Seven members of the Concordia Stingers wrestling team excelled at the CIS qualifying tournament hosted by the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton last Saturday.
The regional accomplishments earn each wrestler a berth at the Canadian university national championships being held Feb. 29-March 1 at the University of Calgary.
On the women’s side, Ella Rebalski finished first in the women’s 63 kg. weight class, while Nikita Chicoine was No. 1 in the 67-kilo category. Both women are in their first year with the Stingers.
Five athletes on the men’s side also earned spots at the nationals. Veteran Tyler Marghetis led the way. The four-time all-Canadian was first in the 76 kg. weight class.
Serguei Guevorkian at 72 kilos finished first at the regional championship. The third-year Stinger will make his third straight appearance at the nationals.
Three rookies will join the men in Calgary. They are: Alex Dyas, 90 kilos; Gurveer Talhan, 61 kilos, and Michael Noonan, 68 kilos. All finished first in their weight classes in Fredericton.
An eighth member of the Stingers, Ahmad Abo Mathkoor, finished third in the heavyweight category. However, only the top two wrestlers in each category advance to the national championships.
The wrestling team is coached by Victor Zilberman who has guided his athletes to more than 45 gold medals and six team titles at the nationals. Since 1980, Concordia has won 89 medals and six team titles at the CIS wrestling championships. In addition six Concordia athletes have been named the outstanding wrestler at the CIS tournament and Zilberman has been named Coach of the Year on three occasions - in 2006, 1986 and in 1984.
