Feb. 9, 2006

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - After wrestling to a 16-16 tie Jan. 20, North Carolina and NC State square off for a second time this season at 7 p.m. Saturday at Reynolds Coliseum. The Tar Heels, who defeated Duke and Virginia Tech last week, hope to close out the Atlantic Coast Conference stretch of their dual schedule with a third straight victory.

In the earlier meeting, Carolina (14-8-1, 2-2-1 ACC) rallied from a 12-point deficit with wins in the last four bouts to force the draw with State. Junior Spencer Nadolsky notched a 3-1 win over Jainor Palma at heavyweight in the final match to secure the tie.

Nadolsky, who is ranked 12th nationally in his class, leads the Tar Heels with 36 victories against just four losses. He is 20-2 in duals and also has a team-best 11 pins.

Carolina redshirt freshman Vincent Ramirez is coming off his second ACC Wrestler of the Week honor and brings a 33-6 record Saturday's match. He has won 12 straight bouts and is a perfect 5-0 in ACC action. He scored a 9-0 major decision over the Pack's Jalil Dozier earlier this season.

Alex Maciag (21-13), Justin Dobies (26-12) and David Dashiell (29-9) were also victorious against NC State in the January meeting.

The Wolfpack (9-4-1, 1-1-1 ACC) is led by Palma (22-6) and freshman Joe Carmanica, who is 20-6 at 149. Redshirt freshman Ryan Goodman is 16-3 at 197 and is ranked No. 13 nationally.

Following Saturday's action, the Tar Heels close out the dual match portion of the schedule against Old Dominion Feb. 19 at Carmichael Auditorium.