TEMPE, Ariz. – In a down-to-the-wire battle, the No. 8 Arizona State wrestling team came up just short as they fell to No. 2 Ohio State, 22-17 on Sunday at Wells Fargo Arena.
The Sun Devils took a 5-0 lead to start the day thanks to a 18-1 tech fall victory by No. 6 Ryan Millhof over Brady Koontz at the 125 lb. weight class.
Ohio State took the next three matches to pull ahead, 12-5, with major decisions from No. 5 Luke Pletcher (133) over Josiah Kline, No. 2 Joey McKenna (141) over Cory Crooks and No. 2 Micah Jordan (149) over No. 11 Josh Maruca.
Christian Pagilao (157) put up a strong fight through three periods but ultimately dropped the decision to #5 Ke-Shawn Hayes, 4-3, to give Ohio State three more points and extend their lead to 15-5 heading into intermission.
Out of the break, No. 7 Josh Shields (165) and No. 1 Zahid Valencia (174) each earned decisions to give the Sun Devils their second and third victories of the afternoon, narrowing the deficit to 15-11.
No. 17 Kordell Norfleet’s pin over Ethan Smith at 184 lbs. got the 2230-strong crowd in Wells Fargo Arena on their feet and gave the Sun Devils a 17-15 lead with two bouts remaining.
The Buckeyes pulled back ahead, 19-17, with Kevin Snyder’s major decision over Chad Porter at 197 lbs.
Brady Daniel (285) kept ASU’s hopes alive until the very end, narrowly dropping the 3-1 decision to Chase Singletary.
Next up for the Sun Devils, the squad heads to Edwardsville, Ill. to compete at the Southern Illinois University Cougar Clash on Sunday, Dec. 2.
Results: #2 Ohio State 22, #8 ASU 17
125: #6 Ruan Millhof TF Brady Koontz (Ohio State), 18-1 (4:10)
133: #5 Luke Pletcher MD Josiah Kline (ASU), 16-6
141: #2 Joey McKenna MD Cory Crooks (ASU), 13-0
149: #2 Micah Jordan MD #11 Josh Maruca (ASU), 18-8
157: #5 Ke-Shawn Hayes DEC Christian Pagdilao (ASU), 4-3
165: #7 Josh Shields DEC Kaleb Romero (Ohio State), 5-0
174: #1 Zahid Valencia DEC #11 Te’Shan Campbell (Ohio State), 6-1
184: #17 Kordell Norfleet FALL Ethan Smith (Ohio State), 6:15
197: Kevin Snyder MD Chad Porter (ASU), 12-3
285: Chase Singletary DEC Brady Daniel (ASU), 3-1