Editorial Draft (Fallback)
Generated fallback draft due to structured-output parse failure.
LEXINGTON, Va. — Davidson defeated Virginia Military Institute 24-18 in a Southern Conference dual on Feb. 7, 2026, at Virginia Military Institute.
Davidson built its margin with three technical falls that produced 15 team points. Anderson Heap opened the stretch with a 21-2 technical fall at 149, Tanner Peake followed with a 17-2 technical fall at 157, and Cody Kirk closed the run with a 23-6 technical fall at 184. The string of bonus victories gave Davidson its first lead of the dual and swung the team score in its favor.
VMI kept the dual competitive with three major decisions that prevented a shutout. Dyson Dunham won 16-4 at 141 to push the Keydets ahead early, Ryan Vigil earned a 14-3 major at 165, and Andrew Barford posted a 19-6 major at 197. Each major decision contributed four team points and repeatedly narrowed the margin after Davidson’s techs.
The dual opened with a forfeit at 125 that delivered an early six-point advantage to VMI. Davidson answered with a 6-5 decision from Kiyan Simon at 133, a comeback takedown late in the third period that supplied the Wildcats’ first scoring of the day.
After Dunham’s major put VMI up, Davidson’s technical-fall sequence at 149 and 157 produced the swing that put the Wildcats ahead 13-10. VMI regained ground at 165, but tight decisions at 174 and the 23-6 technical fall at 184 kept momentum with Davidson.
The heavyweight bout settled the final margin. With the teams deadlocked entering the last match, DJ Spring II beat Drake Garrison 11-5 in sudden-victory overtime, scoring a takedown and a three-point nearfall in overtime to secure the decision and the dual for Davidson.
Individual bouts featured several late or decisive sequences. Simon rallied with a third-period takedown with 42 seconds remaining to beat Kyle Gibson 6-5 at 133. Marc Koch’s riding-time point decided a 6-5 match at 174. Across the card, the technical falls and majors determined the bonus-point differential that decided the dual.
Davidson’s win was reflected in its team scoring: bonus-point victories accounted for the bulk of the Wildcats’ 24 points, while VMI’s three majors supplied 12 of the Keydets’ 18 points. The result gives Davidson a conference victory on the road and leaves VMI with a mixed set of bonus and decision results through the dual.
Final score: Davidson 24, Virginia Military Institute 18.