Mueller, Hayes Place At Cliff Keen Invitational Saturday
Dec. 2, 2017
LAS VEGAS – A pair of underclassmen led the way for Virginia at the Cliff Keen Invitational on Saturday (Dec. 2), as sophomore Jack Mueller and redshirt freshman Louie Hayes both placed in the prestigious event.
Mueller (Dallas, Texas) finished in third place at 133 pounds, while Hayes finished seventh at 125 pounds. Redshirt sophomore Sam Krivus (Greensburg, Pa.) and redshirt junior Will Schany (Blair, Neb.) also advanced to day two action, but did not place in the event.
“We are really proud of what both Jack and Louie were able to do today,” said Virginia head coach Steve Garland. “Louie really gutted out a great win in the placing rounds and picked up a big fall before facing an NCAA finalist and closed it with the big win over the wrestler from Oklahoma. Jack put the stamp on the day and really finished the tournament well with a dominating win over a young man who had an incredible tournament.
“I was really impressed with Jack in that last match. If he can continue wrestling like that, he can beat anyone. It’s a very hard thing to wrestle back after having your heart broken. For them to come back and respond the way they did was awesome.”
Mueller, the third-seed at 133 pounds, took third in dominating fashion to close the tournament for Virginia, picking up a 7-0 decision over 11th-seeded Austin DeSanto of Drexel. Mueller finished with 6:23 of riding time as he controlled the match from the start.
Mueller dropped his first match of the day to No. 13 Josh Terao of American, but fought back through the consolation bracket with a win over No. 11 Korbin Myers of Edinboro before the win over DeSanto.
Hayes opened the day with a win, pinning Will Bardezbain of Kent State, but dropped his second bout by technical fall to the top-seed, and third-ranked, Ethan Lizak of Minnesota. Lizak was an NCAA finalist at 125 pounds last season. Hayes closed out his stay at the Cliff Keen Invitational with a win over Christian Moody of Oklahoma in the seventh-place match.
Krivus had things in control early, but a late takedown and four nearfall points as the third period closed pushed things the way of the nationally-ranked wrestler as Wick picked up the decision.
Schany also battled in a tight contest with 10th-seeded Keaton Subjeck of Stanford. A pair of takedowns in the third period, including one as time expired, provided the final margin of victory in the 5-2 decision for Subjeck. Schany is ranked No. 18 and was seeded 13th.
“I saw big gains from Sam and Will this tournament as well,” Garland said. “Overall, this tournament did turn out the way I wanted or how I drew it up, but I’m thankful for the growth experience we had at the toughest tournament in the country.”
Virginia will return to action on Sunday, Dec. 17, in a dual match at Bloomsburg at 1 p.m.
125:
No. 15 Louie Hayes – 7th Place Finish
Hayes pinned Will Bardezbain (Kent State), 3:13
No. 3 Ethan Lizak (Minnesota) tech fall Hayes, 16-0 (4:34)
Hayes dec. Christian Moody (Oklahoma), 6-5
133:
No. 7 Jack Mueller – 3rd Place Finish
No. 13 Josh Terao (American) dec. Mueller, 6-0
Mueller dec. No. 11 Korbin Myers (Edinboro),7-2
Mueller dec. No. Austin DeSanto (Drexel), 7-0
149:
Sam Krivus
No. 18 Zander Wick (Wisconsin) dec. Krivus, 8-2
174:
No. 18 Will Schany
No. 15 Keaton Subjeck (Stanford) dec. Schany, 5-2