Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Cliff Keen Invitational
Three Placewinners Help Wrestling to Top-10 Finish at Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational
12/5/2015 8:16:00 PM | Wrestling
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The Bucknell wrestling team capped a successful Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational Saturday with three placewinners and a top-10 finish at the very competitive 40-team event. Paul Petrov (125 pounds), Tyler Smith (141) and Rustin Barrick (174) were the Bison placewinners, while Bucknell finished 10th in the team standings with 62 total points.
Petrov had the highest finish of the Bison grapplers, taking fifth in his weight class. Smith finished in sixth place, while Barrick earned seventh. Tom Sleigh also advanced to the second day of the two-day event, but he lost his only bout on Saturday after posting a 3-1 record on Friday.
The Cliff Keen Invitational featured some of the top teams in the country. Missouri took the overall team title, while Cornell, Minnesota, Oklahoma and Ohio State rounded out the top five. The Bison improved significantly on last year's performance when they were 25th of 37 teams.
Petrov opened Saturday's competition with a pin of seventh-seeded Zeke Moisey of West Virginia. He followed with a 10-6 decision before falling by a tight 3-2 margin to sixth-seeded Ronnie Rios of Oregon State in the consolation semifinal. Petrov then captured fifth place thanks to a default by his opponent in the fifth-place match.
A two-time NCAA qualifier, Petrov finished the weekend with a 6-2 record and he is now 16-2 on the season, moving his career won-loss record to 94-32.
Smith followed fellow No. 9 seed Petrov's lead by winning his first two bouts on Saturday, including a pin of fourth-seeded Jamel Hudson of Hofstra. However, he had to face second-seeded Tommie Thorn of Minnesota in the consolation semifinal and lost by a 14-8 decision. He then faced top-seeded Solomon Chichko for the second time in as many days in the fifth-place match and lost by an 11-5 margin.
Smith was 4-3 at the Cliff Keen Invitational with two wins against seeded opponents and all three losses coming to the top two seeds in his bracket.
Barrick entered the weekend unseeded, but ended up with a seventh-place finish thanks in large part to his upset of Iowa State's third-seeded Lelund Weatherspoon in his first bout on Saturday. Barrick posted a 5-1 decision to move on in the bracket. After a loss to seventh-seeded Ricky Robertson (Wisconsin), he pinned Michigan's Davonte Mahomes in less than a minute in the seventh-place match.
Barrick was 5-2 over the weekend with his two losses coming against seeded opponents. Three of his wins were bonus-point victories.
Six additional Bison were in action Friday on the first day of the Cliff Keen Invitational.
Bucknell will return to action Dec. 19 when it hosts Gardner Webb in Davis Gym at 2 p.m. It will be the first dual match for the Bison (1-1, 1-1 EIWA) since Nov. 13 at Franklin & Marshall.
Bucknell Results (Saturday Only)
125 – Paul Petrov (No. 9 seed)
Consolation Round of 8 #2: W, fall #7 Zeke Moisey (West Virginia), 4:16
Consolation Round of 4: W, dec. Trey Andrews (Northern Colorado), 10-6.
Consolation Semifinal: L, dec. #6 Ronnie Rios (Oregon State), 3-2.
5th Place Match: W, default #12 Ryan Milhoff (Oklahoma).
141 – Tyler Smith (No. 9 seed)
Consolation Round of 8 #2: W, fall #4 Jamel Hudson (Hofstra), 2:01.
Consolation Round of 4: W, fall Robbie Mathers (Arizona State), 2:45.
Consolation Semifinal: L, dec. #2 Tommie Thorn (Minnesota), 14-8.
5th Place Match: L, dec. #1 Solomon Chishko (Virginia Tech), 11-5.
174 – Rustin Barrick
Consolation Round of 8 #2: W, dec. #3 Lelund Weatherspoon (Iowa State), 5-1.
Consolation Round of 4: L, dec. #7 Ricky Robertson (Wisconsin), 4-0.
7th Place Match: W, fall Davonte Mahomes (Michigan), 0:57.
184 – Tom Sleigh (No. 9 seed)
Consolation Round of 8 #2: L, dec. Ryan Christensen (Wisconsin), 4-0.
