North Carolina’s Ethan Oakley went 2-1 in the ACC Tournament to advance to the NCAAs. (University of North Carolina photo)
DURHAM — It didn’t go exactly how Ethan Oakley planned, but the former Wheatmore wrestler earned a spot back in the NCAA championships.
In his first year competing for North Carolina, Oakley placed third in the 133-pound division in Sunday’s Athletic Coast Conference Tournament at Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium.
“At least I finished strong, so that was good,” Oakley said.
After reaching the NCAAs twice while at Appalachian State, Oakley sought a change of scenery and landed in Chapel Hill.
“Being in the same spot and going through the same routines, it’s a hard thing to do,” Oakley said. “Getting to a new environment and getting my weight under control (because) I struggled with it.”
Oakley built credentials at Appalachian State, becoming a 2024 Southern Conference champion. He graduated from there in business administration.
He’s in a masters program that involves entrepreneurship at North Carolina, where the 22-year-old said he found his wrestling groove.
“It has been a good transition,” Oakley said. “Being around the highest level coaches and highest level athletes, it has been really fun and it has opened my eyes on how I should be doing things. I’m starting to love the sport again.”
Oakley, who has one year of eligibility remaining after this season, said he’s stacking up various experiences. He said the freedom to make decisions about his wrestling is a responsibility he understands.
“Everything is kind of on you,” he said. “We also have a lot of resources. I got my nutrition under control and my weight. I think I beat a lot of good kids by just being disciplined.”
The NCAAs will be held March 20-22 in Philadelphia. Oakley went 2-2 in last year’s NCAAs, finishing the season with a 28-9 record.
“I got to make the most out of it,” he said.
Oakley was the top seed at 133 in the ACC Tournament, leading to three grueling matches.
“I knew it was going to be hard,” Oakley said. “Getting that No. 1 seed was a hard thing to do. I had to beat some good guys for it. It also reminded me that seeds don’t matter. You just got to go out there and wrestle.”
In the third-place bout against third-seeded Tyler Knox of Stanford, Oakley registered a takedown with two seconds left for a 3-1 decision. Knox had taken the lead with an escape at the beginning of the final period.
The second period ended with Oakley nearly notching a takedown, with North Carolina coaches challenging the ruling, but no points were awarded after a video review. Following Oakley’s takedown, he had to wait for Stanford’s challenge to be addressed before the victory was official.
Oakley received a first-round bye, leaving him with a semifinal matchup with North Carolina State’s Kai Orine, a two-time defending champion in the weight class.
Orine, who was seeded fourth, defeated Oakley 6-2 to avenge a regular-season loss. Oakley trailed 4-0 before a third-period reversal, but that’s all he could muster against Orine, who became the runner-up after falling in overtime to Virginia Tech’s Connor McGonagle in the final.
In the consolation semifinals, Oakley had a tussle with seventh-seeded Raymond Adams of Duke. Oakley’s 4-1 decision included a third-period takedown.
Defeating Adams and Knox created a boost and pushed his record to 21-5 this season.
“I’ve had close matches with those guys every time I’ve wrestled them,” Oakley said. “It’s hard to go out there and beat the best guys consistently. That was probably the best part, being able to come back and battle back.”
