Dec. 4, 2004
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - The Arizona State University wrestling team captured fourth place at the 23rd Annual Cliff Keen/Las Vegas Invitational Saturday at the Cashman Center in Las Vegas, Nev., as seven Sun Devils placed in the Top 8, including a pair of runner-up finishes by C.B. Dollaway (Jr., Mt. Gilead, Ohio) and Ryan Bader (Jr., Reno, Nev.). ASU posted 103.5 points to finish behind team champion Michigan (148.0), second place Nebraska (139.5) and third place Hofstra (108.5).
Dollaway, who posted a solid performance throughout the tournament as the fifth seed at 184, took to the mats for the championship title, but fell short as second-seeded Travis Pascoe of Nebraska scored a 6-4 victory. Dollaway used a tough overtime upset of the top-seeded Matt Pell of Missouri to move on to the finals. In that semifinal bout, Dollaway fought back from a few points down to take an 8-7 lead at the end of regulation, but a riding time bonus point was awarded to Pell to send the match to overtime. In the extra one-minute session, both wrestlers scrambled on the mat for the winning points before the Sun Devil got behind his opponent to score two points and the victory.
A native of Nevada, Bader entered the tournament as the top seed and a returning finalist of a year ago and again marched through to the final bout at 197 pounds. In the battle for the championship, Hofstra's Chris Skretkowicz scored a two point reverse of the Sun Devil All-American and held on to win the match, 4-1. Bader opened the day with a 9-2 decision over fourth-seeded Marcus Schontube of Pennsylvania to punch his ticket to the finals of the tournament for a second year in a row.
The final competitor on the day for ASU was heavyweight Cain Velasquez (Jr., Yuma, Ariz.), the tournament's No. 3 seed. In the semifinals earlier in the day, Velasquez dropped an 8-4 decision to the second-seeded Greg Wagner of Michigan before scoring an 8-4 decision victory of his own in the consolation semifinals over ninth-seeded Jake O'Brien of Purdue. In the consolation finals, Boise State's Eric Smith jumped to an early lead before Velasquez came storming back to end the high-scoring affair with a 12-10 victory and a third-place finish in the meet.
In the first session of the day, four Sun Devils earned placements in the tournament's Top 8 including one each at fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth places. Brian Stith (So.. Hampton, Va.) led the way from his 157-pound division as he finished fifth by going 3-1 on the day. The Sun Devil opened with a 9-4 decision in the consolation draw before moving one with a close 7-6 defeat of Paul Bjorlo of Virginia. In the consolation semifinals, Stith dropped a 4-2 decision to fourth-seeded Matt Lebe of West Virginia before the No. 6 seed bounced back to take a 4-3 upset decision over third-seeded B.J. Wright of Nebraska in the placing bout.
One weight below Stith was third-seeded Patrick Williams (Sr., Homestead, Fla.), the 149-pound weight class' sixth-place finisher. After falling in the semifinals to No. 2 Jon Masa of Hofstra, Williams withdrew from the tournament with an injury and dropped down to his final placing. Jeremy Mendoza (Jr., Temecula, Calif.), who entered the tournament seeded fourth at 125, opened the day with a 7-5 decision over Robert Preston of Harvard before conference foe Andrew Hochstrasser of Boise State downed him 5-4. In the final bout of the event for Mendoza, he handed sixth-seeded Mark McKnight of Buffalo a 6-3 defeat to claim seventh place. Patrick Pitsch (Fr., Spanaway, Wash.), seeded ninth at 165, bettered his seeding by one place, taking eighth following a 1-2 day on the mats. After upsetting seventh-seeded Justin Nestor of Pittsburgh, Pitsch dropped a 12-5 decision in the consolation quarterfinals before falling from the event with an injury default.
The Sun Devils will again stiff competition the next time out as ASU plays host to No. 7 Minnesota in a 7 p.m. dual inside Wells Fargo Arena on Tuesday night. From there, the Sun Devils lone remaining competition on the 2004 slate is a return trip to Nevada when the team heads to the Reno Tournament of Champions on Dec. 19.
2004 Cliff Keen/Las Vegas Invitational
Arizona State Results from Saturday ONLY
Number preceding wrestler is tournament seed
125 - #4 Jeremy Mendoza - Seventh Place
Conso Fifth Mendoza dec. Robert Preston (Harvard), 7-5
Conso Quarters Andrew Hochstrasser (Boise State) dec. Mendoza, 5-4
Seventh/Eighth Mendoza dec. #6 Mark McKnight (Buffalo), 6-3
149 - #3 Patrick Williams - Sixth Place
Champ Semifinal #2 Jon Masa (Hofstra) fall Williams, 3:18
Conso Semifinal #5 Ben Cherrington (Boise State) def. Williams, injury default
Fifth/Sixth #6 Matt Kocher (Pittsburgh) def. Williams, injury default
157 - #6 Brian Stith - Fifth Place
Conso Fifth Stith dec. Brock Wittmeyer (Pennsylvania), 9-4
Conso Quarters Stith dec. Paul Bjorlo (Virginia), 7-6
Conso Semifinals #4 Matt Lebe (West Virginia) dec. Stith, 4-2
Fifth/Sixth Stith dec. #3 B.J. Wright (Nebraska), 4-3
165 - #9 Patrick Pitsch - Eighth Place
Conso Fifth Pitsch dec. #7 Justin Nestor (Pittsburgh), 8-2
Conso Quarters Will Durkee (Virginia) dec. Pitsch, 12-5
Seventh/Eighth Jake Donar (West Virginia) def. Pitsch, injury default
184 - #5 C.B. Dollaway - 2004 Runner-up
Champ Semifinal Dollaway dec. #1 Matt Pell (Missouri), 10-8
Champ. Final #2 Travis Pascoe (Nebraska) dec. Dollaway, 6-4
197 - #1 Ryan Bader - 2004 Runner-up
Champ Semifinal Bader dec. #4 Marcus Schontube (Pennsylvania), 9-2
Champ. Final #2 Chris Skretkowicz (Hofstra) dec. Bader, 4-1
Heavyweight - #3 Cain Velasquez - Third Place
Champ Semifinal #2 Greg Wagner (Michigan) dec. Velasquez, 8-4
Conso Semifinal Velasquez dec. #9 Jake O'Brien (Purdue), 8-4
Third/Fourth Velasquez dec. #8 Eric Smith (Boise State), 12-10
2004 Cliff Keen/Las Vegas Invitational
COMPLETE Arizona State Results
Number preceeding wrestler is touranment seed
125 - #4 Jeremy Mendoza (5-2/Seventh Place)
Champ Pigtail Mendoza dec. Brandon Strong (Air Force), 8-3
Champ First Mendoza tech fall Pancho Manrique (UC Davis), 18-2 (5:12)
Champ Second Mendoza tech fall Nate Engel (Missouri Valley St), 15-0 (7:00)
Quarterfinal #5 Efren Ceballos (CS Bakersfield) dec. Mendoza, 8-6
Conso Fifth Mendoza dec. Robert Preston (Harvard), 7-5
Conso Quarters Andrew Hochstrasser (Boise State) dec. Mendoza, 5-4
Seventh/Eighth Mendoza dec. #6 Mark McKnight (Buffalo), 6-3
133 - Curtis Ray (1-2, Did Not Place)
Champ First Ray fall Brian Tsutsumi (Dana), 1:48
Champ Second #2 Chris Fleeger (Purdue) major Ray, 9-0
Conso Second Dave Emison (George Mason) tech fall Ray, 21-6
141 - Chris Frieje (2-2, Did Not Place)
Champ First Carter Downing (Wyoming) dec. Frieje, 6-4
Conso First Frieje dec. Jay Chichester (George Mason), 9-7 sv
Conso Second Frieje dec. Andre Vandervelde (Augustana), 7-5
Conso Third #8 Rene Hernandez (Purdue) dec. Frieje, 10-4
149 - #3 Patrick Williams (3-1/Sixth Place)
Champ First Williams fall Dominic Denunzio (Harvard), 2:56
Champ Second Williams major Ricky Turk (Columbia), 12-4
Quarterfinal Williams dec. #6 Matt Kocher (Pittsburgh), 3-2 tb
Semifinal #2 Jon Masa (Hofstra) fall Williams, 3:18
Conso Semifinal #5 Ben Cherrington (Boise State) def. Williams, injury default
Fifth/Sixth #6 Matt Kocher (Pittsburgh) def. Williams, injury default
157 - #6 Brian Stith (5-2/Fifth Place)
Champ First Stith dec. Darion Terry (Missouri Valley), 2-0
Champ Second Stith dec. #11 Chat Roush (Eastern Michigan), 7-6
Quarterfinal #3 B.J. Wright (Nebraska) dec. Stith, 3-2
Conso Fifth Stith dec. Brock Wittmeyer (Pennsylvania), 9-4
Conso Quarters Stith dec. Paul Bjorlo (Virginia), 7-6
Conso Semifinals #4 Matt Lebe (West Virginia) dec. Stith, 4-2
Fifth/Sixth Stith dec. #3 B.J. Wright (Nebraska), 4-3
165 - #9 Patrick Pitsch (4-2/Eighth Place)
Champ First Pitsch dec. Quinn Donnell (Western State), 6-3
Champ Second #8 Matt Palmer (Columbia) dec. Pitsch, 3-2
Conso Third Pitsch dec. Charles Jones (UNC Greensboro), 8-4
Conso Fourth Pitsch dec. #5 Zac Fryling (West Virginia), 6-3 tb
Conso Fifth Pitsch dec. #7 Justin Nestor (Pittsburgh), 8-2
Conso Quarters Will Durkee (Virginia) dec. Pitsch, 12-5
Seventh/Eighth Jake Donar (West Virginia) def. Pitsch, injury default
174 - Rick Renzi (1-2, Did Not Place)
Champ Pigtail Renzi dec. Jacob Lillich (Air Force), 9-3
Champ First #6 Kelly Flaherty (Wisconsin) tech fall Renzi, 19-2
Conso First Matt Trout (Western State) dec. Renzi, 8-4
184 - #5 C.B. Dollaway (4-1/2004 Runner-up)
Champ First Dollaway dec. Samuel Wedland (Wyoming), 7-2
Champ Second Dollaway major #12 Keith Clifton (Citadel), 11-2
Quarterfinal Dollaway dec. #4 Ben Wissel (Purdue), 13-8
Champ. Semifinal Dollaway dec. #1 Matt Pell (Missouri), 10-8
Champ. Final #2 Travis Pascoe (Nebraska) dec. Dollaway, 6-4
197 - #1 Ryan Bader (4-1/2004 Runner-up)
Champ First Bader tech fall Travis Gardner (Oregon State), 21-6
Champ Second Bader tech fall Blair Alderman (Dana), 18-0 (1:38)
Quarterfinal Bader dec. #8 Landon Seefeldt (CS Fullerton), 4-2 sv
Champ. Semifinal Bader dec. #4 Marcus Schontube (Pennsylvania), 9-2
Champ. Final #2 Chris Skretkowicz (Hofstra) dec. Bader, 4-1
Heavyweight - #3 Cain Velasquez (5-1/Third Place)
Champ First Velasquez tech fall Koel Davia (Edinboro), 19-4
Champ Second Velasquez tech fall Kurt Skarstedt (Air Force), 20-5
Quarterfinal Velasquez dec. #6 Mitch Manstedt (Nebraska), 10-5
Champ Semifinal #2 Greg Wagner (Michigan) dec. Velasquez, 8-4
Conso Semifinal Velasquez dec. #9 Jake O'Brien (Purdue), 8-4
Third/Fourth Velasquez dec. #8 Eric Smith (Boise State), 12-10
Final Top 10 Team Scores
1. Michigan 148.0
2. Nebraska 139.5
3. Hofstra 108.5
4. Arizona State 103.5
5. Cornell 97.5
6. Missouri 88.5
7. Purdue 83.5
8. Boise State 75.0
9. Wisconsin 65.5
10. Edinboro 64.5
Pittsburgh 64.5