TEMPE, Ariz. - Requir van der Merwe and Nathan Traxler captured individual Pac-12 titles, leading Stanford to its first team championship in program history, Saturday, at Wells Fargo Arena.
Stanford, which finished with 81.5 team points, edged two-time defending champion Arizona State in its home arena by just two points. It was the closest team race since 2010.
.@CardWrestling has been a program for over 8??5??, but just won its first conference title tonight. ??
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) March 10, 2019
The Cardinal made history by defeating host Arizona State by two points, and is taking the #Pac12Wrestle team title back to The Farm. pic.twitter.com/llXJBjY4b4
van der Merwe (149 pounds) and Traxler (197 pounds) became the 31st and 32nd individual Pac-12 champions in school history, respectively, and the first since 2017. van der Merwe defeated Arizona State's Josh Maruca, 7-4, in the finals and is now 23-6 on the season. Traxler hung on to top Cal Poly's Tom Lane, 6-5, and improved to 28-5.
Joining van der Merwe and Traxler in earning automatic berths into the NCAA Championships, held later this month in Pittsburgh, were Gabriel Townsell (125 pounds) and Haydn Maley (285 pounds). Maley finished as the runner-up at heavyweight, but had to wrestle Arizona State's Brady Daniel in a true-second place match at the conclusion of the tournament.
Townsell came in third, posting a fall over Cal Poly's Benny Martinez in the consolation semifinals and a 15-6 major decision against CSU Bakersfield's Edward Flores. Townsell is now 18-10 overall.
Redshirt senior Mason Pengilly (133 pounds), junior Brandon Kier (141 pounds) and sophomore Judah Duhm (184 pounds) all finished as runner-ups, while redshirt senior Paul Fox (157 pounds) and redshir sophomore Jared Hill (165 pounds) took third. Hill's pin against Oregon State's Aaron Olmos in 2:11 was a big factor in the team race. Graduate Rico Stormer finished fourth at 174 pounds after dropping a close 4-3 decision against Oregon State's Colt Doyle in the semifinals.
NCAA at-large selections will be announced on Tuesday and the brackets and NCAA seeds will be revealed on Wednesday.
#20 Gabriel Townsell, 125 pounds | 2-1 (3rd)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to Ryan Millhof (Arizona State) | F7:51 |
| dec. Benny Martinez (Cal Poly) | F5:10 |
| maj. dec. Edward Flores (CSU Bakersfield) | 15-6 |
Mason Pengilly, 133 pounds | 1-1 (2nd)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. Josiah Kline (Arizona State) | 2-1 |
| inj. def. to #16 Sean Nickell (CSU Bakersfield) | inj. def. |
Brandon Kier, 141 pounds | 1-1 (2nd)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. Carlos Herrera (CSU Bakersfield) | 3-2 |
| lost to Grant Willits (Oregon State) | F3:39 |
#15 Requir van der Merwe, 149 pounds | 2-0 (1st)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. Josh Reyes (Oregon State) | 7-4 |
| dec. Josh Maruca (Arizona State) | 5-3 |
Paul Fox, 157 pounds | 2-1 (3rd)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to Hunter Willits (Oregon State) | 6-1 |
| maj. dec. Wyatt Gerl (CSU Bakersfield) | 12-4 |
| dec. Brawley Lamer (Cal Poly) | 4-2 |
'
Jared Hill, 165 pounds | 2-1 (3rd)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| tech. fall Joe La Rosa (Cal Poly) | 20-5 (6:08) |
| lost to #4 Josh Shields (Arizona State) | 14-4 |
| fall Aaron Olmos (Oregon State) | F2:11 |
Rico Stormer, 174 pounds | 1-2 (4th)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| lost to Bryan Battisto (CSU Bakersfield) | 4-3 |
| dec. Nathan Tausch (Cal Poly) | 11-5 |
| lost to Colt Doyle (Oregon State) | 4-2 |
Judah Duhm, 184 pounds | 2-1 (2nd)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| maj. dec. Willem DeBoer (Cal Poly) | 11-2 |
| dec. Dom Ducharme (CSU Bakersfield) | 6-4 (SV) |
| lost to Bob Coleman (Oregon State) | 4-2 |
#12 Nathan Traxler, 197 pounds | 2-0 (1st)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| fall Mark Penyacsek (CSU Bakersfield) | F0:37 |
| dec. Tom Lane (Cal Poly) | 6-5 |
Haydn Maley, 285 pounds | 1-1 (2nd)
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| dec. Jarrod Snyder (CSU Bakersfield) | 3-2 |
| lost to No. 4 Amar Dhesi (Oregon State) | 17-3 |