Pitt Wrestling Leans on Familiar Formula Ahead of Crucial ACC Clash with North Carolina
When No. 19 Pitt steps onto the mat Friday night against No.
11 North Carolina, the path to victory probably won’t involve any surprises. The Panthers know the script by now: hold the line in the lightweights, and let the upper weights do the heavy lifting - literally and figuratively.
Head coach Keith Gavin isn’t sugarcoating the challenge. “I think that’s kind of how all these ACC duals are going to be,” he said ahead of the trip to Chapel Hill.
“They’re all going to be super competitive. This one will be similar.
It feels like the one against Virginia Tech. A lot of them can go either way.”
That Virginia Tech meet was a razor-thin 18-15 loss, and it came down to bonus points - or, more accurately, giving them up. Pitt surrendered a technical fall at 125 and a major decision at 141, and in a dual that tight, that’s the difference. One week later, the Panthers flipped the script in a 17-15 win over West Virginia, keeping bonus points off the board while heavyweight Dayton Pitzer delivered a technical fall that sealed the Backyard Brawl.
It’s a pattern that’s becoming familiar: in these tightly contested duals, bonus points are the tipping point. Whether it’s a fall, a tech, or a major, every extra point matters.
“You have to be aware of it,” Gavin said. “There’s going to be that situation, possibly both ways.
You can’t give them up, and you might have to go get another takedown to get them. It’s late in the season, and the guys should know that, but you always need to be aware of it.”
This matchup with North Carolina is as evenly matched as it gets. According to InterMat’s individual rankings, each team is favored in five bouts. For Pitt, the clearest edge comes at the top of the lineup, where Mac Stout (No. 8 at 197) and Dayton Pitzer (No. 15 at 285) are both set to face unranked opponents - prime opportunities to swing the scoreboard.
“It’s been kind of the theme for us,” Gavin said. “Our upper weights are coming through in big moments. We’re hoping to get a couple wins in the lightweights, but it’s nice to have those guys at the end.”
One of the x-factors in this dual could be Chase Kranitz at 184. The redshirt junior has quietly become one of Pitt’s most reliable upset artists, knocking off ranked opponents in back-to-back duals against Virginia Tech and West Virginia.
Now ranked No. 28, Kranitz has a shot at his biggest scalp yet in UNC’s No.
13 Jake Dailey.
“Chase, he’s been competing well all season,” Gavin said. “But in the last month or so, he’s been a little more gritty.
He’s got to continue to do that. This kid from UNC is a good all-around wrestler.
Chase has to get to his positions and be tough in them.”
At 141 pounds, Pitt is turning back to Briar Priest, who’s wrestled in all nine of the team’s dual meet wins. He’ll face a tough test in No.
10 Luke Simcox. Anthony Santaniello, who started in losses to Iowa and Virginia Tech, will watch from the bench this time.
“Briar was the guy, and we gave Anthony the shot after Midlands,” Gavin said. “We’ll see how Briar does here against a pretty tough opponent.”
Pitt’s history against North Carolina hasn’t been kind - just 5 wins in 17 meetings - and last year’s dual ended in heartbreak, with the Tar Heels winning on criteria after a 16-16 tie. But the Panthers are coming in with momentum. Pitzer has rattled off six straight wins, Stout has five in a row, and Jared Keslar is riding a three-match streak of his own.
This one’s shaping up to be another grind-it-out ACC battle. If Pitt can stick to the formula - limit the damage early, capitalize late - they’ll give themselves a real shot to leave Chapel Hill with a statement win.
The dual is set to stream on ACC Network Extra at 7 p.m.