Caleb Henson is a national finalistCaleb Henson is a national finalist
Wrestling

Caleb Henson is a national finalist

KANSAS CITY, MO – Caleb Henson is wrestling for a national title on Saturday night at 7 p.m. EST live on ESPN. The Virginia Tech wrestling sophomore became just the fourth NCAA finalist to advance to the finals after a masterclass performance over No. 1 Ridge Lovett of Nebraska on Friday night in T-Mobile Arena. Henson's finals appearance is just the fifth time a Hokie as made it to the championship's finale. Virginia Tech also secured three other All-American finishes with Bryce Andonian, Mekhi Lewis, and Thomas Stewart, Jr. all wrestling Saturday morning for podium placement at 11 a.m. EST.


 
The Hitman Secures Finals Berth
No. 4 Caleb Henson avenged a regular season loss to the nation's top-ranked wrestler, and it couldn't have come at a better time with higher stakes. In a highly anticipated semifinal clash, it was the Hokie who topped the Cornhusker on Friday night with a 1-0 decision. After a scoreless, chess battle in the first period, Henson would take neutral to begin the second period and nearly score on multiple attempts, but Lovett just had enough to fend Henson off. With the score still knotted at zero, Lovett elected to start the third on top. Henson would work and be awarded an escape :30 into the period. The Hokie would still pepper attacks before time expired and hang to win, adding his name to program history with his finals appearance.


 
Henson joins Devin Carter (141, 2014), Jared Haught (197, 2018), and Mekhi Lewis (165, 2019; 174, 2022) as Tech's all-time finalists and will look to become Tech's just second national champion (Lewis, 2019).
 
Lewis Makes History
Already with a Hall of Fame resume to his name, the most accomplished wrestler in program history and decorated student-athlete in Virginia Tech history added another milestone by becoming the program's first four-time NCAA All-American on Friday night. Lewis would battle and defeat Iowa's No. 12 Patrick Kennedy en route to history with an 8-4 decision. Following his blood round performance, Lewis would secure another victory over No. 18 Ben Pasuik of Army West Point and punch a ticket to the consolation semifinals on Saturday morning with a chance to finish third at his final NCAA appearance – the fourth top-four finish in program history, also a feat never been done in program history.


 
Andonian Battles, Drops Semifinal Heartbreaker
The most exciting wrestler in the country put on a show in the semifinals, pushing No. 1 seed and returning finalist, Penn State's Levi Haines to the brink on Friday night. After a scoreless first period, Andonian would secure an escape in the second period. Haines would fire off attempts, but Andonian's defense would prove stalwart as the period expired. The Nittany Lion would take bottom to begin the final frame and would get an escape before the Hokie would fire a blast double for the lead. Haines would find an escape and get a takedown of his own to take the lead, but Andonian would find an escape to tie it up. Haines would fire off again with Andonian attempting a roll through but would get caught in a fall to drop to the consolation bracket to battle back for third in his final NCAA Championship.

The Freshman All-American
Thomas Stewart, Jr. continued his electric freshman campaign with an All-American honor coming by way of defeating multiple-time All-American No. 14 Chris Foca of Cornell. Stewart would strike first to lead 3-1 after Foca's escape in the first period. That proved to be the only takedown of the bout and deciding factor as Foca would garner another escape in the bout. Stewart would continue to look for another score, eventually holding on to secure All-American status in his first trip to the national championship. Stewart would then battle another multiple time All-American No. 6 Bernie Truax (PSU) and nearly pick up a win but would get countered with seconds left in the bout to drop to the seventh-place bout at 184-pounds on Saturday morning.


 
Action for Andonian, Lewis, and Stewart resumes at 10 a.m. EST for All-American placement on ESPN+. Henson takes to the finals at 7 p.m. EST live on ESPN.
 
Semifinal Results
149-pounds – No. 4 Caleb Henson (VT) DEC No. 1 Ridge Lovett (NEB), 1-0
157-pounds – No. 12 Bryce Andonian (VT) fall No. 1 Levi Haines (PSU), 6:49, 5-5
 
Consolation Quarterfinals
174-pounds – No. 1 Mekhi Lewis (VT) DEC No. 18 Ben Pasuik (ARMY), 4-0
184-pounds – No. 7 Thomas Stewart, Jr. (VT) loss No. 6 Bernie Truax (PSU), 1-5
 
Round of 12/Blood Round Results
174-pounds – No. 1 Mekhi Lewis (VT) DEC No. 12 Patrick Kennedy (IOWA), 8-4
184-pounds – No. 7 Thomas Stewart, Jr. (VT) DEC No. 14 Chris Foca (COR), 3-2
197-pounds – No. 26 Andy Smith (VT) loss No. 4 Michael Beard (LEH), 0-8
285-pounds – No. 26 Hunter Catka (VT) loss No. 6 Zach Elam (MIZ), 0-1