During his seventh season at the helm, Bhattacharjee led the Bearcats to a first-seed finish in the America East (AE) conference, and earned the right to host the championship title game for the first time in 18 seasons. Despite losing on penalties in the final of the postseason tournament, Bhattacharjee’s most recent season in charge has shown proof of an upward trajectory, and due to this, he has been named Pipe Dream’s Coach of the Year.

“The biggest highlight honestly [was] just over the season how our players came together and the belief that they had in one another,” Bhattacharjee said. “We had a solid group. They care for one another, they’re selfless, they’re willing to do a lot of the right things off the field, and what we talk about within our program is staying committed to the process, believing in the process and if we do the right things on a daily basis with the process, then we know good things are going to result in the end.”

In the 2022 season, BU managed a 9-5-5 overall record, and a 6-1-1 record in AE play, while playing in its second title appearance in the last three years. After bringing its semifinal matchup against Albany to penalties, Binghamton faced UNH in the finals, its only AE opponent to add a loss to the Bearcats’ record. Another penalty shootout would be the deciding factor in sending UNH to the NCAA tournament. Despite falling behind 4-1 in the first half, the comeback push and resilience to stay in a high-stakes game is a testament to Bhattacharjee and his team’s efforts.

“We’re looking forward to putting ourselves in a good position to hopefully compete for an America East title both in the regular season, and hopefully get us to a point where we can compete for an America East postseason championship again and hopefully not need to overcome that final bit and get to the NCAA tournament,” Bhattacharjee said.

For future seasons, Bhattacharjee credits the arrival of Athletics Director Eugene Marshall for further garnering a winning culture within the Binghamton athletics community. Coinciding with the success of adjacent programs at the University, women’s soccer is one of many bright spots both now and in the future.

“[Marshall] has high standards and high expectations, so he wants to win and you can feel it through the different teams,” Bhattacharjee said. “You see the success of our lacrosse teams playing in the semifinals this weekend, volleyball and what they did in terms of also winning the regular season title, men’s soccer making it to the semis, softball in the top two, baseball obviously having won the America East last year making it to the NCAAs. The individual performances in swimming, cross country, track [and] wrestling. It’s just an exciting time to be a Bearcat right now and that energy, it’s very palpable when you walk around the Events Center and the West Gym.”

Looking ahead to fall 2023, Bhattacharjee and his new-look squad will seek to defend their one-seed finish and return to the AE tournament final — but this time going for its first championship title since 2004.

“Yes, they’re very good soccer players and want to compete at a high level, but at the same time they understand how important our culture is, and that’s something we certainly spend some time to work on both on the field and off the field,” Bhattacharjee said. “So for us, it means having a strong team bond and a strong team culture, and if we do that, that’s where as a team we can come together, whether it means celebrating terrific moments and big wins or being in a position where we can overcome any kind of adverse situations.”

“[Sunday] was about as good as we could play,” said Binghamton head coach Tim Sinicki. “We got a good start from [junior pitcher Gabe Driscoll] and played clean defensively. Unfortunately, we had a chance to win on Friday, and I normally don’t go down this road, but there were two calls, one in each ball game, that went against us, and I thought they were the wrong calls and actually, both of them led to the winning run in each game … So, a little disappointed but proud of our guys the way we came back and played today after sitting around in a hotel all day yesterday.”

Game one of Friday’s doubleheader proved to be the lowest-scoring of the weekend. The game’s only run came in the bottom of the sole extra inning, only after both pitchers had gone back and forth to keep the game scoreless. Senior pitcher Thomas Babalis got the start on the mound and lowered his ERA to 3.67, good enough for second in the conference. However, the Bearcats (20-14, 7-5 AE) were held scoreless in the end. NJIT’s (16-21, 6-6 AE) run-scoring single in the bottom of the eighth secured its opening victory.

“[Babalis] was spectacular,” Sinicki said. “He was in complete control the entire outing. He kind of set the tone for us, we pitched really well this weekend. But you want your ace pitching the first game of the series to set the tone, and he was terrific — as good as I’ve seen him.”

The doubleheader continued, as both teams began to pick it up offensively. Immediately, the opening inning showed signs of this game being more eventful, as Binghamton struck first. Senior outfielder Cavan Tully was sent home by sophomore catcher Evin Sullivan’s RBI sacrifice fly to lead 1-0. NJIT responded from there though, getting two runs in its half of the first while holding the Bearcats to just two hits through six innings.

By the seventh, the Highlanders had a 3-1 cushion. BU made a game out of it, however, as junior outfielder Mike Gunning drove Tully in with a double, quickly followed by another RBI from Sullivan that brought Gunning home to level the score. The winning run was plated by NJIT in the end, as the hosts would walk off for the second game in a row for a 4-3 win.

Game three was forced to Sunday due to a rain delay, as the Bearcats entered looking to secure a consolation win, already having dropped the series overall. Binghamton was on its way to doing so after a two-run first inning — kicked off by an RBI triple from sophomore second baseman Nick Roselli which allowed junior outfielder Tommy Reifler to score. Roselli remained on base and eventually scored himself courtesy of a senior first baseman Kevin Gsell sacrifice fly. It would remain locked at 2-2 until the visitors displayed their best inning of the series so far, scoring four runs in the top of the fourth. The 7-2 win was secured by another Roselli RBI to send Reifler home in the top of the seventh.

“The last thing you want is to be swept and so the fact that we’ve been able to win — these last two weekends — the final game of the series, speaks to the level of character our guys have, but we certainly don’t want to make a habit of this,” Sinicki said. “We want to try and do a better job in the first two games. One thing about these past two weekends is that all of these losses have been by one run, and we have to try [to] score runs when we have opportunities to, and maybe get a lead and extend it.”

BU will return home for a midweek game against Siena on Tuesday, April 25. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Bearcats Baseball Complex in Vestal, New York.

“I thought they were two pretty evenly matched teams,” said Binghamton head coach Tim Sinicki. “I thought the first two nights could’ve gone either way, and [the games] just didn’t go our way and the same thing could be said for today’s game, you know, back and forth. I thought for the most part it was an entertaining weekend. I was anxious to see what [Maine] was all about, undefeated record coming into the weekend, and they’re a good solid ball club. We competed hard, had a chance to win the series, but I’m certainly glad we were able to get at least the last one today.”

The Bearcats (19-12, 6-3 AE) looked to extend their winning streak to seven straight against the Black Bears (17-12, 11-1 AE) in Friday’s game one. The contest saw a lot of action from the mound, as both teams could only muster a single run each by the end of the fifth. BU’s initial contribution to the scoreboard came at the bottom of the second, when senior first baseman Kevin Gsell hammered the first pitch of the frame over the wall for a homer, his third of the season. Maine managed to get one back before Binghamton showed up again in the bottom of the sixth, as sophomore second basemen Nick Roselli hit a home run of his own to make it 2-1.

After flipping the script and getting four runs in the top of the eighth inning, the Black Bears had a three-run cushion. The Bearcats attempted a comeback of their own, scoring two runs and cutting their deficit to one in the bottom of the eighth, but this was not enough to match their opponents, as the hosts fell 5-4.

Unlike game one, game two wasted no time in becoming an offensive affair. Maine’s opening inning saw them storm into a 3-0 lead off the bat. BU would respond by getting a single run in four of their next innings, the first three all involving junior outfielder Mike Gunning — who got a home run and an RBI. Gsell’s bottom-of-the-fifth homer rounded it out and gave the Bearcats their first lead of the game at 4-3. Two late-game homers from the Black Bears would cancel out this comeback, subjecting the hosts to another 5-4 loss.

Game three began the same as game two, as Maine scored three runs in the top of the first. This time, however, Binghamton responded by taking a 5-3 lead in the bottom half, as the batting lineup went on a flurry with scores from junior catcher Kevin Reilly as well as Tully, Roselli, Gsell and Reifler off a wild pitch. The Black Bears would then repeat the outcome of their first inning, scoring another three runs in both the top of the second and fourth, canceling out BU’s sole run in the third to put it at 9-6.

“That’s what it takes,” Sinicki said. “Obviously, when you play this game, you’re going to go through stretches, you’re going to make outs and you’re not going to have your good stuff on the mound. To have everybody contribute over the weekend, even guys who maybe didn’t have a great night Friday and Saturday, to come through today for us. It’s really rewarding when you get a lot of different guys [getting] their hands involved in a win, and everyone can take a lot of pride in it and be happy for everyone, so it’s a good team win today.”

A major fifth inning from the Bearcats would once again turn the tides of the game, scoring six runs in their half. Maine’s response was immense though, beating BU with seven runs, including a grand slam in the sixth. Binghamton began its response with two runs in the seventh, and completed its comeback that inning when back-to-back RBIs from Stellrecht and Tully made it 18-16. BU maintained the lead until the last pitch, securing the 18-17 win and handing the conference leaders their first loss in AE this year.

“I just think it was a game that revealed a lot of character for the guys in our program,” Sinicki said. “Sometimes you’re gonna win a ball game two to one, and sometimes you’re gonna have to win 18 to 17. A lot of guys had a hand in today’s wins, so I think after losing a couple of tough ones on Friday and Saturday — to come back today and the way how the game was up and down — for us to get a win says a lot about our program.”

BU will next travel to Cornell for a midweek game on Tuesday, April 18. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at Hoy Field in Ithaca, NY.

“It was good to get the series win against Albany,” wrote Binghamton head coach Jess Bump. “We always know games against them will be tough as they are well-coached and always a really good offensive team who can make adjustments. We continue to pitch well and play good defense and grind offensively. I would still like to see our offense execute better with [runners in scoring position] to alleviate some pressure on the other side of the ball.”

The series opened with the Bearcats’ (17-12, 4-4 AE) most efficient performance of the weekend, holding the Great Danes (13-12, 4-3 AE) to five scoreless innings. BU got its game started in the bottom of the third when sophomore outfielder Sarah Rende hit an RBI double, sending two runners home to put her team up 2-0. Rende continued to be involved in the action, getting to third base, and was eventually sent home herself after a single from graduate student infielder Alli Richmond, ending the inning with a three-run cushion.

After two scoreless innings were played, game one was capped off by an eventful sixth inning. Binghamton’s lead was threatened by two sequential RBIs from the Great Danes in their half, however, it wasn’t left without a response. BU secured its win off a single from redshirt sophomore outfielder Brianna Santos, allowing redshirt sophomore infielder Gabby Guerrero to grab the game’s final run. Freshman pitcher Brianna Roberts, who started and pitched a complete game for the Bearcats, managed a career-high 12 strikeouts in her team’s 4-2 win, her sixth of the season.

“[Roberts] obviously had a great weekend on the mound,” Bump wrote. “Game one she dominated — had a great presence, really good command of all of her pitches and just kept their hitters guessing. She has this switch that she can turn on when she wants, and if she can find a way to maintain what she did this weekend, she is going to continue to keep us in every single game.”

Game one was immediately followed by game two in a Saturday doubleheader. The Great Danes rebounded from their initial defeat though, going up four runs after three innings of play. Binghamton managed to find its only runs of the game in the bottom of the fourth as freshman catcher Emma Lawson’s RBI double and an error from an Albany player allowed two runners on base to get home. Another run for the visitors in the seventh secured the Great Danes’ 5-2 win and leveled the series going into Sunday’s final game.

“Game two we hit the ball really hard, unfortunately just right at people,” Bump wrote. “We put ourselves in position multiple times to score multiple runners and just didn’t execute. It’s been something that we’ve really had to work hard on this season, and some of these tight game losses are coming down to getting the job done and scoring more runs.”

In the final contest, Albany struck first with a run in the third. This time the Bearcats’ response was swift, however, as Santos and Rende both found themselves involved again. The former hit a double to center field, getting out on the play but sending Rende home for the hosts’ opening run. While Albany was the first to break the 1-1 deadlock in the top of the sixth, BU responded in a timely manner once again. Richmond managed an RBI double in the bottom of the inning, sending it to center field and giving runners Rende and sophomore outfielder Laney Harbaugh the opportunity to get home and secure the 3-2 win.

“The two-run double was obviously big to take the lead on Sunday,” Bump wrote. “I think we caught a bit of luck as it was directly in the sun, but with how hard we hit the ball all weekend, I’d like to say we earned that. Unfortunately for Albany, it just came in a really big situation. Our outfield play was impeccable this weekend. We knew Albany was going to be putting the ball in play a lot and hard, and our outfield came up with a few diving catches and some great runs in the gaps to get us out of some innings.”

Roberts’ pitching and record continued to be solid, winning both games she pitched this series on a 1.50 ERA. Rende was also a standout for BU, going three-for-10 with three runs scored and two RBIs. Redshirt sophomore utility Lindsey Walter hit a team-best .500 on the weekend, improving her season batting average to a team-best .486.

BU will continue AE conference play against Bryant with the series starting on Saturday, April 15. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. at Conaty Park in Smithfield, Rhode Island.

“We didn’t play well from start to finish,” said Binghamton head coach Tim Sinicki. “[We’re] always trying to find a few brights spots, and I thought the guys who pitched the middle innings did a nice job. I think [senior first baseman Kevin Gsell] remained pretty hot for us, and [junior outfielder Christian Perez] got an opportunity to start a game yesterday and play a little bit, he did a nice job as well, always nice to see hard work pay off. But overall it was just a bad game. What we’ll do is just flush that thing, practice the next few days and get ready for Bryant this weekend.”

The game’s opening innings set the tone for the rest of the day to come, as the Griffins (7-11, 3-0 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference [MAAC]) found their first two runs in the bottom of the first off of a single. The Bearcats (11-9, 3-0 AE) were quickly dispatched in the following inning, with the hosts then adding six more runs in their half of the second to put them eight up.

It wasn’t until the top of the fifth, where the Griffins had now found themselves two more runs, did Binghamton manage its first scoring play of the game. Freshman infielder Mike Stellrecht hit a double-play grounder allowing sophomore second baseman Nick Roselli to get home.

“You try not to read too much into the mid-week games,” Sinicki said. “We try to win every game we play, obviously, but to save time we’ve pitched some guys who are maybe on the younger side, who don’t get to play a lot. You’ve got to keep guys sharp, you’ve got to reward guys with playing time for all the hard work they put in during practice. We try not to get too bent out of shape if we don’t play well, but we’ve got to regroup and got to keep our focus on the weekend for conference games.”

The top of the seventh would be the next time when BU found its scoring form, only after Canisius added another two runs of its own. In sequence, junior outfielder Mike Gunning and Gsell both hit RBIs. Gunning drove in one with a double, while Gsell scored two with a single, making the score 12-4 going into the stretch. Perez and freshman outfielder Nick Ungania scored the unearned runs.

In the home half of the seventh, however, the offensive outpour from the Griffins hit its peak. 10 unanswered runs in the inning pegged the Bearcats back 22-4. Three consolation runs from BU in the top of the eighth rounded out the game, including a two-run homer from Perez and another RBI for Gsell. Perez went 2-for-4 in the end, as Gsell went 3-for-4 with three RBIs in what were Binghamton’s positives of the 22-7 defeat.

“[Gsell] did a good job [Tuesday],” Sinicki said. “His two-strike approach was really good. I think at least two of his hits were with two strikes, and that’s a sign of a good hitter, someone who is confident with a two-strike count. So that was really encouraging. [Perez] has worked hard, hasn’t had a lot of opportunities, but he’s tireless. He’s constantly trying to get better, and I tried to reward him with a start yesterday because he earned it, and he made the most of it. So those are two things that are really the biggest positives I took from yesterday’s game.”

BU will return to conference play this weekend when it hosts Bryant in a series starting Friday, March 31. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 3 p.m. at the Bearcats Baseball Complex in Vestal, New York.

“The competition was pretty good,” said Binghamton head coach Bernie Herceg. “It definitely served a purpose for us, to get out from the cold weather, get down on grass [and] hit some golf shots instead of just hitting into a net, chipping and putting indoors, so we’ll definitely build off this next week. But overall, we had a couple guys post some decent scores on day one, you know, [sophomore Tynan Jones] and [Conner] really played solid. In the second round, [Conner] finished strong and had a great tournament for him. Finished in the top 20, so it was great to see. Some of the guys played a little bit better [in the second round], and it’s good to just get some solid rounds under our belt.”

BU remained hot and cold on day one of the invitational, as its seven competing golfers all remained spread out among the leaderboard even by the end of the day. Binghamton would maintain a combined score of 303 by the end of the day, keeping it in the middle of the pack on the overall leaderboard, tied for seventh.

Binghamton’s competitors were able to keep pace on day one on an individual basis as well. Notably, Conner and Jones tied for 12th on Saturday, with both golfers shooting one over par with scores of 73. Senior Evan Sitts sat tied for 29th while shooting four over in the first round.

“Just a great performance,” Herceg said. “[Conner] has been working hard all winter at his swing and keeping his short game in check the best he can, and it’s paying off. He hit a lot of quality shots today, and yesterday, especially under the conditions. So it’s great to have him playing really solid so early in the year for us, and I look forward to see how he progresses, as well as the team going into the rest of our spring season.”

Day two saw more of the same, but a slight decline in the Bearcats’ performances overall. Conner continued a solid outing by shooting two over par with a score of 74. Conner’s second day put his final tally at 147 for three over par for the weekend, finishing tied for 11th. Jones dropped away from his teammate on day two, shooting seven over with a score of 79, placing him tied for 31st at the end of the tournament, scoring 152 in total.

Overall, Binghamton would fall to tied for ninth after 36 holes. It remained relatively consistent, however, scoring 307 on the day, accumulating a 610 final score for the Bearcats in the end.

“I’m very optimistic,” Herceg said. “Our fall wasn’t the strongest, but we’re a young team, we have three freshmen, the rest sophomores and one senior [Sitts] is our captain, and he’s going to be staying one more year … but we’re a younger team. In the fall, the guys got a lot of experience and we’re going to keep getting experience here in the spring, so we’re only going to be stronger. How much work the guys put in on the offseason will definitely pay off. I saw it even this week. We’re going to have a stronger spring, and I’m really excited to see how the guys perform here for the rest of the year.”

BU’s other performers on the weekend include sophomore Shawn Colella, who finished tied for 38th overall shooting nine over par with a score of 153. Sitts shot eight over on the second day, putting him down to 12 over par in total with a score of 156, good enough for tied 47th place.

Binghamton will return to Maryland next weekend in the Battle at Rum Point, beginning on Saturday, March 25. Tee times are set to start at 8 a.m. in Berlin, Maryland.

The Pipe Dream Bearcast returns after a one-year hiatus as Binghamton University’s new athletic director, Eugene Marshall Jr. sits down with the Pipe Dream Sports desk.

This episode was hosted by Sports Editor Jack Oh and Assistant Sports Editor Aidan Jennings. All post-production work was done by Managing Editor Harry Karpen. A special thank you to Eugene Marshall Jr. and Associate Athletic Director of Communications David O’Brian for their support of the show.

“This weekend was a good test for us as we were playing the same team four times,” wrote Binghamton head coach Jess Bump. “We took a lot out of the weekend as a whole, as the set up of the games [are] similar to what our America East slate will look like. Overall, it’s easy to say it’s tough coming home 2-2 as we should’ve come home 4-0, but I think it was an eye-opening weekend, and we learned a lot about ourselves.”

The Bearcats (11-7) kicked off the scoring for the weekend in the first contest, plating a first-inning run after redshirt sophomore utility Lindsey Walter scored on a fielding error from the Patriots (11-7). BU took a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning, courtesy of an RBI double from junior catcher Hailey Ehlers. Although this finished up the scoring on the visitor’s side, freshman pitcher Brianna Roberts held George Mason scoreless over the first six innings. GMU’s drought ended in the seventh, however, as the hosts posted a three-run inning and won the game 3-2 in walk-off fashion.

“[Ehlers] has been working through a lot of things in her swing and the last two weekends has continued to look better every at bat,” Bump wrote. “She has a confident presence, and is swinging free right now, which obviously has really helped her results. She also did a great job behind the plate this weekend, and held George Mason — who has 57 stolen bases on the year — to none.”

Game two of the series began in a similar fashion as the first, with the Bearcats posting the opening runs early. Ehlers added her second RBI double on the weekend, this time plating three runs in the second inning as Binghamton grabbed a 3-0 lead. The Patriots posted their response in the fourth inning with a three-run frame of their own, knotting up the score. BU was unable to strike back, however, as the hosts held it scoreless for the remainder of the contest. George Mason added the winning run in the sixth as the Bearcats dropped the second game 4-3.

“Saturday were tough losses as we were up in both of them late in the game,” Bump wrote. “We talked a lot about how we can’t get complacent and have to continue to score runs throughout games. [George] Mason took advantage of some of our pitchers’ misses, which resulted in some runs late.”

Binghamton kicked off Sunday’s action with another hot start in game one, posting a first inning 2-0 lead courtesy of a two RBI single from redshirt sophomore outfielder Brianna Santos. GMU quickly responded in the bottom of the inning with a three-run outing of its own to take the lead. Despite this, BU remained competitive and regained the lead in the second inning, plating four runs as freshman infielder Akira Kopec and sophomore outfielder Sarah Rende each hit RBI doubles, giving the visitors a 6-3 lead. The Patriots added just one more run in the contest as Roberts earned the win in the 6-4 effort.

In the final game of the weekend, Binghamton struggled to score early and George Mason took a 4-0 lead in the second inning. Santos continued her strong performance on the weekend, however, assisting in a BU comeback with a two-run triple in the third followed by another two-RBI hit in the fifth as the visitors trailed 5-4 heading into the penultimate inning. In the sixth, the Bearcats blew the game open, plating eight runs to leave GMU out of reach. Ehlers led off the frame with a solo homer, and soon after graduate student infielder Alli Richmond drove in three runs with a double.

Finally, after batting around the order, Ehlers capped off the inning with a two-run triple. Binghamton added its final run in the seventh and took the weekend’s final contest 13-5. Graduate student pitcher Sophia Pappas was awarded the win after entering for relief and allowing no runs in two innings pitched.

“The two wins [Sunday] were really gritty, and wins like that make us better,” Bump wrote. “We have the ability to score a lot of runs when we get momentum. We were much better with runners in scoring positions all day today, which is what we lacked day one.”

BU will return to action on Saturday, March 18 for the Penn State Tournament, its final tournament before the start of conference play. First pitch is set for 9 a.m. against Cornell at the Beard Field at Nittany Lion Softball Park in University Park, Pennsylvania.

“I thought we had a good game plan, especially defensively,” said Binghamton head coach Levell Sanders. “I thought we were going to be able to guard [Vermont]. We had an emphasis on taking away their 3-pointers, and I know [Vermont senior guard Dylan Penn] hit 3-pointers, but that wasn’t his strong suit. He hasn’t done that all year, so his threes are not something that we thought hurt us that bad. They only made, as a team, five threes and in all of their losses they had five threes or less, so we thought if we held them to that number we’ll be good.”

In the opening half of the semifinal matchup, both the Bearcats (13-18, 8-8 AE) and the Catamounts (22-10, 14-2 AE) began competitively as BU remained close despite being unable to grab a lead. A pair of 3-pointers from senior guard Jacob Falko and junior guard Armon Harried kept Binghamton in pursuit, despite a two-for-nine shooting start with six turnovers in the opening 10 minutes, leaving the visitors trailing 12-10.

As first half play continued, Vermont found an opportunity to grow its lead over BU and didn’t let up. An 18-4 run, one which left Binghamton scoreless for five minutes, saw UVM catapult ahead to a 30-14 lead. The Bearcats found their shooting form again before halftime through efforts from senior guard Dan Petcash and graduate student forward Miles Gibson, but with the half being called shortly after, the visitors still trailed the Catamounts 39-18.

“The one thing that I thought we would have issues with was scoring,” Sanders said. “And that’s just because we’re not a great shooting team, and so what a lot of teams do to us is they clog the paint, and they force us to shoot from outside. And when we don’t have an opportunity to score in the paint, we struggle to score just because we don’t shoot that well from outside — nine-[for]-21 from three — Definitely disappointed that we didn’t get a chance to win the game and play a little bit better, but I thought we fought and we did as much as we could to get a W.”

Coming out of halftime, Binghamton got on the board first. Falko was sent to the line and drilled two free throws, making the score 39-20. Despite being down big, the Bearcats began to trade baskets with Vermont. Although Binghamton struggled to cut into the hosts’ lead and gain any significant momentum, the visitors began to move the ball and hit some shots.

Halfway through the period, the Bearcats found themselves down 59-36 as they were unable to make a significant dent in Vermont’s lead. Both teams exchanged baskets for the rest of the half as the Bearcats could not find a way to go on any significant runs. Despite shooting nearly 54 percent from the field and shooting 7-13 from beyond the arc in the second half, Binghamton could not stop Vermont’s offense as the Catamounts made 64 percent of their field goals and outscored BU 40-39 in the period.

“I just think that Vermont [is] a really good first half team, and when you’re up by 20, you kind of lose a little focus,” Sanders said. “I thought we made some baskets late, it was 39-40 in the second half, but a lot of our baskets came late. [Falko] had a lot of late threes, so that number can be a little bit deceiving. I thought we had some shots that we didn’t take — when you play against a good team and you have shots, you’ve gotta take them and we didn’t do that. And I thought we became hesitant, a little passive.”

Binghamton finished the season 8-8 in conference play — the program’s best conference win percentage since the 2009-10 season. Despite enduring the same outcome in the AE semifinals against Vermont for the second year straight, Sanders feels that the program is heading in a successful direction.

“I thought our season was kind of up and down,” Sanders said. “I thought in the first part — the nonconference season — adding the new guys that we added, I felt that we were trying to find a rhythm. And then I thought once conference season came around, we kind of tweaked some things and found a lineup. We started playing small-ball and found a lineup that really worked for us. I thought that really kind of gave us the opportunity to play some better basketball. We ended the season losing four games in a row, two games went into overtime. So overall, we’ve had eight conference wins, finished 500 in the league, which we haven’t done in a long time. We had 13 wins overall, so I think overall the program is on a good trajectory … I think we’re going in the right direction and if we keep with this pace, we’re going to become a really dangerous team and will be competing for championships in years to come.”

“I’m really happy that all three of them were able to qualify their spots at the NCAA championships,” said Binghamton head coach Kyle Borshoff. “Our program continues to have a presence at the national level. All three of our NCAA qualifiers have the ability to make noise in Tulsa. I was hoping to score some more team points other weights, but at the end of the day the whole purpose of this weekend is to get to the national championship and [redshirt junior Cory Day], [sophomore Brevin Cassella] and [redshirt junior Jacob Nolan] all fight tirelessly to secure their spots.”

Day one of the two-day tournament consisted of the round of 16 and quarterfinals, however, the Bearcats (5-13, 4-5 EIWA) had one competitor in the round of 32, as redshirt senior Anthony Sobotker swiftly took the victory in the 133-pound match, joining his teammates in the next round. Sobotker would go on to lose his round of 16 bout on a technical fall.

In the round of 16, Binghamton had several qualifiers, the first of which was another simple win through the efforts of sophomore Micah Roes — who took the 125-pound bout 6-0. BU’s second advancement to the next round came in the 165-pound match, as Cassella also won 6-0. The final two Bearcats to move on to the quarterfinals came in the higher weight classes, as Nolan and Day won their 184 and heavyweight bouts, respectively. Nolan got a reversal on his opponent to secure a 10-0 victory, and Day achieved a victory on a fall with two and a half minutes left.

In the last eight, Roes took an early exit in a 5-0 decision defeat, yet things looked up after when the 165-pound match came around. Cassella took on an opponent who had previously defeated him in the regular season, getting revenge on the Drexler wrestler by utilizing a late six-point move to win 7-0. In the 184-pound class, Nolan also found victory, albeit at a tighter 4-2 margin. Joining Casella and Nolan in the semis was heavyweight wrestler Day, overcoming his Bucknell opponent 3-2 with an early takedown — narrowly securing his advancement. This win ultimately qualified Day for the NCAA tournament in Tulsa.

First up in the semis was Cassella, who fought a close match against his No. 8 ranked Cornell opponent, holding it to sudden victory. A takedown decision, which was initially challenged by Binghamton head coach Kyle Borshoff, lost it for the Bearcat and sent Cassella to the consolation semis. Nolan followed him, also pushing his bout to overtime. This time he was able to secure the win and join Day in qualifying for the NCAA tournament with a 3-1 victory. In his consolation match, Cassella joined his fellow semifinalist Bearcats in qualifying for Tulsa as well, giving Binghamton three competitors in the upcoming tournament. Cassella’s win also gave him a spot in the third-place matchup for his class. Binghamton’s only finalist of the day would be Nolan in the 184, as Day left him the last Bearcat standing after losing in the heavyweight semifinals bout.

Cassella would finish fourth overall in the 165-pound class on the day, his opponent securing two points through escapes to win the third-place matchup. In Nolan’s final bout, despite scoring an early point, a series of takedowns would ensure Nolan’s second-place finish in the 184-pound class. After dropping the semifinal consolation bout, Day ended the day in the fifth place heavyweight bout. After going up 1-0 early, a takedown with 52 seconds left gave Day the two points needed to secure a 3-0 victory and fifth place finish.

BU’s qualifying wrestlers will compete in the NCAA Championships on Thursday, March 16 through Saturday, March 18. The bouts will take place all day at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

“Just really proud of this team,” said Binghamton head coach Bethann Shapiro Ord. “I asked them to leave everything out there and play their hardest and don’t leave anything to chance, and they did. They just battled.”

The game’s back-and-forth nature was set in motion by a tight first quarter. Despite the Bearcats (13-17, 6-10 AE) only gaining the lead over the Black Bears (16-13, 11-5 AE) early in the opening 10 minutes, the visitors remained constantly on the tail of their opponents — never trailing by more than four points. This was helped by BU’s defensive efforts just as much as their offensive, particularly when senior guard Denai Bowman managed a steal to allow a fast-break opportunity, where redshirt freshman guard Jadyn Weltz converted to give Binghamton its only lead of the period. The close quarter was slightly stretched in its closing seconds as a Maine 3-pointer put the home team ahead 14-10.

The second quarter remained just as, if not more, competitive than the first as Binghamton found an early groove, going on a 7-0 run to put the score at 17-14 two minutes into the period. Bowman once again ran the show for the Bearcats, scoring eight of her team’s 14 points in the second. BU, however, could not hold onto the lead it had gained and entered the half trailing by one point, with the score at 25-24.

“We played a great lockdown first half,” Shapiro Ord said. “We turned them over 11 times in the first half. We were able to score 15 points on those turnovers. We did a lot of really good things and the kids, like I said, they just battled. It was a crazy atmosphere with the football players above us, and the place was packed and its a small venue, but the girls weren’t bothered by that, they didn’t care. Unfortunately, [in] the fourth quarter we didn’t turn them over as much in the second half, but it was just a hard-fought battle, and I’m really really proud of this group.”

In the third quarter, more Bearcats began getting involved in order to keep up with the constant scoring of the Black Bears. A 3-pointer by sophomore forward Genevieve Coleman and fast break efforts from redshirt freshman guard Ella Wanzer — as well as defensive work from senior guard Clare Traeger — highlighted the two-way hustle BU had to bring in order to stay alive. Bowman’s continuous effort and leadership on both ends of the court also contributed to an effective degree, but Maine was able to find a gap by the end of the third, gaining a five-point lead at 46-41 going into the final quarter.

“They’ve just been incredible young ladies to coach,” Shapiro Ord said. “The way they’ve grown since they’ve been here, it’s just awesome and that’s why I’m in the business, to help these players grow on and off the court. And their work ethic, [Bowman] and [Traeger], they are always in the gym, they are always trying to get better, they’re such high-character kids. They did whatever it took for this team, and this is a very, very close team — which I’m very proud of — and it’s because of their senior leaders. They’re great, great young ladies and I’m very lucky and blessed to have this opportunity to coach them and to coach a little bit longer.”

In the fourth quarter, however, the Black Bears and their home crowd of supporters were able to take control. Binghamton brought the score to a three-point game early on in the frame and showed signs of keeping the contest close, but the hosts continued to keep their foot on the gas, not conceding BU the lead for the rest of the game.

The game ended 64-54, ending Binghamton’s 2022-23 season while Maine advances to the next round of the AE tournament. The Bearcats were still able to honor some of their best performers this year in the AE awards. Bowman received an All-Second team selection, as well as joining Weltz on the All-Defensive team. Weltz was also honored alongside fellow redshirt freshman Wanzer. Both were selected to the All-Rookie team.

“I wanted to keep playing, and I feel like this team has so much ability,” Shapiro Ord said. “It’s such a young team that’s really fun to watch, and I’m excited to see how our future comes, but we’ve got so many young kids that didn’t have a lot of experience and made such big impacts, like Ella Wanzer and Jadyn Weltz — both being on the All-Rookie team. Our older kids, they did such a great job of embracing the process and that’s what it’s about, really loving the process and one step at a time. But just an incredible group of young ladies. Sad that it’s over again, but it’s back to work — the off-season is where you win championships.”

“Both of our programs had great weekends that we are very proud of,” said Binghamton head coach Jerry Cummiskey. “We had multiple school, freshmen and conference records throughout the weekend, and collectively, I think it was our best conference meet in the last four years. Our team got better this week, and we look forward to building off this meet into continue success in the seasons to come.”

Highlighting day one of competition for BU was the 800 free relay team composed of juniors Jake Vecchio, Henry Shemet, Liam Murphy and freshman Liam Preston. The quartet took first place with a time of 6:30.57, setting a new conference, meet and pool record. The men went on to set another school record in the 200 medley relay consisting of freshman Max Kaback, sophomore Elijah Lanfear, and seniors Ryan Maierle and Justin Meyn, clocking in a time of 1:27.85. On the women’s end, junior Maddie Hoover stood out, leading the 800 free relay with a split of 1:49.20. Both teams sat in third place at the end of the day.

Day two of the championships saw several Bearcats continue their winning ways. Murphy took gold in the 500 with a time of 4:24.52, making it his third straight in that event. Additionally, senior Ryan Cohn won the three-meter diving, tallying a score of 294.60. Hoover continued her solid tournament for the women, getting a school record time of 4:54.47 in the 500 relay to finish third in the event. At the end of the day, the men remained in third while the women dropped to fifth overall.

The tournament’s third day saw two more winning representatives from Binghamton, including Murphy who achieved victory once again, grabbing a time of 1:37.26 in the 200 free. Shemet also picked up another win, finishing six seconds ahead of the runner-up to win the 400 IM with a time of 3:52.33. BU’s top performer in the women’s bracket on the day was junior Courtney Moane, who got second in the 100-meter breaststroke with a time of 1:03.27. Their performance saw the men move into second place overall, while the women remained in fifth going into the final day.

On the last day of the AE Championships, Binghamton added just one more individual winner to its tally before honors were handed out. Lanfear won the men’s 100 free with a time of 44.53, his first-ever individual AE title. After everything was all said and done, the BU men remained in second place, finishing just behind UMBC. The women remained where they were the prior day as they finished in fifth place while New Hampshire took the top spot.

Cohn and Preston were both given individual awards recognizing their performances in the AE this season. Cohn was named Most Outstanding Men’s Diver, making it the fourth year in a row a Bearcat has held this title. On the other hand, Preston was made the first Binghamton student in 14 years to win Men’s Most Outstanding Rookie.

“While we ended up short of our goal on the men’s side, our guys should be extremely proud of the effort and fight they had all meet,” Cummiskey said. “I am so proud of both our teams and especially our seniors for their efforts over the last four years to continue to elevate our program.”

“I thought we came out and played with confidence and composure for an entire 60 minutes, just the battle in the second and third quarters,” wrote Binghamton head coach Stephanie Allen. “Our offense really tried to manage the clock and work for the best looks on cage. Offensively, they really executed the game plan — we just couldn’t finish shots for a long stretch of time.”

The Orange (3-0) came out firing in the first quarter, scoring four early goals against the Bearcats (1-2) after just five minutes. It wasn’t too much later, though, that sophomore attack Marisa Tancredi and senior midfielder Isabella Meli responded for BU with a goal each. Syracuse extended its lead quickly after, ending the first with a 5-2 advantage.

“[Senior attack Kenna Newman] and [Meli] connected yesterday, and that’s all we are looking for on our offensive end,” Allen wrote. “Teammates gelling and having that chemistry. I was really excited to see [Meli] have a breakout performance — and against one of the best teams in the country.”

Binghamton would only find one goal in the second period when junior attack Madison Murphy snagged her second assist of the game to find junior midfielder Emma Conroy for a score. However, this happened after the Bearcats had conceded an additional five goals. A further effort by the Orange just before the half made it 11-3 at the break. BU continued to stay stagnant in the third, grabbing a few more draw controls but failing to add to its tally as the hosts brought it to 15-3.

It was the game’s final period in which Binghamton found its footing, beginning the quarter by winning its first draw control of the game through junior midfielder Kristen Scheidel, who had a team-high five. A goal from sophomore midfielder Abigail Carroll from a free position attempt got the ball rolling for BU, as it would go on to score six goals in the final eight minutes. Meli went for a double in the period to complete her hat trick, complemented by goals from sophomore attack Olivia Muscolino, Conroy, Newman and Murphy. Newman also completed her hat trick of assists in this time.

“Draw control-wise, we knew we had a tough job ahead [on Monday],” Allen wrote. “I think our draw crew is battling together better than we did week one and hunting the ball in packs. [Syracuse senior midfield Kate Mashewske] is one of the best at her job, and I felt like we worked hard to limit her self-draws and make them 50/50 balls whenever we could. It’s an area we continue to work on a lot in practice and have to make a lot of in-game adjustments with depending on what their draw taker is showing us and how the officials are calling the game. I was happy to see [senior defender Jamie Golderman] and the circle players perform well against some different draw-takers in the fourth quarter.”

The Bearcats outscored their opponents in the fourth quarter 7-2, but the late rally wasn’t enough to overcome the nation’s No. 2 ranked team as the match ended 17-10 at the final whistle.

BU will continue its road trip when it travels to Siena College on Saturday, Feb. 25. First draw control is set for 2 p.m. at Hickey Field in Loudonville, New York.

“It was good to come out of the weekend 4-1,” said Binghamton head coach Jess Bump. “I think we got a lot better in a lot of areas from last week to this weekend. The loss against Sacred Heart was a tough one as [graduate student pitcher Sophia Pappas] had a career day on the mound with I think 13 strikeouts. And we just didn’t really put a great offensive effort into that game, but I was happy with how the team came back against a really good Furman team last night.”

BU’s (5-5) tournament got off to a positive start on Friday, as it swept the day for the first time this season against Bellarmine (1-8) and Towson (3-2). The weekend’s opening game against Bellarmine displayed solid offensive and defensive performances from the Bearcats. A first-inning single and an RBI double later had BU up 2-0, courtesy of sophomore outfielder Sarah Rende. After that, junior catcher Hailey Ehlers added a third in the top of the sixth. The win marked freshman pitcher Brianna Roberts’ first career shutout, limiting the Knights to two hits and striking out eight batters.

Binghamton defeated Towson later that day despite taking an immediate deficit. By the end of the top of the first inning, the Tigers had a two-run lead, scoring the first runs against BU of the tournament. In the third inning, however, the Bearcats mounted their comeback through an RBI single by sophomore outfielder Alayna Harbaugh. A two-run single from redshirt sophomore outfielder Brianna Santos took the lead at 3-2.

“[Redshirt sophomore Lindsey Walter] really had a great weekend for us,” Bump said. “She’s in a designated player role right now and getting on base a lot and stealing bases, and when we need to call upon her to be our pitcher in the relief role and she’s been dominant on both sides of the ball. This weekend, I think she really showed us that she can do a lot for our team.”

The sole defeat of Binghamton’s weekend came against Sacred Heart (2-3) on Saturday morning. The Pioneers held BU to a scoreless game while scoring two themselves, overshadowing Pappas’ career-high 13 strikeouts, the most by a Binghamton student since 2009. Later that day, however, the Bearcats got back to their winning ways after facing Furman (3-4). By the fifth inning, a 4-2 deficit called for another comeback from the visitors. Two RBI singles from Rende and junior third baseman Shelby Carvalho leveled it up, shortly followed by a two-run single hit by freshman pinch hitter Emma Lawson to give Binghamton the lead. BU rounded out its split day with a 9-5 win in the end.

“For the last few years [Pappas] has been a reliever for us, and I decided to put her in a starting role this weekend because she’s really had some great outings and [is] showing some great confidence on the mound,” Bump said. “But when she’s on the mound it kind of makes our whole team confident because she shows that presence for us.”

The tournament concluded on Sunday, with Binghamton facing Towson once again. Graduate student infielder Alli Richmond made the difference, hitting a two-run homer in the top of the fourth, guiding the Bearcats to a 2-0 victory and a 4-1 record at the Furman Invitational in the end. BU’s second shutout of the weekend was pitched by freshman Kendal Leitner, with five hits allowed and three strikeouts, before the game was finished by Walter, who allowed only a single hit in 2.1 innings.

“All five of our pitchers did really great things for us this weekend, either giving us good starts or coming in and relieving and shutting down offenses,” Bump said. “I think we just can’t rely on our pitchers to always throw shutouts, and we just got to get going a little bit better offensively. Obviously, it’s nice knowing that whoever’s on the mound can keep us in most games.”

BU continues on the road to face George Washington on Friday, March 3 at the Hampton & Norfolk State Tournament. First pitch is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. in Hampton, Virginia.

“I think we had a pretty slow start today, and it took us a half or so to get our feet under ourselves,” said Binghamton head coach Stephanie Allen. “For us, I think there’s a lot to build off of. Definitely limiting our turnovers and our clear percentage has got to be worked on and improved upon, but there were glimpses of things out there today that we could highlight and look to make some adjustments moving into [Pittsburgh] next Thursday.”

It didn’t take long for the floodgates to open for either side during the game’s first period, with the Dragons (1-0) getting to the Bearcats’ (0-1) goal first. Drexel scored four unanswered to put it up 4-0 early, setting the tone of the match immediately. Sophomore attack Olivia Muscolino answered with a goal of her own, Binghamton’s first goal of the season at the three-minute mark. However, a fifth Drexel goal late in the period put the score at 5-1.

In the second quarter, both teams saw more of the same. The Dragons did not let up their offensive output while continuing to keep the Bearcats at bay, outshooting them in the half 22-7. Another 15 minutes and three goals later, the Dragons had BU pinned 8-1 going into halftime.

“We just need more offensive production,” Allen said. “Again, very pleased with the girls that were able to generate some points on the board for us, but we’re capable of a better offensive output than what we saw today. We need to win the possession off of the draw and get ourselves on the offensive end a little bit more come Thursday.”

The second half opened with Drexel on top again, going up 9-1 just 30 seconds into the third quarter with a quick goal. Just minutes later, Binghamton found its second goal of the game through the efforts of senior attack Kenna Newman, opening her 2023 tally. The hosts responded with two more of their own before BU could find another, as sophomore midfielder Abigail Carroll made it 11-3 with seven and a half minutes left in the frame. The Dragons would manage four more goals in the quarter, going into the final 15 with an advantage of 15-3.

Binghamton found its feet in the closing minutes of the game, as it matched Drexel’s scoring output in the period. Junior midfielder Kristen Scheidel found the visitor’s penultimate goal of the match, with debutant and freshman attack Carla Curth closing the game with her first career goal for the Bearcats. The final quarter rout was not enough for Binghamton, though, falling in the season opener 17-5.

“It’s just cleaning up the little things,” Allen said. “Again, we’re going to focus on our draw side of the game this week heading into [Pittsburgh]. Possessions are everything and making sure we don’t have a lopsided performance come Thursday. Just with us on the offensive end, more of a cohesive effort. We were a little individualized in the first half, so we’ll look to get ourselves a little more unified come Thursday.”

Binghamton will return from the road to play its home opener against Pittsburgh on Thursday, Feb. 16. First draw control is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the Bearcats Sports Complex in Vestal, New York.

“Everyone did really well today,” said Binghamton head coach Mike Thompson. “But [junior Penelope Paldino] was probably the highlight — she had a huge PR on the hurdles. [There were] some other small performances, but it was kind of a low-key meet though, so just kind of a tune-up for the conference in a couple of weeks.”

Paldino’s new personal best of 9.08 on the 60-meter hurdles was good enough to see her finish sixth in the event. Also at Cornell, a quartet of Bearcats was able to take gold, with the singular winner on the men’s side being junior Brandon Love, getting his second consecutive victory in the pole vault event with a height of 14-08.00 feet. For the women, senior Mallorie Turner took the triple jump with a leap of 36-05.50 feet, along with freshman Alyssa Armitage and sophomore Lucciana Robertson — who won the pole vault and high jump, respectively. Armitage earned a height of 11-01.75, while Robertson jumped 5-06.00 feet.

At Penn State, the winning persisted for the BU women’s team in particular — once again. In the 4×400 relay, graduate student Stephanie Cassens, senior Sophia Morone, freshman Angie Mesa-Espinosa and sophomore Hillary Abankwa combined for a winning effort. The quartet clocked in a time of 3:50.06. For the men, the sole Binghamton winner was senior Mark Scanlon, who posted a time of 1:21.30 in the 600 meter event.

“I thought the quarter-mile women ran really well,” Thompson said. “The [4×400] ran well, and they also had some good individual performances. [Cassens] in the 600, [Abankwa] in the 400.”

A standout performer for the Bearcats was junior Jenna Chan, who broke her own record in the 60-meter hurdle event twice during the meet. After grabbing a time of 8.54 in the trials — breaking her previous record of 8.55 — Chan stepped in the finals to clock in a time of 8.51, a new school and personal record.

“It was great,” Thompson said. “[Chan’s] been running consistently well all year, and with consistency comes the personal best performances. And that’s exactly what she did.”

After next weekend’s Valentine Invitational, the Binghamton men’s and women’s track and field teams will head to the long-awaited America East (AE) Conference Championships. Chan and Cassens were among five BU students to receive individual honors in last year’s championships, helping their team to a third-place finish of 10 participants.

“What I hope to see is everybody have great performances like [Paldino] did and [Cassens] and [Chan],” Thompson said. “Really I’m just hoping that the people who are doing really well now continue to do that well or better, and the people who are a little flat right now, within a couple of weeks they’ve been given time to sharpen up to where they can be.”

The Valentine Invitational is next up for BU, starting on Friday, Feb. 10. First event is scheduled for 5 p.m. in Boston, Massachusetts.

“I thought there was a lot of great things,” said Binghamton head coach Jerry Cummiskey. “Our team responded, they came out ready to go and kind of set the tone early on. Going one-two on the women’s side in the medley relay, winning on the men’s side — it set us up for a good day.”

The standout performer in the women’s team performance was freshman Celia Webster, taking home three individual events in the 200 back (2:08.68), the 50 fly (27.38) and the 100 IM (1:03.05). She was joined in collecting gold by freshman Olivia Philbrick, who won the 50 back (27.79), as well as juniors Courtney Moane in the 50 breast (30.88) and Molly Greeley in the 50 free (25.30). The Bearcat quartet also took the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:48.91.

To round out the women’s bracket, junior Maddie Hoover took the 200 free (1:57.89) and sophomore Lauren Kuzma was the victor in the 200 breast (2:25.36). Additionally, Greeley and Hoover joined freshman Maria Pignatelli and junior Marley Zimmerman in their 400-relay win, clocking a time of 3:42.11.

“I think we just had a lot of people contribute and it came together as probably our best team win in the four years that I’ve been here,” Cummiskey said. “Everyone contributed, we went 1-2-3 in five events, so excited to see some different people contributing and helping us get that win today.”

The men also finished their day with a plethora of wins, notably having two double-event winners in freshman Liam Preston and sophomore Elijah Lanfear. Preston grabbed the 200 free (1:40.25) and the 500 free (4:39.34), while Lanfear was the winner of the 50 free (21.14) and the 100 free (46.96). Other individual winners included juniors Lewis Lin in the 50 breast (26.92), Jake Vecchio in the 200 fly (1:53.77), Eric Kroon in the 200 breast (2:05.19) and Sandon Karinsky in the 50 fly (22.94). Freshman David Ponce completed Binghamton’s list of individual winners, taking the 100 back (1:53.93), as senior Ryan Cohn secured gold in the one-meter diving event with a score of 284.02.

The most significant win for the men, however, came in the very last event of the day, as Lanfear and Preston joined junior Henry Shemet and senior Justin Meyn in the 400 free relay race. The four Bearcats achieved a time of 3:01.74, breaking the 14-year standing pool record of 3:05.99 and capping off a successful home closer for Binghamton.

“That was certainly exciting,” Cummiskey said. “I think when you have the opportunity to swim fast and break a pool record and have that kind of goal there, they get excited to do that. I thought we had a chance. We tried to do it last year and just missed it. I wouldn’t have guessed we were five seconds under, but that was a great swim.”

The celebrations for BU began even before the first race, as 11 graduating Bearcats were honored on the team’s annual senior day. Among the senior honorees were Meyn, Cohn, Ryan Maierle, Matthew Palguta, Brandon Berger, Zachary Ciriaco, Jackson Homan, Annalise Pepper, Meadow Perez, Chloe Peterson and Alyssa Martin.

“It gives us a lot of confidence,” Meyn said. “We want to be at our best, especially the meet right before championships. So now we just grind it out for the next three weeks and get after it at champs and try to take that chip back.”

The Binghamton swimming and diving teams will take a month off before heading to the America East Conference Championships on Feb. 22 to close out the 2022-2023 season. First race is scheduled for 11 a.m. in Worcester, Massachusetts.

“[Vermont] is a really good team we played, and we’re at their place,” said Binghamton head coach Bethann Shapiro Ord. “That second quarter was tough, but we put ourselves in a position to still win in the third quarter, losing that lead and getting it back. We went up a couple and we had some kids that stepped up big. Some of the non-starters stepped in — [freshman guard Meghan Casey] and [redshirt freshman forward Kaelonn Wilson] came in — and gave us some really good minutes as well.”

A contested first half opened with the Catamounts (14-6, 6-2 AE) setting the tone by converting in the post as the Bearcats (10-11, 3-5 AE) turned the ball over several times. Shaking the visitors proved difficult for UVM, though, as BU continued to match its opponents’ scoring with six field goals made each, ending the opening quarter tied at 15 points apiece.

The second period, however, saw the game take its foot off the gas as an exchange of points in the frame’s opening minutes left the score at 22-19 — before both teams went on a three-and-a-half-minute scoring drought. A three from the Catamounts eventually broke the scoreless run, followed by back-to-back scores from redshirt freshman guard Ella Wanzer and senior guard Denai Bowman, helping the Bearcats back into the fray shortly after. The hosts would finish the half off themselves, controlling the remaining scoring as Binghamton entered the half facing a 31-23 deficit.

“Any of our starters, any of them can score,” Shapiro Ord said. “If they’re hawking [Wanzer] and she’s not getting easy looks or easy shots, then other people step up. When we were going downhill, when we were getting into the paint, good things were happening and we were on the free-throw line a little bit. We did a really good job. We were 80 percent from the free-throw line which is terrific, but that didn’t happen in the second quarter and that was tough.”

A game full of highs and lows for BU continued as the second half was opened with sophomore forward Genevieve Coleman making consecutive baskets, including a three-pointer that would spark the run that brought the Bearcats back into the game. The theme of trading baskets persisted as neither team could break away from the other, setting up a tight final frame with the hosts up 43-41.

This run by BU could not be kept up as UVM didn’t relinquish its lead a single time in the fourth period. Contributions from Coleman, as well as three-pointers from Casey and redshirt freshman guard Jadyn Weltz, who lead the Bearcats in scoring with 12 points on the night, proved to not be enough to find a lead or the win in the end.

“I think we’re very competitive,” Shapiro Ord said. “We’re in the middle of the hardest part of the schedule because we had the three best teams in the league that we had to go back-to-back-to-back on, and we’re on the road. I think this is preparing us for something really special at the end I think. I mean we’re right there. It’s not like we’re getting blown out. They’re close games. The kids battled to the end. It’s gonna change.”

On top of Weltz’s performance, Bowman and senior guard Clare Traeger scored 11 points apiece and nine from Coleman were the foundation for Binghamton’s scoring on the night. While the visitors ended with a 38.6 percent rate from the field, balanced scoring across the board from four different Bearcats kept them in the game.

“I thought [Traeger] and [Bowman] both played a lot of minutes and gave their best,” Shapiro Ord said. “I mean [Traeger] went three-for-three from the free throw line [and] she had seven boards. We’ve got to rebound the basketball. We had six second chance opportunities and [Vermont] only had one, but we’ve just got to keep getting better, keep grinding, and we will.”

Binghamton will continue its short conference road trip against Bryant on Jan. 28. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. at the Chace Athletic Center in Smithfield, Rhode Island.

“I thought we were tough today,” said Binghamton head coach Kyle Borshoff. “I think we had a good team effort across the board. We had some guys step up and win matches, so I think if we continue to have that same effort and get a little bit better, we’re going to be in a good position come the end of February. I always talk about being ready for the EIWA [championships], and today was a step in the right direction.”

After falling at the first hurdle in the 125-pound class, the Bearcats (3-9, 2-2 EIWA) found their first win of the meet after sophomore Ivan Garcia bested his Harvard (0-2, 0-1 EIWA) opponent by an 8-1 decision in the 133-pound bout. Graduate student Michael Zarif also found a win early on for Binghamton in the 149-pound weight class, scoring a takedown in the process. The graduate student accumulated 1:22 of riding time in the bout to earn an 8-3 decision. Despite this, the hosts kept pace with BU, taking the 141 and 157-pound matches for themselves.

“Really good effort across the board,” Borshoff said. “Even at 149 [pounds] Zarif got a nice win. Ivan Garcia is obviously at [133 pounds] as well. And those upper-weight guys did a great job.”

Going into the 165-pound matchup, the visitors trailed the Crimson 10-6. Sophomore Brevin Cassella’s 3-2 decision victory, however, was able to shift the momentum of the meet in BU’s favor. Then at 174 pounds, redshirt junior Sam DePrez gave Binghamton its first lead of the meet with a 10-2 major decision victory. DePrez’s win gave the Bearcats a 13-10 advantage and not long after, fellow redshirt junior Jacob Nolan extended that lead by another three points with a 7-2 decision. Both Bearcats secured takedowns in their respective bouts.

Binghamton’s victory, however, was sealed by sophomore Dimitri Gamkrelidze, who battled at 197 pounds against his Harvard opponent. Tied at 1-1 after regulation, the Bearcat secured a hard-fought win in overtime for BU.

“Getting that lead back going into 197 [pounds], we were at a point where if [Gamkrelidze] won his match it kind of closed out the duel and put us in a position where we couldn’t lose,” Borshoff said. “It was really encouraging to watch him go out there and gut out a win in overtime. He wrestled 167 pounds for us a couple weeks ago, so to be wrestling 197 right now and getting wins is big for our team.”

The meet was rounded out by the heavyweight bout, as No. 18 ranked redshirt junior Cory Day fought at 285 pounds against a fellow ranked opponent. Although a Harvard decision victory closed out the day, BU had already secured the match victory, leaving the final score at 19-13.

“It’s always nice to come off a win,” Borshoff said. “We have a short turnaround — we have Hofstra coming to Binghamton on Thursday this week. We need to keep momentum rolling, but every match that’s wrestled is independent of every other result. It’s great to get the win, but we’ve got to stay focused on continuing to improve in certain areas. Hofstra has got a good team so we’re going to have to compete hard, and we’re going to have to gut through a lot of matches and find a way to win that duel too.”

Binghamton will return home for its next dual meet as they face Hofstra University on Thursday, Jan. 26. First bout is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Events Center in Vestal, New York.

“I felt the men competed well right from the beginning,” said Binghamton head coach Jerry Cummiskey. “UMass diving was very strong, so they started the day with a decent lead, and we were able to win just about every event except for the two backs. So I think our guys did well and we were a little short-handed with some guys out sick, but overall one of our best top to bottom dual meets in a long time, coming out with a win against UMass for the first time in program history.”

Leading the way for the men’s side against the Minutemen was sophomore Eli Lanfear, who won three individual events in the 100 back, 50 free and 100 fly, with times of 50.12, 20.92 and 48.69, respectively. Lanfear has now racked up 13 individual victories this season for the Bearcats.

“[Lanfear] has just been great, he’s been consistent,” Cummiskey said. “He does a bunch of different things for us. He helps us on relay, sprints, free, fly and snuck in a 100 backstroke win yesterday. He’s worked hard. He’s worked for it, and hopefully he’s got another step forward he can still take.”

Other individual winners for Binghamton included senior Justin Meyn, who secured the 100 breast with a time of 57.85 and the 100 free at 46.47, as well as freshman Liam Preston — who also won twice — coming out on top in the 1000 free with a time of 9:43.99 and the 500 free at 4:42.82. Juniors Liam Murphy, Lewis Lin and Jake Vecchio rounded out the individual winners, getting the gold in the 200 free, 200 breast and 200 fly, respectively. In the relays, the men also found plenty of success. Binghamton got first place in the 200 medley relay, as Lanfear, freshman Max Kaback, Lin and senior Ryan Maierle finished with a time of 1:32.22. The Bearcats also captured first in the 200 free relay with a time of 1:23.76, achieved by a team of Preston, Meyn, Murphy and Maierle.

“Meyn had probably his best meet in his four years, winning the 100 free and the 100 breaststroke in a really fast time for him, so he was great,” Cummiskey said. “Vecchio probably had his best two-fly … Preston was great, won the [1000 free], [500] free and was second in the [200] free.”

Despite the men’s success, the women could not find a win against a duo of opponents, UMass and Vermont. Junior Courtney Moane brought home silver for the Bearcats with a time of 1:06.69 and 2:26.84 in the 100 breast and 200 breast, respectively. Moane joined freshmen Olivia Philbrick and Maria Pignatelli, along with junior Molly Greeley, to grab another second-place finish in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:48.64.

“I thought the women swam well, competed well,” Cummiskey said. “The UMass women are very good, we know they’re a good team in our conference. Coming up against two very talented teams, I thought we were pretty good. We’ve still got some work to do. We’ve got to keep grinding to get some people where they need to be, but it’s December so we’ve got time to do that.”

This was Binghamton’s last dual meet of the year as the team heads into winter break before returning home for the final stretch of the season and a possible America East (AE) championship berth.

“It’s certainly a challenge,” Cummiskey said. “We don’t compete for another six weeks or so and three of those weeks our team is at home after exams before we come back for the new year. Our expectations are that they get the work in while they’re home and do what they’ve got to do to be in the right place coming back, and then you’ve got a five or six-week grind to finish off the season with hopes of swimming really well and competing well. We’ve got our championship meet, but that’s really determined by what we do in the next six weeks.”

The Bearcats will start the new year off against St. Bonaventure. First race is scheduled on Saturday, Jan. 21at 1 p.m. in the Patricia A. Saunders Aquatic Center in Vestal, New York.

“Every dual meet we’ve lost by one match, and the matches that we’ve lost, we’ve had some one-point losses,” said Binghamton head coach Kyle Borshoff. “So at the end of the day we wrestled the [11th] ranked team in the country, we wrestled the 18th ranked team in the country and we were a one-point loss away from winning those duals. So we have a lot to build on, you know, it’s frustrating to lose.”

BU (0-3) first matched up with NDSU (2-0) on Friday in a meet that started off slowly for the Bearcats. Binghamton dropped six of its first seven bouts. A late comeback push from the visitors saw the Bearcats claw back with three straight wins. The late push was not enough for BU as the meet ended in an 18-13 defeat. Redshirt freshman Nate Lucier grabbed a win in his second career dual meet, winning 7-5 after a takedown in the third period in the 141-pound weight class.

The late pressure, however, was helped on by wins from Binghamton’s competitors in the heavier weight classes. Nolan, at 184 pounds, started off his winning weekend with a takedown in the third period to defeat his opponent, ranked No. 29 in the nation, 3-1. L. DePrez and redshirt junior Cory Day also secured their second wins of the season in the 197-pound and heavyweight classes respectively. L. DePrez had three takedowns in his victory. Graduate student Michael Zarif was also among the winners against the Bison, being the only Bearcat in the meet to pick up bonus points in his 13-4 major decision win in the 149-pound class.

“Jacob Nolan had a great weekend,” Borshoff said. “He beat the guys ranked 10th in the country and 29th in the country. [L.] DePrez beat the 28th and 29th ranked guys in the country. Day had two huge wins at heavyweight, beating starters from Minnesota and North Dakota. Those three guys had a great weekend. Nate Lucier got his first dual win for us today against Minnesota. Zarif [was] wrestling hard, got a nice win against North Dakota. So overall, I think we’re wrestling hard, but we’ve lost three dual meets.”

In their second meet of the weekend, the Bearcats once again clawed their way back from an early deficit after going down 6-0 against Minnesota (1-0). With two bouts remaining, however, Binghamton found itself with a 15-12 lead.

The last two bouts were taken by the Gophers, with the home team wrapping up a 19-15 victory in the end. Lucier was a standout performer, winning the first dual match of his career with a 9-7 comeback win after being down 5-2 in the final period. Day and DePrez also won once again, rounding out unbeaten weekends for both wrestlers and improving their records to 3-0 across the board.

Nolan was also once again among the winners, this time taking down No. 10 Isiah Salazar. As Nolan maintained a 4-2 lead with nearly a minute left in the second period, Salazar brought it back to 4-4. Nolan gained a 5-4 lead early in the third period, holding his opponent off for the remaining time to remain undefeated and grab an upset win.

“We’ve always known that [Nolan] is an incredible wrestler, and he’s starting to show it to everyone else,” Borshoff said. “So really happy with how he’s been doing and looking forward to next weekend.”

Despite having to make the long journey home, still winless, Binghamton has kept every matchup tight so far this year. Both meets this weekend saw the Bearcats bring it to a close finish after trailing early. In addition, all of BU’s meets this year so far have been decided by six points or less. Nolan came into the weekend ranked 22nd in the nation with DePrez at seventh within their respective weight classes.

“It’s not what I’m going to do, it’s what the team’s going to do,” Borshoff said. “Someone’s got to figure it out … I don’t have any expectations. We need guys to step up and win matches. Need guys that have been losing to step up and win matches.”

Binghamton will continue its season on Sunday, Nov. 27 against Buffalo. First bout is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Alumni Arena in Buffalo, New York.

“I think what [winning] does is give us confidence,” said Binghamton head coach Levell Sanders. “It’s hard to win games at this level, especially our team. We’re trying to build a winning culture here. So the more games you can win, even if you don’t play great, when you win those games there’s a lot of things you can learn.”

BU (2-0) and Marist (1-1) both came into this game off the back of season-opening wins, with the Red Foxes’ initial result being much tighter than the traveling team’s 87-56 rout against Cazenovia. A similar offensive output from Binghamton was replicated despite the closer score, with nine of its 10 players getting on the scoreboard. Three Bearcats put up double-digit efforts. In addition, BU shot 48.2 percent from the field as well as nailing seven of its 16 three-point attempts on the game.

“I thought we came out and did the things we needed to do to get a win,” Sanders said. “We wanted to definitely put some pressure on [Marist], not give their shooters the ability to get open shots. In their first game, they were 11-for-21 from three, so we really wanted to take away that.”

The first half, even in its initial moments, set the tone for the game in its entirety, as neither team had more than a three-point lead in the first 14 minutes. Three-pointers from junior guard Armon Harried and senior guard Jacob Falko kept the Bearcats in the game early on, but several scoring runs from the Red Foxes kept it close. Twelve minutes into the first period, junior forward Tariq Balogun tied the game at 20 with a dunk off of a loose ball, sparking a 9-2 scoring run from BU. Marist kept it close with free throws down the stretch, but a pair of layups from sophomore guard Matt Solomon and Falko in the waning minutes gave the Bearcats a 37-30 lead heading into the break.

“We have a bunch of guys on our team that can score,” Sanders said. “I was just trying to emphasize to our guys about playing the right way, sharing the ball, moving the ball. I thought early on we held the ball a little too much, and we were focusing too much on trying to beat one guy instead of moving the ball around the perimeter to create some opportunities, but I thought we did a better job in the second half. But I think our team is going to be so different this year because there’s going to be so many different guys from game to game who are going to be our leading scorer.”

After Binghamton’s run at the end of the first half, Marist was forced to respond. An 8-1 outburst for the Red Foxes out of the halftime gates tied the game up at 38. Their momentum was short-lived, however, as graduate student forward Miles Gibson responded with a pair of jumpers that sparked a 22-9 run. Falko and Gibson accounted for the bulk of the run’s scoring, combining for 17 of BU’s 23 points. The Red Foxes clawed their way back into the thick of it, staging a run that brought them within five points of the Bearcats. However, their late comeback was quelled by a senior guard Dan Petcash jumper in the dying minutes, along with several free throws that guided BU to its eventual three-point victory.

Falko and Gibson led Binghamton in scoring with 19 points each, as Petcash followed behind with 11 in his first game of the year. Although Falko and Gibson combined for 38 points, the pairs’ offensive output shined in the second half where they scored a combined 26 points.

“What [Falko and Gibson] brought to the table yesterday, we needed that,” Sanders said. “[Falko] created for himself and he created for others. I thought he did a really good job running at point guard, and [Gibson] at one point just took over the game offensively for us.”

BU will continue its road trip when it travels to Maryland on Tuesday, Nov. 15. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at the XFinity Center in College Park, Maryland.

“Some of it was just quality in terms of our possession, we were just giving the ball away too easily at times,” said Binghamton head coach Neel Bhattacharjee. “New Hampshire’s pressure was part of it, but some of it was just some of the letdowns. We needed more pace on our passes, winning the physical battle. We knew we had to win first balls [and] second balls for us to have a chance, and we knew we needed to get that first goal early, and if we did that we’d be able to push from there.”

BU (9-5-5, 6-1-2 AE) and UNH (9-5-3, 6-1-2 AE) were immediately locked into an end-to-end matchup, with the game living up to the hype of a championship game. The Wildcats took first blood in the ninth minute through a close-range strike to the nearside top corner. However, it didn’t take long for the Bearcats to respond, as senior forward and AE Striker of the Year Maya Anand dribbled through three UNH defenders and added the equalizing goal just two minutes later.

Despite an early 1-1 scoreline, the offensive play in the first 45 didn’t let up. In the 17th minute, the Wildcats gained back their lead through a deep shot that just slipped through the outstretched hands of sophomore goalkeeper Kaitlyn Williams. In the 25-minute mark, UNH doubled its advantage as a through ball found the middle of the box and was lifted over a charging Williams. The Wildcats earned another close-range shot as a through ball slipped past the Bearcats’ backline just for UNH to sky it into the cage and make it 4-1 going into halftime.

With the Bearcats down three goals at the half, they were forced to respond, and they did. The goals poured in just as fast as they did at the start of the game, but this time it was BU who clawed back. A cross from junior defender Lexi Vegoda’s corner kick in the 51st minute passed through a sea of white and navy jerseys, before the wind and bend pushed it into the back of the net — allowing Vegoda to grab an Olimpico goal to begin the second period. Just three minutes later, Binghamton found itself on the attack once again when the ball was played in behind to Anand, who was brought down by a Wildcat defender, awarding the Bearcats a penalty kick. Vegoda lined up and placed the ball in the bottom right corner, just scorching it through the grip of the UNH keeper for the junior’s second goal of the game.

“Vegoda had a tremendous game,” Bhattacharjee said. “She got that first goal, got the PK and we were able to roll from there. Just unfortunate we couldn’t get that fifth goal or obviously finish it out in PKs, but tremendous heart. Everything that we said at halftime our kids were able to do and implement, and brought us back and just got on the brink of a championship because of it.”

The game’s high tempo persisted throughout the rest of the second half, and the effort paid off as the Bearcats found their equalizer in the 84th minute. Junior midfielder Victoria McKnight’s cross was fired into the hands of the UNH keeper, but she was unable to get full control of the ball, fumbling it into a crowded six-yard box, where it found the foot of freshman forward Samiya Reid. Reid smoked it in, tying the game — and as the final six minutes ticked off the clock, BU was catapulted into their second overtime game in a row.

“We felt pretty good in terms of everything we were doing in the second period, so we felt like we wanted to keep the momentum going on our side,” Bhattacharjee said. “It was okay for us to take some risks, maybe not as many risks as being two or three goals down, but we were going to have chances and all it was going to take was one moment.”

Two 10-minute halves of extra-time saw no goals from either side, despite flurries of shots from both ends of the field. The 4-4 score held, and a second shootout in two games for Binghamton loomed. Junior midfielder Molly McClelland and Vegoda were the first to shoot for BU, both converting their attempts to match UNH’s first two. Just like Thursday’s quarterfinal match, Binghamton turned to senior goalkeeper Nicole Scott for the shootout.

The senior saved the next two UNH attempts, but the Bearcats did not convert on their next three attempts, leaving the fate of the game and season on one final shot. The Wildcat kicker approached the ball as Scott cheated to her right. The ball was struck into the middle of the pipes as Scott lunged back at the attempt, but the Bearcat’s effort was too late as the shot connected with the back of the net, naming UNH the AE tournament champions.

“It’s 27 kids that all understood the culture here, what they wanted for their teammates, how they were a part of something bigger than themselves,” Bhattacharjee said. “I guess you can highlight some of the kids that got the conference recognition, but it doesn’t happen without everybody really being involved and that includes our staff as well in all facets. We’re obviously proud of the regular season title and the way we played this year, but if I’m walking away with anything that I’m most proud of it, it’s that. It’s the culture that we’ve built and how these Bearcats have represented Binghamton University, this athletic department and this program overall.”

“It’s been a nice experience actually, you know, day-to-day it’s definitely a change of pace from Canisius,” Harried said. “Canisius is more of a city environment, less students. Here there’s like 16,000 students, so that’s the biggest change. But I’m just really happy to be here.”

Born and raised in Baltimore, Harried has been around basketball his entire life. He made his mark, however, playing for Lake Clifton High School, where he racked up a plethora of individual and team awards during for his hometown. Harried’s parents were basketball people as well, which is no surprise considering his lifelong involvement and infatuation with the sport. His father, Herman “Tree” Harried, is no stranger to New York basketball, as he played four years at Syracuse University and coached his son at Lake Clifton High School. His mother, Delora Walker, also played basketball at Coppin State and was a huge influence in Harried’s successful transition to college ball.

“My dad coached for so long that I picked up on a lot of things as a young kid,” Harried said. “My mom contributed a lot to my success as far as getting to college. Senior year I had no offers from any school. That summer me and mom worked out every day … I say it all the time but, without my mom, I wouldn’t be here … The rest is history after that. I got some offers and now I’m here. So my mom played a vital role in my career and, of course, my dad because [when] I played for my dad we won multiple championships together, so that was great.”

Harried has already proved his reliability playing for the Griffs, starting all 32 games last season and averaging 30 minutes per game. His 11.2 points and 4.5 rebounds per game established him as a consistent contributor, his most notable contribution being scoring a career-high 22 points on three separate occasions and grabbing a career-high 14 rebounds against Quinnipiac. The junior looks to keep up these numbers for the Bearcats this year.

“Athletically, the goal is never different than it is every year,” Harried said. “Individual honors are always nice, but I’ve been in college long enough to know that the individual honors don’t come unless you win. So for me, the most important thing, and what I’m looking forward to, is winning and having a successful season and eventually hoisting up the America East (AE) championship title.”

Last year, the Binghamton men’s basketball team fell to Vermont in the semi-finals of the AE conference playoffs. They’ll look to bounce back with the addition of several new faces. The team will be led by head coach Levell Sanders, who will be beginning his second season at the helm. Harried talked about the impact Sanders has had on him so far, and what he expects from the team this season.

“Going to the transfer portal, you talk to a lot of coaches,” Harried said. “For me, I was blessed enough to talk to a lot of schools. Coach Sanders was probably one of the most genuine coaches I talked to in the transfer portal. So, what I’ve learned about Coach Sanders is what you see is what you get. He’ll tell you the truth, and he wants the best for every player… and he wants to win.”

At this point, it’s not much of a surprise who falls at the top spot in this year’s America East (AE) Conference preseason rankings. With 63 poll points, including seven first place votes, Vermont has continued to impress year after year, and the reigning champions will be front-runners in the 2022-23 season. Despite losing key players from last year’s title run, reigning coach of the year John Becker still looks like he can lead this team to another chip. Forward and two-time AE Player of the Year Ryan Davis, as well as guard Ben Shungu, are the biggest losses for the Catamounts this season. The duo were selected to last year’s AE All-Conference First-Team and finished first and third in scoring, respectively. With Davis and Shungu leaving the program, fifth-year guard Finn Sullivan, who was named to the AE All-Championship Team last season, is a player who will look to fill their role. In his first season at Vermont, he averaged 7.2 points and 3.3 rebounds a game, including a 14-point performance in the AE championship win against UMBC. New to the UVM roster is fifth-year guard Dylan Penn, a transfer who led Bellarmine to the Atlantic Sun Championship (ASUN) and was the tournament’s MVP. Posting 16.6 points and 5.0 assists per game last year, Penn will be vital in ensuring the Catamount offense is as efficient as ever. The eight-time AE champions are clear favorites based on last year’s run, but only time can tell whether they go back-to-back.

2. Bryant

With the departures of Hartford and Stony Brook within the AE lineup, Bryant has become the newest addition to the conference. The Bulldogs, albeit being newcomers, are still Northeast Conference (NEC) regular season and tournament winners, earning a Division I program-record 22 wins in the 2021-22 season. Coach Jared Grasso has transformed the Bulldogs into an established basketball program in the northeast, winning 15 or more games in their past three campaigns, and boasting a 24-2 home record in the past two. These successes place them just behind last season’s champions with 58 poll points, and even though they have yet to prove themselves in the AE, they earned two first place votes. Junior guard Earl Timberlake and senior guard Charles Pride are ones to watch on this squad. Pride, going into his fourth year at Bryant, is the most go-to-go guy on this team, playing every game last year and making all-conference and all-district teams. He combined with former Bryant guard Peter Kiss to be the nation’s highest-scoring duo, contributing with 17.7 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Kiss’ 25.2 points per game was ranked first in the NCAA Division I, a tough pair of shoes to fill for new transfer Timberlake (4.7 points and 3.4 rebounds per game last season at Memphis). Timberlake will look to form a similar partnership with Pride in hopes of grabbing the glory in Bryant’s first AE season.

3. UMass Lowell

Despite finishing seventh in the conference last season, and getting knocked out by eventual finalists UMBC in the playoff quarterfinals, UMass Lowell still has plenty to build off of in the 2022-23 season. The River Hawks, last year, had a new program-best record of 15-16, with coach Pat Duquette setting up a team that prioritized defense over everything. Duquette’s squad led the AE in steals (7.3), blocks (4.2) and rebounds per game (36.1), in addition to holding their opponents to an average of 65.8 points per game, another conference best. While it may have not been seeded as high, earning 47 poll points, UMass Lowell’s stats prove it will only improve this year. On the floor, the example was set for the River Hawks by graduate student forward Allin Blunt, who has played nearly every game for his school since he was a freshman. Blunt dropped a career-high 33 points in the AE quarterfinals against UMBC, helping to push the game into overtime, but couldn’t find the win. Lining up with Blunt will be junior forward Max Brooks, who is coming off a breakout season and an AE All-Defensive Team selection. Brooks nearly doubled the previous UMass Lowell record for blocks last year with 67. Moreover, Brooks’ shooting percentage of 63.1 percent, an AE high, proves that he will be a crucial two-way player this season as his team looks to climb the ladder even further.

4. Binghamton

5. UMBC

As last year’s runner-up in both regular season and tournament play, UMBC will have to work past some setbacks in order to reach the same heights in the 2022-23 campaign. Leaving the team this season is AE All-Conference First-Team pick Keondre Kennedy, who led the Retrievers with 14.8 points per game, as well as eight points and a team-high eight rebounds in the championship game against UVM. Other big losses are senior guards Darnell Rogers, who bagged 10 points in that championship game, and L.J. Owens, who played more minutes than any of his teammates last season — all noticeable holes in head coach Jim Ferry’s roster this year. Despite being seeded second in the conference last season, UMBC needs to find a big way to bounce back from its final loss, an 82-43 blowout in the championship game. Senior forward Yaw Obeng-Mensah will be at the center of the Retrievers’ attempt for redemption this year, taking on a central role in the team by being one of the only returning players on the entire roster. Obeng-Mensah averaged a team-best 5.3 rebounds per game and an additional 6.9 points per game, while clocking in the highest field goal percentage in the squad with 53.5 percent. With most of the members of its second-place lineup now gone, it remains to be seen if Ferry will get this new look UMBC back to the heights of last year.

6. UAlbany

After twenty years with Will Brown, UAlbany head coach Dwayne Killings now enters his second season at the helm, still trying to build a team that can match the heights of Brown’s three-peat winning squad. Last year’s fifth seed, who broke even in AE Conference play with a 9-9 record, managed only 25 poll points ahead of this season. The Great Danes fell to Hartford in last year’s quarterfinals with an offensive performance to forget, as they struggled to score the rock with a 25.8 percent field goal percentage in just the first half. Also, UAlbany lost a key man over the summer, as senior guard and reigning AE Defensive Player of the Year Jamel Horton transferred to Mississippi. One of the players who will try and fill Horton’s shoes is sophomore forward Justin Neely. The AE Rookie of the Year, as well as six-time Rookie of the Week, is coming off an extremely strong first year for Albany. The Miami native averaged 6.4 points per game and had a team second-best 4.4 rebounds per game. His teammate, sophomore forward Aaron Reddish, made the AE All-Rookie Team alongside him, formulating a young and effective frontcourt for the Great Danes. With a team that is mainly sophomores like Neely and Reddish, it is difficult to say whether Killings’ team is ready to take the next step or if they will remain in the bottom half of the AE.

7. New Hampshire

With 23 poll points from the conference, last year’s fourth seed and a team that finished 10-8 in AE Conference play, UNH seems to have taken more steps backward than forward ahead of the 2022-23 season. The Wildcats are one of only 37 Division I teams that have never made the NCAA tournament, and their 72-69 loss against Binghamton in last year’s quarterfinals ensured that number stayed the same. Veteran head coach Bill Herrion now enters his 17th year with UNH, and will try to make up for some key losses in the offseason this year. Forward Jayden Martinez, his team’s scoring and rebounding leader last year (15.1ppg, 5.5rpg), will be by far the biggest miss. The team has named three co-captains for 2022-23, with hopes that they can prevent the Wildcats from dropping further in the standings. Graduate students forward Jaxson Baker and guard Matt Herasme have transferred in from Central Arkansas and Marist, respectively. Both captains on their previous teams, Herrion looks on them to bring seniority and leadership to his squad. The third and final captain is sophomore guard Nick Johnson. The 2020-21 AE Rookie of the Year is the most experienced Wildcat. Now going into his fourth season, he spearheads the team with 8.6 ppg, 4.3 rpg, as well as being a team leader in blocks with 16 last year. However, there’s no telling whether or not he and his co-captains will be enough to prevent UNH from dropping spots this season.

8. NJIT

NJIT has seen some impressive campaigns in the past few years under head coach Brian Kennedy, most notably their 22-13 record in the 2018-19 season. However, the 2021-22 season did not prove as fruitful, as the Highlanders finished second to last in the AE with a record of 6-12. The unfortunate plaguing of injuries over the course of several seasons has prevented the Highlanders from getting the most out of a squad that holds the second to last spot in the preseason predictions with 14 poll points. Leading the line for NJIT this year will be senior forward Miles Coleman. One of the most consistent performers for the Highlanders last year, Coleman bounced back from an injury in the 2020-21 season and played 20 more games, averaging 15.6 points per game on 41.6 percent shooting and scoring 22 points as his team got knocked out by Vermont in the playoffs. Alongside Coleman, one to watch for the Highlanders this year will be sophomore forward Keeshawn Mason, a pick for last year’s AE All-Rookie team. While his playtime last year was limited, a 16 point and 6 rebound performance in just 16 minutes against Stony Brook last year proved Mason has what it takes to be a consistent AE performer. It is difficult to see where NJIT have improved ahead of the 2022-23 season, but the competition around it ensures the team could make playoff basketball again this year.

9. Maine

It is no surprise that the bookends of this year’s list have effectively picked themselves. While the champions stay at the top of our preseason predictions, last year’s 10th seed — and the only team to not make the playoffs — remain at the bottom with only 12 poll points ahead of the 2022-23 season. Maine finished with a 3-15 record in AE Conference play last year, 6-23 overall — a record that called for a change of leadership. Richard Barron ended his four-year stint as head coach and has been replaced by Chris Markwood, a former Boston College assistant coach who took over in March. It is no secret that Markwood has his work cut out for him as the Black Bears have consistently finished in the bottom two of the AE standings over the past few years. Like most of the teams on this end of the standings, Maine has gone through some roster changes. A notable returner, however, is senior guard Lechaun Duhart. Duhart put up 8.5 points per game last year, with a 90 percent free throw percentage to boot. Whether Duhart can be a game-changer in an otherwise unremarkable Black Bears roster remains to be seen. Digging this team out of the hole they’ve been in for so long will be quite the challenge for Markwood and his squad.

“Overall it was good,” said Binghamton head coach Jerry Cummiskey. “I think we competed well and took a step forward from our first week with Canisius. It’s a very strong Bucknell team, and we knew that coming in. And I thought we did a pretty good job at racing and using it to get better for the weeks to come.”

Despite the loss, sophomore Elijah Lanfear and junior Lewis Lin each earned individual wins on the men’s side. Lanfear swept the 100-yard freestyle and the 100-yard butterfly with times of 46.83 and 49.89, respectively, and Lin grabbed victories in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 57.67 and the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:06.80. Both Bearcats were also apart of the first place 200-yard medley relay team, alongside junior Jake Vecchio and senior Ryan Maierle, with a time of 1:32.80.

“The men started off hot with a really good relay swim and set the tone that we could compete this afternoon with Bucknell,” Cummiskey said. “[Lanfear’s] been strong. He had a great summer and has looked good this fall and has continued to keep getting better. Lin had a great meet. It was good to see him back to form, and he’s capable of doing that week-to-week, so we’ve got to see that a little bit more consistently.”

Senior Ryan Cohn was once again another standout performer for the men. The diver entered this weekend after being awarded the America East (AE) Conference diver of the week after his victory at Canisius last meet. The senior grabbed the gold honors for the second week in a row, earning a season-best score of 308.70 in the three-meter diving event.

“[Cohn] continues to be strong and consistent which is nice to see,” Cummiskey said. “Knock on wood that he’s been healthy and feeling pretty good so far, and hopefully he can keep that rolling.”

In the women’s races, freshman Celia Webster was one of four Bearcats to achieve, a team-high, three individual victories this year, alongside Lanfear, Lin and Cohn. The freshman earned a time of 2:08.92 in the 200-yard backstroke. Senior Alyssa Martin led freshmen Saige Kazlauskas, Maria Pignatelli and Olivia Philbrick to a win in the 200-yard freestyle relay, with a 1:41.97 time.

“I think [Martin] had a good summer and [has] definitely gotten stronger and wants to end her last season on a high note,” Cummiskey said. “She’s certainly a strong piece in our relay and sprint events, so we’re gonna need her. She’s doing well, and it’s good that we’ve got a group of freshmen that have come in and been doing well right away. I think Philbrick had a great meet … She’s been strong on those relays and improved on that two back, so she’s doing well.”

In addition, freshman Melia Truong was able to earn gold in the 400-yard individual medley event with a time of 4:45.92.

“It’s just a collective group that’s been working hard,” Cummiskey said. “October is our peak training time of this semester, so they’re tired and sore. We’ve got three meets in the next two weeks before a weekend off, so we’ll be trying to compete and swim fast while we’re tired and broken down.”

Despite being swept by Bucknell, the Binghamton men’s and women’s teams both improved on its times from last week’s matchup against Canisius. Both sides sit at 1-1 as they prepare for two more dual meets this weekend.

“We talk about it as a team,” Cummiskey said. “We’re a better team when we’re into the meet and got a lot of energy and are supporting each other. We definitely did a better job of that this week, so we’ve got to keep that going. Colgate will be a tough meet on Friday, and Bryant is a new conference opponent for us. They’re a good strong team, so we’ll have to be ready to have that turnaround Friday and Saturday this week.”

Both Binghamton teams face two dual meets this coming weekend, first up against Colgate on Friday, Oct. 28, at 1 p.m. in Hamilton, New York. The Bearcats will then return home to face Bryant University on Saturday, Oct. 29. First race is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. at the Patricia A. Saunders Aquatic Center in Vestal, New York.

“Outstanding, fantastic result,” said Binghamton head coach Paul Marco. “I think the guys have taken a better responsibility in front of the goal. Their concentration has grown up a little bit. You have to be really committed. I think we can do a better job on set pieces with commitment in the box to try and will the ball, but overall [I’m] very pleased. Our frontrunners are finally on the scoresheet a little bit more, so that was great to see.”

BU (3-6-4, 1-1-2 AE) outshot UMass Lowell (2-8-3, 0-3-1 AE) 17-7 in what was an end-to-end affair from kickoff. Both sides began the game with several chances to score, mostly coming early on from the River Hawks, when they forced senior goalkeeper Mats Roorda to make a point-blank save in the ninth minute. Roorda is coming off being named AE Defensive Player of the Week for two consecutive weeks.

“When we know we have those strong defenders in the back, it’s more confidence for us to do a little bit more of our own stuff,” said senior forward Matthew Cozetti. “We know that they’re behind us and they’ll be able to win the ball back.”

The scoreless drought broke in the 15th minute, however, as a misplaced pass was collected by sophomore midfielder Diego Vargas and instantly fed to senior back Devin Heanue, who finished the attack to make it 1-0. Heanue added an assist to his tally just five minutes later, finding graduate student forward Ethan Homler, who extended the lead to 2-0. In the last meeting of these teams, Homler was the sole scorer in a 1-0 victory for the Bearcats, making it two in a row for him against the River Hawks.

“It feels great,” Heanue said. “I’ve had one other [goal] this season, and it just felt great to make a good connection and put one in the net.”

Despite the best efforts of Roorda and his defense, BU was unable to keep a clean sheet. With 10 minutes left in the first half, a misplaced header from a Binghamton defender fell to the River Hawks, who hit it on the volley into the woodwork to make it 2-1.

“It’s an unfortunate goal,” Heanue said. “Those are the types of things we’re always trying to clean up. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get a clean sheet, but after that we were just really focusing on not letting anything up and keeping moving forward.”

The goals didn’t stop there, as the second period saw more offensive action. Cozetti, one of four seniors honored during the pre-game ceremony, was at the center of the action. In the 69th minute, redshirt senior midfielder Parker McKnight, another honoree, was brought down in the box and a penalty kick was awarded to BU. Cozetti stepped up from 12 yards and made it 3-1 to the home side.

“I feel like these last five days of practice, we were able to execute a lot of attacking plays and we’re really getting a nice bond between the attacking players,” Cozetti said. “It seemed like we gelled perfectly today in the game and the stuff we did in practice showed out today on the field.”

That wasn’t the end of Cozetti’s involvement. The Bearcat assisted on the final goal in the 82nd minute. His pass was collected by redshirt junior midfielder Anthony Lazaridis, who beat the River Hawk defender and secured the 4-1 win with a curled finish into the opposite corner.

“Cozetti steps up to take a pen, great goal for him,” Marco said. “[Lazaridis’] goal at the end was outstanding. I mean what a terrific strike, and [Homler] got a goal, so three of our guys get goals which is great.”

Binghamton’s unbeaten streak was extended to five as the seniors celebrated their third win after being honored in the pre-game ceremony.

“I think senior day is always a special day,” Heanue said. “Looking to honor [the seniors], and we were just happy to get the win for them and to send them off the right way. I was really happy [redshirt junior forward Rory Anderson] was able to get on at the end of the game as he’s coming back from injury.”

BU will begin a three-game road trip, starting with a matchup against Cornell. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 18 at Berman Field in Ithaca, New York.

“Well, I think the group took another good step forward,” said Binghamton head coach Paul Marco. “We didn’t get the result, but we had a very good performance again tonight. I think we’re really close, and what a fantastic game to watch. Very fast, electric pace and good moments. I just thought we maybe lacked more courage in the box and with crosses. But overall, I’m still pleased with the performance — the guys are getting better. We’re getting fitter, we’re getting healthier, but we need to turn the corner here with getting some goals and some Ws.”

The Bearcats (0-5-2) and Hofstra (5-2-0, 2-1-0 Colonial Athletic Association [CAA]) both came out battling, with chances on both ends of the pitch in the first half, as well as goal-saving defensive plays from keepers and defenders alike. Binghamton faced shots early, including a penalty kick that came 13 minutes in. Senior goalkeeper Mats Roorda had to face an early penalty kick after sophomore back Carlo Cavalar committed a foul in the box. Although the Pride shooter put his shot on net, Roorda’s dive to the bottom left-hand corner saw the ball fall safely into his hands.

“I thought Mats was outstanding,” Marco said. “He commanded the box. He made saves when he had to. His distribution was good. He had a complete performance tonight.”

The senior finished the match with four saves and is now the first goalkeeper for the Bearcats to save a penalty since his teammate, redshirt senior goalkeeper P.J. Parker, did against UMBC last October.

“[Penalty kicks] for goalies, in my opinion, are a notion of luck,” Roorda said. “I’m lucky I made the right decision to dive to the left corner. I tried to play a little bit of mind games, make a move to the right and then dive to the left, and that thankfully worked. I’m happy I was able to help the team with that one and keep the ball out of the goal.”

The winning goal came in the 54th minute. Hofstra attacked from the right-hand side, sending a cross into the crowded penalty area — where it was guided into the net from inside the six-yard box. After some deliberation over whether or not the ball came off a Binghamton or Hofstra player, it was ruled a goal for the away side and sealed the Pride’s victory.

While Roorda was the standout performer for the Bearcats, graduate student forward Ethan Homler and redshirt junior midfielder Anthony Lazaridis also showed quality in attack. They linked up the offense and gave the home side opportunities to equalize. BU came close to an equalizer in the final 10 minutes, but the Hofstra keeper made a late save to keep his shutout alive.

“I thought [Homler] and [Lazaridis] both did a pretty good job,” Marco said. “They still can have better moments [and] concentration on a final pass or a cross, but both of them worked their butts off. They put themselves all over the field. We got two really quality chances at the end of the game from them. So yeah, I think both guys have done a pretty good job for us.”

This match marks the last of a three-game homestand, where the Bearcats have come out with two ties and a loss. Despite still looking for its first win, BU now moves into the start of conference play, where the defending champions, Vermont, await them.

“I thought that [Hofstra] would be very similar to Vermont, so hopefully tonight’s match gives us a little bit of a look of what we might see,” Marco said. “I thought that a few guys showed that they can perform at that level. I thought [Cavalar] had a really good game today. I thought [sophomore midfielder Diego Vargas] played pretty well today. So getting those two guys firing will certainly help the group. And yeah, why not play Vermont first?”

The Bearcats will begin AE Conference play on Saturday, Sept. 24 against the Catamounts. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Virtue Fields in Burlington, Vermont.

“I feel disappointed,” said Binghamton head coach Paul Marco. “I thought the guys played really well, winning late in the second half to letting a goal kind of slip in. Give Niagara some credit, they kept coming after us, but I felt like we stopped doing the things we were very successful at early on in the game. But a lot of promising things happened today. We scored good goals, we got wide guys into the attack, and we had more balls in the box today. So a lot of things we’ve been working on in training we’re getting to see a little bit. I think that hopefully, this means we’re turning the corner, we do get some guys back from injury this week hopefully, so we’re looking forward to that as well.”

BU (0-4-1) came out of the gates ready for the Niagara (1-3-1) attack. The Purple Eagles pressured the home side early on, but attack after attack was halted by the Binghamton back line. The Bearcats were forced to handle three early corner kicks, even making some goal line clearances to maintain their first half clean sheet. Marco opted to utilize three center backs, with two wingbacks putting in defensive and offensive shifts on either side.

“I don’t want to say we experimented with three [center backs], because we thought that we would be playing with three,” Marco said. “Sometimes when you play against two upfront it’s better to play with three center backs, and I thought the group played pretty well. We were a little more direct today than we’ve been in the past, so hopefully that continues to be a theme for the guys, to have vertical possession. But overall I’m pleased with the performance, just disappointed in the outcome.”

Junior back Joe Spires led the BU charge, pushing upfield high when the Bearcats had the ball, and coming back to help sweep up attacks on the other side of the pitch. He capped his performance off with a goal in the 52nd minute, running onto a cross from junior midfielder Shawn Coles and slotting it past the keeper.

“[Spires] couldn’t play in the last game,” Marco said. “But I thought he played really well tonight, fitness needs to improve a little bit but we saw his productivity today, and what an absolute strike.”

Spires was one of two Binghamton defenders to score, as sophomore back Carlo Cavalar also found the back of the net with a close range header just four minutes later to make it 2-0. A three-man substitution at the end of the first half bled into the second period, with Marco switching out his entire attacking line to balance out his side’s defensive performance. However, the Bearcats were unable to hold on as two late goals from Niagara — within six minutes of each other — prevented the home side from obtaining its first win of the season.

Niagara broke the shutout in the 78th minute with a cross into the box that led to a shot right while redshirt senior goalkeeper P.J. Parker came out left. Niagara struck again in the 85th minute when the away side took advantage of a close-range rebound to make it 2-2. Parker was unable to corral the long-range shot from the Purple Eagles. A free kick in the final minute of the match by junior midfielder Markos Touroukis was Binghamton’s last chance at a winner, but the Niagara keeper guided the attempt over the bar with a fingertip save to maintain the draw.

“I think that all the guys that went in today worked really hard when we had the ball and when [Niagara] had the ball,” Marco said. “I thought all of them worked really hard. It will be interesting to pick the team next week for sure … I like how we are getting better on our dead balls. Services were much better today than they were in previous games. So I think there’s a lot of promise to take away from today. [I] just feel disappointed and kind of let down that we couldn’t get a W.”

The Bearcats will continue their stay at home on Saturday, Sept. 17 against Canisius College. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at the Bearcats Sports Complex in Vestal, New York.

“I thought we were very good,” said Binghamton head coach Paul Marco. “We start the game a little nervous and then really come into the game twenty minutes in. We start to really turn it up a notch and have a little more belief. We get a goal and, before the goal, we probably should’ve had at least one more. And then to leak a goal with less than a minute in the half is heartbreaking, especially for a counterattack.”

In game one, a BU (0-2) newcomer opened the scoring as transfer junior midfielder Markos Touroukis put one past the JMU (1-1) goalie in the 34th minute. Touroukis, who hails from Greece and recently transferred to Binghamton from Coker University, started his Bearcat career with a curved shot from the edge of the box into the top right corner. Despite BU having a 14-9 advantage in shots taken, a second-half run from the Dukes clinched the game, with a goal coming at the end of both halves and a 64th-minute free-kick that took the lead for the home side.

“Just disappointing in that last minute of each half we leaked a goal,” Marco said. “I thought the game should’ve ended 1-1, but overall I thought it was a pretty good performance. If you take out the last minute of each half, it’s a 1-1 game.”

Tourokis was one of four BU debutantes in this weekend’s invitational, joining freshman back Luke Yates, sophomore back Carlo Cavalar and junior back Joe Spires.

“[Touroukis] played up front wide, he scored the goal against JMU, and what a great goal,” Marco said. “I think with him it’s gonna be patient with [the team], they’re figuring it out, the speed of play is a little quicker than they’re used to.”

The second game was played on Sunday against Drexel (1-0-1), ending in a 2-0 loss. BU had a goal reversed in the third minute of the game due to an offsides call. Soon after, consecutive yellow cards left Binghamton a man down with 85 minutes remaining. The Dragons added their first goal only a minute later and a 23-2 shot advantage secured the win for Drexel.

“Today we got an unbelievable response,” Marco said. “We score a goal in the first three minutes of the game that’s called back offside. It looked really tight. We asked the guys to do certain things and we were really on top of the game. We had two good training sessions leading in and the guys have already moved past Thursday’s game which was great to see. Today we came into the game and the guys were flying. Then, [sophomore midfielder Billy Clark] gets booked for what the referee interpreted as stopping a goal-scoring attack.”

Binghamton starts the season with an 0-2 record, a contrast from its 2-0 start in the 2021 season. Despite this, Marco believes the team is further ahead than last year and stresses resilience as a key factor for the team’s future improvement.

“We’ve got seven new players in,” Marco said. “So there’s a lot of new faces right now, so I think it’s just gonna take a little bit of time. Where we are now and where we were last year, even though the records are different, we are further ahead than we were last year playing-wise. I think the group has to become more resilient and a little bit better at understanding [that] we don’t have to go to win every ball. Once we figure out those two pieces, I think the group is going to grow immensely quickly.”

The Bearcats will play their home opener on Friday, Sept. 2 against Colgate. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at the Bearcats Sports Complex in Vestal, NY.