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ASU wrestling is gearing up for one of the toughest schedules in the country

The Sun Devils 2017-18 schedule is ranked as the fifth toughest in Division I

Mill Matness

Freshman Kordell Norfleet and redshirt junior Anthony Anderson spar at Mill Matness on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2017. 


The No. 7 ASU wrestling team is just over a week away from competing in one of the country's toughest schedules in Division I.

The Sun Devils 2017-18 schedule will feature six top-20 ranked schools and two top-5 ranked schools. The team will be attending tournaments such as the Virginia Duals, Midlands and the Cliff Keen Las Vegas invite. 

This daunting schedule is a product of the team that head coach Zeke Jones has assembled, and the results that they produced last season.

During the course of the 2016-17 season the team competed against five ranked opponents ending with a 1-4 record. The Sun Devils notched an overall dual record of 10 wins and four losses.


Graphic published on Thursday, Oct. 26, 2017.


Their tournament schedule wasn't easier, but they still performed well at highly-regarded national tournaments, including winning the Pac-12 tournament. 

This year, the team has added a few wrestlers that were not able to compete last year due to various reasons, including redshirt senior Jason Tsirtsis and redshirt junior Ryan Millhof

Both wrestlers will play vital roles during the vigorous season.

Jones and company will have extreme tests at the beginning of the season as they take on their top-5 opponents within two days of each other, as well as competing in the Michigan State Open five days before.

Michigan, who is returning seven All-Americans from the previous season, is ranked third in the preseason rankings and will be a true test for ASU. Two days later the team will travel from Ann Arbor to Columbus to wrestle against the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes. 

In their previous meeting, the Buckeyes took the upper-hand with a final team score of 15-27. Ohio State is also returning multiple All-Americans and national champions. The Sun Devils will have to wrestle well in order to build on their preseason ranking. 

The team won’t get a break after their challenging first few days of the season. The Sun Devils  will open up their home schedule against Pittsburgh University. This dual meet will be the first athletic event held in ASU’s historic Gammage Theater.

After all the excitement, the team will have to keep their headgear strapped because the next three months are going to be hard-fought preparation for the Pac-12 and NCAA tournaments. 

The team goal, as it always has been during Jones’ tenure, is to win a national championship, and it is clear that he believes his roster is ready to win their first national team title in 29 years.

"I really think if you're going to be ready at the national tournament, you have to have competition that gets you ready for it," Jones said. 


Reach the reporter at trittenh@asu.edu or follow @trittenhouse34 on Twitter.   

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