Feb. 3, 2001

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The University of North Carolina wrestling team gave head coach Bill Lam's his 350th career win Saturday night as the Tar Heels beat Atlantic Coast Conference rival Virginia 24-12 at Carmichael Auditorium. With the victory, the Tar Heels improve to 5-4 on the season, 2-0 in the ACC, while Virginia falls to 4-6, 1-2 in the ACC.

As the result of a random draw, the heavyweight match was the first of the night, and Carolina's Matt Kenny was able to take an 8-4 decision over Ryan Painter to put the Tar Heels ahead 3-0. Chris Collins followed with a 17-2 technical fall on Ryan Stewart at 125 pounds and Carolina was out to a quick 8-0 lead.

At 133 pounds, Brad Byers defeated Joe Alexander, 11-9, but needed every second of the match to get the victory. Byers trailed 7-9 with less than 10 seconds remaining but was able to score a takedown and a two-point near fall in the final seconds to take the match.

Mike Booth lost a hard-fought 3-2 decision to Virginia's Bob Seidel at 141 pounds, but at 149 pounds, Tar Heel JohnMark Bentley took 10-3 decision to give Carolina a 14-3 advantage. With the victory, Bentley improves to 22-1 for the season.

Carolina's Chris DiGuiseppe followed Bentley's win with a 3-1 decision over Don Carlos-Clauss at 157 pounds. Virginia's Greg Francesca then beat Jake Reynolds by medical forfeit in the 165-pound match to pull the Cavaliers to within eight at 17-9, but a Corey Bell 10-1 major decision at 174 pounds put the Tar Heels ahead 21-9 with only two matches remaining.

At 184 pounds, Nick Richmond fell to the Cavalier's Jimi Massey, 11-6, but Carolina's Clint Osborn got the decision in the final match of the night, using a five-point second period to defeat Zach Friday, 6-1.

The Tar Heels return to action on Tuesday, Feb. 6, when they travel to Durham to face the Duke Blue Devils at 7:30 p.m. The Cavaliers are back on the mat on Sunday, Feb. 4, when they travel to Norfolk, Va. to face Old Dominion.

Scoring Summary

Virginia 		12
North Carolina		24

Wgt.	Opponents						Results		Score V/N
HWT	Matt Kenny (UNC) def. Ryan Painter (UVa)		8-4		0-3
125	Chris Collin (UNC) def. Ryan Stewart (UVa)		TF 17-2		0-8
133	Brad Byers (UNC) def. Joe Alexander (UVa)		11-9		0-11
141	Bob Seidel (UVa) def. Mike Booth (UNC)			3-2		3-11
149	John Mark Bentley (UNC) def. P.J. Bory (UVa)		10-3		3-14
157	Chris DiGuiseppe (UNC) def. Don Carlos-Clauss (UVa)	3-1		3-17
165	Greg Francesca (UVa) med. forf. Jake Reynolds (UNC)	Med. Forfeit	9-17
174	Corey Bell (UNC) def. Brian Muir (UVa)			MD 10-1		9-21
184	Jimi Massey (UVa) def. Nick Richmond (UNC) 		11-6		12-21
197	Clint Osborn (UNC) def. Zach Freday (UVa)		6-1		12-24