DULUTH, Ga. (WDBJ/Hokie Sports) – Sixth-seeded Virginia Tech fought back from a 14-point deficit late in the first quarter, rallying for a 62-54 victory over No. 11 seed Georgia Tech in the second round of the 2026 Ally ACC Women’s Tournament Thursday evening.

The Hokies, who move to 23-8 overall on the season, earned their first ACC Tournament victory in the Megan Duffy era. Tech moves on to the quarterfinal round for the first time since 2024.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Virginia Tech faced a four-point deficit until Leila Wells (7:15) stepped up for a three-pointer to keep the Hokies within reach early. Her triple would be Tech’s only field goal until the final 40 seconds of the opening quarter. Carleigh Wenzel provided a late spark for the Hokies, getting down the lane (0:40) and hitting a basket (0:18) in the final minute to stop the run, but Georgia Tech carried a 17–7 lead into the second quarter.

Playing inspired, the Hokies sprinted out of the break for five straight points with layups from Samyha Suffren (9:50) and Mackenzie Nelson (9:28), along with a make at the stripe from Wenzel, to close to 17-12 at the 8:12 mark. The momentum continued to swing in Tech’s favor as it ripped off 15 straight points, a run ignited by Suffren’s (7:44) fast-break lay-in and capped by a Carys Baker (1:33) triple to give the Hokies a 27-19 lead. Free throws closed out the half for both sides as Virginia Tech headed into the locker room with a 29-23 edge. The Hokies forced six turnovers in the second period, scoring 10 points off the Yellow Jackets’ miscues.

Both sides traded baskets to kick off the second half before Tech knocked down consecutive makes from beyond the arc, the first from Wells (8:31) and the second from Nelson (7:59), to stretch the advantage to double figures, 37-27. It remained a back-and-forth game until Baker’s free throws with 3:35 remaining in the period gave the Hokies their largest lead of the contest at 48-37. Georgia Tech closed out the frame scoring six unanswered as the margin narrowed to 50-46 in favor of Tech at the end of the third.

The Yellow Jackets’ run continued into the fourth quarter as the score moved to 50-48 at the 9:26 mark. Virginia Tech rattled off seven consecutive points, including a three-pointer from Wenzel (7:08), to push ahead by nine with 4:44 remaining, 57-48. Suffren pulled up for a jumper outside the paint with just over a minute left in the contest, but Georgia Tech finished with a layup at the buzzer as Virginia Tech closed out the 62-54 victory.

GAME NOTES

• Virginia Tech won their first game as a six-seed in the ACC Tournament (1-0) and first against Georgia Tech (1-2) in program history
• The Hokies have now won four of their last five opening contests in the conference tournament
• Tech also earned their first ACC Tournament victory in the Megan Duffy era
• Virginia Tech controlled the glass, 41-36
• The Hokies held the Yellow Jackets to six points in the second quarter, matching the fewest by an opponent in a quarter this season (last versus Loyola MD on Nov. 9, 2025)
• Guard Carleigh Wenzel paced Tech in scoring with 15 points for her 15th-straight game in double figures
• Redshirt sophomore Mackenzie Nelson followed with a near double-double of 14 points and a career-high nine rebounds
• Nelson also tallied six assists, two assists, one block, and committed zero turnovers
• Guard Leila Wells put together eight points and a career-best six rebounds in 15 minutes of action
• Samyha Suffren registered her career-best five assists

UP NEXT

Virginia Tech advances to the Quarterfinal Round of the 2026 Ally ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament Friday, March 6 against third-seeded North Carolina at 7:30 p.m. on ACC Network.

Copyright 2026 WDBJ. All rights reserved.

— Story by David Walsh, Photo gallery by Will Wotring

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Divisions I and II are going as expected after Thursday night’s opening round in the 78^th West Virginia High School State Wrestling Tournament at Mountain Health Network Arena. University, seeking a third straight large school title, and Parkersburg found themselves in the top two in the standings on a night dominated by pins as No. 1 seeds would beat up on No. 4 seeds.

University started the event minus two competitors. One did not make weight and the other, who won a state title a year ago, is not competing as he’s recovering from a football injury.

One competitor delivering big for the Hawks is Maximus Fortier, a junior who transferred in from Fairmont Senior. While there, he won the state title as a freshman at 144 with a final record of 41-1. He competes at 165 now and is 36-2 after winning with a first-round pin Thursday night.

“Come down, support the team and try to win,” Fortier said of his battle plan. “Wrestle the way we know how.”

Fortier and the Hawks won the Ron Mauck OVAC title, the WSAZ Invitational and West Virginia Duals during the season. He competed in two major tournaments as well. He went 2-2 in the Ironman and won his weight class in the Powerade Tournament which attracts the top teams in the nation.

“Wasn’t ready,” he said about the Ironman. “Did my thing at Powerade. It was big.”

Fortier said support at his new school grows every day.

“They treat me like family,” he said.

Strategy for the State Tournament is simple.

“Wrestle the way we know how to wrestle,” Fortier said.

University capitalized on a strong finish in the heavier weights and leads with 47 points. Parkersburg, which finished second here last year, trails with 39.5. Cabell Midland is third with 37.5 and Huntington fourth with 32.5.

Ripley is in year two in Division II. The Vikings placed sixth a year ago. They came to town as the Region 4 winner and qualified 11 with nine taking first and the other two second. Ripley leads after Thursday with 38 points thanks to wins by pin or major fall. Independence is second with 27 and Keyser third with 25.5. Cameron is the leader in Division III with 16 points.

The tournament continues Friday with sessions at 11:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. On Saturday, the girls have their state with action starting at 8 a.m. The boys begin at 10:30.

Championship finals are Saturday night at 6:30. Wrestlers are now seeded prior to the tournament and the pill breaks deadlocks.

During the season, Ripley won the West Virginia Duals, beat Herbert Hoover twice, Point Pleasant and also got wins over Parkersburg South and Huntington.

DALLAS – Dallas City Council members approved a measure to explore options for leaving Dallas City Hall while, but left the door open to staying in the iconic building.

Resolution to explore leaving City Hall passes

What we know:

The resolution approved will explore options to buy or lease a new City Hall building. It was amended to include a plan to pay for repairs to the current building that would be compared side by side to the options to leave.

Dallas City Council approved the resolution by a 9-6 vote. The vote came around 1 a.m. Thursday morning after 14 hours of debate.

Councilman Chad West told FOX 4’s Lori Brown that if the city decides to stay or leave City Hall, the resolution includes proposals to redevelop the land around the building.

“We still should be looking at redevelopment options to tie it into the convention center later on, because otherwise it just equals ghost town, which is what we have now,” West said. “And of course, if we decide to move and City Hall itself gets repurposed or demolished and something gets built there, we need to have a projected plan for what that could look like as well.”

Debate on City Hall’s future

Local perspective:

Around 100 residents spoke about their desire to keep the current Dallas City Hall, the historic structure designed by architect I.M. Pei.

“The thought of losing this land to private hands is disheartening. A paid-off asset, unfair to taxpayers, built on what is here,” Meredith Jones, a Dallas resident, said.

“The decision belongs to the people, not the city council,” David Boss, the former manager of Dallas City Hall, said.

Several questioned why the price tag for a repair is public knowledge, but the cost for a move isn’t.

“The public deserves to know the value of the land we are giving up. Dallas deserves a careful decision, not a rushed one,” resident Azael Alvarez said.

Future Mavs arena looms large

Dallas City Council went back and forth on the resolution, amending it before it finally passed. Much of the conversation revolved around the Dallas Mavericks’ potential interest in the site for a new arena.

Mayor Eric Johnson lamented that conversation revolved around the Mavs’ future and not City Hall itself.

“A  conversation about a particular sports team and where you want them should never have been part of the conversation because that was not what was infront of us,” Johnson said. “I’ve never seen such vehement opposition to gathering more information.”

Councilwoman Cara Mendelsohn wore a Mavericks T-shirt to a recent hearing due to the continued conversation around them.

“We’re talking a lot about the Mavs. They’re the elephant in the room, but they’re actually not here, so let’s at least let them have a seat at the horseshoe,” Mendelsohn said on Monday.

Residents were also upset at the idea of City Hall being bulldozed to make way for a new Mavs arena.

“The Mavericks were ridiculed nationally, and still are. Worst trade in the history of the NBA,” one resident said Monday. “The decision to knock this building down without all the facts and allowing the people to make the decision is your Luka Dončić trade.”

A potential 10-digit repair cost

The backstory:

Experts who assessed Dallas City Hall said the 47-year-old building’s mechanical, plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and electrical systems don’t meet modern standards. 

It put a $906 million to $1.4 billion price tag on keeping the iconic building, which was designed by the famous Chinese architect I.M. Pei, for another 20 years.

Downtown Dallas Inc., an advocacy group for Downtown Dallas, said last week they support leaving the current City Hall site.

“We believe Dallas City Hall is no longer serving its intended purpose. The important functions that happen and must continue to be evolved and innovated within our city government are inefficient and truly stymied in that space,” said Jennifer Scripps, President and CEO of Downtown Dallas Inc. told the crowd. “Our board called a special called meeting and voted unanimously in support of pursuing options to relocate City Hall and redevelop the site. We were we feel that the opportunity is huge.”