The Binghamton wrestling team outscored its opponents, 105-19, on Sunday at the Journeymen/Asics Northeast Duals hosted by Hudson Valley Community College. Facing off against Nassau Community College, LIU Post and 14th-ranked North Carolina, the Bearcats (4-2, 1-0 Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association) posted a pair of shutout victories at the tournament before falling to the Tar Heels (2-1), 19-12.

Against the Lions and Pioneers (1-3), BU put up, 47-0 and 46-0, victories, respectively. Not dropping a single match in either of the first two duals, seven different Bearcats pinned their opponents — looking far removed from their 38-0 loss against Rutgers just two weeks prior.

“We improved dramatically,” Binghamton head coach Matt Dernlan said. “That was the most complete performance that we’ve had as a team since I’ve been here, which is a pretty big statement — but we definitely took the fight to UNC.”

Against North Carolina, Binghamton kept its momentum rolling as 125-pound freshman Steven Bulzomi opened the dual with a 4-2 decision victory. After three straight wins by the Tar Heels, sophomore 157-pounder Vincent DePrez battled redshirt freshman Jack Clark to a 12-11 victory to put BU back on the board midway through the dual.

After 174-pound senior Jack McKeever and 184-pound sophomore Steve Schneider both picked up decision victories, Binghamton was within one point, 13-12, against No. 14 UNC late — with a chance for the upset.

“Those are the opportunities that you really get excited for” Dernlan said. “To measure yourself against the best guys in the country — this is where you stack up.”

BU dropped its final two matches to fall, 19-12, in its near-upset of UNC, but the statement that Binghamton made against the top-20 opponent was not lost on Dernlan. Especially when taking into account the fact that only two BU wrestlers were upperclassmen — and only one a returner in McKeever — the effort of the young Bearcats was one that shouldn’t be taken lightly.

“Some of the young guys are gonna have a little bit more mistakes than you would with a veteran team,” Dernlan said. “But if our execution in the next couple months can match the fight that we put out there against North Carolina, I think we’re in a position to start doing some special things.”

Binghamton is set to continue its tournament circuit at the New York State Championships, hosted by Cornell on Saturday. With just under two months until BU’s EIWA schedule gets into full swing, the Bearcats will continue to make the most of their tournament opportunities and improve every step of the way.

“We made gains, big gains, in the first three weeks of the season … now we got to make sure we do that two more times for the first half of the year,” Dernlan concluded.