The wrestling team defeated both George Mason and Sacred Heart this past weekend at home on Jan. 17. With a combined score of 70-12, the Bison began 34-6 with a non-conference win over the Patriots. The Orange and Blue, propelled further by this latest win, has made impressive improvements nationally, and is now ranked 24 overall.

The Bison have improved to 8-3 on the year and are on a three-match winning streak. Both wins this past weekend came by relatively fair margins, but the George Mason match proved to be a little more of a struggle. The match contained three individual overtimes from Tyler Smith ’18, Victor Lopez ’17, and Rustin Barrick ’16. A late takedown from Robert Schlitt ’16 helped secure the Bison victory.

Sacred Heart was a bit easier to pin down. The Orange and Blue had wins in 17 of its 20 bouts during the two sets against the Big Red. Five of the wins came from falls. Two of the falls came from 125 lb. Paul Petrov ’16. Petrov increased his personal win count to four and has won nine out of 10 bouts. His season record is impressive at 16-3. The two-year team captain gained automatic entry to the NCAA Championships last year.

The Bison will wrap up their three-match homestay tonight at 7 p.m. against Columbia in Davis Gym.