Saturday finals set for Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, three No. 1 seeds fall in semis

Photo of Ryan Deakin by Sam Janicki
The finals pairings have officially been set for the 2021 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational as plenty of exciting performances were put on during the morning’s semifinal session. The finals session will begin at 3:00 p.m. pacific time.

Seven of the tournament’s ten No. 1 seeds will wrestle in the finals, but top seeds dropped semifinal bouts at 184 pounds, 197 pounds and heavyweight.
Ohio State’s No. 5 Kaleb Romero posted one of the top wins of the session, knocking off No. 1 Tate Samuelson (Wyoming) to advance for a chance to win a CKLV title. He was dominant in the win, posting over two minutes of riding time on his way to the victory. In the finals, he’ll match up with Nebraska’s No. 2 Taylor Venz, who defeated Cornell’s No. 3 Jonathan Loew in the semis with a tech fall victory.
At 197 pounds, Nebraska’s No. 4 Eric Schultz continues the Huskers dominant CKLV performance with a win over top-seeded Jake Woodley of Oklahoma, a 6-2 decision to advance. Schultz will wrestle Wyoming’s No. 3 Stephen Buchanan in the finals. Buchanan knocked off Michigan’s No. 2 Patrick Brucki in the semifinals.
In the heavyweight semifinals, Harvard’s No. 4 Yaraslau Slavikouski upset top-seeded Tate Orndorff of Ohio State. An early takedown proved to be the difference-maker, sending Slavikouski into the finals against Oregon State’s No. 10 Gary Traub.
Traub has been another impact performer, working his way through a talented heavyweight bracket to reach the finals. He’s defeated No. 7 Josh Heindselman of Oklahoma, No. 2 Brian Andrews of Wyoming and No. 3 Christian Lance of Nebraska (3-1 sudden victory win in the semifinals).
Premier semifinal action took place at 149 pounds, where Nebraska’s No. 5 seed Ridge Lovett gave two-time NCAA champion Yianni Diakomihalis of Cornell all he could handle. Lovett, who knocked off Stanford’s No. 4 Jaden Abas in the quarterfinals, took Diakomihalis into sudden victory in a 4-4 match. However, Diakomihalis defended a Lovett re-attack in the overtime period, rolled and scored a takedown in the highlight-reel sequence to make the finals. He’ll face Ohio State’s No. 2 Sammy Sasso, a 2021 NCAA finalist, in the 149-pound finals.
Ryan Deakin of Northwestern was dominant in his 157-pound semifinal bout against Purdue’s No. 4 Kendall Coleman, jumping out to a 6-0 lead in the first period before locking up the win via fall. Deakin, a three-time NCAA All-American, will wrestle Princeton’s No. 2 Quincy Monday in the finals.
Saturday’s finals session begins at 3:00 p.m. pacific time. All of the action can be watched live on FloWrestling.
The third-place matches at each weight will also be held during the 3 p.m. pacific session.

Full brackets and team scores can be found on FloArena.
2021 CLIFF KEEN LAS VEGAS INVITATIONAL

At Las Vegas, Nevada, December 3-4
Finals pairings
125 pounds
No. 1 Pat Glory (Princeton) vs. No. 2 Devin Schroder (Purdue)
133 pounds
No. 1 Chris Cannon (Northwestern) vs. No. 3 Dylan Ragusin (Michigan)
141 pounds
No. 1 Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) vs. No. 2 Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado)
149 pounds
No. 1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) vs. No. 2 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State)
157 pounds
No. 1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) vs. No. 2 Quincy Monday (Princeton)
165 pounds
No. 1 Evan Wick (Cal Poly) vs. No. 2 Shane Griffith (Stanford)
174 pounds
No. 1 Michael Labriola (Nebraska) vs. No. 2 Ethan Smith (Ohio State)
184 pounds
No. 5 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) vs. No. 2 Taylor Venz (Nebraska)
197 pounds
No. 4 Eric Schultz (Nebraska) vs. No. 3 Stephen Buchanan (Wyoming)
285 pounds
No. 4 Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard) vs. No. 10 Gary Traub (Oregon State)
Semifinal results
125 pounds
No. 1 Pat Glory (Princeton) dec. No. 4 Jack Medley (Michigan), 4-2
No. 2 Devin Schroder (Purdue) dec. No. 6 Brandon Kaylor (Oregon State), 8-6
133 pounds
No. 1 Chris Cannon (Northwestern) dec. No. 4 Devan Turner (Oregon State), 4-1
No. 3 Dylan Ragusin (Michigan) dec. No. 7 Haiden Drury (Utah Valley), 4-3
141 pounds
No. 1 Clay Carlson (South Dakota State) dec. No. 5 Parker Filius (Purdue), 6-1
No. 2 Andrew Alirez (Northern Colorado) dec. No. 3 Chad Red (Nebraska), 3-1


149 pounds
No. 1 Yianni Diakomihalis (Cornell) dec. No. 5 Ridge Lovett (Nebraska), 6-4 SV
No. 2 Sammy Sasso (Ohio State) dec. No. 3 Yahya Thomas (Northwestern), 6-4
157 pounds
No. 1 Ryan Deakin (Northwestern) fall No. 4 Kendall Coleman (Purdue), 2:55
No. 2 Quincy Monday (Princeton) dec. No. 3 Peyton Robb (Nebraska), 11-6
165 pounds
No. 1 Evan Wick (Cal Poly) dec. No. 4 Cam Amine (Michigan), 4-1
No. 2 Shane Griffith (Stanford) dec. No. 3 Carson Kharchla (Ohio State), 5-4
174 pounds
No. 1 Michael Labriola (Nebraska) dec. No. 5 Cade Devos (South Dakota State), 6-2
No. 2 Ethan Smith (Ohio State) dec. No. 14 Adam Kemp (Cal Poly), 3-2
184 pounds
No. 5 Kaleb Romero (Ohio State) dec. No. 1 Tate Samuelson (Wyoming), 6-3
No. 2 Taylor Venz (Nebraska) tech fall No. 3 Jonathan Loew (Cornell), 16-1
197 pounds
No. 4 Eric Schultz (Nebraska) dec. No. 1 Jake Woodley (Oklahoma), 6-2
No. 3 Stephen Buchanan (Wyoming) dec. No. 2 Patrick Brucki (Michigan), 3-2
285 pounds
No. 4 Yaraslau Slavikouski (Harvard) dec. No. 1 Tate Orndorff (Ohio State), 3-2
No. 10 Gary Traub (Oregon State) dec. No. 3 Christian Lance (Nebraska), 3-1 SV