Virginia Tech.
When spoken, these two words make many Cavaliers cringe and grimace. This sentiment is shared by the Virginia wrestling team, which will take on the Hokies Saturday in Richmond at the Rumble on the River. Before the action against Virginia Tech, the squad will face George Mason Friday in Hopewell, Va.
The Cavaliers (8-7, 0-1 ACC) have split with the Hokies (15-1, 0-0 ACC) in Virginia coach Steve Garland’s first two years, and they will be looking to avenge last season’s disappointing performance during which the Cavaliers lost 16-18, despite being favored in nearly every weight class.
The Hokies have had an impressive season up to this point, earning a No. 13 ranking in the country. They finished fourth at the Southern Scuffle in Greensboro, N.C. earlier this season, while the Cavaliers placed seventh. The Hokies also have two wins against top-25 opponents, recently upsetting No. 6 Central Michigan in Mt. Pleasant, Mich. last Sunday and beating No. 17 Michigan the day before in Ann Arbor.
The Cavaliers will have their hands full this year if they hope to play spoiler to the Hokies; Virginia finds itself in the opposite position it was in last season, with the Hokies now ranked higher and favored in most of the weight classes.
“We are out for blood this year because of what happened last year,” senior Rocco Caponi said. “We were supposed to beat them. On paper we were a better team, and when it came down to wrestling on the mat, we weren’t that day. It is a bit of a vendetta this year.”
The match against Virginia Tech Saturday will be the final dual meet against the Hokies for senior starters Caponi, Mike Sewell and Peter Ferrara. Since the trio has been on the team, the Cavaliers have gone 2-1 against the Hokies with wins in 2006 and 2007. Recently, the Cavaliers have had the Hokies’ number, beating them in four out the last six years. It will be their last chance to leave their mark on what is perhaps the biggest school rivalry in Virginia.
“Not only would a win against Tech mean a lot for us as a team, being able to come together and support each other and pull through in the face of adversity and all of these setbacks, but it would [mean] so much to me being a senior,” Ferrara said.
Caponi and Ferrara hope the match will be payback for losses suffered last year as well as earlier this season. Ferrara, who wrestles at 149 pounds, will face No. 20 Hokie freshman Pete Yates, to whom he lost earlier this season at the Southern Scuffle.
Caponi, meanwhile, had a disappointing loss last season at the Rumble on the River. He was No. 9 in the country at the time and was upset 5-2 by then-freshman Tommy Spellman, who he will likely face Saturday.
“It is also a bit of a personal match for me to make up for that loss,” Caponi said. “Every dual meet from here on does mean a lot because it is my last season. It is always nice to have bragging rights for after this year.”
Before the Cavaliers can even think about bragging rights, however, they will participate in a tilt with another in-state opponent, George Mason (4-6-1, 0-2 ACC). The matchup will mark the Patriots’ first match against an ACC opponent since the team fell 22-18 to Virginia Tech in George Mason’s season opener.
Between the two matches, the Cavaliers hope to be able to pull off a hallmark win — they have yet to record a victory against a top-25 foe — to give them momentum going into the ACC Championships after a disappointing loss to North Carolina last weekend.
“We need a spark right now,” Garland said. “Our guys have so many injuries, it’s really starting to weigh on the hearts and minds of our wrestlers. It will be nice to see us come out and upset these guys.”
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