Pac-12 wrestlers prepare for NCAA Championships

SAN FRANCISCO —The Pac-12 Conference will have a strong presence at the NCAA Wrestling Championships this week (March 15-17) at Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio. A total of 25 Pac-12 wrestlers, led by ARIZONA STATE All-American Zahid Valencia, will hit the mats in search of the Pac-12’s first individual title since 2011 when Arizona State teammates Anthony Robles (125) and Bubba Jenkins (157) stood atop the podium.

Pac-12 Champion and ninth-ranked Arizona State will send eight wrestlers to the Championships with top-seeded Valencia to challenge for the title at 174. Valencia, who successfully defended his Pac-12 title, has a 65-1 career record with his only loss coming in last year’s NCAA Championships semifinal bout. Joining Velencia will be Pac-12 champions Ali Naser (133), Jason Tsirtis (149), Josh Shields (157), Anthony Valencia (165), and Kendall Norfleet (184). Ryan Milhoff (125) and 2017 All-American Tanner Hall (285) complete the Sun Devil squad. The Sun Devils are the only Pac-12 team to win an NCAA wrestling team title, capturing the 1988 title. It remains the only NCAA wrestling title west of the Rocky Mountains.

OREGON STATE, will send four wrestlers, including Pac-12 champions Ronnie Bresser (Rios) (125), Corey Griego (197) and Amarveer Dhesi (HWT). Hunter Wilits (157) rounds out the Beaver squad.

STANFORD will send six wrestlers to Cleveland. The Cardinal will be led by Gabe Townsell (125), Mason Pengilly (133), 2017 All-American Paul Fox (157), Keaton Subjeck (174), Nathan Traxler (197) and Nathan Butler (285).

In addition to Sergio Mendez (125) and Matt Williams (197), CSU BAKERSFIELD added three more to the field with three At-Large selections in Sean Nickell (133), Russell Rohlfing (141) and Coleman Hammond (157)

CAL POLY will look to Pac-12 champion Colton Schilling (141) and Thomas Lane (197) to score points for the Mustangs.

2018 CHAMPIONSHIPS SCHEDULE:
Thurs., March 15 – First Round, 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT, ESPNU
Thurs., March 15 – Second Round, 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT, ESPN
Fri., March 16 – Quarterfinals, 11 a.m. ET/8 a.m. PT, ESPNU
Fri., March 16 – Semifinals, 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT, ESPN
Sat., March 17 – Medal Round, 11 a.m. ET/8 a.m. PT, ESPNU
Sat., March 17 – Championships, 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT, ESPN2

LIVE RESULTS
Follow the NCAA Wrestling Championships on Trackwrestling.com for daily results and bracket updates.

2018 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS – Pac-12 Participants:

Weight
125                 Ryan Milhoff, ASU; Sergio Mendez, CSUB, Ronnie Bresser (Rios), OSU, Gabe Townsell, STAN   
133                 Ali Naser, ASU; Sean Nickell, CSUB (At-Large); Mason Pengilly, STAN
141                 Colton Schilling, Cal Poly; Russell Rohlfing, CSUB (At-Large)
149                 Jason Tsirtis, ASU
157                 Joshua Shields, ASU; Coleman Hammond, CSUB (At-Large); Hunter Wilits, OSU; Paul Fox, STAN
165                 Anthony Valencia, ASU
174                 Zahid Valencia, ASU; Keaton Subjeck, STAN
184                 Kordell Norfleet, ASU
197                 Thomas Lane, Cal Poly; Matt Williams, CSUB; Corey Griego, OSU; Nathan Traxler, STAN
HWT                 Tanner Hall, ASU; Amar Dhesi, OSU; Nathan Butler, STAN

NCAA TEAM CHAMPIONS FROM THE PAC-12
Arizona State, 1988

NCAA INDIVIDUAL CHAMPIONS FROM THE PAC-12
118                 John Miller, Oregon, 1969
125                 Anthony Robles, Arizona State, 2011
134                 Roger Weigel, Oregon State, 1971
141                 Derek Moore, UCD, 2007
142                 Larry Owings, Washington, 1970
                       Dan Hicks, Oregon State, 1978
                       Dan Hicks, Oregon State, 1979
149                 Eric Larkin, Arizona State, 2003
150                 Eddie Urbano, Arizona State, 1985
157                 Matt Gentry, Stanford, 2004
                       Ben Cherrington, Boise State, 2006
                       Bubba Jenkins, Arizona State, 2011
158                 Dan St. John, Arizona State, 1989
                       Markus Mollica, Arizona State, 1993
165                 Kirk White, Boise State, Boise State
167                 Don Conway, Oregon State, 1961
                       Dan St. John, Arizona State, 1990
                       Ray Miller, Arizona State, 1993
                       Markus Mollica, Arizona State, 1995
177                 Bentley Lyon, California, 1952
                       Bill Murdock, Washington, 1972
                       Les Gutches, Oregon State, 1995
                       Les Gutches, Oregon State, 1996
184                 Shane Webster, Oregon, 2006
190                 Greg Strobel, Oregon State, 1973
                       Greg Strobel, Oregon State, 1974
                       Paul Keysaw, CSU Bakersfield, 1991
HWT               Curly Culp, Arizona State, 1967
                       Jess Lewis, Oregon State, 1969
                       Jess Lewis, Oregon State, 1970
                       Larry Bielenberg, Oregon State, 1975
                       Fred Bohna, UCLA, 1979
                        Howard Harris, Oregon State, 1980
                        Stephen Neal, CSU Bakersfield, 1998
                        Stephen Neal, CSU Bakersfield, 1999