Ridge Kiley Season 2008-09

Honors & Awards

• Three-Time NCAA Championships Qualifier (2011, 2012, 2013)
• Nebraska Lifter of the Year (2012-13)
• Nebraska Spirit of Excellence (2011-12)
• Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll (Fall 2008)
• Nebraska Most Improved Wrestler (2010-11)
• Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll (Fall 2012; Spring 2013)

2012-13 (Senior)
NCAA Championships
Ridge Kiley moved up to 141 pounds for his senior season and went 0-2 at the NCAA Championships in his native state of Iowa. In the first round, he dropped a 2-0 decision to No. 11 seed Charles Cobb of Penn before losing to Lock Haven's Daniel Neff in the wrestleback bracket, 8-5. 

A three-time NCAA qualifier, Kiley completes his NU career with a 71-54 record over four years.

Big Ten Championships
Kiley opened the conference tournament with a loss to No. 9 Mark Ballweg of Iowa, 6-1. In the wrestleback bracket, Kiley fell by a 5-1 decision to Wisconsin's Tom Kelliher en route to elimination.

Regular Season
Kiley finished his final season at Nebraska with a 14-13 record,which included a 9-5 mark in dual competition. He appeared in InterMat's Top 20 at 141 pounds several times throughout the season. Of Kiley's 27 matches, 24 were determined by decision and 10 of them were decided by three points or fewer.

Kiley battled to a 4-2 record and seventh-place finish at the Cliff Keen Invitational, Nov. 30-Dec. 1. He responded two weeks later with a pair of shutout wins at the Grapple at the Garden in New York, N.Y. Kiley also added crucial wins in Nebraska's narrow victories over Michigan, Illinois, Michigan State and Virginia.

2011-12 (Junior)
NCAA Championships
Kiley competed at 133 pounds and dropped his opening match by major decision, 10-1, to No. 5 seed Joe Colon of Northern Iowa. Kiley finished the NCAA Championships with an 0-2 record after losing a 7-2 decision to Penn's Bryan Ortenzio in his first match in wrestlebacks.

Big Ten Championships
Kiley finished eighth at the Big Ten Championships with a 2-3 record. He opened with an impressive 10-0 major decision win over Indiana's Joe Duca before falling to No. 2 seed Tony Ramos of Iowa, 12-2.

Kiley bounced back with another shutout victory over Wisconsin's Shane McQuade, but lost back-to-back matches, including a 4-3 defeat in the seventh-place match.

Regular Season
Kiley finished his junior campaign with a 17-16 record at 133 pounds, going 11-8 in duals. He took sixth place at the Cliff Keen Invitational, defeating two top-20 opponents in the process. Kiley took a four-match win streak into Big Ten duals, winning all by at least four points. In Big Ten duals, Kiley faced five top-10 opponents, compiling a 4-5 record.

Kiley closed the season with a brutal stretch against three top-10 opponents, dropping all three in major decisions. He earned 39 dual points on the season and won five major decisions. 

2010-11 (Sophomore)
NCAA Tournament
Participating in his first NCAA Tournament, Kiley went 1-2 in the 133-pound bracket. In his opening-round match, Kiley fell to the No. 4 seed Tyler Graff of Wisconsin by major decision, 16-9, to drop to the wrestleback bracket.

Kiley recorded his first victory at the NCAA Championships in his second match against Stanford's Justin Paulsen in dominating fashion, 4-0, but was bounced from the tournament after falling to Flint Ray from Utah Valley.

Big 12 Tournament
Needing one victory at the Big 12 Tournament to automatically qualify for the NCAA Championships, Kiley defeated Iowa State's Ben Cash with a 9-0 major decision in the fourth-place challenge match.

Kiley battled the No. 2 seed Jordan Keller of Oklahoma in the opening round, but fell to the Sooner in a one-point decision. Kiley then fell to Missouri's Nathan McCormick in another one-point decision to slip into the fourth-place challenge match.

Regular Season
Kiley wrestled one of the most challenging schedules on the Husker squad with 11 nationally ranked opponents on his slate. Opening his season with a title at the Harold Nichols Open, Kiley went on to start every dual at 133 pounds, where he garnered an 11-8 dual record with two pins and two major decisions. He finished the regular season with a 20-11 overall record.

After an 0-2 start in dual competition, Kiley responded by winning eight of his next 11 matches, including an eighth-place finish at the Midlands Championships. At the tournament, Kiley recorded two pins over North Central College's (Ill.) Nathan Fitzenreider and No. 16 Levi Mele of Northwestern, which was Kiley's second victory over a ranked opponent on the year.

Kiley was 2-2 in conference dual matches with victories over Missouri's Nathan McCormick and Iowa State's Ben Cash. Kiley was competitive in almost every match, with seven of his 11 losses coming by two points or less. He was a valuable part of the Huskers' success during the dual season accounting for 34 dual points to tie for No. 5 on the squad.

2009-10 (Redshirt Freshman)
Kiley went 18-10 overall in his redshirt freshman season with six pins and one technical fall. His six falls tied for third among all Huskers. Kiley had a pair of third-place finishes at the Harold Nichols Open and Glen Brand Open to highlight the tournament season. He began the year with a 10-4 record. Kiley's two varsity starts came against top-four nationally-ranked opponents, as he fell to eventual national champion Jayson Ness of Minnesota by pin and No. 4 Jordan Oliver of Oklahoma State by technical fall.

2008-09 (Redshirt)
Regular Season
Kiley posted a 10-2 record in his redshirt season for the Huskers, including three pins and two major decisions. Kiley started the year with nine straight wins, including a 5-0 showing to place first in the amateur division of the Kaufman-Brand Open. Kiley went 3-0 at the UNK Loper Open, before a minor injury forced him to default out. He ended the season with a 2-2 showing at the Brand Open.

Before Nebraska
Kiley racked up a 153-25 career record for Dave Morgan and Darin Schreck at Eagle Grove High School. He claimed second and third his freshman and sophomore years and capped his career with a 37-1 record and state title his senior year. A two-time all-state honoree, Kiley earned two All-America selections at the Junior National Championships. In the classroom, he was on the honor roll all four years.

Personal
The son of Ernie and Ladawn Kiley, Ridge was born Dec. 14, 1989, in Ames, Iowa. He has one brother, Garett. Ridge earned his bachelor's degree in May of 2013, after majoring in marketing at Nebraska. He claimed spots on the Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll in the fall and spring semesters of 2012-13.