HAMPTON, Va. – After dropping an early semifinal match to #15 Oklahoma, #19 ASU rebounded in the nightcap with a close victory, 20-19, vs. North Dakota State to take third place at the Virginia Duals.
"Overall, it was a good effort by the team," said head coach Zeke Jones. "We have another trophy coming home to Tempe, so that's good, still not the color [medal] we want, but we're making steps in the right direction. Duals are a collective effort and I thought, for the most part, we did that. Protecting bonus points on both sides, wins and losses, matters when it comes to a team effort."
A third-place finish marks the Sun Devils' best placement since finishing third in 1997 and the sixth time ASU has finished in the top four. The other four top-four finishes were between 1988 and 1997 (1988, 1989, 1990, 1997), including three straight second place finishes from 1988-1990.
A back-and-forth contest from start to finish, North Dakota State took a 13-0 lead through the first three weight classes following tech fall victories at 125 and 133.
Christian Pagdilao scored ASU's first points of the match with a 8-6 decision over Mitchell Friedman before Clayton Ream increased the Bison lead, 16-3, with a decision at 157.
Reigning Pac-12 Wrestler of the Week, Anthony Valencia, cut the Sun Devil deficit in half, 16-8, defeating Andrew Fogarty on a 18-3 tech fall at 165 before Jacen Petersen tacked on three points to bring ASU within five, 16-11. Creative coaching inserting Petersen into the order at 174 and moving Z. Valencia up was a gamble that ultimately paid off for the Sun Devils.
Moving up a class from his usual place in the order, Zahid Valencia continued his undefeated freshman campaign, pinning Tyler McNutt at 4:25 at 184 lbs. to give the Sun Devils their first lead, 17-16.
"We gambled and put Petersen at 174 and bumped up Zahid to 184 to try and win the dual. Just like going for it on fourth-and-10 with a minute to go in football or running a trick play. That was a huge gamble and it paid off."
North Dakota State regained the advantage, 19-17, as Cordell Eaton posted a 5-2 decision at 197 vs. Sullivan Cauley, who wrestled heavyweight earlier in the day.
Coming down to the final bout, Tanner Hall took care of business with a 4-1 decision, padded by the riding time point, to give the Sun Devils the 20-19 overall victory, capturing third place.
In the semifinal vs. Oklahoma, Josh Shields scored the Sun Devils' first points of the day on a decision (157) before the Valencia's tallied back-to-back major decisions. Z. Valencia's 12-3 major decision brought the Sun Devils within two, 13-11, but the Sooners rallied with 12 straight points for the easy victory.
Individually, Zahid Valencia was named Most Outstanding Wrestler of the 2017 Virginia Duals as voted upon by the coaches in attendance.
"Zahid's Outstanding Wrestler award shows that we have the best wrestler in the tournament. For me, the Outstanding Wrestler Award of the final dual goes to Anthony [Valencia] and Jacen [Petersen]. Anthony's takedown at the buzzer to get the extra team point and Petersen going up to 174 and breaking the kid was what we needed to get our hand raised. That set the stage to close out the dual in our favor."
The Sun Devils return home next weekend to host North Carolina in a non-conference dual broadcast on Pac-12 Network Arizona Friday, Jan. 20 at 7 p.m. The match will be ASU's now-annual MMA night as several former Sun Devils and other MMA stars will be in attendance and part of the evening's festivities.
ASU's Virginia Duals History
1987 – 7th Place
1988 – 2nd Place
1989 – 2nd Place
1990 – 2nd Place
1997 – 3rd Place
2014 – 7th Place
2015 – 6th Place
2016 – 4th Place
2017 – 3rd Place
Results: ASU (11) – Oklahoma (25)
125 – Christian Moody def. Josh Kramer, Dec 15-8 (OU 3, ASU 0)
133 – Jacob Rubio def. Ted Rico, Dec 13-6 (OU 6, ASU 0)
141 – Mike Longo def. Nikko Villarreal, Dec 5-0 (OU 9, ASU 0)
149 – Davion Jeffries def. Josh Maruca, MD 11-3 (OU 13, ASU 0)
157 – Josh Shields def. Clark Class, Dec 3-0 (OU 13, ASU 3)
165 – Anthony Valencia def. Yoanse Mejias, MD 13-3 (OU 13, ASU 7)
174 – Zahid Valencia def. Matt Reed, MD 12-3 (OU 13, ASU 11)
184 – Andrew Dixon def. Jacen Petersen, Dec 4-1 (OU 16, ASU 11)
197 – Brad Johnson def. Austyn Harris, Dec 7-1 (OU 19, ASU 11)
HWT – Ross Larson def. Sullivan Cauley, Fall :19 (OU 25, ASU 11)
Results: ASU (20) – North Dakota State (19)
125 – Josh Rodriguez def. Michael Nguyen, TF 25-11 (NDSU 5, ASU 0)
133 – Cam Sykora def. Ted Rico, TF 22-5 (NDSU 10, ASU 0)
141 – Taylor Nein def. Nikko Villarreal, Dec 5-3 (NDSU 13, ASU 0)
149 – Christian Pagdilao def. Mitchell Friedman, Dec 8-6 (NDSU 13, ASU 3)
157 – Clayton Ream def. Josh Shields, Dec 8-4 (NDSU 16, ASU 3)
165 – Anthony Valencia def. Andrew Fogarty, TF 18-3 (NDSU 16, ASU 8)
174 – Jacen Petersen def. Dylan Urbach, Dec 6-2 (NDSU 16, ASU 11)
184 – Zahid Valencia def. Tyler McNutt, Fall 4:25 (ASU 17, NDSU 16)
197 – Cordell Eaton def. Sullivan Cauley, Dec 5-2 (NDSU 19, ASU 17)
HWT – Tanner Hall def. Benjamin Tyanan, Dec 4-1 (ASU 20, NDSU 19)
"Overall, it was a good effort by the team," said head coach Zeke Jones. "We have another trophy coming home to Tempe, so that's good, still not the color [medal] we want, but we're making steps in the right direction. Duals are a collective effort and I thought, for the most part, we did that. Protecting bonus points on both sides, wins and losses, matters when it comes to a team effort."
A third-place finish marks the Sun Devils' best placement since finishing third in 1997 and the sixth time ASU has finished in the top four. The other four top-four finishes were between 1988 and 1997 (1988, 1989, 1990, 1997), including three straight second place finishes from 1988-1990.
A back-and-forth contest from start to finish, North Dakota State took a 13-0 lead through the first three weight classes following tech fall victories at 125 and 133.
Christian Pagdilao scored ASU's first points of the match with a 8-6 decision over Mitchell Friedman before Clayton Ream increased the Bison lead, 16-3, with a decision at 157.
Reigning Pac-12 Wrestler of the Week, Anthony Valencia, cut the Sun Devil deficit in half, 16-8, defeating Andrew Fogarty on a 18-3 tech fall at 165 before Jacen Petersen tacked on three points to bring ASU within five, 16-11. Creative coaching inserting Petersen into the order at 174 and moving Z. Valencia up was a gamble that ultimately paid off for the Sun Devils.
Moving up a class from his usual place in the order, Zahid Valencia continued his undefeated freshman campaign, pinning Tyler McNutt at 4:25 at 184 lbs. to give the Sun Devils their first lead, 17-16.
"We gambled and put Petersen at 174 and bumped up Zahid to 184 to try and win the dual. Just like going for it on fourth-and-10 with a minute to go in football or running a trick play. That was a huge gamble and it paid off."
North Dakota State regained the advantage, 19-17, as Cordell Eaton posted a 5-2 decision at 197 vs. Sullivan Cauley, who wrestled heavyweight earlier in the day.
Coming down to the final bout, Tanner Hall took care of business with a 4-1 decision, padded by the riding time point, to give the Sun Devils the 20-19 overall victory, capturing third place.
In the semifinal vs. Oklahoma, Josh Shields scored the Sun Devils' first points of the day on a decision (157) before the Valencia's tallied back-to-back major decisions. Z. Valencia's 12-3 major decision brought the Sun Devils within two, 13-11, but the Sooners rallied with 12 straight points for the easy victory.
A huge third period lifted Anthony Valencia to a 13-3 major and pulled @ASUWrestling closer. Oklahoma leads 13-7 after 165. #VADuals17 pic.twitter.com/ianv5LY6Eb
— Trackwrestling (@trackwrestling) January 14, 2017
Individually, Zahid Valencia was named Most Outstanding Wrestler of the 2017 Virginia Duals as voted upon by the coaches in attendance.
Everyone wants a pic with the #VADuals17 Most Outstanding Wrestler @Z_MONEY97 @ChrisPendleton9 #ElevateAll pic.twitter.com/Lo2I7jzrHB
— Sun Devil Wrestling (@ASUWrestling) January 15, 2017
"Zahid's Outstanding Wrestler award shows that we have the best wrestler in the tournament. For me, the Outstanding Wrestler Award of the final dual goes to Anthony [Valencia] and Jacen [Petersen]. Anthony's takedown at the buzzer to get the extra team point and Petersen going up to 174 and breaking the kid was what we needed to get our hand raised. That set the stage to close out the dual in our favor."
The Sun Devils return home next weekend to host North Carolina in a non-conference dual broadcast on Pac-12 Network Arizona Friday, Jan. 20 at 7 p.m. The match will be ASU's now-annual MMA night as several former Sun Devils and other MMA stars will be in attendance and part of the evening's festivities.
ASU's Virginia Duals History
1987 – 7th Place
1988 – 2nd Place
1989 – 2nd Place
1990 – 2nd Place
1997 – 3rd Place
2014 – 7th Place
2015 – 6th Place
2016 – 4th Place
2017 – 3rd Place
Results: ASU (11) – Oklahoma (25)
125 – Christian Moody def. Josh Kramer, Dec 15-8 (OU 3, ASU 0)
133 – Jacob Rubio def. Ted Rico, Dec 13-6 (OU 6, ASU 0)
141 – Mike Longo def. Nikko Villarreal, Dec 5-0 (OU 9, ASU 0)
149 – Davion Jeffries def. Josh Maruca, MD 11-3 (OU 13, ASU 0)
157 – Josh Shields def. Clark Class, Dec 3-0 (OU 13, ASU 3)
165 – Anthony Valencia def. Yoanse Mejias, MD 13-3 (OU 13, ASU 7)
174 – Zahid Valencia def. Matt Reed, MD 12-3 (OU 13, ASU 11)
184 – Andrew Dixon def. Jacen Petersen, Dec 4-1 (OU 16, ASU 11)
197 – Brad Johnson def. Austyn Harris, Dec 7-1 (OU 19, ASU 11)
HWT – Ross Larson def. Sullivan Cauley, Fall :19 (OU 25, ASU 11)
Results: ASU (20) – North Dakota State (19)
125 – Josh Rodriguez def. Michael Nguyen, TF 25-11 (NDSU 5, ASU 0)
133 – Cam Sykora def. Ted Rico, TF 22-5 (NDSU 10, ASU 0)
141 – Taylor Nein def. Nikko Villarreal, Dec 5-3 (NDSU 13, ASU 0)
149 – Christian Pagdilao def. Mitchell Friedman, Dec 8-6 (NDSU 13, ASU 3)
157 – Clayton Ream def. Josh Shields, Dec 8-4 (NDSU 16, ASU 3)
165 – Anthony Valencia def. Andrew Fogarty, TF 18-3 (NDSU 16, ASU 8)
174 – Jacen Petersen def. Dylan Urbach, Dec 6-2 (NDSU 16, ASU 11)
184 – Zahid Valencia def. Tyler McNutt, Fall 4:25 (ASU 17, NDSU 16)
197 – Cordell Eaton def. Sullivan Cauley, Dec 5-2 (NDSU 19, ASU 17)
HWT – Tanner Hall def. Benjamin Tyanan, Dec 4-1 (ASU 20, NDSU 19)