June 1, 2007

Evergreen Sports

Evergreen Little League Braves headed to Tournament of Champions after 17-1 season finish

Evergreen Little League’s Braves of the Junior Division recently finished the regular season with an impressive 17-1 record in District 59.

The Braves were first in the division in runs scored and least runs allowed through May 25 against 17 other teams in the district.

The team is made up of eight 13-year-olds and five 14-yea- olds who have varying baseball backgrounds.

Alex Rayfield led the team in most offensive categories, followed closely by veterans Jake Cuevas, Kevin O'Hara and Jack Meltzer. These four were the foundation of the team.

Gabriel Larot and Sheldon Daquioag joined the team after playing high school ball at Evergreen Valley and Silver Creek, respectively.  

13-year-old Jesse Saldana was the "steal of the draft," said Manager CC Ching, while left-hander Michael Tamez has great bloodlines as his dad, Jesse, led Mt. Pleasant High to two CCS championships in the 1990s. 

Joey Centeno proved to be the spark plug of the team and had several clutch hits throughout the season, while Zach Ewing came to play each game, catching everything in the outfield.  

Christian Mendoza made the jump from Minors to Juniors and improved his game offensively and defensively as the season progressed. 

First-year player Jeffrey Hua led the team in on-base percentage.

Elias Dudley overcame getting hit in the face two years ago but bounced back in full force, driving the ball for doubles and triples late this season.

The team will now move on to play in the Tournament of Champions, which begins June 9 at 2 p.m. at Mt. Pleasant High School. The top two teams in each of the four divisions make up the tournament with a first round single-elimination, followed by double-elimination rounds.

BVAL All-League spring sports honorees

Evergreen baseball – Santa Teresa Division
First Team – Kyle Aganad
Second Team - Andrew Dennis
Second Team – Alex Kasinski
Second Team – Andrew Castaneda

Mt. Pleasant baseball – Santa Teresa Division
First Team - Gabe Robles
Second Team - Alexander Newton

Silver Creek baseball – West Valley Division
Freshman of the Year – Sheldon Daquioag
First Team – Andrew Demarest
First Team – Taylor Crawford
Second Team – Rodino Bautista
Second Team – Ricardo Rodriguez

Evergreen softball – Mt. Hamilton Division
Co-Sophomore of the Year – Janel Salanoa
First Team – Jennifer Ames
First Team – Janel Salanoa
Second Team – Holly Dauenhauer
Second Team – Priscilla Olmos

Mt. Pleasant softball – Mt. Hamilton Division
First Team – Christina Botkins
Second Team – Sarah Dagnino
Second Team – Kayla White

Silver Creek softball – West Valley Division
MVP – Krystal Koellnberger
Senior of the Year – Crystal Fernandez
Co-Freshman of the Year – Victoria Newton
Coach of the Year – Trish Sunseri
First Team – Victoria Newton
First Team – Allison Pronge
Second Team – Victoria Pham

SPORTS BRIEFS

E.A.S.Y. Hoops Summer Basketball Camp at Chaboya
This basketball fundamentals camp is designed for boys and girls entering 4th – 9th grades. The campers will be instructed by experience High School and Middle School basketball coaches on the fundamentals of basketball, which will include: Shooting, Defense, Ball Handling, Screening, Passing, Team Play and more.

Camp dates are from June 25 – June 28 and space is limited to the first 40 participants who complete sign-up requirements. Hours are 8 – 11 a.m. for 4 – 6 grades and 12 – 2 p.m. for 7 – 9 grades.

Camps are held at the Chaboya Middle School Gym, 3276 Cortona Drive in San Jose. Cost is $120 for 4 – 6 grade and $100 fro 7 – 9 and includes all instruction, a camp t-shirt and basketball. To sign up, contact Coach John Franza at (408) 605-1513, or Allen Ventura at (408) 410-3570 or (408) 270-6939.

Evergreen Valley College soccer to hold summer camps in June and August
Evergreen Valley College will be holding summer soccer camps for boys and girls ages five and six, as well as ages 7-14 in June and August.

The Baby Hawks summer soccer camps, for ages five and six, will take place on the following dates:

- Session I – June 18-21, 5:30-7 p.m. (girls only)
- Session II – Aug. 6-9, 9-10:30 a.m. (boys and girls)
- Session III – Aug. 6-9, 10:30 a.m.-noon (boys and girls)

In addition, the Advanced Hawks summer soccer camps, for ages 7-14, will take place on the following dates:

- Session I – June 18-21, 5:30-8:30 p.m. (girls only)
- Session II - Aug. 6-9, 9 a.m.-noon (boys and girls)

For more information about the camps, call Evergreen Valley Women’s Soccer head coach Felicia Perez at (408) 274-7900 ext. 6910 or email Felicia.Perez@evc.edu.

FitCamp Sign – Ups Going On Now
TotalFit Solutions is registering participants for their Summer FitCamp programs at Evergreen College, Los Gatos and Mt. Pleasant High School.  You can sign up for a 6 week session, or chose 2 or 3 day a week programming.  You can get started today!

FitCamp is a fun filled exercise program that is open to all ages and abilities.  FitCamp meets everyday and is designed to be a total fitness solution for kids and parents alike. Every day has a different workout which not only keeps our participants excited and challenged, it keeps your body moving in a way that guarantees results.

Whether you are looking to better your sports conditioning, lose weight or just get in shape; FitCamp is a great alternative to commercial fitness centers and gyms.

At FitCamp you can always try a class for FREE!  For more information, contact TotalFit  Solutions at (408) 227 – 2216 or on the web at www.totalfitsolutions.com.

TotalFit Solutions offers wellness coaching, personal training, corporate wellness packages and adventure travel for individuals and families. Contact us today!

Skyhawks Sports Program signups
The summer months are an exciting time for children of all ages, especially those students who are enrolled in a Skyhawks Sports Program through San Jose, Recreation & Neighborhoods Department.

Skyhawks is based in the Pacific Northwest (Spokane, WA) and is nationally recognized for their outstanding recreational sports programs. Skyhawks has been around for more than 20 years. Skyhawks has experienced extremely successful growth due to its underlying philosophy for teaching youth sports.

In order to provide top quality instruction, each Skyhawks program is based upon three things: Safety, Fun, and Skill Development. In addition, Skyhawks programs are non-competitive, and promote sports in a positive and enthusiastic manner. Each participant at a Skyhawks program receives a t-shirt as well as a sport specific ball.

This summer, San Jose will be offering half-day (9 a.m. to noon) and/or full day (9 a.m. to 3 p.m.) sports programs to accommodate kids 4 to 14 years old, of all abilities. Program sports include basketball, baseball, soccer, and flag football along with many others.

To find out more information about specific times and locations of programs in your area, please call the Evergreen Community Center at (408) 270-2220, or contact Skyhawks at (800) 804-3509.

Registration forms can be picked up at Evergreen Community Center (4860 San Felipe Road, San Jose, CA 95135) or you can register online at: www.skyhawks.com.

Bay Area Starters Softball Program
Competitive "A" Ball Program has a few openings for 15U/16U 2007 Summer Roster.  Season begins May 15th upon the completion of High School Ball.    Bay Area Starters' goal is to provided Talented, Committed, Hard Working Student/Athletes further opportunities to better their Softball Skills through training and aggressive work-outs, while introducing Age-Appropriate High School Athletes to the College Environment and Scouting Events.   For more information, visit our website www.BayAreaStarters.com or e-mail BayAreaStarters@aol.com.

Sports Briefs: Sports Briefs listings are subject to the following fee structure: $25 per month, per publication for the Evergreen and Almaden Times; $10 per month, per publication for the monthly newspapers. Indicate publication placement at the time the listing/payment is submitted. Sports Briefs accepts checks – payable to Times Media, Inc – VISA or MC. To charge your payments call Sonia Pineda at 494-7000 x205. Be sure to reference your team/organization with your payment. Listings appear once payments are received. TMI sponsored events and full-proceed charity fundraisers exempted. Email, fax or mail listing text to: candy@timesmediainc.com 1310 Tully Road, Suite 107, San Jose, CA 95122. 408-494-7078 (fax) Limit 200 words. Questions? Call 494-7000 x225.

Silver Creek gymnast takes gold at Junior Olympic Western Nationals

Cami Casimere, a 15-year-old sophomore at Silver Creek High School, recently took home a gold medal after competing in Spokane, Wash. at the Junior Olympic Western Nationals.

The Western Nationals are attended by approximately half the nation's top ranked gymnasts. Casimere placed eighth on vault, fifth on bars, seventh on beam, second on floor and took first place in the All Around portion of competition. Prior to the meet, Casimere competed at the Regional Championships and placed fifth All Around with a fall on beam. She also qualified for the Junior Olympic Western Championship, representing Region 1 (consisting of Arizona, Nevada, California and Utah), which takes the top six gymnasts at Regional to represent Region 1.

Last year, as a Level 8 gymnast, Casimere won the State Championship competition in beam, bars, floor, as well as All Around, in which she scoring the highest of the entire meet). Casimere went on to Regionals, where she was the floor champion and placed fourth in the All Around.

Casimere is now a Level 9 gymnast at Airborne Gymnastics in Santa Clara and is coached by Justin Howell, Milo Johnson and Mel Ruggerio.  Casimere has been competing in gymnastics since the age of 7 and has an overall goal in gymnastics to earn an athletic scholarship for college.

Evergreen High honors Cougar athletes, coaches

The evening of May 22 was a night reserved for honoring Evergreen Valley High School’s student-athletes at the annual Cougar Athletic Awards event, sponsored by the school’s athletic booster club.

Evergreen’s team MVPs. Back row left to right: Quinton Scott, Bipin Atwal, Alex Kasinski, Nathan Goodrich, Dallas Gaspar, Jennifer Ames, Holly Dauenhauer, Francesca Hernandez, Daniel Chu, and Klayton Tang. Front row left to right: Teresa Rancadore, Meiying Lam, Tiffany Racynski, Jessica Gonzales, Candice Marquez, Lilea Eshoo, and Krista Frausto. Photos by Diego Abeloos

The event, held at the Evergreen Valley gymnasium, not only honored the student-athletes’ efforts on the field or court of play, but also in the classroom, as seniors Alexa Marquez and Damien Capizzi were each awarded a $500 scholarship from Pepsi for being named the school’s scholar athletes of the year. In addition, the following student-athletes were named Evergreen’s Athletes of the year:

- Seniors Krista Frausto and Nathan Goodrich

- Juniors Candice Marquez and Cameron Duran

- Sophomores Carolyn Pham and Janel Salanoa (female Co-Athletes of the Year), as well as sophomores Trevor Dudley and Ryan Thomas (male Co-Athletes of the Year)

- Freshmen Riyana Straetker and Emilio Esquivel

In addition, the event also honored the MVPs of the numerous school teams Evergreen Valley has in its athletics program.

One particular highlight of the event was the awarding of the Hunt Memorial Scholarship, in honor of former EVHS student-athletes and siblings Tristine and Torrienne Hunt, who both passed away in a car accident in New Mexico in July of 2005. The siblings’ parents, Modestine Hudson and Andre Hunt were on hand to award the scholarship to Evergreen track and field athlete Whitnee Garrett.

(From left) Modestine Hudson (left) and Andre Hunt (right) are pictured here with 2007 Hunt Memorial Scholarship recipient Whitnee Garrett. The scholarship is named in honor of the couple’s two children, former EVHS students Tristine and Torrienne Hunt, who both died as the result of a car accident in New Mexico in July of 2005.

The school’s athletic directors, Lisa Baker and Herb Lee, also took the time to honor the contributions of Evergreen Athletic Booster Club parents, including president Frank Frausto and his wife, membership chair Adele Frausto, among others.

Last, but certainly not least, the event also took the time to honor the efforts of some Cougar coaches – Evergreen’s Baker, Michelle Sunseri and Frank Slaton – who are hanging up their coaching whistles and clipboards (see photo IMG_4621.JPG). Sunseri will take a break from her duties as the school’s physical education chair and as head coach of the EVHS varsity girls’ soccer team, but will remain at the school in a teaching capacity. Baker is retiring from her duties as varsity softball head coach to spend more time with her young children. Slaton, meanwhile, is retiring after a distinguished coaching and teaching career that spanned more than 30 years, including more than 20 years at nearby Silver Creek.

—By Diego Abeloos