By Emily Ducker, Sun Devil Athletics media relations assistant
TEMPE, Ariz. – In front of a record crowd of nearly 3000 on Senior Night, the No. 8 Sun Devils attempted a mid-match comeback after finding themselves down early, but No. 7/11 Lehigh ultimately earned a 22-13 win.
Lehigh took an early 13-0 lead with consecutive wins in the first four bouts of the evening, beginning at the 125-pound weight class.
The Sun Devils posted their first points in the fifth bout when No. 4 Josh Shields (157) earned a decision over Ian Brown, 3-1.
In the following bout, No. 15 Anthony Valencia (165) earned a bonus point victory in a 16-7 major decision over No. 19 Gordon Wolf.
No. 1 Zahid Valencia remained undefeated on the season (now 24-0) with an 11-4 decision over No. 5 Jordan Kutler, bringing the Devils within three of the Mountain Hawks at 13-10.
Despite increased momentum in the Devils' favor, Lehigh earned back-to-back bonus point wins to secure the victory at 184 and 197.
In one of the most exciting bouts of the evening, No. 4 Tanner Hall battled No. 12 Jordan Wood through the second set of tiebreakers and ultimately earned a 4-3 decision to bring the final score to 22-13 in favor of the Mountain Hawks.
Seniors Ali Naser, Jason Tsirtsis, Anthony Anderson, Oliver Pierce and Christian Pagdilao were joined at center mat by their coaches and family members during the intermission in honor of their final collegiate home match.
The Sun Devils close the regular season with a Pac-12 match at Cal Poly on Sunday, Feb. 11 at 2 p.m. MST/ 1 p.m. PST. The match will be broadcast on the Cal Poly YouTube page HERE.
No. 7/11 Lehigh (22), No. 8 Arizona State (13)
125 – #2 Darian Cruz DEC #12 Ryan Millhof, 8-3
133 – #7 Scott Parker DEC #14 Ali Naser, 6-4 SV-1
141 – #11 Luke Karam DEC Nikko Villarreal, 3-0
149 – Cortlandt Schuyler MD #8 Jason Tsirtsis, 11-3
157 – #4 Josh Shields DEC Ian Brown, 3-1
165 – #15 Anthony Valencia MD #19 Gordon Wolf, 16-7
174 – #1 Zahid Valencia DEC #5 Jordan Kutler, 11-4
184 – #4 Ryan Preisch MD Kordell Norfleet, 8-0
197 – Chris Weiler TF Cade Belshay, 15-0 (3:00)
HWT – #4 Tanner Hall DEC #12 Jordan Wood, 4-3 TB-2 (:05 sec RT)
TEMPE, Ariz. – In front of a record crowd of nearly 3000 on Senior Night, the No. 8 Sun Devils attempted a mid-match comeback after finding themselves down early, but No. 7/11 Lehigh ultimately earned a 22-13 win.
Thank you to our record crowd of nearly 3000 for coming out to the home finale #SunDevilIntensity pic.twitter.com/Frpo2Y80j9
— Sun Devil Wrestling (@ASUWrestling) February 10, 2018
Lehigh took an early 13-0 lead with consecutive wins in the first four bouts of the evening, beginning at the 125-pound weight class.
The Sun Devils posted their first points in the fifth bout when No. 4 Josh Shields (157) earned a decision over Ian Brown, 3-1.
In the following bout, No. 15 Anthony Valencia (165) earned a bonus point victory in a 16-7 major decision over No. 19 Gordon Wolf.
No. 1 Zahid Valencia remained undefeated on the season (now 24-0) with an 11-4 decision over No. 5 Jordan Kutler, bringing the Devils within three of the Mountain Hawks at 13-10.
2??4??-0?? pic.twitter.com/S7aAAu4XKK
— Sun Devil Wrestling (@ASUWrestling) February 10, 2018
Despite increased momentum in the Devils' favor, Lehigh earned back-to-back bonus point wins to secure the victory at 184 and 197.
In one of the most exciting bouts of the evening, No. 4 Tanner Hall battled No. 12 Jordan Wood through the second set of tiebreakers and ultimately earned a 4-3 decision to bring the final score to 22-13 in favor of the Mountain Hawks.
Seniors Ali Naser, Jason Tsirtsis, Anthony Anderson, Oliver Pierce and Christian Pagdilao were joined at center mat by their coaches and family members during the intermission in honor of their final collegiate home match.
#SeniorNight #SunDevilIntensity pic.twitter.com/SfDMqsTOYM
— Sun Devil Wrestling (@ASUWrestling) February 10, 2018
The Sun Devils close the regular season with a Pac-12 match at Cal Poly on Sunday, Feb. 11 at 2 p.m. MST/ 1 p.m. PST. The match will be broadcast on the Cal Poly YouTube page HERE.
No. 7/11 Lehigh (22), No. 8 Arizona State (13)
125 – #2 Darian Cruz DEC #12 Ryan Millhof, 8-3
133 – #7 Scott Parker DEC #14 Ali Naser, 6-4 SV-1
141 – #11 Luke Karam DEC Nikko Villarreal, 3-0
149 – Cortlandt Schuyler MD #8 Jason Tsirtsis, 11-3
157 – #4 Josh Shields DEC Ian Brown, 3-1
165 – #15 Anthony Valencia MD #19 Gordon Wolf, 16-7
174 – #1 Zahid Valencia DEC #5 Jordan Kutler, 11-4
184 – #4 Ryan Preisch MD Kordell Norfleet, 8-0
197 – Chris Weiler TF Cade Belshay, 15-0 (3:00)
HWT – #4 Tanner Hall DEC #12 Jordan Wood, 4-3 TB-2 (:05 sec RT)