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2022 CC All-Conference (Wrestling)

Wrestling Sends Five To All-Conference Accolades

| By: Todd Anderson, Associate AD/Strategic Initiatives
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Five UNC Pembroke wrestlers are heading to the NCAA Division II Championships with a little more bling this weekend as Nick Daggett, Jake Piccirilli, Rahsaan Vereen, Bryce Walker and Zach Shaffer were all crowned with All-South Atlantic Conference Carolinas laurels on Tuesday, the league office announced.
 
It is the third-straight year that the Black & Gold has sent multiple student-athletes to all-conference nods. Daggett (125 pounds), who picked up All-Mountain East Conference nods in each of the last two seasons, raked in first team All-Conference Carolinas recognition on Tuesday, as did Bryce Walker (197) and Zach Shaffer (285). Piccirilli (149) and Vereen (165) were both named to the second team.
 
Daggett, who secured his fourth NCAA region title on February 26 in Pembroke, has churned out a 23-4 record this season, including a 7-1 mark against conference opponents. The four-time NCAA qualifier and Goldston product has tallied a dozen bonus-point victories along the way, including nine technical fall wins, and racked up 59 team points in dual meets, while surrendering just six. Daggett, who has been among the nation's top-ranked wrestlers in the 125-pound weight class all season, also registered a pair of wins against nationally-ranked foes.
 
Piccirilli, a freshman from Woodstock, Ga., has compiled a 21-10 record as a rookie for the Braves, including a 6-2 mark against conference opponents. He placed at three tournaments, including first-place honors at the Pembroke Classic, as well as a third-place finish at the NCAA Super Regional II Tournament. Eight of his wins have come with bonus points, including four technical falls and a pair of pins, and he will head to the national stage this weekend having captured 11 of his last 13 bouts.
 
Vereen has rattled off a 22-11 record, including a 6-2 mark against conference opponents, in his redshirt sophomore season with the Braves, while also placing at four tournaments, including runner-up finishes at both the Georgia Open and the NCAA Super Regional II tournaments. The North Myrtle Beach, S.C., product has seven bonus point wins in 2021-22, including four pins and three major decisions, and has won eight of his last 10 matches heading into the weekend.
 
A two-time NCAA qualifier, Walker has racked up a 16-7 record so far, including a perfect 6-0 mark against South Atlantic Conference Carolinas opponents. The Greensboro native has placed at two tournaments in 2021-22, including top honors at the Pembroke Classic and a runner-up finish at the NCAA Super Regional II tournament. Six of his wins have come with bonus points, and one has come against a nationally-ranked opponent. He, two, has won 11 of his last 13 matches heading into the NCAA Championships.
 
Shaffer, a who joined the Black & Gold prior to this season after competing at Ferrum as a freshman, has logged a team-best 29-4 record, including a perfect 8-0 mark against league foes this season and an 11-0 clip in dual meets. The Red Lion, Pa., product has placed at four tournaments, including wins at the Pembroke Classic, the Georgia Open and the NCAA Super Regional II tournaments. He has 10 bonus point wins this season, including five pins and a pair of technical falls, and will take a 13-match win streak into this weekend's NCAA Championships. 
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