THWC Preview: Emma Bruntil vs Macey Kilty

Chapel Hill, NC – – The Tar Heel Wrestling Club is presenting a 15-match lineup as they join the growing number of stand-alone and recurring card-style events on Friday night.

For the first time on a lineup of all but one men’s matches, the women’s match is the main event—and the matchup is main-event worthy. Tar Heel WC wrestler Macey Kilty and McKendree’s Emma Bruntil will have a rematch of the 2019 Senior Nationals semifinal. This showcase is a great move for wrestling and an actionable follow-up on behalf of Head Coach Coleman Scott’s penned support for women’s wrestling at the University of North Carolina. 

Macey Kilty had dominant performances as the back-to-back 62 kg champion at UWW Junior and U23 Nationals in Omaha last month. She defeated 59 kg U23 Champion Desiree Zavala between Flo’s 8-Man Challenge bracket and was a finalist at Senior Nationals in October. Emma Bruntil’s final tournament performance for the 2019-20 college season culminated into a championship win at the inaugural National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships in March. Her college season included wins at the Missouri Valley and Simon Fraser open tournaments. 

History shows that both wrestlers are diligent in match position and consistent pressure. And until the 62 kg semifinals at Senior Nationals last year the two had always been at different weight classes. Bruntil won by decision 6-4, but the match was a grind. Kilty has one of the best sweep singles in the world. She’s had dominating success with it at each national event this fall, and that’s the attack Kilty used to lead in the match with Bruntil last year; a single takedown in the first period and a single takedown in the second giving her a 4-0 lead. But Bruntil fired right back with an ankle pick turned 4-pointer right after one of those Kilty singles and snatched the lead by criteria into the final minute. Kilty attempted a throw in the final seconds, but Bruntil stepped over and won the match 6-4. In their corners were Head Coaches Coleman Scott (UNC) and Sam Schmitz (McKendree). 

With a year of development since their last match, fans should expect to see a battle between these two. The Tar Heel Freestyle Open is scheduled for Friday, December 4th at 7 PM CST on Fite TV.