Virginia Tech Wrestling Wins 2025 ACC Team Championship

It was all Virginia Tech in Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham on Sunday. The Hokies claimed the ACC crown with a total of 91.5 points. Sunday’s championship is Virginia Tech’s third under head coach Tony Robie, and its first since 2018. Coming into this year’s tournament, the conference title had run through Raleigh, as NC State had won six consecutive championships. 

Virginia Tech opened the tournament by dominating the opening round bouts, sending nine wrestlers to the semifinals. Among these first round wins were Jimmy Mullen’s first period-pin of Virginia’s Jacob Christenson and Connor McGonagle’s 16-1 technical fall over Duke’s Raymond Adams. 

The Hokies kept their foot on the gas in the semifinals by advancing six wrestlers into the finals. Each of Virginia Tech’s 1-seeds– Eddie Ventresca, Sam Latona, Caleb Henson, and Rafael Hipolito, Jr. – won their first matches of the day in convincing fashion. McGonagle continued his momentum with a gritty decision over Stanford’s Tyler Knox, while Jimmy Mullen cruised to a major decision. 

During the championship bouts, Virginia Tech cemented its title after the first match of the final round with Hipolito, Jr.’s 7-3 decision over NC State’s Ed Scott. Hipolito, Jr. is the third Virginia Tech wrestler in the last six years to win an ACC title in his freshman season (Mekhi Lewis, 2019; Sam Latona, 2021, Henson, 2023 and Stewart 2024.)

As the finals turned to the lightweights, Ventresca defeated NC State’s Vince Robinson in thrilling fashion. Tied at 1 in sudden victory, he secured a late takedown with time winding down to claim the 125-pound title. 

In his first ACC championship appearance, Connor McGonagle followed Ventresca’s theatrical lead. After entering sudden victory tied at 2, McGonagle appeared poised to surrender a takedown, but rolled through Kai Orine’s (NCSU) attack to secure a takedown of his own and secure the 133-pound championship.

Defending national champion Caleb Henson solidifed his dominance in conference competition with a textbook sudden victory takedown of his own. He will almost certainly be the nation's No. 1 overall seed for the 149-pound weight class in the NCAA national championships.

Team results:

1. Virginia Tech, 91.5 points
2. Pitt, 63.5 points
3. NC State, 62.5 points
4. North Carolina, 45.5 points
5. Stanford, 45.0 points
6. Virginia, 35.5 points
7. Duke, 1.5 points

Individual match results and finishes:

• 125 lbs, No. 1 Eddie Ventresca: 19-5 major decision over No. 4 Nick Babin (Pitt); 4-1 SV decision over No. 2 Vince Robinson (NCSU), ACC Champion
• 133 lbs, No. 2. Connor McGonagle: 16-1 technical fall over No. 7 Raymond Adams (Duke); 1-0 decision over No. 3 Tyler Knox (Stanford); 5-2 SV decision over No. 4 Kai Orine (NCSU), ACC Champion
• 141 lbs, No. 1 Sam Latona: 1-0 decision over No. 5 Jayden Scott (UNC); lost 7-6 decision to No. 2 Dylan Cedano (UVA), 2nd Place
• 149 lbs, No. 1 Caleb Henson: 21-4 technical fall over No. 5 Jack Gioffre (UVA); 4-1 SV decision over No. 2 Lachlan McNeil (UNC), ACC Champion
• 157 lbs, No. 1 Rafael Hipolito, Jr.: 14-4 major decision over Grigor Colakyan (Stanford); 7-3 decision over No. 2 Ed Scott (NCSU), ACC Champion
• 165 lbs, No. 5 Mac Church: 4-1 SV decision over No. 4 Jared Kesslar (Pitt); lost by 11-1 major decision to No. 1 Hunter Garvin (Stanford); 8-5 decision over No. 7 Charlie Darracot (UNC); 4-1 SV decision over No. 4 Derek Fields (NCSU, 3rd Place
• 174 lbs, No. 5 Lennox Wolak: lost 4-2 decision to No. 4 Matty Singleton (NCSU); 8-5 decision over No. 2 Lorenzo Norman (Stanford); lost 4-2 decision ot No. 1 Josh Ogunsonya (UNC), 4th Place
• 184 lbs, No. 4 Thomas Stewart, Jr.: 7-1 decision over Tye Monteiro (Stanford); lost 4-2 decision to No. 1 Reece Heller (Pitt); 9-4 decision over No. 6 Justin Phillips (UVA); lost 4-1 decision to No. 3 Gavin Kane (UNC), 4th Place
• 197 lbs, No. 3 Andy Smith: 8-2 decision over No. 6 Steven Burrell, Jr. (UVA); lost 12-4 major decision to No. 2 Nick Stemmet (Stanford); 5-1 decision over No. 5 Christian Knop (NCSU); 4-2 decision over No. 6 Steven Burrell, Jr. (UVA), 3rd Place
• 285 lbs, No. 2 Jimmy Mullen: fall over No. 7 Gabe Christenson (UVA); 11-3 major decision over No. 6 Connor Barket (Duke); lost 4-1 SV decision to No. 4 Dayton Pitzer (Pitt), 2nd Place

With their performances on Sunday, nine Virginia Tech wrestlers punched their tickets to the NCAA national championships in Philadelphia on March 20-22. The Hokies look to improve on their 7th place finish in 2024.