Archbishop Spalding wrestler breaks barriers as she eyes the Olympics  

Although Taina Fernandez looks forward to her senior year at Archbishop Spalding High School in Severn, she also has major plans following graduation. 

An elite athlete and the first girl to claim a wrestling title against boys in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association – arguably the most challenging prep league in the state – Fernandez has her sights set on a berth in the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics. 

Considering she is the reigning under-17 and under-20 female national champion, she has every right to believe reaching the Olympics is a realistic objective. 

Fernandez became the first non-Japanese wrestler to win three U17 World freestyle titles for champion Team USA in Baku, Azerbaijan, this summer. In the past, she has represented the United States at a world championship in Greece and competed in Amman, Jordan. Pan American championships have also taken her to Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador and Panama City. 

Fernandez said the other sports she tried never appealed to her as much as wrestling. 

“Something inside of me made me want to get better at it,” she said. “I just fell in love with it. And even though I got my butt kicked a lot, I was determined to get better. And the only way to do that was to put in the work.” 

Although her father, retired U.S. Army infantry officer Kareem Fernandez, wrestled at Meade High School in Anne Arundel County, Taina was unaware of his participation in the sport. 

“I didn’t even know he wrestled until I was in the fifth grade,” she said, noting that Kareem was also her coach. “That’s when I thought, I guess he really does know what he’s talking about.” 

Kareem and his wife, Trinidad, were fully behind their daughter’s choice to pursue wrestling, especially after watching her other athletic endeavors. 

“We tried multiple sports,” Kareem Fernandez said. “I took her to an indoor track meet and she was just frustrated. So I took her to a wrestling practice to see if she liked it. She was having fun – it just stuck.” 

Despite the close physical nature of intergender wrestling, Taina’s parents fully supported her participation, encouraged by her evident dedication to the sport. 

“It just wasn’t a big concern for us,” Kareem Fernandez said. “We just don’t think about it in that manner.” 

Besides, her male teammates have treated her as an equal rather than an outsider. 

“It’s been such a blessing,” Taina said. “I was nervous being the only girl at first. But they took me in as a teammate, not just as a girl (on the team). My training partners are guys.” 

Part of her daily training routine since the second grade has taken place at Spalding, which she ultimately chose over Bishop McNamara High School in Prince George’s County. 

Kareem noted that familiarity with the wrestling program made Spalding the first option for their daughter’s high school education.  

“She’s a really good student, and has been challenged academically at Spalding,” he said. “She has always been disciplined and mission-driven.” 

There are other reasons why a Catholic education is important to Taina and her parents, Kareem said. 

“A lot about her growth and motivation comes from her faith,” he said. “She has the desire to maximize the gifts and opportunities that God gave her.” 

Taina said her faith is woven into her daily routine, even down to the socks she wears when she competes. 

“My socks – I love wearing my little cross socks,” she said. “They have a cross on the side and a Bible verse on the front, and it’s just a nice reminder of who I’m doing it for.” 

Weekly Sunday evening Bible study sessions help make busy weeks more peaceful. 

“I always say ‘I trust in the Lord,’ ” she said. “It’s almost like a mantra. I always keep in mind that he has the best interests for me.” 

Whether it was divine intervention or simply elite wrestling skill, Taina needed every bit of whatever help she could muster in the 138-pound MIAA championship final against Mount St. Joseph High School’s Ben Scheiner in February. 

Trailing 4-2 late in the final period, Taina was running out of time to make history and complete an unbeaten season against Cavaliers rivals. Her lone setback in the 2025-26 campaign was a 4-1 decision to teammate and primary training partner Quentin Bailey at the prestigious Ray Oliver Tournament in December. 

After pinning her first two opponents in the MIAA tournament, her only path to victory against Scheiner was a three-point takedown. 

With 27 seconds remaining, she used a combination of speed, quickness and agility to secure a dramatic 5-4 victory, helping the Cavaliers capture the team championship, 274.5-266, over the Gaels. 

After jumping into the arms of Spalding coach Mike Laidley, Taina reflected on the support she received from him and his staff. The historic victory also earned her the Charles R. Gamper Award as the tournament’s outstanding wrestler. 

“At that exact moment I knew I had to take a shot,” she said, referring to a wrestling term that means initiating a takedown. “After all the work I put in, I wasn’t going to let my teammates down. In my mind, I was going to walk off the mat with no regrets. I just asked the Lord to give me the strength to hold him down. I gave everything I had to give.” 

“I realized that my coaches were right the 
whole time,” she said. “I knew I could do it – and then I did it. I feel like it was God’s plan.” 

The long and successful journey from being a self-described “tubby 4-year-old” novice to an acclaimed MIAA champion would not have been possible without male competitors willing to step on the mat with her, Kareem said. 

“I have a lot of respect for the guys who wrestle against her,” he said. “It’s very challenging for them and I respect the way they have handled the wins and losses. It’s never been a big deal because she beat a guy and we’re fortunate that they give her the opportunity to compete.” 

Taina said she’s grateful to be seen as an athlete rather than what she called “just as a girl wrestler.” 

“Because I put my all into it and give everything I have, I’ve developed a level of respect for just who I am as a wrestler,” she said.  

Longtime observers of the sport, including Lem Satterfield and Bill Buckheit, said Taina compares favorably to some of the most decorated amateurs in Maryland wrestling history. 

“In my humble opinion, Taina currently ranks as one of the best pound-for-pound wrestlers ever in the state, boy or girl,” said Satterfield, a former Baltimore Sun reporter now covering the sport for for the Legacy Wrestling website. “Her high school accomplishments are unmatched, right up there with North Hagerstown High School graduate Aaron Brooks, who was a four-time state and national champion. Eventually, Brooks won four NCAA championships at Penn State and an Olympic Bronze Medal in 2024. 

“Taina has beaten female wrestlers, who were starters on their college teams, by technical falls,” added Satterfield, a member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. 

“She goes into a match with the mind-set of never failing,” said Buckheit, head writer for high school wrestling on Sports Illustrated  and an editorial contributor for the Maryland State Wrestling Association (MSWA). “Taina doesn’t just beat female opponents, she dominates them.” 

Buckheit, also the head writer for a popular Facebook page dedicated to high school wrestling (Billy B’s Wrestling World), said her toughest match over a U.S. female foe was a solid 6-2 decision in May at the 155 weight class over Kaili Manuel, the first girl to win a USA Wrestling Triple Crown at the 16U level and the reigning 170-pound  Michigan state champ. 

Tainia’s technical skills and steely determination are needed the most when confronting a male rival on the mat, he said. 

“When she faces a boy her own weight, he is almost always going to be stronger,” Buckheit said. “That’s when her willpower comes into play. She’s just not going to lose – she keeps coming at you.” 

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