TEMPE, Ariz. — The No.4 Sun Devil Wrestling team gets ready to open the 2019-20 season on the road in Troy, New York, at the Journeymen Northeast Duals on Saturday, Nov. 9 (10 am MST), while wrapping up the weekend at the Journeymen Collegiate Classic on Nov. 10.
The Journeymen Northeast Duals and Journeymen Collegiate Classic will take place at Hudson Valley Community College with live coverage being provided by FloWrestling.org. Competition begins Saturday at 10 am ET/8 am MST and continues through tell 5:30 pm ET/ 3:30 pm MST.
ASU opens the season with an early top-25 test against No. 20 Virginia at 10 a.m. MST. This will be the fifth matchup between the two programs since 2007, and the first since last season when the Cavaliers defeated the Devils, 23-16. Following the match with Virginia, the Sun Devils will take on another top-25 opponent in No. 23 Purdue at noon. The Devils hold a 3-1 all-time series record over the Boilermakers, and this will be the first time the two teams have met since 2004.
The Journeymen Collegiate Classic will round out the weekend for the Sun Devils, as 16 college wrestling programs will compete in a round robin individual tournament. Some notable D-I programs featured on Sunday include, Lehigh University, Purdue University, University of Oklahoma, West Virginia University and Lock Haven University. The tournament will also be streamed live on FloWrestling.org.
POTENTIAL MATCHUPS TO WATCH
#4 ASU vs. #20 Virginia
125: #2 Jack Mueller vs. #24 Brandon Courtney
149: #22 Sam Krivus vs. #14 Josh Maruca
165: #22 Cam Coy vs. #6 Josh Shields
#4 ASU vs. #23 Purdue
125: #11 Devin Schroder vs. #24 Brandon Courtney
149: #12 Griffin Parriott vs. #14 Josh Maruca
157: #6 Kendall Coleman vs. #11 Jacori Teemer
165: #19 Emil Soehnlen vs. #6 Josh Shields
174: #12 Dylan Lydy vs. #10 Anthony Valencia
184: #18 Max Lyon vs. #1 Zahid Valencia
^FloWrestling Rankings
UP NEXT
ASU returns home to host its first home duals of the year against Augustana (South Dakota) (Nov. 15/7 p.m.) and McKendree (Nov. 16/12 p.m.), before playing host to No. 1 Penn State Friday, Nov. 22 at 7 p.m. Fans can purchase tickets for all home duals here: https://thesundevils.com/sports/2014/10/29/209739045.aspx
THE BIG THREE
The 2019-20 season will bring a familiar face back to the lineup for the Sun Devils, as heavyweight Tanner Hall returns to the squad after redshirting the 2018-19 season. Hall rejoins fellow teammates Zahid Valencia and Josh Shields in their final year together. The three All-Americans have been exceptional in their careers at ASU and have proved to be important cogs when all three are featured in the starting lineup. The team has gone on to go 18-5 in the 23 duals where Hall, Shields and Valencia wrestled in the lineup. Individually, Valencia was a perfect 23-0, while Shields won 21 of his 23 matches and Hall only had four losses in 23 bouts. The trio have combined for 276 victories while surrendering just 42 losses in their three seasons at ASU.
HOME SCHEDULE FEATURES #1 PENN STATE
ASU will get set for a highly anticipated matchup against nine-time national champion and preseason No. 1 Penn State on Nov. 22 at 7 p.m. The historic bout against the Nittany Lions will take place on the Pac-12 Network. The dual will be the last part of home-and-home series between the two programs, as the Sun Devils visited State College, Pennsylvania, last season. ASU holds 3-4-1 record against the Nittany Lions and welcomes the defending champs to Tempe for the first time in the series.
ASU WRESTLING GARNERS #2 RECRUITING CLASS
After landing the No.1 pound-for-pound recruit in heavyweight Cohlton Schultz, Arizona State moved up to the second-best recruiting class in the nation behind No. 1 Ohio State, according to intermatwrestlecom. The 2019 class also features three-time Pennsylvania state champion Julian Chlebove, Orange Country wrestler of the year Trey Munoz and New Jersey state champion Nick Raimo.
TOWNSEND SAUNDERS INDUCTED INTO NWHOF
Former Sun Devil wrestler Townsend Saunders was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and incoming freshman Cohlton Schultz received the Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award at the NWHOF's 43rd annual Honors Weekend in Stillwater.
Saunders was a two-time Pac-10 Champion and two-time NCAA Division I All-American during his time as a Sun Devil, finishing second in the nation at 142 lbs. in 1989 and third at the 150 lbs. weight class in 1990. He holds a career mark of 77-9 while competing for ASU, a .895 win percentage that places him at fourth all-time in the program. He is also tied for fourth in dual victories in a season with 20 wins in 1989-90 and is tied for seventh on the Sun Devils' single-season overall victories list with 40 wins in 1988-89.
Saunders was an assistant coach at Arizona State from 2001-03 while also serving as executive director and coach for the Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club. He coached the United States women's team to seven medals in seven weights, winning a gold medal, four silver medals and two bronze medals, at the World Championships in 2003. Saunders was named USA Wrestling's Coach of the Year in 2004 after being coach of the United States women's wrestling team the first time that women's wrestling competed in the Olympics in 2004. He was inducted into the Arizona State University Hall of Fame in 2011 and the California Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2013.
ASU WRESTLING ON NATIONAL BROADCASTS
The No. 4 Sun Devil Wrestling team will make multiple appearances on Pac-12 Networks during the 2019-20 campaign, including a top-five matchup against reigning national champion Penn State in Desert Financial Arena (Nov. 22 at 7 pm MST), and a senior night dual against Pac-12 foe Stanford (Jan. 31 at 6 pm MST). A bout hosted by national runner-up from a year ago, Ohio State will also be broadcast live on FS1, Jan. 6 at 5 p.m. MST.
Sun Devil Wrestling's final national broadcast exposure will conclude at the Pac-12 Championships on March 7 in Palo Alto, California. Earlier rounds will be live streamed, while the final round will be broadcast live on Pac-12 Network.
THE STAFF
Joining head coach Zeke Jones on the 2018-19 coaching staff are eighth-year assistant coach Lee Pritts, sixth-year assistant coach Chris Pendleton, and second-year volunteer assistant Jamill Kelly.
Pritts, considered one of the top recruiters in the country, previously worked at North Carolina State, Old Dominion, and Missouri. He was an All-American at Eastern Michigan and qualified for the 2000 Olympic trials. This summer, he was a coach for USA Wrestling at the Cadet Freestyle World Championships.
Pendleton previously served as an assistant coach at Wyoming for four seasons, and specialized in training the team's upper weight classes. Pendleton was a two-time NCAA Champion and three-time All-American at Oklahoma State. In summer 2017, he served as an assistant coach for the USA Wrestling Junior World Freestyle Team in Finland where Zahid Valencia won a silver medal.
Kelly, a 2004 Olympic Silver Medalist in Athens, Greece, is a two-time World Team member, and four-time US National Team member. A US Open Champion, he is also a two-time Pan Am Games silver medalist, competing for Oklahoma State from 1997-2000.
The Journeymen Northeast Duals and Journeymen Collegiate Classic will take place at Hudson Valley Community College with live coverage being provided by FloWrestling.org. Competition begins Saturday at 10 am ET/8 am MST and continues through tell 5:30 pm ET/ 3:30 pm MST.
ASU opens the season with an early top-25 test against No. 20 Virginia at 10 a.m. MST. This will be the fifth matchup between the two programs since 2007, and the first since last season when the Cavaliers defeated the Devils, 23-16. Following the match with Virginia, the Sun Devils will take on another top-25 opponent in No. 23 Purdue at noon. The Devils hold a 3-1 all-time series record over the Boilermakers, and this will be the first time the two teams have met since 2004.
The Journeymen Collegiate Classic will round out the weekend for the Sun Devils, as 16 college wrestling programs will compete in a round robin individual tournament. Some notable D-I programs featured on Sunday include, Lehigh University, Purdue University, University of Oklahoma, West Virginia University and Lock Haven University. The tournament will also be streamed live on FloWrestling.org.
POTENTIAL MATCHUPS TO WATCH
#4 ASU vs. #20 Virginia
125: #2 Jack Mueller vs. #24 Brandon Courtney
149: #22 Sam Krivus vs. #14 Josh Maruca
165: #22 Cam Coy vs. #6 Josh Shields
#4 ASU vs. #23 Purdue
125: #11 Devin Schroder vs. #24 Brandon Courtney
149: #12 Griffin Parriott vs. #14 Josh Maruca
157: #6 Kendall Coleman vs. #11 Jacori Teemer
165: #19 Emil Soehnlen vs. #6 Josh Shields
174: #12 Dylan Lydy vs. #10 Anthony Valencia
184: #18 Max Lyon vs. #1 Zahid Valencia
^FloWrestling Rankings
UP NEXT
ASU returns home to host its first home duals of the year against Augustana (South Dakota) (Nov. 15/7 p.m.) and McKendree (Nov. 16/12 p.m.), before playing host to No. 1 Penn State Friday, Nov. 22 at 7 p.m. Fans can purchase tickets for all home duals here: https://thesundevils.com/sports/2014/10/29/209739045.aspx
THE BIG THREE
The 2019-20 season will bring a familiar face back to the lineup for the Sun Devils, as heavyweight Tanner Hall returns to the squad after redshirting the 2018-19 season. Hall rejoins fellow teammates Zahid Valencia and Josh Shields in their final year together. The three All-Americans have been exceptional in their careers at ASU and have proved to be important cogs when all three are featured in the starting lineup. The team has gone on to go 18-5 in the 23 duals where Hall, Shields and Valencia wrestled in the lineup. Individually, Valencia was a perfect 23-0, while Shields won 21 of his 23 matches and Hall only had four losses in 23 bouts. The trio have combined for 276 victories while surrendering just 42 losses in their three seasons at ASU.
HOME SCHEDULE FEATURES #1 PENN STATE
ASU will get set for a highly anticipated matchup against nine-time national champion and preseason No. 1 Penn State on Nov. 22 at 7 p.m. The historic bout against the Nittany Lions will take place on the Pac-12 Network. The dual will be the last part of home-and-home series between the two programs, as the Sun Devils visited State College, Pennsylvania, last season. ASU holds 3-4-1 record against the Nittany Lions and welcomes the defending champs to Tempe for the first time in the series.
ASU WRESTLING GARNERS #2 RECRUITING CLASS
After landing the No.1 pound-for-pound recruit in heavyweight Cohlton Schultz, Arizona State moved up to the second-best recruiting class in the nation behind No. 1 Ohio State, according to intermatwrestlecom. The 2019 class also features three-time Pennsylvania state champion Julian Chlebove, Orange Country wrestler of the year Trey Munoz and New Jersey state champion Nick Raimo.
TOWNSEND SAUNDERS INDUCTED INTO NWHOF
Former Sun Devil wrestler Townsend Saunders was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and incoming freshman Cohlton Schultz received the Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award at the NWHOF's 43rd annual Honors Weekend in Stillwater.
Saunders was a two-time Pac-10 Champion and two-time NCAA Division I All-American during his time as a Sun Devil, finishing second in the nation at 142 lbs. in 1989 and third at the 150 lbs. weight class in 1990. He holds a career mark of 77-9 while competing for ASU, a .895 win percentage that places him at fourth all-time in the program. He is also tied for fourth in dual victories in a season with 20 wins in 1989-90 and is tied for seventh on the Sun Devils' single-season overall victories list with 40 wins in 1988-89.
Saunders was an assistant coach at Arizona State from 2001-03 while also serving as executive director and coach for the Sunkist Kids Wrestling Club. He coached the United States women's team to seven medals in seven weights, winning a gold medal, four silver medals and two bronze medals, at the World Championships in 2003. Saunders was named USA Wrestling's Coach of the Year in 2004 after being coach of the United States women's wrestling team the first time that women's wrestling competed in the Olympics in 2004. He was inducted into the Arizona State University Hall of Fame in 2011 and the California Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2013.
ASU WRESTLING ON NATIONAL BROADCASTS
The No. 4 Sun Devil Wrestling team will make multiple appearances on Pac-12 Networks during the 2019-20 campaign, including a top-five matchup against reigning national champion Penn State in Desert Financial Arena (Nov. 22 at 7 pm MST), and a senior night dual against Pac-12 foe Stanford (Jan. 31 at 6 pm MST). A bout hosted by national runner-up from a year ago, Ohio State will also be broadcast live on FS1, Jan. 6 at 5 p.m. MST.
Sun Devil Wrestling's final national broadcast exposure will conclude at the Pac-12 Championships on March 7 in Palo Alto, California. Earlier rounds will be live streamed, while the final round will be broadcast live on Pac-12 Network.
THE STAFF
Joining head coach Zeke Jones on the 2018-19 coaching staff are eighth-year assistant coach Lee Pritts, sixth-year assistant coach Chris Pendleton, and second-year volunteer assistant Jamill Kelly.
Pritts, considered one of the top recruiters in the country, previously worked at North Carolina State, Old Dominion, and Missouri. He was an All-American at Eastern Michigan and qualified for the 2000 Olympic trials. This summer, he was a coach for USA Wrestling at the Cadet Freestyle World Championships.
Pendleton previously served as an assistant coach at Wyoming for four seasons, and specialized in training the team's upper weight classes. Pendleton was a two-time NCAA Champion and three-time All-American at Oklahoma State. In summer 2017, he served as an assistant coach for the USA Wrestling Junior World Freestyle Team in Finland where Zahid Valencia won a silver medal.
Kelly, a 2004 Olympic Silver Medalist in Athens, Greece, is a two-time World Team member, and four-time US National Team member. A US Open Champion, he is also a two-time Pan Am Games silver medalist, competing for Oklahoma State from 1997-2000.