With a three-match winning streak on the line, the Binghamton wrestling team is set to head to Buffalo to take on the Bulls (8-8, 1-5 Mid-American), in what is turning into a fierce rivalry between the two programs. The Bearcats have topped the Bulls in close matches in each of the last two seasons.
As the Bearcats and Bulls are long-time in-state rivals, BU head coach Matt Dernlan might have put it best by saying, “If we need to talk to the guys about getting excited for this match, then there’s a problem.”
Last weekend, Binghamton earned its third-consecutive win against American, 22-17, with five wrestlers contributing individual wins for BU. Two Bearcats, 174-pound senior Jack McKeever and 184-pound sophomore Steve Schneider are currently ranked in the national top-30 in each of their respective weight classes. At 197 pounds, freshman Mark Tracy had an outstanding performance, earning his seventh-consecutive victory for BU against the Eagles.
“We’re really close to putting together our best wrestling of the season,” Dernlan said. “That’s always the plan for this time of the year.”
This weekend, the Bulls will bring an experienced squad onto the mat. Despite not having the results it may have hoped for thus far in the MAC, Buffalo has faced a number of tough conference match-ups against Kent State, Missouri and Eastern Michigan.
Entering this weekend, the Bulls are coming off their “most disappointing result to date” against Central Michigan, according to head coach John Stutzman on ubbulls.com. In their last two matches, the Bulls have been outscored, 61-16, by their opponents. With these results, Buffalo is sure to be hungry for a win against BU on Friday.
“They’re a well-coached team,” Dernlan said. “All their guys fight extremely hard, and it’s going to be a really fun environment to be a part of [Friday] night.”
Binghamton is scheduled to face off against Buffalo at 2 p.m. on Friday from Alumni Arena in Amherst, New York.