TEMPE, Ariz.—The Arizona State wrestling team and head coach Zeke Jones announced the 2015-16 schedule on Thursday, which features five home contests and culminating with the 2016 Pac-12 Wrestling Championships at home at Wells Fargo Arena.
“Overall, I’d say our schedule is improving,” Jones said. “It’s reflecting the level of competition we want to get to. Obviously when you can put the returning National Championship team on your schedule [Ohio State], it shows that you are trying to compete with the best. I think we have the best team in the Big Ten and the Pac-12 on our schedule, and I think Iowa State is a good opponent from the Big 12. The schedule is going to get us ready for post-season competition.”
ASU will open 2015 at the West Virginia duals in Morgantown, W.Va., on Sunday, Nov. 8. The Sun Devils will face off against the Mountaineers, along with Drexel and Campbell.
The 2015-16 home opener is set for Thursday, Nov. 12 against Northern Colorado at 7:30 p.m. MT at Wells Fargo Arena.
ASU will then return to the road for another tri-meet, this one on Sunday, Nov. 15 at Illinois in Champaign, Ill., where the Sun Devils will additionally take on SIUE and Northern Illinois.
On Friday, Nov. 20, the Sun Devils will travel to Columbus, Ohio, to face off against the defending NCAA Champions, Ohio State, before returning home on Sunday, Nov. 22 to open the Pac-12 dual slate against Boise State at 7 p.m. MT.
The Sun Devils will compete in a pair of tournaments to round out 2015, the first on Dec. 4-5 at the Las Vegas Invite in Las Vegas, Nev., and the second in Evanston, Ill., at Midlands.
“The Las Vegas Invitational is a premier pre-Christmas tournament; it gives us the opportunity to see 50-60 of the best schools in the country,” Jones said. “We’ve added the Midlands to the schedule, which is a premier Christmas tournament, which has a tremendous history and tradition and always has. Some of the best teams there including Iowa, which is arguably a team that will contend for a national championship next year as well.”
In January, ASU will begin at the Virginia Duals on the 8th and 9th in Hampton, Va., before returning to Wells Fargo Arena for their Pac-12 Networks debut against Iowa State on Friday, Jan. 15 at 8 p.m. MT.
On Thursday, Jan. 21, ASU will take a trip to Orem, Utah, to take on Utah Valley before returning home for a tri-meet against West Virginia and Pac-12 foe Stanford on Saturday, Jan. 23. ASU will face off against the Mountaineers at 11 a.m. MT and the Cardinal at 3 p.m. MT. Both duals, along with the 1 p.m. MT neutral match between West Virginia and Stanford, will air on the Pac-12 Networks.
“We go to the Virginia Duals at the beginning of January, and the better east coast teams will be there,” Jones said. “We also have West Virginia on the schedule twice; we’ll continue that back and forth rivalry with them. I think its always fun to compete against a program that’s similar to ours, is embracing the climb.”
ASU will round out January by hosting Pac-12 foe Oregon State on Friday, Jan. 29 at 5 p.m. MT.
“Oregon State coming here, its obviously another target for us, we are focused on that,” Jones said. “If you want to be the best in the Pac-12 you have to beat them, it’s a bull’s-eye for us.”
On Saturday, Feb. 6, ASU will travel to Edinboro, Pa., for the Edinboro Open, before rounding out the Pac-12 Slate with road duals at Cal Poly and Cal State Bakersfield on Feb. 13 and 14.
Postseason begins with the 2016 Pac-12 Wrestling Championships on Saturday, Feb. 27 at Wells Fargo Arena. The Pac-12 Networks broadcast will begin at 6 p.m. MT. Further details about the day’s events will be released at a later date.
“It’s always great to host the Pac-12 Championships at your home, it’s an opportunity to qualify for the national tournament and sleep in your own bed and eat your own food right here in Tempe, you can’t beat it,” Jones said. “It’s good that were going to host that tournament and ultimately the NCAA Championship in New York City in Madison Square Garden. That’s where dreams come true and for guys on the team that’s where were culminating for in March. I think overall we have a good schedule with five home meets plus the Pac-12 Championships, which is good. I think that’s where we want to be.”
The 2016 NCAA Wrestling Championships are set for March 17-19 in New York City at Madison Square Garden.
Complete Sun Devil Wrestling Schedule
November
8 – WVU Duals vs. WVU & Drexel & Campbell (TBA; Morgantown, W.Va.)
12 – vs. Northern Colorado (7:30 p.m. MT; Wells Fargo Arena)
15 – Illinois Duals vs. Illinois & SIUE & NIU (TBA; Champaign, Ill.)
20 – at Ohio State (TBA; Columbus, Ohio)
22 – vs. Boise State (7 p.m. MT; Wells Fargo Arena)
December
4-5 – Las Vegas Invite (All Day; Las Vegas, Nev.)
29-30 – Midlands (All Day; Evanston, Ill.)
January
8-9 – Virginia Duals (All Day; Hampton, Va.)
15 – vs. Iowa State (8 p.m. MT; Wells Fargo Arena; Pac-12 Networks)
21 – at Utah Valley (TBA; Orem, Utah)
23 – vs. West Virginia & Stanford (11 a.m. & 3 p.m. MT; Wells Fargo Arena; Pac-12 Networks)
29 – vs. Oregon State (5 p.m. MT; Wells Fargo Arena; Pac-12 Networks)
February
6 – Edinboro Open (All Day; Edinboro, Pa.)
13 – at Cal Poly (TBA; San Luis Obispo, Calif.)
14 – at Cal State Bakersfield (TBA; Bakersfield, Calif.)
27 – 2016 Pac-12 Wrestling Championships (All Day; Wells Fargo Arena; Pac-12 Networks – 6 p.m. MT)