Friday, December 5
Las Vegas, Nev.
Noon/9 p.m.
West Virginia University
vs
Cliff Keen Invitational
Four Advance to Semifinals at Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invite
December 05, 2025 11:52 PM | Wrestling
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Four wrestlers with the No. 18 West Virginia University wrestling team advanced to the semifinals in their respective weight classes at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational at the Westgate Hotel Paradise Event Center in Las Vegas on Friday.
It was a dominant first day for West Virginia as seven wrestlers advanced to the quarterfinals. Out of those seven, four advanced to the semifinals, setting West Virginia up for possibly its best finish at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in over 15 years.
At 125 pounds, graduate student No. 4 Jett Strickenberger flashed what earned him a Big 12 title last season. In his opening match, Strickenberger left no doubt as he defeated Wyoming's Sefton Douglass by technical fall, 16-0.
Strickenberger continued to roll into the quarterfinals with a win by major decision against Harvard's Logan Brzozowski, 11-0. In the semifinals, he gave up his first points of the day, but still won by decision against Oklahoma's Conrad Hendriksen, 7-3. Strickenberger will face Iowa State's No. 1 seed Stevo Poulin in the semifinals.
Redshirt sophomore No. 1 seed Ty Watters provided further evidence for his No. 1 ranking at 157 pounds as he earned three victories to advance to the semifinals. He began the day defeating Ohio's Derek Raike by decision, 6-0.
Watters followed that result with a win by decision, 9-3, over Cornell's Benny Rogers. In the quarterfinals, Watters had his most impressive performance of the day, defeating No. 8 seed Chance McLane by technical fall, 15-0. He will take on Purdue's No. 4 seed Stoney Buell in the semifinals.
In the 174-pound bracket, redshirt junior No. 4 seed Brody Conley continued his incredible start to the 2025-26 campaign as he picked up three wins to advance to the semifinals. Conley won his first match by decision before winning by major decision in the round of 16.
In the quarterfinals, Conley defeated No. 5 seed Brody Baumann by major decision, 8-0. He will battle No. 1 seed Danny Wask in the semifinals.
Redshirt freshman No. 6 seed Rune Lawrence became the fourth Mountaineer to punch his ticket to the semifinals. He cruised in the first match, winning by major decision, 15-1. In the round of 16, Lawrence needed overtime to beat Air Force's Karson Tompkins by decision, 4-1.
With a trip to the semifinals on the line, Lawrence used an escape in the third period to defeat Michigan's Joseph Walker by decision, 2-0. Lawrence will face Wyoming's No. 2 seed Joey Novak in the semifinals.
One of the highlights of the day came in the 141-pound bracket as redshirt senior Jordan Titus upset No. 3 seed Julian Tagg by decision, 8-6, to advance to the quarterfinals. Freshman Gunner Andrick also earned two impressive wins as he defeated No. 8 seed Blake Boarman by decision, 4-1, and No. 9 seed Gabe Whisenhunt by decision, 4-1.
The Mountaineers return to action on Saturday at 1 p.m. Matches will be streamed on FloWrestling.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUWrestling on X, Instagram and Facebook.
It was a dominant first day for West Virginia as seven wrestlers advanced to the quarterfinals. Out of those seven, four advanced to the semifinals, setting West Virginia up for possibly its best finish at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in over 15 years.
At 125 pounds, graduate student No. 4 Jett Strickenberger flashed what earned him a Big 12 title last season. In his opening match, Strickenberger left no doubt as he defeated Wyoming's Sefton Douglass by technical fall, 16-0.
Strickenberger continued to roll into the quarterfinals with a win by major decision against Harvard's Logan Brzozowski, 11-0. In the semifinals, he gave up his first points of the day, but still won by decision against Oklahoma's Conrad Hendriksen, 7-3. Strickenberger will face Iowa State's No. 1 seed Stevo Poulin in the semifinals.
Redshirt sophomore No. 1 seed Ty Watters provided further evidence for his No. 1 ranking at 157 pounds as he earned three victories to advance to the semifinals. He began the day defeating Ohio's Derek Raike by decision, 6-0.
Watters followed that result with a win by decision, 9-3, over Cornell's Benny Rogers. In the quarterfinals, Watters had his most impressive performance of the day, defeating No. 8 seed Chance McLane by technical fall, 15-0. He will take on Purdue's No. 4 seed Stoney Buell in the semifinals.
In the 174-pound bracket, redshirt junior No. 4 seed Brody Conley continued his incredible start to the 2025-26 campaign as he picked up three wins to advance to the semifinals. Conley won his first match by decision before winning by major decision in the round of 16.
In the quarterfinals, Conley defeated No. 5 seed Brody Baumann by major decision, 8-0. He will battle No. 1 seed Danny Wask in the semifinals.
Redshirt freshman No. 6 seed Rune Lawrence became the fourth Mountaineer to punch his ticket to the semifinals. He cruised in the first match, winning by major decision, 15-1. In the round of 16, Lawrence needed overtime to beat Air Force's Karson Tompkins by decision, 4-1.
With a trip to the semifinals on the line, Lawrence used an escape in the third period to defeat Michigan's Joseph Walker by decision, 2-0. Lawrence will face Wyoming's No. 2 seed Joey Novak in the semifinals.
One of the highlights of the day came in the 141-pound bracket as redshirt senior Jordan Titus upset No. 3 seed Julian Tagg by decision, 8-6, to advance to the quarterfinals. Freshman Gunner Andrick also earned two impressive wins as he defeated No. 8 seed Blake Boarman by decision, 4-1, and No. 9 seed Gabe Whisenhunt by decision, 4-1.
The Mountaineers return to action on Saturday at 1 p.m. Matches will be streamed on FloWrestling.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUWrestling on X, Instagram and Facebook.
Players Mentioned
/ Wrestling
/ Wrestling
/ Wrestling
/ Wrestling
/ Wrestling
/ Wrestling
WRES: Rider Recap
Wednesday, November 26
WRES: Mountaineer Quad Recap
Wednesday, November 19
Which Singlet Do You Want to Wear For the Quad?
Saturday, November 15
2025-26 WVU Wrestling Season Hype Video
Friday, October 31
