Wins haven't come easy for Bryan Pearsall this season.
But the Nittany Lion 133-pounder believes his success isn't measured in wins and losses.
Pearsall has compiled a 3-19 record but showed some promise when he nearly stormed back for a win before ultimately falling short against Michigan's Zac Stevens Sunday in the Penn State wrestling team's 29-10 win.
"It's really hard to not get frustrated, but I'm keeping a good state of mind," Pearsall said. "The coaches are telling me what I'm doing right, what I'm doing wrong, and I'm clearly getting better with every match."
Though he lost the match, Pearsall progressed right in front of the Rec Hall crowd as he became the aggressor while facing an 8-1 deficit against Stevens. The Lion redshirt freshman took control of the bout and fought back to within one point midway through the final period.
During Pearsall's attempted comeback, shouts of displeasure directed toward a Michigan coach took over Rec Hall as the coach spoke with the referee. It was that stoppage -- along with a Michigan injury timeout earlier in the match -- that Pearsall believes gave Stevens a chance to rest and allowed the Wolverine to take the eventual 13-9 decision.
"I could feel him getting tired," Pearsall said. "I could feel him starting to get on the defensive. I turned that switch on and just got real aggressive, and I started wrestling really well."
Assistant coach Troy Letters said Pearsall's bout against Stevens was one of the best matches he'd seen the Lion 133-pounder wrestle this season. Letters saw the obvious shift in momentum in favor of Pearsall and said the match was winnable.
However, Letters believes the attitude change he saw in Pearsall is something that shouldn't necessarily be needed.
"In some of his matches, Pearsall does get off to a slow start," Letters said. "It has affected him. By the second and third period, he wins both of those periods. He needs to start from the very get-go."
Pearsall fell behind 6-0 to Stevens following a first period takedown and two sets of back points. Coach Cael Sanderson said that's a tough hole to climb out of, but he was impressed with the way Pearsall fought back and didn't show any signs of quitting.
Despite his struggles this season, Pearsall has a lock on the 133-pound position. Jack Chidester weighed in Feb. 5 against Northwestern, but Sanderson said Pearsall has held the upper hand when the two wrestle in practice.
The Penn State coach believes Pearsall can build off of the momentum gained against Michigan. Sanderson said Pearsall's bout against Stevens showed his ability to get a big takedown to switch the tides of a match.
And though the losses have been tough to endure, Pearsall plans to finish the season strong.
"I'm only a freshman and taking my lumps," Pearsall said. "I gotta keep a positive mindset because it's really easy to lose focus at this point in the season. But, I've got to keep wrestling hard and making improvements."
