5A boys wrestling: Pomona’s Daniel Cardenas joins 4-timers club

DENVER — Senior Daniel Cardenas passed up every great wrestler that has ever put on a Pomona singlet on Saturday night.

Tom Clum, Gary Dack, Theorius Robison and Franklin Cruz — all three-time individual state champions for the Panthers — have to take a backseat to Colorado’s 30th four-time state champion.

“It means a ton. I wouldn’t want to say I’m ahead of them because those are my role models,” Cardenas said of the likes of Clum, Dack, Robison and Cruz. “But to claim this fourth title is just awesome.”

Cardenas became Pomona’s first four-time state champion for the program that captured its ninth Class 5A team state title since 2000 on the same night Cardenas made history.

“It’s been a longtime goal for me,” Cardenas said of winning his fourth individual title. “Hopefully at the end of the night I’ll be an eight-time state champ with four team titles too.”

The future Stanford University wrestler capped off his high school career with 5A individual state titles at 120, 138, 145 and 152. Cardenas defeated Douglas County senior Justin Kelchen with a pin 3:33 into the match to finish off a perfect undefeated record this season.

Cardenas had a handful of takedowns before getting the pin midway through the second period.

“He is in a class of his own,” said Pomona coach Sam Federico, who added Cardenas is the best wrestler he has ever coached. “He is one that you don’t get to coach very often. You get a guy like that and it’s pretty special.”

Cardenas also won titles at national invites — Iron Man, Reno and Doc B — this winter to close out his high school career.

The path to the title match Saturday was a quick one for Cardenas. He spent a total of 3 minutes, 39 seconds with three pins in his first three matches.

“I’m not going to lie. It kind of got hard,” Cardenas said about not having many close matches this season. “You see stuff happen like Therious and Tom Clum. I wasn’t going to let that happen. I just kept working hard throughout the season.”

Robison got beat in the state semis in 2019 to prevent him from winning a fourth individual title. Clum lost in his final state championship bout in the historic match back in 2001.

Woodland Park senior Brady Hankin was the only other wrestler going for a fourth state title on Saturday night. Hankin came up short losing his 3A match at 138 pounds.

“What can you say about him that hasn’t already been said,” Federico said of Cardenas. “He is something else. First four-timer at Pomona. Deserving so. He works harder than anybody. His grades are good. He does everything right in the wrestling room, outside the wrestling room and with his teammates.”