In 2009, three Terrapins wrestlers qualified for the NCAA Championships. That proved enough for an eventual 10th-place finish.
This year, with seven wrestlers competing, the Terps’ expectations were accordingly elevated. But as each wrestler fell in St. Louis last weekend, the dreams of a top-five finish came down with it. The Terps finished 31st, with 15.5 total team points and just one All-American. Penn State, Terps coach Kerry McCoy’s alma mater, won its second consecutive team title with 143 points.
“We had higher expectations,” McCoy said. “We had a team that could have done a lot better going out there.”
Of those who qualified, seventh-seeded Josh Asper (165 pounds) finished in sixth place and earned his second consecutive All-American honor. Asper had an opportunity to place in third, but lost decisions to Appalachian State’s Kyle Blevins and Virginia Tech rival Peter Yates, who handed Asper his first loss of the season in the ACC Tournament finals earlier this season.
“Ultimately when you look at it, that NCAA Tournament is a monster,” McCoy said. “Even the best guys out there sometimes don’t reach their goal, and you can’t have a less than perfect performance. We’ve only ever had two others be two-time All-Americans, so for [Asper] to step up and get it done is definitely a credit to his hard work and dedication.”
It could’ve gone better for McCoy, though. In the aptly described “monster” of a session, the Terps lost several one-point matches that could have meant the difference between points and an absence of them.
“We made a lot of little mistakes,” he said, noting that fourth-seeded Christian Boley (197) lost his first match after having a point revoked for grabbing Binghamton’s Cody Reed’s sock late in the third period.
“It was one of those things — human nature I guess. He might have thought he had his foot and he tried to pull his leg in, but that’s a tough call for a ref.”
Not all of the matches were that close. Kyle John (157) lost a 9-0 major decision in the opening round and an 8-5 decision in the wrestleback round. The only senior starter on the Terps’ roster, he finished his final season with the Terps short of his goal to become an NCAA champion.
“The thing with Kyle is he can honestly say he went out and did everything he could,” McCoy said. “You never want to make excuses but he ran into two really tough guys. He did everything possible and laid it all on the line. He fell a little bit short of his goals but that was not from a lack of effort. It just didn’t work out in his favor.”
Even amid the disappointment of the NCAA Championships, the season’s final note wasn’t all bad. Seven of the Terps were named to the All-ACC team Wednesday, the most in the conference. McCoy was also voted the ACC Coach of the Year for the second straight season and the third time in the past four seasons.
McCoy said the losses in the NCAA Championships will propel his wrestlers into their next season, inspiring them to hopefully work even harder.
“Those guys that are coming back are going to be extremely motivated to do even better,” McCoy said. “They know they were right there and now we have to step it up and pick up where we left off. We need to get back to where we can reset our goals and keep working. You don’t get over not achieving your goals but a lot of guys have a chance to come back next year and try again.”
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