Bucknell Wrestling Travels to Army West Point

Bucknell (0-2, 0-0 EIWA) vs. Army West Point (1-1, 1-1 EIWA)

When: Sunday, January 31 – 2 p.m.
Where: Christl Arena – West Point, N.Y.
Internet Video: Knight Vision
Follow on Twitter: @Bucknell_WRST

Bucknell at a Glance

• The Bison are currently 0-2 (0-0 EIWA) on the season. They most recently won 16 of 20 bouts contested against Sacred Heart wrestlers during a Jan. 24 round-robin tournament.

• Darren Miller (133) captured his first career Bison Athlete of the Week nod for his performance during that event. Coming off his upset of then No. 11 Tony Madrigal of Oklahoma, he rose as high as 14th in the national rankings. He was an impressive victor over Kyle Randall, posting a 21-4 technical fall.

• Bucknell went 10-6 (9-3 EIWA) in 2019-20 dual action. The Bison reached the double digits in dual victories for the first time since 2016-17; their total of EIWA victories also matched their 2016-17 figure.

• Bucknell took seventh at the 2020 EIWA Championships, bolstered by placing six on the podium. Hartman (165) and Drew Phipps (197) finished as EIWA runners-up.

• Hartman, who became Bucknell’s first freshman to finish as an EIWA runner-up in 2019, became the second Bison to twice finish second at the EIWA Championships.

• Hartman and Phipps qualified for the 2020 NCAA Championships, which were not held due to the COVID-19 public health threat. Phipps, who is now a volunteer assistant coach with the program, graduated as a two-time NCAA qualifier and three-time EIWA placewinner.

• Bucknell returned one NCAA qualifier in Hartman. The Bison also brought back four EIWA placewinners: Hartman, David Campbell, Jaden Fisher and Joey Gould.

• Bucknell lost four of their six 2020 EIWA placewinners to graduation: Phipps, Mitch Hartman, Kyle Inlander and Brandon Stokes.

• Campbell, Hartman and Matthew Kolonia are serving as captains in 2020-21. Campbell and Hartman are each in his second season as a captain.

• The Bison’s group of nine newcomers includes three state champions, seven state placewinners and eight team captains. The freshmen hail from four different states: Pennsylvania (6), Michigan, Missouri and New Jersey.

• Head coach Dan Wirnsberger is in his 16th season at the helm of the Bucknell wrestling program. He has scored 130 career victories, good for second in school history; he was also tabbed as the 2015 EIWA Coach of the Year after the Bison placed third at the EIWA Championships and qualified four wrestlers for the NCAA Championships.

• Wirnsberger and Bob Ferraro, who led Bucknell to a 169-175-6 record from 1974 to 1997, are the program’s only head coaches to reach the 100-win plateau.

Projected Bucknell Lineup
125: Brandon Seidman (4-1)
133: #13/16/18 Darren Miller (5-0)
141: Kurt Phipps (4-3)
149: Matthew Kolonia (2-1)
157: Nick Delp (4-3)
165: #7/10/7 Zach Hartman (6-0)
174: Vincent Andreano (5-0)
184: Sam Barnes (1-3)
197: Mason McCready (4-3) OR Luke Niemeyer (0-1)
285: Dorian Crosby (3-2)

Bison in This Week’s Polls

• Zach Hartman (165): 7th Intermat and FloWrestling, 10th The Open Mat

• Darren Miller (133): 13th Intermat, 16th The Open Mat, 18th FloWrestling

• For the third-straight week, Hartman is in the top 10 of the Intermat and FloWrestling rankings. He also entered The Open Mat‘s top 10 this week. He rose two spots in the Intermat and FloWrestling polls and one spot in The Open Mat rankings.

• Miller moved up one spot in the Intermat rankings; he remained 16th in The Open Mat poll and fell in the FloWrestling rankings.

Army West Point at a Glance

• The Black Knights are currently 1-1 (1-1 EIWA). They most recently fell to Binghamton, 23-10, on Jan. 23. At the time, they were ranked 22nd in the NWCA Coaches Poll; they fell out of the rankings following their defeat.

• Last year, Army West Point went 10-3 (4-1 EIWA). The team’s 10 dual victories was its highest figure since the 2008-09 campaign.
• The Black Knights placed third at the 2020 EIWA Championships with 112 points, their second-highest total in school history. Army West Point’s highest finishers were Markus Hartman (157)  and Ben Harvey (174), who each finished third in his respective weight class.
• Six Black Knights qualified for the 2020 NCAA Championships, which were not held due to the COVID-19 public health threat.

• J.T. Brown (16th at 197) and Hartman (17th at 157) were ranked in this week’s Intermat poll.

• Army West Point leads the all-time series with Bucknell, 14-4. Last season in Davis Gym, the Black Knights downed the Bison, 29-7.

A Look Ahead

• The Bison next host American and Binghamton on Sunday, Feb. 7 at 2 p.m. The round-robin tournament will be held in the Gerhard Fieldhouse.

Note for projected lineup: 2020-21 record in parentheses; rankings are Intermat/The Open Mat/FloWrestling; lineup is subject to change