TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Sunnyside High School celebrated a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday morning for a new facility set to match the wrestling program's long history of success.
More than $2.7 million is being invested into a new 6,622-square-foot wrestling facility at Sunnyside High School. The project is funded by capital override funds for upgrades to athletic facilities across the school.
For generations, Sunnyside Blue Devil wrestlers built their legacy inside a small space the program has long outgrown. With growing boys and girls teams, along with a free youth program, Head Wrestling Coach Anthony Leon says the new facility is an investment decades in the making.
"Everybody talked this morning about deserving things, but this was earned. This was earned. It's been earned for 50 plus years, and we're just grateful that it's happening now, and we're looking forward to the future of the program," Leon said.
He says the new space will include four mats, a coach's office, a cardio room and a fitness room.
"Most importantly, it echoes the history of the program," Leon said.
For years, wrestlers packed into the existing space where grit and humility became part of the program's identity, along with 39 team state championships.
When Leon took the coaching job at Sunnyside 16 years ago, he saw the need for a new wrestling facility. Now, he is helping with the design.
"From the color of mat to the size of the ceiling, they just, they gave me a lot of latitude to really construct something that I think encompasses what we need here at Sunnyside," Leon said.
Principal Stephanie Ponce says the investment goes beyond the wrestling program.
"This particular room is extremely important to us, because these are generations of champions--not just state champions, but national champions, Olympians who have come through here, and they've grinded in a very small room with a lot of kids, and they've never complained," Ponce said.
Ponce says she hopes the finished facility resonates with the entire community.
"Deep down as a principal, as a parent of a past wrestler, somebody who just loves the wrestling community that we have here, I hope that everybody's proud of it," Ponce said.
Construction on the new facility is expected to be finished by Spring 2027.
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Jacqueline Aguilar is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9. Born and raised in Yuma, AZ., she is no stranger to the unforgiving Arizona heat. Now this U of A wildcat is excited to be back in Tucson and is looking forward to involving herself in the community. Share your story ideas with Jacqueline by emailing jacqueline.aguilar@kgun9.com or connecting on Facebook, Instagram or X.
