NorCal Issue 168 August 2019

NORCAL EDITION AUGUST 2019 VOL. 10 ISSUE 168

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Folsom’s Daniyel Ngata

LET THE COUNTDOWN BEGIN

W

ell, it’s happened. The SportStars’ editorial ensemble has convened and mapped out our 10th annual Football Preview special edition.

Once again we’re aiming to deliver the most comprehensive preview of Northern California football available. We’ll have a pair of regional 32-page editions — Bay Area and Sac-Joaquin — that will go online on Aug. 16 and be available in print on Aug. 18. We’ll also be working on providing an array of online-exclusive elements at SportStarsMag.com, including expanded rankings, team profiles and video. Our online content will start on Aug. 12, with perhaps a few teasers even earlier than that.

One element to the preview that’s already available online is our cover vote. Last year, the first time we held such a vote, more than 32,000 votes were cast. Hopefully we can top that number this year.

Among the Bay Area candidates are Liberty-Brentwood quarterback Jay Butterfield, Las Lomas-Walnut Creek running back Isaiah Newell and Wilcox-Santa Clara two-way standout Paul M. Rosa. Sac-Joaquin region candidates include Rio Linda running back Cameron Skattebo, Folsom wide receiver Elijah Badger and Placer-Auburn running back Hans Grassman. Head to the website to see all the options and vote now!

And while you wait for Aug. 12 to roll around, I thought I’d throw out some quick conversation topics that came out of our staff planning meeting. Just to whet the appetite. ›› What will Folsom look like after the coaching change?

Quick answer: Still really good. ›› What’s the best Week Zero game on the schedule?

In the Bay Area, it’s almost certainly De La Salle-Concord hosting St. Thomas Aquinas-Ft. Lauderdale (Florida).

De La Salle lost to Aquinas 30-6 in the teams’ first meeting back in 2011. As for a Sac-Joaquin area game, Pittsburg at St. Mary’s-Stockton should command some attention. ›› Who’s one player that should be appointment viewing this season?

For the Bay Area, my vote is Menlo-Atherton-Atherton junior super-athlete Troy Franklin. In the Sac-Joaquin region, it’s probably Folsom multi-purpose back, Daniyel Ngata. ›› How soon can Aug. 23 get here?

Not soon enough!

Hang tight pigskin fans. We’ll be serving the gridiron goodies before you know it. ✪

YOUR TICKET TO CALIFORNIA SPORTS ADMIT ONE; RAIN OR SHINE This Vol. #10, August 2019 Whole No. 168 is published by Caliente!

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Behind the Clipboard by Clay Kallam

Knowing Yourself

IS HALF THE BATTLE I was really focused on getting ready for next season, but then I hurt my back just a few weeks into the summer. I can’t do much until school starts, but I don’t want to just waste all of August. What can I do to improve while I’m waiting for my back to heal?

J.P., Willits First, sorry to hear about your back injury — those are nasty, and as you say, you can’t really do much of anything until it heals. So the first thing you can do to improve is to get your back better, and then strengthen it so you don’t have to deal with this again.

But you can still get some important work done while you wait, and though it might be just as painful as running the bleachers for the fourth time, it can be just as valuable, now and in the future. It all starts with a look in the mirror.

No, I’m not talking about how good your hair looks right now — but rather who is that person looking back at you?

One of the really important things any athlete, or any human being, needs to do is realize who you are and what you can reasonably expect from yourself. If you think you’re way better than you actually are, you’ve doomed yourself to disappointment before you begin; if you underestimate yourself (and you’d be surprised how many people do), you’ll never reach your potential.

So if the person in the mirror is a 5-9, 140-pound football player, a career at defensive tackle probably isn’t in the cards. Similarly, a 6-3, 230-pounder who’s far from the fastest guy on the team won’t get a long look at wide receiver.

Now, those things are blindingly obvious, but the more focused the questions, the more difficult the answers become. Are you really going to be an above-average high school 3-point shooter? Can you really build your game around being the next Steph Curry? Or are you better suited to becoming a dogged defender, who relies on physicality and smarts to earn court time?

As a baseball player, does it make sense to jump in with both feet and join the launch angle revolution? If you have the strength and explosiveness to hit the ball to the fence, then yes — but if your most powerful fly ball will cause the center fielder to just take a step or two back, maybe working on that line drive stroke makes more sense.

On the tennis court, should you spend your time working on a power game, or are you better suited to court coverage and working angles? Is your golf game more power or finesse?

The answers to these questions require a step back from hopes and dreams, and a serious look at who you are, physically and mentally.

And though it doesn’t hurt to ask your friends, parents and coaches what they think, remember that everyone has their own biases and points of view. In the end, the person who has to live with the decisions is you.

So take this enforced time off to take stock. What kind of player are you? What kind of player can you be? And though it’s nice to ask what kind of player you want to be, not very many of us can be Steph Curry — or even Quinn Cook. And the sooner we realize what’s attainable, the better we can understand how to get there. ✪ Clay Kallam has been an assistant athletic director and has coached numerous sports at a handful of high schools throughout the Bay Area. To submit a question for Behind the Clipboard, email him at claykallam@gmail.com.

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C

ertainly this was the ideal sendoff for the Mountain View Volleyball Club 18 Red boys team.

Just before its players go their separate ways and venture off to various colleges, the team won the program’s first Open Division-Gold championship at this summer’s USA Volleyball Junior Nationals in Dallas.

And what a way to mark the 10th anniversary for MVVC, which has made a great impact in the club volleyball scene in that relatively short span. It’s a tremendous example of the rewards of staying together and working, working, working toward a goal — eight of the 12 players have played together in MVVC since age 14.

“It was definitely great, and looking back, I realize there’s no better way we could have finished off,” said MVVC setter Kevin Mathew, one of the eight mainstays. “Having played on a club so long with these guys, how perfect it was that we finished on the best possible note.

All the loose ends got tied together.”

Steady play helped the team go 9-2 in the 18 Open division at the June 30-July 7 tournament. The core players’ familiarity with each other paid big dividends in Texas.

“It’s a pretty consistent effort by all the guys on the team, and it especially shows how homegrown we are,” said Jonah Carson, coach of the 18 Red Junior National champions and MVVC Boys Club Director and Recruiting Coordinator.

Not that it was easy.

For starters, MVVC had to shake off an 18-25, 25-18, 15-13 loss in its opener to Outrigger from Honolulu, Hawaii.

“That sort of showed us no team was going to hand us a win,” said Mathew, who closed his high school career at Monta Vista-Cupertino winning Central Coast Section and CIF NorCal Division I championships. “In the end that was really helpful to us, because we knew they would not hand it to us and, on the other hand, we were not going to hand it to another team.”

Carson, also coach of the USA Men’s Junior National Team and the St. Francis HighMountain View boys, said he felt his team could absorb the loss and recover, finding the best mix to win.

“One of our top players, Cole Gillis, who is going to UC Irvine, was struggling, not playing as well as he could,” Carson said. “We put in Ben Airola, who is going to UC San Diego and we beat 949, one of the top teams in the tournament. We then put Cole back in there, and I have to give a ton of credit to Cole to regroup and play so well.”

It all came together with a 25-22, 19-25, 15-9 championship win over SoCal powerhouse Balboa Bay Volleyball Club, based out of Costa Mesa with a storied 43-year history. It was a rematch from four years ago when both clubs met for the 14s Junior National championship, with Balboa winning.

“When we played them as 14s, we were happy to be in the finals and let them have it,” Mathew said.

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Story By Mike Wood

Mountain View’s Gautham Dasari goes down to make a dig during the 18 Open Division gold medal match at the USA Volleyball Boys Junior National Championships.

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“The 18s match felt a lot different. We were there for a fight and came out hot from the beginning. So we came pretty aggressive and got a lead in the first set after it was 18-18 and pulled ahead. Then it was essentially the reverse in the second, and we were playing catch-up. The third set was close until 7-7, then we got hot and won 15-9.”

Fiery starts were a trademark of this MVVC team, Mathew said.

“We tended to come out of the gate really hot and really intense. Come out intense and on fire, and we would catch teams offguard,” he said.

One major force for MVVC was tournament MVP Jarrett Anderson, who starred at Harker-San Jose and was a driving force behind the Eagles winning the CCS Division III title and making the NorCal Division I finals. He is headed to Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts. All that is amazing considering this is just Anderson’s second year of playing volleyball, having focused previously on basketball.

“It’s a pretty incredible accomplishment,” Carson said.

“Two years in the sport, he has a pretty incredible capacity for work. He can handle the workload and is a really good learner.”

Carson points to the hard work of Gautham Dasari.

Another graduate of Monta Vista, Carson called him “the absolute rock of our team.” Now on his way to NYU, Dasari made a steady climb up the ladder of teams in the MVVC system.

“He started on the 14 3s, worked his way to 15 2s and has been on the top team ever since,” Carson added.

Mathew is headed to USC, where he will be playing club volleyball while focusing on being a human biology major.

“He’s the heart of the team,” Carson said. “He kept everyone moving in the same direction; he’s a great communicator.”

For Mathew, he found Carson to have incredible insight.

“It’s almost like he’s seeing into the future,” Mathew said.

“For instance, he had us practice defensive formations, and at the time we didn’t see value in it. But when we got to Junior Nationals, it was a revelation. It just showed how much he knew about the game.”

The championship adds even more prestige to MVVC, “The big thing is having a reputation and getting our first national championship will do that,” Mathew said.

“Balboa has a great reputation, and we beat them. I don’t think people take NorCal seriously and I think this will help change that.”

From his perspective as club director, Carson is thrilled to see how well the six MVVC teams that went to Dallas fared.

From his perspective as club director, Carson is thrilled to see how well MVVC teams fared at Junior Nationals. Along with the Gold at 18s, there were the 16s taking their Bronze in the Open, and four others (17 Black, 15 Red, 15 Black, 14 Black) each grabbing fifth place in various divisions.That certainly bodes well for the future.

“I’m Interested to see who is the next Dasari or Cole,” the coach said. ✪

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Bay-To-Bay Volleyball Club’s seven trophies from the 2019 Boys Junior Nationals.

Two Boys Open Titles Highlight NorCal Effort At USA VB Junior Nationals Club teams from throughout the Northern California Volleyball Association flooded Indianapolis and Dallas from June 30-July 7 and came away with plenty of hardware. Led by the Open Division national-champion runs of the Mountain View Volleyball Club 18-Red boys and the Bay-To-Bay 14-1 boys, it was a wildly successful week at the USA Volleyball Junior National Championships. In the 14U to 18U divisions, 10 girls teams had at least top 15 finishes. NCVA boys teams were even stronger as 10 different teams finished top 3 or better.

On the girls side, the Absolute 17 Black squad, led by several Marin Catholic High-Kentfield standouts, posted the best record of any Top 15-finishing teams in Indianapolis. The team went 9-1 and dropped just five sets over 10 matches. But its one loss came at the wrong time and left them with a tie for ninth place.

Three NorCal girls teams netted third-place finishes. Rage Volleyball Club’s 17 Rick squad claimed a bronze finish in the 17 National Division. The Ripon-based club went 7-3 overall and 17-7 in set play. S.F. Tremors Club’s 14 Wolverines finished tied for third in the 14 USA Division after going 7-3. Woodside-based Academy Volleyball Club saw its 14 Gold team go 8-3 for a 14 American Division third-place finish.

Other NCVA girls representatives to claim Top-15 finishes included 805 Elite 17 Black of San Luis Obispo (13th, USA Div.), Vision 17 Gold of Los Gatos (11th, Open Div.), S.F. Elite 16 Saga (5th, USA Div.), Mountain View 12

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16 Red (13th, Patriot Div.), Vision 16 Gold (11th, American Div.) and S.F. Elite 15 Nicko (5th, American Div.).

In Dallas, there were several NorCal teams on podiums. The MVVC 18 Red squad won the club’s first Open Div. gold behind a 9-2 record. San Jose’s Bay-To-Bay 14-1 squad went a perfect 11-0 (22-4 set record) en route to its Open Div. golden finish.

Eight other squads had silver or bronze finishes: Northern California Volleyball Club’s 17 Asics of Rocklin (2nd, Club Div.), Bay-To-Bay 17-1 (3rd, Club Div.), Pacific Rim Academy 16-1 of Pleasant Hill (3rd, USA Div.), MVVC 16 Red (3rd, Open Div.), Bay-To-Bay 16-2 (3rd, Club Div.), Bay-To-Bay 15-1 (3rd, Open Div.), Bay-To-Bay 15-2 (2nd, Club Div.), Triumph 14 Gold of Madera (2nd, Club Div.). ✪ Follow us on Twitter & Instagram, like us on Facebook!

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Davis High Graduate Luke Dugger Earns First Opportunity To Showcase Skills On National Stage Follow us on Twitter & Instagram, like us on Facebook!

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CALIFORNIA ARMY NAT

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TIONAL GUARD COVER STORY Story by Steve Wilson Photos by David Gershon

Like many kids, Luke Dugger grew up playing basketball and baseball.

It wasn’t until age 13 when he and his friends decided to give a new sport a try. With four of his friends, he picked up a golf club for the first time, and that ended up being their best possible decision.

Charlie Karagosian, William Ziegler, Griffin Long, Matt Haass and Dugger comprised a significant portion of the Davis High golf team over the past four years. Together, they led the program to four straight Masters appearances and three section titles.

Before the group embarks on a new journey in college this fall, they got together one more time to cheer on their teammate and friend as Luke Dugger qualified to compete at the 72nd U.S. Junior Amateur Golf Championship in Toledo, Ohio, at the historic Inverness Club.

Beginning July 15, Dugger squared off against 156 of the top junior golfers in the world at this tournament. He qualified with a top finish (five-under par 67) at Yolo Fliers Club, and was selected as one of the final 156 to compete out of 3,496 total entries.

This year’s competition at the top was as good as ever. Defending champion Michael Thorbjornsen and 2018 runner-up Akshay Bhatia were in the field, marking just the second time since 2008 that both finalists from the previous year competed. The first two days of competition were stroke play. The top 64 in the field then advanced to a match play tournament.

“The challenge of playing against the top juniors in the world will be a good experience for me,” Dugger said before heading off to Ohio. “And I’m sure the course will be set up really tough, like the U.S. Open, and that will be a good challenge.”

The course won this time around. Dugger missed the cut to advance to match play after shooting an 80 on the opening day and an 82 during a weather-delayed second day.

“Yeah, I definitely didn’t play how I wanted,” Dugger said by phone after his second and final round. “My goal was to make it to match play and go from there, but overall the experience was really awesome.”

Dugger recognized at least one face in the crowded field as he joined Sacramento-area golfer Matt Sutherland, cousin of PGA Tour Championships professional Kevin Sutherland. Matt Sutherland did make it through stroke play thanks to a 2-under 69 on the second day of play.

Both Dugger and Sutherland spent the end of the second week of July in the air as they flew east. Dugger had stops in Chicago and Detroit, and landed July 12 as he took an extra day or two to adjust to the humidity of the Buckeye State.

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“The challenge of playing against the top juniors in the world will be a good experience for me. I’m sure the course will be set up really tough, like the U.S. Open, and that will be a good challenge.”

Luke Dugger

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CALIFORNIA ARMY NATIONAL GUARD COVER STORY

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On July 14, the eve of the tournament, Dugger found a letter in his locker from eight-time major champion Tom Watson. One awaited each of the competitors, and it added to the inspirational motivation the championships provided after each register got a letter signed by eight-time USGA champion Jack Nicklaus in the mail.

Growing up, Dugger was in awe of these legends, and he hoped this would be his turn to perform well in front of a crowd.

“It’s exciting, but it’s also nerve-racking,” Dugger admitted before teeing off in the event. “I’ve never been on this big of a stage before, but I’m really excited for the challenge of playing a new course and for playing in a tournament out of state.”

In the weeks leading up to the tournament, Dugger studied the layout of Inverness online. The demanding course is listed at 7,339 yards, and is expected to play firm and fast. Dugger said it’s a typical pro-style course with big roughs and fast greens.

Dugger, who prides himself on his putting, hoped that might be good news.

“I’m definitely not the longest player off the tee,” he admitted. “But it all comes down to putting — that’s what I try to practice on the most.

“You can hit a green, be 20 feet away and three-putt, while someone else misses a green but they still hit par with a good putt.”

Dugger is fresh off a strong finish to the high school season. Davis High reached its fourth consecutive NorCal berth with a star-studded squad before falling just two strokes short of advancing to state. The team featured four key seniors and registered a 384 at The Reserve at Spanos Park in Stockton to claim third at the SJS Masters championship. Dugger had a 79 that day — good for second on the team — and he posted a team-best 66 at the Div. III section tournament.

“When I first started playing for Davis, I didn’t have a lot of tournament experience,” Dugger acknowledged. “While I haven’t played in this big of an event, I’ve played in enough tournaments to feel comfortable.”

Dugger was battling a minor back strain heading into the U.S. Junior Amateur.

The soon-to-be college freshman tweaked a muscle in his lower back leading up to the tournament and said he was at 85 percent a week prior to the tournament.

“It shouldn’t be too much of a problem, I hope,” he said.

When Dugger returns home to California, he’ll eventually pack his bags and attend Holy Names University in Oakland on an athletic scholarship. The Division II program could possibly lead to opportunities to compete on the PGA Tour — a dream Dugger has had for a while.

“I really like Holy Names’ facilities; they have a great team and I have a close friend going there, so it should be fun,” Dugger said. “Hopefully I can compete in some big tournaments and get more experience under my belt.”

Before his PGA Tour dreams even have the chance to become reality, the most important greens of his young playing career were in Ohio.

“I learned a lot,” he concluded after the event. “It was really cool seeing how I matched up against the world’s best junior golfers.” ✪ Follow us on Twitter & Instagram, like us on Facebook!

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Kweke Garth Jr. of Skyline-Oakland 20

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H

annibal Navies spent nine years playing in the National Football League. And his post-playing career has been spent working with the NFL Players Association.

But Navies also grew up among a family of teachers. And it’s clear to see the influence of all of these things when viewing Navies’ 360 Football Academy camp.

On July 1-2, 2019, The Hannibal Navies Foundation hosted the “Camp in the Bay” Football Academy at Laney College in Oakland. The event led by 360 Football Academy welcomed over 150 student-athletes and their families from across Northern and Central California to experience a no-cost football student-athlete experience.

Navies, an Oakland native who attended Berkeley High School, played in the NFL for nine seasons for Carolina, Green Bay, Cincinnati and the 49ers.

After creating the 360 Academy in 2009, Navies took a few years to truly build the overall experience he wanted his athletes to take part in. Understanding that information and technology is always changing, he made sure the academy experience did as well.

“We want to make sure the information we are giving is relevant to this generation,” he said.

Although labeled as a football academy, Navies and company take pride in the information not received between the hash marks.

Over two days, students were treated to the same knowledge and resources a newly signed NFL athlete would receive. Classroom information ranged from recruiting, college expectations, health and wellness and knowing your rights as not just an athlete, but a human being.

Each day of the academy the participants spent more than half of their time in the classroom, learning topics that your typical camp or academy wouldn’t put as much time and energy into.

The mantra was clear, 360 was more than just the name of the academy. The focus was to bring the total experience full circle, reminding the participants that they are students before athletes, and you can’t have one without the other. “If you dream of going to the NFL, you must dream of going to college first,” Navies expressed.

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Hannibal Navies

After learning how sports and academics are intertwined via college and recruiting, the information shifted towards focusing on keeping not only the body healthy but also the mind.

Dr. Nyaka NiiLampti, Vice President of Wellness for the NFL Players Association, spoke to the students for over an hour on topics which sometimes get overshadowed in sports.

Niilampti urged each student to find a balance, showing them that building a happy healthy legacy begins with early planning and preparation. Along with having a plan, recognizing when and how to change bad habits was also brought to the surface during the presentation.

Hammering home the importance of a healthy mind, body and spirit was academy legend and mentor, J.R .Redmond. A member of the Super Bowl XXXVI champion New England Patriots, Redmond explained how he battled severe depression after life in the NFL. With depression being a topic that isn’t regularly talked about in public, Redmond made clear that “normal people” are impacted by it too and seeking help is the only way out.

“You don’t need to struggle alone,” said Redmond. “It’s okay to need help and we are here for that.”

Continuing the theme of giving the students access to people and resources no other camp can, Lt. Bobby Hookfin of the Oakland Police Department along with Oakland-based criminal defense attorney, Marlon Monroe, conducted a forum on knowing your rights.

Understanding the current climate between young people and law enforcement officers, Hookfin explained the difference between being detained and having a consensual interaction with an officer. The emphasis was on knowing how to best act in the presence of law enforcement personnel — especially during stressful situations.

“These kids are spending real time with people who care at this camp,” said Hookfin, an Oakland native who graduated from Skyline. “They were fully engaged and the respect on both sides will last a lifetime.”

The student-athletes were given the opportunity to see and hear from professionals in a variety of fields, not just pro football players.

“This camp taught me to use my resources,” said Kweke Garth Jr from Skyline. “I know how to choose the right path.”

After unmatched life lessons in the classroom were wrapped up, it was time for the athletes to hit the field. The energy and the passion inside the classroom was matched on the field as the NFL mentors put the participants through the same skill stations you would see at an NFL combine or recruitment showcase.

The 40-yard dash was a camp favorite — getting expert advice on how to maximize sprint time down to the millisecond.

Lastly, the campers were split into groups according to position and side of the ball — each with at least one NFL veteran of that craft.

As the final day wrapped up, the message remained clear: the students of 360 will continue to have these resources available to them once they walk out the doors.

“This experience doesn’t end on day 2 at 1 p.m.,” Navies said. “We really want to stay in touch with our students and remain a resource all year ’round.”

Not only did Navies give out his personal phone number to each student to use when needed, he is also establishing online resources that each young person can use as an aid throughout his growing-up process.

“I learned so much from this experience,” said Devaneaux Sagaral of St. Vincent-Petaluma.

“The full-circle mentality of 360 showed me there’s more to life than football.”

Vowing to bring this experience back to Oakland annually, Navies envisions the 360 academy being provided across the country very soon.

For information regarding upcoming camps, go to hannibalnavies.48in48sites.org ✪ — Story By Jesse Gomez | Photos By Chace Bryson 22

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Six Quick Profiles From The Northern California Tryouts For The 2019 Area Code Baseball Games Story By Jesse Gomez Photos By Chace Bryson 24

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Noah Beal of Clovis High delivers a pitch as Tommy Troy of Los Gatos breaks for second base during a live scrimmage at the Area Code Games tryouts on July 11 at Banner Island Ballpark in Stockton. Ryan Pierce of Clayton Valley-Concord watches from first base.

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E

ach year the top 220 or so high school baseball players from across the country come together to compete in the Area Code Games — a five-day showcase at Blair Field in Long Beach. The eight regional teams, each represented by a Major League organization, fill their roster with several of the top rising seniors in the country. This year that’s the Class of 2020.

SportStars spent July 11 at the NorCal invite-only tryout hosted by the Oakland A’s.

More than 120 players — from all points of Northern and Central California and even Northern Nevada — gathered at Banner Island Ballpark in Stockton. Players participated in batting practice, fielding drills and a continuous 22-inning scrimmage in hopes of cracking the top 25 percent.

Here are six short profiles of players who competed at the event, five of which made the eventual 29-man roster headed to Long Beach Aug. 5-9.

AC Games At A Glance WHEN: Aug. 5-9 WHERE: Blair Field, Long Beach State TEAMS/REGIONS: Oakland A’s (Northern California), Milwaukee Brewers (Southern California/Hawaii), Texas Rangers (Texas/Louisiana), Kansas City Royals (Pacific Northwest), Chicago White Sox (Midwest), Washington Nationals (Southeast), New York Yankees (Northeast), Cincinnati Reds (Arizona/Colorado/New Mexico/Utah/ Nevada/El Paso,Texas) FORMAT: Round robin with each team playing five games. All games are seven innings. The second day of the showcase includes a home run derby.

NOTABLE ALUMNI: Albert Pujols, Clayton Kershaw, Kris Bryant, Jay Bruce, Bryce Harper and Giancarlo Stanton.

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NICK YORKE ARCHBISHOP MITTY-SAN JOSE INF If you attend a game in which Yorke is on the field, he can commonly be heard as he does his best to get teammates hyped for each game. He uses that energy and desire to play the game as long as possible and to be the best leader on and off the field.

Although he posted a stellar junior season for the Monarchs, it didn’t come without some adversity. After having surgery on his right (throwing) arm in August 2018, he was forced to put his glove on the shelf for the season, as defense wasn’t an option during the healing process. Yorke spent the entire season as a DH for the Monarchs.

“Not being able to play defense was a huge struggle for me,” he said. “It was tough staying engaged just playing DH.” It didn’t affect his offense. He boasted an impressive team-best .505 batting average and was the Central Coast Section RBI leader with 40. Regardless of his role, the Arizona commit will continue to be the boisterous leader his team has become accustomed to.

Baseball is more than a sport in the Yorke household. It’s a way of life, and the best way to get everyone together. The Monarchs had three Yorke brothers on the roster this season. Joe graduated and is headed to Boise State while younger brother Zach is entering his sophomore season. Yet, a solid argument could be made that the best player under the roof is their mother, Robyn Yorke, a four-time softball All-American for Fresno State.

A’S AREA CODE GAMES ROSTER Player, Pos. Isaac Ayon, RHP Jadon Bercovich, RHP Brendan Bobo, INF Rio Britton, LHP Michael Brown, 1B Sam Brown, 1B/RHP Cole Carrigg, C Rylan Charles, OF Riley Cooper, LHP Treven Crowley, RHP Chase Davis, OF Jack Grant, INF Petey Halpin, OF Kyle Harrison, LHP

School Buchanan-Clovis Damonte Ranch-Reno Harbor-Santa Cruz Capital Christian-Sac Vacaville Petaluma Turlock Bishop Manogue-Reno Clovis North-Fresno Hilmar Franklin-Elk Grove San Ramon Valley-Danville St. Francis-Mountain View De La Salle-Concord

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Nick Kresnak, INF/RHP Acalanes-Lafayette Brian McClellin, SS Vacaville Kade Morris, RHP Pitman-Turlock TJ Nichols, RHP Oakmont-Roseville Andy Owen, RHP Jesuit-Carmichael Eddie Park, OF Valley Christian-San Jose Omar Plascencia, C Lodi Tyler Soderstrom, C Turlock Cole Tremain, INF/RHP Vista del Lago-Folsom Rowan Trosky, INF Carmel Tommy Troy, INF Los Gatos Juaron Watts-Brown, RHP Hanford Jacob Weiss, C Atwater Carson Yates, OF Leland-San Jose Nick Yorke, INF Archbishop Mitty-SJ Follow us on Twitter & Instagram, like us on Facebook!

TYLER SODERSTROM TURLOCK C/INF Soderstrom’s father, Steve, reached the big leagues as a pitcher for the San Francisco Giants. His older brother, Tate, plays at the University of Arizona. Which makes it safe to assume Tyler has the support system to push him ahead of the rest.

“I have always been confident in my abilities,” he said approximately an hour before blasting a no-doubt home run to right field during the live scrimmage portion of the tryout.

That confidence has shown at the high school level as Tyler will be entering his fourth consecutive year on varsity. His strict everyday schedule of hitting in the cage and off the tee has created a mainstay attitude to “out-grind” everyone else.

He led Turlock in batting with a .455 average, 27 RBI and four homers during his junior season.

In addition to making the Area Code roster, he was also recently named to the World Baseball/Softball Confederation U-18 40-man national team roster. If all goes according to plan, the UCLA commit will compete at the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup in Busan, South Korea, from Aug.30-Sept. 8.

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CHASE DAVIS FRANKLIN-ELK GROVE OF When one is invited to play in front of top scouts, and already committed to play for the University of Arizona, it’s easy to believe you’ve made it. But not if you ask Davis.

“I want to create a spot for myself, and keep on getting better,” he said. “This never stops.”

Baseball has become more than a sport over the years for Davis. He uses the sport to find out the type of guy he is on and off the field. Knowing the game is set up for more individual failures than successes, Davis has embraced the hard times he will have to fight through.

“At the top level, you get paid to fail,” Davis expressed excitedly.

Putting in more work than the next guy is a mentality he knows will lead him to experience that lifestyle in the majors.

In between throwing lasers from right field to home plate and crushing balls in batting practice, Davis can be seen constantly sporting a huge smile.

“I want to represent NorCal, above all else.”

MICHAEL BROWN VACAVILLE LNF With a 6-foot-5, 230-pound frame, it’s impossible to miss Brown when he takes the field. The lefty has superb hands at first base with plus power at the plate, all of which makes his athletic build the less impressive trait of his game.

Although he concedes baseball is “the best sport in the world”, he may not have had much of a choice. His father, Michael Brown Sr. played for the Pittsburgh Pirates organization after being drafted in the 5th round out of Vacaville High.

Getting handed a bat and ball at a young age, Brown gives all the credit to the support system around him.

“My dad showed me the grind; what it takes to get through slumps,” he said.

Brown is happy to take the torch from his father and compete with the best in the world at the game they cherish.

When he returns to the Bulldogs in the spring, Brown will look to close out his impressive high school career with a Sac-Joaquin Section Div. I three-peat. He finished the 2019 season with a .312 batting average, 22 RBI and led the team with 12 doubles and three home runs. ✪ Follow us on Twitter & Instagram, like us on Facebook!

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JAYSHAUN WISE BENICIA INF When you’re told you can’t do something, there’s two ways to handle it: Listen to the negativity and accept defeat, or use it as fuel to prove doubters wrong.

Jayshaun Wise chose the latter.

“I was a bigger kid early on in high school playing shortstop and people would tell me I needed to move to a corner position,” Wise said.

Unwilling to give up a position he excelled at and had a passion for, he put in the time to make sure no one would take his spot. He added muscle and focused on his footwork. Adding that to his above average hands, it was no longer a question if he was at the right position.

Growing up around his uncle, Cory Dunlap, who was drafted by the Dodgers, gave him an edge when making the most of each opportunity.

“My father and uncle have spent real time with me, missing work to make sure I get better,” Wise said.

Even after his invite to the prestigious tryout, he’s sticking with a prove-everyonewrong mindset. He and his Benicia teammates did just that in May when they won the North Coast Section Division II championship as the No. 10 seed. Wise will look to close out his high school career with back-to-back titles come springtime.

NICK KRESNAK ACALANES-LAFAYETTE RHP/INF It was a common occurrence for Kresnak to be the big kid on the field. Even at a young age he tended to tower over most — something he quickly learned to embrace.

“I always felt I had more to prove,” Kresnak said. “You have to have the tools to go with the physical (side), and I feel I can compete with the best out there.”

He certainly proved that case during batting practice at the tryouts. He effortlessly carried the bat through the box making sound contact with the ball while the scouts looked on.

Although more than capable at the plate (.366 average with 19 RBI as junior), most would attest he’s even more valuable on the mound.

Kresnak posted a 1.09 ERA with six wins accompanied with 56 strikeouts last season. The 6-foot-1 Washington commit has been picking up a bat and ball for as long as he can remember. He hopes to turn that dedication into a big-league reality very soon. His future on the diamond shines bright, but this fall will be his second year starting at quarterback for the Dons football team. As a junior, he passed for more than 2,500 yards with 25 touchdowns and rushed for two more.

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WHEN STRESS IS

BEST get mental: erika Westhoff

S

tress gets a lot of bad press these days. There’s no doubt that chronic stress can wreak havoc on our health and performance. And so many of my clients come to me seeking help to handle the various forms of stress that high performance brings them as athletes.

The good news is there’s a lot we can do to help. It’s also important to realize that stress is absolutely required for strong performance and good health. It’s what helps propel our bodies and minds to develop strength, new skills and push us to our limits.

There’s a term for this positive form of stress: “eustress.” It’s defined as “any stressor that motivates an individual toward an optimal level of performance or health.”

Some days on the field (court/course) may feel like you’re appropriately stressed and pushing hard (aka “grinding”). The other days may feel more like acute stress (or distress). That is, intense in nature but short in duration (fitness day, working through a difficult drill, having a conflict with your teammate or coach).

Certainly, both types of stress are part of the journey of competitive sports, but let’s take a closer look at how stress benefits you as an athlete. ›› Stress helps you build muscle. ›› Stress in moderate doses teaches how to handle stress in the future (builds resilience) ›› Stress helps provide you with intensity to push through frustration until you figure out the drill or new skill. ›› Stress counter-balances the feelings of joy that come with accomplishments. You can’t have one without the other.

It’s a fine line between distress and eustress. Your perception can greatly influence how you interpret your stress. Thus, acknowledging ahead of time that your journey through sport will have many moments of distress (frustration, uncomfortable feelings, wanting to give up or quit) can help you navigate those times.

To help you work through stress-filled days, I encourage you to write yourself a note on a good day. Offer yourself a positive perspective that might be hard to find when you’re feeling frustrated and defeated. Write something on your phone’s note app so it’s mobile and you can easily retrieve it on a tough day. It’s an amazing experience to coach yourself through challenging days.

Stress is required. Make your stress work for you! ✪ Erika Westhoff is a CEO and certified mental trainer at EW Performance in Pleasanton.

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