ZHENG & PIETRANGELO ARE PLAYOFF BOUND 

CANADIAN MIXED DOUBLES PARTNERS FINISH ROUND ROBIN TIED FOR FIRST AT UNIVERSITY GAMES 

Team Canada took another step closer to the podium Monday, as Jessica Zheng and Victor Pietrangelo won their final two round robin games at the World University Games in Torino, Italy. 

Two victories over Italy and Germany leave Canada with a 6-1 record, and a share of first place in the mixed doubles event. By virtue of the head-to-head result with Great Britain, Canada will enter the playoffs as the No. 2 seed. 

“We’re super happy to have pulled out two wins today,” said Zheng. “We played two very strong teams.” 

The first game of the day didn’t start ideally, as Italy opened with a score of three in the first end. Canada rallied however, scoring two in the second and third ends. A critical hit and roll in the fourth end set Canada up for a steal and gave them control of the game. 

“We had a rough start against Italy,” said Zheng. “We managed to get our deuce back, and then kept applying pressure for the rest of the game. It was a bit messy in the fourth but making that hit and roll was huge for us.” 

“That shot was a game saver,” said coach Helen Radford. “I’m super proud of how both Jessica and Victor are supporting each other, staying patient and positive.” 

In the second game, it was all Canada out of the gate. After two ends, the Canadians were up 5-0, on their way to a 9-4 win.  

“Our game against Germany was great,” said Zheng. “We had great rock placement and were able to capitalize on some of their misses. We were putting rocks in the right places.” 

Germany finished the round robin with a 5-2 record, good enough for third place, which means that Canada will face them again on Tuesday in the semifinal. Italy will face Great Britain in the other semi. 

After the semifinals and finals Tuesday, the four-player event will get underway. The Canadian men are represented by the University of Regina – skipped by Josh Bryden – and the women, from the University of Alberta, are skipped by Serena Gray Withers.  

Playoff games will be streamed on FISU.tv. For results and schedules, visit: https://wugtorino2025.microplustimingservices.com/#/general-reports