Michigan
Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational
Cardenas Captures 197-Pound Title, Wolverines Take Seventh at CKLV
12/7/2024 8:58:00 PM | Wrestling
» Jacob Cardenas captured the 197-pound title with a second-period fall against Northwestern's Evan Bates in the championship final.
» Sergio Lemley (141) and Brock Mantanona (165) took seventh place, while Dylan Ragusin (33) and Jaden Bullock (184) both placed eighth.
» Michigan finished in seventh place in the team standings with 75 points.
Site: Las Vegas, Nev. (Las Vegas Convention Center)
Event: Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational (Day 2 of 2)
Result: 7th Place of 30 Teams (75 points)
Next U-M Event: Friday, Jan. 10 -- vs. Maryland (Crisler Center), 6 p.m.
LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- University of Michigan graduate student Jacob Cardenas earned a pin in the finals to capture the 197-pound title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Saturday evening (Dec. 7) at the Las Vegas Convention Center. With five total placewinners, the Wolverines earned seventh place in the team standings with 75 points.
Cardenas, the top seed and ranked third nationally, pinned Northwestern's 24th-ranked Evan Bates in a tilt at the 4:34 mark in the second period. After a scoreless first, Cardenas earned a quick escape to start the second, then got Bates to bite on a level change before blasting through a double leg for the match's first takedown. He tilted Bates for a four-point then adjusted to get the fall -- his first of the season.
Cardenas, whose previous best CKLV finish was a fourth-place showing last season, also earned a 12-0 major decision over Virginia Tech's 11th-ranked Andy Smith in the semifinals. He scored on a single leg from his knees in the first and added a four-point tilt to build an early and sizable lead, then with time winding down in the third, scored another takedown, shooting single and finishing with both legs wrapped up on the edge, before adding a point for his 2:32 riding time.
Cardenas improved to 8-0 on the season with eight bonus wins -- six technical falls, a major decision and the finals pin. He is the Wolverines' sixth CKLV champion over the last seven years.
Michigan had a tough wrestleback round in the day's early session with all four Wolverines dropping their consolation quarterfinals to move into seventh-place matches before splitting those bouts.
Sophomore Sergio Lemley and freshman Brock Mantanona took seventh place at 141 and 165 pounds, respectively, and both closed out their tournaments with bonus-point wins. Lemley took a forfeit win for seventh after falling 7-2 to Virginia Tech's 17th-ranked Sam Latona on takedowns in the first and second periods in his first match of the day.
Mantanona dropped a close one to Utah Valley's fourth-ranked Terrell Barraclough 4-1 in the consolation quarters after a late takedown in the first period. Mantanona, ranked 12th nationally, got multiple neutral danger swipes in a late third-period scramble but did not get the takedown. The no-call was reviewed after the match and upheld. He followed with a first-period pin against Hofstra's Kyle Mosher in the seventh-place bout, scrambling for the takedown midway through the first then using to first get four back points then the pin at the 2:53 mark.
Graduate student Dylan Ragusin and fifth-year senior Jaden Bullock took eighth place at 133 and 184 pounds, respectively. Ragusin could not overcome early deficits in both of his consolation bouts, while Bullock lost both of his by just a single takedown, including a 4-1 decision against South Dakota State's fifth-ranked Bennett Burge in the consolation quarterfinals.
Michigan will take a hiatus from competition over the next several weeks to train and for the holiday season. The Wolverines will send a contingent of wrestlers to the Midlands Championships on Dec. 29-30 in Evanston, Ill., before returning home to host Maryland on Friday, Jan. 10 at Crisler Center. The dual is slated for 6 p.m. and tickets are still available through the U-M Ticket Office.
Top 10 Teams (Final)
1. Oklahoma State         192 2. Nebraska               115 3. Ohio State             110.5 4. Virginia Tech          90 5. Iowa State             89.5 6. Northern Iowa          85.5 7. MICHIGAN               75 8. Stanford               72.5 9. South Dakota State     62 10. Purdue                53.5
Michigan Results (Day 2)
Numbers listed are tournament seeds
133 Pounds -- #1 Dylan Ragusin
Consolations - dec. by #4 Nic Bouzakis (Ohio State), 13-7
Seventh Place - dec. by #12 Derrick Cardinal (South Dakota State), 12-5
Finished in eighth place with a 3-3 record
141 -- #4 Sergio Lemley
Consolations - dec. by #8 Sam Latona (Virginia Tech), 7-2
Seventh Place - won by forfeit over Cael Happel (Northern Iowa)
Finished in seventh place with a 4-2 record
165 Pound -- #8 Brock Mantanona
Consolations - dec. by #3 Terrell Barraclough (Utah Valley), 4-1
Seventh Place - pinned Kyle Mosher (Hofstra), 2:53
Finished in seventh place with a 5-2 record
184 Pounds -- #6 Jaden Bullock
Consolations - dec. by #3 Bennett Burge (South Dakota State), 4-1
Seventh Place - dec. by Dennis Robin (West Virginia), 4-2
Finished in eighth place with a 4-3 record
197 Pounds -- #1 Jacob Cardenas
Semifinals - major dec. #4 Andy Smith (Virginia Tech), 12-0
Final - pinned #11 Evan Bates (Northwestern), 4:34
Finished as the 197-pound champion with a 5-0 record
• Day 1 Results
Players Mentioned
