Arizona State (6-6, 0-1 Pac-12) is going to have its hands full when the No. 14 ranked Iowa State Cyclones (7-2, 1-0 Big 12) roll into Wells Fargo Arena, winners of their last four contests, this Friday at 8 p.m.
Last time out: Sun Devils
The Sun Devils’ last outing was at The Virginia Duals invitational, where they were fourth overall. The Devils won their first two meets against Campbell University and No. 24 ranked Old Dominion. The next day wasn’t very friendly to them, as they fell to Chattanooga and Virginia Tech.
Pac-12 Wrestler of the week
One of the bright spots for ASU was the 149-pound Matt Kraus (16-5 overall). Kraus has earned Pac-12 wrestler of the week honors after he earned two wins at The Virginia Duals.
“It’s a cool thing to win, it’s just another step to the postseason, and that’s the main goal,” Kraus said.
Head Coach Zeke Jones was very proud of Kraus on earning the honors, and he doesn’t think it could happen to a better person.
“There’s no one that deserves it more than Matt, he leads the team, great character guy,” he said.
Next up: Iowa State
Iowa State placed first at Virginia Duals, but Kraus is looking forward to the matchup.
“Their team is ranked ahead of us but we match up pretty well,” he said. “I faced the guy I’m going up against a couple years ago and I beat him, so I think we’re going to do just fine.”
The Sun Devils are facing stiff competition this Friday, and Jones had some high praise for his team.
“They’re a well-coached team, a disciplined wrestling team and obviously they have some momentum after winning in Virginia, so I think they have some confidence going into the match,” Jones said.
The Cyclones defeated Chattanooga and Virginia Tech at The Virginia Duals, both of which defeated ASU in the tournament.
“There should be a little chip on our shoulder, right?” Jones said. “(Iowa State) won and we didn’t.”
Related Links:
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ASU wrestling hires alumnus Zeke Jones as new head coach
Reach the reporter at benjamin.a.flores@asu.edu or follow @benflores21 on Twitter.
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