Tar Heels Crush Northern Colorado in a 40-0 Shutout

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The 23rd-ranked University of North Carolina wrestling team launched the dual meet season with an emphatic 40-0 victory over Northern Colorado at Carmichael Arena, showcasing a youthful and energetic squad full of promise for the 2025-26 season.

The Tar Heels, featuring seven new starters in the lineup, demonstrated depth and talent across the board, securing three technical falls, one major decision, five decisions, and a forfeit in the dominant shutout. Redshirt-freshman Luke Simcox set the tone early at 141 pounds, earning his first official collegiate dual win with a commanding 15-0 technical fall. Simcox spoke enthusiastically about his debut, saying, “I’m here to wrestle, perform, I’m here to put on a show for the fans… I just love, kinda just like, going out and wrestling and loving to wrestle, that’s it” and credited his success to disciplined preparation: “to be the best of the best, you gotta do everything right… sleeping and everything like that… Nothing’s stopping me this year” .

Continuing the strong start, true freshman Nate Askew followed with a tight 4-2 decision, marking his first dual victory. Senior standout Laird Root then made a statement at 157 pounds with a 14-4 major decision, highlighted by his speed and strength. Simcox praised Root’s performance, noting, “He’s a strong kid, so I think he’s freaking fast… we’ve been working really hard for this moment, so there’s a lot to come with us, for sure” .

Freshmen Bryce Heppner, Joshua Ogunsanya, and Jake Dailey kept the offensive pressure up through three consecutive decisions in favor of the Tar Heels. Coach Rob Koll gave special recognition to his freshmen, emphasizing the challenge and promise of starting five freshmen on the lineup: “It kind of gives you kind of a taste of the future… it bodes well for this, the future, if we knock off a team” .

Highlighting individual perseverance, Koll noted 125-pounder Kysen Terukina’s victory in his Carolina debut despite recent injuries, saying, “We didn’t know what the heck was going to happen, but he looked particularly good, considering it’s his first match of the year” . Terukina’s 6-2 decision helped close out the day on a strong note. At the bottom of the lineup, redshirt-freshman Robert Platt and heavyweight Nolan Neves claimed back-to-back technical falls, adding to the blowout margin.

Coach Koll also touched on the depth that challenges the lineup, mentioning promising wrestlers like Nick O’Neill who are awaiting their chance to compete due to the team’s depth at certain weights. “Nick is a kid who actually probably needs to get down to 141… we have Luke Simcox at 141, and we’ve got Nate Askew at 149, so that’s a good problem to have” he explained, underscoring the competitive environment in the wrestling room .

The team’s focus remains firmly on growth and long-term success, with Koll highlighting the developmental mindset. “We have a countdown clock as you walk in our room, it says count days until Nationals… we’ll watch what we didn’t do well… we need to finish, we need to do that, we need to do second shots,” Koll said, stressing continual self-evaluation as key to improvement .

Reflecting on the successful start, Koll contrasted this year’s opener with last year’s more challenging one, reinforcing optimism for the season ahead. Simcox echoed that energy, expressing gratitude and determination: “I’m so confident, I’m ready to go… nothing’s stopping me this year” .

Final Results

125: No. 25 Kysen Terukina (UNC) over Aydan Thomas (Northern Colorado): 6-2 Dec

133: No. 20 Ethan Oakley (UNC) over No. 13 Dominick Serrano (Northern Colorado): Forfeit

141: No. 19 Luke Simcox (UNC) over KJ Evans (Northern Colorado): 15-0 TF

149: Nate Askew (UNC) over Emilio Trujillo (Northern Colorado): 4-2 Dec

157: Laird Root (UNC) over Daishun Rowe (Northern Colorado): 14-4 MD

165: No. 19 Bryce Hepner (UNC) over Kilian Schultz (Northern Colorado): 8-5 Dec

174: No. 15 Joshua Ogunsanya (UNC) over Murphy Menke (Northern Colorado): 7-1 Dec

184: Jake Dailey (UNC) over Mahonri Rushton (Northern Colorado): 4-3 Dec

197: No. 32 Robert Platt (UNC) over Andrew Donahue (Northern Colorado): 17-2 TF

285: No. 25 Nolan Neves (UNC) over Enzo Cappabianca (Northern Colorado): 21-4 TF