Giulio Fernandes

Giulio Fernandes, Senior Linebacker for El Toro High School believes that with hard work and dedication you can truly achieve your goals. This can be shown from his many achievements he has received, on and off the field. Some of his football achievements he has earned include, 1st Team All CIF Linebacker, 1st Team All South Coast League, All State Weightlifter, Team MVP, All State Nominee, and Varsity Team Captain. As for his achievements off the field, these include Avid Senior of the Year, Charger Pride Award, CSF member, and Events Coordinator for Unified Sports.

Giulio's accomplishments both on and off the field prove he is an all around star. He will be attending the University of San Diego next year and is extremely excited to see what that next chapter brings for him.

Bianca Molnar

Bianca Molnar Freshman tennis player for the Varsity Tennis Team at Santa Margarita High School, is determined to achieve her goals to play at a Pac 12 School and to pursue a career professionally. The desire to first start playing came to her at the age of four when she began watching her older sister play. Ever since that day, she has not stopped and her tennis career has been off to a tremendous start. Bianca is currently the number one ranked player in California based on tennis recruiting, and twenty nationally. Her achievements through her tennis career include, getting third place in singles and second place in doubles at the 2018 Winter Nationals, fourth place in doubles at the Easter Bowl in Indian Wells, and her most recent accomplishment of beating a player with a UTR of 9.8! Through her many achievements Bianca has developed a real love for competing in tournaments and continues to work and improve on her game any chance she can get. She trains on and off the court each week for at least ten hours. This includes working out at Cutting Edge Sport with Todd Norman to improve on her speed and agility, and Newport Tennis Club with coach Yasu to improve upon her footwork skills. In addition, she works with coach Eric Michaut as her private coach to improve her tennis skills. She is an extremely dedicated athlete and has a very promising future ahead of her!

Photo By: RPP Photography

Keanu Kama

Keanu Kama Varsity Football player at Santa Margarita High School, and recent Army West Point commit thanks his amazing and supportive family for always pushing him to be not only a great player but the best version of himself off the field as well. He first started playing football at the age of seven, when he was inspired from watching professional players in the NFL. Since then Keanu has pushed himself extremely hard to reach his goals and pursue his passion for football. His biggest football accomplishment from playing has been getting Trinity League honorable mention three years in a row. To achieve such high goals and accomplishments it comes with a lot of hard work and determination, something Keanu has. This is shown through his full weeks of training which include, working with Coach Tony Velasquez three times a week at Saddleback Training, working on his speed with Emmanuel Moody, and also doing an upper body lift two days and a lower body another day. He is extremely excited for this next chapter in his life at Army West Point, and is always hungry to work hard and improve.

Madison Templeman

Madison Templeman Senior at El Toro High School in Lake Forest California has dedicated these past four years to her athletic career in both track and field and cross country. Since joining the teams it’s been nothing but success for her. Some of her accomplishments include, getting first place in several races, receiving coaches award, toughest role award, future charger award, breaking the team record in the year 2018 at the Dana Hills Invitational, and in the year 2019 being apart of the team who broke records for South Coast League Finals, OC Championship at Oak Canyon, CIF Finals at Riverside, and the CA State Meet in Woodward. Apart from her many achievements, Madison has also been the girls varsity team captain for the last three years, and is on the honor roll at El Toro High School. In order to have accomplished so much it has taken a lot of time and dedication, including waking up at 5am everyday for practices and running six to seven days of the week. However, all of the hard work has lead her to pursue her dreams and compete at the next level. Recently she committed to Concordia University Irvine to further pursue her athletic and academic career. She plans to major in elementary education in hopes to later become a 1st or 2nd grade teacher. Ahead of her is a bright and promising future and she is excited to work hard and achieve her dreams.

Ellie Hanson

Ellie Hanson, outside hitter for Tesoro High School's Varsity Volleyball Team, and recent Miami University Commit has dedicated her time these past three years to growing not only as a player but as a person as well. She believes that anything is attainable as long as she stays self disciplined and makes the best out of every opportunity she gets. This can be shown through her many achievements and accomplishments she has had throughout her high school career. For starters, Ellie made the Varsity Volleyball Team as a Freshman which is a huge accomplishment with such a high level team that had been named Sea View League Champions in the year 2019. In addition, she also has made a name for herself outside of volleyball, with being involved in ASB since 7th grade, being on her principals honor roll, and being chosen to represent her school in the School Cite Council. As shown Ellie is a very promising volleyball player and student, however this was all achieved under her own merit with her extreme hard work and dedication. A typical week for Ellie includes, weekly lift sessions for strength training, beach practices, club practices at A4 Volleyball Club, and weekend tournaments. Even with her extremely busy schedule she manages to make time for her biggest supporters which are her parents, grandparents, and coaches. She thanks her coaches for pushing her to grow physically and mentally in order to reach her full potential and, to her parents and grandparents for supporting her through her journey and always being there for her no matter what. Ellie was then asked what volleyball has taught her and said, "Volleyball has taught me the importance of balance and passion. Volleyball has always been a true passion of mine and it taught me what love really is and when you love something you are willing to do whatever it takes in order to reach your goals." Ellie is looking forward to a great season at Miami University this fall, go Titans!

Brandon Tressler

Brandon Tressler, runner for the cross XC and Track Teams at Vanguard University shared some of his accomplishment's he's had throughout his athletic career. These include, XC and Track Team Captain, 2nd Team at OC Championships, and 2018 State XC Team. In addition, to running he also enjoys playing the guitar and hanging out with his friends. His biggest supporters are his family that have been with him through the many highs and lows of running and always sticking by his side. Apart, from his athletic achievements Brandon is also a GSAC Scholar Athlete and his grades and school work are very important to him and he feels it is crucial to be able to balance both especially in college. He looks forward to finishing out the rest of his Sophomore year in college strong and continue training and working hard on the track and in the classroom!

Anthony Kennen

Anthony Kennen, Senior at El Toro High School and future Lion at Vanguard University reflects back on his time running for the XC and Track Teams. Some of his accomplishments include, earning the Coach's Award two years in a row, being apart of the top 7 of his team since his junior year, MVP, and 1st place winner MT.SAC XC Meet. His goals are to continue his running career through college at Vanguard University and continue to improve. Outside of his athletics Anthony enjoys pursuing his passion for art mediums and painting. He thanks his family and friends for always supporting him through his athletic career especially his mom for always being there for him even at some low points. Through running he has learned to overcome obstacles and stay strong to accept failure and continue along his journey. He is very excited to continue his academic and running this fall at Vanguard, go lions!

Gabriel Quiette

Gabriel Quiette, an amazing athlete determined to reach his goals of playing D1 basketball or even professionally after his high school career shares his story. Ever since he was in the third grade basketball had been such a huge part of his life. His first time playing competitive basketball was through AAU and now that has progressed to playing for the Varsity Team at Mater Dei High School. He has grown so much as a person and player, and is known as one of the best basketball players in Southern California for his grade. In addition to his amazing athletic achievements he also has been a part of his school’s honor roll during his high school career. Gabriel’s biggest supporters are his parents who have always supported and believed in him. Both of his parents also played basketball so growing up it had always been something that was a part of his life. Each week Gabriel continues to train and work hard to achieve his goals to be the best he can be.

Sam Whipple

Sam Whipple, former El Toro High School Varsity Football player now continues his athletic career as a linebacker at San Diego State University. When it came to picking SDSU it had everything he was looking for, close to home, great weather, and of course an amazing football program! Playing colllege football had always been a goal for Sam growing up and had been something he had always been working towards especially in high school. Some of his high school accomplishments include, two time all league, 1st team all CIF, and being ranked in the top 90 players in Orange County. Outside of his football accomplishments Sam had been involved in Best Buddies, Unified Sports, and helped coach youth flag football. He enjoys working with others in all aspects of his life on and off the field. When asked about how season is going now he had said, "Right now spring ball is going great, it's a great competitive atmosphere with a great group of guys." So far his time at San Diego State has been a great experience and he can't wait to for another amazing season! Go Aztecs!

Morgan Shaffer

Morgan Shaffer, Freshman and Varsity Tennis Player at Villa Park High School shares about how her tennis career began and the goals she plans to achieve. She had first started playing as young as four years old, but began taking it more seriously at age nine. Since then she has been off to an amazing start with her tennis career. Some of her accomplishments include, recent tournament wins in Palm Valley and Cathedral City, 2nd Place in the National Level 1 Spring Championships, and winning a National Level 3 in doubles. Aside from her several tennis accomplishments Morgan is also an excellent student! She recieved Presidential Honor roll last year for having straight A's. She now continues her excellent gpa in taking three AP classes and two honors classes. Morgan plans to keep up with her grades and to keep improving upon her tennis game in order to one day play division 1 tennis in college. Off the court she enjoys cooking, spending time with her family, and working out. In addition, she also is a Girl Scout and regional president/junior director of media for Second Serve. Being involved with her community and helping others is extremely important to Morgan and something she will continue doing her whole life. She continues each day to train and study hard to one day achiever her goals of playing divison 1 tennis.

Mckenna Chudy

Mckenna Chudy, Junior at Trabuco Hills High School and number one singles player on the Varsity Tennis Team prioritizes hard work and dedication to reach her goals. She has been playing tennis since she was 8 years old and has been working extremely hard ever since then to one day play college tennis and even professionally. Some of Mckenna's tennis achievements include, getting 2nd place at a National Tournament in doubles, 3rd place in the National Camarillo Tournament in doubles, 4th place in singles and third in doubles at the National Tournament in Michigan, one of the top 25 ranked players in California for 16 and under, in the top 90 ranked player in California for 18 and under, ranked in the top 10 for 16 and under doubles, MVP of her high school tennis team for two years in a row now, and getting able to travel internationally to compete in tournaments. Apart from her achievements on the court, she has been on the honor roll at her school in all her high school years, and getting the Scholar Athlete Award in all her high school years so far. Also, outside of her intense training schedule and studying Mckenna makes time to coach younger students from ages 4-12 years old at the V&V Tennis Academy. She is an extremely dedicated athlete, student, and person and works hard to achieve anything she sets her mind too. During a typical week she does on court practice, off court fitness, and mental training when she feels like she needs it. She has spoken with sports phsychologists for the mental side of things along with reading different books, and recently has been working on adjusting faster with smaller steps with the fitness part of her game. Her biggest supporters with her tennis career are her, mom, dad, brother, grandparents, and her coaches Vitali, Spartak, and Madison. She said, "They are always there for me when I need them and they have helped me so much with my tennis. I wouldnt be where I am today without them." Mckenna continues to grow as a person and player everyday to one day achieve the goal of playing in college and maybe even at a professional level. She sets her sites on another amazing high school season and plans on finishing her Junior Year off strong!

Jimmy Zakhar

Jimmy Zakhar Mission Viejo High School Varsity Baseball player and recent Dayton University Commit has been putting in an extreme amount of time and effort in order to reach this goal of playing divison one baseball. He has been playing basbeall ever since he was five years old and ever since then has had an amazing sports journey and career so far. Some of his baseball accomplishments include getting Top Hitter at Perfect Game, and Top Catcher at Perfect Game. His long terms goals are to start for the University of Dayton team and then eventually get drafted from there. To get to where he is today Jimmy has worked very hard and gotten to work with some amazing coaches where he has learned so much.The people who have always been there for him are his family because they have always believed in him when at times he didn't believe in himself and made him into the athlete he is today. When asked what baseball has taught him he said, "Baseball has helped me grow as a person because it involves social skills and working well with others to create the good atmosphere in the dugout and I take it into my daily life just trying to be polite and respectful of others." He has an extremely bright future ahead of him at University of Dayton and is excited for this next chpater of his life. Go Flyers!

Amber French

Amber French Varsity Swimmer for El Toro High School and recent Cal Baptist University Commit shares her story of her amazing journey she's had these past several years swimming. It all began when she was six years old and began competing in a recreational summer league, known as the Lake Forest Dolphins. Then when she was eight years old she began swimming for Nova Aquatics which has been her club team ever since. Through these past years competing she has been able to have many amazing experiences and achieved many accomplishments competing. These include, competing at the Speedo Grand Challenge, Junior Olympics, Sectionals, Captain of the Swim Team, making it to CIF every year, being on Varsity Swim since Freshman year, Highest Point Scorer last two years, and placing high each year at League Finals. Aside from her swim accomplishments she is on the honor roll at school, FCA Member for four years, Best Buddies Member for three years, got to be Captain of JV Cheer and Swim, and serves at her Church every Saturday in the 3rd graders room. With being so actively involved in and outside of swim Amber hopes to one day make it to top 8 at the WAC Championships. Through her swim career her biggest supporters have always been her family especially her parents who have supported her through every step of the way. With being a part of swim for so many years she feels it has taught her perseverance, how to stay patient, be humble, and to most importantly never give up. Amber has an extremely exciting future ahead of her and can't wait to see where this next chapter at CBU takes her!

Jenna Lee

Jenna Lee, recent Trinity University tennis commit has put in an extreme amount of effort and dedication to reaching this goal of playing college tennis. She first started playing at the age of six, and started competing when she was nine. Since then she has had nothing but success throughout her journey. Throughout her tennis career she has earned 40 titles in the USTA Open Level Tournaments, ranked in the top 60 in California, top 300 Nationally, High School MVP, Team CIF Quarterfinalist, and won two Trinity League Titles. Aside from her outstanding tennis accomplishments Jenna is also an excellent student with being on the Dean’s List all four years of high school, earning the Scholar Athlete Award for both years of high school, and maintaining above a 4.0 GPA all four years. Apart from her hard work she puts into school and tennis she even finds time to volunteer at Family Assistance Ministries a food pantry in San Clemente. She will now begin her next chapter of life at Trinity University where she says she is “excited to start competing at the collegiate level for the sport I love." She wants to thank her family for supporting her endlessly and first getting her involved in tennis, her coach Melissa Esnal for being a huge supporter and positive role model for her. When asked what playing tennis has taught her she said, “Tennis is an individual sport and it has definitely helped me “toughen up” and be more independent. It teaches you to be your own biggest fan because you are alone out there on the court. You have to believe in yourself. Tennis also requires a lot of strategizing and quick thinking, which translates into my life as a student.”

Domenyk Jara

Domenyk Jara member of the mens soccer team at IVC shares his story of how he first got started with his athletic joruney. He first began playing soccer when he was four years old, from there he has competed with various club teams and continued to grow as an athlete. Some of his club team accomplishments include being apart of the West Coast FC team that was ranked #1 in the nation, winning the Regional Championship, and National Championship Finalist. After his time playing on his club team he moved on to play at Pats Academy which is known as the highest level of youth soccer. Here he was able to analyze the game better and improve upon his different skills. In addition to his club team Domenyk played for the Varsity Soccer Team at El Toro High School. His favorite memory with this team had been winning CIF in the year 2017. Outside of playing high school and club soccer Domenyk was ASB Treasurer, Vice President of Unified Sports his Junior year, and President of Unified Sports Senior year. He even took part in honors classes and kept up a good gpa throughout his four years at El Toro. Now Domeyk plays for the team at IVC where he hopes to grow as a player and transfer to a divison 1 program in the near future. His long term goal though however is to play soccer at the professional level. He wants to thank his family for always supporting him along his journey, and providing him with all the tools he needed to succeed and do well in life. Domenyk looks forward to his upcoming summer training with his college team and another great season.

Marcus Kim

Marcus Kim, hockey player for the club team at San Diego State University shares his story. He first began playing hockey when he was just six years old when he had started with roller hockey. Soon after he then began to pick up ice hockey as well and started to play at a more competitive level. From playing competitively and always competing it has earned him several awards. Some of his athletic accomplishments include, 2018 USA Hockey Division 1 High School National Champion, 2018 CAHA State Champion, 2018 Anaheim Ducks High School Hockey League Champion, 2019 USA Hockey Division 1 High School National Champion, 2021 3rd in the nation at USA Hockey Division 1 National Championships, 2021 Anaheim Ducks High School Hockey League Champion, 2 Year Assistant Captain, and Leadership Award recipient 2021. Apart from his athletic achievements Marcus has also earned a number of academic achievements. These include, Scholar Athlete in 2019, 2020, and 2021, Qualified for the California Scholarship Federation all four years of high school, and being apart of ASB at his high school. With being able to earn so many achievements from his hard work he also has set some long terms goals for himself. For hockey he plans on playing and competing well and improving his game. As for academic goals he plans on pursuing a career in sports journalism. His goals are to write or broadcast for a media network in the NHL. As you can see Marcus is an extremely dedicated and driven individual with big plans for his future. Can't wait to see where this first season at San Diego State takes him. Go Aztecs!

Jamaine Turner

Jamaine Turner, Freshman at Ottawa University Arizona and member of the men’s soccer team tells us about his journey to playing college soccer. Jamaine also known as Jt is originally from Wolverhamptom England and first started playing soccer competitively at the age of six. He attended high school at Thomas Telford School. Here his soccer team won the National Championship three times in a row. In addition, he was able to get on the bench for his professional club team in a cup match. Aside, from playing soccer Jamaine also coached soccer to kids between the ages 4-12 and feel he developed good leadership skills here and developed his passion of working with others. His goals are to play at the professional level one day or to pursue a career as a P.E Teacher or Soccer Coach and feels Ottawa University Arizona will help him achieve these goals. He is currently majoring in Sports Studies and feels this will help him continue his passion of sports later in life. Outside of school and sports Jt enjoys going to the gym, and even making music and being creative. His biggest supporters he says are his parents, they have always been there for him and pushed him to achieve all of his goals. When asked what playing soccer has taught you he said, “I think soccer has helped me become a more confident individual and has given me the faith I have always wanted to believe in myself. It has also given me a pathway to become successful and to be able to help support my family.” He looks forward to his first season here at OUAZ with the team and an amazing year academically as well. Go Spirit!

Damion Ochoa

Damion Ochoa OUAZ soccer attacking midfielder tells of about his amazing journey to playing college soccer. He first began playing when he was just three years old and since then has had an amazing career. Some of his accomplishments include, being named All American in high school, wining his high schools Championships Game, and maintaining a gpa of 3.5 juggling both being a good athlete and student. His goals are to play professional soccer one day and to keep working hard and keep his mind straight. Education wise he plans on majoring in kinesiology and doing something in that specific field. Outside of playing soccer Damion, like to spend time with his family and friends. His biggest supporters he says are his parents for making so many sacrifices to help him get to college. He feels soccer has helped him grow as an individual and dealing with the many ups and downs of soccer and life. Damion looks forward to his time here at OUAZ to improve his soccer skills and begin this new chapter in his life. Go Spirit!

jaden Messersmith

Jaden Messersmith, goal keeper for the Men's Soccer Team at Ottawa University Arizona walks us through his career playing, and the steps he took to making it to this point. First off, Jaden grew up in Kingman, Arizona with his mom, dad, and older sister. Once he had hit the age of nine he had begun playing soccer. As time went on he had started playing competitively when he was thirteen and since then has had several accomplishments. Some of these accomplishments include, winning the Vegas Mayors Cup, played ODP for Nevada for two years, his Senior Year of high school he was ranked the number 1 goal keeper in the region, and was also the number one ranked in the conference. Apart from his many soccer achievements Jaden also was apart of the student council at his high school, and graduated with a 3.9 gpa. In addition, he was the captain of his club and high school soccer teams and even was a senior officer for his schools student council. Not only are his athletics important to him but so are his academics as well. Currently he is earning a degree in exercise science with goals of becoming a nutritionist or personal trainer. His biggest supporters throughout his life he says have been his parents who have supported him through all of the highs and even lows at times. When asked what soccer has taught him he said, "It has taught me time management and learning more about how my body works and how to take care of it, with allowing for recovery after workouts and becoming healthier which correlated to me being more happy as well." Jaden has a very bright future ahead of him and is extremely driven to achieve the goals he has set for himself. He looks forward to an amazing upcoming season this fall with his team. Go Spirit!

Sidney Shaffer

Sidney Shaffer upcoming Senior at Villa Park High School and Bucknell University Volleyball Commit shares her story on how she got to this amazing place in her career. First off, she started playing volleyball when she was 12 years old when a friends mom noticed how tall she was and wanted her to try out. Sidney was very excited to play a team sport with a bunch of her friends. Prior to playing volleyball Sidney had played competitive tennis so getting to play with multiple people on a court was a change but one she was eager for! Around the age of 13 is when things became more competitive for her and the dream to play sports in college had always been a part of her dream. She has had an amazing volleyball career with many achievements to show for it all earned with Tstreet Volleyball Club. These include, 2019 National Champions Indianapolis Open, 2019 Gold Medal Red Rock Rave, 2019 Gold Medal Chicago Qualifier, 2019 Silver Medal JVA Long Beach, 2019 #1 in So Cal, 2020 Bronze Medal NIT Kansas City, 2021 Bronze Medal NIT Kansas City, 2021 Bronze Medal Atlanta Qualifier, 2021 Silver Medal Red Rock Rave, 2021 PVL Champions and Ranked #1 in So Cal, 2022 Gold Medal Utah Showdown. As shown Sidney has had an extraordinary volleyball career and only the best is yet to come for her. Her biggest supporters along the way have been her family. As said, “Throughout my journey there were many ups and downs but my family was always standing behind me and keeping my best interests in mind.” Aside from her family she also thanks her coaches at Tstreet Volleyball Club for helping her become the volleyball player she is today. Wishing Sidney the best of luck in her upcoming Senior Year Season and years playing at Bucknell University!