The Corcoran High Class Athletes of the Year were honored last Wednesday during the school’s annual Athlete of the Year banquet. The banquet was held in the Technology Learning Center (TLC).
Imari Russell was the senior class female athlete of the year. Russell is a four-year medal winner in basketball. She played power forward for Coach White and was named the team’s Most Valuable Player and was also the East Sequoia League’s MVP. Russell also earned all-county honors from The Hanford Sentinel. She averaged 16.8 points per game as well as 8.8 rebounds.
As a first year member of the league champion track team, Russell was a sprinter and a thrower. Her events included the 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash, 400 meter dash and both relays. She was named the team’s Golden Panther. Imari earned all-league for both relays. She was also involved in student council and was the ASB treasurer.
Other female nominees included Lesley Alvarez, Cynthia Contreras and Jacquelyn Noble.
Senior class male athlete of the year was Dillon Fugate. Fugate earned four year medals in both football and track. On the football team he was a receiver who earned second team all-league honors. He helped lead his team to a Div. V Valley title. Coach Richard Lane said he dominated on both sides of the ball and that his dedication to his teammates and friends are great attributes.
As a member of the track team, Fugate won three Gold medals in the league meet. He is the East Sequoia League champion in the pole vault, long jump and he ran the second leg of the 4×100 relay team, who won Gold. He helped the track team go undefeated in league and claim a league title.
Other male nominees included Da’Shaun Henderson, Trent Olmos and Nico Portillo.
The Junior class female athlete of the year is Kaitlyn Romero. Romero is a three-sport athlete who competed in volleyball, basketball and softball. She was the defensive specialist and outside hitter for the varsity volleyball team. She was the point guard for the basketball team and on the softball team she played third base and shortstop. She earned second team all-league honors in softball.
Other junior class female nominees included Dulce Beas and Jullisa Lopez.
The Junior class male athlete of the year was Jonathan Matson. Matson is a runner who competed on the cross country and track teams. He helped the cross country team win a league title. Matson was an individual Valley champion and he went to the state meet. He finished the season with six first place finishes in a row. He was named the team’s Most Valuable Player. As a member of the CHS track team, Matson competed in the 600, 800, 3200 and on the 4×400 relay. He placed first at the league championship meet in all his events. He helped the track team go undefeated in the East Sequoia League. He competed at the area meet and took second place. He was named the track team’s Golden Panther.
Other junior class male nominees included Legary Austin and Alex Sarmienta.
The Sophomore class female athlete of the year was Jasmine Romero. Romero is three-sport athlete who played on the JV volleyball JV basketball and JV softball teams. She played in several different positions for both the basketball and softball teams. In basketball she played point guard and in the two and three spots and in softball she played catcher, leftfield, centerfield, and short stop.
Other female class athletes included Alexis Lerma and Mylene Moran.
The Sophomore class male athlete of the year was Marvin Machado. Machado competed in three-sports. He was a starter on both offense and defense for the league champion and Div. V Valley champion football team. As a member of the JV basketball team, Machado played center and was the team’s scholar athlete. He was also moved up to the varsity team for playoffs. On the track team, Machado competed in the discus and shot put. He placed third in league in discus. He helped his team earn a league title and he was named the team’s most improved player.
Other male nominees included Cristian Escobedo and Matthew Romero.
The Freshman Class female athlete of the year is Ashley Pappilli. Pappilli played on the girls’ tennis team. Her tennis ability allowed her to crack the starting lineup on an undefeated Valley championship team from 2013 with seven out of eight players returning. She only lost one match in singles throughout the season on JV. As a member of the track team, Ashley competed in several events including the pole vault, high jump and triple jump. She helped her team remain undefeated and claim an East Sequoia League title.
Other female nominees included Leah Holquin and Ashley Salas.
The Freshman class male athlete of the year is Joe Romero. Romero was a three-sport athlete. He ran for the cross country team, in the frosh-soph division and helped his team win an ESL championship. As a member of the wrestling team, Romero’s record was 39-11. He was voted outstanding wrestler and placed first in the Dinuba Invitational and the Redwood Invitational. He also earned another first place at the Mission Oak Wrestling Tourney. He took second place in league, second in Valley and placed ninth at the Masters. He was also a state qualifier and set two new school records. He was the school’s foirst freshman state qualifier in school history and set a record for 20 consecutive wins. On the track team, Romero was a distance runner and helped his team claim an ESL title.
Other male nominees included Christian Gonzalez and Roy Salinas.
