Photo courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics
PHOENIX— The Sun Devils changed arenas but not results. Wrestling in Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum for the first time all year, they lost their sixth straight dual.
Arizona State Wrestling (4-8, 1-5 Big 12) lost six of 10 matches to No. 9 Cornell (10-1, 5-0 EIWA), losing the dual 25-12. ASU head coach Zeke Jones made it clear there is a gap between the two teams.
“There’s a lot of learning that occurs when you go into a top 10 division one team, and you start to realize, woah I’ve got a lot of work before I can get there,” Jones said.
Much of that work is mental. The Sun Devils made critical mistakes late in winnable matches.
Junior Michael Kilic was up 7-5 before he gave up a three point takedown with three seconds left. His riding time point gave him a second chance and forced overtime. With the crowd behind his back, Kilic gave up a quick Hi-C takedown to surrender the comeback.
“Michael let up,” Jones said. “I think he started playing defense too early. I think he stopped wrestling at the end of the match.”
Redshirt Junior Cael Valencia lost a similarly close match, but under different circumstances. He took on No. 6 Chris Foca, a senior for Cornell. To the surprise of both fan bases, Valencia scored off a slick arm drag to double in the first. The next period, he earned a reversal and a ride out.
Entering the third, Valencia fell apart. He gave up a quick escape and takedown. Foca won the match 6-5 because of his riding time point.
“It just tells (Foca) that he can win at that level,” Jones said. “He’s gotta be consistent. He’s gotta freaking battle, but at the end of the day he didn’t get it done.”
Not all close matches went Cornell’s way. Redshirt senior Julian Chlebove beat the freshman, Tyler Ferrara, who is ranked No. 24 at 133 pounds. During the duel against the University of Northern Iowa, Chlebove fell apart and lost late to a similarly ranked wrestler. Coach Jones said he needed to respond to the crowd’s support.
Today the crowd was just as loud but the result was different. Chlebove was losing 2-1 with eight seconds left before a wild sequence that included a flying squirrel attempt before he dropped down to a low double for a takedown just before the buzzer.
“I think he did respond to the crowd”, Jones said. “They were pumping him up”
Emilio Ysaguirre rode the momentum, winning the next match 9-2. Nearly majoring the No.20 wrestler in the country was a statement of what he is capable of when healthy.Ysaguirre was the only unranked ASU wrestler to pick up a win. Senior Mykey Ramos, freshman Caleb Camp and sophomore Arturo Anaya all lost by tech fall or pin.
Sophomore Max Acciardi joined them in the loss column. However, he showcased his improvement, losing by decision to Cornell freshman Mikey Dellagatta who is ranked No. 24.
Like they have most all season, the Sun Devils started and ended the dual with wins. Redshirt junior Richard Figueroa won 10-7 at 125 pounds to begin the dual.
Redshirt senior Cohlton Schultz capped the dual with a 6-0 win over the No. 33 ranked heavyweight in the country, Ashton Davis of Cornell. This was win number 99 for Schultz and one of his last in front of ASU fans.
On Sunday, ASU will host their final home dual of the season, against No. 20 Oklahoma in Mullet Arena for senior night.
“They have been a part of the Sun Devil wrestling family, love the guys,” Jones said.
