Wrestling Finishes Pac-10 Season Undefeated with 33-9 Win Over Cal Poly
Sun Devils win eight of the 10 contested bouts with seniors Williams, Starks winning final home bout
TEMPE, Ariz. – The No. 20 Arizona State University wrestling team got wins from eight of its starters, including a two from the team’s lone seniors, to record a 33-9 defeat of Cal Poly in Pac-10 competition Saturday at Wells Fargo Arena. The win closed out the 2004-05 dual season for the Sun Devils, giving them an 11-6-1 overall record and a perfect 8-0 slate against conference foes. The Mustangs ended the dual season with a 5-12 (1-5 Pac-10) record.
The dual opened at 125 pounds with No. 9 Jeremy Mendoza (Jr., Temecula, Calif.) staking the Sun Devils to an early 4-0 lead with his 8-0 major decision over Josh Obergon. The Mustangs quickly took the lead after the 133 bout as Chad Mendes pinned Alex Contreras (Fr., Tolleson, Ariz.) in 31 seconds. Trailing 6-4, ASU took the lead for good as Curtis Ray (So., Mesa, Ariz.) recorded a pin at 2:57 to put the Sun Devils back on top, this time for good, 10-6.
The first of the team’s two seniors took to the mat at 149 as No. 17 Patrick Williams (Sr., Homestead, Fla.) recorded a 7-2 decision over Jeff Owens in the duo’s third meeting of the season. Williams has won all three bouts. No. 13 Brian Stith (So., Hampton, Va.) followed at 157 with a 21-6 technical fall over T.J. Ferguson. Leading 18-6, Patrick Pitsch (Fr., Spanaway, Wash.) picked up a 10-2 major decision at 165 over Steve Gee before CPU won its final bout of the day, an 11-7 decision in favor of Yuri Kalika over Jamie Robbins (So., Mesa, Ariz.) at 174.
The bout of the day was as exciting as predicted with No. 11 C.B. Dollaway (Jr., Mt. Gilead, Ohio), the second-ranked 184 wrestler in the conference, took on No. 10 Ryan Halsey, the Pac-10’s top-ranked wrestler. With a 2-0 lead at the start of the second period, Dollaway was turned on his back by Halsey to tie the bout at two. Dollaway, however, fought back and reversed Halsey and picked up three near-fall points of his own to send the match to the third period with the Sun Devil ahead, 7-2. In the final stanza, Dollaway recorded a takedown, three more near-fall points and the riding time bonus to record a 13-2 major decision.
No. 7 Ryan Bader (Jr., Reno, Nev.) followed that with a victory of his own as he defeated Ralph Garcia, 4-0, at 197 pounds. In the final bout of the final dual of the season, senior Clifford Starks (Sr., Phoenix, Ariz.) took to the mat for the final time in his career and walked away with a 17-7 major decision over Mustang heavyweight Arturo Basulto.
The championship season gets underway for the Sun Devils next weekend as ASU heads to San Luis Obispo, Calif., for the 2005 Pac-10 Wrestling Championships. The meet, being hosted by CPU, will be held Sunday and Monday (Feb. 27-28) and will be used to determine which wrestlers will represent the conference at the NCAA Championships, March 17-19, in St. Louis.
Wrestling Gear
