The Bison wrestling team fell short to Columbia on Senior Day on Feb. 23 by a score of 20-16. However, they rebounded nicely on Feb. 24 to defeat Bloomsburg on the road with a score of 35-7. The Orange and Blue finished the regular season with a 7-11 overall record. D.J. Hollingshead ’19, Christian Bassolino ’19, Ben Bliss ’19, Kyle Greene ’19, Mike Macklin ’19, Andrew Millsap ’19, Frank Satriale ’19, and Nick Stephani ’19 were recognized before the Senior Day dual.

The Bison got off to a slow start against Columbia, trailing 20-0 early in the match but made a commendable comeback led by Drew Phipps ’20. Phipps scored a takedown and four back points to win by a major decision, extending his win streak to 11 matches and improving his record to 21-7 this season.

Brandon Stokes ’20 followed Phipps’ major decision with a pin in his match, but their efforts were not enough, as the Orange and Blue conceded the match to Columbia.

“We can definitely improve on continuing to wrestle through positions and looking to score at all times,” Phipps said. “At certain points during the Columbia match, our guys went into defensive mode and instead of looking to score points, we were looking to not get scored on. In Division 1 wrestling, shutting down early and going into defensive mode usually doesn’t work out.”

The Bison came out strong on Feb. 24 and took control of the match against Bloomsburg from the start. Noah Levett ’22 earned his first collegiate victory with a major decision.

“Our team did well opening up and taking a lot of attacks against Bloomsburg,” Phipps said. “This was great to see because it’s something we have been struggling with all year. People were going after it and looking to score points the whole time.”

Looking forward to the EIWA Championships next weekend, Phipps added that “this is what we’ve been working for all year and it’s time to let it fly.”

The Bison will compete for the final time this season in the EIWA Championships held from March 8-9 in Vestal, N.Y.