On Sunday, January 7th the #10 Virginia Tech Hokies will travel to Ithaca to take on #6 Cornell in one of the best duals of the weekend. This dual is set to go down at 3:00 pm (ET) and will feature several top-ranked matches from start to finish. Take a look at the below article to see the projected lineups as well as a breakdown and predictions for each match.

Projected Lineups:

125: #16 Brett Ungar, Cornell vs #11 Cooper Flynn, Virginia Tech

133: #2 Vito Arujau, Cornell vs #11 Sam Latona, Virginia Tech

141: #10 Vince Cornella, Cornell vs #16 Tom Crook Virginia Tech

149: Ethan Fernandez, Cornell vs #2 Caleb Henson, Virginia Tech

157: #15 Meyer Shapiro, Cornell vs #8 Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech

165: #4 Julian Ramirez, Cornell vs #25 Connor Brady, Virginia Tech

174: Benny Baker, Cornell vs #2 Mekhi Lewis, Virginia Tech

184: #7 Chris Foca, Cornell vs #16 Sam Fisher/Dakota Howard, Virginia Tech

197: #8 Jacob Cardenas, Cornell vs #22 Andy Smith/Sonny Sasso, Virginia Tech

285: #19 Lewis Fernandes, Cornell vs #20 Hunter Catka, Virginia Tech

125: #16 Brett Ungar, Cornell vs #11 Cooper Flynn, Virginia Tech

Both Ungar and Flynn have had up-and-down seasons to this point and have proven to have the ability to challenge for a national title. Flynn was in redshirt for most of the first half of the season before he took out then #1 Nico Provo in mid-December. Since that win, Flynn dropped matches to Luke Stanich and Eric Barnett but responded Tuesday night with an overtime win against Noah Surtin.

Ungar had a great CKLV taking second by defeating Brandon Kaylor and Michael DeAugustino before losing to Nico Provo in the finals. Since then, Ungar dropped a bout to Pitt’s Colton Camacho and will be looking to get back on track against Flynn. Ungar and Flynn have never wrestled in college and I believe this match will be decided by a takedown or less. In my opinion, Flynn has more ways to score on his feet, so I give him the edge on Sunday.

Prediction: Flynn by decision

Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 3, Cornell 0

133: #2 Vito Arujau, Cornell vs #11 Sam Latona, Virginia Tech

Sam Latona shocked everyone when he defeated Vito Arujau during this dual meet last season - 3-2. However, Arujau avenged that loss at the 2023 NCAA Tournament and ultimately won the 133-pound national title. Arujau is the favorite in this matchup and holds a 3-1 career record over Latona. However, it is worth noting that Arujau has only wrestled 5 matches this year and hasn’t been in action since December 18th. Does that limited action mean Aruaju is battling injuries or does it mean he’s been resting and now fully healthy? We'll find out when he takes the mat against Latona on Sunday!

Prediction: Arujau by decision

Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 3, Cornell 3

Highlights of Vito Arujau’s win over Sam Latona at the 2023 NCAA Tournament

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141: #10 Vince Cornella, Cornell vs #16 Tom Crook Virginia Tech

Last year, Vince Cornella defeated Tom Crook in their matchup in this dual by a major decision, 12-3. Cornella should probably be considered the favorite again here but it’s worth noting that Cornella has struggled slightly this year holding a 7-6 record with bonus point losses to Anthony Echemendia, Tagen Jamison, and Jesse Mendez. Crook looks a little fresher after wrestling the first half of the season at 149. Most recently, Crook looked great in his win against Josh Edmond and I think he’ll carry that momentum into this match against Cornella. 

Prediction: Crook by decision

Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 6, Cornell 3

149: Ethan Fernandez, Cornell vs #2 Caleb Henson, Virginia Tech

Caleb Henson has been ultra-impressive in the first half of the season accumulating an 18-1 record with 12 of his wins coming by bonus points - 2 pins, 7 techs, and 3 majors. Henson will be a huge favorite against Fernandez and I expect Henson to push for bonus points with a major likely and a tech within reach.

Prediction: Henson by major decision

Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 10, Cornell 3

157: #15 Meyer Shapiro, Cornell vs #8 Bryce Andonian, Virginia Tech

Meyer Shapiro and Bryce Andonian had one of the most fun matches of the season when the two met last month at the CKLV. In that match, Shapiro got ahead early and won almost every single scramble to come out on top 16-4. 

While that looks like a dominating win on paper, Bryce Andonian is known for wrestling wild matches and we should never expect the same match strategy twice from the Hokie. With that in mind, I’m guessing we see a slightly more reserved Andonian in this matchup and for this match to be much closer. Of course, this is Bryce Andonian we’re talking about and he could go crazy again resulting in another 20-point match.

Prediction: Shapiro by decision

Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 10, Cornell 6

Meyer Shapiro's win over Bryce Andonian at the 2023 CKLV:

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165: #4 Julian Ramirez, Cornell vs #25 Connor Brady, Virginia Tech

Julian Ramirez is off to a phenomenal start this year with a 10-1 record highlighted by a 4-3 win over David Carr at the CKLV. While he is a 3-time national qualifier, Connor Brady doesn’t have any results that suggest he’ll be able to knock off Julian Ramirez. It’s also worth noting that Ramirez won this matchup 3-0 last year and we should expect a similar, low-scoring decision win for Ramirez on Sunday.

Prediction: Ramirez by decision

Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 10, Cornell 9

Julian Ramirez’s win over David Carr at the 2023 CKLV:

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174: Benny Baker, Cornell vs #2 Mekhi Lewis, Virginia Tech

3-time All-American and national champion Mekhi Lewis will enter his match against Benny Baker as a huge favorite and will likely push for bonus points. Baker has been solid this year with a 12-5 record but has been pinned twice by wrestlers far below Lewis’ level. Lewis is one of the best in the country regardless of weight and anything less than bonus points will be a disappointment for the Hokies in this match.

Prediction: Lewis by tech fall

Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 15, Cornell 9

Mekhi Lewis’ recent tech-fall win over Missouri’s James Conway:

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184: #7 Chris Foca, Cornell vs #16 Sam Fisher/Dakota Howard, Virginia Tech

After a rocky start in his move up to 184, Chris Foca looks to have hit his stride at his new weight class. At the CKLV, Foca surprisingly lost two matches to Sam Wolf and Aaron Ayzerov. However, since then Foca defeated Will Feldkamp (8-7) and Reece Heller (18-1). 

It will be interesting to see who Virginia Tech rolls out on Sunday against Foca. Sam Fisher is currently ranked and the most credentialed of Tech’s 184-pounders. Fisher started the first half of the season for the Hokies and recorded several ranked wins. However, lately Dakota Howard has been manning the 184-pound spot for Virginia Tech and hasn’t had the same success as Fisher. Most recently, Howard was majored by Missouri’s Clayton Whiting on Tuesday night, 11-3. Foca will be the favorite either way but bonus points might be in reach for Foca depending on who he matches up against from Virginia Tech. 

Prediction: Foca by decision

Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 15, Cornell 12

197: #8 Jacob Cardenas, Cornell vs #22 Andy Smith/Sonny Sasso, Virginia Tech

Like at 184 pounds, All-American Jacob Cardenas will be a big favorite against whoever takes the mat for the Hokies. Both Andy Smith and Sonny Sasso are solid, but combined are 0-3 against Cardenas. Smith has lost two matches (10-3 and 3-2) while Sasso was majored by Cardenas at the CKLV (14-4). With that in mind, I expect Smith to take the mat and for Cardenas to win a controlling decision.

Prediction: Cardenas by decision

Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 15, Cornell 15

285: #19 Lewis Fernandes, Cornell vs #20 Hunter Catka, Virginia Tech

If my predictions hold, and if the dual starts at 125 pounds, this dual meet could come down to the match at heavyweight between Lewis Fernandes and Hunter Catka. Interestingly enough, these two just wrestled last month at the CKLV where Fernandes won in a 9-3 decision. However, that score doesn’t tell the full story of that match.

In Vegas, Catka took a 3-1 lead into the second period after scoring an early takedown. Catka was actually in on Fernandes’ legs again and almost finished another takedown at the end of the first period. Then in the second, Fernandes chose top and got to work securing a 4-point near fall from a turn to take a 5-3 lead into the third period. Catka then chose neutral in the third but surrendered a late takedown for the final score of the match.

Despite that result, with a few adjustments, Catka is absolutely capable of defeating Fernandes. He’ll have to capitalize on more of his leg attacks and be much more vigilant from the bottom position. I’m still rolling with Fernandes on Sunday but this will be a fascinating matchup to watch.

Lewis Fernandes' win over Hunter Catka at the 2023 CKLV:

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Prediction: Fernandes by decision

Final Dual Score Prediction: Virginia Tech 15, Cornell 18

Dual Summary

Regardless of the final outcome of this dual, all ten matches should be an incredible showcase of wrestling. I have Cornell winning by one match, but with so many toss-ups I doubt it will play out on the mat as I've written in the above article. Again, this is a "can't miss" dual that's scheduled to start at 3:00 pm (ET) on Sunday and can be viewed on ESPN+.