El Paisano

Issue date: 5/15/09 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Greg Naylor

Media Credit: Greg Naylor/El Paisano

Media Credit: Greg Naylor/El Paisano

FALL

M/W Cross Country

The story for the Men's and Women's cross country teams this year was the addition of first year head coach Geoff Skarr and his revival of the Rio Hondo cross country program. Skarr got to work right away implementing a vigorous workout regimen that payed dividend progressively.

Rio Hondo took the Foothill Conference Championship for the women this past fall, while the men finished second, falling just short of San Bernardino Valley College. However the men redeemed themselves at state, taking fourth, while the women finished 15th overall. Ruben Martinez finished sixth overall in the four-mile run to cap off his excellent season.

But there were plenty of other standouts including Ulises Lorenzo, Eddie Aguilar, Eli Canchola, Lupe DeAlba, Ashley Huizar and Roxanna Raigosa, all of whom will return next season, with the exception of sophomores Martinez and Lorenzo.

The experience and success this team has received this past season will no doubt go a long way come this fall. However, it appears that Skarr will not return next season to coach, leaving a gaping hole in the coaching spot. Hopefully though, Rio Hondo athletic director Rory Natividad can strike gold once again by hiring another coach of such a high caliber as coach Skarr.

Mens's Wrestling

One tradition that still lives strong in Rio Hondo Athletics is the presence of dominating wrestling team, and this past fall was no different as Rio would share a three-way-tie for the Western State Conference Champions.

Former Rio Hondo wrestling standout Mike Tellez, coached a talented group of wrestlers during the fall semester. Two of such wrestlers were ranked No. 1 in the state for the community college level. Both Ian Millan at the 149 lb. class, the most difficult class to compete in, and Sal Feliccia at HWT, who got some eye-catching victories over division I and II opponents, both were ranked No. 1 last season.

Coach Tellez also received "Coach of the Year" honors as well for his outstanding coaching and success. Fortunately Rio will lose only eight of their 25 wrestlers, Millan included, but will look to repeat their success as the dominant force they have been over the past seasons. Feliccia also returns, a sigh of relief no doubt comes from coach Tellez knowing that.

Womens Water Polo

The women's water polo team pushed through a brutal 1-25 season; however it didn't indicate how hard the team worked throughout their struggle.

The women's water polo team continued to develop from start to finish, this season was no doubt a little rocky, but next season should be different, as they continue to grow through youth, considering that they have some returners who know the system now.

Improvement is expected this coming season, especially from such a hard working group that is not afraid of a challenge, which is exactly what they will have in their difficult South Coast Conference matchups. Coach Mike Hinze says, "Success is progressive realization of a worthwhile dream or goal." The women on the team would agree with coach Hinze on that one.

Hinze is looking forward to seeing his returning players such as Denise Castillo and Kristin Rodriguez who were some of his best players.

Women's Soccer

Rio Hondo's women's soccer team is back hard at work again to try to take the title once more, or even take it further with a state championship, after a sub-par season. Rio Hondo women's soccer had an overall record of 6-15-1 and 3-8-1 in Foothill Conference play.

Though their record was unimpressive, Rio boasted some excellent talent earning several All Foothill Conference Honors. Melissa Avalos and Emily Lujan both made first team All-Conference, while Shannon Bowe and Heather Hernandez made the second team. Honorable mentions went to Amanda DiFronzo and Paulina Rodriguez. Amanda Garza also stood out with 66 saves on the season, which was fourth best in conference. 

Men's Soccer

The Rio Hondo Men's Soccer team once again toppled the Foothill Conference on the way to their seventh consecutive Foothill Conference Championship and ninth title since 1997.

But the Roadrunners could not advance out of the first round of the playoffs for the second season in-a-row losing to Long Beach City College in a grueling match that came down to penalty kicks.

The Roadrunners finished with a 14-5-3 record, on a team was led by 2008 Conference M.V.P and scoring specialist, Alan Ponce. Head Coach Orlando Brenes received "Coach of the Year" honors for yet another outstanding season at Rio. Carlos Gutierrez, Anthony Salcedo, Dennis Morales and Philip Cervantes all received first team All-Conference honors as well. Gilbert Bautista, Jesus Castellon, Geovanni Serrano and Willie Lopez received second team honors.

Women's Volleyball

The women's Volley ball season was quite a long one for the Roadrunners who only won four matches throughout the entire season.

The victories came in decisive wins over L.A Trade Tech, Santa Ana, ELAC and San Bernardino.

Rio was rather youthful this season with only four returners, but should boast some lofty experience next season with the nine freshmen from this year's tested squad.


SPRING

Men's Baseball

Rio Hondo baseball began and ended their season with big thuds. Rio Hondo jumped out to a dreadful start to the 2009 season starting 0-3 and going 1-4 in their first five games, but despite their early tournament struggles, Rio battled back throughout Foothill Conference play. They soon managed to bring their record to a respectable 24-16 and 20-4 within conference, earning them Foothill Conference co-champions.

The Roadrunners record and Foothill Conference title was enough to get them into the postseason for the fifth straight year, but first round opponent Citrus College soon put a damper on Rio's successful season. Citrus crushed Rio Hondo 21-8, ending their memorable season abruptly.

Although Rio did not advance, they certainly had many players who could hold their heads high in some form of satisfaction. Players such as pitching aces Victor Soto and Steve Becerra both combined for a 12-3 record, infielder Matt Smoley, who averaged .423 with eight homeruns and 45 RBI's, and catcher Nick Field who averaged .408 with an OBP of .547.

Things are looking great already for next year, as over two-thirds of the team is eligible to return, where they hope to push past the first-round of the playoffs and deep into the postseason.

M/W Track

Though the Men's and Women's track and field team has been filled with a bit of controversy over the disappearance of head coach Geoff Skarr, the men and women performed quite admirably from his coaching. The track team sent 14 runners to Southern California Prelims at season's end, with one runner, Ruben Martinez, qualifying for State Finals.

Their season was filled with many ups and downs, but some shined a bit more than others as runners like Martinez and Melissa Cortez both broke school records for distance runs in the 5,000m for the men and women respectively.

Next season looks promising as well, as all of the current women runners are freshman and are eligible for return, making for an instant veteran leadership quality. The men too only lose three of their 19 runners, also hoping for their returners. It will be a difficult offseason, as it appears Skarr is no longer coach.

Women's Tennis

This season was one of the better seasons for the women's tennis team, as this season the team ended with an even 4-4 record in the Foothill Conference.

Why it may not be an accomplishment to some, those who look harder will notice that the team did not finish with the full team they started with, several players left midseason for various personal reason

This year has been a lot of fun for the remaining players though, "I wish I could have them all back next year," said Coach Karen Unger. This is one of the most improved teams not only in their matches but also amongst each other. During this season they not only practiced hard but have bonded too.

Men's and Women's Swim Team

Rio Hondo's men's and women's swim team had a memorable season, their hard work during practice and at their meets has really left an impression.

Coach Mike Hinze was proud of his swim team's season saying, "It was extremely successful, every swimmer swam at least one lifetime best swim." He is also pleased to know that he will have almost all of his swimmers back for the next season, only losing three sophomores combined.

Jesus Mora was one of the best swimmers on the team and made his mark by beating the school record in the 100-yard breast stroke with a time of 1:06:68 which broke Gary Bredkenridge's record in 1972.

Another swimmer who had an excellent season was Denise Castillo, who topped her personal best in the 100-yard individual medley with the record time of 1:14.

The swim team had a good run at the end of their season topping several personal record and will continue build on this next season with the returning swimmers as well as with the incoming freshmen.

Men's Basketball

The struggles of the Rio Hondo men's basketball team, will not hold the team back for the start of next season, the team is young and will return many freshman players.

A 9-22 overall record and a Foothill Conference record of 3-11 was a bit disappointing, but it has been a learning process for them, as many of the freshman players have adjusted to collegiate level play. Even though they are unranked this season, it should be a boost for them to strive for more next season and motivate them throughout the season.

An inspiring reason for next year's success is hinged upon quality players returning, such as Maurice Cole, who earned first team All-Conference, Darryl Alexander and Dusty Simcox, who earned Honorable Mention. Also, couple this with the return of redshirts Johnny Earl and Ryan Jefferson, whom have had an entire season to experience as close as possible what to expect from Coach Steve Hebert and Rio Hondo Basketball, and things are sure to improve.

Women's Softball

Unfortunately, this season's women's softball team was not very successful. They finished the 2009 season in last place in the Foothill Conference with a record of 3-9 and an overall of 3-28-1.

Their only victories came against College of the Desert; they swept the two game series, and split games against San Bernardino.  Their tied game however, came at an away matchup in San Diego against Orange Coast College with a final score of 11-11.
      
Rio had this had two pitchers who stood out this season, Stephanie Natividad and Jennifer Lopez, but not the way Rio Hondo would have liked. Lopez had to carry most of the load pitching 27 games and 153 innings, by far the most in the conference. Natividad and Lopez combined ERA was 8.13 and landed in last place in the conference.

Next season Rio will count on experience from this season, as they only have three sophomores leaving with the rest of the 17 women on the team being freshmen.

Women's Basketball

Rio Hondo Women's Basketball surpassed last year's standings by three spots, as they finished in third place in the Foothill Conference with a record 10-4. 

Rio also had the highest points per game average in the conference with 60.5 points per game.  They won the San Diego Mesa, LA Pierce, and Cypress Tournament during their excellent season too, while placing third in the Irvine Valley Tournament.

Some of the personal accomplishments came from freshman Cynthia Duarte who finished fourth in the points scored in the conference, with an average of 28 points per game, and Lesley Vodicska was an Honorable Mention Kodak All-American.

Unfortunately they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs in a heartbreaker by Fullerton College with a final score of 49-52, which ended their season with a final overall record of 26-7. It was still a phenomenal season for the Roadrunners despite their early exit in the playoffs.

Men's Golf

As for men's golf, Rio Hondo finished eighth in the Foothill Conference and only had one victory on the season.

Coach Eastman and the team plan to get back in the film and weight room to prepare for next year's season.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools