McDonough learned valuable lessons at Olympic Trials

By Jason Brummond, correspondent

IOWA CITY - Matt McDonough lost, then sprinted off the mat and up the tunnel for a post-match workout.

Losing almost is foreign to the University of Iowa's two-time NCAA champion. McDonough came into the Olympic Wrestling Trials with high expectations for himself, even if he was seeded ninth and is at least four years younger than almost all the top 121-pound wrestlers.

McDonough won two matches in the Trials before being eliminated in the consolation bracket on Sunday afternoon at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. McDonough, who will be a senior next season, hopes he set an example for the rest of the Hawkeyes.

“I really hope my teammates were watching today,” McDonough said. “They saw that I didn't get what I wanted. Maybe they saw me get what I want a lot of times, but I didn't get what I wanted and you know what, I'm going to go into that wrestling room and I'm going to train even harder because of that.

“You have that persistence until you get what you want. You don't take no for an answer.”

McDonough, who is 100-4 in three seasons at Iowa, lost to Obe Blanc, 1-0, 6-0, in his second consolation match. McDonough would have needed to beat Blanc and win two more bouts to finish third and earn a spot on the U.S. National Team.

McDonough beat former Northwestern wrestler Brandon Precin in the first round of the challenge bracket, 2-0, 3-0, before losing to Nick Simmons in the quarterfinals, 1-0, 5-0, to send him to the consolations.

The Linn-Mar High School product rebounded for a decision over Frank Perrelli, 6-0, 3-1, before falling to Blanc.

“You have to feel you're close,” McDonough said. “I don't think it's a matter of not being in the same ballpark as them. It's a matter of refining skills and coming out ready to wrestle, doing the things you want to do in a match and not wrestling into someone else's style.”

The four-pound differential from McDonough's normal 125-pound college weight wasn't a factor. He recovered fine. McDonough didn't know what international weight class he'd go to moving forward - he's more concerned about making the team.

The biggest lesson for McDonough is to stay aggressive. He said he didn't have the mentality to score points like he needed to.

It's an important lesson, but a tough one.

“I made a small step forward in getting the chance to wrestle here and wrestle some of the top guys, but I didn't come out the way I wanted to,” McDonough said. “There's a lot of work to be done.”