Brian Dempsey earned his 100th career win as the College's wrestling team posted a 3-0 record at the annual New Jersey/New England Duals at Roger Williams University on Saturday.
The seventh-ranked Lions started the day with a 33-9 win over Worcester Polytechnic Institute and then defeated Roger Williams 24-12. The College concluded the day by knocking off Williams College in impressive fashion, 39-3.
Dempsey was 3-0 on the day and became the latest Lion to join the 100 career wins club. The senior hit the milestone as he received a pair of forfeits and earned an 8-3 victory against sophomore Anthony Nicolicchia of Roger Williams, giving him a career record of 100-36.
"It's like a thousand points in basketball. On this team it is hard to start for three or four years," head coach David Icenhower said about Dempsey's accomplishment.
Also going 3-0 on the day were sophomores Ray Sarinelli, who competed at 133 pounds, and Jeff Harrington at 174.
Three other wrestlers went 2-0 for the Lions, including junior Joey Galante at 157 pounds, sophomore Lenny Goduto at 165 and senior Keith Bjorhus at heavyweight.
The Lions post a season record of 11-1 in dual meets and have been able to dominate for most of the season. The key to their success is the upperclassmen trio of Dempsey, Galante and Bjorhus. "We're depending on them to pull on through almost everything," Icenhower said.
However, the underclassmen have been extremely important for the Lions' near perfect season. "Obviously, we have three upperclassmen: Dempsey, Bjorhus and Galante," Icenhower said. "All the new guys in the lineup are stepping up at different times. They seem to have enough in each match to pull us through."
The Lions earned another win as they traveled to Massachusetts to beat 20th-ranked Springfield College 25-13 on Sunday.
Against Springfield, Dempsey opened the match with a pin in 1:26 as he collected the 101st win of his career to give the Lions a 6-0 lead. The College lost the next two matches, making the score 9-7.
Ranked number one in his weight class, Galante earned a 16-7 victory that began a series of three straight wins for the Lions. Sophomores Goduto and Harrington put the Lions back on top.
Springfield inched closer with wins at 184 and 197 pounds, but Bjorhus ended the day with a pin to secure the victory for the Lions.
Earlier last week, the College dominated Montclair State University by posting a 40-4 victory in Packer Hall on Thursday, Jan. 26.
The Lions' action continues Feb. 4 as the College hosts the NY/NJ Duals in Packer Hall at 11 a.m.
