The No. 17 North Carolina wrestling team won its first dual meet of the season against No. 19 Michigan, 19-17, on Friday in Ann Arbor, Mich. With the meet coming down to just two points, a pin from 174-pounder Clay Lautt played a decisive role in separating the two ranked opponents.
What happened?
North Carolina fell to a quick 4-0 deficit after the first bout of the night in the 125-pound division, with No. 19 Joey Melendez, a redshirt first-year, falling to Michigan redshirt sophomore Jack Medley in a major decision, 10-2.
The Tar Heels wouldn’t let that deficit last long, storming back to tie the meet with the second major decision of the night. Redshirt sophomore Jaime Hernandez dominated his match in the 133-pound division, 20-7, to draw UNC even with its opponent.
The 141- and 149-pound bouts did little to separate the score, with the two sides exchanging close victories. 141-pound redshirt sophomore Zach Sherman scored a 9-3 victory to give North Carolina the lead before Michigan came rumbling back to tie the dual with a victory in the 149-pound matchup. In another match that ended 9-3, redshirt sophomore Gino Esposito was on the losing side, drawing the match even heading into the 157-pound bout.
UNC redshirt senior A.C. Headlee pulled out an upset victory against No. 10 Will Lewan to give North Carolina a 5-2 victory. The bout was tied after both the first and second periods, with Headlee scoring a late takedown as the buzzer sounded, giving him an important 5-2 victory and the Tar Heels a 10-7 lead going into intermission.
Redshirt junior Kennedy Monday widened the gap between the two teams when he secured a 10-3 victory. No. 16 Monday led after each period and gave North Carolina an overall lead of 13-7 heading into the 174-pound bout.
Lautt scored a first-period pin against the Wolverines' Reece Hughes to earn North Carolina a pivotal 19-7 lead going into the final three matches of the night.
Lautt’s pin would prove decisive for the Tar Heels, who would go on to win despite losing their final three matches. The 19-17 victory for the Tar Heels was decided in the final bout of the night, where No. 5 Mason Parris from Michigan narrowly defeated No. 20 Andrew Gunning, a redshirt junior for the Tar Heels. With Gunning staying on his feet in the 285-pound match, UNC secured its first victory of the season.
