Virginia Tech fell eight points short of North Carolina State in the Feb. 23 dual meet season finale, but the upcoming Atlantic Coast Conference Championships provides the Hokies with an opportunity to put an end to the Wolfpack’s five-year tournament reign.

Tech took four of the first five bouts against State, but the #3 Wolfpack rang up five straight wins to earn a 20-12 win and hand the #8 Hokies just their fourth loss in 13 matches this season.

VT’s March 10 trip to the University of North Carolina for the ACCs/NCAA qualifier can’t come soon enough. The Hokies’ last ACC tournament titles came in 2017 and 2018.

“I think it's been deeper in the recent past than it is this year, to be quite honest with you, but it's really solid, and we're gonna have to wrestle really well,” Virginia Tech coach Tony Robie said about the ACC. “There's a lot of good guys, a lot of good teams and a lot of well-coached kids.

“(The ACC) lost two NCAA champs with (UNC’s Austin) O'Connor and (Pitt’s Nino) Boniccorsi, so whenever you lose an NCAA champ out of your lineup, that's gonna affect your team. But overall, I think if you look at recruiting and if you look at trajectory, it’s pretty solid. I feel it's gonna be really competitive for a long time.”

The NCAA allotted the ACC 28 automatic qualifiers, 14 over the first six weights and 14 more over the final four. Final dual-meet rankings point toward a two-team race between Tech and State, with Pittsburgh, North Carolina and Virginia. chipping in with enough stars to shake things up.

The Hokies will hit Chapel Hill with five top-10 wrestlers, including a pair of #2s in Caleb Henson at 149 and Mekhi Lewis at 174. The expected return of All-American and #8 Bryce Andonian at 157 would boost the Hokies’ chances, and high-placing finishes from #13 Sam Latona at 133, #16 Connor Brady at 165 and new #10 TJ Stewart at 184 also would expand VT’s title prospects.

“The ACC Championships are important for every sport at our school, so it's just as important this year as it is every other year,” Robie said. “We’ve put ourselves in a position to do it, and we're excited to have the opportunity to do it.”

Saying Goodbye To Mekhi

Mekhi Lewis showed up in Blacksburg nearly seven years ago and it will be difficult for Robie to part ways with him and his family.

“I'm really close with his mom and his dad as well … just tremendous people and getting to know them over the years and really getting to know Mekhi has been an awesome experience,” Robie said. “I think it's something that I'll look back upon years from now and have real fond memories of it. 

“He's a competitor and he's done a ton for our program, winning the first national title, getting to the finals twice. He elevated it. I think when you look at programs, especially our program from where we were when we first got here to where we are now, there's certain guys that come in and they kind of elevate the standard. Mekhi has definitely done that.”

Aside from becoming Tech’s only NCAA champion, the 174-pounder has a 119-11 career record and is aiming for his fourth ACC crown. He’s been taken down just six times in his career and the points he’s given up this year to his opponents have been escapes only.

Robie noted that Lewis had to overcome injuries and adversity. “Just to see how he's handled that and gotten better from it in all areas of his life, he's gonna go on to do great things in whatever he decides to do,” Robie said. “Mekhi, like a lot of the guys that you coach, you just have really good relationships with.”

Andonian Leaves His Mark On The Program

Robie has a similar relationship with Bryce Andonian, a four-time NCAA qualifier at 149 and 157 and two-time All-American who is 65-22 entering the postseason.

“I think he's grown more as a person than he has a wrestler, and that's been really cool to see,” Robie said. “He’s really matured. When Bryce arrived on campus, he was 17 years old and didn’t turn 18 until after the semester started his freshman year of college. He's really grown up and become a man and taking responsibility. He's in a much different, better place than he was when he arrived.”

Like Lewis, Robie said he’s close with Andonian’s family and noted that Andonian is a “fun” wrestler to coach.

“He's a fun kid to have on the team, for sure,” Robie said. “He's more fun now than he was when he was young, I promise you that. But I think his biggest impact is he's great for our crowds and people love watching him wrestle. His style of wrestling is incredibly exciting, and there's never a dull moment; I think that’s his biggest impact. 

“I know that they (Lewis and Andonian) are both really excited about the end of the season. They're both in great places mentally and emotionally and they're fired up to give it one last crack.”