Issue date: 4/16/08 Section: Features

Media Credit: Derek Adelman Taryn Capizzano is preparing to compete in this year's National North American Tournament for Billiards in July. [Click to enlarge]

Media Credit: Derek Adelman [Click to enlarge]

She enjoys hanging out with her friends, cooking and playing video games, but one thing that separates senior Taryn Capizzano from other students is that she is one of the first from Sacramento State to be in the National North American Tournament for Billiards.

The tournament includes competitors from California, Nevada, Hawaii, Guam and Australia and will be held at Minnesota State University from July 10-12.

With so many experiences it is hard to remember defining moments, but for Capizzano it won't be.

Standing just at 5 feet 3 inches tall, the soft-spoken business administration major will be taking on the best of the best in the National Tournament.

"I started playing just for fun," Capizzano said.

Actually, she started from humble beginnings. One day after class her sophomore year, Capizzano and her friends went to the recreational room in the University Union to play some pool.

"I never actually took it seriously. It was fun and I was really into math then and billiards is all about math and angles," she said.

Billiards, also known as pool, is generally played on a table with six pockets and includes eight-ball, nine-ball, one pocket or bank pool.

Historically, billiards has been a game that rich, white males played for bragging rights. Today there are associations for men and women and there can be a lot of money won for those who perfect their craft.

Capizzano generally plays nine-ball. Nine-ball uses only the 1 through 9 balls and cue ball. It is a game of rotations and angles and people who are good at math usually excel at billiards - just like her.

So after beating all her friends, Capizzano entered the recreational room pool tournament. After dominating that tourney, she went on to one-on-one tournaments and then signed up for Regionals, where Capizzano took first place and earned her spot at Nationals in July.

"I've only gone to one real tournament and that was Regionals and I won and now I'm going to Nationals," said Capizzano. "I'm mainly going to the Nationals for the experience and bragging rights. I think I may win some money too and as a student the money is an extra bonus."

Capizzano swears she is just like every other student. She crams for tests and hangs out with her friends. She rarely practices in the recreational room at the Union anymore because she is short on money. She mainly watches tournaments on television and learns from that.

Capizzano doesn't even live in Sacramento. She travels back and forth from Vacaville every day to come to school, so the only time she is on campus is to go to class. She doesn't even own a pool table.

When asked what her strongest asset was, she said her ability to bank shots. She does the same thing every time she sets up her shot.

"The number one thing is to stay relaxed; if you tense up you lose your game," Capizzano said. "I always chalk up, stay down and follow through and I make it every time."

A fierce competitor, she likes to play against players who are better than she is; it makes her a better player.

Although she remains optimistic about the National Tournament, one thing she knows for sure is that her family and friends are very supportive. Her twin sister jokes about how she isn't going to win but Capizzano knows that everyone is rooting for her.

Norma Sanchez, Program Services Manager for the union, is one of the many people that has supported Capizzano along the way.

"She would come in between classes and practice," Sanchez said.

"She would play against the guys because there aren't a lot of women who play billiards," Sanchez said.

In fact Sanchez said that it was Capizzano's personal drive to, "put those guys in their place" that made her such a good competitor.

So for now, Capizzano is lying back and taking it all in.

A self-proclaimed nerd, she likes to figure out puzzles and Rubik's Cubes. She is still an active member in her co-ed business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi and is involved in numerous community service projects. All she really wants to do is get through this semester, graduate and start her life.

So, when asked if she would go professional if she won Nationals, her answer was no.

"I really just want to graduate and go on a long vacation,"Capizzano said. "I don't have any plans to pursue a professional career in billiards. I don't even have a nickname."

Yasmine Bikul can be reached at ybikul@statehornet.com

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