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Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational
Heilmann Lifts UNC To Top-15 Finish At CKLV
December 2, 2017 | Wrestling
LAS VEGAS --- Troy Heilmann's run to the 149-pound final highlighted action for the North Carolina wrestling team at the 2017 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Heilmann knocked off a pair of top-10 foes en route to the championship bout to lead the Tar Heels to a 15th-place finish in the overall standings. True freshman Zach Sherman joined Heilmann on the podium with an eighth-place finish at 133.
Heilmann opened his tournament with a 10-2 major decision over Cornell's Jonathan Furnas on Friday. The fifth-seeded Heilmann then topped West Virginia's Kyler Rea 3-1 before blanking Harvard's Hunter Ladnier 6-0 in the round of 16.Â
The Tar Heel redshirt senior closed out the Friday session with one of the matches of the entire event, a thrilling 10-8 win over fourth-seeded Ke-Shawn Hayes of Ohio State. Hayes sprinted out to a 6-0 lead in the opening period thanks to a pair of near falls, but Heilmann responded. Trailing 7-2 late in the second, Heilmann landed a shot and turned Hayes for four back points, only missing a pin because time ran out. After a Hayes escaped tied the bout at 8-8, Heilmann scored the winning takedown and rode Hayes the final minute to secure the 10-8 victory.
In Saturday's semifinal, Heilmann knocked off the top seed Max Thomsen of Northern Iowa 3-1. Heilmann got the only takedown of the match early in the first period and kept Thomsen at bay the rest of the way to book his spot in the final, where he faced third-seeded Justin Oliver of Central Michigan. The final was evenly matched, but Oliver's takedown in the final minute of the third period proved to be the difference in a 9-7 decision.Â
Sherman impressed in his first major college tournament, knocking off a pair of seeds before falling in a high-scoring decision to the No. 2 wrestler in the country in the quarters. Sherman beat Cam Sykora of NDSU in his opening match before topping Bakersfield senior Sean Nickell 4-3 in the round of 16. Against No. 2 Stevan Micic in the quarters, Sherman fought hard to rally from an 9-3 hole but ultimately came up short in an 11-7 loss. The Tar Heel freshman beat Purdue's Ben Thornton 5-2 to guarantee his spot on the podium.
Cory Daniel gave Carolina three wrestlers in the main draw quarters with a 3-0 start at 285 that included a 2-1 victory over seventh-seeded Brett Dempsey of American. Ethan Ramos was off to a flying start at 174 with a tech and a major in his first two wins, but the redshirt senior suffered an injury in his round of 16 match and had to default.
The Tar Heels will now break from competition to prepare for final exams before a pair of road duals at Nebraska and Northern Iowa Dec. 17 and 18.
Heilmann opened his tournament with a 10-2 major decision over Cornell's Jonathan Furnas on Friday. The fifth-seeded Heilmann then topped West Virginia's Kyler Rea 3-1 before blanking Harvard's Hunter Ladnier 6-0 in the round of 16.Â
The Tar Heel redshirt senior closed out the Friday session with one of the matches of the entire event, a thrilling 10-8 win over fourth-seeded Ke-Shawn Hayes of Ohio State. Hayes sprinted out to a 6-0 lead in the opening period thanks to a pair of near falls, but Heilmann responded. Trailing 7-2 late in the second, Heilmann landed a shot and turned Hayes for four back points, only missing a pin because time ran out. After a Hayes escaped tied the bout at 8-8, Heilmann scored the winning takedown and rode Hayes the final minute to secure the 10-8 victory.
In Saturday's semifinal, Heilmann knocked off the top seed Max Thomsen of Northern Iowa 3-1. Heilmann got the only takedown of the match early in the first period and kept Thomsen at bay the rest of the way to book his spot in the final, where he faced third-seeded Justin Oliver of Central Michigan. The final was evenly matched, but Oliver's takedown in the final minute of the third period proved to be the difference in a 9-7 decision.Â
Sherman impressed in his first major college tournament, knocking off a pair of seeds before falling in a high-scoring decision to the No. 2 wrestler in the country in the quarters. Sherman beat Cam Sykora of NDSU in his opening match before topping Bakersfield senior Sean Nickell 4-3 in the round of 16. Against No. 2 Stevan Micic in the quarters, Sherman fought hard to rally from an 9-3 hole but ultimately came up short in an 11-7 loss. The Tar Heel freshman beat Purdue's Ben Thornton 5-2 to guarantee his spot on the podium.
Cory Daniel gave Carolina three wrestlers in the main draw quarters with a 3-0 start at 285 that included a 2-1 victory over seventh-seeded Brett Dempsey of American. Ethan Ramos was off to a flying start at 174 with a tech and a major in his first two wins, but the redshirt senior suffered an injury in his round of 16 match and had to default.
The Tar Heels will now break from competition to prepare for final exams before a pair of road duals at Nebraska and Northern Iowa Dec. 17 and 18.
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