Just a week prior in Raleigh, N.C., the Cavaliers stood toe-to-toe with then-No. 9 NC State. Losing by just a two-point margin to a ranked conference opponent, Coach Garland’s squad looked like they had embraced an underdog role.
Given a second chance in front of a home crowd Friday evening for the first time in nearly a year, they faltered. No. 13 North Carolina would win seven of 10 matchups, more than enough to notch a road victory. Maybe it was the pressure of the home opener under the bright lights of John Paul Jones Arena, maybe it was a lack of technique, maybe it was a need for rest. Whatever it was, it was too much to handle.
The Tar Heels (8-1, 1-0 ACC) sent the Cavaliers (8-5, 0-2 ACC) home with a final score of 25-10. Senior Keyveon Roller, senior Nick Hamilton and junior Wynton Denkins recorded the only Virginia victories for the dual. Garland expected to see more from his team if Virginia wanted to compete with its ranked ACC foe.
“We wrestled really well last week, and the goal was to replicate the way we competed last week today … and we just didn’t,” Garland said. “Last week… we had the first takedown every match, I think. It didn’t happen this time.”
Things started rough for Virginia when sophomore Gable Porter, a Cavalier standout at 141, quickly went down seven points in the opening seconds of the dual. A seemingly well-timed shot at opponent, No. 20 Luke Simcox, ended with Porter subjected to a near fall and a point deficit he was unable to overcome.
“Gable Porter had a beautiful turn right off the bat with a low double and it’s [a takedown] seven days a week and twice on Sunday, but instead of that somehow he winds up not getting the [takedown] and ending up on his back for seven,” Garland said. “That’s kind of the way the night went.”
Denkins would tie the dual in the next match at 149. His overtime period takedown clinched Virginia’s first points of the night. From there, the North Carolina lineup began to take control, tallying 19 points to Virginia's three. The Cavaliers often slipped up in just one or two crucial moments of the match, reflected by just two bonus point victories for North Carolina. Finally, Roller’s major decision win helped stop the bleeding and edge the Cavaliers into double-digit points.
Roller, making his return after missing the previous dual due to concussion protocol, continued his winning ways. His win over North Carolina’s Cameron Stinson Jr. improved Roller to 13-3 on the season, good enough to be ranked No. 23 nationally at 125.
“Keyveon Roller looked amazing coming off concussion protocols. He couldn’t have looked better and looked so crisp.” Garland said,” ”But, again, really big mistakes at the worst times are what cost us. We need to somehow get our knowledge of the sport into their heads, and that’s the trick for any coach.”
Garland touched on several weaknesses after the match, identifying aspects in which his crew fell short and places he will challenge them to improve. Perhaps, the long-awaited home opener created a sense of pressure.
“We’re finally at home,” Garland said. “Good freaking golly we’re finally here. Maybe it was too much. Maybe it’s because they haven’t been [at home] yet … They want to perform so much that they underperform.”
Or perhaps a lack of execution is what sunk Virginia.
“Not only were we getting out [strategized] by them, but we were getting beat on technique that we should know better,” Garland said. “So I got to figure out how I get our knowledge as coaches into their brains and have them actually do it.”
Either way, the ACC schedule grind stops for no team. Virginia will wrestle No. 24 Stanford at 5 p.m. Jan. 24 in Charlottesville, hosted at the Aquatic and Fitness Center due to ongoing Memorial Gymnasium renovations. Stanford posted a similarly tight loss to shared opponent NC State — a 21-20 nailbiter — as well as an ACC dual win over Duke, something Virginia will continue to hunt for. Garland believes his team will be ready for its next test.
“They usually respond when I challenge them,” Garland said. “You can’t go run this one off on the treadmill. You’ve got to go wrestle.”
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