Dec. 4, 2004

Las Vegas, Nev. - Currently in seventh place with 83 points, the 11th ranked Missouri wrestling team had two wrestlers finish in the top eight of their respective weight class in the early morning and afternoon sessions, with sophomore Ben Askren returning to competition tonight for the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational title at 174 pounds and senior Tyron Woodley battling for a third place finish. The championship finals will begin at 7 p.m. CT. Nebraska continues to lead the team standings with 130.5 points, followed by Michigan in second with 130 and Hofstra in third with 104.5.

All-American captain Askren is the only Tiger to advance to the finals of tonight's championship bout. Opening his morning with a 17-5 major decision over Eric Ring of Edinboro, Askren scored six back points, two takedowns, a two-point reversal, three escapes, a point for riding time and one point due to a technical violation after Ring locked hands. With the win, Askren improves to 11-0 on the season and becomes the only unbeaten MU starter this 2004-05 campaign. In tonight's matchup, Askren and Paul Siemon (Hofstra) will meet at center circle.

The Tigers suffered two disheartening losses in the championship bracket as #6 Tyron Woodley (165) lost his battle to #5 Ryan Churella of Michigan (3-1), with #5 Matt Pell (184) dropping to #13 C.B. Dolloway of Arizona State, 10-8 in a sudden victory match. Both Woodley and Pell were able to keep their respective matches close with their opponents. Woodley and Churella went through five minutes of action before the Tiger captain came away with an escape which Churella followed by reversal. In the end, Churella racked up 2:53 of riding time to walk away with the win.

Woodley found redemption in his second match of the day, recording an 11-3 major decision over Christian Arellano of Cal State Bakersfield. Dominating his opponent, Woodley held Arellano to only three escapes, earning back points in both the first and third period and 1:25 of riding time. The win pushes Woodley into a fight for third place against Big 12 opponent Jacob Klein (Nebraska).

Pell and Dollaway exchanged shots through all three periods. Closing out the first tied at three, Pell won the toss and deferred, allowing Dolloway to choose down. Through a reversal, and takedown Pell came out of the two-minute period ahead by one point. Dolloway found an escape to tie the match and take it into overtime where he scored a takedown to win the bout. The loss forced Pell into a match with #11 Tyler Baier (Cornell). Scoreless through the first three minutes, Pell couldn't hold on, as Baier recorded an escape and reversal in the third period to win 3-1. Pell's day came to an end with a fifth place finish at 184 pounds after Tom Meester (Augustana) turned in a medical forfeit.

Junior Chris McCormick got things started on a strong note for the Tigers at 141 pounds. Wrestling in his first match of the consolation bracket, No. 15 McCormick outscored No. 19 Rene Hernandez (Purdue) 4-2. Scoreless through the first period, McCormick took an early escape in the second, followed by a takedown. Totaling 1:30 of riding time, McCormick found his next competition in Donald Lockett (San Francisco State). Unfortunately McCormick couldn't hold onto the momentum and lost the bout 4-3. McCormick finished the Invitational in seventh place after controlling Kortney Lake of Adams State, 6-2.

Graduate student Brad Cieleski (No. 15) saw his chance at a tournament title come to an end after suffering a 7-2 loss to Tyler Turner of Wisconsin. Unable to put up points until the second period, Cieleski managed one takedown on the day.

Tonight's championship and third place bouts will resume at 7 p.m. CT in the Cashman Center in Las Vegas.

141-Chris McCormick-Season Record: 15-3 Overall Record: 41-35
#15 Chris McCormick (MU) decision Garrett Spooner (Fresno State): 11-4
#15 Chris McCormick (MU) decision Anthony Constant (Columbia): 6-3
#15 Chris McCormick (MU) decision Juan Mora (Cal State Fullerton): 4-3
#10 Brandon Lauer (West Virginia) fall #15 Chris McCormick (MU): 4:32
#15 Chris McCormick (MU) decision #19 Rene Hernandez (Purdue): 9-2
157-Brad Cieleski-Season Record: 12-4 Overall Record: 12-4
#12 Brad Cieleski (MU) decision Mitch Webster (George Mason): 10-3
#12 Brad Cieleski (MU) decision Colton Salazar (Purdue): 9-3
Keegan Mueller (Ohio State) decision #12 Brad Cieleski (MU): 2-1
#12 Brad Cieleski (MU) decision Keith Garvin (Pittsburgh): 3-2
#12 Brad Cieleski (MU) major decision Matt Hill (Edinboro):9-0
Tyler Turner (Wisconsin) decision #12 Brad Cieleski (MU): 7-2
165-Tyron Woodley - Season Record: 14-1 Overall Record: 87-33
#6 Tyron Woodley (MU) technical fall Dale Seley (Montana State): 17-1 (7:00)
#6 Tyron Woodley (MU) fall Leister Bowling (Dana College): 3:46
#6 Tyron Woodley (MU) major decision #18 Brody Barrios (Cal Poly): 12-1
#5 Ryan Churella (Michigan)decision #6 Tyron Woodley (MU): 3-1
#6 Tyron Woodley major decision Christian Arellano (Cal State Bakersfield):11-3
UP NEXT: #6 Tyron Woodley vs. #4 Jacob Klein (Nebraska)-3rd place
174-Ben Askren - Season Record: 11-0 Overall Record: 43-5
#2 Ben Askren (MU) fall Barry Jackson (Purdue): 2:19
#2 Ben Askren (MU) fall Nate Rock (Buffalo): 2:48
#2 Ben Askren (MU) fall Daniel Price (Cal Davis): 1:14
#2 Ben Askren (MU) major decision Marc Harwood (Nebraska): 14-4
#2 Ben Askren (MU) major decision Eric Ring (Edinboro): 17-5
UP NEXT: #2 Ben Askren vs. Paul Siemon (Hofstra)-Championship Bout
184 - Matt Pell Season Record: 17-2 Overall Record: 48-15
#5 Matt Pell (MU) technical fall Dan Gallagher (Pennsylvania): 19-4 (6:30)
#5 Matt Pell (MU) technical fall Jeremy Colbert (NC State): 18-2 (5:36)
#5 Matt Pell (MU) fall Webster Farris (Dana College): 2:08
#5 Matt Pell (MU) major decision #15 Dan Pitsch (Oregon State):10-1
#13 C.B. Dalloway (Arizona State)decision #5 Matt Pell (MU): 10-8 sv
#11 Tyler Baier (Cornell) decision #5 Matt Pell (MU): 3-1
#5 Matt Pell (MU) medical forfeit Tom Meester (Augustana)
Team Standings
1. Nebraska-130.5
2. Michigan-130
3. Hofstra-104.5
4. Arizona State-102.5
5. Cornell-88.5