Brent Metcalf's first loss in Carver couldn't have come at a worse time

IOWA CITY - These were the U.S. Olympic Wrestling Trials, which means this was an event with international wrestling rules, which means confusion was bound to reign from time to time.

Sunday night's Carver-Hawkeye Arena crowd of 13,712 thought former Iowa Hawkeye Brent Metcalf had won the final period of his second 66-kilogram match with Jared Frayer to force a third bout in the best-of-3 finals.

But Metcalf knew better. So did Frayer.

Metcalf had scored last in the third period for a 2-2 tie, and the crowd assumed Metcalf had won because he had scored the last point in the period.

But that criteria cedes to the value of points gained. Meaning, the 2-point move Frayer had scored earlier topped the two 1-point moves Metcalf accumulated.

The fans' cheers were muted when the official raised Frayer's arm in victory.

“I knew I had lost,” Metcalf said. “I knew that there was confusion.”

“It was bittersweet, I guess,” Frayer said. “I knew it was over and I thought maybe I screwed up and gave up something somewhere. It would be silly celebrating without winning, but I knew I had won.”

Frayer goes to London this summer, an Olympian for the first time, at 33. Metcalf stays stateside.

This was a two-day event at the University of Iowa that scored a technical fall over the event's previous attendance records. It was a splendidly planned and executed extravaganza, with people from all over Iowa and the nation seeing Olympic berths decided in men's and women's competition.

But this wasn't Iowa's event on the mat. No former Hawkeye is hearing London calling. Metcalf had been the best hope coming in to the Trials, and remained so all the way until Frayer's arm was raised by that official.

Technically, Frayer is an ex-Hawkeye. He was the Iowa wrestling team's strength and conditioning coach for the 2008-2009 season. Metcalf was a junior on that team.

Metcalf was a Hawkeye wrestler for three seasons. He won two NCAA championships. He had never lost a match in Carver. Until Sunday.

Then he lost twice.

“I coached him for about nine months,” Frayer said. “We had a lot of fights in here. They say he never lost in here but I guarantee he lost in that wrestling room a couple times.”

Two years ago, however, Metcalf beat Frayer in the U.S. World Team Trials final. Frayer also was second at the 2006 and 2009 World Trials, third in ‘05, fourth in ‘07. He was fifth in the 2008 Olympic Trials.

At Oklahoma, where Frayer is now an assistant coach, he was second in the NCAA Championships in 2001, fourth the year before.

“My dream was on a pedestal,” he said. “It had been knocked down so many times. This is going to take a while (to absorb).”

At 25, Metcalf still has ample time to add World and Olympic medals to his NCAA prizes. Maybe he do some of that pursuing back here in Iowa City.

USA Wrestling and the U.S. Olympic Committee have to be thrilled with the way these Trials were received. The environment for the wrestlers and their fans was a vast upgrade from those of past Trials sites. Where else in the nation would the event get anything close to a four-session total of 54,766 fans?

“You got to get amped up for it,” said Frayer. “You don't see this. You may see it in Iran or Russia, but in the United States, it is awesome.”

Metcalf was understandably somber, but showed a lot of the right stuff by willingly meeting with the mediamet the media afterward.

“I appreciate all the support of all the fans that came out and I hope that they continue to support freestyle wrestling,” he said. “And I hope that our club can start bringing home more gold.”

The arena emptied out after the final match of the night, when former Iowa State competitor Travis Paulson lost to Northwestern grad Jake Herbert in another freestyle final. The presentation of all the new Olympians, preceded by a juggler and baton-twirler, was witnessed by hundreds of fans, not 13,712.

Maybe there will be Hawkeyes in the closing ceremony the next time the Trials are held here. That's a “when,” not an “if.”