The Wisconsin Badgers wrestling team may be on a dual meet losing streak, but the wrestlers and coach Chris Bono sure don’t seem to think so. Coach Bono often makes himself available to the media to give an update on the team. Despite their recent performances, the wrestlers and coaching staff are more confident than ever to prove themselves.
Bono: “Time to figure out what is going wrong”
During his availability, coach Bono began by reassuring Badgers fans that the team has been positive and ready to defend their home turf once again. The last two dual meets in particular were tough due to nearly all of the matches being tightly contested match-ups. While the Badgers may have lost by 21 points to Michigan, a takedown or a reversal in a few key spots would’ve changed the score.
"And this is what we want. We want all these matches to happen now. So when we get to the national tournament you know, we, we know what it's gonna take to get to the NCAA finals."@ChrisBono spoke with media as Wisconsin will host #24 Purdue on Friday and #2 Iowa on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/rsXL8pmPAD
— Wisconsin Wrestling (@BadgerWrestling) January 19, 2023
However, coach Bono stated that the Badgers got the “…Brakes beat off us” to summarize the meet. The key moment that shifted the meet in Michigan’s favor was when 125-pound wrestler Eric Barnett was upset by Jack Medley. Bono refers to Barnett as his “Spark plug” and on an off night, Barnett loses, it is certainly tough for the team.
The 165-pound match between Wisconsin’s Dean Hamiti and Michigan’s Cameron Amine came down to small details. One shift to the side or a sprawl in specific spots and that match ends in the Badgers’ favor. Coach Bono understands, however, that the Badgers need to secure those fine details to get back into the win column.
“Up and down the lineup, it is one or two things. We are not coming home and reinventing anything, it is just now, figuring out what went wrong in those matches and correcting it. But individually, obviously, if you lost, there is something to correct whether you weren’t feeling good or you were sick a little bit.”
The Badgers could surely use a meet win over # 24 Purdue on January 20th. The losses haven’t affected the confidence of the Badgers at all, and knowing the attitude of coach Bono and coach Jon Reader, it certainly won’t. Wisconsin will look to solidify a statement win against Purdue before facing #2 Iowa in one of the hardest challenges the Badgers will face all year.
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