It has been a busy month for the wrestling team as they continued their quest to conquer the forbidding island that is Canada West. The women have been tearing up their competition while the men are staying competitive in a tough field.
The women started with a devastating win at home at the Dino Invitational Oct. 29-30. Strong performances from every member of the team–from veterans such as Justine Bouchard at 59 kg to rookies like Rachelle Pinet at 67 kg–helped secure the win. The men, however, didn’t do so well. Despite a third-place showing by captain Beamer Comfort in the 90 kg category, the team crashed into sixth-place.
The women went on to conquer a tough field in Vancouver at the Clansmen Invitational, hosted by their arch rivals at Simon Fraser University Nov. 5-6. They again took the team title, besting the hosts by a single point. Brit Laverdure and Megan Goldsmith took gold in the 55 and 80 kg categories, and strong performances from the rest of the team pushed them into first place. In the same tournament, the men were led by a strong performance from Wilson Burnett in the 84 kg category. The team finished fifth.
The team then travelled to the University of Regina Nov. 19-20 for the Cougar Open, where the teams once again made their mark on their flatlander opponents. The women, with smaller numbers, were still able to take third place. The men, led by a winning performance from Okotoks product Wes Barnert, were once again able to finish fifth in a tough field.
Finally, the Dinos checked out the Huskie Open at the University of Saskatchewan Nov. 25-26. This time the men came out on top, taking the team title while the women took a respectable second place.
In the latest Canadian Interuniversity Sport rankings, the women sit second behind their SFU rivals while the men are hanging on to seventh place.
The team now prepares to head off to Thunder Bay Dec. 2-3 to try to conquer the National Dual Meet at Lakehead University. Hopefully they get one step closer to achieving total domination of CIS wrestling.