The Binghamton University wrestling team had a weekend of mixed fortunes as it was soundly beaten by Cornell University at Friday’s dual meet but rebounded the next day to secure a respectable seventh-place finish at the New York State Championship.

The Bearcats (0-2) endured an evening to forget in Ithaca to start the weekend as the Big Red demolished BU, 30-7, winning eight of the 10 matches.

Binghamton head coach Matt Dernlan admitted that the better team on the day won, and that he was disappointed with his team’s display and effort.

“[Cornell] did everything that we preached to our guys to do,” he said. “They made their efforts to get to positions and we didn’t. We didn’t put the effort out there to get the results that we are looking for. We deserved the outcome of the match.”

Binghamton’s two individual victories came from No. 2-ranked 149-pound senior Donnie Vinson and No. 8 197-pound redshirt senior Nate Schiedel. Vinson defended his undefeated slate this season and picked up win No. 7 with a victory over junior Ryan Dunphy. Schiedel holds a 6-0 season record of his own after topping sophomore Billy George with a 6-3 decision.

Dernlan praised the two seniors as bright spots in an otherwise dismal outing.

“They both went out and got what they deserved in the competition,” he said. “I am proud that they put the effort out there and met the standards for themselves during the seven minutes.”

Following the rough match against Cornell, the Bearcats remained in Ithaca on Saturday to compete in the New York State Collegiate Championship. Competing without sophomore Joe Bonaldi, Schiedel and Vinson, the three highest-ranked wrestlers on the squad, Binghamton ended the weekend on a positive note, finishing seventh out of 18 teams.

“Our first two dual meets, I think we really came up lacking in our effort and attitude,” Dernlan said. “But last week at the Binghamton Open and Saturday at the New York State Championships, we saw a reversal of those things. We saw some really good performances, a lot of good individual efforts. We had some decent placements from a number of guys.”

The most impressive performances of the day came out of the 133-pound weight class, where two Bearcats faced off in the championship. Senior Derek Steeley and redshirt junior Dan Riggi went head-to-head for all three periods, and Steely came out on top, 8-2.

When asked about having two wrestlers compete against each other in a championship match, Dernlan said, “It was great. When you put two guys out there and they both make it to the final match, it gets pretty exciting.”

Both went into the tournament unseeded, upsetting the top two seeds in their weight class. Steely took down Army’s second-seeded senior Jordan Thome, 8-5, in the first round of the tournament. In the semifinals, Riggi defeated the No. 1 seed redshirt junior Jamie Franco of Hofstra University by an impressive technical fall.

“That was a big building block for [Riggi],” Dernlan said. “[Both wrestlers] really stepped up their performances each round, and I was really proud of what they put out all day.”

Binghamton redshirt sophomore heavyweight Tyler Deuel concluded his weekend with a third-place finish after fighting back from an opening round defeat. After being placed into the consolation bracket, Deuel won five straight matches, two of which he pinned his opponents.

BU redshirt junior 184-pound Cody Reed also placed in the tournament, finishing fourth with a 3-2 mark.

Though the Bearcats are 0-2 in dual meets, Dernlan said he does not necessarily believe the team is a better tournament team than it is in dual meets.

“Like it or not, we only have a few opportunities to be in tournaments, so we better figure out a way to turn these results around in dual meet competitions,” Derlan said. “We are capable of it. Everybody has got to be accountable, and everybody has to contribute.”

The Bearcats are set to return to action at Sunday’s Northeast Duals, where they will face off against Army, Rutgers University and University of Illinois. Action is set to kick off at 11:25 a.m. at Hudson Valley Community College.