The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1481002
42 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY MATT CARTER C State wrestling has won the ACC championship for the past four seasons. Even though several no- table grapplers exhausted their eligibility after last year, Wolfpack coach Pat Popolizio still anticipates competing to retain the title yet again. "I think we're at that point where that's the expectation for us," he con- firmed. Despite several likely lineup changes, Popolizio noted, "This has been one of the best offseasons we've had. "Recently, we've been pretty consis- tent with who we had as a starter. Now we have some new names and some new challenges. It's good energy." Here is a weight-by-weight prospec- tus of the NC State lineup: 125 pounds: NC State suffered a blow when redshirt junior Jakob Camacho, a two-time ACC champion and three- time NCAA qualifier, suffered an injury that will keep him out this season. However, Popolizio is hoping that redshirt junior Jarrett Trombley, a two- time NCAA qualifier at 133 pounds, can cut down to the lower weight class. "I think he is going to be valuable to us," Popolizio said. 133 pounds: NC State's depth at 133 pounds helps make Trombley an option at 125. Redshirt sophomore Kai Orine turned in a strong performance last season, finishing third in the ACC and winning a pair of matches at the NCAA Tournament. "We were really impressed with what we saw with Kai last year," Popolizio said. "He put in a really good summer, and this preseason has been great." 141 pounds: Orine's classmate Ryan Jack, whose older brother Kevin was a three-time All-American at NC State, also established himself last season as a potential multi-year stalwart in the lineup. He won 18 matches, finished second in the ACC tourney and quali- fied for NCAAs, where he won twice before being eliminated. Jack further impressed at the 2020 U20 World Team Trials, where he fin- ished second at 65 kilograms. He was fifth at the 2022 U.S. Open at the same weight in U20 freestyle. "He had the best summer we've seen out of him — maturity-wise, physically and mentally," Popolizio said. "I think you are going to see something really good from him." 149 pounds: "This weight class is pretty wide open," Popolizio explained. Two true freshmen from Pennsylva- nia have impressed — Finn Solomon and Jackson Arrington. The latter is a three- time state champion, going 146-8 with 84 pins at the prep level. Solomon was a three-time state finalist and won the title as a junior He compiled a 142-20 record in high school. 157 pounds: Third-year sophomore Ed Scott broke out last season by win- ning the ACC title and earning a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Championships, where he won his first two matches to reach the quarterfinals. This summer, Scott finished eighth at the U23 U.S. World Team Trials at 70 kilograms. "When he's focused and doing all the right things, he's very hard to beat," Popolizio noted. "We're just going to make sure that we're doing that all year." 165 pounds: This is another weight that is an open competition, and sopho- more Donald Cates from Durham may have an early edge. Cates went 15-5 last year while backing up Thomas Bullard. "He's a guy that we really need to step up this year to make our lineup what it can be. He's got the ability to beat a lot of good guys," Popolizio said. 174 pounds: There is an open com- petition here, too, and Popolizio feels confident in the depth. "We need one of those guys to really step up, take it and decide that they want to start for us here at NC State," he said. A name to watch is exciting true freshman Matty Singleton, a four-time state champion from Moreland, Ga., who was rated a top-15 pound-for- pound recruit nationally by FloWres- tling and MatScout. "I think he's one of the more talented guys we've brought into our program," Popoilizio said. N MEETING THE STANDARD Wrestling Is Set To Make Another Run At An ACC Title