Before the referee raised his arm as the third-place finisher in the Big Ten tournament, Maryland wrestling heavyweight Youssif Hemida turned toward the crowd and flexed his arms.
Hemida had entered the conference tournament unseeded and lost his first match on Saturday, putting him in danger of missing the NCAA tournament. But he closed the first day with three wins, securing him a spot in the national bracket and keeping him alive entering day two of the Big Ten championships.
Once the dust settled, Hemida was left standing tall on the podium, having won five straight matches on the weekend to take third place, the highest of any Maryland wrestler since joining the conference in 2014-15.
“It’s really encouraging,” Hemida said. “It was frustrating to lose in the first round but to win the wrestlebacks feels really good.”
Hemida’s day started against Conan Jennings of Northwestern, where the winner would go on to wrestle for the coveted third place finish.
Although Hemida entered Sunday with a 3-1 record against Jennings, the lone loss came at last year’s conference tournament, when it mattered most.
Their match started slow, but after a scoreless first period, Hemida took advantage. An escape and a penalty point gave the Terp a 2-0 lead heading into the third frame.
There, Jennings cut the lead to 2-1 after an escape of his own. The two wrestlers batted at each other for the final minute, but each time Jennings shot in for the winning takedown, Hemida sniffed it out and stuffed him.
With five seconds left, the Wildcat shot in one final time but Hemida used his quickness to get a takedown of his own and seal the win, 4-1.
Hemida’s victory set up a rematch from Feb. 2, against another wrestler he lost to: Wisconsin’s Trent Hillger.
Much like his match against Jennings’, Hemida and Hillger were deadlocked at zero going into the second period.
The action picked up midway through the second, with Hemida escaping to take a 1-0 lead. Then, Hillger grabbed a hold of Hemida’s leg and seemed to be on the way to a takedown.
Miraculously, Hemida held tough, refusing to surrender the two points. But after a third-period escape by Hillger, the two heavyweights were tied once again.
Hemida knew he was in a good spot after stuffing that takedown attempt and believes that gave him the edge going into the final frame.
“Whenever you come close to a takedown and don’t get it, it’s frustrating,” Hemida said. “I won the mental battle.”
With time running out, Hemida shot in and locked onto Hillger’s leg. Hillger scrambled but Hemida tightened his grip and managed to finally get the Badger down.
Now with a 3-1 lead, Hemida cut Hillger loose and sacrificed a point in order to avoid any last-second takedowns. Hemida’s strategy worked, as he successfully avoided Hillger and won the match, 3-2.
After an up-and-down season — and a rough start to the weekend — Hemida has proven once again to be one of the Big Ten’s best. And with the NCAA tournament now in his sights, he will look to close his career by soaring to even higher finishes.
