Deep previews of the 5 most intriguing college wrestling duals this weekend
Hawkeye heroes claim 23 wrestling team titles
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The Hawks are back, the Heels are looking for a top-ten ACC win, and Oklahoma State takes on two top-15 ranked opponents. What more could you want in a college wrestling weekend? As season rolls on, the stakes increase and every match matters more, but here are five duals that are particularly interesting and worth watching this weekend.
1. North Carolina vs. N.C. State: Friday, Jan. 9, 6 p.m. ACC Network
North Carolina is a wrestling state.
At least, that s the message UNC and N.C. State sent last year when the Pack raised the roof in Reynolds Coliseum after topping the Tar Heels at heavyweight in a barnburner dual that came down to the final bout. These two teams are back at it again, and this top-15 ACC dual will have it all: local rivalries, title contenders, redemption stories and action-packed matchups. Both squads will field similar line
Binghamton powers past Army West Point Binghamton University Sports Information The Binghamton University wrestling team continued to build strong momentum to start the season, taking down No. 22 Army 23-10 Saturday afternoon in West Point. Ignited by a comeback victory by freshman Micah Roes, and capped off with a major decision by Cory Day over No. 17 Ben Sullivan, the Bearcats return home with a 3-0 record and their best start since the 2011-12 season. That team effort was incredible, head coach Kyle Borshoff said. What those guys did out there, it s hard to do. I need to come up with more adjectives because the only one that comes to my mind is just how incredible that was. I am so proud of our guys. There were four matches listed as toss ups and we were able to win all of them. Those added with Day s upset, leads to the final score you see.
Individually, though, stars have developed, and senior Nate Lucier is the latest.
Coming off a sixth-place finish at the Class 3A PIAA tournament, Lucier has had to wait an extra month to begin his quest to climb all the way to the top of the podium.
The COVID-19 pandemic has delayed the start, and threatened the feasibility of actually finishing the wrestling season, but the social distancing, restrictions and isolation hardly phase Lucier, who’s made a career out of finding ways to improve without marquee help in the practice room.
“Wrestling is a unique sport, where, if you set your work ethic and goals and priorities high enough, you can attain the same thing as anyone else,” Coatesville coach Jeff Bowyer said. “It’s not as convenient to find different partners and extra work, but if you’re driven and focused, it’s attainable, and he’s done that.”
Individually, though, stars have developed, and senior Nate Lucier is the latest.
Coming off a sixth-place finish at the Class 3A PIAA tournament, Lucier has had to wait an extra month to begin his quest to climb all the way to the top of the podium.
Coatesville’s Nate Lucier. (Nate Heckenberger – For MediaNews Group)
The COVID-19 pandemic has delayed the start, and threatened the feasibility of actually finishing the wrestling season, but the social distancing, restrictions and isolation hardly faze Lucier, who’s made a career out of finding ways to improve without marquee help in the practice room.
Binghamton topples LIU The Binghamton University wrestling team won eight of 10 bouts, four of which had bonus points, en route to a 32-6 victory over LIU Thursday evening in Vestal. No. 4 Lou DePrez highlighted the team s strong match, picking up his second straight pin to open the season. We wrestled well today and had some big wins by bonus points, head coach Kyle Borshoff said. We also had several close matches that we were able to win. The guys have great belief in themselves and believe that they shouldn t be losing to anybody. If we can keep winning the close ones, we are going to have a really good season.