The ASU wrestling team (2-0, 2-0 Pac-10) took care of business Friday, easily defeating Pac-10 Conference opponent Portland State (1-1, 0-1) 40-0 at Phoenix Maryvale High School.
Smiles on the faces of the Sun Devil wrestlers told the story. The shutout was ASU’s first since 2002 and their 25th in program history.
“You usually don’t get a shutout … but they’re wrestling well and it shows,” ASU coach Thom Ortiz said after the meet.
ASU sophomore Anthony Robles, No. 8 in the 125-pound weight class, won his match against Portland State’s Glenn Torrano by forfeit due to weight.
In the dual’s first true match of the night, ASU’s 133-pound junior Angel Alegre competed against PSU’s Thomas Cottrell.
“I was just grateful for the opportunity,” Alegre said. “I just wanted to go out and give my best.”
Alegre and Cottrell were tied 6-6 as the buzzer sounded to end the third round, but Alegre won the bout by decision 7-6 due to riding time, the time advantage a wrestler holds in a dominant position.
“I knew I had the riding time, so I just wanted to play it safe. But at the same time push the pace and make it my match,” he said. “There was a little pressure, being that this was my first match of the year. I felt that I wanted to set the standard and start out on a good foot.”
ASU sophomore Chris Drouin, No. 8 in the 141-pound class, quickly added six team points for the Sun Devils as he pinned PSU’s Westley Moniz in the final second of the first round.
With the match seemingly secured, the focus shifted to ASU’s freshmen.
In the 149-pound class, redshirt freshman Vicente Varela escaped with a 4-0 decision and his first victory of the season against PSU’s Henry Kofa.
Freshmen Kyle Deberry and Eric Starks are each 2-0 on the season after their match wins Friday resulted six team points.
“Those freshmen are getting’ the job done,” a content Ortiz said.
Reach the reporter at joshua.spivack@asu.edu.
