Bears Outlast Sun Devils in the Desert

Sunday, February 2

Tempe, Ariz.

1 p.m.

University of Northern Colorado

Arizona State

2/2/2025 3:51:00 PM | Wrestling

By: Michael High, Assistant Director for Strategic Communications

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Northern Colorado (9-4, 2-2 Big 12) overcame an early deficit in a hard-fought victory over Arizona State (4-6, 1-4 Big 12) at Mullet Arena Sunday.

"I'm proud of how the guys competed today," head coach Troy Nickerson said. "We did what we needed to do to get the win and I liked their fight."

The Bears overcame a forfeit at 125 to open the dual and led 10-9 at the intermission with victories by No. 17 Dominick Serrano, No. 2 Andrew Alirez and No. 15 Vincent Zerban. Zerban accumulated the lone bonus point for UNC through the first five bouts, nudging his side to the 1-point advantage at the midpoint.

In the first contest after intermission, Clayton Ulrey dominated from the start and pushed UNC in front 15-9 with a technical fall, tallying six takedowns. Aiden Rix-McElhinney moved the Bears out to their biggest lead of the day at 18-9, with a decision. Andrew Donahue's win at 197 capped off the comeback for UNC, making the Bears 21-12 gap too large for Arizona State with one bout remaining.

125 | No. 2 Richard Figueroa earned the first points of the match with a forfeit victory.

133 | No. 26 Julian Chlebove clung to a 1-0 advantage after two periods with an escape from the bottom position in the second frame. No. 17 Dominick Serrano evened the match by returning to a neutral position. He took a 4-1 advantage with the bout's first takedown, before Chlebove closed to within two, with a second escape. Serrano improved to 13-2 on the campaign.

141 | No. 2 Andrew Alirez remained unbeaten with a decision over Emilio Ysaguirre, evening the match at 6-6. Alirez tallied a pair of takedowns on his way to a 7-3 victory, without allowing an offensive point for Ysaguirre. He recorded a takedown in the first and third periods while adding an escape point in the second.

149 | Benji Alanis's upset bid of No. 18 Jesse Vasquez fell short. Alanis led 3-2 in the third before a takedown and riding-time bonus secured the 6-4 decision for Vasquez.

157 | No. 15 Vincent Zerban registered a takedown of Michael Kilic in the first 30 seconds and continued to accumulate points throughout the bout. He nullified Kilic's escape in the first in the middle frame and led 4-1, with one period remaining. Zerban opened an 8-1 cap with a 4-point near fall and registered another takedown after allowing Kilic to his feet. Zerban collected the riding time bonus for the final margin.

165 | Clayton Ulrey took command of the match against Austin Scott, with two takedowns in the first frame. Ulrey cut Scott free to open the second and went to work, taking Scott down five times in the second frame and securing the technical fall at the 4:25 mark.

174 | Aydin Rix-McElhinney built a 4-0 cushion over Max Wilner after one period. Rix-McElhinney canceled Wilner's takedown in the middle frame, with two escapes and went to the third with a 6-3 gap. Rix-McElhinney secured the victory with a 4-2 advantage in the final two minutes of action, notching a takedown and the riding time bonus, while surrendering two points on escapes by Wilner.

184 | No. 25 AJ Heeg fell 5-2 to Shay Addison. Addison earned a takedown in the opening frame and held a 2-point lead after one period. He earned an escape in the second and a riding time bonus, while Heeg countered with an escape in the final stanza.

197 | Andrew Donahue recorded a takedown in the third period and withstood a late flurry from Max Acciardi for the 5-3 decision. Acciardi scored the first point with an escape in the second frame but Donahue erased the deficit with an escape and a takedown in the final frame. Acciardi tallied a reversal just before the match ended, with Donahue tacking on the riding time bonus.

285 | No. 5 Cohlton Schultz totaled three takedowns in the opening frame against Jose Valdez. Schultz tallied 4-point back points on two separate occasions, closing out the bout and dual.

UNC 21, Arizona State 17
125 | Richard Figueroa (ASU) over Unknown (Forfeit) | ASU 6-0
133 | Dominick Serrano (UNC) over Julian Chlebove (ASU) | Dec 4-2 | ASU 6-3
141 | No. 2 Andrew Alirez (UNC) over Emilio Ysaguirre (ASU) | Dec 7-3 | UNC 6, ASU 6
149 | No. 18 Jesse Vasquez (ASU) over Benji Alanis (UNC) | Dec 6-4 | ASU 9-6
157 | No. 15 Vincent Zerban (UNC) over Michael Kilic (ASU) | MD, 12-2 | UNC 10-9
165 | Clayton Ulrey (UNC) over Austin Scott (ASU) | TF: 21-6 (4:25) | UNC 15-9
174 | Aydin Rix-McElhinney (UNC) over Max Wilner (ASU) | Dec 10-5 | UNC 18-9
184 | Shay Addison (ASU) over No. 25 AJ Heeg (UNC) | Dec 5-2 | UNC 18-12
197 | Andrew Donahue (UNC) over Max Acciardi (ASU) | Dec 5-3 | UNC 21-12
285 | No. 5 Cohlton Schultz (ASU) over Jose Valdez (UNC) | TF: 17-2 (2:28) | UNC 21-17

For complete coverage of UNC Athletics, check out the official homepage at uncbears.com.

Up Next
UNC continues its road trip Friday, at 7 p.m. CT/6 p.m. MT, when the Bears take on No. 14 South Dakota State in Brookings, S.D.

Next Home Match
The Bears close the home portion of their schedule against Air Force, Sunday, Feb. 23 at 2 p.m.

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