Sun Devils splits road duals against Pitt and Little Rock

(Photo courtesy: Sun Devil Athletics)

Arizona State continued its gauntlet January road trip this past week, earning a huge dual victory over No. 15 Pittsburgh preceded by a disappointing Pac-12 dual loss to Little Rock. Here’s a look back at how the Sun Devils performed against the Panthers and Trojans.

Pittsburgh
Style points would prove to be ASU’s best friend on Sunday as the program was able to edge out No. 15 Pitt in the Steel City via criteria.

Senior Jacori Teemer continued to leave a lasting impact on this Arizona State squad, as he earned a bonus-point win via a tech fall over Pitt’s Jared Keslar 21-6 (6:32) at 157 pounds to push the Sun Devils over the Panthers by just one point. Teemer – along with 149 Pounder junior Kyle Parco – are now tied with teammate junior Julian Chlebove (133) for most wins overall this season at 13.

The Sun Devils would start the dual strong with a decision victory from junior Richard Figueroa over No. 31 Colton Camacho (6-1), pushing ASU to a quick 3-0 lead. Arizona State was without Chlebove’s talents at 133 pounds, leading to junior Tristan Mascarenas getting the start. Mascarenas would suffer a decision loss to Pitt’s No. 20 Vinnie Santaniello (5-0) tying the contest at three apiece. Pitt would take the lead with a major decision victory by No. 27 Cole Matthews over junior Cody Foote 10-2.

ASU’s superstars in Parco and Teemer earned key victories for the Sun Devils, including the eventual dual-winning bonus points in Teemer’s match. Parco is now just one victory shy of 100 career wins and improved to 32-2 in duals.

Senior Chance McLane turned heads with an upset decision victory over Pitt’s No. 11 Holden Heller (4-1), pushing the Sun Devils to a 14-7 lead going into the upper weight bouts. McLane is now 5-6 on the season and 1-1 in dual-play.

Ripping a page out of last Friday’s book against Little Rock, ASU would drop the next three matches at 174 pounds, 184 pounds and 197 pounds. Pitt’s No. 15 Luca Augustine at 174 and No. 13 Mac Stout at 197 each claimed major-decision victories over senior Cael Valencia (14-1) and sophomore Jacob Meissner (11-2). At 184, Pitt’s No. 12 Reece Heller would secure a tech fall victory over sophomore Shay Addison 21-5 (5:52).

The Sun Devils stormed back, however, from the six-point deficit in the heavyweight match, where No. 5 junior Cohlton Schultz earned a victory via injury default over Pitt’s No. 12 Dayton Pitzer, tying the dual at 20 apiece. ASU was then awarded a bonus criteria point based on the second criteria (falls, DQ’s, injury defaults) earning the Sun Devils a much-needed road victory after suffering a tough loss to Little Rock just two days earlier.

Little Rock

ASU suffered a heartbreaker Friday to Little Rock, 18-15, splitting its conference record at one apiece and 2-4 overall. This would mark the first loss to the Trojans in Sun Devil program history, and the first victory over a ranked team for Little Rock all-time.

The Sun Devils started hot, winning four of the first five matches in the competition. Figueroa at 125 pounds made his return and earned his first victory in dual play this season with an 18-5 major decision over Little Rock’s Jeremiah Reno. Figueroa had been sidelined with an injury since November and looks to add vital support at 125 pounds.

Chlebove would suffer a tough loss against No.13 Nasir Bailey, before the Sun Devils were able to rebound with victories at 141 (Cody Foote over Brennan van Hoecke, 5-4), 149 (Kyle Parco over Kyle Dutton, 4-0) and 157 pounds (Jacori Teemer over Matty Bianchi, 10-4). This would put the Sun Devils in the lead going into the intermission 13-3.

However, after the break the momentum had shifted towards the Trojans, earning victories in the next four matches. Joseph Bianchi at 165 pounds set the tone for Little Rock with a tough overtime victory over McLane 11-8 (SV-1).

Little Rock’s Tyler Brennan (174 pounds), Triston Wills (184 pounds), and Stephen Little (197 pounds) would each snatch victories in their respective weight classes, pushing the Sun Devils to the brink of defeat going into the heavyweight match.
Style points proved to be detrimental for ASU as Addison suffered a Major Decision Defeat at 184 pounds while Meissner at 197 pounds would suffer a tech fall, pushing the Trojans to a score of 18-13 going into the final match of the night.

Schultz’s 5-2 decision victory over Little Rock’s Josiah Hill would prove to be futile, as Arizona State would fall short 18-15. A control mat ruling following the heavyweight bout deducted Arizona State one team point to add to the two-point deficit.

Up Next

The men in Maroon and Gold are 3-4 overall with plenty of competition left in the season starting with a trip to Stillwater Oklahoma, for a ranked matchup versus No. 5 Oklahoma State on Feb. 2.