Wrestler earns 100th win despite injury that could have ended his career

The New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva wrestler who feared he might never wrestle again just got his 100th win. 
On Jan. 16, senior Cordell Peterson pinned his opponent within the first period during a team tournament in Lake Mills, Iowa. 
“It feels pretty great, because not many people can say they ever get their hundredth win,” Peterson stated. 
Considering Peterson was out for some time last season with a serious back injury, pretty great is an understatement. During wrestling season last year, Peterson’s chiropractor found a “boney bump” on his back during a checkup and suggested that he see a doctor. After getting checked out at the Owatonna Hospital and having an X Ray taken, he received his results over a frantic phone call. 
“They were freaking out,” Peterson recalled. “They said that if I kept wrestling I could be paralyzed.” 
The cause for panic was a hemi vertebrae. Peterson was missing 40 percent of the frontal lobe on his L2 vertebrae, a condition he was evidently born with. Due to the serious threat of injury, NRHEG Varsity Coach Shawn Larson was forced to keep Peterson off the wrestling mat. 
“It was kind of a scary thing,” Larson commented. “The original X Ray showed that it was very dangerous for Cordell.” 
Peterson said he was worried at first because we didn’t know anything about it. Having being told that he may never wrestle again, he was crushed. 
“It was really depressing,” he said. “If I could never wrestle again, I don’t know what I’d do.” 
Hoping to receive a better diagnosis, Peterson headed to Children’s Hospital for a second opinion. At the hospital Peterson had an MRI, which luckily brought better news. His vertebrae was found to be stable, allowing him to resume wrestling. The risk of injury is still evident and he experiences back pain from time to time, but he refuses to be held back by his injury. As soon as he was cleared, Peterson went back to the mat to finish out the season. 
He is back in full action this year, with a record of 18-4 in his 126-pound weight class. “He’s an exciting wrestler, so people want to come and watch him,” Larson stated. 
Although his record is great and he is a fan favorite, Peterson’s biggest accomplishment this season is reaching his 100-win mark. That career-milestone is one that Larson reported only about 1 in every 30 wrestlers at NRHEG ever achieve. “As a coach, it’s not about the stats, although they are impressive. I like to see that they’re able to progress, and with 100-wins Cordell obviously can do that,” Larson said. 
Larson has been Peterson’s head coach for three years, but can remember coaching Peterson when he was wrestling in third grade. “All the way along, he’s been a real active and physical wrestler,” Larson stated. “Over the last few years, he’s really been more of a smart wrestler than when he was young.” 
Brain and strategy may play a big role in Peterson’s success, but his own work ethic has helped shape him into the athlete he is today. “Wrestling has taught me a lot about hard work and dedication,” Peterson said. 
It takes a lot of commitment to wake up at 5 a.m. to go for a run, go to school and head to practice again in the afternoon, all while eating healthy or barely at all to stay within a certain weight class, as many Panther wrestlers do daily. 
Peterson takes those challenges in stride, though. “He’s always pushing his teammates to do better, and himself. He’s always positive about what he can do and what they can do,” Larson commented. 
Positivity comes easily, since his passion for the sport runs deep. “I would be lost without wrestling,” Peterson said. 
His favorite part about wrestling is the individual aspect of it, the opportunity to win even if the entire team does not. Peterson’s own goal for the remainder of his season is to make it to the state tournament, for what would be his fourth consecutive year. 
“I want to place there this time,” he said. “Not many athletes can say that they’ve done that.” 
Throughout his 12-year wrestling career, Peterson’s former coach Paul Cyr has been his biggest mentor. “He’s been there since the start,” Peterson stated. “He’s always driven everybody to do their best.” 
The lessons of discipline and hard work that Peterson learned from Cyr will benefit Peterson as he continues his education and wrestling career. 
After graduation, Peterson plans to attend Riverland Community College for welding and wrestle through a club in Lakeville, where he will compete in Freestyle and Greco. He has competed in Freestyle and Greco for two years, and looks forward to continue advancing his wrestling career through the program. 
In the past, Peterson has traveled to Oklahoma, Kansas, North Dakota and Iowa to compete, where he met a variety of competitors. “I’m looking forward to meeting new people again,” he stated. 
No matter where his future in wrestling takes him, Peterson will continue to defy the implications of his back injury with flying colors. “I don’t let it bother me,” he said. “If you worry about, that’s when things go wrong.”