141-pound Shyheim Brown wrestles a Kutztown opponent at Comcast Center on Nov. 3, 2013.
Terrapins 141-pound wrestler Shyheim Brown stepped onto the mat against Pittsburgh on Dec. 6 of last year hoping to build on an impressive start in team competition after redshirting the season before.
The Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, native had won his first 11 matches — including a 5-0 victory over then-No. 4 Mike Nevinger of Cornell — and climbed to the eighth spot in the rankings entering his bout with Panthers grappler Edgar Bright at 141 pounds.
While Brown appeared to be the favorite, Bright, a freshman wrestling in his second career match, caught his opponent off guard. After earning a takedown early in the first period, Bright held off Brown for a 5-3 win and handed the redshirt sophomore his first career dual meet defeat in the Terps’ eventual 21-12 loss.
Nearly a year later, Brown will have the chance to avenge that humbling defeat. The Terps (4-3) and No. 11 Panthers (3-2) meet in Pittsburgh on Friday night, with Brown and Bright, now the No. 7 wrestler in his weight class, set for a rematch of last season’s unexpected upset.
“That was the first [opportunity] I really got at dealing with a loss in college,” Brown said. “I came up short, but just going into this time, I’m definitely more confident, and I’m really feeling good about my ability to go out and get this win.”
In last year’s bout, Brown said he struggled to come back after Bright captured an early lead. He wrestled conservatively for the remainder of the match and allowed Bright to squeak out the decision.
“[Shyheim] was ranked top-eight in the country, and then Bright came in and kind of knocked him off,” coach Kerry McCoy said. “That kind of set him back a little bit.”
After his loss to Bright, Brown quickly fell out of the national rankings and finished 9-9 in his final 18 matches. He earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships because of his accomplishments early in the season but was eliminated after losing two of his first three tournament bouts.
McCoy said at media day Oct. 7 that his 141-pound starter got caught up in the “high-school mentality.” The veteran coach said because of Brown’s early-season accomplishments and high ranking, he became complacent in training and in competition.
He added it wasn’t until the referees began raising opponents’ hands that Brown changed his mentality.
“It was important because it brought him back to that intensity level that, ‘You know what? I’ve worked hard all spring and summer, so now I’ve got to make sure I keep it up,’” McCoy said at media day.
Brown started this season at No. 19 in his weight class but has since fallen out of the rankings. Still, he’s experienced success in his third season in College Park. Brown won his first four matches before suffering a 4-2 loss to No. 15 Anthony Abidin of Nebraska on. Nov. 16.
After a pedestrian performance in the second half of last season, Brown said a change in style has helped wrestle more consistently.
“This year, I’m attacking more, my coaches are pushing me to get more takedowns and just scoring, scoring, scoring in all positions,” Brown said.
While the Terps will attempt to defeat the Panthers for the first time in three meetings, Brown hopes he can use his aggressiveness to earn an eye-opening win against Bright and redeem himself in the process.
“I’ve seen a lot more out of him the past couple of matches with him being more aggressive,” 174-pound Josh Snook said of Brown. “He’s going to be shocking the whole country real soon.”
