Hampton, Virginia – The University of Findlay wrestling team concluded the 2026 Virginia Duals on Saturday, January 10 with another impressive day of competition. Competing in the semifinals of the 16-team tournament after going 2-0 yesterday, the Roughnecks got Saturday started with a 22-21 victory over Newberry College to advance to the championship. In that dual for the title, Findlay took on the 10th ranked team in the country, Glenville State. The dual went down to the wire again but this time, the Roughnecks came up on the short end, losing 25-20 to finish runner-up in the tournament.
Billy Smith opened the night strong for Findlay at 125, scoring 11 points in the first period to go on to a 16-11 victory. Newberry answered quickly, however, as Caiden Pelc outpaced Nate Knowlton in another offensive battle at 133, and Cole McCullough delivered a jolt at 141 with a pin in just 43 seconds.
Findlay steadied itself at 149, where Micah Cotrell rolled to a 15-3 major decision, but Newberry surged again in the middleweights.
The Roughnecks, trailing 18-7 at this point, responded with their own burst of bonus points. Zachary Taylor shut out his opponent 16-0 at 174, and Chase Stein added a first-period pin at 184, finishing his match in 1:48. Those two pulled the Roughnecks and Wolves even at 18-all.
Newberry regained ground at 197 with a 5-0 decision from John Parker-Wilson that put them in front by three, but heavyweight #10-ranked Giulian Bodiu closed the dual on a high note for Findlay, powering to an 18-5 major decision that scored four points and gave the Roughnecks the victory in a thrilling dual that sent Findlay to the championship round.
Then taking on tenth-ranked Glenville State, Findlay first got on the board at 133 pounds when Nate Knowlton took down Zachary Parker. Knowlton jumped out to a 10-2 lead through the first period and went on to a dominating 20-5 tech fall victory. At 149, Micah Cotrell stuck Glenville's Ethan Mitchell in just 2:49, a win that made the score 11-8 in favor of the Roughnecks.
Zachary Taylor was Findlay's next win, defeating Ethan Lopez at 174 pounds. Taylor used a takedown and a nearfall to outscore his opponent 6-2 in the second period, taking control of the match. He went on to an 8-6 decision.
Another big win came at 184 pounds when Findlay's Chase Stein, who lost the first period 4-3, pinned his opponent early in the second period to score six points. That victory put UF in front 20-16 with just two bouts remaining.
Ronnie Thomas was pinned, putting UF down 22-20. The title came down to the heavyweights. Giulian Bodiu, ranked tenth in the country, led 3-2 through the first period but was outscored 9-1 the rest of the way, ultimately losing 11-4 to Colby Whitehill, the No. 8 heavyweight in the country.
Semifinal
Findlay defeated Newberry College 22-21
125 - #9 Billy Smith (Findlay) over Ricky Springs (Newberry College) Dec 16-11
133 - Caiden Pelc (Newberry College) over Nate Knowlton (Findlay) Dec 17-11
141 - Cole McCullough (Newberry College) over Sawyer Smith (Findlay) Fall 0:43
149 - Micah Cotrell (Findlay) over Sebastian Melendez (Newberry College) Maj 15-3
157 - Matt Hoelke (Newberry College) over Andrew Parish (Findlay) Maj 11-1
165 - #13 Bo Perkins (Newberry College) over Diego Chavez (Findlay) TF 17-0
174 - Zachary Taylor (Findlay) over Donovan Hawthorne (Newberry College) TF 16-0
184 - Chase Stein (Findlay) over Hayven Jenkins (Newberry College) Fall 1:48
197 - #12 John Parker-Wilson (Newberry College) over Ronnie Thomas (Findlay) Dec 5-0
285 - #10 Giulian Bodiu (Findlay) over Rylan Madison (Newberry College) Maj 18-5
Championship
Glenville State University defeated Findlay 25-20
125 - #8 Colton Drousias (Glenville State University) over #9 Billy Smith (Findlay) SV-1 4-1
133 - Nate Knowlton (Findlay) over Zachary Parker (Glenville State University) TF 20-5
141 - #2 Ethan Hardy (Glenville State University) over Sawyer Smith (Findlay) TF 15-0
149 - Micah Cotrell (Findlay) over Ethan Mitchell (Glenville State University) Fall 2:49
157 - Moses Eads (Glenville State University) over Andrew Parish (Findlay) Dec 12-6
165 - Connor Holm (Glenville State University) over Gavin Idleman (Findlay) TF 16-0
174 - Zachary Taylor (Findlay) over Ethan Lopez (Glenville State University) Dec 8-6
184 - Chase Stein (Findlay) over Max Borton (Glenville State University) Fall 3:28
197 - #3 Nicholas Johnson (Glenville State University) over Ronnie Thomas (Findlay) Fall 2:55
285 - #8 Colby Whitehill (Glenville State University) over #10 Giulian Bodiu (Findlay) Dec 11-4
