Three Cyclones reached the finals in their respective weights at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Wrestling Invitational (CKLV), leading the Cyclones to the team victory in a competitive field. 

The Cyclones finished in front of multiple top-10 teams, including No. 2 NC State, No. 5 Ohio State, No. 6 Cornell, No. 7 Michigan, No. 9 Nebraska and No. 10 Virginia Tech. 

Evan Frost continues to impress

Before the season got underway, David Carr was asked which one of his teammates he thought could be in line for a breakout season. One of his predictions seems to be coming to fruition.

“I think you guys are sleeping on one of the Frosts. I don’t know which one. They’re both really good — I would say one of the Frosts is going to have a really good season, and I would keep an eye out for those two,” Carr said.

So far, the Frost twin that has stood out has been Evan Frost. 

The redshirt freshman was 4-0 on the season going into the weekend and was coming off the biggest win of his career after defeating No. 8 Brody Teske in the Cy-Hawk dual. 

Frost put on an equally impressive performance over the weekend in Las Vegas. Frost went 4-1, including two wins by major decision, before losing in the finals to NC State’s Kai Orine, the No. 5 ranked wrestler. 

Frost has proven through the early parts of the season he will be a key contributor to the Cyclones’ success. 

Will Feldkamp makes surprise run to the finals

At 184 pounds, Will Feldkamp was the No. 7 seed in the tournament but made an impressive run to the tournament final. 

Feldkamp went 4-1 on the weekend, including one win by pin, one by tech fall and one by major decision. 

The most impressive of Feldkamp’s wins came against the No. 2 seed in the tournament and the No. 3 overall 184-pounder in the country, Oregon State’s Trey Munoz. Feldkamp won the quarterfinal match 4-3, eventually advancing to the finals, where he would lose to Northern Iowa’s Parker Keckeisen, the top-seeded wrestler at the tournament. 

Bastida dominates his way to the 285-pound championship

Yonger Bastida had the performance of the weekend for the Cyclones, continuing his dominant start to the season. 

Coming into the weekend, Bastida was 4-0, and he only cemented himself further as one of the country’s elite heavyweights. 

Bastida went 5-0 on his run to the championship, including two victories by tech fall and one by major decision. 

In the final, Bastida upset the tournament’s No. 1 seed and No. 5 overall wrestler, Lucas Davison from Michigan, coming from behind to win the match 5-3.

Bastida’s win was the perfect ending to a huge weekend for Iowa State wrestling. 

Bonus points across the board helped fuel Iowa State’s first-place finish at the tournament. The weekend’s victory is the Cyclones’ fifth win at the CKLV tournament and their first since 1996. 

The Cyclones will be back in action in Nashville, Tennessee, on Dec. 18, where they will face Pittsburgh, Little Rock and Cornell in three separate duals.