Sport-specific news, summer 2023
Track athlete Restivo selected for prestigious America East Man of Year award
Jake Restivo, who recently concluded his stellar track & field career, has been named the 2022-23 America East Man of the Year.
The America East Man and Women of the Year Awards are presented annually to a graduating male and female senior student-athlete who has best distinguished himself and herself throughout their collegiate career in the areas of academic achievement, athletic excellence, service and leadership.
Veteran coach Hall joins women’s soccer staff
Binghamton women’s soccer head coach Neel Bhattacharjee has filled a staff vacancy with the addition of veteran coach Chris Hall, the school announced on Tuesday.
A native of Georgia, Hall will join Bhattacharjee and second-year assistant coach Taylor Bennett as the reigning America East regular season champion Bearcats prepare for the 2023 fall season.
Volleyball releases 2023 fall schedule
As an encore to the team’s record-setting 2022 campaign, BU volleyball has toughened its list of opponents and will christen a new home facility in the 2023 season.
Second-year head coach Allie Yaeger announced her team’s schedule on Friday and it includes several exciting challenges plus a treat for home fans. In the 20th-year celebration of the building’s existence, BU will play at least five home matches in the Events Center—the first volleyball matches ever held in the arena, which has previously only hosted basketball games and a handful of track meets and tennis matches.
Track runner Chigatayeva earns All-America honors
Graduate student distance runner Aziza Chigatayeva concluded her Binghamton career with a 22nd-place finish in the opening round of the 3,000 Steeplechase (SC) at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Thursday night at Mike Meyers Stadium. With her finish, Chigatayeva will receive honorable mention All-America honors from the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association (USTFCCCA) at the conclusion of the meet.
Walter ranked No. 23 in softball batting
Redshirt sophomore Lindsey Walter – who had a breakthrough season in 2023 – is ranked No. 23 in the final 2023 NCAA Division I softball statistics with a .414 batting average. In addition, freshman pitcher Brianna Roberts is ranked No. 24 in strikeouts-to-walk ratio (5.30) and redshirt sophomore third baseman Brianna Santos is No. 29 with five sacrifice flies.
Walter, who was also the first Binghamton player since 2011 to win the America East batting title, wasn’t even a full-time starter until this year. She subsequently made the most of her opportunity as she was named both first-team all-conference and first-team All-Mid Atlantic Region by the National Fastpitch Coaches’ Association (NFCA). Walter was also chosen as a first-team ECAC All-Star.
Lacrosse standout Greenblatt named All-American
Redshirt junior Thomas Greenblatt has earned his sport’s highest honor. On Thursday, Greenblatt was named an Honorable Mention All-American by USILA (United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association). This is the third organization this season to name Greenblatt an All-American.
“Thomas had an outstanding year for us and I’m glad everyone took notice,” Head Coach Kevin McKeown said. “He quarterbacked our offense while also providing a great leadership presence both on and off the field.”
Baseball hosts America East tournament, finishes runnerup
In a title game battle between the defending champions and the regular season champs, top-seeded Maine (32-19) hit four home runs and toppled third-seeded Binghamton baseball (29-23) 6-1 Saturday afternoon in front of 1,085 fans at the Bearcats Baseball Complex. The Black Bears will carry the America East automatic bid into the NCAA Regionals.
Two baseball players named first team all-conference
Four Binghamton baseball players were honored in the America East year-end awards, announced Tuesday afternoon. Junior center fielder Tommy Reifler and junior pitcher Gabe Driscoll were each named to first team all-conference. Freshman reliever Dan McAliney was selected to the All-Rookie Team and Reifler and graduate reliever Jack Collins both made the All-Academic Team.
The all-conference honors for Reifler and Driscoll were the first for each player.
Wrestling locks in talented recruiting class
Binghamton wrestling has finalized one of its largest recruiting classes in program history with nine newcomers slated to begin their Bearcat careers in 2023-24. The list of student-athletes features four state scholastic champions and an abundance of talented wrestlers up and down the weight classes.
Coming to Binghamton are Marco Albanese (Emmaus, Pa./Emmaus), Andrew Bailey (Chittenango, N.Y./Chittenango), Jordan Brown (Central Valley, N.Y./Monroe Woodbury), Ryan Hartung (New Milfird, N.J./New Milford), Jay McDonnell (Broomall, Pa./The Haverford School), Tyler Reed (Cornwall, N.Y./Cornwall), Carson Wagner (Nazareth, Pa./Northampton), Trent Sibble (Bolivar, N.Y./Bolivar Richburg) and Caleb Sweet (Ovid, N.Y./South Seneca).
Men’s tennis adds three recruits
Binghamton men’s tennis coach Nick Zieziula has announced the addition of three freshmen to the Bearcats program for the 2023-24 year. Set to bolster BU’s lineup are Filipe Costa (Goiania, Brazil), Andre Ajed (Honolulu, Hawaii) and Matthew Carlson (Buffalo, N.Y.).
The trio of newcomers join a talented, young roster that will also feature two juniors and four sophomores.
Softball lands eight all-conference selections
In the midst of its best season since 2016, the Binghamton softball program has posted eight all-conference selections for the 2023 season. In addition, freshman pitcher Brianna Roberts has been named the America East Rookie of the Year. The announcement was made on Tuesday afternoon by the conference office.
Graduate student second baseman Alli Richmond, redshirt sophomore utility player Lindsey Walter and redshirt sophomore third baseman Brianna Santos were each named first-team all-conference. All of them were also chosen to the America East All-Academic Team.
Roberts joined graduate student pitcher Sophia Pappas, junior first baseman Allison L’Amoreaux, sophomore outfielder Laney Harbaugh and freshman shortstop Akira Kopec as second-team all-conference selections. Both Roberts and Kopec also made the America East All-Rookie Team.
Men’s and women’s track and field finish among top 3 at America East Championship
The Binghamton women team recorded their first runner-up finish since 2013 and the men’s squad recorded their second straight top-three finish, highlighting the final day of competition at the America East Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Sunday at the UAlbany Complex. There were nine men’s and women’s programs competing at the two-day meet.
In addition, the Bearcats posted four more individual victories on Sunday to finish with six for the meet. Senior Marcrene Jeannot won the men’s triple jump (50-8 3/4), fellow senior Matthew Cavaliere was first in the men’s 1,500 (3:52.19), junior Jenna Chan captured the women’s 100 hurdles (13.67) and sophomore Lucciana Robertson took top honors in the women’s high jump (5-5 ¾).
Women’s lacrosse historic season ends in championship game
Host and top-seed Albany (12-6) ended No. 2 Binghamton’s (11-6) historic season with a 14-13 win in the America East Women’s Lacrosse Championship Sunday morning at John Fallon Field.
In their first-ever championship game appearance, the Bearcats stood toe-to-toe with a Great Danes team that was competing in its 12th straight title game and showed its mettle with a stellar 60-minute performance. The see-saw game was tied eight times and wasn’t decided until the closing seconds.
Women’s soccer releases fall schedule
Reigning America East regular season champion Binghamton women’s soccer has announced its 16-game slate for the 2023 fall season. Head coach Neel Bhattacharjee’s Bearcats will look for an encore after finishing their 2022 campaign on an 8-1-4 clip that ended just shy of an NCAA bid.
The team’s 2023 schedule opens with a stiff road test at Fairfield on Aug. 17. The Stags won 14 games and went 9-1 in the MAAC last fall. The home opener follows on Aug. 20 as MAAC member Canisius comes to the Bearcats Sports Complex. A second-ever meeting with Big East member Seton Hall in South Orange, N.J. is next (Aug. 24)—the first of three matchups against Power 5 schools.
Men’s lacrosse season ends in America East semifinals
Third-seeded Binghamton men’s lacrosse (9-5) held the league’s top offense to just three second-half goals but second-seeded Bryant (11-4) fended off the Bearcats 12-11 in an America East semifinal game Thursday night at Vermont’s Virtue Field. Earlier, the top-seeded and host Catamounts were upended by fourth-seed Albany 10-4.
Women’s lacrosse earns record number of all-conference honors
Binghamton women’s lacrosse earned a record number of America East honors and awards today for their most successful regular season in program history. Binghamton earned two major awards as Stephanie Allen was selected as Coach of the Year and senior Emily Manning earned Goalkeeper of the year honors. Binghamton had three players selected to the America East First Team. Prior to this season, the most First Team selections in a single-season for Binghamton was one. The Bearcats tied a program record (2018) by having five players named to the Second Team. Binghamton also produced one All-Rookie selection. The nine selections to the America East All-Conference teams are the most in any season in the program’s history, which began in 2002.
Men’s basketball adds four recruits for 2023-24
Binghamton men’s basketball has further enhanced its 2023-24 roster with the addition of four student-athletes, head coach Levell Sanders announced.
Set to join the Bearcats family are graduate transfer guard Symir Torrence (Syracuse, N.Y./Syracuse University), senior guard Tymu Chenery (Philadelphia, Pa./Quinnipiac), sophomore guard Chris Walker (Wellington, Fla./Arkansas-Little Rock) and freshman forward Gavin Walsh (Baltimore, Md./IMG Academy).
Men’s lacrosse secures five all-conference selections
Men’s lacrosse rakes in five All-Conference honors following the team’s best season since 2017. Redshirt junior Thomas Greenblatt was named America East Offensive Player of the Year and was selected to the First Team. Greenblatt is the first Bearcat in program history to be named America East Offensive Player of the Year. During the regular season, Greenblatt recorded at least one point in every game, led BU and the America East in assists (33) and assists per game (2.54), ranking tenth in the nation.
Tennis player Pawlowicz receives sportsmanship award
Binghamton men’s tennis senior Michael Pawlowicz has received the Jack Vredevelt Sportsmanship Award from the Mid-American Conference, the league announced Wednesday. The award is named for former Western Michigan Hall of Fame player and head coach Jack Vredevelt and given annually to a senior who has displayed outstanding sportsmanship throughout his career.
Golf team finishes up at conference championship
Binghamton golf finished round two at Talking Stick Golf Club earlier this afternoon. Binghamton finished the round shooting 301 (+21) The Bearcats are in fifth place (296-301=597/+37). Sophomore Shawn Colella and senior Evan Sitts each had a team-best 73 (+3) in the second round. Colella and Sitts are each tied for 19th in the tournament (+8). Northern Colorado is in first place (284-281=565/+5).
“Tough finish for our guys today,” said head coach Bernie Herceg. “We were playing pretty solid through our first nine and we we’re looking to finish strong, but unfortunately we weren’t able to. Evan had a real good round going and it’s too bad he had a tough last hole. We’re looking to have a good round tomorrow and finish strong.”
Brandon Conner (+5) is just outside the top-10, tied for 11th place. Conner shot a 75 (+5) in the second round.
Basketball player Petcash earns national academic honors
Senior men’s basketball player Dan Petcash has been recognized on the Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association Scholar-Athlete Team, the organization announced Tuesday. Petcash joined nine other student-athletes from across the country for the elite honor.
Petcash maintains a 3.55 grade-point average in psychology. He previously was honored on the NABC “Honor Court” in 2022, the 2023 America East Basketball All-Academic Team and he has been a regular member of the America East Commissioner’s Honor Roll and Binghamton AD Honor Roll.