No. 13 Stanford will host No. 6 NC State in a wrestling dual at Maples Pavilion on Friday at 7 p.m., marking a significant matchup in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). This event is notable as it is the first time that tickets are required for Stanford’s home duals, with both individual meet and season tickets available for purchase.
The two programs met for the first time last season in Raleigh, where NC State won six out of ten bouts to secure a 27-13 victory over Stanford. Notably, Stanford assistant coach Hayden Hidlay was previously a standout wrestler at NC State, earning five All-American honors and four ACC championships.
Stanford enters the match with eight wrestlers ranked individually by InterMat. The team holds the No. 13 spot in InterMat’s Tournament rankings, is No. 20 in Dual rankings, and sits at No. 24 in the NWCA Coaches Poll.
Recent results show that Stanford opened its ACC competition this year with a decisive 35-10 win over Duke, winning seven out of ten bouts, including six by bonus points—its highest team score in a dual this season.
Earlier this season, Stanford placed third as a team at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, with five wrestlers reaching the podium individually. At the Ken Kraft Midlands Championships in Evanston, Illinois, three Cardinal athletes achieved podium finishes.
Individual achievements include Aden Valencia being named ACC Wrestler of the Week on November 11 after defeating then-No. 2 Casey Swiderski of Oklahoma State. Jack Consiglio received conference honors following his performance at CKLV. These were their first weekly awards since Stanford joined the ACC.
Daniel Cardenas and Hunter Garvin also represented Stanford at the NWCA All-Star Classic earlier this season; Garvin secured a win while Cardenas lost in sudden victory.
Last season saw Stanford produce two All-Americans and achieve another top-20 finish at the NCAA Championships despite not fielding a competitor at 125 pounds all year. The team finished fifth at its first ACC Championships and qualified eight wrestlers for NCAAs in Philadelphia.
Hunter Garvin became a multiple-time NCAA All-American after placing sixth at 165 pounds for a second straight year. Tyler Knox also earned All-America honors as just the fourth freshman to do so for Stanford.
In program history milestones, Stanford won its first Ken Kraft Midlands Championships team title last year and claimed three individual crowns—a feat not accomplished since Ryan Mango’s win in 2012.
Stanford is led by Chris Ayres, who is serving his third season as head coach of the Cardinal and his twentieth overall as a collegiate head coach after leading Princeton’s program for seventeen years.
Probable matchups between ranked competitors are expected across several weight classes when No. 13 Stanford faces No. 6 NC State on Friday night.
