Maryland wrestling goes 1-1 at the Grapple at the Garden

Maryland went to the Grapple at the Garden to compete in one of the world's great cathedrals of sport, Madison Square Garden. Maryland had a decent showing, with a double digit win over Hofstra but a pretty bad loss to Illinois.

Here are three things you need to know from each dual.

Maryland vs. Illinois

1) Illinois came in ranked in the top-15 in the country

Illinois looked the part and beat Maryland in eight of the 10 matches. Maryland's nine points are a bit deceptive because one of Maryland's wins came from a pin.

2) Maryland had a chance to win a couple more matches

Jhared Simmons was up 4-1 going into the second period and lost 8-6. Alfred Bannister was tied 2-2 going into the third but gave up an early escape and lost 3-2. Winning those matches wouldn't have changed the outcome of the dual, but it would have been a boost for Maryland's confidence.

3) Maryland is not ready to tangle with the top half of the Big Ten yet

After getting blown out by No. 2 Iowa and top-15 Illinois, it is clear that Maryland doesn't have the talent to seriously threaten most of the Big Ten's best teams. The Terps lost six matches by bonus points against Iowa and lost four matches by bonus points against Illinois.

Maryland vs. Hofstra

1) Wade Hodges will be a dependable contributor for Maryland this season

Hodges got a decision win against Illinois' Kyle Langenderfer, a kid who took third at the Big Tens at 149 pounds last year, and pinned Hofstra's Ryan Burkert. Hodges is not the most talented kid on this roster, but he has proved that he is capable of delivering wins against good competition.

2) The difference in talent between this year's starting lineup and last year's is noticeable.

The freshmen are very talented and this lineup, which didn't even have Geoffrey Alexander, Shyheim Brown or Dawson Peck, almost scored double digits against Illinois and beat Hofstra by 11.

3) Alfred Bannister lost for the first time this season

Bannister was perfect coming into the Grapple at the Garden but lost two close matches to a ranked wrestler (Hofstra's Hudson) and Illinois' Brock Ervin, who will probably be ranked at some point this season.

Courtesy of Maryland Athletics:

Illinois 34, Maryland 9
125: Francis Edelen (ILL) decision over Jhared Simmons (MD), 8-6 (0-3)
133: Zane Richards (ILL) fall over Tyler Goodwin (MD), 4:20 (0-9)
141: Brock Ervin (ILL) decision over Alfred Bannister (MD), 3-2 (0-12)
149: Wade Hodges (MD) decision over Kyle Langenderfer (ILL), 3-1 (3-12)
157: Isaiah Martinez (ILL) tech fall over Lou Mascola (MD), 24-5 (3-17)
165: Steven Rodrigues (ILL) decision over Brendan Burnham (MD), 13-8 (3-20)
174: Zach Brunson (ILL) fall over Josh Snook (MD), 3:22 (3-26)
184: Jaron Smith (MD) fall over Jeff Koepke (ILL), 4:14 (9-26)
197: Andre Lee (ILL) tech fall over Sean Twigg (MD), 18-3 (9-31)
285: Brooks Black (ILL) decision over Youssif Hemida (MD), 6-1 (9-34

Maryland 24, Hofstra 13
125: Jhared Simmons (MD) decision over Byran Damon (HOF), 5-0 (3-0)
133: Tyler Goodwin (MD) wins by forfeit, (9-0)
141: No. 16 Jamel Hudson (HOF) decision over Alfred Bannister, 6-3 (9-3)
149: Wade Hodges (MD) fall over Ryan Burkert (HOF), 2:25 (15-3)
157: Lou Mascola (MD) decision over Jahlani Callender (HOF), 8-6 (18-3)
165: Brendan Burnham (MD) decision over Bobby Fehr (HOF), 4-2 (21-3)
174: Frank Affronti (HOF) decision over Josh Snook (MD), 4-0 (21-6)
184: Jermaine John (HOF) decision over Jaron Smith (MD), 6-4 (21-9)
197: Garrett Wesneski (MD) decision over Omar Haddad (HOF), 1-0 (24-9)
285: Mike Hughes (HOF) major decision over Youssif Hemida (MD), 8-0 (24-13)