HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. – After one day of competition at the 55th annual Midlands Championships, five Sun Devils remain in contention for a title, competing first in the semifinals on Saturday and ensuring No. 9 Arizona State at least five placers.
ASU's three No. 1 seeds – Anthony Valencia (165), Zahid Valencia (174), and Tanner Hall (HWT) – all advanced to Saturday's semifinals as well as No. 5 Jason Tsirtsis (149) and No. 2 Josh Shields (157).
Three more – Ali Naser, Josh Maruca, and Oliver Pierce – also still have the opportunity to place while competing through the consolation bracket.
As a team, Iowa holds the lead (91 points) with the Sun Devils closely behind with 75 points followed by Rutgers in third (74 points).
Tsirtsis made Midlands history as he became the 32nd athlete in the prestigious tournament's history to become a six-time placewinner. Tsirtsis, however, may have one of the toughest roads to a championship, facing the reigning Midlands champ and No. 1 seed, Brandon Sorenson of Iowa.
Shields will rematch with South Dakota State's Luke Zilverberg, the No. 3 seed, after Shields earned a 4-0 decision on Nov. 26 in the dual in Tempe. Anthony Valencia will face the No. 5 seed, Princeton's Jon Schleifer while his brother Zahid will face the No. 13 seed, Garrett Sutton of Michigan. Tanner Hall is set to take on Maryland's Youssif Hemida in the semifinals.
Full results from Friday and first matchups of Saturday are below. Session three starts at 12 pm CT/11 am MT while session four begins at 7:05 pm CT/6:05 pm MT.
FRIDAY'S RESULTS
Ryan Millhof (No. 4/125)
Round of 32 – Devin Schroder (Purdue) MD #4 Ryan Millhof, 12-2
Cons Round of 16-1 – #4 Ryan Millhof FALL Lukus Stricker (Harvard), 3:54
Cons Round of 16-2 – #7 Travis Piotrowski (Illinois) MFF #4 Ryan Millhof
Josh Kramer (NR/125)
Round of 32 – #11 Brock Hudkins (Northern Illinois) DEC Josh Kramer, 5-3 SV-1
Cons Round of 16-1 – Josh Kramer MD Jack Medley (Michigan-Unatt), 12-1
Cons Round of 16-2 – Josh Kramer DEC Justin Stickley (Iowa), 8-4
Cons Round of 8-1 – #8 Jake Gromacki (Clarion) MD Josh Kramer, 17-6
Ali Naser (No. 8/133)
Round of 32 – #8 Ali Naser MD Mikey Cullen (Wisconsin), 8-0
Round of 16 – #8 Ali Naser MD #9 Markus Simmons (Iowa State), 12-4
Quarterfinals - #1 Seth Gross (South Dakota) TF #8 Ali Naser, 16-0
Nikko Villarreal (NR/141)
Round of 32 - #1 Mason Smith (Central Michigan) DEC Nikko Villarreal, 7-1
Cons. Round of 16-1 – Pete Lipari (Rutgers) DEC Nikko Villarreal, 8-4
Cory Crooks (NR/141)
First Round – Nate Limmex (Purdue) MD Cory Crooks, 14-2
Cons. First Round – Cory Crooks DEC Jason Ipsarides (Northwestern), 8-6
Cons. Round of 16-1 – Cory Crooks DEC James Pawelski (Brown), 7-5
Cons. Round of 16-2 – Vince Turk (Iowa) FALL Cory Crooks, 3:21
Jason Tsirtsis (No. 5/149)
First Round – #5 Jason Tsirtsis MD Koby Reyes (Purdue), 12-2
Round of 32 – #5 Jason Tsirtsis DEC Matthew Lattanze (Brown), 4-1
Round of 16 – #5 Jason Tsirtsis DEC #12 Eric Barone (Illinois), 5-4 TB-3
Quarterfinal – #5 Jason Tsirtsis DEC Austin O'Connor (North Carolina-Unatt.), 3-2 TB-1
Josh Maruca (No. 7/149)
First Round – #7 Josh Maruca MD Austin Nash (Purdue), 11-3
Round of 32 – #8 Josh Maruca FALL Carl Antrassian (Penn), 3:27
Round of 16 – #7 Josh Maruca DEC Pat Lugo (Iowa-Unatt.), 4-1
Quarterfinal – #2 Justin Oliver (Central Michigan) DEC #7 Josh Maruca, 8-5
Oliver Pierce (NR/157)
First Round – #1 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) FALL Oliver Pierce, 2:35
Cons. First Round – Oliver Pierce FALL Cullen Cummings (Ohio), 1:01
Cons. Round of 16-1 – Oliver Pierce DEC Layne Van AnRooy (Michigan-Unatt.), 5-2
Cons. Round of 16-2 – Oliver Pierce FALL #12 Jordan Laster (Princeton-Unatt.), 4:05
Cons. Quarterfinal-1 – Oliver Pierce FALL Griffin Parriott (Purdue), 2:28
Josh Shields (No. 2/157)
First Round – #2 Josh Shields DEC Colston DiBlasi (Iowa State), 6-0
Round of 32 – #2 Josh Shields TF Cullen Cummings (Ohio), 18-2
Round of 16 – #2 Josh Shields FALL Austin Holmes (Indiana), 2:40
Quarterfinal – #2 Josh Shields Dec #10 Andrew Crone (Wisconsin), 3-1
Anthony Valencia (No. 1/165)
First Round – #1 Anthony Valencia TF Bret Fedewa (Central Michigan-Unatt.), 18-1
Round of 16 – #1 Anthony Valencia DEC Fritz Hoehn (Edinboro), 16-9
Quarterfinal – #1 Anthony Valencia MD Jacob Morrissey (Purdue), 18-7
Zahid Valencia (No. 1/174)
Round of 32 – #1 Zahid Valencia FALL Mathew Wilhelm (Cal Poly), 1:50
Round of 16 – #1 Zahid Valencia FALL Matthew Gancayco (Princeton), 2:13
Quarterfinal – #1 Zahid Valencia MD #8 Josef Johnston (Harvard), 20-7
Kordell Norfleet (No. 11/184)
Round of 32 – Kayne MacCallum (Eastern Michigan) DEC Kordell Norfleet, 5-4
Cons. First Round: #6 Joe Heyob (Penn) DEC Kordell Norfleet, 9-2
Cade Belshay (NR/197)
Round of 32 – Cade Belshay DEC Andre Lee (Illinois), 3-2
Round of 16 - #2 Jacob Smith (West Virginia) DEC Cade Belshay, 5-2
Cons. Round of 16-2 – Cade Belshay DEC Matt Wroblewski (Illinois), 5-4
Cons. Round of 8-1 – #10 Jackson Striggow (Michigan) FALL Cade Belshay, 2:02
Tanner Hall (No. 1/HWT)
First Round – #1 Tanner Hall FALL Aaron Costello (Iowa-Unatt.), 4:01
Round of 32 – #1 Tanner Hall MD Spencer Empey (Cal Poly), 9-1
Round of 16 – #1 Tanner Hall DEC Michael Markulec (Princeton), 6-1
Quarterfinal – #1 Tanner Hall DEC #9 Shawn Streck (Purdue), 3-1 SV-1
SATURDAY'S SESSION 3 FIRST MATCHUPS
Championship Bracket
149: #5 Jason Tsirtsis – Semifinals vs. #1 Brandon Sorenson (Iowa)
157: #2 Josh Shields – Semifinals vs. #3 Luke Zilverberg (South Dakota State)
165: #1 Anthony Valencia – Semifinals vs. #5 Jon Schleifer (Princeton)
174: #1 Zahid Valencia – Semifinals vs. #13 Garrett Sutton (Michigan)
HWT: #1 Tanner Hall – Semifinals vs. #4 Youssif Hemida (Maryland)
Consolation Bracket
133: Ali Naser – Cons. Round of 8-2 vs. Colin Valdiviez (Northwestern)
149: #7 Josh Maruca – Cons. Round of 8-2 vs. #9 Steven Bleise (Minnesota-Unatt.)
157: Oliver Pierce – Cons. Round of 8-2 vs. Mike D'Angelo (Princeton)
ASU's three No. 1 seeds – Anthony Valencia (165), Zahid Valencia (174), and Tanner Hall (HWT) – all advanced to Saturday's semifinals as well as No. 5 Jason Tsirtsis (149) and No. 2 Josh Shields (157).
Three more – Ali Naser, Josh Maruca, and Oliver Pierce – also still have the opportunity to place while competing through the consolation bracket.
As a team, Iowa holds the lead (91 points) with the Sun Devils closely behind with 75 points followed by Rutgers in third (74 points).
Tsirtsis made Midlands history as he became the 32nd athlete in the prestigious tournament's history to become a six-time placewinner. Tsirtsis, however, may have one of the toughest roads to a championship, facing the reigning Midlands champ and No. 1 seed, Brandon Sorenson of Iowa.
Shields will rematch with South Dakota State's Luke Zilverberg, the No. 3 seed, after Shields earned a 4-0 decision on Nov. 26 in the dual in Tempe. Anthony Valencia will face the No. 5 seed, Princeton's Jon Schleifer while his brother Zahid will face the No. 13 seed, Garrett Sutton of Michigan. Tanner Hall is set to take on Maryland's Youssif Hemida in the semifinals.
Full results from Friday and first matchups of Saturday are below. Session three starts at 12 pm CT/11 am MT while session four begins at 7:05 pm CT/6:05 pm MT.
FRIDAY'S RESULTS
Ryan Millhof (No. 4/125)
Round of 32 – Devin Schroder (Purdue) MD #4 Ryan Millhof, 12-2
Cons Round of 16-1 – #4 Ryan Millhof FALL Lukus Stricker (Harvard), 3:54
Cons Round of 16-2 – #7 Travis Piotrowski (Illinois) MFF #4 Ryan Millhof
Josh Kramer (NR/125)
Round of 32 – #11 Brock Hudkins (Northern Illinois) DEC Josh Kramer, 5-3 SV-1
Cons Round of 16-1 – Josh Kramer MD Jack Medley (Michigan-Unatt), 12-1
Cons Round of 16-2 – Josh Kramer DEC Justin Stickley (Iowa), 8-4
Cons Round of 8-1 – #8 Jake Gromacki (Clarion) MD Josh Kramer, 17-6
Ali Naser (No. 8/133)
Round of 32 – #8 Ali Naser MD Mikey Cullen (Wisconsin), 8-0
Round of 16 – #8 Ali Naser MD #9 Markus Simmons (Iowa State), 12-4
Quarterfinals - #1 Seth Gross (South Dakota) TF #8 Ali Naser, 16-0
Nikko Villarreal (NR/141)
Round of 32 - #1 Mason Smith (Central Michigan) DEC Nikko Villarreal, 7-1
Cons. Round of 16-1 – Pete Lipari (Rutgers) DEC Nikko Villarreal, 8-4
Cory Crooks (NR/141)
First Round – Nate Limmex (Purdue) MD Cory Crooks, 14-2
Cons. First Round – Cory Crooks DEC Jason Ipsarides (Northwestern), 8-6
Cons. Round of 16-1 – Cory Crooks DEC James Pawelski (Brown), 7-5
Cons. Round of 16-2 – Vince Turk (Iowa) FALL Cory Crooks, 3:21
Jason Tsirtsis (No. 5/149)
First Round – #5 Jason Tsirtsis MD Koby Reyes (Purdue), 12-2
Round of 32 – #5 Jason Tsirtsis DEC Matthew Lattanze (Brown), 4-1
Round of 16 – #5 Jason Tsirtsis DEC #12 Eric Barone (Illinois), 5-4 TB-3
Quarterfinal – #5 Jason Tsirtsis DEC Austin O'Connor (North Carolina-Unatt.), 3-2 TB-1
Josh Maruca (No. 7/149)
First Round – #7 Josh Maruca MD Austin Nash (Purdue), 11-3
Round of 32 – #8 Josh Maruca FALL Carl Antrassian (Penn), 3:27
Round of 16 – #7 Josh Maruca DEC Pat Lugo (Iowa-Unatt.), 4-1
Quarterfinal – #2 Justin Oliver (Central Michigan) DEC #7 Josh Maruca, 8-5
Oliver Pierce (NR/157)
First Round – #1 Michael Kemerer (Iowa) FALL Oliver Pierce, 2:35
Cons. First Round – Oliver Pierce FALL Cullen Cummings (Ohio), 1:01
Cons. Round of 16-1 – Oliver Pierce DEC Layne Van AnRooy (Michigan-Unatt.), 5-2
Cons. Round of 16-2 – Oliver Pierce FALL #12 Jordan Laster (Princeton-Unatt.), 4:05
Cons. Quarterfinal-1 – Oliver Pierce FALL Griffin Parriott (Purdue), 2:28
Josh Shields (No. 2/157)
First Round – #2 Josh Shields DEC Colston DiBlasi (Iowa State), 6-0
Round of 32 – #2 Josh Shields TF Cullen Cummings (Ohio), 18-2
Round of 16 – #2 Josh Shields FALL Austin Holmes (Indiana), 2:40
Quarterfinal – #2 Josh Shields Dec #10 Andrew Crone (Wisconsin), 3-1
Anthony Valencia (No. 1/165)
First Round – #1 Anthony Valencia TF Bret Fedewa (Central Michigan-Unatt.), 18-1
Round of 16 – #1 Anthony Valencia DEC Fritz Hoehn (Edinboro), 16-9
Quarterfinal – #1 Anthony Valencia MD Jacob Morrissey (Purdue), 18-7
Zahid Valencia (No. 1/174)
Round of 32 – #1 Zahid Valencia FALL Mathew Wilhelm (Cal Poly), 1:50
Round of 16 – #1 Zahid Valencia FALL Matthew Gancayco (Princeton), 2:13
Quarterfinal – #1 Zahid Valencia MD #8 Josef Johnston (Harvard), 20-7
Kordell Norfleet (No. 11/184)
Round of 32 – Kayne MacCallum (Eastern Michigan) DEC Kordell Norfleet, 5-4
Cons. First Round: #6 Joe Heyob (Penn) DEC Kordell Norfleet, 9-2
Cade Belshay (NR/197)
Round of 32 – Cade Belshay DEC Andre Lee (Illinois), 3-2
Round of 16 - #2 Jacob Smith (West Virginia) DEC Cade Belshay, 5-2
Cons. Round of 16-2 – Cade Belshay DEC Matt Wroblewski (Illinois), 5-4
Cons. Round of 8-1 – #10 Jackson Striggow (Michigan) FALL Cade Belshay, 2:02
Tanner Hall (No. 1/HWT)
First Round – #1 Tanner Hall FALL Aaron Costello (Iowa-Unatt.), 4:01
Round of 32 – #1 Tanner Hall MD Spencer Empey (Cal Poly), 9-1
Round of 16 – #1 Tanner Hall DEC Michael Markulec (Princeton), 6-1
Quarterfinal – #1 Tanner Hall DEC #9 Shawn Streck (Purdue), 3-1 SV-1
SATURDAY'S SESSION 3 FIRST MATCHUPS
Championship Bracket
149: #5 Jason Tsirtsis – Semifinals vs. #1 Brandon Sorenson (Iowa)
157: #2 Josh Shields – Semifinals vs. #3 Luke Zilverberg (South Dakota State)
165: #1 Anthony Valencia – Semifinals vs. #5 Jon Schleifer (Princeton)
174: #1 Zahid Valencia – Semifinals vs. #13 Garrett Sutton (Michigan)
HWT: #1 Tanner Hall – Semifinals vs. #4 Youssif Hemida (Maryland)
Consolation Bracket
133: Ali Naser – Cons. Round of 8-2 vs. Colin Valdiviez (Northwestern)
149: #7 Josh Maruca – Cons. Round of 8-2 vs. #9 Steven Bleise (Minnesota-Unatt.)
157: Oliver Pierce – Cons. Round of 8-2 vs. Mike D'Angelo (Princeton)