By David Gibb, Staff Writer
Last Saturday the Hofstra Wrestling Team ventured off the Island to take on not one but two tough opponents. First, the Pride traveled over 200 miles to Binghamton University to match-up against the Bearcats before driving 50 miles further north to challenge 7th ranked Cornell University later that day.
Against Binghamton, several Pride wrestlers had success, including no. 17 P.J. Gillespie who prevailed in a sudden victory period to defeat Bearcat Matt Kaylor 6-4 in the 165-pound contest. Freshman Luke Vaith also collected a decision for Hofstra, besting Tyler Malmberg 9-8, and Anthony Tortora was victorious over Binghamton's Pat Walsh 3-1 at 197 pounds.
Unfortunately for the Pride, the story of the day for the Bearcats was sophomore Justin Lister, who defeated Hofstra's 16th ranked Jonny Bonilla-Bowman. Following his 10-8 win, Lister was awarded the CAA Wrestler of the Week award and awarded the rank of 18th in the nation.
In addition to Bonilla-Bowman's upset loss, other Pride wrestlers struggled. The Bearcats recorded two technical falls by a combined score of 40-5, and also scored a fall in just over three minutes in one match-up. When the Pride's first event of the day was over, the score was 28-8 in favor of Binghamton.
Only a few hours later, Hofstra's grapplers were hitting the mat again, this time in Ithaca against 7th ranked Big Red. Jonny Bonilla-Bowman, who had been upset earlier on the day, claimed a victory against Cornell's John Bastings after an injury forfeit only moments into the contest. The remainder of the Pride team would not be so lucky, falling to a stacked squad of top-twenty wrestlers including two men ranked first in the weight classes.
P.J. Gillespie participated in his second contest of the day that remained tied after three periods. Gillespie wrestled a tense 1-1 contest against Justin Kerber of Cornell, necessitating another sudden victory period for the Pride's 17th ranked 165-pound competitor. Unfortunately, Gillespie was unable to replicate his earlier performance, falling 3-1.
Cornell asserted themselves as a top ten program, recording two pins, a technical fall, and two major decision victories. When all was said and done in Ithaca, Big Red had run up an impressive score of 37-6 against the Pride. The team had to return to Hempstead with an 0-2 record on the day and a combined score of 14-64 to think about.
Looking to build momentum for the final weeks of the wrestling season, the Pride were scheduled to travel to New Jersey this Wednesday to take on Rider. However, the blizzard that hit the tri-state area came into play, postponing the match-up for a week, with a make-up scheduled for February 17.
With that cancellation, the Pride will next hit the mat Sunday the 14th, against the University of Maryland. After that they will make up their match in New Jersey before returning home to the Mack to greet Drexel University on the 20th.
Anthony Tortora grapples with a University of Pennsylvania wrestler. (Sean M. Gates/ The Chronicle)