Matt Gentry competed for Canada at the World Championships and Olympics (Photo/Tony Rotundo, WrestlersAreWarriors.com)
Matt Gentry, NCAA wrestling champ, two-time Olympian and former coach, is one of eight Stanford grads to be welcomed into the school's Athletics Hall of Fame as members of the Class of 2015 this fall, the California-based university announced Tuesday .
Gentry holds the distinction of being Stanford's only NCAA Division I wrestling champion, winning the 157-pound title in 2004 to cap off a perfect 42-0 record his junior year. He was also named Pac-10 Wrestler of the Year in 2004. A A three-time team captain and three-time NWCA (National Wrestling Coaches Association) Academic All-American, Gentry can claim unique spots within the Stanford wrestling book, including longest winning streak (64 matches), and second in all-time career (138) and single- season (42) victories. After graduating from Stanford in 2005 with a degree in human biology, Gentry was a member of the coaching staff for five seasons.
Gentry's impressive mat resume includes accomplishments beyond "The Farm" (the nickname many at Stanford use for to the campus just south of San Francisco). As a freestyle wrestler, he was a two-time qualifier for the Olympics, wrestling for Canada in the 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Games. (Gentry has dual citizenship in the US and Canada.) In addition, Gentry is a three-time Canadian Senior National Champion (2006, 2007, 2011), and a two-time Pan-American Games bronze medalist (2007, 2011). Gentry now lives in the Chicago area with his wife, Emily, and young son, Lucas, and runs a youth wrestling program.
In addition to Gentry, other Stanford grads to be inducted into the school's Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2015 include Alex Karakozoff '77 (football), Ogonna Nnamani '05 (women's volleyball), Kyle Peterson '97 (baseball), Nicole Powell '04 (women's basketball), Rick Schavone (diving head coach), Tara Kirk '04 (women's swimming) and Dana Sorensen '04 (softball). The eight inductees will be honored at a private reception and dinner at Bing Concert Hall on Friday, Oct. 16. The class will also be introduced to the public at halftime of Stanford's football game against UCLA on Thursday, Oct. 15.
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