The Maryland wrestling team only had to travel 30 minutes to Olney on Sunday, but its dual with No. 4 Ohio State didn’t resemble a home match. The Buckeyes sold out Our Lady of Good Counsel’s gym for the return of Kyle Snyder, a 2016 Olympic gold medalist and former Falcon.
The Terps put up a fight, leading the Buckeyes 12-11 after the match’s halfway point, but Ohio State pulled away with 19 unanswered points to win, 30-12.
The match was meant to honor Snyder, a heavyweight whose tech fall over Maryland’s Youssif Hemida capped off Ohio State’s victory. Snyder had to depart immediately after to compete in Russia, but he spoke to the crowd briefly after the match.
“Sorry I can’t stay around and see all you guys, but I just wanted to take the time to say thank you guys, it means a lot to me,” Snyder said. “This is a pretty cool opportunity that not a lot of college athletes get to have. I see a lot of faces I know and haven’t seen in a while. You guys look good.”
Though the focus was on Snyder, Sunday’s match was also a homecoming for two Terps grapplers. Redshirt junior 141-pounder Jhared Simmons and redshirt sophomore 149-pounder Adam Whitesell also made a return to their alma mater.
“I love that Kyle was able to do this for us. Me and Adam really appreciate it,” Simmons said. “I loved it. I’ve been excited all week, and this is a good experience. I really needed this, to come back and refocus.”
Simmons suffered a 16-7 major decision to No. 14 Luke Pletcher. He was disappointed with the result but said he felt like he improved upon recent matches. Coach Kerry McCoy said Simmons made some mistakes on the mat but he thought he did a solid job.
Whitesell, who competed in his first college dual Friday night, got his first dual match victory Sunday with a pin against Blake Riley-Hawkins. Despite the Ohio State-heavy crowd, the crowd erupted when Whitesell earned his victory.
“I’m really happy with how I performed,” Whitesell said. “After it was just exhilarating seeing the big crowd, and all the people I knew there. Great feeling.”
Simmons described his high school and college teammate’s pin as “something else.” McCoy was happy for both Simmons and Whitesell, as well has Snyder, a wrestler the Maryland coach has a personal relationship with.
“To be able to do that in your home gym, in this atmosphere, it’s really special for those guys,” McCoy said.
Despite the festivities, the Terps (2-11, 0-6 Big Ten) still find themselves in a rut, with Sunday’s loss being their sixth straight dual match loss. They remain winless in the Big Ten, and despite two one-point losses against the Buckeyes (8-0, 4-0), the Terps suffered five bonus-point defeats.
McCoy again stressed missed opportunities as a downfall for his team but said certain aspects of the loss can help build confidence during this skid.
“Knowing that we can compete at a high level with all the things we’re dealing with should give our guys confidence,” McCoy said. “If we can pick it up a little bit, it’s not going to be a big surprise when we do that. This is what we expect.”
