Recap courtesy of Athletic Communications Departments

Rider - Two Broncs Advance to Day 2 of Cliff Keen Invite; Dean in Semifinals
LAS VEGAS, NV – Isaac Dean led the Rider wrestling team on Friday at the prestigious Cliff Keen Invitational at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Dean was the lone Bronc to advance to tomorrow's semifinal round. The senior pulled the upset over the third-seeded and 2024 NCAA All-American Bennet Berge of South Dakota State. 

McKenzie Bell (141 lbs) opened his day with a close 5-2 loss to Michigan's Sergio Lemley, who was an NCAA qualifier from a season ago. Bell would then take on Julian Bell of South Dakota St in the consolation bracket and win by injury default after already having an 8-4 advantage. Bell defeated Wyoming's Cole Brooks in the first consolation round of eight but would fall to eighth-seeded Sam Latona of Virginia Tech to round out his day in the second consolation round of eight.

Sammy Alvarez (149 lbs) started his day with a quick fall over Vincent Milazzo of Sacred Heart in just 2:19. Alvarez moved on to the round of 16 to take on Wyoming's Gabe Willochel, where he secured a tough 9-6 victory. With Alvarez's riding time, the match was deadlocked at six in the final minute of the match. The Oklahoma St transfer secured a clutch takedown to clinch the win and advance to the quarterfinals. 

After picking up an 11-3 major decision in his first match of the day over Columbia's Dominic Rossetti, Colton Washleski (157 lbs) fell to top-seeded Antrell Taylor of Nebraska in the round of 16. Washleski's day would end after an 8-2 loss to Wyoming's Jared Hill in the consolation bracket. Washleski would go 1-2 on the day.

Michael Wilson (174 lbs) started his day with a 4-2 win over Carter Schmidt of California Baptist. Wilson would then fall to third-seeded and 2x NCAA qualifier Lenny Pinto of Nebraska. The Bronc fell to the consolation bracket and secured a 4-2 decision over Columbia's Jack McGill. Wilson rounded out his day with a loss against NC State's Matthew Singleton. Wilson would go 2-2 on the day. 

Isaac Dean (184 lbs) picked up a gritty 4-1 decision to start his day to defeat Cornell's Cole Barely. Dean continued his roll into the round of 16, where he secured another victory, defeating Ohio's Jeremy Olszko by a 7-3 decision. 

Quarterfinals
(10) Sammy Alvarez vs (2) Ridge Lovett (Nebraska)
In the quarterfinal match, Alvarez met 2x NCAA All-American and second-seeded Ridge Lovett of Nebraska. After a scoreless opening period, Lovett escaped the bottom position, making the score 1-0. A few flurries of scrambles made things interesting in the second and third periods, but Alvarez could not get a takedown. Lovett earned a riding time point, making the final 2-0. 

Alvarez dropped to the consolation bracket to go up against Koy Buesgens of NC State. Each guy's pair of escapes made the score 1-1. The exciting match went the distance, with Alvarez getting an escape in the first of the ride-outs, giving Alvarez the 2-1 advantage. Then it was Buesgens' chance to get an escape, but Alvarez remained tough and put Buesgens on his back, securing three near-fall points. A last-second escape would make the score 5-2, but Alvarez advanced to day two of the competition with automatic placement. 

(11) Isaac Dean vs (3) Bennett Berge (South Dakota State)
Dean took on third-seeded and 2024 NCAA All-American Bennett Berge of South Dakota St in the quarterfinals. An opening takedown by Dean set the tone early to give him the 3-0 after the first period. Berge chose to start the bottom position in the second period and earn the escape, making the score 3-1. Dean went into the final period on the bottom with a two-point lead. A quick escape rapidly made it 4-1. Berge brought the intensity and pressure in the final minute, but Dean's defense would hold strong. Dean gave up two stall points in the third but would still secure the 4-3 upset victory over the fifth-ranked wrestler in the country.

Up Next
The Broncs are next in action tomorrow, Dec. 7, for day two of the competition of the Cliff Keen Invitational, with Alvarez and Dean battling it out with the final eight wrestlers remaining in each of the ten weight classes. 29 Broncs will then compete at the Patriot Open on Dec. 8 in Fairfax, VA
 
Ohio - Ohio Wrestling Concludes Weekend at Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Ohio wrestling traveled west to Las Vegas, Nev. to compete in the Cliff Keen Collegiate Invitational Dec. 6-7. The Bobcats finished the two-day tournament with 33.5 points and an overall place of 16 out of 30 teams.

Redshirt junior Garrett Thompson had an outstanding performance, placing third overall in the 174-pound class after kicking it off with a Fall in the second period against Joseph Martin (Northwestern). From there, Thompson faced off against #8 Jared Simma (Northern Iowa) and #3 Cade DeVos (South Dakota State), winning against both ranked opponents with decisions. In the semifinals, Thompson lost to #12 Lorenzo Norman (Stanford) after a decision of 10-6 but finished the tournament by winning his final matchup against #11 Simon Ruiz (Cornell) with a 10-7 decision, earning him the bronze.

Additional standout performances included redshirt sophomore Austin Starr, who secured two wins in the 194-pound class during the tournament, both by falls in the first period. Redshirt freshman Jeremy Olszko also contributed two wins for the Bobcats in the 184-pound class, one by decision and the other with a fall in the first 30 seconds of the second period.

Ohio will be back in action for their next dual meet against Drexel on Tuesday, December 17, in Philadelphia, PA. The dual is set to begin at 1 p.m.
 
Cleveland State - Wrestling Finishes With One Champion and Five Placers at CSU Open
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Cleveland State had one champion and five placers at the annual CSU Open on Saturday inside Woodling Gymnasium.

Nick Molchak won the 133-pound championship after going 4-0, with all the victories coming by decision. Daniel Bucknavich was the runner-up at 285 pounds with a 4-1 record.

Gavin Ricketts placed fourth at 174 pounds after going 2-2. Ronald Dimmerling placed fifth at 174 pounds after going 2-1 in the afternoon.

Reese Stephen finished sixth at 157 pounds after going 3-2 with two major decisions.  Xander Myers finished sixth at 197 pounds with a 4-2 record.
  
SIU Edwardsville - SIUE Faces Challenging Cougar Clash
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE wrestling finished with eight-place winners Saturday at the Cougar Clash.

The single-day tournament at First Community Arena featured some of the top teams in the nation. Minnesota won the team title with 268.5 points, followed by Missouri with 183, Northern Colorado with 157, Bellarmine with 89.5, Northern Illinois with 88.0, SIUE with 81.0, Little Rock with 74.0, and Illinois with 37.5.

SIUE's contingent included fourth-place finishes from Bryson Buhk (285), Nick Nosler (197), and Hayden Whidden (149).

The Cougars also had top-eight finishes from Davian Guanajuato, Marcel Lopez, Ben Lunn, Eric Almarinez, and Bradley Gillum.

SIUE is now idle until Dec. 20th when it entertains Buffalo in a 6 p.m. Mid-American Conference home match.
 
Northern Illinois - West and Brya Lead Huskies at Cougar Clash
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.—Blake West and Jacob Brya captured third-place finishes for the Northern Illinois University Huskies wrestling program as the Huskies competed at the Cougar Clash, hosted by SIUE on Saturday (Dec. 7).
 
West opened his day with a win over Brandon Morvari on Minnesota in a 4-0 decision before defeating Davian Guanajuato of SIUE in a 5-0 decision. West dropped a 4-0 decision to No. 5 Stevo Poulin of Northern Colorado before getting back on track with a 7-1 win over Damion Ryan of Bellarmine. In the third-place match, West defeated No. 14 Noah Surtin via fall (5:31).
 
Brya opened his day with a bye in the first round before defeating Rhett Koenig of Minnesota in a technical fall (TF-1.5, 15-0, 7:00). Brya dropped an 11-5 decision to No. 18 Josh Edmond of Missouri before winning over SIUE's Ben Lunn in an 8-3 decision. To claim the third-place finish, Brya defeated Easton Hilton of Missouri in a major decision (15-5).
 
At 133 pounds, Lucian Brink represented the Huskies and finished in sixth place. Brink fell in a major decision to Kade Moore of Missouri before winning over Trayce Eckman. Brink fell in a major decision to Andrew Crapps of Missouri as he faced Marcel Lopez (SIUE) in the fifth-place match. Lopez posted a 2-1 decision over Brink as Brink took sixth.
 
Brett Smith took fifth place at 165 pounds for the Huskies after dropping his opening match to Blaine Brenner of Minnesota. Smith captured back-to-back wins over Nico Lozano of Little Rock and Caden Ernd of Illinois before meeting Brenner in the consolation semifinal match. Smith took on Bradley Gillum of SIUE in the fifth-place match, claiming a 2-1 decision victory.
 
Representing NIU at 285 pounds, Jacob Christensen opened his day with a 4-2 decision over Marko Ivanisevic of Illinois in the quarterfinals. Missouri's Jarrett Stoner won in a sudden victory over Christensen. Daulton Mayer of Bellarmine defeated Christensen by fall before Christensen posted a 4-2 decision over Little Rock's Keith Miley in the fifth-place match.
 
Landen Johnson and Brody Hallin placed in the 157-pound bracket. Johnson captured the fifth-place spot, while Hallin claimed the final spot on the podium. Johnson had wins over Cody Wagner of Little Rock (Fall 5:51) and Ryan Bennett of Illinois (TF-1.5 4:22, 16-1). Johnson faced No. 13 Vince Zerban of North Colorado twice on the day, with Zerban taking both meetings. The duo met in the third round of the consolation bracket, with Johnson claiming a 6-4 decision. Additionally, Hallin claimed a win over Illinois' Charlie Fifield (Dec 7-3).
 
At 174 pounds, Jake Evans claimed the seventh-place spot with a win over Kameron Phillips of Northern Colorado in the final match. Evans won by fall (3:53) for his lone victory on the day. Tommy Bennett also competed at 174 pounds for the Huskies and claimed a 6-4 decision over Kodiak Cannedy of Little Rock.
 
Spencer Mooberry represented NIU at 197 pounds and took seventh place after opening his day with a major decision over Evan Grazzini of Bellarmine. Mooberry fell to Andrew Donahue and Tyler Perry, both of Northern Colorado, while defeating Kennedy Wyatt of Bellarmine in a 5-1 decision. In the seventh-place match, Mooberry won by fall (1:42) over Jesse Cassatt of Missouri.
 
Collin Arch won by decision (8-6) over Zac Cowan of Bellarmine in the 149-pound bracket before dropping his next two matches. Austin Stewart represented NIU at 184 pounds, while Sean Carroll saw action at 197 pounds.
 
As a team, the Huskies finished in fifth place in the eight-team field, just 1.5 points behind Bellarmine.
 
The NIU wrestling program will return to action on December 19 and 20 as they travel to Kent, Ohio. The Huskies and Golden Flashes will face off in a MAC dual on December 19 before competing at the Kent State Open on December 20.
 
Edinboro - Wrestling Scores Pair of Dual Victories at VMI Saturday
Lexington, Va. – The Edinboro wrestling team notched a pair of wins over King College and Virginia Military Academy at the VMI Duals Saturday afternoon.
  
In their first dual of the day, the Scots dominated the King. After falling behind 3-0 when Trent Mahoney tallied a 10-3 decision over Max Kirby, Brody Evans started the march of bonus points, scoring a 15-0 tech fall after the second period at 174. Jared McGill made his season debut, notching an 11-2 major decision to push the Edinboro lead to 9-3.
 
Nick Lodato got the nod at 197, scoring an 8-4 decision over Nathan Coley. Kade Sottolano needed just 1:44 to score the fall over Mateo Armendariz of King to make it 18-3 as the lineups rolled over to the light weights.
 
Chris Vargo made quick work of Tyson Upchurch, scoring the 15-0 tech fall in 1:58 to extend the lead to 23-3. Colton Camacho earned a fall over Nico Crosnoe in 5:17, pushing the lead to 29-3. Anthony Ferraro used 4:19 to score an 18-3 tech fall of Ashtan Hendricks to make it 34-3.
 
Ryan Burgos hit the mat for the first time this year, scoring a 15-0 tech fall in just 2:42. Ryan Michaels set the final at 44-3 with a tech fall of his own, 17-0, over Brennan Watkins in 3:40.
  
In the dual with host VMI, the Scots scored bonus points in six of nine bout wins. Ryan Vigil opened the dual with an 8-0 major over Kirby at 165. Evans gave the Scots the lead, 5-4, with a 22-6 tech fall over Logan Chambers at 174. McGill topped Braxton Lewis 5-1 to push the Edinboro lead to 8-4.
 
Lodato picked up a pin of Ethan Flowers early in the second period to extend the lead to 14-4 after the 197-pound bout. Sottolano scored his second win of the day 8-2 over Josh Evans.
 
Vargo tallied a 19-1 tech fall over Waylon Rogers to push the Edinboro lead to 22-4. Camacho gutted out a 2-0 decision over Dyson Dunham to make it 25-4 Scots. Ferraro scored his second win of the day with a 9-0 major decision over Phoenix Alyea.
 
Burgos pinned Wayne Rold at 149, and Michaels scored a fall over Eric Doran at 157, setting the final at 41-4.
 
The Scots are back in action on Sunday with a trip to Davidson. Wrestling starts at 1 p.m. and can be seen live on FloWrestling.