Not in Our House

STANFORD, Calif. - With just eight seconds remaining, junior Gabriel Townsell converted a six-point move to clinch the dual win for No. 25 Stanford over No. 9 Arizona State, Saturday, at Burnham Pavilion. 

Stanford won 6 of the 10 bouts to improve to 7-1 overall and 1-1 in the Pac-12, while Arizona State dropped to 4-9 on the season and 1-1 in the conference. The Sun Devils have not won on The Farm since 2013.

Townsell, who is ranked 20th nationally at 125 pounds, was trailing Arizona State's Brandon Courtney, 4-2, late in the third period. Courtney needed to score one more takedown to give the Sun Devils the dual victory (based on criteria), but Townsell had other plans. He faked an inside trip and as Courtney stepped back, Townsell used a lateral drop to score six as time expired. 

?????? @TheBlackCard125 with the takedown and back points to clinch the win over No. 9 Arizona State!#GoStanford #CardinalCaliber pic.twitter.com/XhvMqqjVFe

— Stanford Wrestling (@CardWrestling) February 3, 2019

Stanford started the dual off strong, taking a 10-0 lead after the first three bouts. Redshirt senior Mason Pengilly set the tone at 133 pounds with a 14-5 major decision over Josiah Kline. Pengilly scored all 14 of his points in the first two periods, including 10 near fall points in the opening frame. He remains undefeated in duals this season at 5-0.

Junior Brandon Kier won a hard-fought 10-8 decision against Cory Crooks at 141 pounds. A big first period was the difference as Kier improved to 2-2 on the year. Redshirt sophomore Requir van der Merwe added to the Cardinal lead with a 4-1 decision over Josh Maruca. Ranked No. 15 at 149 pounds, van der Merwe led 3-0 going into the final period and finished with 1:49 of riding time. He is now 18-6 overall and 7-1 in duals this season.

The Sun Devils won the next four bouts, including bonus points by No. 4 Josh Shields at 165 pounds and No. 2 Zahid Valencia at 174 pounds, to take a 15-10 lead in the dual.

Redshirt sophomore Nathan Traxler, who is ranked ninth nationally at 197 pounds, evened up the team score with a 17-1 technical fall over Keavon Buckley in 4:08. Traxler, who leads the team in wins, is now 22-4 overall and 8-0 in duals.

Redshirt freshman Haydn Maley gave the Cardinal some security with a 5-2 decision over Brady Daniel at heavyweight. Maley scored a takedown as time expired, which would have come up big had the dual score been tied and had to come down to criteria. Maley is now 19-8 overall and 4-2 in duals.

Stanford hits the road next week, traveling to Purdue on Friday, Feb. 8 and Indiana on Saturday, Feb. 9.
 

No. 25 Stanford 21, No. 9 Arizona State 15