2017 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Collegiate Wrestling Invitational

All Ranked Wrestlers Coming To CKLV 2017

All Ranked Wrestlers Coming To CKLV 2017

Every ranked guy coming to the 2017 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.

Nov 22, 2017 by Nomad Lobdell
All Ranked Wrestlers Coming To CKLV 2017

The 2017 edition of the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational will feature a cornucopia of ranked athletes, over 100 in total. Below are their corresponding weights, the school they represent and their grade.

Remember, CKLV is a single entry tournament. The event begins at noon eastern time on Friday, December 1st. As always, you can watch every match LIVE on Flo, and complete brackets plus archived matches will be available on FloArena.

125lbs

No. 3 Ethan Lizak (Minnesota), JR: 7-0

No. 6 Ryan Millhof (Arizona State), JR: 4-0

No. 7 Sean Russell (Edinboro), JR: 5-1

No. 9 Dalton Macri (North Carolina), JR: 1-0

No. 10 Luke Welch (Purdue), SR: 9-0

No. 11 Louie Hayes (Virginia), FR: 7-1

No. 12 Taylor LaMont (Utah Valley), FR: 12-2

No. 16 Connor Schram (Stanford), SR: 6-1

No. 18 Zeke Moisey (West Virginia), JR: 6-4

No. 19 Jay Schwarm (Northern Iowa), SO: 8-1

No. 20 Drew Mattin (Michigan), FR: 4-3

Commentary: Ethan "backpack" Lizak did not get a chance to compete here last year, so it will certainly be fun seeing guys try to avoid going under him. The thought of high school teammates Sean Russell and Ryan Millhof meeting in the semifinals is also quite intriguing. Freshman Drew Mattin gets his first test in a stacked field.


Lightweight Preview + Predictions


133lbs

No. 2 Stevan Micic (Michigan), SO: 1-0

No. 5 Jack Mueller (Virginia), SO: 3-0

No. 7 Dom Forys (Pittsburgh), SR: 0-0

No. 9 Luke Pletcher (Ohio State), SO: 7-0

No. 11 Austin Eicher (Michigan State), JR: 0-0

No. 12 Dennis Gustafson (Virginia Tech), JR: 8-2

No. 13 Josh Terao (American), JR: 8-2

No. 20 Ian Parker (Iowa State), FR: 7-2

Commentary: Not a whole lot of firepower, but Luke Pletcher is certainly one everyone expected to outplace his preseason ranking. The always electric Austin DeSanto will also be in the mix, with a shot at redemption against Ian Parker, an under the radar threat to make a deep run.


11 Freshmen to Watch


141lbs

No. 3 Bryce Meredith (Wyoming), SR: 1-0

No. 6 Chad Red (Nebraska), FR: 4-1

No. 7 Tommy Thorn (Minnesota), JR: 4-2

No. 9 Javier Gasca (Michigan State), SR: 5-0

No. 11 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell), FR: 10-0

No. 12 Josh Alber (Northern Iowa), JR: 5-1

No. 13 Tyler Smith (Bucknell), SR: 6-2

No. 15 Mason Smith (Central Michigan), SO: 6-1

No. 16 Michael Longo (Oklahoma), SR: 9-4

No. 17 Kanen Storr (Iowa State), FR: 6-2

No. 19 Eli Stickley (Wisconsin), SO: 9-2

No. 20 Russell Rohlfing (CSUB), SO: 8-3

Commentary: Loaded. Three of the four most hyped freshmen at this weight will be in the field: Chad Red, Yianni Diakomihalis and Chad Red. Bryce Meredith may also look to beat Russell Rohlfing more convincingly this year en route to his first CKLV title.


9 Can't-Miss, Gotta See Matches


149lbs

No. 3 Max Thomsen (Northern Iowa), SO: 6-0

No. 5 Colton McCrystal (Nebraska), SR: 6-0

No. 6 Troy Heilmman (North Carolina), SR: 8-0

No. 8 Solomon Chishko (Virginia Tech), JR: 5-1

No. 9 Justin Oliver (Central Michigan), JR: 5-1

No. 11 Ke-Shawn Hayes (Ohio State), SO: 8-0

No. 14 Josh Maruca (Arizona State), SO: 8-2

No. 18 Jarrett Degen (Iowa State), FR: 5-1

No. 19 Davion Jeffries (Oklahoma), JR: 7-5

Commentary: That is an excellent potential semifinal pairing, four guys who are great bets to stand on the podium in Cleveland.


Middleweight Preview + Predictions


157lbs

No. 4 Tyler Berger (Nebraska), JR: 5-0

No. 5 Josh Shields (Arizona State), SO: 6-0

No. 6 Micah Jordan (Ohio State), JR: 6-1

No. 9 Mitch Finesilver (Duke), JR: 10-0

No. 10 Clay Ream (North Dakota State), SR: 5-1

No. 12 Alec Pantaleo (Michigan), JR: 0-2

No. 13 Jake Short (Minnesota), SR: 4-3

No. 14 Collin Heffernan (Central Michigan), SR; 4-2

No. 15 Paul Fox (Stanford), JR: 4-1

No. 17 Archie Colgan (Wyoming), SR: 9-2

No. 18 Andrew Crone (Wisconsin), SR: 8-3

No. 19 Taleb Rahmani (Pittsburgh), SO: 5-2

No. 20 Justin Staudenmayer (Brown), SR: 9-1

Commentary: Josh Shields might be the hottest wrestler in the country right now. Jake Short is the reigning champ, and Alec Pantaleo will be looking to right the ship somewhat.


Pre-seeds Released


165lbs

No. 3 Logan Massa (Michigan), SO: 6-0

No. 4 David McFadden (Virginia Tech), SO: 11-0

No. 7 Te'Shan Campbell (Ohio State), JR: 7-0

No. 8 Anthony Valencia (Arizona State), SO: 6-3

No. 9 Nick Wanzek (Minnesota), SR: 6-1

No. 11 Isaiah White (Nebraska), SO: 5-1

No. 12 Branson Ashworth (Wyoming), JR: 7-1

No. 13 Keilan Torres (Northern Colorado), SR: 3-1

No. 15 Evan Wick (Wisconsin), FR: 9-1

No. 17 Jake Wentzel (Pittsburgh), FR: 6-3

No. 18 Lorenze De La Riva (CSUB), SO: 6-4

No. 19 Andrew Fogarty (North Dakota State), SO: 10-3

No. 20 Demetrius Romero (Utah Valley), SO: 14-2

Commentary: Perhaps the most anticipated finals matchup is here, between All Americans David McFadden and Logan Massa. Te'Shan Campbell is a beast on top though, Anthony Valencia is always a threat to upset the apple cart, and Nick Wanzek is one of the most frustrating guys to wrestle in the country.


Logan Massa's Triple Threat


174lbs

No. 1 Zahid Valencia (Arizona State), SO: 4-0

No. 3 Bo Jordan (Ohio State), SR: 7-1

No. 5 Myles Amine (Michigan), SO: 3-2

No. 7 Taylor Lujan (Northern Iowa), SO: 9-0

No. 8 Brandon Womack (Cornell), JR: 5-1

No. 9 Jadaen Bernstein (Navy), SR: 6-0

No. 11 Yoanse Mejias (Oklahoma), SR: 9-2

No. 12 Drew Hughes (Michigan State), SO: 4-2

No. 13 Ethan Ramos (North Carolina), SR: 5-2

No. 16 Christian Brucki (Central Michigan), SR: 4-3

No. 17 Keaton Subjeck (Stanford), SR: 8-0

No. 18 Ben Harvey (Army West Point), SO: 5-3

No. 19 Will Schany (Virginia), JR: 8-1

Commentary: America's toughest schedule continues as Zahid Valencia tries to defend his CKLV title.


Sleepers and Darkhorses


184lbs

No. 2 Myles Martin (Ohio State), JR: 8-0

No. 5 Dom Abounader (Michigan), SR: 5-1

No. 6 Zack Zavatsky (Virginia Tech), JR: 9-2

No. 7 Drew Foster (Northern Iowa), JR: 4-1

No. 8 Jordan Ellingwood (Central Michigan), SR: 4-2

No. 9 Ricky Robertson (Wisconsin), SR: 11-1

No. 13 Max Dean (Cornell), FR: 10-0

No. 14 Steven Schneider (Binghamton), SR: 3-2

No. 16 Chip Ness (North Carolina), JR: 1-0

No. 18 Dylan Gabel (Northern Colorado), JR: 6-0

No. 20 Michael Coleman (Navy), JR: 8-1

Commentary: Last year, Myles Martin was the defending champ coming up in weight, and Zack Zavatsky beat him in the semis. Martin is once again the hunted, but there is yet again a Dean in the field, Gabe's younger brother Max.


Upperweight Preview + Predictions


197lbs

No. 1 Kollin Moore (Ohio State), SO: 2-0

No. 3 Jared Haught (Virginia Tech), SR: 6-1

No. 5 Kevin Beazley (Michigan), SR: 5-0

No. 6 Jake Smith (West Virginia), SR: 0-0

No. 9 Matt Williams (CSUB), SR: 10-0

No. 13 Corey Griego (Oregon State), JR: 7-0

No. 14 Jeric Kasunic (American), SR: 8-2

No. 15 Christian Brunner (Purdue), SO: 7-1

No. 17 Nathan Traxler (Stanford), FR: 8-4

No. 18 Hunter Ritter (Wisconsin), SO: 8-3

No. 19 Daniel Chaid (North Carolina), SR: 4-2

Commentary: A clash of the titans, our only potential 1 vs 3 matchup, and a rematch from last year's third place match at NCAAs.


Projected Team Scores


285lbs

No. 2 Adam Coon (Michigan), SR: 5-0

No. 4 Tanner Hall (Arizona State), JR: 2-1

No. 5 Jacob Kasper (Duke): 7-1

No. 8 Ryan Solomon (Pittsburgh), SR: 6-1

No. 14 Nathan Butler (Stanford), SR: 6-2

No. 15 Brett Dempsey (Ameriacn), SR: 2-2

No. 16 Gage Hutchison (Eastern Michigan), SR: 7-2

No. 18 Garrett Ryan (Columbia), SR: 8-1

Commentary: No Kyle Snyder is never fun, but we still have Adam Coon, Tanner Hall and Ryan Solomon.