Friday, December 2
Las Vegas
8:00 AM
California Baptist University
at
Cliff Keen Invitational
Fiegener Places Seventh at Cliff Keen
12/3/2016 2:38:00 PM | Wrestling
LAS VEGAS – For the second year in a row, California Baptist University placed an individual at the prestigious Cliff Keen Invitational. Nick Fiegener, a sophomore 184-pounder, secured a seventh-place finish with two wins on Saturday to become the third Lancer to finish in the top-eight in their weight class.
Fiegener went 5-2 on the week to become the first non-heavyweight to place at Cliff Keen for CBU, with Joseph Fagiano taking seventh in the heavyweight class last year. The Lancers took 27th in the tournament as a team, topping Division I teams like West Virginia, Boise State, Columbia, Harvard, North Idaho, Western Wyoming and D-II power Nebraska-Kearney.
"I had never wrestled here before, it was pretty cool, there was a lot of energy in there," said Fiegener, a sophomore transfer from D-I Cal Poly. "It was good to be back in that environment.
"I wanted to wrestle these D-I guys, the best of the best, and remind them of who I was again."
Nolan Kistler was a win away from placing, alongside Fiegener, on Saturday in the 174-pound class but had to default early in his match, to end his week at 3-2. It was a valuable experience for all six Lancers in attendance, including Peter Cunningham (149), Dominic Kincaid (165), Jake Waste (197) and Paul Head (heavyweight).
"This tournament creates momentum for all of us," Fiegener said. "We went in there and wrestled tough against the best of the nation and that's confidence we can build on. I am getting better each week and learned a lot on what I need to improve on here."
Fiegener went 2-1 on Saturday and gained his biggest win of the tournament in the biggest way when he pinned Utah Valley's Will Sumner with 33 seconds left in the match. Fiegener came close to moving up higher in the consolation bracket but just dropped a 4-3 decision to the 15th-ranked 184 in Division I, Binghamton's Steven Schneider, despite Fiegener scoring first with a takedown nine seconds into the bout.
In the seventh-place match, Fiegener met Samson Imonode of Army and ran right through him to the tune of a 12-1 major decision victory. Fiegener credited his aggression for propelling him to success this weekend. On multiple occasions, he came right out, took a shot in the first few seconds and notched a takedown that paved the way to victory.
"I almost always get the first takedown," Fiegener said. "I feel like it pretty much puts the match away for me immediately. I shoot early a lot and I usually get it."
CBU takes a two-week break from competition before heading back to Las Vegas for the Las Vegas Duals on Monday, Dec. 19th. The Lancers will face Wheeling Jesuit, Mary and Minnesota State Moorhead all in one day before heading into the Christmas break.
RESULTS
Fiegener went 5-2 on the week to become the first non-heavyweight to place at Cliff Keen for CBU, with Joseph Fagiano taking seventh in the heavyweight class last year. The Lancers took 27th in the tournament as a team, topping Division I teams like West Virginia, Boise State, Columbia, Harvard, North Idaho, Western Wyoming and D-II power Nebraska-Kearney.
"I had never wrestled here before, it was pretty cool, there was a lot of energy in there," said Fiegener, a sophomore transfer from D-I Cal Poly. "It was good to be back in that environment.
"I wanted to wrestle these D-I guys, the best of the best, and remind them of who I was again."
Nolan Kistler was a win away from placing, alongside Fiegener, on Saturday in the 174-pound class but had to default early in his match, to end his week at 3-2. It was a valuable experience for all six Lancers in attendance, including Peter Cunningham (149), Dominic Kincaid (165), Jake Waste (197) and Paul Head (heavyweight).
"This tournament creates momentum for all of us," Fiegener said. "We went in there and wrestled tough against the best of the nation and that's confidence we can build on. I am getting better each week and learned a lot on what I need to improve on here."
Fiegener went 2-1 on Saturday and gained his biggest win of the tournament in the biggest way when he pinned Utah Valley's Will Sumner with 33 seconds left in the match. Fiegener came close to moving up higher in the consolation bracket but just dropped a 4-3 decision to the 15th-ranked 184 in Division I, Binghamton's Steven Schneider, despite Fiegener scoring first with a takedown nine seconds into the bout.
In the seventh-place match, Fiegener met Samson Imonode of Army and ran right through him to the tune of a 12-1 major decision victory. Fiegener credited his aggression for propelling him to success this weekend. On multiple occasions, he came right out, took a shot in the first few seconds and notched a takedown that paved the way to victory.
"I almost always get the first takedown," Fiegener said. "I feel like it pretty much puts the match away for me immediately. I shoot early a lot and I usually get it."
CBU takes a two-week break from competition before heading back to Las Vegas for the Las Vegas Duals on Monday, Dec. 19th. The Lancers will face Wheeling Jesuit, Mary and Minnesota State Moorhead all in one day before heading into the Christmas break.
RESULTS
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