Wrestling team bolstered by incoming class

The North Carolina wrestling team has only four seniors on the roster, so it will be looking to its freshman class to fill important roles this season.

But junior captain Kyle Kiss said these aren’t normal freshmen.

Of the nine incoming freshmen, four of them won at least one individual state championship in high school. Most notably, freshman Corey Mock won four state titles and was twice named a High School All-American.

That name should sound familiar to fans of UNC wrestling because he is the son of head coach C.D. Mock.

This freshman class also includes Pat Owens, the 2009 national preps champion at 125 pounds. Owens missed his entire senior year of wrestling action due to a nearly fatal car accident. He made his collegiate debut Sunday at the Hokie Open at Virginia Tech, winning four of his six matches — but the 133-pounder may redshirt this season.

“They kind of remind me of my freshman class,” redshirt senior Thomas Scotton said. “When we came here as freshmen we were definitely setting the world on fire, in terms of the practice room anyway. We weren’t just normal freshmen.”

Mock hasn’t crowned this freshman class based on their high school merits — he wants them to prove it on the mat.

“In high school, you’re wrestling boys,” Mock said. “In college, you’re wrestling men, and they’re all good.”

On the other hand, Scotton leads a group of proven upperclassmen. He is the only returning wrestler on the roster that qualified for the NCAA Tournament last year after finishing third at the ACC Championships in the 157-pound division. This season Mock has moved him to the 165-pound weight class.

“I don’t miss those days at 157,” Scotton said. “I’m not worrying as much about my weight as much as I was wrestling at 157, and that’s definitely a blessing.”

Kiss is coming off a third-place finish in the ACC Championships and is looking to improve this year. He moved down from the 165-pound weight class to the 157-pound class.

“I think overall it will help,” Kiss said. “I’ll be bigger than most people, and it will help definitely in keeping in shape.”

Injuries are taking a toll on UNC’s lineup this season and have created opportunities for some of the younger wrestlers. Kiss is still recovering from off-season surgery on his shoulder and will miss the first couple of weeks. Filling his spot will be Corey Mock.

Three of the four captains are not currently competing due to injury. Junior captain Nick Shields recently underwent surgery for a double hernia and will miss some action. Senior captain Nick Stabile is also injured, leaving fellow senior Mike Rappo as the only active captain.

Despite the injuries, Mock expects to see his team improve on last year’s fourth-place conference finish.

“We’re pursuing an ACC Championship, and each one of these guys is pursuing a national championship,” Mock said. “We have some guys in here that can wrestle at that level.”

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.