In the team standings, the Sun Devils tallied 83.0 points to finish fourth overall, giving ASU its 10th Top 10 finish all-time in the event (12 appearances) and its seventh Top 4 finish in the one-day event. Wyoming claimed the team crown with 106.0 points and was followed in the Top 5 by No. 6 Boise State (104.5), CS Bakersfield (98.5), ASU and Ohio (82.5).
For the second time this month, Robles rolled his way to a tournament title, winning five times on the day with four tech falls and one decision. After tech fall scores of 15-0 in the first round and 16-1 in the second round, Robles downed Rob Jillard of Liberty, 7-0, in the quarterfinals. After scoring a 15-0 tech fall over fifth-seeded Tyler Cox of Wyoming in the semifinal, Robles won his second Reno title in three years, this time with an 18-2 technical fall over third-seeded Trent Sprekle of North Dakota State. With the win in the final, Robles not only improves to 14-0 on the year, but also recorded the 100th victory of his career with the Sun Devils. At 100-23, Robles is the 23rd different Sun Devil to reach 100 wins in a career.
After battling tough in Las Vegas two weeks earlier and falling just short of placing, Cooper fought for a place in the Top 6 this time out and did so by reaching his second final of the year (took second at the Embry-Riddle Open). Cooper opened with a pin in 2:49 before winning his first of two consecutive matches against Pac-10 foes, a 9-4 decision over sixth-seeded Atticus Disney of Cal Poly. In the quarterfinal, Cooper scored a 7-2 decision over Boise State’s JT Felix, the third-seeded heavyweight, to reach the semifinal where he downed the second-seeded and top-ranked (NJCAA) Tyrel Fortune of Clackamas CC, 9-4. In the final, Cooper defeated his fourth-consecutive seeded opponent, this time with a 3-2 decision over fourth-seeded Jeremy Johnson of Ohio. Cooper was the only unseeded wrestler to reach the final of a weight class and also the the only champion that was not seeded No. 1 (seven champions) or No. 2 (two champions) in the tournament.
While Robles continued to dominate and Cooper captured his first title, Starks’ run was equally, if not more impressive as the junior ran off seven wins in a row to take third overall at 174. In the opening round, Starks was pinned in 4:06 by Andre Petrosky of North Carolina, relegating the Sun Devil to the consolation rounds. There, Starks won a 10-3 decision, a fall in 1:04, a 10-4 decision and a 10-7 decision to reach the consolation quarterfinals and assuring him a place in the Top 6. After receiving a win by medical forfeit, Starks won a 9-0 major decision over fifth-seeded Tarrence Williams of Clackamas CC to reach the medal match. In the third-place battle, Starks knocked off another seeded foe, this time downing second-seeded Nick Purdue of Ohio, 6-1, to finish third.
Jenkins, the second-seeded wrestler at 157, opened his tournament with three wins by decision in a row, including a 5-3 defeat of Steven Monk of North Dakota State in the quarterfinals. Reaching the semifinal for the second tournament this month, Jenkins was unable to continue because of an injury and medically defaulted out of the tournament. Because of his place in the brackets at the time of his injury, Jenkins still placed in the Top 6, finishing sixth overall to collect several more points toward the team’s total.
The remaining Sun Devils that competed in the tournament included David Prado and Carlos Castro at 133; Kalin Goodsite at 141; Tai Fukumoto at 149; Te Edwards at 165; Jake Meredith at 184; Luke Macchiaroli at 197; and Michael Hawkins at heavyweight.
The Sun Devils will now have two weeks off from competition before returning to the Silver State on December 19 for the 2010 Reno Tournament of Champions in Reno, Nev.
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