Season Preview: WU to Open at Menlo Tournament

By Francisco Claudio

The Westcliff women's wrestling team will begin its campaign this season after the news over the summer that the program had become a member of the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC).

The Warriors will travel to their first event at the Menlo Women's Wrestling Tournament held on Sunday, November 5th, officially kicking off the 2023-24 season.

Head coach D'Rell Gist is thrilled to see his team participate in the first event, following months of training and practice.

"My expectations and goals for this season are to make each wrestler on the team 1% better every single day and to continue to build this program," Gist said. "It's all about growth."

The team comprises four members: Honesty Amirah Tricoche, Sophia Gonzales, Daia Kawashirdo, and Zitali Samiento.

Already, the student-athletes have been able to create a really strong bond and the culture of the team feels like it's in the right place.

"The dynamic of the team is amazing," Gist said. "Everyone gets along great and pushes to make each other better. These girls came to Westcliff not knowing each other but now are all super close and have a tight bond.

"Everyone is treated like family on this team and we truly have an awesome team culture."

It was clear that Coach Gist was excited about his team's progress and development.

"All of the girls on our team are hard workers and determined to get better every day," Gist said. "They each bring a unique set of skills and characteristics. "They all come from different backgrounds and coaches so it's been fun helping them develop their own style of wrestling."

So far, the Warriors have three events scheduled this season.

As mentioned earlier, they will start with the Menlo Open on November 5th.

Then on December 16th, they will be at the West Coast TOC held at the Roebeleen Center.

Finally, on February 10th, they will be at the Cerritos FS Open held at Cerritos College.

"I'm excited for all the competitions this season but I'm particularly excited to wrestle other schools that are a part of the Cascade Conference," Gist said.

There is a lot to look forward to with women's wrestling joining Westcliff Athletics especially being part of a new conference and competing against new teams.

Follow along and keep yourself updated with everything that the Warriors accomplish this season here on the athletics website.