LAS VEGAS - Joey McKenna claimed the 141-pound title at 2016 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, while Stanford finished 11th as a team with 59.5 points.
McKenna, ranked No. 2 in the nation, becomes the first Cardinal wrestler since Tanner Gardner in 2007 to win a title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite. The Towaco, New Jersey native is now 13-0 on the season.
In the finals, McKenna defeated seventh-ranked Bryce Meredith of Wyoming, 3-1. The win avenged McKenna's 2016 NCAA semifinals loss to Meredith. There was no score after the opening period. McKenna chose down to start the third and quickly tallied the escape. He secured a takedown as time expired in the second for a 3-0 advantage. Meredith scored an escape in the third, but was unable to finish any of his shots as McKenna held on for the victory.
Congrats @Joey_McKenna! First CKLV champ for @CardWrestling since 3x AA @tannerdgardner (2007). #CardinalCaliber pic.twitter.com/Ocu2aUPP0S
— Stanford Wrestling (@CardWrestling) December 4, 2016
McKenna reached the finals with a convincing 10-2 major decision over Army's Logan Everett in the semifinals. He led 6-0 after the opening period against Everett, who is ranked 16th nationally. It marked McKenna's second win over Everett in two weeks as the duo wrestled for the Roadrunner Open championship on Nov. 20.
Redshirt junior heavyweight Nathan Butler and redshirt junior Jim Wilson (174 pounds) finished fifth and sixth, respectively. Butler posted decisions over Columbia's Garrett Ryan, 4-1, and 16th-ranked Billy Miller of Edinboro, 5-0, to improve to 10-3 on the season. Wilson dropped a 12-5 decision to fifth-ranked Brian Realbuto of Cornell in the semifinals, and a 9-1 major decision to 20th-ranked Myles Amine of Michigan to drop to 11-3 on the year.
Stanford will be back in action on Sunday, December 18 at the Reno Tournament Champions in Reno, Nevada.
No. 7 Connor Schram, 125 pounds | 2-1
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| won by default over Matt Rodriguez (Harvard) | 2:01 |
| dec. Trey Chalifoux (Army) | 6-2 |
| lost to Trey Andrews (Northern Colorado) | 4-2 |
| medical forfeit to Ben Thornton (Purdue) | MFF |
Peter Russo, 133 pounds | 0-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to No. 5 Earl Hall (Iowa State) | F4:04 |
| lost to Josh Newberg (Boise State) | 10-4 |
No. 2 Joey McKenna, 141 pounds | 5-0 - 1st
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| tech. fall Dylan Caruana (Binghamton) | 17-2 (4:38) |
| dec. Cole Martin (Wisconsin) | 6-3 |
| fall Timmy Box (Northern Colorado) | 1:56 |
| maj. dec. No. 16 Logan Everett (Army) | 10-2 |
| dec. No. 7 Bryce Meredith (Wyoming) | 3-1 |
Walker Dempsey, 149 pounds | 1-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. No. 20 Zac Hall (Michigan) | 7-5 |
| lost to Joey Delgado (Oregon State) | 3-2 |
| lost to Chase Straw (Iowa State) | 9-5 |
Paul Fox, 157 pounds | 1-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| maj. dec. Abraham Rodriguez (Oregon State) | 16-4 |
| lost to No. 5 Brian Murphy (Michigan) | 5-3 |
| lost to Chase Delande (Edinboro) | 6-0 |
No. 12 Keaton Subjeck, 165 pounds | 2-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. Kyle Bierdumpfel (Harvard) | 9-8 |
| fall Logan Parks (Central Michigan) | F2:48 |
| lost to No. 16 Austin Matthews (Edinboro) | 7-3 |
| lost to Branson Ashworth (Wyoming) | 6-0 |
No. 13 Jim Wilson, 174 pounds | 4-2 - 6th
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| fall Jairod James (Kent State) | F11:46 (7OT) |
| dec. Alex Aguilar (North Idaho) | 6-2 |
| dec. Chaz Polson (Wyoming) | 5-3 |
| dec. Jake Morrissey (Purdue) | 9-3 |
| lost to No. 5 Brian Realbuto (Cornell) | 12-5 |
| lost to No. 20 Myles Amine (Michigan) | 9-1 |
| forfeit to Christian Brucki (Central Michigan) | FF |
Zach Nevills, 184 pounds | 0-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to Carson Powell (Iowa State) | 5-0 |
| lost to Bobby Steveson (Minnesota) | 23-8 (5:36) |
David Showunmi, 197 pounds | 0-2
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to Steban Cervantes (Navy) | 10-3 |
| lost to Tom Lane (Cal Poly) | 17-2 (6:28) |
No. 10 Nathan Butler, 285 pounds | 4-2 - 5th
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. Kerry Powers (Air Force) | 11-7 |
| dec. Connar Calkins (Binghamton) | 3-2 |
| lost to No. 8 Michael Kroells (Minnesota) | 3-1 |
| dec. Garrett Ryan (Columbia) | 4-1 |
| lost to #4 Tanner Hall (Arizona State) | 3-2 (TB) |
| dec. No. 16 Billy Miller (Edinboro) | 5-0 |