After sandwiching a blowout loss to 20th ranked Hofstra University in between dominating victories over conference foes Sacred Heart University and the State University of New York at Binghamton, Boston University’s wrestling team delivered another lopsided victory, this one over Division III powerhouse Springfield College, 28-9, Wednesday night at Blake Arena. The Terriers upped their record to 2-1, while the Pride fell to 5-2.
Springfield, which is ranked 17th in the latest National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III poll, was overwhelmed by BU’s 165 lb., 184 lb. and 197 lb. division wrestlers. Sophomore Ben Schilens shut out Brian Viglione 15-0 in 5:59, senior Ali Abri needed 5:57 to notch a technical fall against Tom Medonis, 22-2. Junior Chad Grant pinned Scott Fay at 3:17.
“Overall, we wrestled really well against a pretty good team,” said BU coach Carl Adams. “Our freshmen (Joseph Rivera, 133 lb., and heavyweight Courtney Howard) wrestled some very good people. They lost not because they didn’t wrestle well but they just got beat by more experienced wrestlers.”
Adams always looks forward to meeting Springfield College, since “they’re local and they want to wrestle us because we’re in Massachusetts,” he said. “It has always been a pretty good dual meet. We usually come out on top.”
Fans should not be fooled by the Pride’s Division III status, according to Adams, who said they are a formidable group even for Division I BU. The Pride’s wrestling team dropped a notch from Division II after the school’s other programs made the switch five years ago.
“A team’s a team,” Adams said. “For us, it’s good competition. They’ve wrestled Brown [University] and Harvard [University], as well as other non-conference teams.”
Adams also took special satisfaction from the victory due to his team’s health situation. Rivera, who lost his match in double overtime, is nursing a back ailment and a groin pull. Senior Jason Holder won his match, 6-2, in spite of back problems that have plagued him the last two years. The team is also monitoring Ali Abri’s slight shoulder problem. Abri and Grant took on heavier weight divisions due to the absence of junior Ed Strauss, who is the team’s starting 197 lb. grappler. Strauss is recovering from mononucleosis, and his return date is yet to be determined.
Despite the nicks, Adams is hopeful about his team’s prospects against tougher, Division I opponents. Four of the next six meets are on the road.
“Last year, injuries hurt us against conference opponents,” he said. “We’ve got six or seven real quality kids on the team who are getting big scores and are getting wins.
“We’re going to run into other strong teams like Brown, Harvard and Drexel University. The thing is, in a close match, [the meet] could swing heavily in our direction or in their direction. It all depends on how many kids win their match and by how many points they win.”
Junior Jose Leon (125 lbs.), sophomore Leighton Brady (157), senior Bryon Nelson (174) and Holder also won their respective matches. The Terriers will travel to Providence on Saturday where they will grapple with Brown.
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