RALEIGH, N.C. — App State Wrestling started the 2022-23 season by taking four of 10 matches from No. 9 NC State, which claimed a 26-12 victory in front of a big opening-night crowd at Reynolds Coliseum.
A top-30 team entering the season, the Mountaineers got three-point decisions from
Jon Jon Millner (149 pounds),
Will Formato (165),
Caleb Smith (125) and
Sean Carter (133), with Formato and Carter prevailing in overtime. Smith recorded a tiebreaking takedown in the final minute of his match, and Millner pitched a shutout.
NC State had two pins and two major decisions to earn bonus points in four of its six wins.
Winning against the Wolfpack for the second straight year, the 26th-ranked Carter ended the dual with a 3-1 (SV-1) victory against 11th-ranked Kai Orine thanks to a takedown with 1:04 left in their two-minute overtime period. Carter had a third-period takedown overturned, but he still came out on top after each wrestler traded escapes in regulation.
Before that match, the 20th-ranked Smith won 3-2 against two-time NCAA qualifier Jarrett Trombley by earning a tiebreaking takedown with 39 seconds left.
Formato's 3-2 (SV-1) victory against Don Cates ended with a one-point penalty against Cates for a second stall call in overtime. Cates posted an early takedown, and Formato tied the match with an escape after that takedown and an escape early in the second period. The wrestlers began the third period on their feet — Formato is extremely tough on top.
Millner recorded takedowns in the first and third periods of his 6-0 win against Jackson Arrington.
The other most competitive matches occurred at 174, with
Will Miller recording a third-period takedown in his dual debut, a 12-8 loss to Brock Delsignore, and in the heavyweight division, where
Jacob Sartorio trailed 5-3 in the third period of an 8-3 loss to Owen Trephan. Miller, Sartorio and
Luke Uliano (184 pounds) all made their dual debuts for the Mountaineers.
Returning starters
Heath Gonyer,
Cody Bond and
Wyatt Miller dropped matches against wrestlers ranked No. 22, No. 6 and No. 17 nationally.
No. 9 NC State 26, App State 12
141: #22 Ryan Jack (NCSU) def.
Heath Gonyer (APP), 11-2 maj. dec.
149: #6
Jon Jon Millner (APP) def. Jackson Arrington (NCSU), 6-0 dec.
157: #6 Ed Scott (NCSU) def. #23
Cody Bond (APP), 14-5 maj. dec.
165: #15
Will Formato (APP) def. Don Cates (NCSU), 3-2 (SV-1)
174: Brock Delsignore (NCSU) def.
Will Miller (APP), 12-8
184: #3 Trent Hidlay (NCSU) def.
Luke Uliano (APP), fall (3:14)
197: #17 Isaac Trumble (NCSU) def.
Wyatt Miller (APP), fall (2:43)
HWT: Owen Trephan (NCSU) def.
Jacob Sartorio (APP), 8-3 dec.
125: #20
Caleb Smith (APP) def. Jarrett Trombley (NCSU), 3-2 dec.
133: #26
Sean Carter (APP) def. #11 Kai Orine (NCSU), 3-1 (SV-1)
