The ACC Wrestling Championships were a tough outing for Pitt, with no champions emerging and only five automatic qualifiers for the NCAA tournament. But there was a silver lining for coach Keith Gavin on Tuesday when three Panthers received at-large bids to the national event.
Dylan Evans (157 pounds), Jared Keslar (165), and Luca Augustine (174) got the nod to head to Cleveland next week. They'll join teammates Tyler Chappell (125), Kade Brown (149), Chase Kranitz (184), Mac Stout (197), and Dayton Pitzer (285), who secured their spots through the ACC tournament.
"Eight's pretty good," Gavin noted. "We had a rough ACC tournament.
Things didn’t go our way. I was confident Dylan and Luca would get at-large bids.
Eight is a solid group."
Pitt was initially projected to qualify eight wrestlers automatically, but the results didn't align with those expectations. No Panther exceeded their seed, and half fell below it.
Augustine and Kranitz were top seeds but finished fourth. Stout, an All-American, was seeded second and ended up third.
"Our mindset wasn't where it needed to be," Gavin reflected. "It was uncharacteristic.
To succeed at nationals, you need the right attitude. We missed opportunities to finish matches, which is all about mentality."
The Panthers struggled in tight contests, going 1-6 in one-point matches and 2-1 in overtime at the ACC tournament.
"It's not just the ACC," Gavin said. "There were about 120 overtime matches in conference tournaments last weekend.
Takedowns are scarce. When you get a chance, you have to capitalize.
We can't assume there will be another opportunity."
Two wrestlers who matched their seed expectations, Chappell and Pitzer, earned praise from Gavin.
"Dayton wrestled well," he said.
Pitzer dominated Virginia Tech's Jimmy Mullen 8-0 in the semifinals, a notable improvement from a previous 1-0 win. However, he fell 9-0 to N.C. State's Isaac Trumble in the final.
"He widened the gap in the semis," Gavin remarked. "He got caught in a headlock in the finals, but overall, he performed well."
Chappell clinched fifth place, securing the last qualifying spot at 125 pounds. He narrowly lost 2-1 to defending NCAA champ Vincent Robinson of N.C. State on a riding-time point.
"Tyler did what was needed," Gavin said. "He stepped up when it mattered and earned his spot at nationals."
Despite some setbacks, Gavin remains optimistic, noting that his wrestlers' season-long performances positioned them well for Cleveland.
"Our guys have reasons to be confident," he said. "We have athletes like Mac, an All-American last year, and Luca and Dayton, who have beaten All-Americans. Chappell and Dylan have been right there, too."