Las Vegas – The Nebraska wrestling team heads to Las Vegas this weekend to partake in one of the premier wrestling tournaments of the year at the Cliff Keen Invitational.
The Las Vegas Convention Center will host the event, with action beginning on Friday, Dec. 1 at 11 a.m. (CT). Each weight class is set up in bracket format, with both the championship and consolation rounds of 64, 32 and 16 being contested until 6 p.m. Starting at 8 p.m., the championship quarterfinals and consolation first and second rounds of eight will take place.
Action resumes Saturday morning at 12 p.m. (CT) with the championship and consolation semifinals and consolation fifth- and seventh-place matches. The championship and third-place matches are set for 5 p.m.
The tournament field features the defending champions along with six of the top-10 teams in the country and 13 of the top-20 teams.
Live stream and live stats will be available on FloWrestling (subscription required). Fans can also follow @HuskerWrestling on Twitter for live updates throughout the tournament.
Last Time Out: For the second-straight year and third all-time, the Huskers claimed the Navy Classic title in Maryland on Saturday. NU finished first out of 14 teams with 212 points, as Navy (137 points) finished second and Princeton (134.5) was third. Individually, Caleb Smith (125), Brock Hardy (141), Ridge Lovett (149), Peyton Robb (157), Antrell Taylor (165) and Lenny Pinto (184) won their respective weight classes to help the team defend last season’s title.
Up Next: NU will return home to host SDSU on Saturday, Dec. 16 at 6 p.m. (CT). Action will be streamed on Big Ten Plus.
Nebraska’s Projected Lineup
125: #9 Caleb Smith
133: #27 Jacob Van Dee
141: #4 Brock Hardy
149: #1 Ridge Lovett
157: #3 Peyton Robb
165: #10 Antrell Taylor
174: Adam Thebeau
184: #7 Lenny Pinto
197: #12 Silas Allred
HWT: Harley Andrews
Quick Notes
- Six starters have undefeated records to start the season, as Smith (125) and Robb (157) have combined to start the season 14-0.
- Taylor (165), Pinto (184) and Silas Allred (197) have amassed a team-leading eight takedowns in dual matches.
Nebraska’s History at the Cliff Keen Invite
- Nebraska has competed at the Las Vegas Invitational a total of 27 times, finishing first in 2003, 2008, 2019, 2021 and 2022. NU has also placed second five times: 1992, 1995, 2000, 2004 and 2013.
Last Time at Cliff Keen (Dec. 2022)
- Three Huskers claimed individual titles and NU won its third-straight and fifth overall Cliff Keen title on Saturday night at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
- Brock Hardy (141), Peyton Robb (157) and Mikey Labriola (174) all finished atop their weight classes as NU amassed 137.5 team points, the most among the 33 schools competing.
Huskers Head to Doane Open
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The Huskers will send seven wrestlers to the Doane Open on Saturday. Elise Brown Ton, Drew Cooper, Blake Cushing, Cooper French, Tanner Frothinger, Scott Robertson and Brandyn Van Tassell will make the trip. Competition will start on Saturday at 9 a.m. (CT). Results will be posted on trackwrestling.com.
