The Maryland wrestling team knew that its dual against the Navy Midshipmen was a big deal.
Without Youssif Hemida and Ryan Diehl for the second straight dual meet — both of whom qualified for last year’s NCAA tournament — the Terps struggled mightily against their in-state rival. Hemida competed at the U23 World Championships in Romania last month and finished with a silver medal, while Diehl is recovering from injury.
So, without two of their top competitors, the Terps saw three wrestlers lose by decision, three by major decision, and one by pin. Maryland managed to win only two bouts against Navy and lost by a score of 31-6, its second straight dual loss to open the campaign. The Terps’ losing streak against the Midshipmen extends to seven seasons.
Coach Kerry McCoy remains confident that these early season losses aren’t indicative of the entire season.
“If this was the best that we could perform, then I’d be really upset,” McCoy said. “It’s very easy for us to go out and be better”
McCoy also believes that his team is working, but knows that they need to translate that hard work with victories.
“We train too hard to go out there and not perform,” McCoy said. “They all know how to wrestle. … Just go out there and do that.”
The Terps dropped their first three matches of the dual, one of which resulted in a pin.
Maryland’s only true freshman in the lineup, 133-pounder Orion Anderson, got taken down early and often before ultimately getting pinned by Navy’s Casey Cobb.
The Terps were in desperate need of a spark, and it came via No. 18 Alfred Bannister. The 149-pounder took on Navy’s No.19 Jared Prince.
Bannister and Prince traded takedowns and escapes in the first two periods, but after a tight contest, it was a late takedown by Bannister that secured the first win for Maryland.
“He’s a winner,” McCoy said. “He finds ways to win.”
McCoy knows that the ranked Bannister will have a target on his back this season, but he’s hopeful that the redshirt senior takes it all in stride.
“He’s got the talent to go out and beat anyone in the country, but he can also get beat by anybody,” McCoy said. “He just has to go out there with the intent to dominate and not to just win 1-0”.
The Terps proceeded to lose their next three matches, though, including two by major decision, to dig a hole they couldn’t escape.
For the second straight dual, 184-pounder Kyle Jasenski picked up one of Maryland’s two wins, both due in part to strong late match defense from Jasenski.
Navy’s Anthony Cable was able to grab a hold of Jasenski’s leg but couldn’t get the Terp down in time for the match-winning takedown.
“He’s a gamer,” Alfred Bannister said of Jasenski. “We need people who are out there to wrestle to win. If you don’t feel good you have to use what you’ve got in order to win, and I think we need more of that on this team.”
Maryland ended the dual with back-to-back major decision losses at 184-pounds and heavyweight, dropping its second dual meet to start the year.
The Terps have no time to dwell on this loss as they welcome the Central Michigan Chippewas to College Park on Sunday.
“I’m watching my match and seeing what I did well and practice that stuff,” Bannister said “All the good stuff, so I can repeat my match again.”
Despite a second straight dual meet loss, McCoy remains confident in his squad to handle the short week, needing a rebound match.
“We’ve got to be ready for the next one,” McCoy said. “It’s a quick turn over but it’s just like in a tournament. You wrestle a match, you’ve got a couple hours and then turn around and wrestle the next match. These guys will be ready.”
