LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Junior captain Ophir Bernstein (Allen, Texas) pinned his opponent in his first match in the 184 pound weight class and sophomore Anthony Finocchiaro (Canastota, N.Y.) earned a pair of wins in the 133 pound weight class to represent the Brown wrestling team in day one action at the 32nd annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Friday.
Fifth-seeded Bernstein, ranked 14th in the country at 184 according to the latest Intermat College Rankings, remains the last Bear standing after pinning Dwight Homes of Hofstra in 4:47. Bernstein fell to #12 Gabe Dean of Cornell in quarterfinal action, 4-1, and will resume competition in today's wrestlebacks.
Finocchiaro started the day with a 20-10 decision over American's Esteban Gomez-River in the 133 pound weight class. The sophomore was then pinned by #18 Rossi Bruno of Michigan in 4:52, but rallied in the wrestlebacks with a decisive 16-0 triumph against North Idaho's Carlos Lozoya. Finocchiaro's tournament efforts came to a close after being pinned by Jose Mendoza of CSU Bakersfield.
Other Brown victories included a 14-2 win for Cortlandt Choate (Orwigsburg, Pa.) in the wrestlebacks of the 149 pound weight class and an opening round 6-0 victory for freshman Ryder Cavey (Eldersburg, Md.) in the heavyweight class. Cavey fell to #13 Blake Herrin of American in the second round and followed with a valiant effort in a 4-3 tiebreaker setback against Peter Aguiano from Grand Canyon.
125 lbs
Vincent Moita
Defeated by Tyler Cox (Wyoming), 16-4
Defeated by Brian Longmire (Cal Poly), 3-2
133 lbs
Anthony Finocchiaro
Defeated Esteban Gomez-River (American), 20-10
Pinned by Rosario Bruno (Michigan), 4:52
Defeated Carlos Lozoya (North Idaho), 16-0
Pinned by Jose Mendoza (CSU Bakersfield), 1:57
141 lbs
Zachary Tanenbaum
Defeated by Austin Solari (Grand Canyon), 6-1
Defeated by Dylan Phillipy (San Francisco State), 15-0
149 lbs
Cortlandt Choate
Defeated by #9 Cody Ruggirello (Hofstra), 13-2
Defeated Justin Gonzales (Colorado State Pueblo), 14-2
Defeated by #10 Brandon Nelsen (Purdue), 4-3
157 lbs
Justin Staudenmayer
Defeated by #11 Holden Packard (Boise State), 4-2:sv
Defeated by Joel Smith (Arizona State), 12-2
165 lbs
Giuseppi Lanzi
Pinned by Joe Grandominico (Ohio State), 4:38
Pinned by Kenneth Radford (The Citadel), 4:25
174 lbs
Ricky McDonald
Pinned by #4 Mathew Miller (Navy), 4:09
Defeated by #13 Brent Havlik (Wyoming), 3-2
184 lbs
#5 Ophir Bernstein
Pinned Dwight Homes (Hofstra), 4:47
Defeated by #4 Gabriel Dean (Cornell), 4-1
197 lbs
Augustus Marker
Pinned by Paul Rands (Navy), 3:20
Defeated by Robert Isley (Air Force), 6-2
285 lbs
Ryder Cavey
Defeated Taylor Kornoely (North Idaho), 6-0
Defeated by #4 Blake Herrin (American), 10-1
Defeated by Peter Anguiano (Grand Canyon), 4-3:tb