UPPER LAKE — It was a good day be an Upper Lake Cougar, an even better night to be Junior Fernandez or Adriana Lopez.
The two 17-year-old wrestling standouts from Upper Lake High School signed their college letters of intent on Thursday during a brief ceremony at the school’s gym where family members, teammates and friends looked on as former Upper Lake High School athletic director Mike Smith served as the emcee.
Fernandez has accepted a combined athletic/academic scholarship offer from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo while Lopez is headed to Campbellsville University in Campbellsville, Kentucky, on a combined athletic/academic scholarship. After Smith introduced two of the all-time greats in Upper Lake sports history and recited a long list of their many achievements as athletes and students, the two officially signed their letter of intent, which is similar to signing a contract in pro sports.
Two of the most decorated wrestlers in Lake County history still have their senior years ahead of them at Upper Lake and both are looking to improve on what they did last season, which was considerable. Fernandez is the North Coast Section runner-up at 126 pounds and a two-time state qualifier who missed winning a state medal by the margin of one win earlier this year. Lopez, a two-time state medalist, including third at 121 pounds in 2018, is the North Coast Section defending champion.
Both are shooting for no less than a state title this season, according to Fernandez.
“You bet, we’re both going for it,” said Fernandez, who enters the 2018-19 season as the state’s seventh-ranked 131-pounder.
Junior Fernandez
“I’ve put in a lot of hard work, so it’s good to be recognized,” Fernandez said when asked about signing with the Mustangs, who are a NCAA Division I wrestling program. “It’s an opportunity to compete at the toughest level of wrestling.”
Fernandez said the combined scholarship is covering nearly two-thirds of the $23,000 yearly tuition at Cal Poly where he plans to major in ag business. He’ll be fighting with teammates for mat time at 133 or 141 pounds. He said he’s looking forward to the challenge of securing a starting job.
“Oh yeah, it’s gonna be a dogfight,” he said.
Fernandez said he can’t wait to start his senior year at Upper Lake, which officially opens with the Green and Gold Tournament Dec.7-8 in Novato.
“I’ve got a lot left to prove,” Fernandez said.
Looking ahead to the Lou Bronzan Invitational next month in Brentwood, Fernandez will be gunning for a fourth straight weight division championship, a feat accomplished by only one other wrestler in the tournament’s history.
Adriana Lopez
Lopez will be attending a college that is coming off its first national title as the Tigers won the NAIA championship in women’s wrestling in 2017-18. She was introduced to Campbellsville through a Team USA coach and visited the campus last summer.
“They invited me to train with them and I just really loved it,” Lopez said of Campbellsville campus, the college and the surrounding community.
“It felt like home, everybody was super friendly and super nice,” she said.
Lopez, who wants to become a registered nurse one day, said she’ll likely be competing at 127 pounds at the collegiate level.
“If I put in hard work I should be able to make the varsity,” she said.
Before that, Lopez is gunning for a third straight state medal as she wraps up her Upper Lake career, something no other county wrestler — girl or boy — has ever done. After coming so close to a state title her junior season — she reached the semifinals before losing her one and only state match — Lopez is zeroed in on winning the state championship, a goal she feels is in reach.
“That’s what I want,” she said.
Campbellsville, a private college, is paying nearly all of her $37,000 annual tuition.
