ASU entered Sunday’s match after a close loss to No. 8 Lehigh on Nov. 15, looking to gain momentum from its home crowd. However, Oklahoma State spoiled the Sun Devils’ home opener, winning 25-11. The Cowboys dominated behind an all-ranked starting lineup and great coaching from head coach David Taylor.

The 157-pound matchup between OSU No. 3 freshman Landon Robideau and ASU No. 24 graduate student Chance McLane summed up the afternoon, as Robideau had five takedowns throughout the six minutes to secure a dominant major decision win, ending in a score of 15-5. 

Sun Devil head coach Zeke Jones said his squad found out a lot about themselves facing a highly regarded opponent.

“Anytime you’re wrestling a top five team in the county, you really find out where you’re at,” Jones said. “There’s some matches where we can win some of those matches, but we just didn't." 

Despite the lop-sided match, 165-pound sophomore Nicco Ruiz ignited the fans by not only securing the first takedown of the evening for ASU, but also securing a last-second win over freshman Kody Routledge.

However, the Sun Devils’ momentum did not last long, as the Cowboys' experience and juggernauts started to overwhelm, leading to five straight wins. 

Notable matches throughout this win streak included OSU No. 16 junior Alex Faucundo dominating ASU graduate student Cael Valencia 18-8 despite Valencia taking a lead in the first period. 

No. 9 freshman Cody Merril also provided the Cowboys with an absolute mauling of ASU junior Max Acciardi, leading to the first technical fall of the evening. 

Despite losing its last five matches, ASU fans rose to their feet when number No. 29 freshman Kyler Larkin dueled former Sun Devil National Champion and No. 17 senior Richard Figueroa at the 133-pound division. Figueroa wasn’t met with a warm welcome coming back to Tempe, as fans booed him relentlessly. 

“It's mixed emotions, I love Richie, but at the same time, we want to beat Richie,” Jones said. “We’ll love him as a son and double champ forever, but today it was a competition and it was fun for our guy to win.” 

Straight into the match, both men pushed an insane pace, scoring takedowns, reversing positions and constantly applying pressure the moment they could. The first period ended in the first review of the evening, as ASU won the challenge, giving Kyler three points and securing a takedown. 

The second period started similarly to the first, as the Cowboys also challenged a call that went in their favor, negating a takedown by Kyler. Despite this, Kyler elevated the crowd to their feet with two big slams on the former Sun Devil to give them their second win of the evening. 

“That dude is a monster,” Jones said regarding Kyler. “He just likes to come forward, loves to attack and we just try to take what he has and make it better.” 

Afterwards, ASU dropped one more match on the evening in the 141-pound weight class, as OSU No. 2 freshman Sergio Vega ended a tightly contested affair by securing a last-second takedown, putting the score out of reach. 

Rounding off the matches in the 157-pound weight class, No. 2 sophomore and hometown hero Kaleb Larkin duled junior Cutter Sheets.

Looking to secure a win like his younger brother Kyler, Kaleb wasted no time in the match, defending a great single-leg attempt and scoring takedowns at will. By the end of the second period, Kaleb flirted with a technical fall decision. 

Shortly after, Kaleb scored one more takedown, ending the matchup with a positive for the Sun Devils. The crowd really got into the matches once both Larkin brothers got on the mat and won. 

“Anytime you have hometown kids like Kaleb and Kyler Larkin, it’s special, right?” Jones said. “People love Arizona and Sun Devil wrestling, and they want to be part of something special. They bring the community to the wrestling mat.”