Indiana University Athletics
Indiana University
Las Vegas Invitational (Dec. 2-3)
Powless Places Second, LeBlanc Fifth at Las Vegas Invitational
12/3/2011 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
Dec. 3, 2011
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Matt Powless and Ryan LeBlanc both placed at the 30th Annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Saturday (Dec. 3). Powless lived up to his No. 2-seed, making a run to the 197-pound title bout and earning runner-up honors. LeBlanc, meanwhile, won six bouts on the weekend for a fifth-place showing.
Powless, ranked fifth nationally by Intermat, faced little resistance in advancing to the quarterfinals, posting a pin in the opening round and a 13-4 major decision in round number two. His next two bouts were much closer. The quarterfinals saw Powless get by Wyoming's Alfonso Hernandez, 4-2, before hitting a last-second takedown to topple Pittsburgh's Matthew Wilps, 6-5, at the buzzer in the semifinals. Wilps is ranked seventh nationally at a 197 pounds. Powless ended his day suffering his first defeat of the season, dropping a 10-4 decision to #4 Chris Honeycutt of Edinboro in the title match.
LeBlanc took a much longer route to the stand, taking the mat eight times during the two-day event. The Morrisville, N.Y., native opened by outscoring his foe 15-10 in the first round. He then dropped into the wrestleback and ripped off four consecutive victories to set up a showdown with #4 Nick Heflin of Ohio State. Neither man could score more than an escape in regulation, setting up a 1-1 stalemate heading into sudden victory. Heflin was able to notch a takedown in the extra period, however, sending LeBlanc into a fifth-place match in which he would go on to win. LeBlanc's 'W' in the fifth-place bout was his team-best 20th win of the season.
Redshirt freshman Zach Zimmer and Taylor Walsh also made some noise out in the Sin City. Each made a run to the championship draw quarterfinals before suffering their first defeat.
Complete Results & Team Standings 
The Hoosiers now take a two-week break from competition, getting back after it with the Big Ten opener on Dec. 18 when the Cream and Crimson travels to Columbus, Ohio to take on the Buckeyes.
