A collegiate wrestling dual-match lasts seven minutes and is broken down into an opening three-minute period followed by two two-minute periods. The match does not have to last the full seven minutes; if one wrestler pins the other by putting him on his shoulder blades and keeping him there, the first wrestler wins.
Winning by pin, or "fall," is not the most common form of victory in collegiate wrestling, however, because it is not something for which every wrestler is built.
"As far as ... pinning ability goes, that's something I feel like there's guys that pin, there's guys that don't pin," Virginia coach Steve Garland said. "Coach [Scott] Moore was a guy who pinned everybody. I didn't hardly pin anyone ... and I think it's just something that comes naturally."
Pinning is something that does come naturally to Virginia junior Rocco Caponi, who was recently named the ACC Wrestler of the Week because he won two matches in one weekend and his last four, by pin. Wrestling at 184 pounds, Caponi leads the Cavaliers in overall record (34-2) and dual record (19-1) and is second in pins (11), though Caponi himself has yet to be pinned this season.
Garland said Caponi's natural ability to pin, and to avoid being pinned, comes in part from his athleticism and in part from his "mat sense."
Caponi is "a really good athlete, a really good wrestler," Garland said, adding that Caponi "has really good 'mat sense.'" In other words, Garland said, Caponi has that sense to get himself out of jams and also to scramble out of situations where normal wrestlers would be "dead to rights."
Caponi will "find his way out of that situation and find a way nine times out of 10 to come out on top. I think that's because of his mat sense," Garland said.
Recently, Caponi's hard work and mat sense have been paying dividends. During the week for which he was honored by the ACC -- ending Feb. 10 -- Caponi recorded two pins against N.C. State and Duke -- and needed only 1:48 to accomplish it. In fact, in the Cavaliers' last four dual meets, he has recorded a pin in each and has been on the mat for a total of 4:39 -- almost two and a half minutes fewer than a full collegiate match.
Caponi's fastest pin came Feb. 2 against Campbell University junior Steven Higgins and lasted only 25 seconds.
Caponi is "so gifted, he went right out, locked it up, threw the guy, pinned him," Garland said. "Very rarely do you ever seen a pin that quick in collegiate Division I wrestling."
Caponi said he used a move he and a high school coach invented that he doesn't usually use in meets, but this time he decided to give it a try.
"I go out and just lock it up, and I'm thinking in my head, 'Ah heck, I'll just go for it,'" Caponi said. "It's a type of throw, and I just launched it and ended up pinning him real quick."
Garland added that he didn't know about it until afterwards and if he had known about it, he would have told Caponi not to do it, a sentiment he attributed to his hesitancy toward risk-taking on the mat.
In contrast to the quickness of that fall, Caponi recorded a pin Nov. 17 against Michigan State sophomore Nick Palmieri after 6:36 had elapsed, 24 seconds before the end of regulation. While the quick pin came on a predetermined gamble, Caponi said this pin presented itself when Palmieri fortuitously paused.
"That one was just me realizing that he paused," Caponi said. "In wrestling, a half-second pause is the difference between getting a pin or getting a take-down a lot of times. And I was just in the right position to capitalize on his mistakes."
Garland added that after seizing the opportunity, Caponi forced the pin with sheer will.
"He just made it happen -- he was in an over/under position and he muscled him over, and he threw his hips down and caught the kid, and before you knew it, the kid couldn't move, and ... he sunk his hips in and pinned the guy," Garland said. "This one he really had to work for it. I think it is a big difference and sometimes you really have to fight, fight, fight."
Caponi also found out that sometimes fighting is not enough. The first of Caponi's two losses came in the championship bout of the Southern Scuffle against Boise State freshman Kirk Smith, who beat then-No. 18 Maryland junior Josh Haines en route to the match with Caponi. Garland said Caponi did not open up and take any chances, and that may have cost him the match.
Caponi "didn't take any chances, and he ended up getting in on the guy's leg -- if he gets that reversal he wins the bout," Garland said. "And the kid fought him off, because, quite frankly, [Caponi] had just come off Christmas break and wasn't in the shape he should have been."
Smith outlasted Caponi 1-0, and the two now sit eighth and 13th, respectively, in the national rankings at 184 pounds.
Caponi added that sometimes one's best effort, even for the full seven minutes, does not mean that a wrestler will come out ahead.
"I worked as hard as I could that match and for those seven minutes I just wasn't good enough," Caponi said. "It was completely put on my shoulders and I was the one that lost that match."
Garland emphasized the positive side of the loss -- the extra motivation that kind of outcome can give a wrestler.
"I actually was almost happy with the loss because it took pressure off him and gave him some extra motivation for the next couple weeks," Garland said. "He actually wrestled great at the Virginia Duals. He opened up a lot on everybody."
This is the third ACC Wrestler of the Week honor Caponi has received, including one his freshman year and a second earlier this season. When asked about the award, Caponi said in the grand scheme of things it may not seem significant, but it does carry its own weight.
"It's more good publicity for the school, and I'm always honored that the ACC would notice what I've been doing this year," Caponi said. "It's good to have those little things along the way that show you that extra run yesterday paid off, those extra workouts I'm doing all week are paying off."
He added that it's hard to train throughout the long season and focus only on one goal, but that having little peaks in-between helps keep your spirits up.
Hopefully Caponi will benefit from that confidence boost this weekend when he faces Haines in one of his season's most important matches. Should Caponi win the match, he will earn the top-seed at the ACC Championships. Garland said this weekend is huge for Caponi.
"He wins this, he's the top seed in the conference, " Garland said. "That's a big, big deal. That weight class, Rocco's weight class, in my opinion, is the toughest weight class of the tournament, bar none."
Caponi added that while it's always fun to compete in big matches, this match is interesting because he is friends with Haines, a fact that gives the match additional implications.
"When you're wrestling a guy that you know and you're friends with there's always a little bit more on the line -- personal pride, bragging rights," Caponi said. "It's a big match from an ACC standpoint, a rankings standpoint, but it's also a big match from apersonal standpoint"
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