Cavalier Corner

February 2015

Cavalier Corner is the publication just for UVa sports fans!

Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/451067

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 54 of 56

cavalier profile NICK SULZER Redshirt Fourth-Year • Wrestling Redshirt fourth-year Nick Sulzer doesn't lose often. The two-time All-American has dropped just four matches over the past two cam- paigns, and his career winning percentage of .814 (105-24) ranks eighth in Virginia history. When he does lose, he makes sure it becomes a learning experi- ence. That was the case in early January after the nation's second- ranked grappler at 165 pounds fell in the Southern Scuffle final to 2014 national champion Alex Dieringer of Oklahoma State. It marked Sulzer's only loss of the season through mid-January, but he was intent upon using it to his advantage. "That's when I learn the most," he explained. "I'm willing to learn through losses, when I have been humbled a little bit. I'm able to go back and look on film at where I messed up and where I did well." Sulzer is just the second Wahoo wrestler to earn multiple All- America laurels, but there is still one feat he could be the first in program annals to accomplish — winning a national title. That is his focus after he placed eighth during the 2012-13 campaign and fourth last year. "The next step is first," he said. "I still have to figure out a few things to get there, but I'm going to play around with my formula to hope- fully find the right one. "My sights are set high, and a national championship is the last thing on my to-do list." Although no Cavalier wrestler has ever claimed an NCAA crown, Sulzer has some valuable resources in his corner. Head coach Steve Garland placed second in the country while wrestling for Virginia in 2000, and assistant coaches Jordan Leen and Keith Gavin were both gold medalists during their collegiate careers. "To be surrounded by people who have been that successful, you take on that persona," Sulzer explained. "They give me a tre- mendous amount of confidence. Any time you wrestle with them and they tell you that you're something special, you really begin to believe it. "My coaches and teammates, we all believe in each other. We have a lot of guys on the team that could win a national championship." — Ryan Tice ◆ Photo by Jim Daves/courtesy UVa

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of Cavalier Corner - February 2015