Bulls Sweep at East Stroudsburg Duals

EAST STROUDSBURG, PA – The University at Buffalo wrestling team returned to dual action by defeating host East Stroudsburg and Drexel at the East Stroudsburg Duals on Sunday afternoon. The Bulls dominated by opening the day with a 35-7 victory over East Stroudsburg followed by a 27-15 victory over Drexel in their second dual of the afternoon.

The Bulls opened the day against host East Stroudsburg, winning eight of 10 bouts. Starting the day, UB rattled off six straight victories. In the 125-pound, 133-pound and 141-pound weight classes, each Bull captured a victory by fall in the first period as well as a victory by technical fall in the 149-pound weight class.

Returning to the lineup, senior Dan Bishop made quick work of the Warriors' David Luthy in the 125-pound weight class, pinning Luthy in 1:38. Bishop's pin in 1:38 was the fastest win by fall of his career.

"Bishop displayed a solid effort in his return to the starting lineup after missing the start of the season due to injury. His commitment to rehab and hard work have paid off. The ultimate success of his return can be contributed to the UB athletic training staff and our athletic trainer Allison Gammell," said head coach Jim Beichner.

At 133, 20th nationally-ranked Kevin Smith won by fall over ESU's Andrew Arnold in two minutes, even. Freshman Andrew Schutt pinned T.J. Van Horn late in the first period with just a second left on the clock for his first dual victory by fall at 2:59. Sophomore Desi Green won decisively by technical fall, 24-9, at 6:40 over ESU's Eddie Stephenson.

In the 157-pound, 165-pound, 197-pound and 285-pound weight classes, Buffalo won each bout by decision. At 165, sophomore John-Martin Cannon earned his 30th dual victory of his career by defeating ESU's Jeff Jacobs, 3-1. Senior Andrew Stella kept the Warriors' Thad Frick off the scoresheet, winning by the score of 7-0.

Facing Drexel in their second dual, Buffalo quickly found itself on the board as Bishop captured his second fall of the day. The Dragons erased the Bulls' lead by earning victories in the 133-pound and 141-pound weight classes to tie the bout at 6-6. The battle at 133, featured two nationally-ranked wrestlers as Smith faced 13th nationally-ranked Steve Mytych. Mytych managed to pull off a close 6-4 decision over Smith.

Following back-to-back losses at 133 and 141, UB went on a tear by winning four straight bouts for a 17-point swing. Green and Cannon won each of their bouts by major decision at 149 and 165, respectively. Between Green's and Cannon's victories was Stella's victory by fall over the Dragons' Charles Aungst in 4:44.

Junior transfer Brian Sheehan held on for an 11-4 victory over Dave Woodall for his first UB career dual victory. Sophomore Jimmy Hamel won by major decision, 18-7, over Drexel's Jack Callender.

"Bishop, Cannon, Green, Hamel and Stella provided our team with dominant performances today. We managed to score a lot of extra team points in each match. Anytime we score as many team points as we were able to, it helps us in the end," added Beichner. "There are a couple of issues we need to resolve but overall we earned solid victories."

The Bulls (3-0-1, 0-0 MAC) will return to action when they host Bloomsburg and Findlay on Sunday, December 20 at Alumni Arena. The tri-meet will begin at 11:00 am.