Calgary -A trio of gold medals highlighted the University of the Fraser Valley wrestling program’s seven-medal haul at the season-opening Dino Invitational on the weekend at the University of Calgary.
Brad Hildenbrandt (men’s 120 kg), Ana Godinez Gonzalez (women’s 63 kg) and Amber Wiebe (women’s 51 kg) finished atop their respective weight classes at the first tournament of the 2018-19 Canada West schedule.
Four other Cascades also climbed the podium: Parker McBride (men’s 57 kg), Amarvir Atwal (men’s 76 kg) and Ali Rahguzar (men’s 61 kg) won silver, while Simren Brar (men’s 54 kg) took bronze.
2018 DINO INVITATIONAL RESULTS
2018 DINO INVITATIONAL BRACKETS
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Hildenbrandt, a two-time reigning U SPORTS national champion, steamrolled his way through the men’s heavyweight draw, winning all three of his matches by technical superiority with matching 10-0 scores.
Wiebe, a fourth-year wrestler who transferred to UFV over the summer from the University of Regina, provided a massive highlight, knocking off two-time senior national champion Natasha Fox of the Saskatoon Wrestling Club 3-1 in the semifinals. She went on to clinch the gold by technical superiority (12-2) over Calgary’s Grace Chambers.
Godinez Gonzalez won her quarter-final and semifinal matches via pin and technical superiority, respectively. Her finals opponent, Haley Heffel of the Alberta Pandas, withdrew due to injury.
“Ana, I wouldn’t expect any less from her,” Cascades head coach Raj Virdi said, reflecting on his trio of gold medalists. “She had an outstanding performance, and she’s so high above everybody in that level of wrestling. She’s going to have a fantastic season.
“Brad, same kind of deal. He’s so experienced, and whatever he works on in practice, he’s able to execute perfectly in his matches. And I think the best performance really came from Amber. She had an outstanding tournament, and beat an opponent who’s been on the national team. The way she was able to hold the pressure of that match was great. She was our MVP of the tournament. It’s unbelievable how fast she’s progressed.”
Team-wise, the Cascades men finished third overall with 45 points, trailing the Alberta Golden Bears (64) and Saskatchewan Huskies (60). The UFV women were fifth with 20 points; the SFU Clan (55) won the team title, followed by the Alberta Pandas (29), Saskatchewan (28) and Calgary (24).
Up next for the Cascades is the SFU Clan International on Saturday in Burnaby. Major home events on the horizon this season for the program include the annual Cascades Classic (Jan. 26-27) and the Canada West Championships (Feb. 8-9), which UFV will host for the first time.
