Maryland wrestling didn’t have much margin for error at the Rider Quad.
Two of the Terps’ three opponents had more ranked wrestlers than them, and Rider had one less, meaning Maryland would need to pull off some upsets to finish with a winning record on the day.
Coach Alex Clemsen’s group didn’t get those victories. The Terps (4-3) dropped duals to No. 18 Pittsburgh, Rider and No. 14 South Dakota State Friday, picking up their first losses of the season.
Ethen Miller remains undefeated in new weight class
At 157 pounds, Ethen Miller is still unbeaten. The redshirt junior was 7-0 in his new weight class heading into Friday’s action, with two wins over ranked opponents.
Miller took on Pitt’s Dylan Evans in his opening match. Evans was first on the board, picking up an escape in the second after a scoreless first period. Miller had a quick answer, finishing a powerful double leg for a 3-1 lead and riding out the rest of the period.
Evans tried to answer in the third, but Miller kept Evans off him in the closing seconds of the match for the 5-4 decision victory.
His next opponent was Rider’s Colton Washleski. Neither wrestler was able to get on the board in the opening period, although both came close to multiple takedowns. Miller took a 1-0 lead with an escape in the second, and after Washleski tied things up with an escape in the third, Miller drove through him for a match-winning double-leg takedown in a 4-2 victory.
Jaxon Smith goes 1-2 for first losses of the season
Jaxon Smith’s recent schedule has been a gauntlet. The redshirt junior’s last two opponents were ranked in the top-25, and things didn’t get any easier at the Rider Quad — all three of Maryland’s opponents had ranked 184-pounders.
[No. 8 Maryland women’s basketball comfortably defeats William & Mary, 107-57]
In Smith’s first match, he went up against Pitt’s No. 11 Reece Heller. Through three periods and sudden victory, the match was even, with the only scoring coming from individual escapes.
In the tiebreakers, Smith started from the top position and was able to hold Heller down for about 15 seconds before he escaped. Then, from the bottom position, he scrambled to his feet, breaking Heller’s grip in less than 15 seconds to get the decision win.
Smith next faced Rider’s No. 22 Issac Dean. Dean was the first on the board after a scoreless first, picking up an escape from the bottom.
Smith tied things up with an escape of his own, but Dean stayed on the offensive. He pushed Smith back, eventually picking up a point when Smith got called for stalling. That ended up being the decider in a 2-1 decision.
Smith’s day ended against SDSU’s No. 8 Bennett Berge. The match was another low-scoring affair, with the only points late into the third period coming on escapes. With around 30 seconds left and the score tied at one, Berge read Smith’s shot and turned it into a match-winning takedown of his own.
[Maryland men’s basketball posts season-high point total in 111-57 domination of Saint Francis]
Seth Nevills stays undefeated
In his second year as a Terp, the former Penn State heavyweight has been a force. Nevills was 7-0 heading into the Rider Quad, with bonus points in five matches.
Against Dayton Pitzer, the No. 13 heavyweight, Nevils looked phenomenal. After a scoreless first, he picked up a reversal from the bottom in the second, shaking Pitzer off his back after he got too high.
Nevills rode out the rest of the period, taking top position to open the third. From there, he put Pitzer on his back, picking up four nearfall points. He kept him down for the rest of the period to take a 7-0 win.
Against Rider’s Collin French, Nevills was the Terps’ last hope. Maryland trailed 18-14 heading into the match, so the graduate student needed bonus points for a Terps win.
Nevills jumped out to a great start, picking up two takedowns in the opening period for a 6-1 lead. Those would be Nevills’ only takedowns.
After escaping in the second, French stayed on his feet for the remainder of the match, leading to a decision win for Nevills and a Rider dual win.
