Schools
Former Bella Vista High School Wrestler Thrives in College Competition
Jennifer Page brings her toughness and ability to Oklahoma City University.
Jennifer Page spent her high school years at Bella Vista routinely beating boys on the wrestling mat. She was almost always the only girl in wrestling competitions in high school, but now as a freshman in college at Oklahoma City University (the defending national champions in wrestling), Page gets to finally compete on a women's team.
"My team is amazing," Page said. "Everyone has done really well this year."
As is customary for students traveling across the country to attend college, Page, 19, admits that the initial transition was difficult.
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"I like it now, but at first it was hard," she said. "It's totally different than high school. I'm on a women's team now and it's a different wrestling style. We also travel a lot to different states."
Outside of the life upheaval, however, her wrestling ability remains constant. The Oklahoma City University athletics website (www.ocusports.com) lists Page's record as a freshman at 34 wins and 8 losses.
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On April 22, Page wrestled at the Olympic Trials in Iowa City, IA. She finished third in her 138 pound weight class and qualified as an alternate for the 2012 London Olympics. She took part in five matches at the event, winning four of them including the third place match.
As an alternate, Page will likely not accompany the team to London, but will instead act as a practice partner for a member of the team. Injuries or other unforseeable issues could open up a spot for Page on the team, but that is unlikely at this point.
Later this summer, Page will travel to Colorado Springs for two weeks to train with the Olympic wrestling team at the Olympic Training Facility. Page will also travel with the women's national team to the Junior World Team Trials to try and solidify a spot in the Women's World Wrestling Championships in Alberta, Canada in September.
As for her future wrestling career, the reserved Page simply said "I've always got a list of things to work on that need to get better."
A scary thought indeed.