The No. 22 Virginia matmen seized two critical ACC wins at Memorial Gymnasium this weekend, improving its conference record to 3-1 as the squad rolled over its two rivals from Tobacco Road - Duke and North Carolina.
The Cavaliers (6-1, 3-1 ACC) physically dominated their opponents, as both the Blue Devil and Tar Heel wrestlers quickly tired as the matches progressed.
"We're never stopping; we're getting leads and holding on to them," redshirt junior Matt Snyder said. "It's about beating the clock; not trying to beat your opponent, but trying to score as many points as you can in those seven minutes."
The Cavaliers cruised past the Blue Devils (0-4, 0-3 ACC) Friday night by a 39-3 margin and took nine of 10 weight classes, winning eight of the bouts by bonus. Virginia's lone loss came in the 141-pound weight class, at which senior Sam MacGregor - wrestling in place of injured redshirt senior Nick Nelson - dropped an 8-2 decision against freshman Tanner Hough.
Virginia coach Steve Garland attributed his wrestlers' overall dominance against Duke to their ability to ride their opponents and score near fall points.
"Our forte is we grind guys on top," Garland said. "Our goal is to be the best team in the country from that position."
Following their rout of Duke, the Cavaliers claimed a 24-10 victory against the Tar Heels (2-11, 1-2 ACC) Saturday afternoon. Although the score indicated another commanding performance by Virginia, the match proved to be a tight battle, as every weight class was highly contested. Only four of Virginia's seven triumphs came by bonus.
"We knew [the Tar Heels] matched up really well with us, and their record doesn't reflect how good they are," Garland said. "They've got nationally ranked guys up and down the lineup, and they always wrestle us tough, so I'm proud of the way our guys stuck with it. We didn't wrestle our best, but we still got a big in-conference win."
Leading the way for the Cavaliers, No. 10 Nelson returned to the starting lineup to face Tar Heel freshman phenom Evan Henderson during the day's most anticipated showdown. Nelson appeared to be in control during the entire match, as he methodically worked his way to a 7-4 decision.
"Success doesn't happen overnight; that attitude doesn't happen overnight," Nelson said. "It's something you constantly have to work on, constantly have to be disciplined and mindful of."
Nelson credited his continued success this season to "doing everything right, all year round, for the past five years."
Redshirt freshman Derek Papagianopoulous also rejoined the lineup, taking to the mat for the first time in two months. Spurred on by a raucous response from the crowd, the heavyweight wasted no time in posting two convincing major decisions during his first conference matches of the year.
"Derek's got a level of explosiveness that most heavyweights just can't stop," Garland said. "He gives them a different look that they're not used to, because when he hits it, he goes right through them."
Even after securing two victories, the team remains focused on correcting its minor flaws to prepare better for the postseason tournaments looming in March.
"We have less than two months left, and we need to keep working, keep getting better, learn from our mistakes, keep having fun and keep that passion," Nelson said. "It's such a grind, and it's so hard, but one thing that this team has really been great at is just having that passion every single day."
The Cavaliers continue their homestand Jan. 29 against No. 13 Maryland in their final conference matchup of the regular season.
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