Six UNC wrestlers will compete in the NCAA tournament this week

UNC wrestling wrapped up their ACC tournament appearance last week, placing fourth overall in the standings. The Heels had three wrestlers make it to the championship match of their respective weights. Bryce Hepner managed to win his final match and was crowned the ACC champion in the 165lb weight class. Hepner’s ACC individual championship is UNC’s first since 2023, and the first Carolina 165lb champ since 2009.

 

UNC ultimately ended up sending six wrestlers to the NCAA championships that will be held on March 19th-21st in Cleveland, Ohio. Their seeding and matchups are below:

Kysen Terukina (125lbs): Terukina finished the year with a 13-6 overall record and was given the 19 seed in what will be his fourth NCAA tournament appearance (first at UNC). Terukina won two matches in the ACC tournament despite posting a 1-3 record in conference play. He will face off against #14 seed Jacob Moran of Indiana in the first round.

 

Luke Simcox (141lbs): After redshirting last season, Simcox had an excellent freshman season. Simcox finished with a 13-6 record including a 2-1 record in ACC play. He was the runner up in the ACC tournament, just barely losing to the top seeded Stanford wrestler by a 4-3 decision. He will make his first NCAA tournament appearance as a 12 seed; his opening opponent will be 21st seeded Oklahoma wrestler Tyler Well.

Laird Root (157lbs): Another redshirt freshman, Root finished with a 16-11 overall record including two wins in the ACC championship. Root was given the #30 seed in the NCAA tournament. He will face off against the third overall seed Meyer Shapiro from Cornell.

 

Bryce Hepner (165lbs): Hepner entered the ACC tournament as the fourth seed but reeled off three straight wins to claim the championship. This included a win over the number one seed, NC State wrestler Will Denny. The grad student had a breakout season, posting a 15-4 record (7-4 ACC). He will be UNC’s highest seeded wrestler in the NCAA tournament this year as a nine seed; Hepner will see 24th seeded Sean Seefeldt from Penn in his first match.