TEMPE – The No. 4 Sun Devil (5-0) wrestling team gets back into its competition schedule after taking nearly a month off, with a trip to Columbus, Ohio for a top-five battle with No. 3 Ohio State (3-1), set for a 5 p.m. MST start time on Fox Sports 1.
ASU gets settled back into dual action after not competing since early December in Las Vegas, where the Devils earned a third place trophy at the Cliff Keen Invitational and saw redshirt senior Zahid Valencia win his third CVLV title, while fellow senior teammates Tanner Hall and Josh Shields filed runner-up finishes.
Coming into the first dual of 2020, the Sun Devils have nine wrestlers ranked in national polls. Brandon Courtney continues to move up in the Trackwrestling rankings throughout his sophomore season, as he sits No. 14 overall at 125 lbs. Courtney owns a 12-4 record to begin the month of January and leads the squad with seven major decision victories. Josh Kramer (133 lbs) suffered a setback at Cliff Keen after suffering an injury in his first match of the tournament, but still finds himself ranked No. 13. Josh Maruca (149 lbs) will enter Mondays match 7-6 and ranked No. 22. Redshirt freshman Jacori Teemer also finds himself ranked No. 22 at 157. Teemer is 4-4 in his first season with the Devils, with two victories coming by way of major decision.
Josh Shields (165 lbs) most recently notched his 10th win of the season and a runner-up finish at Cliff Keen. Shields is ranked fifth at his respective weight class. Anthony Valencia remains ranked No. 8 at 174 this week, with a 10-4 record. Valencia is one of five Sun Devils to already notch 10 wins so far this year. The No. 1 pound-for-pound wrestler in the nation, Zahid Valencia is a perfect 13-0 to begin the new year, with 11 bonus-point wins. No. 18 Kordell Norfleet (197) went 1-2 at Cliff Keen after forfeiting due to injury. This week, Norfleet will have a chance to avenge his loss against No. 1-ranked Kollin Moore on Monday, as Moore took home a 5-3 decision victory over Norfleet at CKLV. Tanner Hall rounds out the list for Sun Devils, as Hall is rated No. 5 overall at the heavyweight spot and supplies a 10-3 mark to this point in the season.
In the first road dual of the season, the Maroon and Gold will be looking for its first win over the Buckeyes since 1990, where the Devils defeated OSU, 19-15 in Columbus. The meeting will be the ninth dual between the two power five programs in 35 years, as Ohio State owns a 6-2 all-time record in the series.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH
125: #14 Brandon Courtney vs. #21 Malik Heinselman
149: #6 Sammy Sasso vs. #22 Josh Maruca
165: #4 Josh Shields vs. #9 Ethan Smith
174: #8 Anthony Valencia vs. #12 Caleb Romero
197: #1 Kollin Moore vs. #18 Kordell Norfleet
^ Trackwrestling Rankings
Fans will have the chance to watch the Sun Devils in their first nationally televised match of the season, as the bout will be broadcast live on Fox Sports 1. Coverage begins at 5 p.m. MST, with live results provided by Trackwrestling.
UP NEXT
The Sun Devils return back to Phoenix next week as they get set to host No. 11 Iowa State, Campbell and Harvard for the Sun Devil Duals at Chase Field for the first ever collegiate dual to take place in a professional ball park. The quadrangular meet gets underway on January 11 at 11 a.m. MST for session one and continues through for the finale as ASU takes on the Cyclones at 7 p.m. MST.
MILESTONES
VALENCIA BROTHERS, SCHULTZ PUNCH TICKET TO US OLYMPIC TRIALS
Anthony Valencia, Zahid Valencia and Cohlton Schultz all punched their tickets for a spot at the US Olympic Trials, set for April 4-5, after finishing within the top-five of their respective weight classes at the US Senior Nationals. Z. Valencia (86 kg) went a perfect 5-0 in his quest for first place in men's freestyle, while Schultz went 4-0 to sit atop the podium as the 130-kg Greco-Roman champion. A. Valencia battled his way through the consolation bracket to garner a fifth-place trophy in the 74-kg freestyle division.
#HODGEWATCH
Zahid Valencia has been declared the pound-for-pound best college wrestler in the nation by FloWrestling rankings. He has rattled off 12 bonus point victories in his first 13 matches this season, with three major decisions, two tech falls, six pins and one forfeit. He is now just two bonus wins away from tying the all-time ASU record of 92, set by former Sun Devil legend Anthony Robles (2008-11).
In Valencia's 13 victories so far, he has beaten some of the best college wrestlers in the nation at 184, with bonus point wins over No. 5 Trent Hidlay (NC State), No. 6 Lou Deprez (Binghampton) and No. 10 Sam Colbray (Iowa State). Not to mention, this comes after moving up a weight class from 174 to 184, where Valencia was a three-time All-American in his first three years.
ZAHID VALENCIA WINS THIRD CKLV TITLE, SUN DEVILS FINISH THIRD
Zahid Valencia not only won his third title in four years at the Cliff Keen Invitational, but he also was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler of the Tournament for the second time in his illustrations career. He was as dominant as he's been all season, earning five-straight bonus point victories on to a first-place trophy. As a team, the Sun Devils left Las Vegas with a third place trophy for the second time in three years, making it tied for the joint-highest finish in over 19 years.
ASU ENDS THE 60-MATCH WIN STREAK
In a record breaking crowd (8,522) at Desert Financial Arena, the Sun Devils handed No. 1 ranked Penn State their first loss since 2015, while ending a win-streak of 60 straight matches. A streak that was the longest since Iowa won 69 straight matches between 2008-2011. Winners of the last four National Championships and a team that has won eight of the last nine National titles, the Nittany Lions came into Tempe as one of the best teams in college wrestling history.
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 in 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 career 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 23-5 in the 28 duals where Hall, Shields and Z. Valencia wrestled in the lineup. Individually, Valencia was a perfect 28-0, while Shields won 25 of his 28 matches and Hall only had five losses in 28 bouts. The trio has combined for 301 victories while surrendering just 49 losses in their three seasons at ASU.
THREE SUN DEVILS CROWNED CHAMPIONS AT JOURNEYMEN
On Nov. 10, the Sun Devils opened up the new season with a trip to Troy, N.Y. 10 of 13 student athletes placed while three were crowned tournament champions at their respective weight class - No. 24 Brandon Courtney (125), No. 10 Anthony Valencia (174) and No 1 Zahid Valencia (184). Josh Kramer (133) was also a bright spot for the Sun Devils, finishing with a runner-up finish. Kramer ran through arguably the toughest stretch to get to the championship, defeating #12 Anthony Madrigal (Oklahoma), #15 Nick Farro (Lehigh) and #10 DJ Fehlman (Lock Haven).
ASU gets settled back into dual action after not competing since early December in Las Vegas, where the Devils earned a third place trophy at the Cliff Keen Invitational and saw redshirt senior Zahid Valencia win his third CVLV title, while fellow senior teammates Tanner Hall and Josh Shields filed runner-up finishes.
Coming into the first dual of 2020, the Sun Devils have nine wrestlers ranked in national polls. Brandon Courtney continues to move up in the Trackwrestling rankings throughout his sophomore season, as he sits No. 14 overall at 125 lbs. Courtney owns a 12-4 record to begin the month of January and leads the squad with seven major decision victories. Josh Kramer (133 lbs) suffered a setback at Cliff Keen after suffering an injury in his first match of the tournament, but still finds himself ranked No. 13. Josh Maruca (149 lbs) will enter Mondays match 7-6 and ranked No. 22. Redshirt freshman Jacori Teemer also finds himself ranked No. 22 at 157. Teemer is 4-4 in his first season with the Devils, with two victories coming by way of major decision.
Josh Shields (165 lbs) most recently notched his 10th win of the season and a runner-up finish at Cliff Keen. Shields is ranked fifth at his respective weight class. Anthony Valencia remains ranked No. 8 at 174 this week, with a 10-4 record. Valencia is one of five Sun Devils to already notch 10 wins so far this year. The No. 1 pound-for-pound wrestler in the nation, Zahid Valencia is a perfect 13-0 to begin the new year, with 11 bonus-point wins. No. 18 Kordell Norfleet (197) went 1-2 at Cliff Keen after forfeiting due to injury. This week, Norfleet will have a chance to avenge his loss against No. 1-ranked Kollin Moore on Monday, as Moore took home a 5-3 decision victory over Norfleet at CKLV. Tanner Hall rounds out the list for Sun Devils, as Hall is rated No. 5 overall at the heavyweight spot and supplies a 10-3 mark to this point in the season.
In the first road dual of the season, the Maroon and Gold will be looking for its first win over the Buckeyes since 1990, where the Devils defeated OSU, 19-15 in Columbus. The meeting will be the ninth dual between the two power five programs in 35 years, as Ohio State owns a 6-2 all-time record in the series.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH
125: #14 Brandon Courtney vs. #21 Malik Heinselman
149: #6 Sammy Sasso vs. #22 Josh Maruca
165: #4 Josh Shields vs. #9 Ethan Smith
174: #8 Anthony Valencia vs. #12 Caleb Romero
197: #1 Kollin Moore vs. #18 Kordell Norfleet
^ Trackwrestling Rankings
Fans will have the chance to watch the Sun Devils in their first nationally televised match of the season, as the bout will be broadcast live on Fox Sports 1. Coverage begins at 5 p.m. MST, with live results provided by Trackwrestling.
UP NEXT
The Sun Devils return back to Phoenix next week as they get set to host No. 11 Iowa State, Campbell and Harvard for the Sun Devil Duals at Chase Field for the first ever collegiate dual to take place in a professional ball park. The quadrangular meet gets underway on January 11 at 11 a.m. MST for session one and continues through for the finale as ASU takes on the Cyclones at 7 p.m. MST.
MILESTONES
- 3 bonus point wins needed for Zahid Valencia to set the record for the most career bonus point victories in ASU history (sits 2nd with 90 behind Anthony Robles's 92)
- 3 major decision wins needed for Josh Shields to move into 2nd all-time in career major wins in ASU history (sits at 30 behind Steve Blackfords' 32)
- 3 pins needed for Zahid Valencia to move into 3rd for most career pins in ASU history (sits 4th with 39 behind Gary Coleys' 41)
- 8 wins needed for Tanner Hall to eclipse the 100 career win mark (currently sits at 92)
VALENCIA BROTHERS, SCHULTZ PUNCH TICKET TO US OLYMPIC TRIALS
Anthony Valencia, Zahid Valencia and Cohlton Schultz all punched their tickets for a spot at the US Olympic Trials, set for April 4-5, after finishing within the top-five of their respective weight classes at the US Senior Nationals. Z. Valencia (86 kg) went a perfect 5-0 in his quest for first place in men's freestyle, while Schultz went 4-0 to sit atop the podium as the 130-kg Greco-Roman champion. A. Valencia battled his way through the consolation bracket to garner a fifth-place trophy in the 74-kg freestyle division.
#HODGEWATCH
Zahid Valencia has been declared the pound-for-pound best college wrestler in the nation by FloWrestling rankings. He has rattled off 12 bonus point victories in his first 13 matches this season, with three major decisions, two tech falls, six pins and one forfeit. He is now just two bonus wins away from tying the all-time ASU record of 92, set by former Sun Devil legend Anthony Robles (2008-11).
In Valencia's 13 victories so far, he has beaten some of the best college wrestlers in the nation at 184, with bonus point wins over No. 5 Trent Hidlay (NC State), No. 6 Lou Deprez (Binghampton) and No. 10 Sam Colbray (Iowa State). Not to mention, this comes after moving up a weight class from 174 to 184, where Valencia was a three-time All-American in his first three years.
ZAHID VALENCIA WINS THIRD CKLV TITLE, SUN DEVILS FINISH THIRD
Zahid Valencia not only won his third title in four years at the Cliff Keen Invitational, but he also was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler of the Tournament for the second time in his illustrations career. He was as dominant as he's been all season, earning five-straight bonus point victories on to a first-place trophy. As a team, the Sun Devils left Las Vegas with a third place trophy for the second time in three years, making it tied for the joint-highest finish in over 19 years.
ASU ENDS THE 60-MATCH WIN STREAK
In a record breaking crowd (8,522) at Desert Financial Arena, the Sun Devils handed No. 1 ranked Penn State their first loss since 2015, while ending a win-streak of 60 straight matches. A streak that was the longest since Iowa won 69 straight matches between 2008-2011. Winners of the last four National Championships and a team that has won eight of the last nine National titles, the Nittany Lions came into Tempe as one of the best teams in college wrestling history.
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 in 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 career 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 23-5 in the 28 duals where Hall, Shields and Z. Valencia wrestled in the lineup. Individually, Valencia was a perfect 28-0, while Shields won 25 of his 28 matches and Hall only had five losses in 28 bouts. The trio has combined for 301 victories while surrendering just 49 losses in their three seasons at ASU.
THREE SUN DEVILS CROWNED CHAMPIONS AT JOURNEYMEN
On Nov. 10, the Sun Devils opened up the new season with a trip to Troy, N.Y. 10 of 13 student athletes placed while three were crowned tournament champions at their respective weight class - No. 24 Brandon Courtney (125), No. 10 Anthony Valencia (174) and No 1 Zahid Valencia (184). Josh Kramer (133) was also a bright spot for the Sun Devils, finishing with a runner-up finish. Kramer ran through arguably the toughest stretch to get to the championship, defeating #12 Anthony Madrigal (Oklahoma), #15 Nick Farro (Lehigh) and #10 DJ Fehlman (Lock Haven).