Huskers Ready for Competitive Las Vegas Invitational

Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational
Star of the Desert Arena
Primm, Nev.
Friday-Saturday, Dec. 4-5, 2009
Schedule:
Friday-Pigtail Round (11 a.m.), Round 1-2 (Noon), Quarterfinals, Consolation Round 1-2 (9 p.m.)
Saturday-Consolation Round 3 (11 a.m.), Semifinals, Consolation Round 4 (Noon), Consolation Semifinals (12:30 p.m.), Consolation Finals (2:30 p.m.), Championship Finals (5 p.m.) *All times are central
Live Stats: InterMat Wrestle
Twitter: www.twitter.com/HuskerWrestling

The 11th-ranked Nebraska wrestling team will head to a familiar December destination for the fourth consecutive year, as the Huskers travel to Primm, Nev., for the Las Vegas Invitational this Friday and Saturday, Dec. 4-5 at 11 a.m.

Nebraska will see some of the best competition in the nation at the Star of the Desert Arena, with over 40 teams invited to the two-day event. Twelve squads among the field are currently ranked in the InterMat Top 25, including top-10 foes Ohio State (3), Cornell (8) and Boise State (9). The Las Vegas Inviational allows 10 eligible wrestlers for each team and no unattached entries. Live stats will be available on www.intermatwrestle.com.

The Huskers will be looking to defend their 2008 Las Vegas Invitational championship, when Jordan Burroughs led NU to the team crown by earning Most Outstanding Wrestler honors with a championship at 157 pounds. Burroughs was one of two Huskers to win an individual title, joining Craig Brester (197) in leading Nebraska to 124.5 points.

Nebraska is currently 4-1 in dual action after it won 3-of-4 matches at the Brute/Journeymen Northeast Duals last weekend.

Scouting the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational
Nebraska will be up against some of its stiffest competition of the 2009-10 season this week in Nevada.

In addition to 12 ranked teams, 12 squads in the Las Vegas Invitational field finished in the top 25 at the 2009 NCAA Championships.

Ohio State is the highest ranked team, as it holds a 4-0 dual record and finished runner-up among eight teams at the Oklahoma Gold Classic.

Aside from being part of a highly competitive field, the Huskers will also see some familiar faces in Primm. Nebraska has already squared off against Wisconsin, defeating the Badgers on Nov. 15 in Lincoln, and Hofstra, downing the Pride on Nov. 28 at the Northeast Duals in Troy, N.Y.

Also included in the participating teams are future dual opponents North Carolina State (Jan. 3), Arizona State (Jan. 22), Oregon State (Jan. 24) and Oklahoma (Feb. 4).

Last Time Out: Dwyer Guides Huskers to 3-1 Record at Northeast Duals
Seniors Stephen Dwyer (174), Jordan Burroughs (157) and Craig Brester (197) combined to win all 12 of their matches and lead Nebraska to a 3-1 record at the Journeymen/Brute Northeast Duals in Troy, N.Y., on Saturday, Nov. 28.

Nebraska defeated its three opponents - Binghamton (27-11), Hofstra (29-6) and Appalachian State (40-6) - by an average of 24 points per dual, dropping only a narrow 18-15 match against No. 12 Lehigh on the final bout of the contest.

Dwyer was the most dominant Husker of the day, pinning Binghamton's Anthony Esposito (1:12) and Appalachian State's Austin Trotman (2:16), while also defeating a pair of ranked opponents by decision in No. 10 Ryan Petrovich of Hofstra, 5-0, and No. 18 Robert Hamlin of Lehigh (8-4). Dwyer's pin of Esposito catapulted Nebraska over Binghamton in its first dual of the day, as the Huskers led just 13-7 heading into the 174-pound bout, but Dwyer's fall led the Huskers to three wins in the final four matches.

Nebraska had five falls overall at the Northeast Duals, including a critical pin from sophomore Chris Hacker that gave the Huskers an opportunity to knock off No. 12 Lehigh. Nebraska fell behind, 9-0, to the Mountain Hawks, but Hacker's pin of Joey Napoli in 6:42 was the start of a Husker comeback that saw NU win four of the next six matches and tie the score, 15-15, heading into the final bout. Sophomore Tucker Lane, ranked No. 7 nationally at 285 pounds, squared off against No. 6 Zach Rey in the decisive match and fell, 3-2, giving the Mountain Hawks the 18-15 win. It was the only blemish of the day for Lane, who defeated each of his remaining three opponents by decision.

Burroughs was strong in a business-like 4-0 day, highlighted by a dominating 22-9 major decision win over No. 8 Jon Bonilla-Bowman of Hofstra. The victory was the fifth in a row to open Nebraska's dual with the Pride, leading to an easy 29-6 win.

Burroughs also produced a technical fall over Appalachian State's Chip Powell in a stretch that saw the Huskers win four of the first five matches against the Mountaineers. That led to Nebraska's final fall of the day, an exclamation point from Brester, pinning Paul Glover in just 1 minute, 12 seconds.

Brester had two bonus-point wins after he began the Northeast Duals with a technical fall triumph over Binghamton's Nate Schiedel.

Last Time at the Vegas Invite: Two Huskers Earn Titles as Nebraska Wins 2008 Title
Jordan Burroughs and Craig Brester finished first in their respective weight class to lead No. 6 Nebraska to a first-place team finish at the Las Vegas Invitational on Dec. 6, 2008. Burroughs earned Outstanding-Wrestler-of-the-Tournament honors to help propel NU past No. 4 Cornell, who finished second with 91 points. No. 8 Minnesota claimed third (89), while Pittsburgh (85) and Purdue (83) rounded out the top five teams. Four other Huskers placed, including three in the top four, as Nebraska won the tournament for the second time.

Burroughs posted two decisions at 157 pounds on the final day. He started with a 3-2 victory over All-American and fifth-ranked J.P. O'Conner of Harvard in the semifinals and earned a 10-8 win over defending NCAA champion and sixth-ranked Jordan Leen of Cornell in the final.

Brester posted an equally impressive weekend. He racked up major decisions in the semifinals and final, after earning a pin, technical fall and major decision. He advanced to the final with a 13-3 win over No. 11 Logan Brown of Purdue and took the title with a 10-2 victory against No. 13 Richard Starks. Brester is 12-0 on the season.

Brandon Browne took second at 174 with a loss in the final to top-ranked Steve Luke of Michigan. Browne advanced with a 5-1 decision over West Virginia's Kurt Brenner in the semifinals and battled Luke to overtime, but came up short.

Stephen Dwyer finished third at 165 after losing his quarterfinal match with Ohio State's Colt Sponseller, 2-0. Dwyer, ranked fourth in the nation, rebounded with an 11-2 major decision over Wisconsin's Andrew Howe and notched a 4-0 decision against No. 6 Luke Manuel of Purdue in the consolation finals.

Tucker Lane lost in the consolation final to place fourth at heavyweight. He posted three straight decisions after in the quarterfinals. He lost his final match 3-2 to No. 3 Kyle Massey of Wisconsin, but defeated two ranked foes in the consolation bracket.

Manning Earns Win No. 150
With Nebraska's 26-17 victory over No. 11 Wisconson on Nov. 15 at the NU Coliseum, 10th-year head coach Mark Manning picked up the 150th dual win of his collegiate coaching career. Manning spent three seasons as Northern Iowa's head coach from 1997 to 2000, turning around a Panther program that went 5-9 in his first year to 10-5-2 and an 11th-place finish at the NCAA Championships in 2000.

At Nebraska, Manning is 130-46-3 with a 73.4 percent winning percentage that ranks No. 1 among the 15 head coaches in school history.

Burroughs Buries Opponent in 25 Seconds
Nebraska's defending national champion at 157 pounds began his senior season in dominant fashion, as Jordan Burroughs pinned Wisconsin's Greg Burke in 25 seconds on Nov. 15 at the NU Coliseum.

Burroughs' fall is the quickest pin by a Husker in a varsity match during the Big 12 era (1996-present).

The Sicklerville, N.J., native won the 2009 national title at 157 pounds after a perfect 35-0 season. He is a two-time All-American after he finished third at 149 pounds in 2008. Burroughs is 86-19 overall at Nebraska, including a 5-0 record in 2009-10.

Huskers Launch Twitter Page
The Nebraska Wrestling program has launched a home on Twitter at "www.twitter.com/HuskerWrestling".

Follow everything surrounding the Huskers throughout the season with more news, notes and quotes on one of the world's fastest-growing social networks.

Next Up: Huskers Hit the Road for Two Duals
Nebraska will have its toughest dual to date next Thursday, Dec. 10 when the Huskers battle No. 4 Minnesota in Minneapolis. NU will then head west for a Saturday meeting with the South Dakota State Jackrabbits.