STILLWATER, Okla.—Arizona State wrestling’s incoming freshman wrestler Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco HS/Bellflower, Calif.) was named the winner of the 2015 Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award, one of the High School Excellence Awards given by the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum.
Valencia, who will join the Sun Devil wrestling program in the fall of 2015 as a member of the No. 1 ranked incoming class in the country, is a three-time California high school state champion. With a career high school record of 164-1, Valencia was selected from the 49 state winners and five regional winners announced on April 27 by the NWHOF.
The award, named in memory of World and Olympic champion Dave Schultz, is in its 20th year.
The NWHOF also announced the winner of the Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award, named for the wife of former Sun Devil All-American and Olympic Silver Medalist, Townsend Saunders.
The 2015 ASU Wrestling Incoming Class
Anthony Valencia (Bellflower, Calif./ St. John Bosco HS)
Zahid Valencia (Bellflower, Calif./ St. John Bosco HS)
Josh Shields (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional HS)
Lance Benick (Fridley, Minn./Totino-Grace HS)
Josh Maruca (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional HS)
Nikko Villarreal (Gilroy, Calif./Gilroy HS)
Tanner Hall (Meridian, Idaho, Meridian HS)
Connor Small (Issaquah, Wash./Liberty Senior HS)
Josh Kramer (Buckeye, Ariz./Desert Edge HS)
Ted Rico (Queen Creek, Ariz./Combs HS)
Paul Klein (New Orleans, La./Brother Martin HS)
Jake Deutschlander (Bath, Me./Hyde School)
Chance Eskam (Carlsbad, Calif./Carlsbad HS)
Tyler Sage (Weston, Fla./Cypress Bay HS)
Kirk Wilson (Baton Rouge, La./Dunham HS)
Kerrigan Kohnen (Frisco, Texas/Frisco Wakeland HS)