Senior Kaiden Fernandez competed at Regionals for wrestling and placed 4th, advancing him to the State meet, where he will compete today at the Berry Center in Cypress, Texas.
“I was super excited when I found out I placed 4th [at Regionals],” Kaiden said.
Kaiden’s mom, substitute coordinator and PEIMS clerk Dawnyelle Fernandez said she is overwhelmed and proud beyond words.
“Last season at Regionals, Kaiden suffered an ACL and meniscus tear, yet he still managed to place 6th,” she said.
At the start of this year’s wrestling season Kaiden was only nine months post-surgery.
“He missed much of the off-season — practices, tournaments and camps — but stayed committed by focusing on strength training, flexibility and diet,” Fernandez said. “Watching him put in that kind of disciplined work behind the scenes has made this accomplishment even more meaningful. His resilience, comeback, discipline and heart have been admirable.”
Kaiden did not join wrestling until his freshman year.
“At Regionals this year, he had to win a challenge match to secure his spot at State,” Fernandez said. “I was a nervous wreck watching, but when he won, it was pure excitement and relief. Knowing his season, and his high school career, was not ending there was overwhelming. A lot of happy tears!”
Kaiden’s biggest goal this year was making it to State.
“I am incredibly grateful for his high school and club coaches who have helped get him there,” Fernandez said.
“I love it for him [making it to state],” wrestling coach Donovan Kleckner said. “He is one of the hardest workers to ever come through the program. I 100% believe he has earned and deserves to be in the state tournament. I am very proud of him.”
Kleckner said he made sure they practiced some situations throughout the week that actually came up but in the Regional tournament to physically prepare Kaiden for Regionals.
“Kaiden has an amazing mindset in general,” Kleckner said. “He’s always had huge confidence in himself. Personally, I just reminded him of his goal and told him that I believe in him. When times were looking tough, we both sat down and talked about what to expect and what we needed to do in order to make his goal come true.”
To prepare for State, Kaiden and Kleckner also continued to sharpen Kaiden’s dominant skills.
“I was just so proud of him and his journey,” Kleckner said. “He’s been so close for the last two years and just couldn’t break through to the tournament. I knew his goal was to make State this season, so seeing him complete his goal was a very special moment to me as well.”
Kaiden said he trained and practiced usually 6-7 days a week to prepare himself for competing at Regionals.
“My favorite part about being in wrestling has been being able to meet all the amazing people that have come along with this sport,” he said.
