Zheng and Pietrangelo Secure Victory at U-25 NextGen Mixed Doubles Classic – “Two years ago, we were like lost puppies.”
Two years ago, Jessica Zheng and Victor Pietrangelo were relatively unknown in the curling world, having had little exposure to top-tier coaching or technical guidance. Yet, they defied the odds by winning the 2022 NextGen Classic at Edmonton’s Saville Community Sports Centre, which catapulted them into the NextGen Development program.
Reflecting on their journey, Pietrangelo remarked, “We’d never really had a coach before, so suddenly having access to resources and experts like Scott Pfeiffer and Renee Sonnenberg was a game-changer for us.”
Their rapid progress was evident when they reached the finals of the NextGen Classic again last year, though they fell just short of claiming the title. Determined to avoid another heartbreak, they entered this year’s tournament with renewed focus.
“Losing the final last year was tough,” said Pietrangelo. “We didn’t want to experience that again. The atmosphere here is fantastic, and the ice is excellent, so we were really able to concentrate on playing our best.”
And play their best, they did. In the fNiagara Falls, Ont.-based pair faced off against Winnipeg’s Mackenzie Arbuckle and Aaron MacDonelling without the hammer, Zheng and Pietrangelo claimed the first point, setting the tone for the match.
“It was a bit nerve-wracking,” Pietrangelo admitted. “It was our first game all week without the hammer, and we felt like we were just hanging on for a while.”
However, back-to-back steals in the second and third ends gave them a commanding 4-0 lead. Arbuckle and MacDonell managed to get on the board in the fourth, but Zheng and Pietrangelo responded with a massive five-point end, extending their lead to 9-1 and effectively sealing the game.
“The five points kind of came out of nowhere,” said Pietrangelo. “It was a solid end, and we made some great shots, but it didn’t look like a big end was coming until the very end.”
Although Arbuckle and MacDonell scored two more in the sixth, the result was never in doubt, and the game ended with a 9-3 victory for Zheng and Pietrangelo.
“It was a great week,” said Zheng, who now has two championships in the three-year history of this event. “We just kept applying pressure and forced them to make the tough shots.”
Earlier in the week, the duo participated in training sessions with Curling Canada coaches as part of the NextGen program. “It’s invaluable to have these sessions and access to ice early in the season,” Zheng noted. “We focused a lot on technical skills and specific Mixed Doubles strategies.”
“There was so much we could immediately apply,” added Pietrangelo. “But there’s also plenty we can continue working on at home.”
As champions of the U-25 NextGen Classic, Zheng and Pietrangelo earned $3,000 in NextGen funding and will maintain their access to Curling Canada’s high-performance staff.
Next on their agenda is the playdown for Canada’s spot at the FISU Universiade, where they will compete against nineteen other teams for the chance to represent Canada at the World University Games in Torino, Italy next year.
