TEMPE, Ariz.—Arizona State wrestling’s incoming freshman class was named No. 1 in the nation, Amateur Wrestling News announced this week.
This marks the first time the Sun Devils have had the top recruiting class, per AWN, since 1988. The last time ASU was ranked was at 11 in 2010.
Announced in the fall of 2014, the ASU signees include Anthony Valencia (St. John Bosco, Bellflower, Calif.), Zahid Valencia (St. John Bosco, Bellflower, Calif.), Lance Benick (Totino-Grace HS, Fridley, Minn.), Josh Maruca (Franklin Regional HS, Murrysville, Pa.), Josh Shields (Franklin Regional HS, Murrysville, Pa.), and Nikko Villarreal (Gilroy, Gilroy, Calif.). Tanner Hall (Meridian, Meridian, Idaho) signed with the Sun Devils in the spring.
Also joining the ASU program for the 2015-16 season are Jake Deutschlander (Hyde School/Bath, Me.), Chance Eskam (Carlsbad HS, Carlsbad, Calif.), Paul Klein (Brother Martin HS/New Orleans, La.), Josh Kramer (Desert Edge HS, Buckeye, Ariz.), Tyler Sage (Cypress Bay/Weston, Fla.), Connor Small (Liberty Senior HS, Issaquah, Wash.), Ted Rico (Combs HS/Queen Creek, Ariz.), and Kirk Wilson (Dunham HS/Baton Rouge, La.).
In 2014-15, the Sun Devil wrestling team finished 29th at the NCAA Championships, led by All-American Blake Stauffer (184-pounds), ASU’s first since 2011. Additionally, ASU finished second at the 2015 Pac-12 Championships, the highest placement since 2006, with champions in Stauffer and Christian Pagdilao (149 pounds). Along with Stauffer and Pagdilao, ASU is expected to return five NCAA qualifiers for 2015-16.