Binghamton Closes Out Dual Season at No. 8 Cornell
SOURCE: bubearcats.com
February 23, 2024

 


Bearcats look to capture second ranked victory of the season

VESTAL, N.Y. - In its final competition before the EIWA Championships, the Binghamton wrestling team will travel up the road to Ithaca, N.Y., to take on No. 8 Cornell Sunday at 1 p.m., at the Friedman Wrestling Center.

The Bearcats, who have won their last five duals, are coming off a big win in their last appearance on the mat, when they defeated Northwestern 21-15 on Friday, Jan. 16. The victory was Binghamton's first against a Big Ten opponent since Nov. 26, 2017 when the Bearcats defeated Indiana 29-6. In the win against the Wildcats, Binghamton won six matches and earned three bonus points along the way.

Brevin Cassella, who defeated No. 15 Maxx Mayfield in the final match to secure the win for the Bearcats, was named Wrestler of the Week by the EIWA for his performance. It was the second-straight week a Binghamton wrestler earned the honor after Cory Day previously received it. Lou DePrez was also named Wrestler of the Week by the league back on Jan. 8.

Sunday's dual will be the final time Binghamton and Cornell face each other as conference opponents. The Ivy League announced back in December that it will host its own wrestling tournament starting in the 2024-25 season. If the Bearcats defeat the Big Red, it will be the second dual Binghamton has won against a ranked team, following their 18-17 victory against No. 17 Navy on Jan. 21.

Binghamton Projected Lineup (Overall Record, Dual Record)

125 - Carson Wagner (17-14, 5-7) - Wagner was defeated by Northwestern's Massey Odiotti 11-5 on Friday.

133 - No. NR/32 Micah Roes (18-9, 9-3) - Roes remained at No. 32 in the InterMat rankings after his 9-0 major decision victory over Northwestern's Patrick Adams. It was the second major decision of the season for Roes.

141 - Nate Lucier (14-10, 6-3) - After defeating Northwestern's Kolby McClain 9-2, Lucier has won his last five dual matches. With the win, Lucier set a career high for dual wins in a season with six.

149 - Jordan Brown (4-6, 1-2) - Brown is projected to make his first appearance in dual competition since Jan. 27. That day, the freshman earned his first collegiate dual victory against Harvard's Jack Crook 10-7.

157 - Carter Baer (14-14, 2-8) - Baer is aiming to get back in the win column after being defeated by No. 22/21 Trevor Chumbley of Northwestern in a 19-3 technical fall.

165 - No. 17/18 Brevin Cassella (23-6, 11-1) - Cassella was named Wrestler of the Week by the EIWA after his 5-0 win over No. 15/21 Maxx Mayfield helped secure the Bearcats' victory against the Wildcats. He still holds the team lead in dual wins with 11, while being tied for the team lead in overall wins at 23.

174 - Dimitri Gamkrelidze (16-11, 5-5) - Gamkrelidze got back to .500 for his dual record after opening the Northwestern meet with a 9-4 win against two-time national qualifier David Ferrante.

184 - No. 25/13 Jacob Nolan (20-3, 9-2) - Nolan was defeated by Northwestern's Troy Fisher 7-3. It was Nolan's first loss since the Black Knight Invite on Nov. 19, snapping an 18-match winning streak for him in the process.

197 - No. 9/9 Lou DePrez (18-1, 9-1) - DePrez moved up one spot in the InterMat poll following his 11-1 major decision over Evan Bates of Northwestern. It was DePrez's fifth major decision of the season, which is the second-most on the team behind Nolan's seven.

285 - No. 15/18 Cory Day (23-5, 10-1) or Charlie Tibbitts (6-8, 0-1) - With his 9-0 major decision victory over Northwestern's Jack Jessen, Day became the second Bearcat to reach 10 dual wins this season. He remains tied with Cassella for the team lead in overall wins with 23.

Tibbitts' only dual match of the season was a 5-0 loss to No. 27/26 Lucas Stoddard of Army on Jan. 21. At Lock Haven's Mat-Town Open II on Jan. 28, Tibbitts went 3-2 and finished sixth while competing unattached.
*rankings based on FloWrestling/InterMat

Binghamton Bearcats (9-3, 8-2 EIWA) vs. No. 8 Cornell Big Red (11-4, 5-0 EIWA)
Date - Time: Sunday, Feb. 25 - 1 p.m.
Location: Friedman Wrestling Center - Ithaca, N.Y.
Live Results: Twitter - @BearcatsWrestle
Watch: ESPN+

Cornell Projected Lineup (Overall Record)

125 - No. 17/15 Brett Ungar (14-6)
133 - Ethan Qureshi (7-10)
141 - No. 10/12 Vince Cornella (12-7)
149 - No. 28/21 Ethan Fernandez (18-7)
157 - No. 7/6 Meyer Shapiro (19-2)
165 - No. 4/4 Julian Ramirez (18-2) or Brody Oleksak (0-4)
174 - Benny Baker (14-11)
184 - No. 11/8 Chris Foca (16-4)
197 - No. 7/7 Jacob Cardenas (19-4)
285 - No. 17/17 Lewis Fernandes (16-9)
*rankings based on FloWrestling/InterMat

Cornell Notes

The Big Red are ranked eighth in InterMat's Dual Rankings, having most recently beaten Appalachian State 36-6 on Sunday. Cornell has ranked wins over No. 2 Missouri, No. 11 Virginia Tech and No. 13 Pittsburgh this season.

Cornell has won the last two EIWA Championships. In 2023, Vince Cornella Julian Ramirez, Chris Foca and Jacob Cardenas were among six Big Red wrestlers to win an individual championship at the competition.

At the 2023 NCAA Wrestling Championships, Cornell finished third, capturing its first team trophy under Head Coach Mike Grey. Aside from crowning two individual national champions in Vito Arujau and Yianni Diakomihalis, Foca finished on the podium in third, while Cardenas finished eighth.
Freshman Meyer Shapiro has won 14 matches in a row.

Associate Head Coach Donnie Vinson and Volunteer Assistant Coach Nick Gwiazdowski both wrestled at Binghamton. Vinson wrestled for the Bearcats from 2008-13, being named an All-American in 2012 while finishing his career as Binghamton's all-time wins leader with 132. Gwiazdowski competed for the Bearcats during the 2011-12 season, earning All-American honors in his lone season in Vestal.


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