Wrestling adds Zach Roberson to coaching staff

Zach Roberson, a three-time All-American and 2004 NCAA 133-pound Champion at Iowa State, has joined the Arizona State University wrestling coaching staff Head Coach Thom Ortiz announced Tuesday. The second-ranked freestyle wrestler in the United States at 60kg (132 pounds), Roberson will work with the lightweights in the Sun Devil program while working toward his goal of representing the U.S. at the 2008 Olympics.

"I am excited to have a talented wrestler like Zach Roberson in our wrestling complex to help our student-athletes prepare to excel this year," Ortiz said. "I recruited him in college and knew he was a talented wrestler. He proved that at the collegiate level and is ready to do so on the international level. I look forward to having him train toward making the U.S. Olympic team while helping ASU's wrestlers prepare to compete for Pac-10 and NCAA titles."

Roberson recently placed second at the Senior World Team Trials, falling to Mike Zadick in the Championship Final at the tournament in Las Vegas in July. The runner-up at 60kg in the first season of Real Pro Wrestling for the Iowa Stalkers team, Roberson placed fourth at the most recent U.S. National Championships in Las Vegas.

Recruited to Ames, Iowa, by then-assistant coach Ortiz, Roberson placed seventh at the NCAA Championships as a sophomore for his first All-America accolade before taking second as a junior and winning the national title as a senior by defeating Penn State's Josh Moore, 7-3, n the 2004 event. The 2003 Midlands Champion at 133 pounds and Art Kraft Champion of Champions recipient (best exemplifying the qualities of a champion) at the same meet, Roberson also placed third in the Big XII Championships before taking second place as a senior.

Prior to his arrival at ISU, Roberson was a four-time state champion in Kansas, claiming crowns at 103, 112, 119 and 125-pounds before taking runner-up honors at the 125-pound high school national tournament. A recipient of the Dave Schultz High School Excellence Award, which honors academic and wrestling excellence as well as community service, Roberson completed his prep career with an unblemished 153-0 record and won 109 of those bouts by pin fall.