𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗗𝗨𝗟𝗘 𝗜𝗦 𝗢𝗨𝗧!
— Binghamton Wrestling (@BearcatsWrestle) September 26, 2024
See you on the mat for the 2024-25 season! 🤼♂️
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Slate includes duals against defending national champion Penn State, national runner-up Cornell
VESTAL, N.Y. - The Binghamton wrestling team announced its schedule for the 2024-25 season Thursday. The Bearcats' slate features multiple high-profile opponents, including three-time defending national champion Penn State and 2024 national runner-up Cornell.
"I am excited about our schedule this season," said Binghamton Wrestling Head Coach Kyle Borshoff. "We will challenge ourselves against a great mix of teams, including No. 1 Penn State. One of the things that I am most excited about is our new conference format. The EIWA has been split into two separate divisions. We will compete against all five other schools in our division to see who comes out on top. We will also get a few crossover duals with the other side of the conference to really see where we stack up against our peers."
The new version of the EIWA follows the announcement from the prior season that the six Ivy League wrestling programs were forming their own conference wrestling tournament. As a result, Binghamton's division will include Drexel, Franklin & Marshall, Hofstra, Long Island and Sacred Heart. Additionally, the league announced on Sept. 19 that Morgan State will join the conference. Binghamton will travel to Maryland to take on the Bears on Feb. 7.
The Bearcats' season starts on Nov. 9 at Journeymen Wrestling's Wranglemania, which will be held at Liberty High School in Bethlehem, Pa. Binghamton will go up against Illinois. The following day in Bethlehem, Binghamton will compete in its first tournament of the season at the Journeymen Collegiate Classic at Freedom High School. Not only will the tournament feature wrestlers from future opponents such as Penn State and Cornell, but it will also include other prominent programs such as Arizona State, NC State and Oklahoma State.
Two weeks later, Binghamton will compete at two separate tournaments in New York. First, they will wrestle at Army's Black Knight Invite on Nov. 23. The following day, Binghamton will travel up the road to Ithaca, N.Y., to wrestle at Cornell's Big Red Invite.
On Dec. 6, the Bearcats will be in Las Vegas, Nev., to take part in the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Collegiate Wrestling Invitational for the second season in a row. In 2023, both Brevin Cassella and Cory Day finished on the podium in what is considered one of the most challenging in-season tournaments in the country.
On Dec. 15, the Bearcats will face off against LIU on the road in its first conference dual of the season. Binghamton has won all four of its all-time meetings against the Sharks, including a 31-7 victory in 2023.
To close out the calendar year, Binghamton will wrestle at Journeymen's Collegiate Wrestling Duals in Nashville, Tenn., on Dec. 22. That day will feature Binghamton's dual against the Nittany Lions, as well as separate duals against both Missouri and Little Rock.
After turning the calendar to 2025, the Bearcats will compete in another trio of duals at Journeymen's Armbar in Clifton Park, N.Y. Binghamton will go against Maryland, Lock Haven and Columbia throughout the day.
The Bearcats then will get to wrestle at home for the first time during the season on Jan. 9, when they host Hofstra at the West Gym. Two days later on Jan. 11, Binghamton will move next door to the Events Center, where it will host Lehigh.
The following two weekends will feature Binghamton wrestling in two duals in two different location on the same day. First, on Jan. 18, the Bearcats will take on EIWA opponents Franklin & Marshall, followed by Drexel. Then on Jan. 25, Binghamton will travel to New England to go against both Brown and Harvard.
Binghamton returns home for an action-packed weekend to start the month of February. The Bearcats first welcome Cornell to the Events Center on Feb. 1, making it the first time the Big Red have traveled to Vestal for a dual since 2018. The day, the Bearcats will welcome Pittsburgh to the Southern Tier. It will be the first time ever that both programs have went against each other in a dual.
Following the Bearcats' dual at Morgan State, the team will host Sacred Heart for its final home dual meet of the season on Feb. 9. That day, the Bearcats will honor its senior class for its contributions to the Binghamton wrestling program.
To wrap up the regular season, the Bearcats will first travel to Western New York to take on Buffalo on Feb. 16. Donnie Vinson, who earned All-America honors at Binghamton in 2012, enters his first season as the Head Coach of the Bulls. After that, Binghamton heads to the Hudson Valley to go against Army on Feb. 22.
For postseason play, Binghamton will take part in the EIWA Championships from March 7-8 at Lehigh. The final event of the season will be the NCAA Wrestling Championships, which will happen from March 20-22 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pa.
The Bearcats are coming off a strong season in 2023-24. Binghamton won nine duals overall, including seven against EIWA opponents. Both totals were the program's most since 2017-18. Among those victories was an 18-17 win against No. 18 Navy, the program's first against a top 20 opponent since it began competing in Division I in 2001. The Bearcats also picked up a 21-15 win at Northwestern, their first against a Big Ten program since 2017. Throughout the season, Binghamton had a wrestler named Wrestler of the Week by the EIWA four times, including three weeks in a row from Feb. 13-26. Cassella and Day were among four wrestlers who qualified for the 2024 NCAA Wrestling Championships. In the tournament, Cassella, Day and Lou DePrez each won two matches, making it the first time at least three Binghamton wrestlers won that many matches at nationals since 2012. DePrez has since returned to the Binghamton coaching staff as an assistant.
Fans have a chance to watch the Binghamton wrestling team practice Friday during the Binghamton Wrestling Outdoor Showcase. The team will hold an outdoor practice on Binghamton's Peace Quad, which is located in front of The Union. The showcase will take place from 8:30 - 10 a.m.