Greetings from our first December of the 2025-26 NCAA D1 college wrestling season! That's right, we're deep into the holiday season. The weather may be getting colder but the wrestling action is heating up! 

Week 5 Rankings | Week 6 Box Scores

Roundups: Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5

It was a busy weekend for competitions, with many of them broadcast right here on www dot FloWrestling dot org. I took the time to count up the number of different D1 programs that competed on our humble platform and I got up to 54 schools. It's not like I'm going to go back through every other week and Flo's history to see if that's a record, but if that's not an all-time high I feel pretty confident that it's close to it. 

The Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational was easily the biggest event of the weekend, and it will likely be the toughest in-season individual tournament of the year, as it has been for the last several years. 

We'll soon discsuss the CKLV and all the other noteworthy happenings from this week, but first:

The Dual of the Century of the Week

Pitt Lashes Lehigh 21-15

The Mountain Hawks were hosting their in-state rivals from the other side of the Keystone State for a Friday Night grudge match in the Snake Pit. Unfortunately for most of the 1,688 fans in attendance, the Panthers prevailed thanks to some heroics from wrestlers in the final two weight classes of the dual. 

The contest started at 157 and proceeded according to script, as five ranked wrestlers all beat their unranked counterparts. Lehigh won three decisions, while Pitt had tech-fall and a major to knot the score at 9-9 at the halfway point. 

The heavyweights trotted out next, with 2024 bloodrounder Nathan Taylor making his season debut after missing most of last season with an injury. His opponent was #11 Dayton Pitzer. Each talented big man secured a takedown, but a locked hands call late in the match doomed Pitzer, and Taylor collected the ranked win (the first of two for Taylor. More on his second-ranked win of the weekend in a bit). 

Nathan Taylor delights the crowd with a ranked win in his return to the mat! pic.twitter.com/639y9swZTh

— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) December 6, 2025

That dual now largely hinged on the bout at 141, as 125 and 133 would be split between the two teams, each notching a regular decision. 

141 featured two unranked wrestlers, Briar Priest for Pitt and Carter Bailey for the Mountain Hawks. The 1-1 bout would be decided in sudden victory. A takedown on the edge gave Priest the win and once again the team score was tied as the dual headed into the ultimate bout of the evening. 

It only took Kade Brown 70 seconds to wrap up his bout and the dual, when he pinned Owen Reinsel by countering a gutsey cement mixer attempt by the Mountain Hawk. That match concluded the dual in favor of the Panthers, much to the delight of Panther fans. 

Kade Brown seals the deal for the Panthers with a pinfall!📌 pic.twitter.com/vtcM4GTxKN

— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) December 6, 2025

It was the 70th meeting between the two storied programs, which goes back to 1916. The all-time series stands at 45-23-2 in Lehigh's favor. 

Pitt was back home in the Burgh Sunday night, where they defeated another EIWA program from Pennsylvania. Bucknell notched upsets at 174 and 197 when #21 Myles Takats beat #15 Luca Augustine and #13 Dillon Bechtold beat #5 Mac Stout, but the Panthers would prove to have too much firepower, prevailing 18-13 and taking six of 10 bouts. 

Viva the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational

Though perhaps a few teams elected not to attend the CKLV because the National Duals Invitational gobbled up their schedule in November, this year's event still featured plenty of talent, notably from the eventual champs, Iowa State, who ran away with the team title, perhaps motivated by their lack of invitation to the National Duals. 

Here's CP's quick takes, which I'm sure will be expanded upon during Monday's FRL. 

Who stood out the most to me after CKLV? Obviously the champions are all deserving of mention, but here's who I'm thinking about differently leaving Vegas.

Jaxon Joy - Looks like a Saturday night kind of wrestler.
Christian Carroll - Right weight, right place, AA contender.…

— Christian Pyles (@CPyles8) December 7, 2025

You can hear from Cyclone head coach Kevin Dresser, one of the most candid and forthcoming head coaches in college wrestling, after the tournament in this video. Coach Dresser emphasized how important it was for the team to follow up their historic win against Iowa in the Cy-Hawk dual with a strong performance in Vegas so as not to be known as a 'flash in the pan'. 

CKLV Team Scores

• 1) Iowa State - 183.5
• 2) Michigan - 99
• 3) Stanford - 97.5
• 4) West Virginia - 97
• 5) Arizona State - 92

Iowa State demolished the field with four champs and five other podium placers. Michigan, Stanford, West Virginia and Arizona State all performed admirably by finishing in the top 5, with WVU perhaps being the biggest surprise by finishing fourth and notching two champs.

• The Larkin brothers of Arizona State and Frost brothers of Iowa State completed what I believe is the first double brother forfeit in the placement round of a major college tournament. Kyler Larkin forfeited to Evan Frost in the 133lb first place bout, and Jacob Frost forfeited to Kaleb Larkin in the third place bout at 149 pounds. 
• At 125, Jett Strickenberger mowed down the competition, which included a win over Stevo Poulin in the semifinals. 
  • Nico Provo was back in action for Stanford for the first time since the 2024 NCAAs. He lost to Maximo Renteria of Oregon State but bounced back for third, which saw him also defeat Poulin in the third-place bout. 
• Before forfeiting to Frost, Kyler Larkin defeated #11 Dillon Campbell and #6 Tyler Knox, which should go a long way in improving Kyler's #26 ranking. 
• Anthony Echemendia outscored his opponents 67-14 and did not give up a single takedown in his title run at 141. 
• 149 provided perhaps the biggest eye-opener of the weekend, when Cornell's Jaxon Joy blanked Kaleb Larkin 15-0 off the strength of multiple cradles. 
  • Joy's credle was also working in the finals, when he utilized one to pin Eligh Rivera for the CKLV title. 

Jaxon Joy gets the first period tech fall over Kaleb Larkin to make the finals of #CKLV pic.twitter.com/chuMIVSeag

— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) December 6, 2025

• The top-ranked 157-pounder in the nation, Ty Watters, looked every bit the NCAA title contender when he blitzed through the field. He received a win by forfeit in the finals when Vinny Zerban conceded the match. 
• 2025 157lb NCAAS finalist Joey Blaze continued his winning ways at 165. Blaze seared the field and collected a title without relinquishing a takedown. 
• #25 Carter Schubert of Oklahoma should see big gains in the rankings after he defeated #23 Moses Espinoza-Owens (who defeated #12 Beau Mantanona) and #7 Danny Wask on his way to a CKLV crown at 174.
• The Franklin & Marshall Diplomats had never been to the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, but the first time was a charm at 184, as James Conway will be bringing a first-place trophy back to Lancaster, PA. 
  • The senior from Towson, Maryland beat #15 Aaron Ayzerov, #10 Isaac Dean and #7 Brock Mantanona on his way to the top of the podium. Should he reach the podium at NCAAs in March, he would become the first F&M All-American since Rick Durso placed 8th in 2014 at 141lbs. 
  • Also at 184, Brian Soldano did Brian Soldano things. 

It's what he does 📌

184 QF | @soldano_brian uses a smooth reversal and sticks four-seed Eddie Neitenbach (WYO) in the first period to advance to the semis. pic.twitter.com/QzepytDPu9

— Oklahoma Wrestling (@OU_Wrestling) December 6, 2025

• Coach Dresser has been candid about keeping senior Rocky Elam on a pitch count, as the four-time All-American at Missouri transferred to Iowa State after taking last season off and utilizing a medical redshirt. However, there were no signs of Elam needing extra rest after his title-winning performance in Vegas at 197, as he defeated #8 Joey Novak and #6 Justin Rademacher in one of the deepest fields at the event. 
• The heavyweight crown belonged to Yonger Bastida, but his finals opponent, Christian Carroll, perhaps made the most of his trip to Vegas out of all the 285-pounders. #24 Carroll beat #10 Spencer Lanosga and #5 Taye Ghadiali before dropping a tight 5-3 bout to the #1 ranked Bastida. 
• I'm sure there was plenty from this annual bonanza that I missed, so tell me, what stood out to you from the 2025 CKLV?

Journeymen Jostle and Hustle in the Heartland

There was much hustling and jostling on the mats this weekend (and perhaps later some wassailing in the streets?) all thanks to the good people at Journeymen Wrestling, who brought the Hustle to St. Charles, Missouri and the Jostle to Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina. 

And what are those events? I will tell you. They were dual meet events where four teams gathered for a total of four duals, with two duals occurring simultaneously over two sessions. The Hustle was on Friday, while the Jostle was on Sunday. 

In eastern Missouri, aka America's Heartland, Missouri shut out LIU 42-0 and Nebraska thumped Brown 44-3. Then Nebraska handled Mizzou 27-10 in the main event while Brown beat LIU 29-17 in the unofficial third-place bout. 

• #15 Evan Bates upsetting #10 Camden McDanle at 197 and #2 Aeoden Sinclair defeating #8 Silas Allred 5-1 at 184 were the bright spots for the Tigers. 
• Unranked Kael Lauridsen beat #17 Mack Mauger at 125 to give Husker fans an upset to cheer for. Additionally, #13 LJ Araujo collected a 4-3 win over #14 Max Mayfield thanks to a clutch takedown late in the third period. 

In North Carolina, NC State jostled Morgan State 45 to 4, while Rutgers jostled Davidson 49-3 in the first round of action. In round two, it was NC State who once again did the jostling, as they defeated the Scarlet Knights 27-11 in F-V, which is locarted a short drive south from their campus in Raleigh. On the other mat in session two it was the other team with a campus in North Carolina that won, as Davidson jostled Morgan State to the tune of 37-8. 

• The highlight of the dual for Rutgers fans was #13 Joey Olivieri upsetting #7 Ryan Jack at 141-pounds, while the Wolfpack fans in attendance, of which there were many, got the loudest for #4 Matty Singleton's first-period pin of #4 Lenny Pino. 

All-American Matty Singleton just PINNED #4 Lenny Pinto at the @jmenwrestling Jostle! pic.twitter.com/VYJC2rtLju

— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) December 7, 2025

Penn State Cruised To Two Victories

The Nittany Lions were relatively unchallenged this weekend in their 43-3 and 36-6 blowout wins over in-state rivals Drexel and Lehigh. 

• In Philly, against Drexel on Friday, PSU bonused at every weight class except 141, where they are still without presumed starter Aaron Nagao and with Barden Davis still in redshirt.
  • Additionally, Connor Mirasola continues to fill in for Josh Barr at 197, who has not wrestled for the Nittany Lions this season. 
• Lehigh is still without the services of Luke Stanich and Ryan Crookham, so fans were denied a potential Marcus Blaze vs Crookham matchup when the Mountain Hawks traveled to Happy Valley for Sunday dual.
  • Lehigh won at 141 and heavyweight, where Nathan Taylor picked up his second-ranked win of the weekend over #9 Cole Mirasola. Not a bad return to action for Taylor, who has been out since November of 2025. 

It's Tourney Time

There were two other significant tournaments this weekend besides the imperial CKLV: the Cougar Clash hosted by SIUE and the A Better Way Patriot Open hosted by George Mason. 

• Cornell showed out at the Patriot Open, though most, if not all, of their affiliated wrestlers were competing for the Spartan Combat RTC and will presumably be either grey-shirting or re-enrolling for second semester. 
  • Brett Ungar and Isaiah Cortez both made the finals at 133, where the bout was a no-contest. Cortez is a blue chip recruit out of California who should be a force when he enrolls next season, while Ungar is a senior.
  • Vince Cornella, who hasn't wrestled for the Big Red since getting injured at the 2024 EIWAs, won the 141lb bracket with a 10-4 decision over #15 Tom Crook in the finals. 
  • Cornell senior Ethan Fernandez also had his first bout of the season. He won 149 with a 10-6 decision over #20 Kaden Cassidy of hosts GMU. 
  • Speaking of George Mason, they had four champs, with #17 DJ McGee, Logan Messer, #27 Malachi DuVall and James Blackman winning 157, 174, 184 & 285. 
• The Cougar Clash saw the late addition of a squad of Oklahoma State Cowboys to the entrants, which made for a surprisingly deep tourney. 
  • Six of the finals featured bouts between nationally ranked wrestlers. 
  • Richie Figueroa continues to stuggle at 133, as he took a loss to unranked Garret Rinken and then medically forfeited out of the tournaments. 
    • Figueroa's teammate, true frosh #13 Ronnie Ramirez, won the 133lb division, which included an 8-2 win over Rinkin in the finals. 
  • The hosts' #18 Caleb Tyus won the 149lb division over #11 Cadey Swiderski in the finals. 
  • Illinois' Kannon Webster beat Mizzou's J Conway for the second time in two weeks. Conway held Webster to a 4-1 decision at a dual on November 24, but in the finals of Sunday's Cougar Clash, it was Webster by tech-fall. 
    • Illinois also had a champ at 125 with Spencer Moore. 
  • Oklahoma State had champs at 174 and 184 as Alex Facundo and Zach Ryder, both ranked #9 nationally, picked up titles. 
  • Northern Iowa had two champs, as #9 Cory Land cruised to a title at 141 and #14 Wyatt Voelker picked up a slight upset in the finals over #8 Luke Luffman. 
  • Brown's Andrew Reall was the champ at 197, an impressive feat after Hustling in the Heartland just two days earlier. 

Hey, Here's a Cool Video

20 Minutes of Unique Wrestling Workouts

This particular cool vid won an internal prize here at FloHQ. Congrats to Connor 'Sweet Prince' Petros for editing this modern day masterpiece! 

Why Try? Just Ask AI

Sure, Artificial Intelligence is nice. But how much does it know about the CKLV? I asked ChatGPT: What were the most noteworthy results from the 2025 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational college wrestling tournament?

Here's what our future computer overlords responded with: 

🏆 Big picture: Team outcome

• Iowa State Cyclones won the team title with 183.5 points, by a wide margin. Their total was far ahead of Michigan Wolverines (99 pts) and Stanford Cardinal (97.5 pts). 
• The Cyclones placed nine wrestlers in the top 5 of their weight classes, showing both depth and consistency.

That dominant team performance reaffirmed Iowa State as a force this season

🥇 Notable individual champions & breakout performances

Some of the most significant individual results came from both established stars and surprise breakout efforts:

• Jett Strickenberger (West Virginia) — captured the 125-lb title, upsetting top competition. In the semis, he beat the No. 1 seed from Iowa State in sudden victory, then edged Oregon State in the final. 
• Carter Schubert (Oklahoma) — took the 174-lb crown, marking Oklahoma’s first CKLV title at that weight since 2013. His finals win over a highly ranked opponent signals him as one to watch. 
• James Conway (Franklin & Marshall) — won at 184 lb, delivering not just a title but a major surprise. As a member of a smaller program, Conway upset nationally ranked opponents to claim gold — a standout performance from a mid-major school. 
• Joey Blaze (Purdue) — captured the 165-lb title, reinforcing his stature as an elite returner after reaching the NCAA finals last season. Blaze went 4-0 this weekend, without surrendering a single takedown in the tournament.

Beyond the titles, these performances raised profiles and reshuffled expectations heading into conference and national season phases.

🎯 Key themes & takeaways

• The invitational again lived up to its reputation as a “litmus test” early-season tournament — a place where up-and-comers and underdogs can make statements. 
• Depth wins tournaments: Iowa State’s team title came not just from a few stars, but from across the roster — nine place-winners is a major advantage at a stacked event like this. 
• Upsets and breakout champs show that no seed or ranking is a guarantee — wrestling remains unpredictable, which makes CKLV especially compelling as a preview for what might come in conference and national tournaments.

Okay, not bad. But before you get too impressed, here's the first link ChatGPT offers as to what it used as sources. The large-language-model also appeared to crib heavily from this very nice article, written by an actual human being, so you should be more impressed by that author, Shannon Scovel, than by ChatGPT, imho. 

That's all for this week, see you in seven days, wise and learned wrestling fans!