Bearcats put five wrestlers on the podium
ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Binghamton wrestling team began its 2025-26 season Sunday by competing in the Navy Classic at Wesley A. Brown Field House.
The Bearcats were able to post five placewinners while finishing seventh as a team. Carson Wagner, Will Ebert, Nate Lucier, Cayden Bevis and Marco Albanese each reached the podium. Albanese and Lucier, who entered the tournament unranked, each got a victory against a ranked opponent.
"There were moments when we looked very sharp, and others when our confidence wavered," said first year Head Coach Ryan LeBlanc. "This weekend provided a lot to build on and plenty to learn from as we move toward next weekend. Nate and Marco both delivered strong performances and showed a lot of fight throughout the competition."
Highlights
Ebert took fourth at 184 lbs., after entering the tournament ranked No. 32 in the country in the FloWrestling poll. He began his day by posting back-to-back shutouts, first defeating George Mason's Jack Kelly 4-0, before defeating Bucknell's Tyler Bienus via an 8-0 major decision.
Wagner finished in fourth place at 125 lbs., winning his first three matches via decision. His final win came in a 9-8 decision over Nebraska's Alan Koehler in the quarterfinals.
Albanese made noise from the beginning by defeating No. 23 Noah Mulvaney of Bucknell 6-5 in his opening match. The redshirt sophomore followed that with another close win, defeating American's Austin Craft in sudden victory 4-1. Albanese was then taken down by a pair of Pittsburgh wrestlers, first being pinned by Dylan Evans in the semifinals, before falling to No. 29 Jared Keslar 10-2 in the third place match, leading to a fourth-place finish.
Lucier bounced back from losing his first match to No. 26 Kaden Cassidy of George Mason by picking up a 16-1 technical fall over American's Gage Owen. Lucier then took down No. 18 Wynton Denkins of Virginia 4-2 to reach the fifth place match, where he defeated Navy's Frank Antonelli in a 12-3 major decision.
In his first appearance as a heavyweight, Bevis overcame a 9-2 loss to No. 33 Logan Shephard of Bucknell by defeating Shephard's teammate Riley Godek 4-1. Bevis then had to defeat a teammate of his own in Trent Sibble 6-3 to reach the fifth place match, where he fell to Nebraska's Harley Andrews to finish sixth.