Stanford wrestling went on the road to Nevada last weekend to take part in the 26th annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Collegiate Wrestling Invitational for a key tune-up as the early season competition winds down. As a team, the Cardinal finished 19th at the event, but once again put forward a handful of strong results.

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Junior Tyler Parker and the Cardinal wrestlers finished 19th in the squad’s final competition of the fall. Stanford’s first dual meet of the season is on Jan. 4. #gallery http://daily.stanford.edu/image/full/8301
Masaru Oka

Junior Tyler Parker and the Cardinal wrestlers finished 19th in the squad’s final competition of the fall. Stanford’s first dual meet of the season is on Jan. 4.

Senior Tanner Gardner, ranked fourth nationally in the USA Today/Intermat/NWCA poll wrestling at 125 pounds, stayed perfect on the season, winning five matches in Las Vegas to improve his record to 17-0 and bring home his third straight tournament championship after earning top finishes at the Fullerton Open and Central Missouri Open. Gardner pinned his first two opponents and defeated two ranked wrestlers en route to the tournament title.

Fellow senior and team-captain No. 13 Josh Zupancic, wrestling at 157 pounds, was the only other member of the Cardinal to advance to the second day of competition. Zupancic won his first two matches of the tournament before dropping a pair of decisions: 4-3 and 7-3 against No. 6 Matt Kocher of Pittsburgh and No. 12 Mike Chandler of Missouri, respectively.

Other Stanford wrestlers earning wins at the event included heavyweight senior captain Phil Doerner, sophomore Jake Johnson at 197 pounds, sophomore Zach Giesen at 184 pounds, junior Luke Feist at 174 pounds, sophomore Peter Miller at 165 pounds, and redshirt freshman Lucas Espericueta at 149 pounds. Cardinal wrestlers earned victories in a total of 15 matches at the Las Vegas tournament.

The Cardinal will have a break from competition for the next two weeks before traveling back to Nevada for the Reno Tournament of Champions on Dec. 19. Three wrestlers placed at Reno last season, including Gardner, who took down his second tournament victory of the 2006-07 season. Zupancic finished second last year and all 12 Cardinal wrestlers who took part in the event earned victories.

On Jan. 4, Stanford will wrestle in its first dual meet against a Division I opponent this season, as Kerry McCoy’s squad travels to take on Drexel and powerhouse Lehigh. McCoy served as an assistant coach with the Lehigh program for five years prior to arriving on the Farm in 2005.