national tournament. After a scoreless first period, Church started the second on top. Bianchi quickly escaped, but Church forced a scramble on the edge of the mat when he got in deep on a takedown attempt that Bianchi ultimately defended. Church opened the final period with an escape to tie it, forcing sudden victory. Bianchi was close to scoring in the extra period, but Church denied him and forced tiebreakers. After the Tech wrestler escaped in six seconds, he looked to have the bout won when he rode Bianchi for most of the final 30-second extra time; however, Little Rock challenged and was awarded an escape point. Bianchi finally put it to bed when he scored a final takedown as time expired to win it, 7-5.

Church in his first consolation match against Penn's No. 24 Sean Seefeldt couldn't find his offense. After suffering a first-period takedown, the redshirt sophomore was forced to play defense, despite tallying an escape and getting in on a shot on the edge of the mat late in the third. His tournament ended with a. 4-1 decision.

174 pounds

In what was a rematch of the Virginia Tech-Oklahoma State dual from February, No. 25 Sergio Desiante faced Oklahoma State's No. 8 Alex Facundo in the first round. Desinate struck first with a first-period takedown that helped him take a 3-2 lead heading into the second period. Facundo responded, with an escape and a takedown of his own. The Cowboys' wrestler secured another takedown to push his lead to 9-5, but Desiante quickly escaped. After Desinate failed to capitalize on a late takedown attempt, Facundo scored once more to win the bout, 12-6.

Desiante bounced back in his consolation opener. He seized the momentum early with a first-period takedown and controlled the pace for the remainder of the bout while building on his riding time advantage. He advanced in the consolations with a 5-2 decision. He'll face Bucknell's No. 10 Myles Takats on Friday morning, hoping to advance to the blood round.

184 pounds

In his second NCAA appearance, No. 14 Jaden Bullock took the mat against Edinboro's No. 19 Jared McGill. McGill got on the board first with a takedown that he finished with sprawling distance of the Tech bench, which didn't agree with the official's decision. Bullock quickly responded, though, securing a reversal to give him the lead. McGill retook his advantage just seconds later with a reversal of his own. Bullock escaped to get within two as the first period ended. He then subjected McGill to a two-minute ride-out in the second, a staple of Bullock's arsenal recently. In the final period, Bullock forced sudden victory thanks to his riding time advantage. After a scoreless extra period, the match went to tiebreakers. Bullock quickly earned an escape and proceeded to ride out McGill for the entire 30 seconds of the final frame to earn the gritty 6-5 win.

Bullock's second match was against Minnesota's No. 4 Max McEnelly, who teched Bullock twice last November in the National Duals Invitational. While Bullock withstood the Golden Gopher's offense early, he couldn't hang around forever, as McEnelly got out to a 6-1 lead going into the second period. McEnelly pushed his lead to 8-2 into the third. After a flurry of further offense from McEnelly, he took the bout, 12-6.

Bullock will face Northern Iowa's No. 29 Nick Fox in the consolation bracket tomorrow morning in search of his first All-American nod.

197 pounds

In what was possibly the biggest upset of the morning, No. 4 Sonny Sasso, who entered the weekend as one of the hottest wrestlers in the country, dropped his first-round matchup with Arizona State's No. 29 Colton Hawks, who was 7-9 on the year coming into this match. Sasso scored a takedown and three back points to open the bout, and seemingly was on cruise control with a 6-2 lead after the first three minutes. Hawks responded with four seven unanswered points in the second, tilting the scales in his favor. Sasso pushed in the third but couldn't make up the difference. Hawks put a bow on his upset with a late takedown to take the bout, 12-8.

Sasso hoped to bounce back against Wisconsin's No. 20 Wyatt Ingham in the consolation bracket. The Badger scored an early takedown, but Sasso soon escaped to cut into the deficit and followed up with a takedown of his own. Ingham notched a late takedown to carry a 7-4 lead to close the first frame. In the second, Ingham pushed his lead to 8-5, but Sasso had other ideas. After getting in deep on a shot, Sasso secured a front headlock and pinned Ingham with 34 seconds left in the round. He'll move on in the consolations tomorrow morning to face Ohio's No. 19 Zayne Lehman.

285 pounds

Another wrestler who hoped to make a run for a spot on the podium, No. 16 Jimmy Mullen opened his tournament against Columbia's No. 17 Vincent Mueller. Mullen opened the match with 9 unanswered points and an 8-point lead heading into the third period. After another takedown attempt, Mueller countered and put Mullen on his back, locking up a 7-point move. Mueller's attack, while impressive, was too little too late, as Mullen, who was clearly unhappy, took the match, 13-9.

Mullen had the misfortune of taking on the division's top seed, Iowa State's No. 1 Yonger Bastida, who was 26-0 coming into this match. Despite notching several escapes, Bastida was too much and took the bout, 20-4. Mullen will be back tomorrow morning Wyoming's No. 19 Christian Carroll to continue his hunt for a podium finish.

Takeaways

The Team

Coming into Thursday, Virginia Tech's expectations likely were higher than sending just two wrestlers into the quarterfinals, especially since they boasted four top-5 seeds. But that's exactly what happened, with the rest of the Hokies' hopefuls falling to tough competition in the second round. Although the Hokies still have eight wrestlers who are still alive, Thursday's results feel a little flat. This tournament is far from over, though. Virginia Tech's hopes of topping their all-time best finish at the national tournament is now likely out of reach, but they still have plenty to wrestle for.

The Freshman Phenom (and Slump)

Just like he's done since he got to Virginia Tech few months ago, Aaron Seidel dominated in his two matches, as if he were a grizzled veteran who had been to the national tournament plenty of times. Scoring a combined 39 points while surrendering just six in his two bouts, Seidel made it clear that he's firmly in the national title hunt.

His fellow freshman, Collin Gaj, had a different first NCAA experience. Arguably, for the first time since last fall, Gaj looked like he was a first-year wrestler again. After cruising to an opening round win, his usually calm demeanor changed when he ran up against Nebraska's experienced senior, Chance Lamer. Suddenly, Gaj's motor appeared to run short. It's not that he didn't wrestle well. He just didn't have that spark that he typically carries. He was probably due after his recent run of success in conference competition. He's still alive in consolations, so there's plenty of time left for him to return to form.

Sasso's Season in Two Matches

If Sonny Sasso's 2025-26 season could be described in one word, it would be inconsistent. The redshirt sophomore has at times looked nearly unbeatable and overmatched at others, and sometimes both all at once. His performance on Day 1 (a victim of one of the biggest upsets of the day and a pin) sums up his campaign. Only time will tell if he can maintain the edge that he showed against Ingham on Thursday night.

Day 2's action gets underway Friday afternoon at 12 PM ET.