For the third consecutive season, a member of the UHD women’s wrestling club team earned the honor of All-American at the National Collegiate Wrestling Association (NCWA) National Championships last week in Allen, Texas.

Jasmin Olvera became the third-ever UHD female wrestler to finish as an All-American at the NCWA Nationals. She joins UHD alumna graduates Irene Nunez and Nastasha Balkum. In its history, UHD has had a total of five wrestling All-Americans. In order to become an All-American, wrestlers must finish in the top eight nationally of their designated weight class.

Undersized by 20 pounds but not overmatched, Jasmin was able to overcome the odds and win her third place match 9-0 in the 191-pound weight class versus Daisha Roberts from Yale University. Currently, Jasmin is a junior majoring in criminal justice.

Olvera’s wrestling career at UHD is proof that there was no match for her “Gator Grit.” She joined the UHD wrestling club team in the fall of 2016 with no prior wrestling experience. She attended the fall 2016 interest meeting seeking more information on how the sport of wrestling works, and to see if the sport was something she wanted to pursue during her tenure as a UHD student.

She showed up for her first practice to learn the sport. Her road was bumpy at first, but she was determined to persevere and not let her inexperience prevent her from eventually competing nationally at the collegiate club level. In her first season as a UHD wrestler, she qualified for the 2017 NCWA National Championships. Even though she didn't place in her first national championship, the seed was planted until it grew into an All-American worthy performance two years later.