Maryland wrestling resumes Big Ten schedule after Wilkes Open, Midlands Championships

Maryland wrestling resumes their Big Ten schedule tonight as it welcomes No. 2 Ohio State to the Xfinity Center at 7 p.m. ET.

It’s been almost a month since the Terps’ last dual, a 40-6 defeat to Iowa on the main floor of Xfinity.

In that almost month of time, Maryland sent wrestlers to individual tournaments, the Wilkes Open and the Midlands Championships.

At the Wilkes Open, redshirt junior Alfred Bannister won the championship in the 149-pound class, his second open win of the season, despite not wrestling in Big Ten play thus far. Bannister has been recovering from injury since the end of last season, but is still producing in individual tournaments.

At Midlands, junior heavyweight wrestler Youssif Hemida reached the semifinals, only to lose to top-seeded Tanner Hall in a close 2-1 match decided by riding time. However, Hemida rebounded, winning two straight matches to place third overall in the heavyweight class. In the tournament, he secured his sixth and seventh pins of the season, and improved his season win total to 15, the most of any Terp. Hemida was Maryland’s highest placer in the Midlands Championships since 2013. As a team, Maryland placed 13th overall, an improvement from 17th last season.

The Terps face a tough opponent in Ohio State on Friday. Last season, Maryland fell 30-12 to the Buckeyes, ranked fourth at the time. After Friday, the Terps won’t return back home until the 21st, when they take on No. 1 Penn State.

Maryland’s Big Ten schedule hasn’t been kind to them this season, but the Terps are a much-improved team this year and might pull out a surprise win before the end of the season.