Cowboy Wrestling Lands Seventh-Place Finish at Cliff Keen Invite

LAS VEGAS, Nev., – The University of Wyoming wrestling team wrapped up competition at the Cliff Keen Invite on Saturday inside the Westgate Resort & Event Center. The Pokes had a pair of finalists, four total on the podium, and placed seventh as a team with 70.5 points.

Get our free mobile app

“I think we made a lot of progress,” head coach Mark Branch said. “In the finals, you’re hitting two No. 1 guys in the country, and we were right there in dogfights in both those matches. It was just a great experience. That’s an NCAA Tournament type feel that those guys got. We helped ourselves out quite a bit this week, and I think we learned a lot.”

No. 4 Joey Novak (197) and No. 24 Christian Carroll (HWT) both competed in the finals of their respective brackets. Novak fell to No. 2 Rocky Elam (Iowa State) via decision, 6-3, while Carroll lost to No. 1 Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) via decision, 5-3.

Novak’s Saturday began with a 6-2 decision win over No. 16 Rune Lawrence (West Virginia) in the semifinals. Carroll logged his second top-10 upset in as many days with an 8-5 sudden victory over No. 9 Spencer Lanosga (Navy).

No. 11 Eddie Neitenbach (184) and Luke Willochell (133) also competed on Saturday. Neitenbach registered a pair of ranked wins en route to a fourth-place finish, and Willochell dropped a couple of matches and took sixth.

Wyoming closes out the 2025 portion of its dual schedule against No. 1 Penn State. That dual is Dec. 13 at 6 p.m. inside the Arena-Auditorium.

125: Sefton Douglass (1-2)
First Round: No. 9 Jett Strickenberger (West Virginia) technical fall Douglass, 17-0
Consolation Second Round: Douglass decision Damian Moreno (Arizona State), 3-1
Consolation Round of 8 (1): No. 12 Blake West (Northern Illinois) fall Douglass, 2:34

133: Luke Willochell (2-3) – 6th
Second Round: Willochell decision No. 15 Derrick Cardinal (South Dakota State), 9-3
Quarterfinals: Willochell decision No. 13 Sean Spidle (Northwester), 9-3
Semifinals: No. 3 Evan Frost (Iowa State) decision Willochell, 13-7
Consolation Semifinals: No. 18 Tyler Ferrara (Cornell) major decision Willochell, 14-2
Fifth-Place Match: Gunner Andrick (West Virginia) decision Willochell, 6-4

141: John Alden (0-2)
First Round: No. 20 Eli Griffin (Rider) major decision Alden, 17-4
Consolation Second Round: Billy DeKraker (Northwestern) major decision Alden, 11-3
149: No. 24 Gabe Willochell (2-2)
First Round: Willochell decision Hunter Hollingsworth (Oklahoma), 4-0
Second Round: No. 24 Alek Martin (South Dakota State) decision Willochell, 15-10
Consolation Round of 16 (2): Willochell decision No. 28 Willie McDougald (West Virginia), 8-4
Consolation Round of 8 (1): Noah Tolentino (Oregon State) fall Willochell, 1:54

157: Antonio Avila (0-2)
Second Round: No. 3 Daniel Cardenas (Stanford) technical fall Avila, 19-4
Consolation Round of 16 (2): Derek Raike (Ohio) major decision, Avila, 13-3
165: Sloan Swan (1-2)
First Round: Swan major decision Josh Palmucci (Franklin & Marshall), 12-0
Second Round: Aiden Riggins (Iowa State) decision Swan, 10-6
Consolation of 16 (2): Jacob Bostelman (Northwestern) decision Swan, 7-3

174: No. 29 Riley Davis (1-2)
Second Round: Davis decision No. 29 Nick Fine (Columbia), 7-6
Quarterfinals: No. 4 Danny Wask (Navy) major decision Davis, 12-4
Consolation Round of 8 (2): Eddie Enright (Northwestern) technical fall Davis, 19-4

184: No. 11 Eddie Neitenbach (5-1) – 4th
First Round: Neitenbach decision J.D. Perez (Northwestern), 11-10
Second Round: Neitenbach decision No. 30 TJ McDonnell (Oregon State), 4-2
Quarterfinals: No. 11 Brian Soldano (Oklahoma) fall Neitenbach, :20
Consolation Round of 8 (2): Neitenbach decision No. 15 Ian Bush (West Virginia), 7-4
Consolation Round of 4: Neitenbach major decision No. 21 Ceasar Garza (Cal Poly), 14-4
Consolation Semifinals: Neitenbach fall No. 7 Isaac Dean (Iowa State), 2:35
Third-Place Match: No. 11 Brian Soldano (Oklahoma) medical forfeit Neitenbach

197: No. 4 Joey Novak (4-1) – 2nd
First Round: Novak technical fall Spencer Mooberry (Northern Illinois), 18-2
Second Round: Novak major decision Kael Bennie (Utah Valley), 9-0
Quarterfinals: Novak major decision No. 26 Zayne Lehman (Ohio), 11-1
Semifinals: Novak decision No. 16 Rune Lawrence (West Virginia), 6-2
Championship: No. 2 Rocky Elam (Iowa State) decision Novak, 6-3

HWT: No. 24 Christian Carroll (4-1) – 2nd
First Round: Carroll technical fall Aden Roe (Edinboro), 19-4
Second Round: Carroll technical fall No. 28 Hayden Filipovich (Purdue), 22-5
Quarterfinals: Carroll major decision No. 4 Taye Ghadiali (Michigan), 11-2
Semifinals: Carroll sudden victory No. 9 Spencer Lanosga (Navy), 8-5
Championship: No. 1 Yonger Bastida (Iowa State) decision Carroll, 5-3

University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players

During the summer of 2021, 7220Sports.com counted down the Top 50 football players in University of Wyoming history, presented by Premier Bone & Joint Centers, Worthy of Wyoming.

The rules are simple: What was the player's impact while in Laramie? That means NFL stats, draft status or any other accolade earned outside of UW is irrelevant when it comes to this list.

This isn't a one-man job. This task called for a panel of experts. Joining 7220's Cody Tucker are Robert Gagliardi, Jared Newland, Ryan Thorburn, and Kevin McKinney.

We all compiled our own list of 50 and let computer averages do the work. Think BCS -- only we hope this catalog is fairer.

Don't agree with a selection? Feel free to sound off on our Twitter: @7220sports - #Top50UWFB

Gallery Credit: 7220Sports.com

- University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players

Filed Under: Wyoming wrestling