ACC NCAA Wrestling 2015: Dates, Schedule and More for Championship Qualifier
March Madness may be for basketball, but NCAA wrestling has its own championships this month, and the ACC figures to be a major part of it.
In fact, the league received 29 NCAA wrestling championship qualifier automatic allocation spots. That may not stack up to the likes of the Big Ten, but the ACC will certainly make its presence felt in the pressure-packed moments of March.
With that in mind, here is a look at the schedule and important information for the ACC wrestling Championships before Nationals.
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2015 ACC Wrestling Championships
Date: March 8
Location: Petersen Events Center, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Time: First Round 11 a.m. ET, Semifinals 1 p.m. ET, Consolation Semifinals 3:30 p.m. ET, Consolation Finals 5 p.m. ET and Finals 7 p.m. ET
Weight-Class Brackets: Available here, courtesy of RaycomSports.com
Live Stream: WatchESPN
NCAA Wrestling Postseason Explanation
NCAA.com offered an in-depth explanation of how the qualifier allocations work in NCAA wrestling.
"Each qualifying tournament was awarded spots per weight class based on current year data. Each wrestler was measured on the following: Division I winning percentage at the weight class, rating percentage index (RPI) and coaches ranking.
For each wrestler that reached the threshold in at least two of the three categories, his qualifying tournament was awarded a qualifying spot in that weight class. Each qualifying tournament, with automatic qualifying status, was awarded a minimum of one wrestler per weight class, which will go to the tournament champion, even if they did not have any wrestlers reach at least two of the three thresholds. NCAA tournament spots for each qualifying event will be awarded at the tournament based solely on place-finish.
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After the ACC and the rest of the qualifying events are over, the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee then chooses the last 70 at-large bids for the NCAA tournament. That decision is announced March 11, and the actual NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships are on March 19-21 in St. Louis.
The ACC will get 29 of the automatic spots.
ACC Wrestler to Watch: Joey Dance, Virginia Tech
Joey Dance is the No. 1 seed in the 125-pound bracket and one of 10 individual Virginia Tech wrestlers at the event. The Hokies are attempting to defend their back-to-back titles at the event and send as many wrestlers as they can to the NCAA championships.
Dance could very well be their best chance.
According to Virginia Tech’s official website, Dance is 24-2 on the season, 15-1 in duals and 5-0 in the ACC. In other words, he is a wrestling machine, and he has to be considered the favorite to take home the title in the 125-pound competition.
He was named a 2014 All-American and the 2014 ACC Freshman of the Year and continues to improve as he picks up more experience. He placed in third at last season’s ACC Championships, which was good enough to qualify for Nationals. He will certainly be going for an even better performance this season.
Among Dance’s numerous accomplishments this season, he pinned No. 18 Sean Boyle, beat No. 13 Josh Rodriguez of North Dakota State, knocked off No. 10 Nathan Tomasello of Ohio State and finished in second place at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.
Dance also took home the 2015 Midlands Championship title with a 5-0 record over the two-day event. Virginia Tech coach Kevin Dresser commented on his whole team’s performance at the event, via HokieSports.com:
“This was a really good team effort. We had many good things happen this weekend! I know this much, we need to get back in the practice room. This team could be really good if we progress. We need to get healthy to make a serious run this season.”
Dance has dominated on the mat this season, and now all that stands in his way for a truly special campaign is an impressive performance in the postseason. It starts at the ACC Championship and will almost assuredly finish with a formidable showing in Nationals.
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