Wrestling drops conference tilt to #4 Iowa State

TEMPE– Sun Devil Wrestling got off to a strong start, but ultimately fell to No. 4 Iowa State, 29-14, on Tuesday night at Desert Financial Arena.

The dual was highlighted by the Larkin brothers, who both ended up victorious in their respective matches. Kyler Larkin (133 lb.) started the night off for the Sun Devils with an exclamation point. The freshman got off to a hot start, scoring early and often as he pinned Iowa State’s Adrian Meza to earn his 12th win of the season, and third by fall (10-1 / 4:45).

Kaleb Larkin, who typically competes at 149 lb., made his debut in the 157-lb weight class and did not fail to impress. The redshirt sophomore battled from buzzer-to-buzzer and earned a hard-fought 4-1 win by decision over No. 3 ranked Vinny Zerban.  

Redshirt sophomore No. 13 Nicco Ruiz (165 lb.) delivered another statement win over Iowa State’s No. 18-ranked Connor Euton. The California native maintained control of his matchup and won by tech fall in a commanding (19-3 / 6:05) effort.

The strong showing from the Larkins and Ruiz were not enough to overcome the Cyclones, as the Sun Devils will look to rebound against fellow Big 12 foe West Virginia on Friday, Jan. 9. The dual is set for 6:30 p.m. MST at Desert Financial Area, with the match available to stream on ESPN+. 

Full Results
125 | No. 15 Stevo Poulin (ISU) 12-1 MD over Damian Moreno
133 | No. 5 Kyler Larkin F (10-1 / 4:45) over Adrian Meza (ISU)
141 | No. 4 Anthony Echemendina (ISU) TF ( 24-8 / 6:15) over Benji Alanis
149 | No. 5 Jacob Frost (ISU) TF (16-1 / 4:09) over Daniel Miranda
157 | No. 3 (149-lb) Kaleb Larkin 4-1 Dec. over No. 3 Vinny Zerban (ISU)
165 | No. 13 Nicco Ruiz TF (19-3 / 6:05) over No. 18 Conner Euton (ISU)
174 | No. 14 MJ Gaitan (ISU) TF ( 20-5 / 6:07) over Leo Tukhlynovych
184 | No. 13 Isaac Dean (ISU) 8-5 Dec. over Azizbek Fayzullaev
197 | CJ Carter (ISU) 4-3 Dec. over Colton Hawks
HWT | No. 1 Yonger Bastida (ISU) 18-5 MD over No. 19 David Szuba

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