Michigan
Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational
Wolverines to Return to Annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite After Year Hiatus
11/30/2021 3:30:00 PM | Wrestling
» No. 4 Michigan will travel to Las Vegas, Nev., for the 39th annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, slated for Friday and Saturday (Dec. 3-4) at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
» Four Wolverines are slated to make their Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational debuts this weekend; Michigan has crowned five CKLV champions over its last four appearances.
» Michigan is 3-0 in duals after claiming nine bouts in dual wins over CSU Bakersfield, Columbia and Buffalo; U-M posted 15 bonus wins in those meets.
THIS WEEK
Fri-Sat., Dec. 3-4 -- at Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Las Vegas, Nev.), 9 a.m. PST
TV: FloWrestling | Brackets/Live Results | Live Video | CKLV Site
• Social Media: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
The No. 4-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team (3-0) will take its annual trip out west this weekend, heading to Las Vegas, Nev., to compete in the 39th annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Friday and Saturday (Dec. 3-4) at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Action will begin at 9 a.m. PST both days of competition, with the championship round slated for 3 p.m. PST on Saturday afternoon.
This year's field at the Cliff Keen Invitational will feature 27 teams, including 10 teams ranked in the most recent NWCA poll. In addition to the Maize and Blue, headlining the participating teams are No. 8 Ohio State, No. 9 Nebraska, No. 11 Cornell, No. 12 Minnesota and No. 15 Purdue.
Michigan's Projected Starting Lineup
| Wgt. | Name | Year/Elig. | Hometown (High School) |
| 125 | Jack Medley | 5th/Sr. | Chesterfield, Mich. (Anchor Bay) |
| 133 | Dylan Ragusin | So./Fr. | Elk Grove Village, Ill. (Montini Catholic) |
| 141 | Cole Mattin | Jr./So. | Delta, Ohio (Delta) |
| 149 | Kanen Storr | Gr./Sr. | Leslie, Mich. (Leslie) |
| 157 | Will Lewan | Sr./Jr. | Chicago, Ill. (Montini Catholic) |
| 165 | Cameron Amine | Jr./So. | Brighton, Mich. (Detroit Catholic Central) |
| 174 | Max Maylor | Sr./Jr. | Highland, Wis. (Highland) |
| 184 | Jelani Embree | 5th/Sr. | Eastpointe, Mich. (Warren Lincoln) |
| 197 | Patrick Brucki | Gr./Sr. | Orland Park, Ill. (Carl Sandburg) |
| Hwt | Blake Querio | Jr./So. | Holly, Mich. (Holly) |
History Lesson: Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational
Michigan has competed in the annual tournament 38 times dating back to 1983, missing only the first year of the tournament in 1982. Formerly known as the Las Vegas Classic, the tournament was renamed the Cliff Keen Invitational in 1993 to honor former Michigan wrestling coach and collegiate wrestling icon Cliff Keen. The tournament is run by a pair of former Michigan wrestlers -- three-time NCAA champion Mark Churella Sr. (1976-79) and Mark Churella Jr. (2001), who serve as executive director and tournament director, respectively.
Michigan has placed fifth or better in 16 of the last 25 seasons at the annual tournament, including first-place showings in 2001, 2004, 2005 and 2007. The Wolverines took 16th place in the 2019 event -- their season of Olympic redshirts -- with two placewinners, most notably champion Mason Parris (heavyweight).
Wolverine Bites
• Four Wolverines are slated to make their Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational debuts this weekend -- Dylan Ragusin (133 pounds), Cameron Amine (165), Patrick Brucki (197) and Blake Querio (Hwt). Of U-M's projected lineup, only fifth-year senior Jelani Embree (184) has previously appeared multiple times; he placed eighth at the 2019 event and wrestled at the 2018 event.
• Michigan has claimed bonus points in 15 of its 27 dual-meet wins over the last couple weeks. Sophomore/freshman Dylan Ragusin, fifth-year senior Jelani Embree and graduate student Patrick Brucki have earned bonus in all three dual appearances to date. Brucki, who also placed second at the MSU Open (Nov. 6), boasts bonus points in six of his seven wins this season with two pins, a technical fall and three major decisions.
• Four Wolverines have earned their first collegiate dual win already this season -- sophomore/freshman Fidel Mayora (157 pounds), who went 4-0 in extra matches last season, junior/sophomore Pat Nolan (141) and junior/sophomore Blake Querio, and graduate student J.T. Correll at heavyweight. Correll bumped up from 197 pounds and used a takedown and four-point near fall in sudden victory to secure his dual win at Columbia.
• Michigan's Tokyo Olympians -- graduate students Myles Amine (184 pounds) and Stevan Micic (141), who have combined for seven All-America honors over their collegiate careers, announced their return to the Wolverine lineup in 2020-21 this fall. Neither is enrolled in school this semester and will not appear in competition for the Maize and Blue until second semester.
• Head coach Sean Bormet is in his fourth season at the helm of the Wolverine program. Under his guidance, the Wolverines have compiled a 28-8 dual-meet record, including an 18-6 mark in Big Ten duals, and has posted back-to-back fifth-place NCAA finishes in 2019 and 2021. Michigan has boasted eight different All-Americans over the last three seasons.
U-M Individual Rankings
| Wt. | Wrestler | InterMat | Flo | AWN | WIN |
| 125 | Jack Medley | 16 | NR | NR | 16 |
| 133 | Dylan Ragusin | 16 | 19 | NR | 16 |
| 141 | Stevan Micic | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 |
| 149 | Kanen Storr | 16 | 23 | 18 | 14 |
| 157 | Will Lewan | 15 | 9 | 16 | 14 |
| 165 | Cameron Amine | 10 | 14 | 9 | 10 |
| 184 | Myles Amine | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| 197 | Patrick Brucki | 8 | 7 | 7 | 8 |
| Hwt | Mason Parris | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Last Time Out
Michigan claimed nine bouts apiece en route to lopsided wins at Columbia (34-3, Nov. 19) and Buffalo (31-3, Nov. 21) in road trip to the Empire State two weeks ago. Sophomore/freshman Dylan Ragusin (133 pounds), fifth-year senior Jelani Embree (184) and graduate student Patrick Brucki (197) all earned back-to-back bonus wins, while Ragusin and fifth-year senior Jack Medley (125) picked up ranked wins with a 14-4 major decision over Buffalo's No. 20 Derek Spann and a 6-3 decision against Columbia's No. 15 Joe Manchio, respectively. [ Recaps: Columbia | Buffalo ]
Up Next
Monday, Jan. 3 -- vs. Arizona State (Austin, Texas), 7 p.m. CST
Players Mentioned
