The tie between homecoming king and queen was announced at the men’s basketball game on Feb. 6. The four winners decided to break the tie by having their fellow nominees vote for who they thought best deserved the title. This Friday the final winners, Kaitlyn Ireland and Edgar Tejeda, will be announced at the men’s basketball game.
“It’s definitely surreal,” Kaitlin Ireland (senior, Communication Studies) said. “Like athletics never win so that’s pretty exciting. Almost everybody but me is excited about the win because I did all the work and I haven’t had that winning moment yet. Everything that went into it was really hard but I got a good amount of help from other athletes.”
Ireland had clearly just came back from tennis practice from the sight of her ponytail and workout clothes. Her involvement in tennis led her to be nominated for homecoming queen.
“I’ve been playing tennis ever since I was a kid, but I also played soccer,” Ireland said. “I actually played soccer here at Stanislaus before I played tennis. I’ve always liked being active and staying busy and tennis definitely does that.”
Ireland is from Turlock and attended Turlock High School. She is majoring in Communication Studies with a minor in Sociology. In her spare time she enjoys playing with her toy poodle, Quinn. The name was inspired by one of the characters on her favorite show, One Tree Hill.
Unlike Ireland, Edgar Tejeda is far from his hometown. Tejeda was born and raised in Michoacán, Mexico. His family moved to Hughson during his senior year in high school where he currently resides.
“I didn’t want to leave Mexico, especially during my senior year,” Tejeda (senior, Business Administration) said. “The drinking age in Mexico is eighteen so I was so excited about that, but then I came here and I had to wait three more years. I didn’t even get to go to prom. But winning homecoming king during my senior year in college was nice.”
He came to the United States only knowing the basics of English. Tejeda explained his first semester was tough, but he was able to cope with the help from his classmates, who now come to him when they need guidance.
In Tejeda’s free time he likes to play his guitar, sing, workout and play soccer. He actively participates in intramural volleyball. Someday he would like to own his own gym or bar.