Dec. 5, 2004
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Purdue placed five wrestlers on the awards podium at the 2004 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Saturday evening, equalling the combined number of placers from the last two years.
With 83.5 team points, the Boilermakers finished in seventh place in the final standings. One year ago, Purdue finished in 10th place with a team total of 59.5 points. Atop the 2004 team standings was Michigan with 148.0 points, followed closely by Nebraska, just 8.5 points behind.
The top individual Boilermaker was Chris Fleeger with a second-place finish at 133 pounds, falling in the championship match by 6-4 decision in sudden victory to Travis Lee of Cornell. Fleeger, a junior ranked No. 2 in the nation, posted a 5-1 tournament record. The loss to Lee was just the sixth in the collegiate career for Fleeger against 72 victories.
Junior Ben Wissel placed fourth with a Saturday evening loss to Tyler Baier, also of Cornell. The Richmond, Ind., product finished the tournament with a record of 5-2 after dropping a 3-2 decision in the third-place match, losing on a takedown in the final second.
Joining Fleeger and Wissel on the tournament stage were junior Doug Withstandley (149), sophomore Nathan Moore (197) and freshman Jake O'Brien (285).
Withstandley, a product of Jackson, N.J., placed eighth at 149 pounds with a tournament record of 3-3.
Moore (Indianapolis, Ind.) also finished in eighth place, taking that spot at 197 pounds with a 4-3 record in the bracket.
Finishing in fifth place in his first appearance at the Cliff Keen Invitational was Jake O'Brien. The heavyweight out of Indianapolis, Ind., posted a tournament record of 5-2, including four wins over seeded opponents.
The five Boilermakers on the tournament podium equalled the total put on stage in the last two years. Purdue had three placers in 2002 and two last year.