Lake Central senior Ryder Fernandez decided to see the process through to completion.
Admittedly a baseball player first, Fernandez considered not suiting up for the football team under first-year coach Pete Koulianos after starting in the Indians’ secondary in each of the past two seasons.
“I thought about not playing because I want to pursue baseball in college,” Fernandez said. “I’ve thought about pursuing football in college. But if I really want to take that next step, I would probably have to drop one. But as it got closer to game time, I couldn’t drop football. It would hurt me too much, just watching from the stands.
“It was coming down to the wire. But I had to come back for my final year. I had to make a good steppingstone for coach K and be a good leader out there.”
Koulianos, the former Highland and Hanover Central coach, welcomed Fernandez with open arms. When Koulianos was introduced at Lake Central, he recalled not initially meeting Fernandez, who was at a baseball game. But it didn’t take long for Koulianos to touch base with him.
“When I was asking around, asking people who our guys were,” Koulianos said. “Across the board, everybody said Ryder Fernandez. There was some talk that he may not play football. So we made it a point to reach out to him and get a hold of him.
“He’s a really impressive kid, juggling a full slate of summer baseball and still managing to make football practices. We know baseball is his main sport. We were very supportive of him and understanding when he was missing things.”
Fernandez started at third base for Lake Central’s baseball team, which won the Class 4A state championship in June under coach Mike Swartzentruber.
“It’s nice to have some baseball kids in football,” Koulianos. “You hear stories about baseball being king here and you really need to focus in on baseball. But he does both at a very high level. It’s nice that coach Swartz and I have a really good relationship. He’s been very willing to work with us.”
Keeping a player and person such as Fernandez, a 6-foot, 205-pound safety, was especially meaningful to Koulianos, who played on Lake Central’s 1993 state runner-up before graduating in 1994.
“He gets good grades,” Koulianos said. “He’s a good kid. He works hard. He’s here every day. He’s a yes-sir, no-sir kid. When you look at a kid and what being a Lake Central Indian really means, he’s one of those kids. We have a lot of kids like that, but he exemplifies that.”
In fact, Fernandez was chosen as the school mascot for 2024-25, a role handed down from former standout outfielder Nick Robinson.
“The student body thought so highly of him, they made him the Indian mascot for the year, which is pretty cool,” Koulianos said of Fernandez. “He’s an LC kid through and through. I’m just super glad that we have him. We love having him around. I don’t think I can say enough good things about him.”
Koulianos did jokingly question how Fernandez was going to fulfill his new responsibilities when he’s on the field on Friday nights, beginning this week with a home game against Munster. But Fernandez seems to have it covered.
“I have some helpers,” Fernandez said with a laugh. “I set it up Monday through Thursday and on the weekends. On Friday nights, I have some helpers in the stands.
“The Indian, it’s for the fan section, the student section, for every sport. I set it up for all the student sections for every sport and try to get as much recognition, big fan sections, for every sport — soccer, volleyball, basketball, baseball, softball, whatever. Our fans are great. Every year, it’s just a blast.
“You just try to organize everything, pick themes, make it a great time for all of the seniors and underclassmen. You just have to have that spirit to bring everybody out to the games, just that outgoing spirit. I just try to be a big part of the school. I just want to carry on that tradition.”
Fernandez, who had 68 tackles last season and 65 in 2022, is something of an organizer on the field, too, according to senior linebacker Matt Penman. They’ve been friends since they were in preschool.
“He’s a good team player,” Penman said. “When we’re out there on defense, he brings everyone together. He really brings the team together. If he wasn’t on defense, I don’t know what the defense would be without him. He just brings a certain type of energy that makes everyone play better. He’s an all-around good player.
“I’ve been friends with him forever. He’s a good guy out of school too. He’s just a good guy, good player, all around.”
Swartzentruber also had high praise for Fernandez.
“Ryder is a great representative of our high school baseball program both on and off the field,” Swartzentruber said. “He is a hard worker who teammates love to play with and coaches love to be around, truly a student-athlete who gives his best every day in the classroom and on the field.
“Looking forward to a great senior year from him as he gives us the production and leadership we need on a daily basis. Can’t say enough good things about him.”
Fernandez hit .294 with 18 RBIs in the spring as he succeeded Josh Adamczewski, who plays in the Milwaukee Brewers’ minor league system, at the hot corner.
This season, Fernandez hopes to lead the charge for the football team to climb over .500, a mark that Lake Central has not reached since going 9-2 in 2014. Last season, the Indians (5-6) defeated Portage for their first sectional win since 2014 and then lost to Crown Point.
“I hope we can build off of what we had last year,” Fernandez said. “We had a good steppingstone last year, and if we can take another step on top of that, it would be great for the future. The goal from freshman year was to build this program and get over the hump. As a collective, we want to go over .500, try to make a deep playoff run and just have fun with the guys and make it as memorable as possible. Who knows what’s in store, but it’s probably my last season.”
Fernandez is ready for it.
“The adrenaline’s pumping,” he said. “The new scheme on defense, I love it. It just fits me. I love how we all fit together and connect on defense. It just feels good to be back on the field with the guys. I’ve been playing with them since fifth grade, and I just love playing with them.”
