Central Valley High School's varsity baseball program doubled its win total from last year.
The 2008 Hawks finished 6-8 in the Valley Oak League, a huge improvement over a 3-11 showing a season ago.
Central Valley received substantial contributions from Martin Gomez, Israel Trevino and Adrian Sandoval. They were selected to the All-Valley Oak League Team in a vote of the conference's head coaches on May 12 in Oakdale.
"We feel pretty proud of what our guys accomplished," Hawks coach Greg Magni said.
Gomez made the All-VOL first team. The 5-foot-11, 175-pound junior pitcher was a unanimous selection.
"All seven of the other coaches voted for him," Magni said. "I nominated him."
Martin ranked first in the VOL in complete games (5), second in wins (5) and strikeouts (50), and fifth in ERA (3.50).
"It's such an advantage when you have someone on your team, that when you know he pitches, you have a chance to win," Magni said.
Also a threat on offense, Gomez totaled four doubles, four singles, eight walks, six runs and five RBIs. He posted an on-base percentage of .395 and slugging percentage of .353.
"He's very talented," Magni said.
"And he wants to get better."
Trevino earned second-team, VOL honors. The junior shortstop led the Hawks in batting average (.314), slugging percentage (.457) and on-base percentage (.415). He also had three doubles, five walks, two stolen bases and six runs.
"Izzy's a solid all-round player," Magni said. "He does everything right."
Sandoval received honorable-mention accolades. The senior second baseman batted .250 (10-for-40) with six runs, two stolen bases and five RBIs. He also had the fourth-highest on-base percentage on the team (.333).
Adrian's walkoff single lifted Central Valley past Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV finalist East Union, 7-6, in extra innings during the VOL season.
"He had a good year," Magni said. "He was our highest-performing senior. He really improved defensively. He made just two errors the entire season. Offensively, he had some of our clutch hits. He always took great at-bats. He rarely struck out."
Team Awards
Coach Greg Magni recognized standout players Martin Gomez, Israel Trevino, Adrian Sandoval and Rick Rogers during the Central Valley's Spring Sports Award Banquet on May 19 inside the school's gymnasium.
Gomez claimed the Most Valuable Player Award for his dominance on the mound and production at the plate.
He posted an 8-4 record with a 2.90 ERA, eight complete games, one shutout, two saves, 93 strikeouts and 33 walks. Opponents batted just .193 from the plate.
Martin hit .268 (19-for-71) with one homer, three triples, four doubles, 16 walks, 13 runs and 17 RBIs in 27 games.
Trevino won the Offensive Player of the Year Award for hitting .365 (19-for-52) with one triple, four doubles, nine runs and six RBIs in 17 games.
Sandoval was named Defensive Player of the Year.
Rogers won the Hawk Award, which signifies all-round achievement (athletics, academics and leadership).
"He fits all of those qualities," Magni said. "We're very happy he's coming back for one more season."
Rick, a junior utility player, batted .314 (27-for-86) with six doubles, eight stolen bases, 17 runs and 11 RBIs in 26 games.
"Mr. Consistency'
Greg Guerra, a sophomore utility player, ranked second on the team in batting average (.316), hits (25), triples (2), doubles (4) and RBIs (14), third in runs (12) and slugging percentage (.418), and fourth in stolen bases (4).
He made five appearances as a pitcher, compiling one win and 10 strikeouts.
Guerra batted .271 with 19 hits, seven runs and eight RBIs as a freshman.
"He definitely deserves some credit (for the team's success)," Magni said. "It's a good sign. He still has two more full seasons."
Competitive club
Central Valley finished in a three-way tie for fifth place in the VOL standings this past season.
The Hawks beat Weston Ranch twice, and Ceres High, East Union, Sierra and Sonora once.
Central Valley lost twice to Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV and VOL champion Oakdale during the regular season. Gomez and the Hawks were edged out 1-0 by Nick Vandertuig and the Mustangs on April 11 in the final meeting between the two teams.
"That's makes us feel pretty good," Magni said when asked to talk about his team's performances against Oakdale and East Union. "But we're still upset about not getting into the playoffs. We still feel like we accomplished something. We're happy with what we did. We're headed in the right direction. We have a nice core of really good players coming back next year."
The top two programs, down from three, in the eight-team VOL will participate in the playoffs in 2009. Oakdale, East Union and Manteca qualified this past season.
"It's going to take a lot more effort and work to get where we want to be," Magni said. "It's going to be a dogfight."
The 2008 Hawks finished 6-8 in the Valley Oak League, a huge improvement over a 3-11 showing a season ago.
Central Valley received substantial contributions from Martin Gomez, Israel Trevino and Adrian Sandoval. They were selected to the All-Valley Oak League Team in a vote of the conference's head coaches on May 12 in Oakdale.
"We feel pretty proud of what our guys accomplished," Hawks coach Greg Magni said.
Gomez made the All-VOL first team. The 5-foot-11, 175-pound junior pitcher was a unanimous selection.
"All seven of the other coaches voted for him," Magni said. "I nominated him."
Martin ranked first in the VOL in complete games (5), second in wins (5) and strikeouts (50), and fifth in ERA (3.50).
"It's such an advantage when you have someone on your team, that when you know he pitches, you have a chance to win," Magni said.
Also a threat on offense, Gomez totaled four doubles, four singles, eight walks, six runs and five RBIs. He posted an on-base percentage of .395 and slugging percentage of .353.
"He's very talented," Magni said.
"And he wants to get better."
Trevino earned second-team, VOL honors. The junior shortstop led the Hawks in batting average (.314), slugging percentage (.457) and on-base percentage (.415). He also had three doubles, five walks, two stolen bases and six runs.
"Izzy's a solid all-round player," Magni said. "He does everything right."
Sandoval received honorable-mention accolades. The senior second baseman batted .250 (10-for-40) with six runs, two stolen bases and five RBIs. He also had the fourth-highest on-base percentage on the team (.333).
Adrian's walkoff single lifted Central Valley past Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV finalist East Union, 7-6, in extra innings during the VOL season.
"He had a good year," Magni said. "He was our highest-performing senior. He really improved defensively. He made just two errors the entire season. Offensively, he had some of our clutch hits. He always took great at-bats. He rarely struck out."
Team Awards
Coach Greg Magni recognized standout players Martin Gomez, Israel Trevino, Adrian Sandoval and Rick Rogers during the Central Valley's Spring Sports Award Banquet on May 19 inside the school's gymnasium.
Gomez claimed the Most Valuable Player Award for his dominance on the mound and production at the plate.
He posted an 8-4 record with a 2.90 ERA, eight complete games, one shutout, two saves, 93 strikeouts and 33 walks. Opponents batted just .193 from the plate.
Martin hit .268 (19-for-71) with one homer, three triples, four doubles, 16 walks, 13 runs and 17 RBIs in 27 games.
Trevino won the Offensive Player of the Year Award for hitting .365 (19-for-52) with one triple, four doubles, nine runs and six RBIs in 17 games.
Sandoval was named Defensive Player of the Year.
Rogers won the Hawk Award, which signifies all-round achievement (athletics, academics and leadership).
"He fits all of those qualities," Magni said. "We're very happy he's coming back for one more season."
Rick, a junior utility player, batted .314 (27-for-86) with six doubles, eight stolen bases, 17 runs and 11 RBIs in 26 games.
"Mr. Consistency'
Greg Guerra, a sophomore utility player, ranked second on the team in batting average (.316), hits (25), triples (2), doubles (4) and RBIs (14), third in runs (12) and slugging percentage (.418), and fourth in stolen bases (4).
He made five appearances as a pitcher, compiling one win and 10 strikeouts.
Guerra batted .271 with 19 hits, seven runs and eight RBIs as a freshman.
"He definitely deserves some credit (for the team's success)," Magni said. "It's a good sign. He still has two more full seasons."
Competitive club
Central Valley finished in a three-way tie for fifth place in the VOL standings this past season.
The Hawks beat Weston Ranch twice, and Ceres High, East Union, Sierra and Sonora once.
Central Valley lost twice to Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV and VOL champion Oakdale during the regular season. Gomez and the Hawks were edged out 1-0 by Nick Vandertuig and the Mustangs on April 11 in the final meeting between the two teams.
"That's makes us feel pretty good," Magni said when asked to talk about his team's performances against Oakdale and East Union. "But we're still upset about not getting into the playoffs. We still feel like we accomplished something. We're happy with what we did. We're headed in the right direction. We have a nice core of really good players coming back next year."
The top two programs, down from three, in the eight-team VOL will participate in the playoffs in 2009. Oakdale, East Union and Manteca qualified this past season.
"It's going to take a lot more effort and work to get where we want to be," Magni said. "It's going to be a dogfight."
