TEMPE, Ariz. – Sun Devil Wrestling tallied its first conference win as members of the Big 12, defeating California Baptist, 34-10, on Sunday afternoon at Mt. San Antonio College.
Reigning national champion Richard Figueroa made his return to the mat for the first time since suffering an injury at the Daktronics Invite in November. Figueroa was in complete command throughout his 7-1 win over CBU's Mitchell Neiner to improve to 3-1 on his young season.
He was one of seven Sun Devils to defeat a Lancer on Sunday, as four of their five bonus-point wins came via pin-fall.
A 10-10 score at the halfway point of the bout, the Sun Devils closed their afternoon on an emphatic note, winning their final five matches courtesy of Cohlton Schultz, Figueroa, Julian Chlebove, Daniel Miranda and Jesse Vasquez. Miranda made his first career dual start in impressive fashion, pinning Damian Alvarez in just 2:25.
No. 15 Arizona State 34, California Baptist 10
157 | Michael Kilic (ASU) over Darren Green (CBU) by 17-5 MD | 4-0, ASU
165 | Nicco Ruiz (ASU) over Daniel Manibog (CBU) by fall (4:35) | 10-0, ASU
174 | Carter Schmidt (CBU) over Joseph Manfredi (ASU) by 11-1 MD | 10-4, ASU
184 | Nathan Haas (CBU) over Shay Addison (ASU) by Decision 6-5 | 10-7, ASU
197 | Eli Sheeren (CBU) over Damion Schunke (ASU) by SV-1 5-2 | 10-10
HWT | Cohlton Schultz (ASU) over Tristan Kemp (CBU) by fall (1:35) | 16-10, ASU
125 | Richard Figueroa (ASU) over Mitchell Neiner (CBU) by Decision 7-1 | 19-10, ASU
133 | Julian Chlebove (ASU) over Hunter Leake (CBU) by Decision 5-3 | 22-10, ASU
141 | Daniel Miranda (ASU) over Damian Alvarez (CBU) by fall (2:25) | 28-10, ASU
149 | Jesse Vasquez (ASU) over Paul Kelly (CBU) by fall (5:00) | 34-10, ASU
The Sun Devils' schedule only strengthens from here on out, as they'll host Northern Iowa and pay visits to Stanford and Missouri – all squads listed within the top-20 rankings – in their next three bouts.
Remaining schedule
January 17 | Northern Iowa | Tempe, AZ
January 19 | Stanford | Stanford, CA
January 22 | Missouri | Columbia, MO
February 2 | Northern Colorado | Tempe, AZ
February 7 | Iowa State | Ames, IA
February 15 | Cornell | Tempe, AZ
February 16 | Oklahoma | Tempe, AZ
February 21 | Lehigh | Bethlehem, PA
February 23 | West Virginia | Morgantown, WV
March 8-9 | Big 12 Championships | Tulsa, OK
March 20-22 | NCAA Championships | Philadelphia, PA
Read it Again
All roads lead to Philadelphia, where the Sun Devils will end their season at the 2025 NCAA Championships at the Wells Fargo Center. Under Jones, the Sun Devils have established themselves as one of the nation's premier programs, having finished within the top-seven at the national tournament in each of the last four seasons.
Previewing the 2024-25 Sun Devil Wrestling Season
Sun Devils in the Postseason Under Head Coach Zeke Jones (11 years)
Year | Conference | NCAAs
2024-25 | TBD | TBD
2023-24 | 1st | 6th
2022-23 | 4th | 7th
2021-22 | 1st | 4th
2020-21 | 1st | 4th
2019-20 | 1st | N/A (Ranked #4 in last poll)
2018-19 | 2nd | 12th
2017-18 | 1st | 10th
2016-17 | 1st | 14th
2015-16 | 2nd | 33rd
2014-15 | 2nd | 29th
Made for March
The Sun Devils routinely make their living in the postseason. After a hot finish to their regular season in the spring, they stormed into the Gill Coliseum and captured yet another Pac-12 Championship title at the conference's final championships. It marked the 24th conference title in team history, the sixth under Jones' guidance and the fourth in the past five seasons.
With eight qualifiers competing at the NCAA Championships, the Sun Devils saw four individuals reach the podium. Figueroa etched his name in Sun Devil history with a finals win against Iowa's Drake Ayala, slamming the door on an unbelievable run in Kansas City in which he went 5-0 and dethroned two top-three seeds.
The 2023-24 season marked the team's fourth consecutive top-seven finish at the national tournament, while also earning four All-Americans for the fourth straight year.
Follow Along
Don't miss any of the action throughout the season! Follow the team on X (formerly Twitter) @ASUWrestling and on Instagram @sundevilwrestling1962.