After finishing the 2015-16 season with its best finish in its Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association (EIWA) era, the Binghamton wrestling team is set to take the mat at Princeton this weekend for a chance to claim the EIWA championship. In only their third season with the conference, the Bearcats (11-7, 7-4 EIWA) have made a name for themselves as a top team in the EIWA, and are now looking for a title to match.
“This is what we’ve been pointing for since this summer when we started training,” BU head coach Matt Dernlan said. “Going into our third EIWA Championship, we’re continuing to look to build our competitive nature in the conference, looking to establish ourselves in the top tier.”
Throughout the season, several Bearcats have established themselves as top contenders in the conference. Senior Jack McKeever finished the season with a 14-3 record in the 174-pound division, while sophomores Vincent DePrez and Steve Schneider are ranked in the EIWA top 10 in the 157 and 184-pound weight classes, respectively. With the rest of the team coming together to push BU to a 3-1 conference run to close the regular season, Binghamton is hitting its rhythm at the right time.
“The great part about our training program is that this is the time of year that we’re peaking,” McKeever said. “For a lot of teams, it’s a long season and they’re getting tired and some guys will lose a match and don’t want to be here anymore — this is when we’re feeling the best.”
This confidence will be crucial for the Bearcats in the tournament, as the EIWA was recently rated the second-strongest wrestling conference in Division I by the RPI. Behind only the Big Ten Conference with 76 bids, 51 EIWA athletes will earn a chance this weekend to advance to the NCAA Championships in New York City on March 17. But for any Binghamton wrestlers to secure a spot in the Big Apple, they have to make sure not to bite off any more that they can chew in Princeton.
“We focus on the controllable things; we focus on our attitude and our fight,” Dernlan said. “If we bring our attitude and best effort for each [match], we’re going to be proud of the takeaway.”
The Bearcats will look to shake the pressure of the tournament by taking each match one at a time. This will be especially true for Schneider. Bumping up to the 184-pound class for the 2015-16 season, he shined in his second year at BU, ending the season ranked fifth in the conference. With the EIWA’s lone returning national champion — Cornell junior Gabe Dean — wrestling in the same bracket as Schneider this weekend, the sophomore standout is keeping his composure headed into the postseason.
“This is what we worked so hard all season for, so you got to stay calm,” Schneider said. “It’s going to be an exciting environment, but we’re ready for it.”
McKeever and Schneider’s leadership will play a vital role in keeping their team — featuring five first-year starters — focused in the two-day event. While far from an easy task, Dernlan is confident in the two’s ability to influence their teammates and keep BU’s goals in perspective.
“Focus on yourself, shrink your world, focus on that next opportunity and then it trickles down to every one of the young guys, so they can just calm themselves and focus on the moment and have fun,” Dernlan said. “From a perspective standpoint, that’s what we preach it as — a fun opportunity.”
Binghamton is set to faceoff in the EIWA Championships on Saturday at 9 a.m. from the Jadwin Gymnasium in Princeton, New Jersey.
Kyle McDonald contributed in reporting for this piece.