Lehigh University
Las Vegas Invitational
Lehigh places three at Las Vegas Invitational
12/6/2008 5:00:00 PM | Men's Wrestling
 |
LAS VEGAS – Lehigh wrapped up action at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Saturday. Senior Trevor Chinn led the way for the Mountain Hawks with a fifth place finish at 149, as three of the eight Lehigh wrestlers to compete in the two-day event finished in the top eight at their respective weight classes. Joining Chinn on the podium were freshman Joe Kennedy, who placed sixth at 197 and junior Mike Galante, who finished seventh at 165.
As a team, Lehigh finished in 16th place with 54.5 points.
Saturday’s session began with six Lehigh wrestlers competing for the right to earn a spot in the top eight. The session did not start well for the Mountain Hawks as junior Matt Fisk lost 4-3 to Thomas Kimbrell at 133 and Seth Ciasulli was eliminated with a 6-2 loss to Filip Novachkov of Cal Poly at 141. Chinn became the first Mountain Hawk to place by earning a 10-3 decision over Walter Peppelman of Harvard. In his next match Chinn beat Peter Yates of Virginia Tech 9-3 to move into the consolation semis, where he fell 6-1 to Kyle Ruschell of Wisconsin.
Chinn’s fifth place match was a battle of top EIWA grapplers at 149 against defending conference champion Cesar Grajales. For the third straight meeting between the two, overtime was needed, and Chinn was able to score the decisive takedown in sudden victory to win 3-1, his second win in three tries versus Grajales.
At 165, Galante earned his place on the podium with an 8-6 win over Tyler Sherfey of Boise State. A 4-3 loss to Luke Manuel of Purdue relegated Galante to the seventh place match, where he earned a win by medical forfeit to place seventh.
Arguably the most pleasant surprise of the weekend was the performance of Kennedy, who placed sixth at one of the nation’s most grueling tournaments as a true freshman. Kennedy earned his place with a 4-3 win over Pitt’s Matt Wilps and then added a 7-1 win over Matt Powless. He then dropped his consolation semifinal rematch with Cal-State Bakersfield’s Riley Orozco and had to settle for sixth place after dropping a 7-3 decision to Cam Simaz of Cornell in the fifth place match..
The sixth and final Lehigh wrestler to compete on Saturday was freshman Sean Bilodeau, who was eliminated with a 6-1 loss to Chase Pami of Cal Poly.
Nebraska captured the team title, with 124.5 team points. Cornell took second with 91 points, while Minnesota (89), Pittsburgh (85) and Purdue (83) rounding out the top five.
The Mountain Hawks will return to the mats on Saturday, December 20 with a pair of duals in the state of New Jersey. Lehigh will face Rutgers in New Brunswick at 2 p.m. before heading to Lawrenceville to face Rider at 8 p.m.
Round of 12
|
Weight |
Match-up |
Result |
|
Score/Time |
|
133 |
Thomas Kimbrell (Bakersfield) |
dec. |
Matt Fisk (Lehigh) |
4-3 |
|
141 |
Filip Novachkov (Cal Poly) |
dec. |
Seth Ciasulli (Lehigh) |
6-2 |
|
149 |
Trevor Chinn (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Walter Peppelman (Harv) |
10-3 |
|
157 |
Chase Pami (Cal Poly) |
dec. |
Sean Bilodeau (Lehigh) |
6-1 |
|
165 |
Mike Galante (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Tyler Sherfey (Boise St.) |
8-6 |
|
197 |
Joe Kennedy (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Matt Wilps (Pitt) |
4-3 |
Consolation Quarterfinals
|
149 |
Trevor Chinn (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Peter Yates (VT) |
9-3 |
|
165 |
Luke Manuel (Purdue) |
dec. |
Mike Galante (Lehigh) |
4-3 |
|
197 |
Joe Kennedy (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Matt Powless (Indiana) |
7-1 |
Consolation Semifinals
|
149 |
Kyle Ruschell (Wisconsin) |
dec. |
Trevor Chinn (Lehigh) |
6-1 |
|
165 |
Riley Orozco (Bakersfield) |
Fall |
Joe Kennedy (Lehigh) |
1:44 |
Seventh place match
|
165 |
Mike Galante (Lehigh) |
med. forfeit |
Scott Glasser (Minn) |
|
Fifth place match
|
149 |
Trevor Chinn (Lehigh) |
dec. |
Cesar Grajales (Penn) |
3-1, s.v. |
|
197 |
Cam Simaz (Cornell) |
dec. |
Joe Kennedy (Lehigh) |
7-3 |
