"I am excited to have Anthony and Chris as part of our program," Ortiz said. "Both of these young men have done well at the high school level and I feel both will have a bright future with Arizona State. Anthony has overcome so much and worked hard to become not only a state champion, but a national champion as well. Chris excelled with a fairly new high school program and advanced all the way to the state finals twice, showing he has what it takes to compete. Both of these men bring impressive credentials with them to campus and I look forward to their contributions to helping the continued resurgence of our wrestling program."
Robles is a local talent that comes to Tempe by way of nearby Mesa High School where he competed for the Jackrabbits for four years. Born with one leg, Robles captured national attention as he went undefeated over his last two years of competition, building a 96-0 record and winning the Arizona 5A state championship in each season. Following his senior campaign, Robles was invited to the NHSCA Senior National Championships in Pittsburgh, Pa., where he won the 112 pound weight class in the tournament.
The Outstanding Wrestler of the state 5A meet each of the last two years, Robles built a 131-15 career record. As a junior, he won the 103 weight class and ran wild through the state bracket, winning three bouts by fall, one by a 17-0 technical fall and the finals bout in a 13-0 major decision. As a senior, Robles wasted little time in winning his second crown as he pinned all four opponents. For his efforts, he was named the Arizona Republic Wrestler of the Year and the Mesa Republic Male Athlete of the Year.
Drouin also had an impressive prep career as he was a two-time California state runner-up for the Pumas of Chaparral High School in Temecula, Calif. The second-ranked wrestler in the state at 135 pounds, Drouin compiled a 51-2 record in his junior season before going 46-2 as a senior. Both years, he won the CIF Southern Section and CIF SS Masters tournaments to earn a berth into the state meet. A member of the Los Angeles Times All-Star Team in 2006 and The Californian 2005 and 2006 All-Valley Wrestler of the Year, Drouin became the first wrestler from CHS to advance to the finals of the state meet in the eight-year history of the school as he made the finals as a junior.
Robles and Drouin will join Randel Aleman (Las Vegas, Nev.), David Green (Oviedo, Fla.), Shawn Jones (Snake River, Idaho), Kenny Lester (Oviedo, Fla.) and Todd Schavrien (Poway, Calif.) as the class of recruits headed to Tempe. Prior to the signing of Robles and Drouin, national wrestling publication Intermat had the Sun Devils' incoming class ranked as the seventh-best in the nation this year.
Incoming Recruits for 2006-07 Academic Season:
Randel Aleman (Las Vegas, Nev.)
Chris Drouin (Temecula, Calif.)
David Green (Oviedo, Fla.)
Shawn Jones (Snake River, Idaho)
Kenny Lester (Oviedo, Fla.)
Anthony Robles (Mesa, Ariz.)
Todd Schavrien (Poway, Calif.)
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