Though it is no longer undefeated in conference action, the wrestling team has much to be proud of and look forward to.
With an 18-12 loss at the hands of N.C. State (9-6, 4-1 in the ACC), the Blue Devils (8-7, 3-1) finished in a three-way tie at the top of the ACC with N.C. State and Virginia, all three teams recording one conference loss.
"It's been a great season, definitely, within the ACC," head coach Clar Anderson said. "I still would like to get the guys more confident, more excited, wrestling a more aggressive style."
The Blue Devils fought hard in their final conference contest, but the Wolfpack showed toughness as well, winning numerous close matches that ended up making the difference in the final score.
The first bout set the tone for the entire match. In the 141-pound weight class, Duke's Daniel Shvartsman took an early 2-0 lead over Alex Hernandez and led 4-1 at one point in the second period. But Hernandez picked up the intensity from that point on, earning five takedowns for a 13-9 minor decision.
"Basically it was a one match swing," Anderson said. "We started out at 141. If we win that match we win the whole match on criteria."
The Wolfpack would win the next three matches by minor decision as well, including one of the feature bouts, pitting Duke's Michael Mitchell against Dustin Kawa at 165. Both top wrestlers in the ACC, Mitchell and Kawa battled through a scoreless first period before Kawa took control with a takedown in the second to win 8-1.
At 174, in one of the tightest matches of the night, Duke's Levi Craig got the team's first win and became the first of three Blue Devils to earn an undefeated conference record this season. Wrestling Rick Browlee, Craig broke a 1-1 tie with a takedown with just 51 seconds left in the match and hung on for a 3-2 decision.
"I just wanted to win," Craig said of his final takedown. "I knew I could beat him and it was just a matter of just doing it."
The Blue Devils won again at 184, as Frank Cornely used two early takedowns to defeat Daniel Humphries 7-4, putting the team score at 12-6 with four matches to go.
But Duke was not able to capitalize on the momentum from the two wins, losing minor decisions at 197 and heavyweight. The losses left the Blue Devils in a hole down 18-6, needing pins in the final two matches to tie the team score.
The pins did not come, but the last two matches were impressive nonetheless. At 125, Duke freshman Christian Smith wrestled Jeremy Hartrum, who had recently defeated former All-American Mario Stuart from Lehigh. Smith controlled the entire match, even putting Hartrum to his back at one point, and emerged victorious 9-4. The win left Smith undefeated in conference bouts.
"I just knew if I went seven minutes, did the best I can, doing what I know, then I know it would work out," Smith said. "I know I work harder than everybody out here."
In the final match of the night, Duke's Adam Benitez used an aggressive third period to beat Daniel Pacitti 6-2, establishing himself as the third Duke wrestler to finish the conference schedule undefeated.
Though not satisfied with a loss, Anderson was nonetheless able to put the defeat in perspective.
"They were favored," he said. "That was their team at their strongest and we went a one-match swing with them. It gives us incentive, hopefully motivates us to win one more close one like we have in the past."
The Blue Devils wrestle non-conference opponent Gardner-Webb tonight, but with the regular conference season over, they can now look toward the ACC tournament, where Smith, Benitez and Craig should all be No. 1 seeds in their respective weight classes. Each of them has high hopes for success.
"I'm looking forward to winning it," Craig said. " I really want to step it up. I've wrestled these guys close but I want to go to ACC's and just really dominate."
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