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Hometown Sports
MAY 22, 2020
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Liberty softball team honors seniors
Photo courtesy of Stacie Del Chiaro
Liberty softball player Shelby Hunt was just one of the team’s seniors recently honored for their four-year contributions to the program.
The Liberty High School’s varsity softball team’s seniors may have missed out on most of their final season due to the COVID-19 shelter-inplace restrictions, but nothing could stop their teammates and coaches from finding a way to honor their four-year contributions. The Lions recently caravanned to each of the team’s six seniors’ homes to individually acknowledge their achievements. The squad’s senior stars, Mackenzie Boone, Aiko Sherman, Shelby Hunt, Kristela Villanueva, Jessica Topor and Sawyer Stoddard were each recognized with balloons, flowers, gifts and cards. “These six have been with me since their freshman year, and they have grown so much, and I am proud of each and every one of them,” said
Liberty head coach Stacie Del Chiaro. “These six have accomplished a lot in the four years at Liberty, not only on the field, but off the field as well. They are super smart and were able to balance academics and athletics.” The senior six and the rest of the squad began playing without spectators in early March, and then, a few games into the season, play was suspended indefinitely — just days later. California’s high school sports governing body officially canceled the spring sports season in early April. But the seniors’ accumulated success remains. • Boone, who played both in the infield and outfield, hit .216 with 24 hits, 11 runs and seven RBI in 40 games for the Lions in her career. • Sherman, also an infielder and outfielder, hit .250 with 19 hits, 15 runs
and six RBI in 35 games. • Hunt, an outfielder, hit a career .350 with 28 hits, 19 runs and seven RBI. • Villanueva, a pitcher, had a stellar 2.82 ERA, with 191 strikeouts in 236 career innings. • Topor, also a versatile player, hit .280 in her career, with 21 hits, 12 runs and seven RBI. • Stoddard, an infielder and outfielder, hit .263 in three seasons, with 25 hits, 11 runs and seven RBI. “They have a bright future ahead of them, and even though this is a little road block and hiccup, this will not define them, but it will make them stronger,” Del Chiaro said. “If they can overcome this and move forward with positive attitudes and upbeat spirits, they can get through anything.”
Diving into Press archives: A look back at the best The Press continues its look at the archived athletic moments and feats that frame history and provide much-needed sports action during this pandemic-induced stoppage of play. 2019 Heritage High School sophomore pitcher Christian Machado threw six shutout innings, and the Patriots’ offense broke through in the first and fourth innings to secure Heritage’s 4-0 win over Freedom High School in the first round of the North Coast Section baseball playoffs. “I think our pitcher was working so hard they wanted to take the pressure off of him a little bit, which they ended up doing,” said Heritage head coach Kevin Brannan of his team’s hitters. 2018 The Pittsburg, Heritage and Liberty track and field teams finished first, second and third, respectively, in both the boys’ and girls’ varsity sections of the Bay Valley Athletic League meet at Pittsburg High School. The host Pirates claimed victory in 14 individual events including all four relays. Freshman Ariane Nelson, senior Tatiana Crayton, senior Triniti McCutchen and sophomore Trinity Bolden combined to win the girls’ 4x100 relay. Bolden, Crayton, junior Elizabeth Hernandez and Nelson
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Heritage High School sophomore pitcher Christian Machado helped the Patriots defeat Freedom 4-0 in the North Coast Section Baseball Championships in 2019. won the 4x400 relay. 2017 Heritage High School freshman tennis player Seiya Duran made school history at the North Coast Section (NCS) championship, when he defeated James Logan’s
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Phillip Lopar to become the first Heritage singles player to win a match in an NCS singles tournament. Duran, who won 6-4, 6-2, also went on to defeat Monte Vista’s Josh Hertz 4-6, 6-4, 6-2, before falling to Dougherty Valley’s
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Kevin Ma 6-0, 6-1. Duran finished fourth in the tournament after injuring himself in the third-place match against De La Salle’s Danny Nomura. The only other BVAL singles player to advance to the tournament was Freedom High Schools’s Kyle Matabuena. He fell to James Logan’s Kobe Tran 6-0, 6-0, in the first round. 2016 At the Wild West bass tournament at Big Break Marina, Douglas Jones and Joe Bitker walked away with the first-place, $5,800 prize, after bagging seven fish weighing a total of 32.13 pounds. “We found two spots,” Bitker said. “We worked it hard. People were coming through, blowing through it, and we just slowed down and drop-shotted. In the morning, we caught one on a rat, then we started drop-shotting. We caught five good ones, two small ones and a bunch of small(er) ones after that. We had fun.” 2015 The competitive dance team from Fabulous Feet Dance and Athletics Studio received all-platinum awards at its Star Systems Dance competition in San Jose, including first overall for its lyrical dance routine. Star teachers De-
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