Freshmen Jacob Koser (Dillsburg, Pa.) and John Birchmeier (Ashburn, Va.) won the final two bouts of the night to help the Navy wrestling team (4-3, 1-0 EIWA) rally from a six-point deficit and defeat Bucknell (2-3, 1-1 EIWA), 19-18, Friday evening at Alumni Hall in Annapolis, Md.

After jumping out to a 9-3 advantage, Navy lost three straight matches and found itself in a 15-9 deficit. Team captain Spencer Carey (Sr / Ringwood, N.J.), ranked 16th at 174 pounds, trimmed the deficit to just three following a 7-2 decision over Mitch Hartman. However, Kyle Inlander's 9-3 win over Navy's Andrew Buckley (Jr / Smithfield, Ky.) pushed the Bison lead back to six with two matches remaining.

A 2019 NCAA qualifier and two-time EIWA placewinner, 197-pound Drew Phipps of Bucknell jumped out to a 4-1 advantage over Koser with a pair of takedowns in the opening period. Koser escaped the grasp of Phipps to open the second and after getting himself in an inverted position, he not only shimmied his way free, he quickly turned Phipps for the takedown and four-point near fall to take an 8-4 lead into the final period. He secured the win with a takedown to defeat Phipps, 10-4, and cut Bucknell's lead to just three. Phipps came into Friday night having won 16 consecutive dual matches. His last defeat in dual competition was against the Mids a year ago.

Birchmeier, the Mids' starting heavyweight, stepped onto the mat quite familiar with the situation - the match was riding on his performance. In Navy's home opener against Maryland on Dec. 6, the Mids held a three-point lead heading into the final match and Birchmeier delivered with a pin to seal the victory. On Friday night, Birchmeier not only needed a win, he needed a bonus-point win to assure Navy would capture the win. A simple decision in Birchmeier's favor would force the referee to enlist the help of the rulebook to break the tie.

Junior Eric Chakonis took the early 7-5 lead, however, Birchmeier paired an escape with a takedown to hoist a narrow 8-7 advantage into the third period. The rookie used the momentum to score two four-point near falls in the third period en route to a 17-7 major decision and the go-ahead point for the Navy victory.

The Highlights
• The Midshipmen improved to 4-3 in dual competition this season, including a 2-0 mark at home.
• Friday night's match was Navy's EIWA opener, while Bucknell dropped to 1-1 in conference action.
• The match marked the 24th meeting between the two programs in a series that dates back to 1979.
• Navy now leads the series, 23-1, including a 12-0 mark in matches wrestled in Annapolis.
• The Midshipmen have now won 19 consecutive matches against the Bison, last losing on Feb. 15, 1986 (19-12).

• Navy both led by as many as six (9-3) and trailed by as many six (15-9 and 18-12).
• Six of the 10 matches (141, 149, 165, 197) included a point for riding time. None of which, however, proved to be the deciding factor.
• First-year starter Logan Treaster (125) picked up a 2-0 victory over Bucknell's Brandon Seidman thanks to his strong riding skills. Treaster rode out Seidman in the second period to build riding time before earning a point for an escape to open the third. Treaster, who entered the national rankings this week at #20, leads the team with a 6-1 dual record.
• Cody Trybus dominated Bucknell's Chris Lanciano at 141 pounds, building a 17-5 lead and better than two minutes of riding time before winning his first match this season by way of fall.
• Spencer Carey returned to the mat after bowing out of the Southern Scuffle with an injury. Carey never trailed in his match against Mitch Hartman.

Navy 19, Bucknell 18
125 | #20 Logan Treaster (NAVY) dec Brandon Seidman, 2-0  //  Navy 3-0
133 | Darren Miller dec Casey Cobb (NAVY), 4-2  //  Tied 3-3
141 | Cody Trybus (NAVY) fall Chris Lanciano, 4:34  //  Navy 9-3
149 | Matthew Kolonia fall Wyatt Long (NAVY), 6:36  //  Navy 9-9
157 | Jaden Fisher dec Scout Skidgel (NAVY), 7-4 //  Bucknell 12-9
165 | #16 Zach Hartman dec Henry Hague (NAVY), 5-2  //  Bucknell 15-9
174 | #16 Spencer Carey (NAVY) dec Mitch Hartman, 7-2  //  Bucknell 15-12
184 | Kyle Inlander dec Andrew Buckley (NAVY), 9-3  //  Bucknell 18-12
197 | Jacob Koser (NAVY) dec Drew Phipps, 10-4 //  Bucknell 18-15
285 | John Birchmeier (NAVY) major dec Eric Chakonis, 17-7  //  Navy 19-18

What's Ahead
• Navy will send six wrestlers to Millersville, Pa. on Saturday to compete at the Shorty Hitchcock Memorial. Action is set to begin at 10:00 am.

### Go Navy ###