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Five Gopher surge into Las Vegas Invite semifinals

December 6, 2002

Las Vegas, Nev. - Five members of the third-ranked University of Minnesota wrestling team qualified for the semifinals of the 2002 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational tonight at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Ryan Lewis (133 pounds), Jared Lawrence (149), Luke Becker (157), Jacob Volkmann (165) and Josh McLay (174) advanced in the championship bracket which continues Saturday at 9 a.m. (Pacific time).

As a team, the Golden Gophers stand in third place with 80.5 points. Ohio State leads the 46-team event with 86.5 points with West Virginia in second with 81.0 points.

Lewis, the top seed at 133 pounds, became the first Golden Gopher to advance to the semis with his 9-0 major decision over No. 8 Erkin Tadzhimetov of Colby. Lewis led 3-0 after the second period and added a takedown and two-point near fall to move on to face No. 4 Brandon Lauer of West Virginia. In the tough 149-pound bracket, top-seeded Jared Lawrence tallied his third fall in as many bouts with his 3:27 pin of No. 8 Dan Jankowski of Purdue. Lawrence, now 6-0 this season, led 5-0 at the time of the fall. He advances to battle No. 5 Billy Smith of West Virginia. The bracket features six of the nation's top 10 ranked 149 pounders, including No. 2 Jesse Jantzen of Harvard and No. 3 Eric Larkin of Arizona State.

Top-seeded Luke Becker became the third grappler in the Maroon and Gold to move to the semis with his 8-4 win over No. 4 Adam Britt of VMI. Becker notched two takedowns and a reversal in the third period to cruise to the triumph. Now on a 28-match winning streak, Becker is 6-0 this season. Second-seeded Jacob Volkmann posted his fourth major decision in as many matches with his 12-1 shellacking ov No. 7 Nick Frost of Arizona State at 165 pounds. He did not allow an ASU point until midway through the third periodVolkmann, 7-0 this year, moves to the semifinals to face No. 3 Johnny Clark of Ohio State.

Josh McLay, the No. 11 seed at 174 pounds, became the final Golden Gopher to qualify for the semifinals with his 1-0 win over No. 3 Alibek Pardakulov of Colby in sudden victory overtime. McLay and Pardakulov battled to a 0-0 tie after regualtion with the Colby grappler picking up a stalling call midway through the third period. Twenty seconds into the overtime period, Pardakulov was called for stalling again, giving McLay the semifinal berth against No. 7 Brian Glynn of Illinois.

In the consolation bracket, two Golden Gophers - Bobbe Lowe (125 pounds) and Jacob Lininger (heavyweight) - will compete tomorrow morning in the fourth round of the wrestlebacks. Lowe fell in his quarterfinal bout to No. 1 Chris Fleeger of Purdue, 7-3. Fleeger tallied a first-period take down and added a three-point near fall in the second period to seal the match. Lowe, seeded eighth, faces Heath McKim in the wrestlebacks. Lininger stayed alive in the consolation bracket with three solid wins, including a 7-3 triumph over No. 2 Kevin Herron of Missouri. He takes on Israel Blevins of Purdue in the fourth round of the consolation bracket.

Complete Minnesota results are below. For more results from the Las Vegas Invitational, check www.thewrestlingmall.com.

Consolation Bracket First Round Results
141 - No. 10 Tommy Owen (MINN) dec. Anthony Baza (Cal Bakersfield), 5-4
197 - No. 10 Chad Mentel (MINN) dec. Lee Kraemer (Wisconsin), 3-2
HWT - No. 9 Jacob Lininger (MINN) maj. dec. Jonas Corl (Harvard), 8-0
 
Consolation Bracket Second Round Results
141 - No. 10 Tommy Owen (MINN) dec. Bryan Miller (Colby), 10-5
197 - No. 10 Chad Mentel (MINN) dec. Drew Dunbar (San Francisco St.), 10-8 SVO
HWT - No. 9 Jacob Lininger (MINN) dec. No. 2 Kevin Herron (Missouri), 7-3
 
Championship Bracket Quarterfinal Results
125 - No. 1 Chris Fleeger (Purdue) dec. No. 8 Bobbe Lowe (MINN), 7-3
133 - No. 1 Ryan Lewis (MINN) maj. dec. No. 8 Erkin Tadzhimetov (Colby), 9-0
149 - No. 1 Jared Lawrence (MINN) pinned No. 8 Dan Jankowski (Purdue), 3:27
157 - No. 1 Luke Becker (MINN) dec. No. 9 Matt Lebe (West Virginia), 8-4
165 - No. 2 Jacob Volkmann (MINN) maj. dec. No. 7 Nick Frost (Arizona St.), 12-1
174 - No. 11 Josh McLay (MINN) dec. No. 2 Alibek Pardakulov (Colby), 1-0 SVO
 
Play-by-play
125 - No. 8 Bobbe Lowe (MINN) vs. No. 1 Chris Fleeger (Purdue)
1st period: Fleeger takedown 2:24 (0-2); Lowe escape 2:55 (1-2); Advantage time Fleeger 0:30
2nd period: Lowe starts down; Fleeger 3 pt near fall 1:45 (1-5); Lowe reversal 2:00 (3-5); Advantage time Fleeger 2:30
3rd period: Fleeger starts down; Fleeger escape 0:01 (3-6); Fleeger stall warning; Advantage time Fleeger 2:30 (3-7)
Final: Fleeger dec. Lowe, 7-3
 
133 - No. 1 Ryan Lewis (MINN) maj. dec. No. 8 Erkin Tadzhimetov (Colby), 9-0
1st period: Stall warning both 1:42; No scoring
2nd period: Lewis starts down; Lewis escape 0:06 (1-0); Lewis takedown 1:15 (3-0); Advantage time Lewis 0:38
3rd period: Neutral start; Lewis takedown 0:26 (5-0); Tadzhimetov stall warning; Lewis 2 pt near fall 2:00 (8-0); Advantage time Lewis 2:12 (9-0)
Final: Lewis maj. dec. Tadzhimetov, 9-0
 
149 - No. 1 Jared Lawrence (MINN) vs. No. 8 Dan Jankowski (Purdue)
1st period: Lawrence takedown 0:59 (2-0); Advantage time Lawrence 1:59
2nd period: Lawrence starts down; Lawrence escape (3-0); Lawrence takedown (5-0); Lawrence pin 0:27
Final: Lawrence pinned Jankowski, 3:27
 
157 - No. 1 Luke Becker (MINN) vs. No. 9 Matt Lebe (West Virginia)
1st period: Becker stall warning 2:45; No scoring
2nd period: Lebe starts down; Lebe escape 0:09 (0-1); Becker takedown 1:10 (2-1); Advantage time Becker 0:56
3rd period: Becker starts down; Becker reversal 0:31 (4-1); Lebe escape (4-2); Becker takedown 1:17 (6-2); Lebe escape 1:20 (6-3); Becker takedown 1:44 (8-3); Lebe escape (8-4); Advantage time Becker 0:46
Final: Becker dec. Lebe, 8-4
 
165 - No. 2 Jacob Volkmann (MINN) vs. No. 7 Nick Frost (Arizona St.)
1st period: Volkmann takedown 2:09 (2-0); Advantage time Volkmann 0:47
2nd period: Frost starts down; No scoring; Advantage time Volkmann 2:47
3rd period: Volkmann starts down; Volkmann escape 0:02 (3-0); Volkmann takedown 0:29 (5-0); Frost stall warning (6-0); Frost stall warning (7-0); Frost escape (7-1); Volkmann takedown (9-1); Volkmann stall warning (11-1); Advantage time Volkmann 3:56
Final: Volkmann maj. dec. Frost, 12-1
 
174 - No. 11 Josh McLay (MINN) vs. No. 2 Alibek Pardakulov (Colby)
1st period: No scoring
2nd period: Neutral start; No scoring
3rd period: Neutral start; Pardakulov stall warning 0:53; No scoring
Overtime: Pardakulov stall warning 0:20 (1-0)
Final: McLay dec. Pardakulov, 1-0 SVO
 
Consolation Bracket Third Round Results
141 - Chris Nedens (N. Idaho) dec. No. 10 Tommy Owen (MINN), 1-1 TB
197 - No. 9 Kevin Kessner (Wyoming) pinned No. 10 Chad Mentel (MINN), 1:17
HWT - No. 9 Jacob Lininger (MINN) dec. Justin Staebler (Wisconsin), 6-2
 
Consolation Bracket Fourth Round Match-ups
125 - No. 8 Bobbe Lowe (MINN) vs. Heath McKim (Air Force)
HWT - No. 9 Jacob Lininger (MINN) vs. Israel Blevins (Purdue)
 
Championship Bracket Semifinal Match-ups
133 - No. 1 Ryan Lewis (MINN) vs. No. 4 Brandon Lauer (West Virginia)
149 - No. 1 Jared Lawrence (MINN) vs. No. 5 Billy Smith (West Virginia)
157 - No. 1 Luke Becker (MINN) vs. No. 4 Adam Britt (VMI)
165 - No. 2 Jacob Volkmann (MINN) vs. No. 3 Johnny Clark (Ohio State)
174 - No. 11 Josh McLay (MINN) vs. No. 7 Brian Glynn (Illinois)
 
Current Team Scores
1. Ohio State 86.5
2. West Virginia 81.0
3. Minnesota 80.5
4. Michigan 68.0
5. Illinois 64.0
6. Arizona State 60.5
7. Wisconsin 59.0
8. Nebraska 53.0
9. Missouri 44.0
10. Purdue 43.0