Wrestling Heads to Sunshine State for South Beach Duals

12/28/2017 2:35:00 PM | By: Sydney Harbaugh (sharbau1@binghamton.edu)

Bearcats set to wrestle in four duals, including two B1G opponents in Fort Lauderdale, FL

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL. - The Binghamton wrestling team heads down south for the debut of the South Beach Duals, a unique new weekend of wrestling on December 29-30 in Fort Lauderdale, FL. The competition highlights a handful of strong Division I programs such as Columbia, Cornell, F&M, Kent State, Michigan State, Missouri, Minnesota, North Carolina, North Dakota State, Rider and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

The Bearcats will compete in four bouts over the course of two days at the Deerfield Sports Complex. The event will feature six mats with continuous action beginning at 11 a.m. and ending with duals at 1 p.m. The Bearcats will face four teams, including two B1G opponents in No. 4 Minnesota and Michigan State. Over the course of the four duals, Binghamton wrestlers will square off against a total of seven nationally ranked opponents.

"It's exciting," acting head coach Kyle Borshoff said. "While we're down here we get the chance to wrestle two more B1G teams which is a great opportunity for the guys. The trip itself is good for us to see where we're at as a dual meet team because we haven't competed in a dual since the end of November (IU Duals). In the duals we'll see a lot of good matches against ranked opponents and some matches that will matter come seeding time for EIWA and NCAA championships. It'll be good for the team as well, with a few off days to get some good training in, workouts on the beach and hopefully get some sunshine, so the guys are looking forward to that as well."

The Bearcats are entering the South Beach duals riding a three-match win streak after the Indiana Duals in Bloomsburg Indiana. 3-0 so far on the season, Binghamton notched wins over Indianapolis (35-7), Indiana (29-6) and Eastern Michigan (28-13). Leading the Bearcats are 184-pounder Steve Schneider, currently ranked No. 13 in the nation and 157-pounder Tristan Rifanburg, who made his national ranking debut at No. 16 after an eighth place finish at the Cliff Keen Invitational on December 2.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

VS. Franklin & Marshall- December 29, 11 am

F&M enters this weekend with a 1-1 overall record so far this season. Their single win of the season came against VMI on December 2, walking away with a 25-12 win. Most recently, 141 pounder Brett Kulp led the Diplomats with a fifth place finish at the Keystone Classic while Anthony Mancini (3rd) and Josh Young (5th) placed at the Wilkes Open . The last time the two squads wrestled, the Bearcats came out on top with a 38-12 win on January 14, 2017.

VS. Southern Illinois University Edwardsville- December 29, 1 p.m.

SIU enters this weekend 4-1 with their sole win coming from a close 21-20 victory over Cleveland State. Most recently, SIU comes off of two duals against nationally ranked opponents in No. 23 Central Michigan and No. 19 Purdue.

VS. Michigan State University- December 30, 11 a.m.

B1G Michigan State enters this weekend with a 1-1 overall record, their win coming from an exciting 18-17 victory over Buffalo on December 8. The Spartans' lineup holds of a pair of top-20 wrestlers in No. 18 Javier Gasca (141) and No. 19 Drew Hughes (174).

VS. No. 4 Minnesota- December 30, 1 p.m.

B1G No. 4 Minnesota enters this weekend with a 3-1 overall record, with it's only loss at Oklahoma State this season. The Golden Gophers earned wins over Air Force, South Dakota State and Fresno State. Minnesota features five nationally ranked wrestlers in its' lineup coming into the dual Saturday, led by 125 pounder Ethan Lizak ranked third by the NCAA. Also ranked are 133 pounder Mitch McKee at No. 9, 141 pounder Tommy Thorn an No. 10, 157 pounder Jake Short and No. 12 and 165 pounder Nick Wanzek at No. 9.

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Bearcats set to wrestle in four duals, including two B1G opponents in Fort Lauderdale, FL

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