ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Virginia Tech's Matt Epperly dropped a 9-0 major decision to No. 8 seeded Moza Fay of Northern Iowa Thursday afternoon in the opening round of the 2008 NCAA Wrestling Championships being held at the Scottrade Center.

Fay scored quickly in the first period, converting a deep single into a takedown for a 2-0 lead. Fay had several chances for back points, but Epperly avoided the points by wiggling back and forth, allowing Fay to only get three one counts.

Epperly chose neutral in the second period and got in on a single, but Fay countered for his own takedown and then eventually picked up two near-fall points to take a 6-0 lead heading into the final stanza.

Fay started the third period on the bottom already having locked up riding time and quickly picked up a reversal to make it 8-0. He finished the match with over five minutes of riding time for the additional point.

Epperly, from Christiansburg, Va., drops into the consolation bracket and will now face Roger Smith-Bergsrud of Illinois Thursday evening in an elimination bout. Smith-Bergsrud took a 2-1 lead over ninth-seeded Trevor Stewert in the second round, but gave up an escape and a takedown in the third period to lose 4-2.