Tuesday, May 26, 2020

Gone, Lost & Forgotten: Their Best = UC Davis




Winners of the 1964 & 1965 Northern California Athletic Conference (NCAC) the Aggies of UC Davis were quite competitive during their time in NCAA Division II wrestling.  In the move to NCAA Division I, right around the time they started to find their place crowning their first All American & NCAA champion, the school dropped the program due to financial constraints after the 2009-2010 season.

Afsoon Roshanzamir
Today there is varsity wrestling for women at nearly every level of collegiate competition.  Throughout NCAA Division I, II, III, the NAIA & the NJCAA we have fifty-nine programs and that number looks to increase dramatically within the near future.  When thinking of women's wrestling in the United States it is important to look back at the women of the past who paved the road for the women of today & the women of tomorrow.

Afsoon Roshanzamir was one of those women. An immigrant of Iran, Roshanzamir learned wrestling from her father & later not only did she go out for the men's varsity wrestling team in high school, she made the team.  In college, she was a member of the UC Davis Aggie wrestling team.

In 1989 Roshanzamir made history by becoming the United States' first World Medalist in women's wrestling when she captured a bronze medal.  She'd follow it up in 1990 with a silver medal.

Grover Ford
191 lbs
Also a member of the Aggie football team, Ford took third place All American honors at the NCAA Division II tournament in 1966.

Kemper Chafin
177 lbs
Chafin made the NCAA Division II finals in 1969.  He would later coach at UC Davis.

Eric Gritz
Gritz was a two time NCAA Division II All American for the Aggies.  He placed fourth in 1981, taking runner-up honors in 1982.


Urijah Faber
133 lbs
UFC fighter/Hollywood Actor Urijah Faber was a walk-on wrestler at UC Davis.  He qualified twice for the NCAA's in 2001 & 2002 as a sophomore & Junior.  He narrowly missed out on becoming the Aggies first All American when he finished one match shy of placing in 2002.
Jeremiah Jarvis
157 lbs 
Jarvis was a three time NCAA qualifier for the Aggies, winning a PAC-12 title in 2003 as a junior.

Derek Moore
141 lbs 
A four time NCAA qualifier & two time PAC-12 champion, Moore had lost heartbreaking matches in previous years to barely miss narrowly miss out on achieving All American status.  During his senior year, not only would he break through the barrier & become the Aggies first Division I All American, he'd do so in fashion by claiming the NCAA title.


Ken Cook
174 lbs 
Cook began his career at Iowa State but soon found himself homesick & back in California competing for the Aggies.  Winner of two PAC-12 titles during his time at UC Davis, he earned the #6 & #7 seeds at the NCAA tournaments in 2006 & 2007.


Brandon Low
133 lbs 
One of the few Division I wrestlers that we have had from the state of Hawaii, Low qualified for the NCAA championships in 2009 & 2010.

Ricardo Alcala
HWT
A two time NCAA qualifier for the Aggies in 2009 & 2010, Alcala was forced to find a new home after the Aggies dropped wrestling before the 2010-2011 season.  Competing for Indiana, Alcala took fifth place honors for the Hoosiers at the NCAA tournament.

1 comment: