ASU wrestling took on its second top-5 opponent of the weekend Sunday. The Sun Devils competed toe to toe with No. 2 Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio.
The Sun Devils were defeated by No. 3 Michigan on Friday. ASU needed to bounce back and make a statement.
Last season, ASU hosted Ohio State in a dual meet that resulted in an Ohio State win, 15-27.
To begin the highly-forecasted night, redshirt junior Ryan Millhof collided with Ohio State freshman Brakan Mead.
No. 7 Millhof started the Sun Devils off strong with a third-period pin, six points and an early team lead.
Next up was senior Ali Naser at 133 pounds.
After the important fall by Millhof, Naser needed to come up with the upset win over Ohio State sophomore Luke Pletcher.
After the thrilling first period, Naser found himself down one point to No. 10 Pletcher.
The next three periods were similarly exciting, and Pletcher was ultimately able to earn the win.
Ensuing the first overtime match of the night, redshirt freshman Cory Crooks grappled with a familiar Pac-12 foe: Ohio State junior transfer Joey McKenna.
Although Crooks was able to compete with McKenna, the ASU freshman was not able to stop McKenna’s offensive attacks and heavy rides on top. The final score ended in favor of McKenna 6-1.
The team score was all tied up at six a quarter of the way through the meet.
Next up at the 149 pounds was redshirt sophomore Josh Maruca taking on Ohio State redshirt sophomore Ke-Shawn Hayes.
In the first-ranked match of the dual meet, No. 12 Maruca and No. 9 Hayes looked to score their team important points.
Maruca was not able to find a way to penetrate Hayes's defense, which led Hayes to a 6-2 victory.
At 157 pounds, redshirt sophomore Josh Shields looked to end the three-match losing streak for ASU as he competed with Ohio State redshirt junior Micah Jordan.
No. 4 Jordan started off quick with a shot at the beginning of the match and was able to score a quick takedown against No. 11 Shields. However, Shields was able to recover and capitalize on his own offensive attacks resulting in a big win for the Sun Devils.
Leading into the intermission, ASU and Ohio State were all tied up at nine points.
Following the intermission, a top-10 matchup between redshirt sophomore Anthony Valencia and Ohio State junior Te’Shan Campbell ensued.
No. 9 Campbell started off quick and strong from the first whistle, and No. 7 A. Valencia was not able to keep up. Campbell earned a 13-0 victory and four team points for Ohio State.
Next up was the marquee matchup of the night. Redshirt sophomore Zahid Valencia encountered Ohio State redshirt senior Bo Jordan.
Z. Valenica successfully defended his No. 1 ranking against No. 3 Jordan and earned ASU three team points.
Heading into the last three weight classes, Ohio State led the Sun Devils 13-12.
Following the Sun Devils victory, freshman Kordell Norfleet wrestled Ohio State junior Myles Martin.
No. 2 Martin countered Norfleet's attempted throw and earned a pin for Ohio State.
The team score after Martin’s pin at 184 pounds and an ASU forfeit at 197 pounds was 25-12 in favor of Ohio State.
The final match of the night included redshirt junior Austyn Harris and Ohio State senior Kyle Snyder.
Harris could not contain No. 1 Snyder’s powerful offense. Synder picked up the pin and six points for Ohio State.
The final score of the dual meet ended up being 31-12. The Sun Devils were not able to knock off the No. 2 team in the nation.
Although ASU ended the weekend 0-2, the Sun Devils' young team was able to hold its own. The team should be able to learn from its mistakes and use those lessons throughout rest of the season.
After making it through the toughest weekend on their schedule, the Sun Devils will seek to earn their first dual win of the young season against Pittsburgh at ASU’s historic Gammage Theater in Tempe on Sunday, Nov. 19.
*All rankings are taken from Flowrestling.com
Reach the reporter at trittenh@asu.edu or follow @trittenhouse34 on Twitter.
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