By Dominic Gugliotta
Maryland 19, Campbell 19 (Terps win by pins)
The Maryland wrestling team began its nonconference schedule with a bang, defeating both Campbell and George Mason on Sunday.
Maryland began the first match of the day by sending out Redshirt freshman Brandon Cray to face Campbell’s Korbin Meink at the 125-pound weight class. Cray wasted no time getting the upper hand and quickly pinned Meink, giving Maryland the early momentum with a 6-0 overall lead.
After redshirt freshman Michael Doetsch was defeated 18-3 by Campbell’s Nathan Boston at the 133-pound weight class, Maryland responded with an important victory from Redshirt junior Ryan Diehl. Maryland took a 9-5 overall lead heading into the 149-pound bout.
Redshirt junior Adam Whitesell was defeated by Campbell’s Benjamin Barton at the 149-pound weight class. Both wrestlers exchanged takedowns early, but Barton defeated Whitesell by a score of 15-9. Maryland still hung on to a 9-8 lead overall.
Maryland and Campbell continued to go back and forth in both the 157- and 165-pound weight classes. Maryland’s freshman Kyle Cochran emerged victorious at the 157-pound weight class over Austin Kraisser. The 165-pound bout went Campbell’s way as they took their first overall lead of the match at 13-12 with Quentin Perez’s victory over Maryland’s redshirt sophomore Brendan Burnham.
The Terps continued to struggle to gain momentum back as at the 174-pound weight class, as redshirt sophomore Josh Ugalde was defeated by Campbell’s Andrew Morgan. Campbell extended their lead to 16-12 overall.
Maryland would take two out of the final three weight classes with wins at the 184- and 285-pound weight classes. Redshirt sophomore Jaron Smith and junior Youssif Hemida won their matches. Niko Cappello dropped a hard fought fight at the 197-pound weight class.
After the 285-pound bout, the overall score stood at 19-19, meaning the match would come down to the category of total pins. Maryland’s Brandon Cray registered the only pin, providing Maryland with the victory.
Maryland 28, George Mason 9
After its victory against Campbell, Maryland hoped to continue its success against visiting George Mason. Brandon Cray looked to continue his hot start to the day and that is exactly what he did. In an exciting first match, Cray used a couple takedowns and a reversal to comeback and defeat George Mason’s Ibrahim Banduka to give Maryland the early 3-0 lead.
At the 133-pound weight class, George Mason evened up the overall score at three after Maryland’s Michael Doetsch was defeated by Jose Tapia. Doetsch was unable to hold on to a 2-0 lead as Tapia went on a 7-0 run to win 7-2.
The Terps then began to take control of the match with three outstanding performances from Ryan Diehl, Adam Whitesell and Kyle Cochran. Ryan Diehl defeated Tejon Anthony at the 141-pound weight class. Adam Whitesell was able to get two early takedowns and beat George Mason’s Matthew Raines at the 149-pound weight class. Freshman Kyle Cochran added to the momentum with his victory over Creed Lumpp, giving Maryland a 12-3 lead.
Making his season debut, redshirt junior Patrick Gerish added to the Terps domination with a victory at the 165-pound weight class. Following Gerish was Josh Ugalde who was awarded a tech fall after his 17-0 point total at the 174-pound weight class giving Maryland a commanding 21-3 lead.
Jaron Smith continued the winning streak as he was able to defeat George Mason’s Philip Stolfi at the 184-pound weight class. Smith’s second win of the day expanded the Maryland lead to 21.
Redshirt freshman Spencer Woods was victorious in his 197-pound bout against Austin Harrison. The day concluded with George Mason’s Matthew Voss getting the victory by forfeit. Maryland would go on to win by a score of 28-9 and 2-0 on the day.
The Terps are next in action against another nonconference foe in Stanford on Saturday, Nov. 18th.
