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Robles selected to compete in NWCA All-Star Wrestling Classic


November 03, 2009

Anthony Robles, a junior on the Arizona State University wrestling team, has been selected to compete in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) All-Star Classic that will be held Sunday, November 22, inside Titan Gym on the CS Fullerton campus in Fullerton, Calif. The defending Pac-10 Champion, Robles enters the exhibition event as the second-ranked wrestler in the nation at 125 pounds this year.

Robles, who advanced to the national semifinals last year and completed his second year in the Sun Devil line-up as an All-American with a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships, will face No. 4 Zach Sanders of Minnesota. The duo met on the mats twice last year and split those meetings with Sanders taking the first and Robles the second.

The first time they met came in the semifinals of the Las Vegas Invitational with an unranked Sanders upsetting No. 8 Robles, 7-3. Then, on the final day of the collegiate season at the NCAA Wrestling Championships in St. Louis, Mo., Robles exacted his revenge as the No. 12 Sun Devil scored a 19-10 major decision over the No. 11 Golden Gopher in the consolation semifinals. Robles would lose his next match to place fourth overall in the national tournament while Sanders lost in the fifth-place match to finish sixth nationally.

The only Pac-10 wrestler in the field for the 44th edition of the Classic, Robles will become the 20th different Sun Devil to compete in the prestigious event. His current coaching staff all have competed in the NWCA All-Star Classic at least once in their respective careers, including head coach Shawn Charles (twice for Arizona State), head assistant coach Bryan Snyder (selected three times, competed once for Nebraska) and assistant coach Brian Stith (once for ASU). Stith was the most recent Sun Devil to compete as he dropped a close 2-1 decision to top-ranked Trent Paulson (Iowa State) at the 2007 Classic in Dallas, Texas.

Overall, the Sun Devils hold an all-time record of 9-12-1 in the Classic with three earning selections but not competing because of injury. The last time a Sun Devil won at the exhibition came in 2000 when Steve Blackford won a 13-2 major decision over Kirk White of Boise State at the 165-pound division.

2009 NWCA All-Star Classic Competitors
November 22, 2009 • CS Fullerton (Titan Gym)
125: #2 Anthony Robles (Arizona State) vs. #4 Zach Sanders (Minnesota)
133: #4 Steve Bell (Maryland) vs. #5 Daniel Dennis (Iowa)
141: #2 Nick Gallick (Iowa State) vs. #3 Alex Krom (Maryland)
149: #2 Lance Palmer (Ohio State) vs. #5 Kyle Borshoff (American)
157: #1 Jordan Burroughs (Nebraska) vs. #2 Matt Moley (Bloomsburg)
165: #4 Jonathan Reader (Iowa State) vs. #6 Andrew Rendos (Bucknell)
174: # Chris Henrich (Virginia) vs. #7 Stephen Dwyer (Nebraska)
184: #4 Max Askren (Missouri) vs. #5 Josh Patterson (Binghamton)
197: #1 Jake Varner (Iowa State) vs. #2 Craig Brester (Nebraska)
285: #1 Mark Ellis (Missouri) vs. #5 David Zabriskie (Iowa State)

Featured Bouts:
141: Adin Duenas (Cal State Fullerton) vs. Elijah Nacita (Cal State Bakersfield)
184: Zach Giesen (Stanford) vs. Enoch Francois (Cal Baptist University)
197: John Drake (Cal State Fullerton) vs. Riley Orozco (Cal State Bakersfield)