Kerry McCoy was talking to a small scrum of reporters in Comcast Pavilion on Saturday night when 197-pound Christian Boley peered over at the Terrapins wrestling coach.
Boley promptly raced over to his coach and planted a kiss on his head.
“This is a photo bomb, straight up,” Boley said.
It was all smiles for Boley, whose 18th win of the season helped propel the Terps to a 37-7 thumping of Duke, recording their first home win since Nov. 3.
“We want to peak at the right time, at the end of the year,” McCoy said. “The focus is always on March. We’ve got to be our best in March. It’s tough to not have the performances you want to have early in the season, but when March comes around, no one’s going to remember them. It’s nice to be where we are.”
Though the Terps (6-8, 2-3) trudged through a challenging regular-season schedule, McCoy never expressed concern. As the season nears a close, the Terps are beginning to resemble the powerhouse they said they would be in the preseason.
The victory was their second in three matches, with the loss coming in a heartbreaking 16-15 defeat at Virginia last weekend.
The team did rely on its higher weight classes, as it often has this season, but the Terps received production up and down the roster. After 157-pound Ben Dorsay and 165-pound Josh Snook dropped decisions to open the night, 174-pound Ty Snook forced Trey Adamson’s shoulders to the mat, securing a pin and igniting a frenzied roar from the Terps fans.
“It’s always really good mentally for the team after having a couple of losses in a row,” Snook said. “Get that win, it really picks everybody’s mood up and sets a higher pace for us to go out there and wrestle with a lot of energy.”
The pins kept coming for the Terps. In the next match, 184-pound Jimmy Sheptock, top-ranked in his weight class, wasted little time, pinning Jacob Kasper at 2:29. Then, Boley, ranked No. 13, and No. 8 Spencer Myers recorded a decision and major decision, respectively, before 133-pound Tyler Goodwin pinned Evan Botwin at 2:29 to put the Terps ahead 31-7.
“Mood and confidence plays such a huge rule in wrestling,” Snook said. “Especially coming off of a couple losses early in the season, wrestling close at UVA, getting the win over at UNC and then getting the win tonight — big win tonight — a lot of guys are wrestling better. I think we’re going to continue to roll.”
Shyheim Brown and Frank Goodwin earned decision victories at 141 pounds and 149 pounds, respectively, to close out the night and seal the win. Duke forfeited at 125 pounds, as they didn’t have a healthy competitor.
Myers’ major decision was his first of the season, a welcome sight for the heavyweight. Myers wrestled less tentatively than he did earlier in the season, and McCoy said that after Myers suffered two defeats at the Midlands Championships and at Michigan to the Wolverines’ Adam Coon, he loosened up.
“I think earlier he was more concerned about wins and losses,” McCoy said. “He was afraid to lose. He was afraid to make a mistake. … As a fourth-year guy, we take it for granted. There’s still things you have to continually manage.”
After spending two months on the road, the Terps will have an opportunity to build a three-game winning streak in College Park, as they’ll host N.C. State and American this weekend.
The team has gotten through early struggles, and if recent performances have been any indicator, it appears they may be primed to make a push in the postseason. And that couldn’t be happening at a better time for the Terps.
“I think we’re really coming together good as a team,” Snook said. “Biggest win we’ve had over a team in a long time.”