With its injection of fresh talent, Maryland wrestling has shown great improvements as its season ramps up. Four Terp wrestlers have received national rankings ahead of their Monday meet with Navy.
197-pounder Branson John is the clear face of the program and ranks as the consensus No. 7 wrestler in his weight class. The junior from
Clovis, California, went 4-0 at the season-opening Southeast Open to claim the overall bracket.
Wisconsin transfer Nicolar Rivera has also posted solid results after qualifying for the NCAA tournament in both of the last two seasons. The 125-pounder is ranked 13th by InterMat and 14th by FloWrestling as he looks to make his mark in his final season of eligibility after taking second place at the Southeast Open.
Fellow senior and NCAA qualifier Dario Lemus is ranked No. 26 by InterMat and No. 31 by FloWrestling, respectively, and should be a huge presence for Maryland in the 141-pound division. He finished sixth at the Big Ten championships last season but struggled in the Journeymen Collegiate Classic on Sunday.
Sophomore Ryan Kennedy enters his sophomore season after limited participation in the 149-pound weight division last season. He ranks No. 33 by InterMat and No. 30 by FloWrestling in his division, respectively, and finished third in his bracket at the Southeast Open.
The Terps will face Navy in a dual meet on Monday before their home quad meet on Nov. 22.
In other news
Noah Ghelli provided his end-of-season awards for Maryland women’s soccer.
No. 5-seed Maryland men’s soccer will take on No.1-seed Indiana in the Big Ten tournament semifinals Wednesday at 6 p.m. Rize Simmons previewed the game.
The Terps climbed to the No. 9 spot in this week’s United Soccer Coaches poll. Goalkeeper Laurin Mack also earned Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Week honors.
Terp alum Kevin Huerter had a solid game coming off the bench in his return to the DMV.
