Michigan
Cliff Keen Invitational
Six Wolverines Advance to Semfinals at Cliff Keen Invite
12/3/2004 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Site: Las Vegas, Nev. (Cashman Center)
Event: Cliff Keen Invitational
U-M Standing: 1st Place of 45 Teams (95.5 Points) after Day 1
Next U-M Event: Friday, Dec. 3 -- Cliff Keen Invitational (Las Vegas, Nev.)
LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- The No. 5-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team holds the top spot (95.5 points) after the first day of competition at the Cliff Keen Invitational on Friday (Dec. 3) at the Cashman Center. The Wolverines boast six individual semifinalists as well as another wrestler in the consolation bracket as they hang to a narrow three-point advantage over second-place Nebraska (92.5 points).
Michigan dominated the early competition as Wolverine wrestlers earned bonus points with 18 of their 23 morning-session victories while all six U-M quarterfinalists -- sophomore Mark Moos (Lorain, Ohio/St. Edward HS), sophomore/freshman Eric Tannenbaum (Naperville, Ill./North HS), fifth-year senior captain Ryan Bertin (Broadview Heights, Ohio/St. Edward HS), senior/junior captain Ryan Churella (Northville, Mich./Novi HS), junior/sophomore Nick Roy (Wall, N.J./Wall HS) and senior/junior Greg Wagner (Fort Wayne, Ind./ Snider HS) -- pushed through to the semifinal round, giving Michigan more semifinalists than any other school.
Moos, seeded third at 125 pounds, registered three decisive wins in the opening rounds, including an 18-2 technical fall over Adams State's Rob McCabe in the pigtails, to advance into the quarterfinals. Squaring off against Buffalo's sixth-seeded Mark McKnight in that round, a takedown late in the second period proved to be all that Moos would need as the Wolverine held McKnight to just a single escape to claim a 5-1 victory.
At 149 pounds, fourth-seeded Tannenbaum also cruised through early matches, putting on takedown clinics to outscore his opponents 30-7 in the opening two rounds. Tannenbaum built an early lead and never trailed against fifth-seeded Ben Cherrington of Boise State in the quarterfinals. In a well-balanced and controlled attack, the Wolverine earned a takedown in each period and, despite getting reversed late in the third period, held on for a 7-5 decision.
Bertin, seeded No. 1 at 157 pounds, tallied five takedowns -- three in the first period -- to overpower Wisconsin's Tyler Turner in a 12-6 quarterfinal win. Bertin breezed through the morning session with a technical fall and a major decision as he outscored his three early opponents 45-12.
Second-seeded Churella dominated the competition at 165 pounds, scoring bonus points in each of the four matches to cruise into the semfinal round. Churella earned a fall, a technical fall and two major decisions, including a 9-0 shutout over Pittsburgh's seventh-seeded Justin Nestor in the quarterfinals. Churella earned a takedown in each period against Nestor while accumulating 3:45 in riding time to control throughout the match.
Roy, seeded second at 174 pounds, made an impressive debut in his first appearance at the annual tournament with back-to-back technical falls in the opening rounds, outscoring his early opponents 39-11. Roy withstood a late charge against Pennsylvania's seventh-seeded Dustin Wiles in the quarterfinal round to pull out a 8-6 decision. The Wolverine built an early advantage with three takedowns in the first two periods while only allowing a handful of escapes but gave up a takedown midway through the third period to tighten the final score.
Heavyweight Wagner, seeded second, made it six for six for the Wolverines in the quarterfinal round as he defeated seventh-seeded Jonas Corl from Harvard 9-2. Wagner struck early with three first-period takedowns to build an insurmountable lead before adding a pair of escapes and accumulating 1:20 in riding time to advance to the semfinals.
With the exception of a close 7-4 loss to Augustana's sixth-seeded Tom Meester in the second round, sophomore Joshua Weitzel (Lincoln University, Pa./Oxford HS) has dominated the opposition at 184 pounds, scoring bonus points for Michigan in each of his three victories. The Wolverine wrestler rallied in the consolation bracket with two shortened matches, earning a first-period fall against Air Force's Zane Hershey and tallying a 17-1 technical fall in the second frame against Western State's Dillon Waggoner.
The Wolverines will return to the mat tomorrow (Saturday, Dec. 4) for the second and final day of competition at the Cliff Keen Invitational in Las Vegas, Nev. The action will begin at 9 a.m. PST with a round of wrestlebacks, while the semifinals are slated to start at 10 a.m.
Top 10 Teams (After Day 1)
1. MICHIGAN 95.5 2. Nebraska 92.5 3. Hofstra 73.5 4. Arizona State 68 5. Missouri 63 6. Cornell 50 7. Edinboro 49.5 8. Pennsylvania 45.5 9. Purdue 44 10. Cal State Bakersfield 40.5
Michigan Results
125 pounds - #3 Mark Moos
Pigtail Round - tech. fall Rob McCabe (Adams State), 18-2 (5:30)
First Round - dec. Eric Stevenson (Oregon State), 9-4
Second Round - dec. Austin DeVoe (Missouri), 9-2
Quarterfinals - dec. #6 Mark McKnight (Buffalo), 5-1
Semifinals - vs. #2 Matt Keller (Nebraska)
133 pounds - Craig Gillison
Pigtail Round - major dec. by Dominick Moyer (Nebraska), 12-2
Consolation - pinned Eddie Garza (Western State), 1:36
Consolation - dec. by Kyle Kaiser (Northern Colorado), 6-5
Finished with a 1-2 record
141 pounds - J.R. Muldoon
First Round - pinned by #12 Sean Markey (The Citadel), 3:56
Consolation - dec. by Daniel Alejandro (Cal State Bakersfield), 7-1
Finished with a 0-2 record
149 pounds - #4 Eric Tannenbaum
First Round - major dec. Orlando Perez (Oregon State), 13-3
Second Round - major dec. Andrew Krieger (UNC Greensboro), 17-4
Quarterfinals - dec. #5 Ben Cherrington (Boise State), 7-5
Semifinals - vs. #1 Dustin Manotti (Cornell)
157 pounds - #1 Ryan Bertin
Pigtail Round - tech. fall Jaime Alvarez (San Francisco State), 18-3 (4:14)
First Round - dec. Travis Piccard (The Citadel), 10-3
Second Round - major dec. Paul Bjorlo (Virginia), 17-6
Quarterfinals - dec. #9 Tyler Turner (Wisconsin), 12-6
Semfinals - vs. #4 Matt Lebe (West Virgnia)
165 pounds - #2 Ryan Churella
Pigtail Round - pinned Mark Reavley (Northern Colorado), 3:45
First Round - tech. fall Rich Ferguson (Pennsylvania), 18-1
Second Round - major dec. Marcus Surin (Clarion), 12-2
Quarterfinals - major dec. #7 Justin Nestor (Pittsburgh), 9-0
Semifinals - vs. #3 Tyron Woodley (Missouri)
174 pounds - #2 Nick Roy
First Round - tech. fall Craig Maurello (Northwest Wyoming), 19-6
Second Round - tech. fall Shawn Hart (Northern Colorado), 20-5
Quarerfinals - dec. #7 Dustin Wiles (Pennsylvania), 8-6
Semifinals - vs. #3 Paul Siemon (Hofstra)
184 pounds - #11 Joshua Weitzel
First Round - major dec. Corry Murray (VMI), 14-0
Second Round - dec. by #6 Tom Meester (Augustana), 7-4
Consolations - pinned Zane Hershey (Air Force), 1:25
Consolations - tech. fall Dillon Waggoner (Western State), 16-1
Consolations - vs. #4 Benjamin Wissel (Purdue)
197 pounds - Willie Breyer
First Round - major dec. Tim Sexton (Northern Colorado), 13-0
Second Round - dec. by #2 Chris Skretkowicz (Hofstra), 6-2
Consolations - pinned Jared Villers (West Virginia), 4:11
Consolations - major dec. by Shane Hall (Missouri Valley), 12-4
Finished with a 2-2 record
Heavyweight - #2 Greg Wagner
Pigtail Round - tech. fall Joe Sheffield (UNC Greensboro), 18-0 (7:00)
First Round - pinned Chase Wentenkamp (Missouri), 3:57
Second Round - tech. fall Cris Bietz (Augstana), 17-2
Quarterfinals - dec. #7 Jonas Corl (Harvard), 9-2
Semifinals - vs. #3 Cain Velasquez (Arizona State)
Players Mentioned
