Family comes first
Falcons鈥� Vielma converses with brother before selecting Stanford
Once Connellsville junior Kai Vielma stepped off the plane and collected his luggage at Pittsburgh International Airport following a cross-country trip, he told his parents he needed to visit his brother, Lonzy, at West Virginia University in Morgantown.
Lonzy, who graduated from Connellsville Area High School this past June after a solid wrestling career for the Falcons, is a freshman and on the wrestling team at WVU.
Kai, who, like his brother, competes in wrestling, was returning from a recruiting trip at Stanford University in California, and wanted to discuss the possibility of him continuing his academic and wrestling careers nearly 3,000 miles from home with his older brother.
Lonzy gave Kai his blessing, and that was all last year鈥檚 third-place finisher in the state at 139 pounds needed to hear.
鈥淚t was not something I wanted to do over the phone,鈥� said Kai Vielma in reference to speaking with his brother about the possibility of attending Stanford. 鈥淗e told me that he was proud of me and offered his congratulations. Lonzy was the first person I wanted to talk to. I wouldn鈥檛 be here if it wasn鈥檛 for him. I also want to thank my parents, family, coaches, teammates and anyone else who has been there for me since Day 1. I am truly blessed to have this many people in my corner.鈥�
Following his visit to Morgantown, Vielma contacted the coaches at Stanford to inform them he would be honored to compete for the Cardinal after he graduates high school in 2027.
Vielma鈥檚 college choice may have some individuals questioning his decision with Stanford being across the country and the importance he puts on family, but he was born in California and has plenty of family on his father鈥檚 side in the Golden State.
鈥淚 was around eight-months-old when my family moved to Pennsylvania, but I have plenty of aunts and uncles on my dad鈥檚 side in California,鈥� Vielma said. 鈥淧lus, it is much easier to get in contact with someone today than in the past. My parents will be making trips out to see me.鈥�
Vielma had his top three college choices narrowed down to Stanford, North Carolina and West Virginia prior to visiting the campuses, and although the teams in Chapel Hill and Morgantown were close knit and very strong candidates, the team鈥檚 upside and the academic standard gave Stanford the slight edge.
鈥淪tanford was very hard to pass up,鈥� Vielma said. 鈥淭heir trajectory is very high. The academics at Stanford are second-to-none, which is also very important to me.
鈥淚 also want to say that everyone at North Carolina and West Virginia were great. It was very tough telling the coaches at those schools that I wasn鈥檛 going there, but they took it well.鈥�
Vielma carries a 4.0 GPA, and he credits his parents for instilling in him the value of academic success. He trains at Quest School of Wrestling in Washington and the TC Shallenberger Wrestling Center on the campus of Connellsville Area High School.
The official start of the wrestling season isn鈥檛 for another month-and-a-half, but Vielma really doesn鈥檛 have an offseason, as he trains all-year long. Vielma is also looking forward to the Defense Soap Super 32 Challenge that is scheduled for Oct. 18 and 19 at the Greensboro Coliseum Special Events Center in Greensboro, N.C.
鈥淚鈥檓 always on my toes when it comes to training because I know all the other top guys are working,鈥� Vielma said. 鈥淚t is also great that we can train in our own wrestling room at school.鈥�
Vielma felt a sense of relief when he made his decision to attend Stanford, as he can turn his attention to his final two seasons of high school wrestling.
鈥淭here truly is no time like the present, and I鈥檓 glad I committed early,鈥� Vielma said. 鈥淭he recruiting process is fun, but it is also stressful.鈥�
Vielma has a career mark of 89-12 with two trips to the state tournament as a freshman and sophomore, but he doesn鈥檛 put emphasis on records.
鈥淚t would be great to start the season off well and win a tournament like Powerade, but my main goal is to win a state championship,鈥� Vielma said. 鈥淥bviously, I go into every match looking to win, but not too many wrestlers go undefeated and we wrestle a very demanding schedule. I want to continue to improve and get myself ready for the next level.鈥�