Boise State Athletics
Wrestling Heads to Vegas for Cliff Keen Invitational
12/1/2011 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Bronco Competitors - Boise State will send a team of nine to the invitational, which include: Isaac Romero (125), Shawn Jones (133), Josh Strait (141), Steven Hernandez (149), George Ivanov (157), Scott Bacon (174), Jake Swartz (184), Cody Dixon (197) and J.T. Felix (285).
Scouting the Competition - The Invitational will play host to wrestlers from 34 schools, including six of seven Pac-12 members, with Cal State-Fullerton being the only team absent. The event will also include 10 teams ranked in Intermat's top 25. Those teams are No.5 Cornell, No. 8 Michigan, No. 10 Ohio State, No. 12 Stanford, No. 13 Wyoming, No. 14 Oklahoma and Oregon State, No. 19 Cal Poly, No. 22 Kent State and No. 24 Northwestern.
Among the Elite - In the latest Intermat rankings, Jake Swartz was picked as the 12th-best wrestler in the nation at the 184-pound division. The redshirt sophomore was an at-large selection to the NCAA tournament last year.
Fellow sophomore J.T. Felix holds the No. 20 position at the 285-pound weight class. Felix finished second at the Pac-10 Championships last year and was an automatic qualifier to the NCAA tournament where he went 1-2.
Newcomer George Ivanov has also found his way into the latest rankings, clinching the No. 18 spot at 157 pounds.
What Happened Last Time - Boise State competed in their first dual meet of the season against Oregon State, Nov. 20th. The Broncos fell 30-12, getting individual victories from George Ivanov, Michael Cuthbertson and Jake Swartz. Six members of the squad competed at the Spokane Open, led by Steven Hernandez who won the 149-pound division.
