Navy @ North Carolina

North Carolina beat Navy 20-17 at Chapel Hill on January 28, 2024. The dual at the University of North Carolina came down to bonus-point wrestling, with three matches that swung the team score and kept the outcome tight throughout.

The most decisive result for North Carolina was Spencer Moore’s 19-4 technical fall at 125 pounds, which produced five team points and created a cushion that ultimately mattered. That tech fall was UNC’s biggest single margin of victory and forced Navy to rely on bonus scoring of its own to stay in the match.

Navy answered with two bonus wins that nearly erased the deficit. Andrew Cerniglia’s fall at 165 pounds provided six team points and was the largest single swing for the Midshipmen, while Grady Griess closed with a 17-2 technical fall at 285 for five more team points. Those bonus outcomes accounted for 11 Navy points and turned the dual into a one-score affair, but they were not enough to overcome Moore’s earlier tech fall and the rest of North Carolina’s scoring.

With bonus-point finishes deciding the margin, the meet finished 20-17 in favor of North Carolina. The trio of bonus victories highlighted the dual, and Navy’s late run of extra-point results made for a close finish that fell three points short of a Midshipmen comeback.