Virginia’s Jake Keating, right, wrestles Gardner-Webb’s Austin Reames on Saturday at Memorial Gym. Keating won by technical fall to improve to 5-0 on the season.
Virginia’s Jay Aiello, top, wrestles Gardner-Webb’s Jack Trautman on Saturday at Memorial Gym. Aiello won by pinfall.
The Virginia wrestling team posted seven bonus-point victories Saturday en route to a dominating 44-1 victory over Gardner-Webb in the Cavaliers’ home opener at Memorial Gym.
The Cavaliers (1-0) jumped in front quickly with bonus-point victories in the first three weight classes to take the 15-0 lead on the Bulldogs (0-2). It kicked off a dominating day for Virginia, which got a pair of pins, three technical falls and two major decisions in the victory.
Following the dual match, the Cavaliers and Bulldogs wrestled 10 additional individual matches per new allowances due to COVID and condensed schedules this season.
“It was a really good day and another good weekend for us,” Virginia coach Steve Garland said. “I think we only lost one match today between the dual and the extra matches after the fact. One of the huge positives was bonus points. At the end we had to gut some out and that was a positive, too. That was good to see; biting down when the other guy is fighting like crazy too.”
Virginia wrestler Louie Hayes improved to 5-0 on the season in the 133-pound weight class as he recorded his third pin of the year. Jake Keating also remained unbeaten this season, moving 5-0 in the 165-pound weight class with a technical fall victory. Keating now has two technical falls and three bonus-point wins this season.
