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What a weekend at the 2023 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational! Iowa State came away with the team title outdistancing Nebraska, who had won the previous three titles, by a mere five points. Perennial CKLV threat Ohio State finished in third two points behind the Cornhuskers. While the team race was great, we’re focusing on some of the top individual performances. Specifically, those wrestlers who significantly improved their stock over the weekend. Not all of them are the same. Some went from All-American threat to title contender. Others went from national qualifiers to high All-American status. Some were freshmen, and some were fifth or sixth-year seniors. Below are ten wrestlers who stood out and saw their proverbial stock rise significantly in some form or fashion over those two days in Vegas. By the way, if we were giving a team award, it would go to Stanford. We’ve highlighted two of their wrestlers but could have mentioned a few more. Nico Provo (Stanford) Perhaps no wrestler in the tournament improved his stock the way Nico Provo did in capturing the title at 125 lbs. Provo entered Vegas ranked #20 in the country and that gave him the ninth seed. That meant he’d have to defeat four straight opponents ranked in the top 20 to earn his title. In consecutive matches, Provo downed, #18 Kysen Terukina (Iowa State), #2 Matt Ramos (Purdue), #11 Jore Volk (Wyoming), and #8 Brett Ungar (Cornell). At the 2023 NCAA Championships, Provo went 0-2 after falling to Ramos, by a point, in the opening round. Before Vegas, Provo held a 2-0 record but didn’t have any wins that would indicate he’d walk away from Vegas the champion. In Vegas, Provo ended up being the catalyst for a Cardinal team that finished seventh with six placewinners. Rankings Movement: #20 to #4 Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State) It may not be fair to put Izzak Olejnik in this category as he was an All-American last year and was selected to compete (and win) in the NWCA All-Star Classic. Just like the All-Star event, Olejnik picked up a big win over a multiple-time All-American who had defeated him in the past (and twice) in Cam Amine of Michigan. If that wasn’t enough, Olejnik finished his tournament on top of the 165 lb bracket by defeating the returning champion, Julian Ramirez of Cornell. With just over a minute remaining in the third period, Olejnik secured the takedown that ended up pushing him past Ramirez. After just over a month of the season, you have to be encouraged by Olejnik’s move to Oklahoma State. At a bigger program, he’d had more opportunities to take on top-flight competition and has risen to the occasion. He’ll continue to have those chances as Olejnik is slated to have four more matches against returning All-Americans during the regular season. Rankings Movement: #4 to #2 Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) The other champion that may have changed people’s perceptions is the winner of the 174 lb bracket, Cade Devos. DeVos claimed the title at his weight class after wins over past All-Americans in back-to-back matches. In the semifinals, he needed a late takedown to get by second-seeded Carson Kharchla (Ohio State). Against Travis Wittlake (Oregon State) in the finals, DeVos grabbed a takedown in the first and second periods before holding on to win 9-7. DeVos now has a perfect 8-0 record and is in good position to get on the NCAA podium, after coming up a match short in 2023. Rankings Movement: #7 to #4 Tyler Knox (Stanford) One of the first opening-round surprises that woke up the Vegas crowd was Stanford’s true freshman, Tyler Knox, defeating Ohio State’s Nic Bouzakis. Knox’s mat game turned out to be the deciding factor in the Bouzakis contest. He rode the Buckeye for the entire second period, then got a reversal in the third and proceeded to ride Bouzakis for the duration of the bout, in an 11-3 major decision. In his run to the semifinals, Knox picked up wins over past national qualifiers Richie Koehler (Rider) and Reece Witcraft (Oklahoma State). Knox entered the tournament with a 2-0 record with both of his wins coming via tech fall, though neither was against a rankable opponent. The reason we’ve mentioned Knox and not his classmate, Lorenzo Norman, is that 133 may be a weight where a freshman like Knox could have more of an impact in 2023-24. Rankings Movement: Not Ranked to #16 Tagen Jamison (Oklahoma State) During the offseason, Oklahoma State received a couple of impact transfers, one of which was redshirt freshman Tagen Jamison from Minnesota. It was unclear how he’d fit into the role at 141 lbs since former Rutgers national qualifier, Sammy Alvarez, has moved to Stillwater during the 2022-23 campaign. With Alvarez unable to compete until the second semester, Jamison got the first crack at locking down the starting spot at 141. After his fifth-place performance in Vegas, it’ll be difficult to unseat the young Jamison. On the front side, Jamison advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating All-Star Classic participant Josh Koderhandt (Navy). Then he fell to the defending CKLV champion Brock Hardy. There’s no shame in losing to someone of that caliber, right? Sure, but Jamison would get the chance to avenge that loss in the fifth-place bout and that he did! Jamison rolled to a 13-5 major decision over the 2023 Big Ten runner-up and All-American. Earlier in the consolations, Jamison majored 2023 EIWA champion Vince Cornella (Cornell). Rankings Movement: #24 to #9 Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) Another upset that made you take notice from round one was Northern Iowa’s redshirt freshman, Ryder Downey, taking out then-tenth-ranked Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern), 6-2. He’d make sure no one thought it was a fluke by notching a pair of takedowns in an 8-5 win over Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State), ranked #16th in the nation, at the time. This is where you can’t just look at tournament placements as to how wrestlers should be ranked. Once Downey was in the quarterfinals he fell to the second seed and eventual runner-up, Jacori Teemer (Arizona State). In the bloodround, he ran into a hot Ed Scott (NC State). The Wolfpack All-American lost in the second round and was in a furious race back to third place. The wrestlers that defeated Downey ended up finishing second and third. The ones he beat? Gallagher was seventh and Chumbley eighth. Rankings Movement: Not Ranked to #12 Garrett Thompson (Ohio) In week one you should’ve taken notice of Garrett Thompson after he defeated 2022 All-American Peyton Hall (West Virginia) to win the Southeast Open. Last season, Thompson went 14-9 as a redshirt freshman and saw action in four duals for the Bobcats. His exploits early this season were enough to warrant #19 ranking and the eighth seed at the 165 lb weight class. Thompson showed he was someone to take notice of by pinning Connor Brady (Virginia Tech) in order to move into the quarterfinals against top-seeded David Carr (Iowa State). Though Thompson fell, he had two more wins over top-20 competition edging Maxx Mayfield (Northwestern) and majoring Matthew Olguin (Oregon State). He’d finish in fifth after pinning Stanford freshman Hunter Garvin. Ohio is slated to hit the Midlands before getting into the meat of their conference schedule, so there should be more opportunities for Thompson to hit some of the key players at this weight. Rankings Movement: #19 to #11 Danny Wask (Navy) We’ve been high on Danny Wask’s potential after watching him turn in a 16-5 season while competing for the Naval Academy Prep School. In his first two duals of the season, Wask suffered losses to quality opponents like Edmond Ruth (Illinois) and Luca Augustine (Pittsburgh). In a preview, I wondered aloud whether he’d be able to turn those close losses into wins or just wrestle good competition closely. We’ve gotten the answer loud and clear. After winning the Navy Classic, Wask grabbed fourth place at the CKLV. A match after former high school teammate Lorenzo Norman (Stanford) shocked the wrestling world by upsetting 2021 NCAA champion Shane Griffith, Wask neutralized Norman to earn a berth in the semifinals. An escape with :03 left on the clock ended up giving Travis Wittlake (Oregon State) a win over Wask and a berth in the finals. In his first consolation bout, Wask defeated his second-ranked opponent of the tournament, Austin Murphy (Campbell), to be able to wrestle for third place. Rankings Movement: #30 to #20 Sam Wolf (Air Force) Last year, Sam Wolf finished sixth at 174 lbs in the Big 12 to earn his first trip to the NCAA Championships. Even as the #16 seed, Wolf left Tulsa without a win after giving up bonus points in both of his matches. Fast forward to this year, and up a weight class, Wolf entered Vegas a modest 4-0 - but without any significant wins. That certainly changed. In his first two matches, Wolf edged returning All-Americans Chris Foca (Cornell) and Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) to make the semifinals. After a pair of losses, he’d finish the tournament in fifth by defeating Jaden Bullock (Michigan), who had an impressive showing himself. Rankings Movement: #27 to #8 Joey Novak (Wyoming) A young Wyoming team may get back into the thick of things in the Big 12 if they have freshmen like Joey Novak continue to develop. Before CKLV, Novak’s collegiate career consisted of three duals; one of which was a 2-0 loss to a ranked opponent, Levi Hopkins (Campbell). That’s reason for optimism, but at the same time, most would not have picked the true freshman to get on the podium at 197 lbs. That’s exactly what happened as Novak defeated three ranked opponents and claimed eighth place. After pinning Luke Geog (Ohio State), and defeating Jack Wehmeyer (Columbia), Novak stunned Evan Bockman (Utah Valley) in sudden victory of a bloodround match to secure a place amongst the top-eight. It wasn’t too long ago that Cowboy head coach Mark Branch and crew signed and developed a true freshman 197 lber named Stephen Buchanan. Could something like that happen again? Rankings Movement: Not Ranked to #21

Our quartet of correspondents are back to talk all things CKLV. Ryan Holmes (Big Ten), Kevin Claunch (Big Ten), Austin Sommer (EIWA), and Robbie Wendell (ACC) recap all of the action that went down in Vegas, the upsets, the great performances, and more. The four recap the event and the stars from their respective conferences. For the full interview: Click Here

This week saw most of the attention go to CKLV, while some great duals occurred as well. Iowa State ended up winning the tournament with seven on the podium, while Oklahoma State and South Dakota State made the top ten as well. Northern Iowa and Wyoming both had some individual under-the-radar performances. The Big 12 had the most conference champs with four, all being from different schools (OKST, SDSU, UNI, ISU). On the duals side, we saw Oklahoma on the road at Missouri and West Virginia. North Dakota State had a tough dual against Virginia and continues to look like a young developing team. The conference flexed its top-end strength and depth this weekend, and next week has a mix of teams taking the week off plus some more great conference duals. Air Force: CKLV Brackets | Bob Smith Open Brackets Air Force was without Wyatt Hendrickson this weekend, but still had a wrestler break out at CKLV. Sam Wolf came in as the 15 seed but finished in 5th place, going 3-2. His only losses were to Dustin Plott (OKST) and Will Feldkamp (ISU) who finished 3rd and 2nd respectively. He had big wins over Chris Foca (CORN) and Gavin Hoffman (OHST). Giano Petrucelli didn’t make the podium at 165, but got an upset win himself over Antrell Taylor (NEB). Tucker Owens suffered two upset losses, to Brendan McCrone (OHST) and Troy Hohman (NCST). Not the tournament that was expected, but Wolf breaking out shows that he could be another All-American contender for the Falcons. The team also had some backups compete at the Bob Smith Open where Joe Fernau came back with a title at 149lbs. Next Up: The Falcons have their first conference dual at home, taking on West Virginia. California Baptist: No Competition Next Up: The team has a week off before taking on NIU and Kent State. Iowa State: CKLV Brackets If you were looking for a way for the Cyclones to win this tournament it likely would have involved a David Carr title and wrestlers like Kysen Terukina and Cody Chittum making the podium. Well the team flexed their depth and overall lineup strength by winning with only one champ in Yonger Bastida. Terukina, Chittum, and Broderson all missed the podium. Chittum had tough matches against Bryce Andonian and Daniel Cardenas while going 2-2. Evan Frost and Will Feldkamp both made the finals, and Anthony Echemendia (7th), Casey Swiderski (5th), and MJ Gaitan (8th) also made the podium. Feldkamp bounced back after his loss to Gabe Arnold with a massive first-period pin over Trey Munoz (ORST) to make the finals. David Carr took a shocking loss to Julian Ramirez (CORN), losing a scramble late in the third period to give up the only takedown. He bounced back with a decision over Cam Amine (MICH) to place 3rd. Yonger Bastida introduced himself as a title contender, scoring a major over Nick Feldman (OHST), a tech over Grady Griess (NAVY), and a wildly entertaining decision over Lucas Davison (MICH). Winning CKLV the way they did shows that this team isn’t just looking to place top ten in March, but also compete for a team trophy. Next Up: The team takes a week off before competing in the Collegiate Duals on December 18th. Missouri: Dual Results | Cougar Clash Brackets The Tigers stayed at home and got their first conference win against Oklahoma 30-12. They won seven matches, giving up a forfeit at 197lbs. Logan Gioffre got his first ranked win of the season, taking out Willie McDougald in overtime. Outside of 149 and 285, every wrestler scored bonus points. Keegan O’Toole got a ranked pin, Clayton Whiting dominated another ranked opponent in his second start, and Peyton Mocco picked apart Tate Picklo in a tech fall. Rocky Elam didn’t wrestle in the dual but made his debut the next morning at the Cougar Clash. He won a title with a 4-2 decision over Garrett Joles (MINN). Joining him with titles were Zach Elam, Josh Edmond, and Nate Pulliam split the title with Joel Mylin at 149lbs. Current starter Zeke Seltzer had a tough weekend, dropping a close match in the dual then going 0-2 at the Clash. Colton Hawks got another big win at 184, taking out Isaiah Salazar (MINN) before losing to undefeated freshman Max McEnnely (MINN) in the finals. The Tigers have some depth at 184lbs, in a lineup battle that is likely to continue this year. Next Up: The Tigers host another Big 12 member at home, taking on Wyoming on Dec. 8th. North Dakota State: Dual Results NDSU stayed at home this week and suffered a close out-of-conference loss to Virginia 21-18. Gavin Drexler and Max Petersen had close matches with the Gioffre twins, but came up just short. Petersen continues to start after Kellyn March suffered an injury earlier this year. The Bison scored two pins to grab some momentum, one at 165 and 184. Gaven Sax had a razor-close loss to top-ten Justin McCoy. Next Up: NDSU hits the road for a dual against Minnesota on December 10th, their first against the Golden Gophers since 2011. Northern Colorado: Cougar Clash Brackets The Bears sent a handful of wrestlers to the Cougar Clash and came away with three titles. Dom Serrano won at 133, winning the title over a tough freshman in Ty Wells (MINN). Vinny Zerban won at 157, taking out Missouri’s J Conway in the semis and getting an injury default over Cam Steed in the finals. Baylor Fernandes was the last wrestler to win, going 4-0 at 165lbs and outplacing typical starter Ayden Rix-McElhinney who finished 4th. Next Up: The team hosts West Virginia at home on December 10th for their first conference dual. Northern Iowa: CKLV Brackets | Jim Koch Open Brackets The Panthers came in projected to finish 9th on preseeds and finished just outside of the top ten at 12th, but were missing Lance Runyon and Tyrell Gordon. Parker Keckeisen won his first CKLV title, taking out conference opponent Will Feldkamp (ISU) with a major decision in the finals. Julian Farber came in unseeded at 133, and got ranked wins over Gabe Whisenhunt (ORST) and Ethan Oakley (APP) to make the podium and finish 7th. Cael Happel was the last Panther to make the podium, finishing 4th with ranked wins over Brock Hardy (NEB), Anthony Echemendia (ISU), and Sergio Lemley (MICH). Ryder Downey didn’t make the podium at 157, but had back-to-back upset wins over Trevor Chumbley (NW) and Paddy Gallagher (OHST). He ended up dropping regular decisions to Ed Scott and Jacori Teemer. Other Panther wrestlers competed at the Jim Koch Open and came away with five titles. RJ Weston, Connor Thorpe, Jack Thomsen, Izzy Moreno, and CJ Walrath all won with a number of bonus point victories. Next Up: The Panthers host Columbia for their first dual of the year on December 10th. Oklahoma State: CKLV Brackets | Bob Smith Open Brackets Coming in I thought OK State had a solid chance to surprise people and win the tournament. Unfortunately, a combination of injuries and some underperformance outweighed excellent results at other weights. Daton Fix was a late scratch, so Reece Witcraft entered and got a big win over Julian Chlebove (ASU) before dropping his next two. Jordan Williams, Brayden Thompson, and Daniel Manibog were bounced surprisingly early after some upsets and tough draws. I liked Troy Spratley’s path, but he dropped two wild matches to Tanner Jordan and Caleb Smith. Injuries hit Luke Surber and Konner Doucet, who ended up having to forfeit out of the tournament. There were impressive performances from Dustin Plott and Izzak Olejnik. Plott and Lenny Pinto (NEB) had two must-watch matches that saw Plott avenge a quarterfinal loss to place 3rd. Olejnik upset Cam Amine (MICH) and won a title over Julian Ramirez (CORN) with some clutch third-period takedowns. With David Carr (ISU) dropping a match, Olejnik has put himself right in Big 12 and national title discussion. Next Up: OK State has two big duals, first at home against Lehigh on December 8th, followed by the first Bedlam of the year on December 10th. Oklahoma: Dual Results (Mizzou) | Dual Results (WVU) The Sooners had two road duals, coming home with a 1-1 record. At Mizzou, they got ranked wins at 133 and 141, but struggled to slow down the Tigers to drop the dual 30-12. They then went to Morgantown to take on West Virginia in a dual that came down to the last match. Conrad Hendriksen got his first ranked win at 125 over Jett Strickenberger, and looks like a quality starter for the Sooners. Mosha Schwartz appeared to suffer a significant shoulder injury on a mat return gone wrong and was seen in a sling after the match. Willie McDougald got an upset win over Ty Watters after an upset loss against Mizzou. John Wiley got back in the win column with a solid win over Caleb Dowling. Carlson went 0-2 on the weekend, getting pinned by both Hall and O’Toole. Nijenhuis started at 174, he didn’t win but Picklo’s struggle at Missouri could indicate a lineup battle. Buchanan scored a tech fall to bring the decision to the last match, where Heindselman and Wolfgram squared off for the sixth time. The two had alternated wins and losses over the years and continued here as Heindselman got the 9-7 win with a late neutral danger takedown to win the dual 21-19. The Sooners have struggled with regular-season consistency, and are still trying to find it with lineup changes at multiple weights. Next Up: It’s Bedlam week, as the Sooners prepare to take on OK State in Norman on December 10th. South Dakota State: CKLV Brackets South Dakota State came in and had a solid team performance to finish 10th, without Tanner Cook or Bennett Berge. Last year, Cook was a finalist here and provided valuable points. Cade DeVos won a title as the three seed, including wins over Carson Kharchla (OHST) and Travis Wittlake (ORST). Tanner Sloan had a solid run to finish 3rd, dropping a match to Jaxon Smith (MARY) but dominating Silas Allred (NEB) with a 12-1 major and a one-sided 7-2 decision over Jacob Cardenas (CORN). Derrick Cardinal had a breakout performance, finishing 6th after coming in unseeded. He ran to the semis with a decision over Brendan Ferretti (Navy) and majored Dom Zaccone (CAMP) before dropping matches to Kai Orine (NCST) and Nic Bouzakis (OHST). After going 11-15 last season, Cardinal looks like he could be a big point scorer for the Jackrabbits. Another wrestler who impressed was Tanner Jordan, who beat Troy Spratley (OKST) and Brendan McCrone (OHST) to finish 8th. Cael Swensen missed the podium at 157, dropping matches to Peyton Robb (NEB) and Bryce Andonian (VT). Next Up: SDSU gets a week off before another Big 12 vs Big 10 dual against Nebraska on December 16th. Utah Valley: CKLV Brackets Utah Valley didn’t get anyone on the podium, but had some positive individual match results. Evan Bockman got an upset win over Nick Stemmet (STAN), but dropped his bloodround match to Joey Novak (WYO). Haiden Drury was seeded 8th, but had a tough tournament going 0-2. Jacob Armstrong scored a solid pin over Zayne Lehman (Ohio) at 184lbs, and Mark Takara had a narrow one-point loss to eventual finalist Travis Wittlake (ORST). Next Up: The Wolverines get a week off before the Reno TOC on December 17th. West Virginia: Dual Results The Mountaineers took on Oklahoma at home and came razor close to pulling off the upset. A pin at 165 and an injury default at 141 gave them a great opportunity, but bonus point losses at 133 and 197 plus upset losses at 125 and 149 were too much to overcome. I’m still high on WVU’s potential, and young wrestlers like Ty Watters, Brody Conley, and Caleb Dowling to continue to develop and be impactful throughout the season. Next Up: West Virginia heads to Colorado to take on Air Force in another conference dual on December 8th. Wyoming: CKLV Brackets Wyoming quietly had a very solid tournament, placing top 20 with three on the podium. Jore Volk led the way, wrestling to his 5th seed spot. He took out Brendan McCrone (OHST) and Caleb Smith (NEB), but ran into the red-hot Nico Provo (STAN) and dropped a one-takedown match to Brandon Kaylor (ORST) on the backside. Gabe Willochell at 149 made the podium, highlighted by a win over 2023 qualifier Isaiah Delgado (UVU). True freshman Joey Novak had a breakout at 197, winning four straight matches after dropping his first one. It included wins over Luke Geog (OHST), Evan Bockman (UVU), and Jack Wehmeyer (COL). The young Cowboy squad is clearly developing and looking to be even more dangerous throughout the year. Next Up: Wyoming heads to Columbia, MO for another conference dual against Missouri. November Takeaways We’re somehow already through the first month of the season, and November saw plenty of action in the Big 12. Pre-CKLV the conference had five teams in the top 15, and eight in the top 30. While not every team has hit a ton of action in the first month, there are already some takeaways and things to watch for. Iowa State - Lost the Cy-Hawk dual, but could still be a trophy team The Cyclones frustratingly dropped the dual against Iowa with close calls in multiple matches. However, they looked good in a number of other matches. #8 Evan Frost has been a breakout wrestler for them as a redshirt freshman, the coaches were able to get both Echemendia and Swiderski into the lineup, and David Carr looked dominant. The team is sitting outside of the top 10 currently, but I expect them to make a climb back up throughout the season. North Dakota State - Rebuilding or Reloading? Last year the Bison had one of their best years in nearly a decade, with two All-Americans and a top 25 finish. The offseason saw Roger Kish head to Norman, OK and Obe Blanc was elevated to the head coaching position. They brought in a solid recruiting class, and have built around returning starters Kellyn March and Gaven Sax. The team may not be ready to jump back into the rankings yet, but Gavin Drexler (141), Landon Johnson (157), Adam Cherne (184), and Maxwell Petersen (149) have all notched ranked wins this year. All of those wrestlers are either redshirt freshmen or true freshmen. Watch this team continue to develop throughout the season and if they can have an impact at Big 12’s. West Virginia - Wildcard or Contender? When I did my Big 12 Breakdown, I thought the Mountaineers had a high upside if things worked out, but it would take a team effort. In November, the team was 4-0 with no team scoring double digits against them. It’s not the strongest competition and it hasn’t been flawless, but the team looks to be better than last year. New starters Jett Strickenberger, Ty Watters (149), Brody Conley (174), and Dennis Robin (184) have added consistency and depth to the roster. The team is still looking for a big point scorer, as 2022 All-American Peyton Hall has taken some surprising losses to fall to #13 at 165. If he can get back to winning consistently against top competition, and a handful of others can start to break into the top 12, the team could be looking at their first top-25 NCAA finish since 2015. Rest of the Big 12 Not every team has hit the ground running early, but that is changing with December. The CKLV has had significant impacts on rankings and how some of these teams are viewed. Many schools are starting conference duals, and should start to establish tiers within the Big 12. Missouri is still the favorite early, but haven’t seen enough competition to have truly separated. Iowa State and OK State appear right on their heels as teams battle for a team trophy in March. Schools like SDSU, OU, and UNI could give those top teams a tough fight in duals and shouldn’t be counted out either. Don’t count individual wrestlers from some of the smaller affiliate members, as they continue to develop against tough competition. Air Force and Wyoming are two schools that have stood out and are looking to build throughout the season with some of their unranked wrestlers. December starts fast with CKLV, and the landscape could look very different by New Year’s.

It was a busy week on the road for the ACC; Virginia and Pitt both had duals while NC State, North Carolina, and Virginia Tech traveled to Las Vegas for the CKLV. Duke The Blue Devils were off this week. They will return to action next weekend at Davidson. North Carolina The Tar Heels brought back one podium finish from Vegas, with #3 Lachlan McNeil finishing in third. Across the lineup, they had positive things to take away from the performance. #25 Spencer Moore, Jayden Scott, #10 Gavin Kane, and #18 Max Shaw all went 2-2 on the weekend. Kane and Shaw both made the quarterfinal round before falling in back-to-back matches to finish their tournament. McNeil wrestled well throughout the weekend. He opened with wins by major decision and tech fall before beating #19 Anthony Echemendia in the quarterfinals 9-6. He faced conference rival #7 Ryan Jack in the semifinals. This was the fourth meeting between the two, all of which had been decided by two points or less. Round four proved to be no different. They traded escapes in the second and third periods and both were in on shots that they were unable to finish throughout the match. It was a takedown with :30 seconds left in the match that was the difference in the 4-3 win by Jack. McNeil rebounded well from the loss beating #24 Taegan Jamison and #9 Cael Happel to finish in 3rd. The Tar Heels are off this week and will host Morgan State and travel to Appalachian State next weekend. NC State The Wolfpack had an outstanding showing in Vegas, bringing home titles from #4 Kai Orine and #5 Trent Hidlay and adding four other placers, including a runner-up finish from #7 Ryan Jack. I had some questions about Orine coming in based on how he looked in his only other two bouts, but he erased all those concerns with his performance this tournament. He looked fantastic from the opening whistle and was consistently looking to score more points. Orine went major, tech fall, then two decision wins over ranked opponents in the quarters (Gabe Wisenhunt) and semis (Derrick Cardinal) before putting on a clinic in the finals, winning by major decision over Evan Frost. Ryan Jack had a stellar tournament as well, making a run to the finals. He had ranked wins in the quarterfinals (#9 Cael Happel) and a semi-final win over familiar conference foe #3 Lachlan McNeil. He faced a very dangerous #5 Jesse Mendez in the finals, dropping by decision 5-2; this was the first non-bonus win of the year for Mendez. I was very impressed by Jack’s performance, especially his offensive output. Trent Hidlay won his second-straight CKLV title, this year at 197, and made a national statement at the weight class. He had two tech falls; including over ranked #20 Evan Bockman in the quarters and a major decision over #6 Jacob Cardenas in the semifinals. He won a low-scoring, but controlled, decision over #9 Jaxon Smith in the finals. I’ve been saying it all year, but he showed it on the big stage this weekend--Trent Hidlay is a monster at 197. The Wolfpack had three other placers in Vegas. #6 Jackson Arrington placed 8th, he looked solid all weekend but medically defaulted (precautionary) after securing his podium finish. #20 Dylan Fishback navigated a very difficult 184 bracket, including a win over All-American #3 Trey Munoz to place 7th as a freshman. #8 Ed Scott shook off an early round loss to #19 Peyton Kellar and reeled off six straight wins to place 3rd. Scott had ranked wins over #20 Tommy Askey, #10 Trevor Chumbley, #6 Will Lewan, and his second-straight win over #5 Bryce Andonian on the back side of the bracket. The Wolfpack will be off this weekend and back in action at the Collegiate Duals on December 19th when they will face Lock Haven, UNI, and Ohio State. Pittsburgh The Panthers opened their home dual slate on Sunday, beating Illinois 22-9. They controlled the dual after dropping the opening match and never looked back. The dual opened at 157 with a decision loss by Jared Keslar. #9 Holden Heller followed at 165, mounting a strong comeback to win by decision. #20 Luca Augustine wrestled well but dropped a decision to #4 Edmond Ruth. The Panthers went on a nice run after the 174 match. #15 Reece Heller won by major, followed by a decision win from #19 Mac Stout. The biggest win of the dual was an upset by #11 Dayton Pitzer in a decisive 10-3 decision over #8 Luke Luffman. Colton Camacho continued the streak with a 5-0 shutout over a scrappy Justin Cardani. #17 Vinnie Santaniello picked up a ranked win over #24 Tony Madrigal. The final two matches were wild. #27 Danny Pucino knocked off #13 Cole Matthews in sudden victory, followed by a furious comeback win by #23 Finn Solomon to close out the dual. The Panthers will have another big dual this weekend when they travel to Columbus to face Ohio State on Sunday. Virginia The Hoos faced the Bison on Saturday in North Dakota in a back-and-forth dual that came down to the heavyweight bout; they came out on top 21-18 with a clutch win by Ryan Catka in the final bout. Kyle Montaperto dropped the opening bout by decision before UVA reeled off four straight wins. #30 Marlon Yarbrough by pin, #22 Jack Gioffre by decision, #27 Michael Gioffre by decision in sudden victory with a gritty takedown, and capped by a pin from Dylan Cedeno at 157. They opened a big lead at the halfway point but the Bison came storming back sandwiching pins at 165 and 184 around a #8 Justin McCoy decision win at 174. Colden Dorfman dropped the 197 bout by decision to knot the score at 18 going into the final match. Ryan Catka slammed the door with a controlling decision win to move his season record to 3-0 and give the Hoos the dual victory. Virginia will not be back in action until late December when they travel to the Midlands. Virginia Tech The Hokies were the final ACC team in Vegas, bringing a smaller lineup of seven wrestlers, they came home with four podium finishers. They were led by a runner-up finish from Caleb Henson, Bryce Andonian finished in 4th, true freshman Sonny Sasso 6th and Sam Fisher 8th. Henson had a phenomenal tournament. He opened with a tech fall and a major decision, then won a 10-6 decision over #7 Chance Lamer in the quarterfinals. He controlled the match in the semifinals to take a 5-0 victory over #3 Kyle Parco before facing #1 Ridge Lovett in the finals. The finals very much had the feel of a medal match at the NCAA tournament. Both guys were in on shots that they didn’t finish and both pushed the pace. Lovett earned a takedown in the first and Henson matched it at the end of the second. Down one in the third Henson fired off multiple shots and got into a great position at the end of the match, putting Lovett in a 2-count in danger but not able to get the full 3 seconds to earn the takedown at the buzzer. I would’ve loved to see the referee in a better position here to start the count when Lovett was first put into danger, but alas, it was a 2-count. I was super impressed by Henson this weekend, and he continues to show that he can go with anyone in the country. Bryce Andonian finished in fourth in a wild weight. He dropped in the round of 16 to freshman/former World Champion Myer Shapiro, before making a run on the backside. Andonian had a pin over #18 Cody Chittum, decision over #13 Cael Swenson, decision over #16 Paddy Gallagher, and a major decision over #9 Daniel Cardenas before dropping his final bout to familiar opponent #8 Ed Scott in the 3rd place match. Bryce didn’t have his best match against a very good Shapiro, but bounced back well and was able to get back in the tournament mentally, which shows continued growth by him. Sam Fisher had a solid run to finish on the podium for the first time at CKLV. He lost early to #8 Gavin Hoffman but made a run on the backside, defeating #10 Gavin Kane to ensure placement. He dropped his final two matches to #5 Dustin Plott and #20 Dylan Fishback. Sonny Sasso also had a great tournament--especially when you consider he is a true freshman and not currently the starter. He lost his opening match to #2 Tanner Sloan before making a wild run in the consi bracket. He beat #28 Bobby Striggow by decision, #21 Evan Bates, and #25 Levi Hopkins by major decision and pinned #13 Nick Stemmet before dropping his final two bouts to #6 Jacob Cardenas and #8 Silas Allred. An incredibly impressive tournament from the true freshman. The Hokies will be back in action next weekend when they host Stanford.

This morning, multiple beat reporters who cover Penn State wrestling announced on Twitter that 2023 NCAA All-American Shayne Van Ness would miss the remainder of the season with an undisclosed injury. InterMat has spoken with sources close to the program to confirm that this news is accurate. Van Ness is currently ranked second in the nation at 149 lbs and holds a 3-0 record. That record does not include his 5-1 All-Star Classic victory over three-time All-American Kyle Parco of Arizona State. In 2022-23, Van Ness racked up a 24-7 record and finished third at the national tournament despite starting as the 12th seed. In Penn State’s Sunday win over Lehigh, true freshman Tyler Kasak got the call at 149 lbs for Cael Sanderson’s team. Kasak notched a 7-5 victory over Lehigh’s Drew Munch. At this time, it’s unclear who will take over for Van Ness during the remainder of the 2023-24 season. Kasak previously competed at 141 lbs and was projected to redshirt. Connor Pierce and Imran Heard are the only others on the PSU roster at 149 lbs.

NCAA DI rankings have been updated following the meatgrinder of a tournament in Las Vegas. As you would expect, there were significant changes at pretty much every weight. With a month's worth of action under our belts, this season is starting to take form and we'll rely less and less on 2022-23 results. Some notable items to point out: There's a new number one at 133 lbs. Ryan Crookham of Lehigh. While most of our attention was focused on Vegas, Crookham's Lehigh team traveled to top-ranked Penn State. The dual result was lopsided in the Nittany Lions favor; however, Crookham did notch another significant win. He defeated 2023 NCAA 5th place finisher and Big Ten runner-up Aaron Nagao, who had held the number three spot in the rankings, at the time. With his win, he had beaten the wrestlers who were ranked #2 and #3, plus teammate Connor McGonagle, who was ranked sixth, at the time. Typically, I don't like moving someone off the number one spot without a loss, but this weight class hasn't been typical since Crookham defeated Vito Arujau the second week of the season. With little results from Arujau or Fix to go by this year, in the second to last match of the 2022-23 campaign, Arujau majored Fix, 11-3. At this point, I'm more comfortable with Crookham's results, going Crookham (#1), Arujau (#2), Fix (#3). The good thing is that these wrestlers can sort it all out on the mat. Lehigh travels to Oklahoma State on Friday. Fix had to pull out of the CKLV late due to a minor injury, so hopefully, he'll be able to compete. In addition to 133, other significant movement includes a new number two at 165 lbs after Izzak Olejnik's great tournament. Also, Jesse Mendez (141), Caleb Henson (149), Julian Ramirez (165), Edmond Ruth (174), Dustin Plott (184), Rocky Elam (197), and Yonger Bastida (285) are all new three's at their respective weights.

4 Takeaways in Women’s College Wrestling This Week 1. McKendree goes undefeated at Jewell Duals The #5 Bearcats headed to the Jewell Duals and walked away with 5 wins. McKendree defeated Simpson 37-17, William Jewell 47-12, Quincy 41-13, Missouri Baptist 31-21 and #15 Lindenwood 44-14. Most notable, however, was Cam Guerin’s return to the lineup. The former national champ pinned #10 Cayden Condit in the team’s dual against Lindenwood, followed by another pin against her Missouri Baptist opponent. McKendree has moved around a lot in the rankings recently, but the addition of a powerhouse like Guerin and the eventual return of Emma Bruntil back into the lineup could propel them back to the top of the rankings. 2. #3 Grand View wins back-and-forth dual with #16 Central Methodist In an exciting NAIA-ranked dual, Grand View traveled to Missouri to take on the Eagles. After a forfeit at 101 lbs, the teams exchanged quick pins. At 109 lbs, freshman Judy Sandoval of GV got a pin against Abigail Jastal. CMU responded quickly though with a pin from #19 Victoria Nunez over Julia Donnelly at 116 lbs. At 123 lbs #8 Catie Campbell got a strong decision over #13 Allison Hynes, 5-0 followed by another GV win at 130 lbs when Maya Davis got the fall over Nonnie Justice. Central Methodist answered the call at 136 lbs and 143 lbs with Emily Neumann and Skye Realin getting a decision and tech fall respectively. However, the Vikings bounced right back in their next two matches with Leilani Rodriquez getting a 10-8 decision at 155 and #1 Abby McIntyre getting a 14-second pin at 170 lbs. Even with CMU getting a pin from Shianne Whited at 191 lbs, the early forfeit and consistent wins, gave them the edge to secure the 27-18 dual win. 3. University of Providence Argos claim 6 titles at Battle of the Rockies tournament At the Battle of the Rockies tournament, seven teams sent athletes to compete including wrestlers from #6 University of Providence and #2 Menlo. The Argos ended the day with #1 Erin Hikiji claiming the title at 101 lbs with teammate #6 Isabelle Asuncion coming in second. At 109 lbs, #7 Paige Morales, a freshman, claimed the 1st place spot as well. Unranked freshman for the Argos, Ani Arias took first at 116 lbs, while teammate #14 Alicia Frank won out at 123 lbs. The #2 ranked wrestler at 136 lbs, Waipuilani Estrella-Beauchamp had one of the most impressive showings of the tournament, pinning her opponent in all three of her matches and wrestling for a total time of under 2 minutes across all three matches. Rounding out the champs for the Argos was #7 ranked senior Lexi Tupuola at 191 lbs. While there was a lot of great action during the weekend, including the Battle of the Rockies dual tournament the following day, one of the biggest takeaways was #7 Paige Morales’ performance. During both the open and the dual the following day, Morales who is ranked at 109 lbs, teched #2 Kalya Mckinley-Johnson of Menlo at 101lbs. Even though McKinley-Johnson was wrestling up a weight, it does show Morales’ ability to wrestle higher-ranked opponents dominantly. Next week, the team heads to the North Central open where some of the highest ranked 109 lbers from NAIA and NCAA will compete. Be sure to keep an eye on Morales and Estrella-Beauchamp to clean up against even higher-ranked competitors. 4. Life wins tough ranked matchups at Patriot Duals to remain undefeated The Running Eagles won 5 out of 5 duals at the Patriot Duals tournament including ranked wins over #10 Indiana Tech and #9 Campbellsville. In the dual against Indiana Tech, Life kept a healthy lead and got impressive ranked wins at 136 lbs with #10 Zaynah McBryde getting the tech fall over #17 Carley Anderson and #5 Madeline Welch with a 9-2 decision at 191 lbs against Grace Doering who is ranked at #18 at 170 lbs. Most notable for me, however, was freshman Margaret Graham at 170 lbs taking out #12 Catherine McNulty of Indiana Tech by tech fall. Graham’s talents would show up again in the dual against Campbellsville when she beat #15 Sierra Chavez by tech fall as well. This dual started a lot closer with Campbellsville getting early upset wins from Icart Galumette getting a tech over #4 Ariana Martinez and Josie Davis pinning #9 Anna Krejsa. Life pulled an upset of their own at 130 lbs when senior Olivia Mottley got the 10-3 decision over #19 Cameron Ortiz. A decision from Zaynah McBryde for Life was followed by a pin from Campbellsville’s 143 lber #2 Emma Walker. However, with a tech from #2 Latifah McBryde, the aforementioned upset win from Graham, and a pin from #5 Madeline Welch at 191 lbs, the Running Eagles put it away winning 27-17. Life, like many other teams, now have the Olympic Trials Qualifier as their next event. I am curious to see if some of these wrestlers can continue to get upsets against ranked talent. Results this week in major NCAA, NCWA, and NAIA competitions Grand View 27 vs Central Methodist 18 Patriot Duals VIEW RESULTS Battle of the Rockies Tournament VIEW BRACKETS Battle of the Rockies Duals VIEW RESULTS Grays Harbor Open VIEW BRACKETS Doane Open VIEW RESULTS Vanguard Duals VIEW RESULTS Upcoming Events December 6: #3 Grand View vs #19 Baker December 8: #7 Texas Wesleyan vs #12 Oklahoma City December 9: #4 Southern Oregon vs Linfield December 9: #16 Central Methodist vs #8 Missouri Baptist December 10: North Central College Invite

Gilroy

Gilroy

Blair Academy

Staunton River

Mount Pleasant

Oregon State The Beavers led the pack with a fifth-place finish with 98.5 points. Oregon State’s Brandon Kaylor cruised to the quarterfinals before losing 2-1 to Brett Ungar. Kaylor bounced back and finished fourth, defeating Wyoming’s Jore Volk before losing to Nebraska’s Caleb Smith. Cleveland Belton was one match away from placing at 141 pounds. He lost to Cornell’s Vince Cornella and Iowa State’s Anthony Echemendia. Nash Singleton stunned the nation as an unranked wrestler who finished sixth at 149 pounds. Singleton lost his first match to Iowa State’s Casey Swiderski 13-4. However, he bounced back with wins over James Latona, Quinn Kinner, and Isaiah Delgado. Matthew Olguin finished seventh at 165 pounds with wins over Stoney Buell, Brevin Cassella, Brett McIntosh, and Isaac Wilcox. Travis Wittlake finished second at 174 pounds. Wittlake battled his first three matches, before falling 9-8 in the finals to South Dakota State’s Cade DeVos. No. 2 seed Trey Munoz was stunned with a 2-2 finish. His losses came to North Carolina State’s Dylan Fishback 9-6 and pinned by Iowa State’s Will Feldkamp. Lastly, Boone McDermott finished fourth at heavyweight. He defeated Seth Nevills, Lewis Fernandes, Owen Trephan, and two more, but lost to Campbell’s Taye Ghadiali. Stanford The Cardinal finished seventh with 85.5 points. No. 9 seed Nico Provo has started a debate for the best 125-pound wrestler in the country. Provo won the tournament over Matt Ramos, Kysen Terukina, Ungar, Volk, and Trever Anderson. Unranked true freshman Tyler Knox also turned heads with a fourth-place finish at 133 pounds. Knox upset Nic Bouzakis 11-3, Richie Koehler 8-4, and Reece Witcraft 2-1. He lost 2-1 to Evan Frost and 16-6 to Dominic Zaccone. Daniel Cardenas reached the semifinals at 157 pounds but fell to fifth place. After a dominant first round, Cardenas snuck past Cody Chittum 9-8 and Meyer Shaprio 8-5. However, he lost to Jacori Teemer and Bryce Andonian. Hunter Garvin lost in the round of 16. Yet, he responded with a sixth-place finish over Scott Jarosz, Isaac Wilcox, Giano Petrucelli and Cassella. True freshman Lorenzo Norman finished seventh at 174 pounds. He defeated former Cardinal national champion Shane Griffith, MJ Gaitan, Brayden Thompson, and Riley Davis. Nick Stemmet finished seventh at 197 pounds over Max Shaw, Calvin Sund, Joey Novak, and three more opponents. Arizona State The Sun Devils finished 14th with 51 points. Julian Chlebove entered the 133-pound division as the third seed but failed to place. He lost to Zaccone and Witcraft However, Kyle Parco finished third at 149 pounds and Jacori Teemer finished second at 157 pounds. Parco earned wins against Dylan D’Emilio, Marcos Polanco, Nash Singleton, Casey Swiderski, and Ethan Fernandes. Teemer defeated Daniel Cardenas 14-6, Brooks Gable 19-3, Chris Earnest 6-3, and Ryder Downey 7-2. Cal Poly The Mustangs finished 24th with 22.5 points. None of the wrestlers placed at the tournament. However, Dominic Mendez ended with a 3-2 record at 125 pounds and Chance Lamer went 2–1 with his loss coming to the eventual runner-up. CSU Bakersfield The Roadrunners finished 31st with 7 points. Richard Castro-Sandoval earned a couple of wins at 125 pounds over Kysen Terukina 7-4 and Evan Tallmadge 12-9. Santino Sanchez also earned two wins over Patrick Adams and Dylan Acevedo-Switzer. Little Rock The Trojans competed in the Cougar Clash Saturday and had three duals instead of making the trip to Las Vegas. Joshua Sarpy went 3-1 at 133 pounds with victories over Mikey Kaminski, Zeke Seltzer and Marcel Lopez. Joseph Bianchi went 3-2 at 165 pounds with victories over Blaine Brenner, Derek Matthews, and Jake Evans. Kodiak Cannedy also went 3-2 at 174 pounds with victories over Ricardo Salin, Dominic Lopez, and Antonio Torres. In dual competition, the Trojans went 2-0 in Drexel’s Dragon Duals. Nasir Bailey, Matt Bianchi, Tyler Brennan, Stephen Little, and Josiah Hill all went 2-0 individually.

The first session of the 2023 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational is in the books! What a whirlwind of a session it was. One of the hallmarks of a tournament like the CKLV is upsets! There were plenty of them. In fact, a trio of top-five ranked wrestlers suffered at least one loss during the session, which ran through the Round of 16. Here are all of the upsets that occurred during session one. Numbers next to the wrestlers names indicate their national ranking by InterMat. 125 lbs Round of 32 - #31 Dominic Mendez (Cal Poly) maj #28 Eddie Ventresca (Virginia Tech) 14-4 Round of 32 - Troy Hohman (NC State) dec #22 Tucker Owens (Air Force) 10-6 Round of 16 - #20 Nico Provo (Stanford) dec #18 Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) 12-5 Consolation - Noah Luna (Appalachian State) maj #28 Eddie Ventresca (Virginia Tech) 14-2 Consolation - #23 Brendan McCrone (Ohio State) dec #22 Tucker Owens (Air Force) 13-0 Consolation - Richard Sandoval (CSU Bakersfield) dec #18 Kysen Terukina (Iowa State) 7-4SV 133 lbs Round of 32 - Tyler Knox (Stanford) maj #15 Nic Bouzakis (Ohio State) 11-3 Round of 32 - Zeth Romney (Cal Poly) dec #23 Haiden Drury (Utah Valley) 11-4 Round of 16 - Derrick Cardinal (South Dakota State) dec #12 Brendan Ferretti (Navy) 7-2 Round of 16 - Reece Witcraft (Oklahoma State) dec #10 Julian Chlebove (Arizona State) 7-3 Round of 16 - Zeth Romney (Cal Poly) dec #27 Jacob Van Dee (Nebraska) 10-4 Round of 16 - Tyler Knox (Stanford) dec #29 Richie Koehler (Rider) 8-4 Consolation - Jameson Garcia (Harvard) dec #23 Haiden Drury (Utah Valley) 7-1 141 lbs Round of 16: #24 Tagen Jamison (Oklahoma State) dec #18 Josh Koderhandt (Navy) 4-2 149 lbs Round of 16: #13 Casey Swiderski (Iowa State) dec #9 Jaden Abas (Stanford) 14-11 Consolation - Derek Raike (Ohio) tech #11 Ethen Miller (Maryland) 16-1 Consolation - Noah Tapia (Hofstra) dec #14 Jordan Williams (Oklahoma State) 12-11 157 lbs Round of 32 - Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) dec #10 Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) 8-2 Round of 16 - #21 Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) maj #5 Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech) 16-4 Round of 16 - #19 Peyten Kellar (Ohio) dec #8 Ed Scott (NC State) 7-4SV Round of 16 - Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) dec #16 Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State) 8-5 165 lbs Round of 16 - #25 Giano Petrucelli (Air Force) dec #10 Antrell Taylor (Nebraska) 12-9 Round of 16 - #21 Brevin Cassella (Binghamton) dec #17 Maxx Mayfield (Northwestern) 1-1RTTB 174 lbs Round of 32 - Cael Valencia (Arizona State) dec #33 Brody Baumann (Purdue) 9-4 Round of 16 - Lorenzo Norman (Stanford) dec #4 Shane Griffith (Michigan) 4-2 Round of 16 - #30 Danny Wask (Navy) dec #23 Alex Faison (NC State) 2-2RTTB Consolation - Michael Wilson (Rider) dec #33 Brody Baumann (Purdue) 8-6 184 lbs Round of 32 - #33 Jacob Armstrong (Utah Valley) fall #31 Zayne Lehman (Ohio) 6:01 Round of 16 - #27 Sam Wolf (Air Force) dec #4 Chris Foca (Cornell) 7-5 Consolation - Aaron Ayzerov (Columbia) maj #4 Chris Foca (Cornell) 9-1 Consolation - James Rowley (Purdue) maj #24 Caleb Hopkins (Campbell) 12-3 Consolation - #31 Zayne Lehman (Ohio) dec #30 Tony Negron (Arizona State) 12-6 Consolation - Anthony D’Alesio (Long Island) dec #13 Troy Fisher (Northwestern) 7-5 Consolation - Jaden Bullock (Michigan) dec #33 Jacob Armstrong (Utah Valley) 6-4 197 lbs Round of 32 - #29 Jack Wehmeyer (Columbia) dec #28 Bobby Striggow (Michigan) 8-2 Round of 32 - Justin Rademacher (Oregon State) dec #27 Carson Floyd (Appalachian State) 8-6 Round of 16 - #18 Max Shaw (North Carolina) dec #14 Luke Geog (Ohio State) 5-4 Round of 16 - #20 Evan Bockman (Utah Valley) dec #13 Nick Stemmet (Stanford) 4-3 Consolation - Joey Novak (Wyoming) fall #14 Luke Geog (Ohio State) 5:58 Consolation - Sonny Sasso (Virginia Tech) maj #21 Evan Bates (Northwestern) 13-5 285 lbs Round of 32 - Nolan Neves (Columbia) dec #19 Seth Nevills (Maryland) 6-3

Much was made about how difficult and deep this tournament was. Without hyperbole, it’s accurate to say it was the best regular-season collegiate tournament since perhaps the 2014 Southern Scuffle. I discussed this with the FloWrestling personnel and we came up with the 2014 tournament as the best comparison. That tournament featured the teams that would end up finishing top-three at the NCAA Tournament that same season. Penn State, Minnesota, and Oklahoma State. That tournament may have had more top-end star power; with three eventual NCAA champions; however, this field was likely deeper. An example of this is the 184 lb weight class that had four All-Americans miss the podium. Iowa State won the tournament and finished with seven medalists (1 champion and 2 runner’s-up). The only two past NCAA champions in this tournament (David Carr - Shane Griffith) both failed to make the finals. David Carr was beaten in the CKLV semifinals by Cornell’s Julian Ramirez. Both of Carr’s regular-season losses have come in the semifinals of this tournament. The previous one came in 2019 to Northwestern’s Ryan Deakin. The finals only had one matchup featuring two wrestles that previously met in college; 157 lbs. Like the previous meeting, Peyton Robb prevailed over Jacori Teemer. The only finals match that featured wrestlers from the same conference was 184 lbs with Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) and Will Feldkamp (Iowa State). The finals had a pair of wrestlers that used to be teammates at Northern Illinois University. Izzak Olejnik at 165 lbs and Feldkamp. Perhaps the most surprising team performance was Stanford. The Cardinal finished with a champion (Nico Provo - 125 lbs) and five other placewinners. Five of their six placewinners were either freshmen or sophomores. Stanford’s talent (and youth) makes their move to the ACC an even more interesting proposition. The ACC seems to get better and better each year. Now throw a young, star-studded Stanford team into the mix and you have a mini-meat grinder. Speaking of conferences, the Big 12 produced the most champions with four. (Olejnik, DeVos, Keckeisen, and Bastida). The Big Ten was next with three (Mendez, Lovett, Robb). The 2023 tournament marked the first time that Michigan went without a champion since 2015 (There was no 2020 tournament). The 125 lb final featured a pair of wrestlers that originally committed to Cornell. Provo defeated current Big Red starter, Brett Ungar. Nebraska’s Peyton Robb was named the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestling. His win at one of the tournament’s most difficult weights was reason enough for the award. It’s more staggering when you consider that he nearly lost his leg in the days following the 2023 NCAA Tournament. The 2023 CKLV Invitational featured three champions who moved up in weight from the 2022-23 campaign. Jesse Mendez (133/141), Trent Hidlay (184/197), and Yonger Bastida (197/285). This year’s finals saw a pair of wrestlers win their second titles (Peyton Robb - 157 and Trent Hidlay - 197). Two other champions had the opportunity to repeat in Brock Hardy (Nebraska) and Julian Ramirez (Cornell). Hardy finished sixth and Ramirez was the runner-up at 165 lbs. Stanford’s Tyler Knox (5th - 133), Virginia Tech’s Sonny Sasso (6th - 197), Stanford’s Lorenzo Norman (7th - 174), and Joey Novak (8th - 197) were the only true freshmen that found their way onto the CKLV podium. Much was made about upsets and deservedly so. However, 141, 149, and 165 all saw the top four seeds make the semifinals. Additionally, 197 and 285 had the top three seeds, plus the fifth seed. The Ironman award goes to Nic Bouzakis at 133 lbs. Bouzakis fell in the opening round to Knox of Stanford and proceeded to win seven straight bouts to take third. During that run, he had three falls, two techs and a major decision before defeating #14 Dom Zaccone (Campbell) for third place. Runner-up in the Ironman category is Ed Scott who lost in the second round then won six straight to take third at 157 lbs. His run through the backside included wins over All-Americans in his final two matches.

Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Final Results Team Scores 1. Iowa State 130.5 2. Nebraska 125.5 3. Ohio State 123.5 4. NC State 115 5. Oregon State 98.5 6. Cornell 93.5 7. Stanford 85.5 8. Michigan 81.5 9. Oklahoma State 78.5 10. South Dakota State 74 Championship Finals 125: Nico Provo (Stanford) dec Brett Ungar (Cornell) 5-1 133: Kai Orine (NC State) maj Evan Frost (Iowa State) 12-4 141: Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) dec Ryan Jack (NC State) 5-2 149: Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) dec Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) 4-3 157: Peyton Robb (Nebraska) dec Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) 6-4 165: Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State) dec Julian Ramirez (Cornell) 4-2 174: Cade Devos (South Dakota State) dec Travis Wittlake (Oregon State) 9-7 184: Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) maj Will Feldkamp (Iowa State) 14-4 197: Trent Hidlay (NC State) dec Jaxon Smith (Maryland) 5-2 285: Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) dec Lucas Davison (Michigan) 5-3 Third Place Matches 125: Caleb Smith (Nebraska) dec Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State) 4-1SV 133: Nic Bouzakis (Ohio State) dec Dom Zaccone (Campbell) 4-2 141: Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) dec Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) 6-3 149: Kyle Parco (Arizona State) maj Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) 11-1 157: Ed Scott (NC State) maj Bryce Andonian (Virginia Tech) 18-7 165: David Carr (Iowa State) dec Cam Amine (Michigan) 3-1 174: Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) dec Danny Wask (Navy) 10-3 184: Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) dec Lenny Pinto (Nebraska) 11-7 197: Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) dec Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) 7-2 285: Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) dec Boone McDermott (Oregon State) 15-6 Fifth Place Matches 125: Jore Volk (Wyoming) MedFFT Michael DeAugustino (Michigan) 133: Tyler Knox (Stanford) MedFFT Derrick Cardinal (South Dakota State) 141: Tagen Jamison (Oklahoma State) maj Brock Hardy (Nebraska) 13-5 149: Casey Swiderski (Iowa State) maj Nash Singleton (Iowa State) 13-4 157: Daniel Cardenas (Stanford) dec Will Lewan (Michigan) 12-10 165: Garrett Thompson (Ohio) fall Hunter Garvin (Stanford) 5:50 174: Sal Perrine (Ohio) dec Austin Murphy (Campbell) 8-5SV 184: Sam Wolf (Air Force) dec Jaden Bullock (Michigan) 10-9 197: Silas Allred (Nebraska) dec Sonny Sasso (Virginia Tech) 8-5 285: Grady Griess (Navy) MedFFT Nick Feldman (Ohio State) Seventh Place Matches 125: Matt Ramos (Purdue) dec Tanner Jordan (South Dakota State) 7-3 133: Julian Farber (Northern Iowa) dec Ethan Oakley (Appalachian State) 10-9 141: Anthony Echemendia (Iowa State) maj Vince Cornella (Cornell) 13-3 149: Gabe Willochell (Wyoming) MedFFT Jackson Arrington (NC State) 157: Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State) dec Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) 9-5 165: Matthew Olguin (Oregon State) maj Brevin Cassella (Binghamton) 13-0 174: Lorenzo Norman (Stanford) dec MJ Gaitan (Iowa State) 11-8 184: Dylan Fishback (NC State) maj Sam Fisher (Virginia Tech) 16-4 197: Nick Stemmet (Stanford) dec Joey Novak (Wyoming) 14-7 285: Cory Day (Binghamton) MedFFT Lewis Fernandes (Cornell)

2023 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Semifinal Results 125 lbs - Nico Provo (Stanford) dec Jore Volk (Wyoming) 8-1 125 lbs - Brett Ungar (Cornell) InjDef Michael DeAugustino (Michigan) 133 lbs - Kai Orine (NC State) dec Derrick Cardinal (South Dakota State) 6-3 133 lbs - Evan Frost (Iowa State) dec Tyler Knox (Stanford) 2-1 141 lbs - Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) maj Brock Hardy (Nebraska) 11-3 141 lbs - Ryan Jack (NC State) dec Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) 4-2 149 lbs - Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) maj Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) 11-0 149 lbs - Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) dec Kyle Parco (Arizona State) 5-0 157 lbs - Peyton Robb (Nebraska) dec Will Lewan (Michigan) 8-2 157 lbs - Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) maj Daniel Cardenas (Stanford) 14-6 165 lbs - Julian Ramirez (Cornell) dec David Carr (Iowa State) 4-3 165 lbs - Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State) dec Cam Amine (Michigan) 6-4 174 lbs - Travis Wittlake (Oregon State) dec Danny Wask (Navy) 9-8 174 lbs - Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) dec Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) 11-8 184 lbs - Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) dec Lenny Pinto (Nebraska) 8-4 184 lbs - Will Feldkamp (Iowa State) maj Sam Wolf (Air Force) 10-0 197 lbs - Jaxon Smith (Maryland) dec Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) 8-2 197 lbs - Trent Hidlay (NC State) maj Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) 10-2 285 lbs - Lucas Davison (Michigan) dec Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) 6-2 285 lbs - Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) tech Grady Griess (Navy) 18-3

Day one at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational is in the books and what a day it was! We had upsets, excellent freshmen announced their presence on the DI scene; some were much anticipated, while others were more of a surprise. Some of the best college wrestlers in the nation showed why they’re great and we had a great day of wrestling. In a few hours, there will be more. The semifinals are set and the intensity will be turned up a few more notches for that round. Looking over the matchups for the semifinals there are some great ones. I’d imagine once March comes and goes, we’ll notice some of these matches recurring in prominent rounds at the NCAA Tournament. While all of the semifinals are interesting in their own right, we’ve picked out ten that we’re anticipating a little bit more than the others. 125 lbs #11 Jore Volk (Wyoming) vs. #20 Nico Provo (Stanford) Coming into the tournament, we identified 125 lbs as a weight class that could steer away from “going chalk” because of the sheer depth of its entrants. On that top half of the bracket that proved to be the case with a semifinal that features the fifth seed (Jore Volk) versus the ninth seed (Nico Provo). Both are sophomores who are coming off a berth at the 2023 NCAA Championships. Provo knocked off the top seed, NCAA runner-up Matt Ramos. Interestingly enough, the pair clashed in the first round of the NCAA tournament and Ramos prevailed 3-2. Provo proved to be a difficult matchup for Ramos, but was able to get the W this time, to the tune of 8-1. Before the Ramos win, Provo also had an impressive one-sided, 12-5 victory over #18 Kysen Terukina (Iowa State). Vok has wrestled close matches all tournament and most recently pulled the slight upset over fourth-seeded Caleb Smith (Nebraska). The two do not have any prior history with each other at the collegiate level. 133 lbs #8 Evan Frost (Iowa State) vs. Tyler Knox (Stanford) Let’s face it, 133 lbs is aching for some new blood and new contenders. Enter Evan Frost and Tyler Knox. Before this tournament, we suspected that Frost fit the bill after his decisive victory over former Big 12 champion Brody Teske (Iowa). Frost has continued to impress with major decisions in both the Round of 16 and the quarterfinals. His quarterfinal win over Zeth Romney (Cal Poly) may be most impressive as Romney was just coming off of a pair of upset wins. Knox is a true freshman that only had two matches of collegiate experience under his belt, prior to Friday. To open his tournament, Knox had a dominant victory over U20 World bronze medalist, Nic Bouzakis of Ohio State. He’d follow up with a pair of wins over past national qualifiers Richie Koehler (Rider) and Reece Witcraft (Oklahoma State). Both of these freshmen have shown that they control matches from the top position so it’ll be interesting to see how the second and third periods play out. 141 lbs #3 Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) vs. #7 Ryan Jack (NC State) 141 lbs was one of the few weights where the top-four seeds advanced to the semifinals. Though there were no significant upsets, that doesn’t mean that this weight is boring. Actually, it’s very intriguing. The top half features a pair of ACC rivals squaring off. Last season, Lachlan McNeil and Ryan Jack clashed twice. Once in a conference dual and the other time at the ACC meet. In both instances, Ryan Jack came out on top. But, at nationals, Lachlan McNeil finished fourth in the nation and Jack left empty-handed after going 1-2. Can Jack shake up the rankings and make it three in-a-row? Maybe the NCAA finish and another offseason in the Tar Heel wrestling room have pushed McNeil past Jack. McNeil had to show some resiliency to get by Anthony Echemendia (Iowa State) in the quarterfinals, while Jack had to regroup and earn a pair of third-period takedowns to stop a Cael Happel rally. #4 Brock Hardy (Nebraska) vs. #5 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) Like the top half of the bracket, this side features a pair of conference opponents butting heads. Unlike the ACC squirmish, Brock Hardy and Jesse Mendez have yet to meet in collegiate action. That’s because Mendez competed at 133 lbs as a true freshman in 2022-23. Both he and Hardy ended up finishing sixth in the nation. Mendez comes into this match after three straight dominating performances. Hardy had two then needed to grind out a 4-0 win over Oklahoma State’s Tagen Jamison. This bout will also be very important in the team race as Ohio State holds a 3.5-point lead over Nebraska heading into day two. As we’re likely to go in regular order for the finals, Hardy would have the opportunity to become the first two-time CKLV champion of 2023. But, we’re getting ahead of ourselves, as he’ll have to put away a very tough Mendez before worrying about individual accolades. 149 lbs #3 Kyle Parco (Arizona State) vs. #4 Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) While much of the attention was given to the 157 lb weight class, 149 lbs had an argument as the best in this tournament. Six of the top seven and 11 of the top 14 wrestlers in the country toed the line Friday. The two versus three match on the bottom half of the bracket features a pair of returning All-Americans, Kyle Parco and Caleb Henson. Though they were both AA in the same NCAA weight, they did not meet last season. Parco would end up finishing fourth, which was directly above Henson. Because of the depth of this weight class, both wrestlers had to dig deep and get by dangerous opponents in the quarterfinals. Parco held off Casey Swiderski (Iowa State) in a 4-2 victory; Henson won 10-6, though the bout was tied after two periods. 157 lbs #4 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) vs. #9 Daniel Cardenas (Stanford) One of the key storylines of this tournament was the arrival of U20 world champion Meyer Shapiro on the big stage. Shapiro didn’t disappoint majoring two-time All-American Bryce Andonian during his much-anticipated Round of 16 match. Well, no one told Daniel Cardenas that this was supposed to be the Shapiro coronation. Cardenas got an early takedown on Shapiro and never looked back in an 8-5 win. Before that, Cardenas was also on the right side of a great battle with Cody Chittum (Iowa State) in the Round of 16. With all the attention on the youth of the 157 lb weight class, Jacori Teemer has just kept chugging along. He got by a dangerous Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) after Downey had beaten Trevor Chumbley (Northwestern) and Paddy Gallagher (Ohio State). This is a match we didn’t get to see last year as Teemer missed the entirety of the season with an injury. Luckily, we may get to see it at least two more times after Saturday. 165 lbs #3 Cam Amine (Michigan) vs. #4 Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State) The 165 lb bracket generally did what it was supposed to do and all four top seeds advanced to the semifinals. The bottom half of the bracket seems more intriguing as we’ll have a battle between Cam Amine and Izzak Olejnik. These two have a history with Amine winning a pair of close matches one of which was in 2021-22 at the NCAA Tournament and the other came in 2019-20 at the Michigan State Open. That may not matter, at least on Olejnik’s behalf. He’s already reversed one past result this season when he defeated two-time All-American Dean Hamiti (Wisconsin) at the All-Star Classic. Could the new training situation at Oklahoma State help him get past Amine? In his last match, Olejnik cooled off a hot Giano Petrucelli (Air Force) in an 8-1 win. True to form, Amine has had a pair of workman-like decisions in his most recent matches. 184 lbs #1 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) vs. #7 Lenny Pinto (Nebraska) Another weight class that was circled because of its number of credential entrants was 184 lbs. Top-ranked Parker Keckeisen didn’t seem to be bothered as he posted a pin and a tech in his first two matches before a cool 13-3 major decision over returning All-American Gavin Kane (North Carolina). Lenny Pinto, on the other hand, is coming off of two interesting wins. In the Round of 16, he held off promising freshman Dylan Fishback (NC State). A match later, he survived a 12-10 shootout against Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State). These two met last year in the semifinals at this tournament and Keckeisen got the 11-2 major decision. 197 lbs #3 Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) vs. #9 Jaxon Smith (Maryland) The 197 lb weight class has a pair of new matches that we haven’t seen before, which I enjoy. Also, all four semifinalists, have some sort of age-group world hardware to their names. The top half of the bracket features the returning national runner-up (Tanner Sloan) with a sophomore who was a match away from the NCAA podium last year. Sloan suffered a loss in the 2022 CKLV quarterfinals and battled back for third. That didn’t happen this year as he had two lopsided wins before gutting out a 2-0 decision over Max Shaw in the quarters. Smith will be well-rested because he was the only wrestler who advanced to the semifinals without a match. His opponent, Luke Surber, medically forfeited out of the tournament. In the Round of 16, Smith was pushed the the brink by redshirt freshman Wyatt Voelker (Northern Iowa), but managed to get by, by a point. #5 Trent Hidlay (NC State) vs. #6 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) Two of the most dominating performances in the quarterfinals, at any weight, came from Trent Hidlay and Jacob Cardenas. And now they meet in the semis. Both defeated their opponents via tech fall. Hidlay, 21-5 over Utah Valley’s national qualifier Evan Bockman. Cardenas did so over 2023 Big Ten champion Silas Allred. Since Hidlay has spent his entire career, before 2023-24, at 184 lbs, these two returning All-Americans have not met on collegiate mats. This will be an interesting clash of body styles. Hidlay is shorter for the weight and stocky, while Cardenas is tall, long and one of the more muscle-bound 197 lbers.

2023 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Quarterfinal Results 125 lbs Nico Provo (Stanford) dec Matt Ramos (Purdue) 8-1 Jore Volk (Wyoming) dec Caleb Smith (Nebraska) 4-2 Brett Ungar (Cornell) dec Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State) 2-1TB Michael DeAugustino (Michigan) dec Tanner Jordan (South Dakota State) 6-3 133 lbs Kai Orine (NC State) dec Gabe Whisenhunt (Oregon State) 6-4 Derrick Cardinal (South Dakota State) maj Dom Zaccone (Campbell) 14-3 Tyler Knox (Stanford) dec Reece Witcraft (Oklahoma State) 2-1 Evan Frost (Iowa State) maj Zeth Romney (Cal Poly) 16-3 141 lbs Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) dec Anthony Echemendia (Iowa State) 9-6 Ryan Jack (NC State) maj Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) 15-6 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) tech Vince Cornella (Cornell) 18-1 Brock Hardy (Nebraska) dec Tagen Jamison (Oklahoma State) 4-0 149 lbs Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) dec Quinn Kinner (Rider) 13-6 Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) dec Jackson Arrington (NC State) 9-8 Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) dec Chance Lamer (Cal Poly) 10-6 Kyle Parco (Arizona State) dec Casey Swiderski (Iowa State) 4-2 157 lbs Peyton Robb (Nebraska) maj Cael Swensen (South Dakota State) 10-0 Will Lewan (Michigan) dec Peyten Kellar (Ohio) 5-2 Daniel Cardenas (Stanford) dec Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) 8-5 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) dec Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) 7-2 165 lbs David Carr (Iowa State) maj Garrett Thompson (Ohio) 15-3 Julian Ramirez (Cornell) fall Matt Olguin (Oregon State) 2:48 Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State) dec Giano Petrucelli (Air Force) 8-1 Cam Amine (Michigan) dec Brevin Casella (Binghamton) 4-2 174 lbs Danny Wask (Navy) dec Lorenzo Norman (Stanford) 5-0 Travis Wittlake (Oregon State) dec Adam Kemp (Cal Poly) InjDef Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) maj MJ Gaitan (Iowa State) Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) dec Austin Murphy (Campbell) 6-0 184 lbs Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) maj Gavin Kane (North Carolina) 13-3 Lenny Pinto (Nebraska) dec Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) 12-10 Sam Wolf (Air Force) dec Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) 4-1 Will Feldkamp (Iowa State) fall Trey Munoz (Oregon State) 2:21 197 lbs Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) Max Shaw (North Carolina) 2-0 Jaxon Smith (Maryland) MedFFT Luke Surber (Oklahoma State) Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) tech Silas Allred (Nebraska) 17-1 Trent Hidlay (NC State) tech Evan Bockman (Utah Valley) 21-5 285 lbs Lucas Davison (Michigan) maj Hunter Catka (Virginia Tech) 11-2 Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) dec Owen Trephan (NC State) 2-1 Grady Griess (Navy) InjDef Konner Doucet (Oklahoma State) Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) maj Nick Feldman (Ohio State) 13-5 Semifinal Matchups 125: Nico Provo (Stanford) vs. Jore Volk (Wyoming) 125: Brett Ungar (Cornell) vs. Michael DeAugustino (Michigan) 133: Kai Orine (NC State) vs. Derrick Cardinal (South Dakota State) 133: Tyler Knox (Stanford) vs. Evan Frost (Iowa State) 141: Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) vs. Ryan Jack (NC State) 141: Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) vs. Brock Hardy (Nebraska) 149: Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) vs. Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) 149: Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) vs. Kyle Parco (Arizona State) 157: Peyton Robb (Nebraska) vs. Will Lewan (Michigan) 157: Daniel Cardenas (Stanford) vs. Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) 165: David Carr (Iowa State) vs. Julian Ramirez (Cornell) 165: Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State) vs. Cam Amine (Michigan) 174: Danny Wask (Navy) vs. Travis Wittlake (Oregon State) 174: Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) vs. Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) 184: Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) vs. Lenny Pinto (Nebraska) 184: Sam Wolf (Air Force) vs. Will Feldkamp (Iowa State) 197: Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) vs. Jaxon Smith (Maryland) 197: Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) vs. Trent Hidlay (NC State) 285: Lucas Davison (Michigan) vs. Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) 285: Grady Griess (Navy) vs. Yonger Bastida (Iowa State)

After a comprehensive evaluation, Lindenwood University has made the difficult decision to discontinue ten athletic teams at the conclusion of their respective seasons this academic year. This decision is a result of a thorough assessment of our athletic department's sustainability, aligning with our commitment to upholding the high-quality academic and athletic experiences that define our university. The athletic teams being discontinued are: · NCAA Men's Lacrosse, effective at conclusion of Spring 2024 season · NCAA Men's Swimming and Diving, effective at conclusion of Spring 2024 season · NCAA Men's Tennis, effective at conclusion of Spring 2024 season · NCAA Men's Indoor Track & Field, effective at conclusion of Spring 2024 season · NCAA Men's Outdoor Track & Field, effective at conclusion of Spring 2024 season · NCAA Men's Wrestling, effective at conclusion of Spring 2024 season · NCAA Women's Field Hockey, effective December 1, 2023 · NCAA Women's Gymnastics, effective at conclusion of Spring 2024 season · NCAA Women's Swimming and Diving, effective at conclusion of Spring 2024 season · SLS Men's and Women's Cycling, effective at conclusion of Spring 2024 season "Today, and for the near future, it will be challenging as the decision to better align our athletics department with our peers also results in many of our student-athletes learning that they will no longer be able to compete in the sport they love while at Lindenwood," said Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Jason Coomer. "As an Athletics Director, this is not a decision you ever want to have to make. Unfortunately, it is critical for the long-term sustainability of the department. I understand there will be considerable hurt felt by the ten teams impacted as well as by our staff and coaches." Coomer continued, "While I cannot erase that hurt, I will continue to do everything possible to give our impacted teams and coaches the best experience possible for the remainder of their respective seasons. Our staff will also be committed to assisting impacted student-athletes who are looking at the options they have available, including remaining at Lindenwood on their scholarships, or entering the transfer portal to find a new opportunity to continue their academic and athletic careers." Our commitment to excellence is steadfast, and we appreciate your understanding and support during this rebalance and reallocation of resources. Additional details can be found in our frequently asked questions.

Every week during the 2023-24 season, the InterMat staff will submit their picks for some of the most high-profile or competitive dual meets. As the season progresses, we'll keep track of records for bragging rights or as ammunition for when we mock each other. No, we'd never do that, it's all in good fun (right?). Results through week four 13-6: Bob Dole, Nick 12-7: James, Austin, Rachel, Richard, Morgan, Tony 11-8: Earl, Willie, Dysen, Robbie 10-7: Jagger, Ryan 9-8: Kevin Below are the picks for week five. One of the duals takes place this evening!

Quarterfinal matchups (numbers refer to tournament seed) 125 #1 Matt Ramos (Purdue) vs. #9 Nico Provo (Stanford) #5 Jore Volk (Wyoming) vs. #4 Caleb Smith (Nebraska) #3 Brett Ungar (Cornell) vs. #6 Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State) #7 Tanner Jordan (South Dakota State) vs. #2 Michael DeAugustino (Michigan) 133 #1 Kai Orine (NC State) vs. #9 Gabe Whisenhunt (Oregon State) #5 Dom Zaccone (Campbell) vs. #13 Derrick Cardinal (South Dakota State) #14 Reece Witcraft (Oklahoma State) vs. Tyler Knox (Stanford) Zeth Romney (Cal Poly) vs. #2 Evan Frost (Iowa State) 141 #1 Lachlan McNeil (North Carolina) vs. #8 Anthony Echemendia (Iowa State) #5 Cael Happel (Northern Iowa) vs. #4 Ryan Jack (NC State) #3 Jesse Mendez (Ohio State) vs. #6 Vince Cornella (Cornell) #10 Tagen Jamison (Oklahoma State) vs. #2 Brock Hardy (Nebraska) 149 #1 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska) vs. #9 Quinn Kinner (Rider) #5 Jackson Arrington (NC State) vs. #4 Dylan D’Emilio (Ohio State) #3 Caleb Henson (Virginia Tech) vs. #6 Chance Lamer (Cal Poly) #10 Casey Swiderski (Iowa State) vs. #2 Kyle Parco (Arizona State) 157 #1 Peyton Robb (Nebraska) vs. #8 Cael Swensen (South Dakota State) #12 Peyten Kellar (Ohio) vs. #4 Will Lewan (Michigan) #14 Meyer Shapiro (Cornell) vs. #6 Daniel Cardenas (Stanford) Ryder Downey (Northern Iowa) vs. #2 Jacori Teemer (Arizona State) 165 #1 David Carr (Iowa State) vs. #8 Garrett Thompson (Ohio) #5 Matthew Olguin (Oregon State) vs. #4 Julian Ramirez (Cornell) #3 Izzak Olejnik (Oklahoma State) vs. #11 Giano Petrucelli (Air Force) #10 Brevin Casella (Binghamton) vs. #2 Cam Amine (Michigan) 174 Lorenzo Norman (Stanford) vs. #9 Danny Wask (Navy) #5 Adam Kemp (Cal Poly) vs. #4 Travis Wittlake (Oregon State) #3 Cade DeVos (South Dakota State) vs. #6 MJ Gaitan (Iowa State) #2 Carson Kharchla (Ohio State) vs. #7 Austin Murphy (Campbell) 184 #1 Parker Keckeisen (Northern Iowa) vs. #8 Gavin Kane (North Carolina) #5 Lenny Pinto (Nebraska) vs. #4 Dustin Plott (Oklahoma State) #14 Sam Wolf (Air Force) vs. #6 Gavin Hoffman (Ohio State) #7 Will Feldkamp (Iowa State) vs. #2 Trey Munoz (Oregon State) 197 #1 Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State) vs. #9 Max Shaw (North Carolina) #5 Jaxon Smith (Maryland) vs. #4 Luke Surber (Oklahoma State) #3 Jacob Cardenas (Cornell) vs. #6 Silas Allred (Nebraska) #10 Evan Bockman (Utah Valley) vs. #2 Trent Hidlay (NC State) 285 #1 Lucas Davison (Michigan) vs. #8 Hunter Catka (Virginia Tech) #5 Taye Ghadiali (Campbell) vs. #4 Owen Trephan (NC State) #3 Grady Griess (Navy) vs. #6 Konner Doucet (Oklahoma State) #7 Nick Feldman (Ohio State) vs. #2 Yonger Bastida (Iowa State)