Weekly Release #2

Upcoming Schedule
Fri-Sat., Dec. 5-6 -- at Cliff Keen Invitational (Las Vegas, Nev.)
Friday, Dec. 10 -- vs. Cleveland State (Cliff Keen Arena), 6:30 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 2 -- vs. Central Michigan (Cliff Keen Arena), 1 p.m.

This Week: at Cliff Keen Invitational
The No. 5-ranked University of Michigan wrestling team will take its annual trip to Las Vegas, Nev., to compete in the 23rd annual Cliff Keen Invitational on Friday and Saturday (Dec. 3-4) at the Cashman Center.

The tournament is slated to begin at 9 a.m. PST on Friday with the pigtail round, immediately followed by the first and second rounds and the consolation pigtails and first round at 10 a.m. Wrestling will resume Friday evening at 7 p.m. with the quarterfinals and first and second consolation rounds. On Saturday, the consolation third round is slated for 9 a.m. and will be immediately followed by the semifinal and consolation fourth round, as well as the consolation semifinals and finals, which will determine the fifth-, sixth-, seventh- and eighth-place winners for each weight class and are expected to begin at 12:30 p.m. Saturday evening will feature the championship finals, determining the top four place-winners for each weight, scheduled to begin at 5 p.m.

This year's field at the Cliff Keen Invitational will feature 45 of the top collegiate wrestling programs in the nation, including 10 teams ranked in the most recent NWCA poll. Headlining the participating teams are No. 6 Nebraska, No. 10 Hofstra, No. 12 Cornell and No. 13 Missouri.

Cliff Keen Invitational History
Michigan has competed in the annual tournament 21 times dating back to 1983, missing only the first year of the tournament in 1982. Formerly known as the Las Vegas Hall of Fame, the tournament was renamed the Cliff Keen Invitational in 1993 to honor former Michigan wrestling coach and collegiate wrestling icon Cliff Keen. The tournament is run by a pair of former Michigan wrestlers -- three-time NCAA champion Mark Churella Sr. (1976-79) and Mark Churella Jr. (2001), who serve as executive director and tournament director, respectively. For more information about the Cliff Keen Invitational, visit www.cklvwrestle.com.

Michigan has placed fifth or better in eight of the last 10 seasons at the annual tournament, including a first-place showing in 2001, and has never finished lower than 10th place in its 20 appearances. The Michigan starting lineup will feature five grapplers with experience in the tournament and five newcomers to the invitational.

Wolverines at the Cliff Keen Invitational

Season	Place	Points	Champions
2003-04	Second	134.5	None
2002-03	Seventh	87	None
2001-02	First	163	Otto Olson (174), Andy Hrovat (184)
2000-01	10th	54	None
1999-2000	Fifth	96	Joe Warren (133), Otto Olson (174)
1998-99	Fourth	90.5	None
1997-98	Fourth	101	Jeff Catrabone (167), Airron Richardson (Hwt)
1996-97	Fourth	102	Jeff Catrabone (167)
1995-96	Fourth	89.5	None
1994-95	Fifth	N/A	N/A
1993-94	Fourth	81	Sean Bormet (158), Steve King (Hwt)
1992-93	Eighth	50	None
1991-92	Fifth	75.75	None
1990-91	Fifth	N/A	None
1989-90	Sixth	67.75	None
1988-89	Fourth	79.5	John Fisher (134), Joe Pantaleo (158)
1987-88	Fourth	92.5	None
1986-87	Fifth	75.5	Doug Wyland (118)
1985-86	Eighth	60	None
1984-85	Fifth	103	Joe McFarland (126)
1983-84	Seventh	53	None

Last Year at the Cliff Keen Invitational
The Wolverines claimed runner-up honors (134.5 points) at last season's Cliff Keen Invitational behind solid performances from seven U-M placewinners, just 23 points shy of first-place Nebraska. Michigan boasted four individual finalists as sophomore/freshman Mark Moos (125 pounds), senior/junior Ryan Bertin (157), fifth-year senior Pat Owen(165) and junior/sophomore Greg Wagner (heavyweight) all finished second at their respective weights.

Probable Michigan Starting Lineup

Wgt.	Wrestler	Yr./Elig.
125	Mark Moos	Jr./So.
133	Craig Gillison	Fr./Fr.
141	J.R. Muldoon	Jr./So.
149	Eric Tannenbaum	So./Fr.
157	Ryan Bertin	5th/Sr.
165	Ryan Churella	Sr./Jr.
174	Nick Roy	Jr./So.
184	Joshua Weitzel	So./So.
197	Willie Breyer	Sr./Jr.
Hwt	Greg Wagner	Sr./Jr.

Climbing the Charts
With a win over Lehigh's Derek Zinck in the season opener (Nov. 18), fifth-year senior Ryan Bertin improved his career record to 112-20, placing him15th on U-M's all-time wins list, just four wins shy of the 14th spot, currently held by two-time All-American A.J. Grant (116, 2000-03). Four-time All-American John Fisher holds the Wolverine career win record with a 183-21 mark during his five seasons at Michigan (1985-89).

Starting Things with a Bang
Through 83 years of U-M wrestling history, Michigan has posted an impressive 53-26-2 record in its first dual meet of the season, but snapped an eight-meet winning streak in the season opener with its 22-15 loss at Lehigh (Nov. 18).

Strength of Schedule
Michigan faces a tough field of competitors again this season, with 10 of the Wolverines' 14 dual meet opponents ranked among the top 25 teams in the National Wrestling Coaches Association's preseason poll, including three of the top five ranked teams. No. 2 Lehigh leads the pack of ranked opponents, which also includes No. 3 Nebraska, No. 4 Illinois, No. 7 Minnesota, No. 9 Iowa, No. 13 Central Michigan, No. 17 Penn State, No. 18 Wisconsin, No. 21 Purdue and No. 25 Stanford.

A Look at the Polls
After kicking off the 2004-05 season as the sixth-ranked team in the National Wrestling Coaches Association's preseason poll, the Wolverines climbed one position to the No. 5 spot in the most recent poll, released Nov. 22, after capturing the team title at the Body Bar Invitational (Nov. 20).

NWCA/InterMat Division I Team Rankings (10/22/04)

RANK, TEAM 1. Oklahoma State (11) 2. Lehigh 3. Iowa State 4. Illinois 5. MICHIGAN 6. Nebraska 7. Minnesota 8. Oklahoma 9. Iowa 10. Hofstra 11. West Virginia 12. Cornell 13. Missouri 14. Central Michigan 15. Northern Iowa 16. Penn State 17. Wisconsin 18. Pennsylvania 19. Edinboro 20. Purdue 21. Navy 22. Arizona State 23. UT-Chattanooga 24. Cal-Bakersfield 25. Rider

Individual Rankings by InterMat and Amateur Wrestling News

Wgt.	Wrestler	InterMat	AWN
125	Mark Moos	16th	10th
149	Eric Tannenbaum	14th	8th
157	Ryan Bertin	3rd	3rd
165	Ryan Churella	6th	5th
174	Nick Roy	18th	9th
Hwt	Greg Wagner	4th	4th

On the Horizon
The Maize and Blue will open the home portion of its 2004-05 season, hosting Cleveland State next Friday (Dec. 10) in its final dual meet before the holiday break. The event is slated to begin at 6:30 p.m. at Cliff Keen Arena.

Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423