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List of Arizona State University athletes

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Arizona State University (ASU) has graduated a number of athletes. This includes graduates, non-graduate former students and current students of ASU who are notable for their achievements within athletics, sometimes before or after their time at ASU. Other alumni, including non-playing coaches and athletic administrators, can be found in the list of Arizona State University alumni. The first recorded sporting event in the history of what was originally the Tempe Normal School was a baseball game played in 1891; the first football team was fielded in 1896.[1] Since 1947, ASU's athletic teams have been known as the Sun Devils after previously being known as the Bulldogs and unofficially as the Normals or Owls. The university is a member of the Big 12 Conference and fields teams in 26 varsity sports, comprising some 600 student-athletes.[2]

ASU has historically produced notable athletes in baseball, football, swimming, track and field, and wrestling, among other sports. As of 2024, ASU is second among all NCAA universities with 117 alumni who have played in Major League Baseball (MLB) and has the most inductees into the College Baseball Hall of Fame,[3] and more than 200 Sun Devil student-athletes have competed in the Olympic Games,[4] winning a total of 66 medals.[5]

Well-known American football athletes include six members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, including Curley Culp and Randall McDaniel, as well as Pat Tillman. ASU's contributions to MLB include Barry Bonds, Dustin Pedroia, Reggie Jackson and Rick Monday. Other notables include basketball players Eddie House and James Harden among 30 all-time National Basketball Association (NBA) players, swimmers Léon Marchand and Melissa Belote, and golfers including six-time major tournament winner Phil Mickelson and two-time winner Jon Rahm. Other ASU athletes have played professionally in the National Hockey League (NHL), Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), National Women's Soccer League, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), PGA Tour and LPGA Tour, as well as internationally.

For size reasons, this list contains six partial lists covering baseball, basketball, football, golf, swim and dive, and track and field.

Baseball

Main article: List of Arizona State University baseball players

Basketball

Main article: List of Arizona State University basketball players

Football

Main article: List of Arizona State University football players

Golf

Main article: List of Arizona State University golfers

Softball

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Dallas Escobedo
More information Name, Years played at ASU ...
Softball
Name Years played at ASU Notes Ref.
Katie Burkhart 2005–2008 Pitcher, played in National Pro Fastpitch [6]
Kaitlin Cochran 2006–2009 2011 gold medalist at the Pan American Games, played in National Pro Fastpitch [7]
Krista Donnenwirth 2008–2011 [8]
Dallas Escobedo 2011–2014 Pitcher; later a graduate manager for ASU softball, represented Mexico at the 2020 Summer Olympics [9][10]
Stacey Farnworth Represented Greece at the 2004 Summer Olympics [4]
Danielle Gibson 2018 [11]
Chelsea Gonzales 2014–2017 [12]
Giselle Juarez 2017–2018 [11]
Tammy Lohmann 1993–1997 Head softball coach, San José State [13]
Sashel Palacios 2014–2017 [14]
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Swimming and diving

Main article: List of Arizona State University swimmers and divers

Soccer

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Jemma Purfield
More information Name, Years played at ASU ...
Soccer
Name Years played at ASU Notes Ref.
McKenzie Berryhill 2012–2015 Played in the National Women's Soccer League and the Norwegian Toppserien [15][16]
Liz Bogus 2002–2004 Played in Women's Professional Soccer and the National Women's Soccer League [17][18]
Nina Brüggemann 2012 [19]
Lieske Carleer 2019–2023 Played in the Vrouwen Eredivisie and Frauen-Bundesliga and for the Netherlands women's national team [20][21]
Alexia Delgado 2018–2022 Played in Liga MX Femenil and for the Mexico women's national team [22][23]
Eva van Deursen 2018–2022 [24]
Nicole Douglas 2018–2022 First Sun Devil soccer player to be an All-American since 2002; played in the NWSL and USL Super League [25][26]
Christina Edwards 2016–2019 [27]
Cali Farquharson 2012–2015 Played in the NWSL [28][29]
Jayda Hylton-Pelaia 2021 Jamaican international [30][31]
Vildan Kardeşler 2021 Turkish international [32]
Amy LePeilbet 2000–2003 Played in Women's Professional Soccer and the National Women's Soccer League; 2011 Women's World Cup champion; 2012 Olympian representing the U.S.; interim coach of the Utah Royals [33][4][34]
Manya Makoski 2002–2005 [35]
Jemma Purfield 2017–2018 Played professionally in England [36][37]
Gabi Rennie 2022–2023 2024 Olympian representing New Zealand [38][4]
Marleen Schimmer 2018–2019 Played professionally in the U.S. and Germany [39][40]
Kylla Sjoman 2005–2008 [41]
Cori Sullivan 2018–2021 [42]
Tatum Thomason 2025 [43]
Stacey Tullock 1998–2000 [44]
Jazmine Wilkinson 2020–2022 [45]
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Track and field

Main article: List of Arizona State University track and field athletes

Tennis

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Peggy Michel
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George Stoupe
More information Name, Years played at ASU ...
Tennis
Name Years played at ASU Notes Ref.
Carol Baily Professional tennis player [46]
Óscar Bustos Chilean tennis player [47]
Jacqueline Cako 2010–2013 Professional tennis player [48]
Murphy Cassone 2021–2024 Professional tennis player [49]
Andrew Colombo NCAA doubles champion at Auburn University before transferring to ASU [50][51]
Gary Donnelly 1982–1983 Professional tennis player [52]
Adria Engel 1999–2002 Professional tennis player [53]
Chelsea Fontenel 2022–2024 Professional tennis player [54]
Nicole Fossa Huergo 2016–2018 Professional tennis player [55]
Laura Glitz Professional tennis player [56]
Brian Gyetko 1992 Olympian representing Canada [4]
Benjamin Hannestad 2017–2018 [57]
Ilze Hattingh 2017–2021 Professional tennis player [58]
Glen Holroyd Professional tennis player [59]
Allyson Ingram Professional tennis player [60]
Dave Kanter 1971–1974 Professional tennis player [61]
Matt Klinger 1999–2002 Professional tennis player [62]
Desirae Krawczyk 2024 Olympian representing the U.S. [4]
Dora Krstulović 2001–2003 Professional tennis player [63]
Gustavo Marcaccio Professional tennis player and coach [64]
Ross Matheson 1991–1992 Professional tennis player [65]
Alexandra Osborne 2014–2017 Professional tennis player [66]
Peggy Michel 1968–1972 Professional tennis player; collegiate doubles champion, 1972 [53]
Todd Nelson Professional tennis player [67]
Sheri Norris 1984–1986 [53]
Karin Palme 1997–2001 Professional tennis player [68][69]
Paulina Peisachov 1970 Professional tennis player [70]
Justin Roberts 2018–2019 Professional tennis player [71]
Sargis Sargsian 1994–1995 First NCAA men's singles champion in ASU history; three-time Olympian representing Armenia [72][4]
Joelle Schad 1996 Olympian representing the Dominican Republic [4]
Eric Sherbeck Professional tennis player and coach [73]
Patrīcija Špaka 2021–2025 Latvian tennis player [74]
George Stoupe 2019–2022 Professional tennis player [75]
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Wrestling and combat sports

Refer to caption
Cain Velasquez
More information Name, Years played at ASU ...
Wrestling and combat sports
Name Years played at ASU Notes Ref.
Eric Albarracin Served in the U.S. Army; MMA coach [76]
Ryan Bader 2001–2005 Wrestler and mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter [77]
Steven Blackford 1998–2001 Three-time All-American [78]
Kennedy Blades 2022–2024 Freestyle wrestler; competed in the 2024 Summer Olympics [79]
Gary Bohay Represented Canada in wrestling at the 1988 Summer Olympics [4]
Kelsey Campbell ASU's first female wrestler; represented the U.S. at the 2012 Summer Olympics [4][80]
Sullivan Cauley 2014–2017 Wrestler and MMA fighter [81][82]
C.B. Dollaway 2004–2005 Wrestler and MMA fighter [83][84]
Rob Eiter Represented the U.S. in wrestling at the 1996 Summer Olympics [4]
Don Frye 1985–1987 Wrestler and MMA fighter [70][85]
Dan Henderson 1993 Represented the U.S. in wrestling at the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics [70][4][85]
Barb Honchak N/a MMA fighter [86]
Bubba Jenkins 2010–2011 2011 national champion at 157 lbs, professional MMA fighter [87][88]
Zeke Jones 1987–1990 Represented the U.S. in the 1992 Summer Olympics and served as an Olympic coach in 2004, 2008 and 2012; ASU wrestling head coach since 2014 [4][89][90]
Matthew Lopez Wrestler; professional MMA fighter [91]
Nicco Montaño N/a Professional MMA fighter [92]
John Moraga Wrestler; professional MMA fighter [93]
Anthony Robles 2008–2011 2011 national champion at 125 lbs, profiled in the 2024 film Unstoppable [94][95]
Billy Rosado 1976–1978 Represented the U.S. at the 1976 Summer Olympics [4][78]
Frankie Saenz Wrestler; professional MMA fighter [96]
Marco Sanchez Represented the U.S. at the 1996 Summer Olympics [4]
Townsend Saunders 1989–1990 Represented the U.S. at the 1996 Summer Olympics [78][4]
Dan Severn 1977–1980 Wrestler and wrestling coach at ASU; MMA fighter [78][97]
Aaron Simpson MMA fighter; ASU assistant wrestling coach [98]
Clifford Starks [99]
James Terry MMA fighter [100]
Zahid Valencia 2016–2020 2019 NCAA freestyle champion [101]
Cain Velasquez 2003–2005 Two-time All-American and MMA fighter; first heavyweight MMA or boxing champion of Mexican-American descent [78]
Patrick Williams MMA fighter [102]
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Other athletics

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Joey Daccord
Refer to caption
Rowie Webster
More information Name, Years played at ASU ...
Other athletics
Name Years played at ASU Notes Ref.
Judi Adams Archer; represented the U.S. at the 1996 Summer Olympics [4]
Jay Barrs 1983–1984 Archer; gold medalist for the U.S. at the 1987 Pan American Games and 1988 Summer Olympics [103]
Amanda Borden N/a Captain of the 1996 U.S. Olympic gymnastics team; graduated 2003 [104]
Izabella Chiappini Water polo; represented Brazil at the 2016 Summer Olympics [4]
Joey Daccord 2016–2019 Hockey goaltender; first ASU hockey player to play in the National Hockey League [105]
Erin Densham Triathlete; represented Australia at the 2016 Summer Olympics [4]
Josh Doan 2021–2023 Hockey forward [106]
Danna Durante 2002–2005 Gymnast; collegiate coach at Washington, Nebraska, Georgia and North Carolina [107]
Linda French Badminton; represented the U.S. at the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics [4]
Ao Gao Water polo; represented China at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics [4]
Sean "Sgares" Gares Professional esports player; known for Counter-Strike [108]
Christine Garner 1992–1995 Volleyball [109]
Dan Hayden 1985–1986 Gymnast [110]
Dennis Hayden 1985–1986 Gymnast [111]
Hannah Henry 2017–2018 Triathlete [112]
Justin Huish Archer; represented the U.S. at the 1996 Summer Olympics [4]
Chris Jogis 1984–1987 Badminton; three-time national men's doubles and singles champion, four-time All-American; 1992 Olympian representing the U.S. [113]
Kittia Kennedy 1976–1980 Gymnast; coached Nia Dennis and Gabby Douglas [114]
Benny Lee Badminton; represented the U.S. at the 1992 Summer Olympics [4]
Nelson Lincoln Sports shooting; 1960 Olympian representing the U.S. [4]
Richard McKinney 1980–1984 Archer; represented the U.S. at the 1976, 1984 and 1988 Summer Olympics [103][4]
Chase McQueen 2018–2020 Triathlete [115]
Glenn Meyers Archer; represented the U.S. at the 1984 Summer Olympics [103]
Ty Murchison 2021–2025 Hockey defenseman [116]
Brinson Pasichnuk 2017–2020 Hockey defenseman [117]
Cullen Potter 2024–2025 Hockey forward; highest-drafted ASU hockey player, 32nd overall in the 2025 NHL Draft [118]
Bente Rogge Water polo; represented the Netherlands at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics [4]
Lieke Rogge Water polo; represented the Netherlands at the 2024 Summer Olympics [4]
Jenny Rowland Gymnast [119]
Leanne Schuster 1991–1994 Volleyball player [70]
Jay Shi Sports shooting; 2016 Olympian representing the U.S. [4]
Artem Shlaine 2024–2025 Ice hockey [120]
J.C. Trujillo World-champion bareback bronc rider; 1968 intercollegiate bareback riding champion [121]
Tammy Webb 1983–1986 Volleyball; represented the U.S. in the 1988, 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics and won bronze in 1992 [109][4]
Rowie Webster Water polo; represented Australia at the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics [4]
Alison Williamson Archer; represented Great Britain at the 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics [4]
Erica Wilson 2009–2012 Volleyball player [122]
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