Penn Wrestling Edges Virginia in Hard-Fought Dual Meet
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Virginia’s wrestling team concluded its 2025 schedule with a narrow 24-16 defeat against Penn on Saturday. Despite the loss, the team demonstrated resilience in the face of significant adversity, according to team leadership. The Hoos will resume competition at the Southern Scuffle, hosted by Chattanooga, on January 3, 2026.
A Test of Character for the Hoos
The Virginia coaching staff expressed immense pride in the team’s performance, even in defeat. “Our guys wrestled their absolute hearts out tonight,” a senior coach stated. “I’m more proud of them after this loss than I was after yesterday’s wins. That may sound crazy, but our guys showed up and stepped up when we got hit with about as much adversity as you can in the last 24 hours.”
The team faced a challenging situation leading up to the dual meet, losing two starters in competition and having a 125-pound wrestler sidelined due to illness. This resulted in a crucial forfeit that significantly impacted the match’s outcome. “We lost two starters yesterday in competition and then our 125 pounder got the stomach flu. He wasn’t physically able to go, so we had to forfeit. That was one of the biggest differences in the end result of the match.”
Key Match Results
The dual meet featured several closely contested bouts. Here’s a breakdown of the individual results:
- 157: No. 24 Colton Washleski defeated No. 10 Jude Swisher 7-4 (sudden victory-1) – UVA 3, PENN 0
- 165: No. 31 Sean Seefeldt defeated Michael Murphy 4-1 (tiebreaker-1) – UVA 3, PENN 0
- 174: Caden Bellis defeated Emmitt Sherlock 1-0 – PENN 6, UVA 3
- 184: Jack Lesher defeated Greyson Meak by technical fall, 15-0 (3:41) – UVA 8, PENN 6
- 197: Steven Burrell defeated Martin Cosgrove 11-8 (sudden victory-1) – UVA 11, PENN 6
- 285: Brennan Morgan defeated John Pardo by technical fall, 16-0 (3:41) – UVA 16, PENN 6
- 125: Davis Motyka won by forfeit – UVA 16, PENN 12
- 133: No. 14 Evan Mougalian pinned Kyle Montaperto (2:12) – PENN 18, UVA 16
- 141: CH Composto defeated Kyren Butler 6-5 – PENN 21, UVA 16
- 149: No. 4 Cross Wasilewski defeated Wynton Denkins 4-2 – PENN 24, UVA 16
Looking Ahead
Despite the setback, the Virginia coaching staff remains optimistic. “Regardless of that, though, we had some huge wins tonight. We wrestled really hard when it counted most in the third period and that we can absolutely build on.” The team will use the break to regroup and prepare for the Southern Scuffle in January, aiming to capitalize on the lessons learned from this challenging dual meet.
