Amidst the team is a 3 year varsity player named Jeff Becker. He is giving the most high fives to his teammates, trying to excite them about the challenge that awaits them. He is eyeing his opponents with a calm but competitive look on his face.

Since the squad consists mostly of sophomores and juniors, Becker knows that by being a senior, he has the responsibility of being a leader placed on his shoulders.

Head coach, Vincent Encelan, sees a leadership quality in Becker. “He mostly leads by example but he is also the most vocal player on the team,” Encelan said.

Junior Justindeep Aulakh, the lengthy power forward, values the way in which Becker leads the team through example in times of struggle. “Any time during practice or during the game when we aren’t playing good, he’s not going to yell at us,” Aulakh said. “He’s gonna try to raise his level of play and in turn raise the team’s level of play.”

Junior Kris Okialda, point guard #20, Becker’s teammate, sees Becker’s leadership quality demonstrated in the preparation for games. “He leads by example during warm ups before the game, always keeping a serious face,” Okialda said. “He also gets really competitive, which makes the rest of our team play harder.”

In addition to being a leader, Becker is also known for being a supportive teammate.

“If you take a bad shot or you make a turnover, he will always pick you up and help you out when you are feeling down about your game,” Jonte said. “He’ll tell you some little things that you need to do better.”

Sophomore Chris Baca appreciates Becker’s willingness to help others on the team. “When I have something to ask, I can go to him and he’ll answer my question,” Baca said.

In addition to his support on the court, junior Brean Aquino sees the versatility in his game as a main contribution. “He can shoot, dribble, rebound, he can do a whole bunch of stuff,” Aquino said.

Becker’s dominant hand makes him a versatile basketball player. “First of all, he’s left handed that’s something you don’t see a lot in basketball,” Aulakh said.
Being left handed puts a player on offense at advantage because the defender is used to guarding right handed players and it can be tough for him to guard a left handed player.

Becker’s high school basketball career at Moreau has taught him the importance of teamwork on the court. “After playing a year on varsity, I realized that if we were going to be a successful high school team, we had to work as a team,” Becker said.

Becker has played Basketball outside of Moreau for leagues like NJB, CYO, and AAU.

Becker played Basketball from the sixth grade until sophomore year for AAU on a team called the Bay Area Wildcats. This experience developed his competitiveness and versatility on the court. “I played in higher age groups so I was playing against guys bigger, stronger, and faster,” Becker said. “I had to work hard to be able to compete with them.”

By playing with guys who were far more athletic and older than him, Becker learned the two keys of success in the game. “What I lacked in size and athleticism, I made up in heart and determination. I would be the first one on the ground if there was a loose ball,” Becker said.

While on the Wildcats, Becker had opportunities to play against the top players in the country, which have inspired Becker to improve as a basketball player. “It has allowed me to mature as a player playing against the best while also improving my game and having to bring it up to their level,” Becker said.

After sophomore year, Becker left the team in order to focus on playing football at Moreau in his junior year. Even though he had no prior experience in playing Football, Head Coach, Andrew Cotter, says Becker had a positive impact on his teammates. “When he came out his junior year, even though he was real young and never played before, he already had that leadership characteristic that people seem to follow him,” Cotter said.

Despite being a talented athlete and an exceptional leader, Becker remains humble when talking about the game. “I am a student of the game,” Becker said. “It all comes down to hard work and how bad you want to be great.”

A mixture of Hawaiian, Japanese and Mexican, with a whooping eight years of basketball under her belt, Puou is a perfect addition to the team. “I’m very honored to be on the team and I love my teammates,” Puou said.

The shortage in woman’s senior basketball players opened up a venue for underclassmen to try out. “I was surprised that I was picked for the varsity team,” Puou said. Having a team consisting of mostly underclassmen brings many positive aspects to the plate.

“Being young, Remy learns from her mistakes and she follows directions very well, and this helps in making the team as strong as it is,” teammate, freshmen Kaitlin Leguidleguid explained. One rebound is all it takes to change the tide of a game. Being a “big” (as she explained) Puou is responsible for making important offensive rebounds and putting it back up for a worthy two points.

Being showered with all the love and support from her teammates, Puou has set high expectations and aspirations during her time here playing for Moreau. “My goals are to do my best and to grow as a better person but not only on the court but off the court!” Puou said.

On the ten-day Korea Cultural Enrichment Tour that began on October 16, Cruz was lucky to take part in this excursion consisting of tours, elegant dinners with governors and mayors, and comprehensive demonstration clinics at Korean universities.

Although many would consider this a tourist trip, Cruz explained that she was there to train for taekwondo competition. “We trained three different days,” Hazel said. “Two times we were at the Kiemyung University, and another time at Kukkiwon, which is the place to get your black belt in taekwondo.”

Cruz is a part of an elite taekwondo demonstration team: Team-M. Since 2004, this San Jose team has performed at more than 100 events in the state, country, and around the world. The team was even inducted into the Taekwondo Hall of Fame in 2007, where they were awarded “Taekwondo Demo Team of the Year”.

A demo team is one that performs the art of taekwondo rather than fights competitively. “Mostly, what we do is put on a show of our forms, breaking boards and bricks, and sparring.” Cruz said. All of this is set to dramatic music, and to enhance the “awe” factor, they are sometimes blindfolded while flip-kicking a board, those holding the board often standing on a chair or sitting on the shoulders of another teammate for elevation.

Cruz and her team trained rigorously during their stay in Korea. She explained the numerous kicking and sparring drills they would do, the running, the pushups, and the core workouts.

Most significant of these training techniques is the poomsae which is Korean for “forms”. “When we do that, we break down our forms and movements until our muscles remember them,” Cruz said.

The team demoed two times: once in a local tournament in Suwon, South Korea and once at Kiemyung University in Daegu, South Korea. She wasn’t doing all of this for nothing either. “Just in those ten days alone, I got so many awards and free promotion stuff,” Cruz said. “I got magazines, posters, certificates for training at Kukkiwon, and a very special award presented by Grandmaster Lee for being a part of a poomsae seminar at Kiemyung. He’s the only taekwondo grandmaster who can use the Olympic seal on certificates.”

Training with Grandmaster Kyu-Hyung Lee was a highlight for Cruz. Grandmaster Lee impressed the team with his speed and agility during drills and lectured them on the ideology behind taekwondo and its purpose. “He told us about his disappointment in most studios’ emphasis on only sparring and how they forget the importance of poomsae or form. He taught us how taekwondo is more than just sparring; taekwondo is an art form with deep roots that need to be understood in order to improve ourselves as martial artists,” Cruz said.

Since the 2nd grade, Cruz has been practicing taekwondo. She is currently a black belt and team leader. The first time performing with the team was at the U.S. Nationals in San Jose in 2007. “I remember being really nervous and worried that I wouldn’t perform well,” Cruz said, “but I ended up doing fine, breaking my boards and all.”

Even her friends can’t help but to notice her pursuits. “ I think its cool how Hazel has something that not just anyone would do,” senior Kristina Nguyen said.

Culturally, the trip was stimulating as Cruz and her team toured the Korean peninsula and visited places such as Muju, which is the region selected for the construction of the new taekwondo park facility and known for being far removed from city life. “The trip has given me a good look on Korea itself,” Cruz said. “It’s such a culturally strong place, and this really reflects on taekwondo.”

While most people will only be able to watch the martial arts through movies and television, Cruz will continue to live these dreams out, and the trip has only reinsured her martial arts journey. “Taekwondo impacts every area of my life,” Cruz said. “For me, it’s something I can’t step away from. It will always be there for the rest of my life, making me a more driven person and shaping my characteristics and the way I think. It’s what defines me.”

Anticipation hung in the air as everyone in the Ivaldi Student Center watched the star of the hour flip through her contract. Students began tapping the tables, in response to Krisman’s request. The crowd’s drum roll burst into a roaring applause, chanting “Jor-dan! Jor-dan!” as the ink from her pen finalized her dreams.

Senior Jordan Lewis signed to play softball for Eastern Carolina University on Friday, Nov. 13. She was offered a full ride scholarship.

Although she was also sought after by San Jose State University, a visit to Greenville, North Carolina made her decision an easy one.

“The coaches are one, two of the most genuine people I know, and they were so interested in me,” Lewis said. ”When I went there on my official visit, I fell in love. I knew this was where I wanted to spend the next four years of my life. The school, the support, the team, the coaches, and the town just sold it for me.”

While ECU serves as Lewis’s ideal school, she proves to be ECU’s ideal player by posing as a triple threat on the field.

“I can hit for power, I can hit for contact, and I can bunt,     and beat it out,” Lewis said, “I’m tall and fast, but I’m not a stick so I surprise people.”

Her passion for softball began when she first saw her older sister Brittany play. Lewis has been training with travel ball coach, the well-known Don Ford since the 8th grade. Ford’s expertise in the game has helped off for two other softball players, Alyssa Haber and Vicky Galindo, both of whom are currently on the U.S. Olympic softball team.

Although Lewis has been playing for the past 13 years, her official training began 5 years ago and has intensified this past year and a half. Over the summer, she woke up at 6 a.m. during the week and between 7-9 a.m. on the weekends if there wasn’t a game. Lewis’ training consists of lifting, leg and core work, sprints, batting practice, and catching groundballs at least two times a week. She would also run 3 miles a day, but because of school she runs when she can fit it in.

Lewis’s many years on the field has provided her with the necessary experience to not only conquer this sport physically, but also mentally.

“I have a purpose,” Lewis said. “Basically I just tell myself to keep going, no matter how much it hurts or how hard it seems to push through, because in the end it’ll be worth it.”

As head coach for the varsity softball team, Krisman has watched Lewis’s progress carefully for the past three years. Krisman has seen Lewis transform into a more thoughtful player, turning areas of weakness into regions of strength, and impulse into strategy.

“Jordan’s improvement comes from her ability to understand the not so obvious characteristics of the game,” Krisman said. “She can strategize, pick better pitches to hit, read better when she is at the plate, she has just taken a better leadership role as well as stepping up her knowledge of the game.”

Her incredible skills and tactical style has solidified her “beastly” status among her teammates and has made her advice golden. They seek out her constructive criticism, whether it is on their batting techniques or how to keep their spirits up during a tough game.

“I was kind of struggling on my batting and I asked her to watch me and give me tips,” varsity softball teammate, senior Alexandra Preston said. “She was really patient with watching me all the time and making little hints and suggestions to help me bat better.”

In agreement, Krisman said, “Jordan is the person everyone turns to for hitting advice. She is like a hitting guru.”

Lewis constantly thinks about her teammates and ways to keep their morale up and running. Her leadership and positivity will be missed by the Mariners, but will be greatly appreciated by the ECU Pirates.

“I cheer the batter on, my pitcher on, get over excited on plays just so other people feed off that,” Lewis said. “I want my team positive and feeding off my positive energy, if that’s not too cheesy.”

Cheesy? Preston doesn’t think so.

“She usually gets us to cheer in the dugout or make a comparison to another school. Just letting us know that we’re better than how we’re playing at the time,” Preston said.

Before every game, Lewis makes CDs full of motivational music to get her team pumped up, relaxes the infield with pep talks, and keeps the field full of laughter by telling jokes and sharing handshakes with her teammates.

Lewis’s assistance and encouragement to her team resembles the same support and guidance her mother, Tami Lewis, provided her with. At the ceremony, Lewis’s mother dedicated much of her ability to support her daughter to her employers, thanking them for allowing her to attend Jordan’s games and practices. Lewis is more than grateful for her mother’s presence throughout her softball career.

“My mom is the biggest help and support and is always there when I need her,” Lewis said. “She always went to games and practices, helps in school and just always has my best interest in mind.”

ECU has all the qualities of Lewis’s dream school, but is far away from the people she loves. Despite the separation from her family and friends, Lewis remembers what got her into ECU and recognizes what her future career in softball has to offer.

“I just know I have a goal,” said Lewis, “I have a lot of people who are jealous that I have this great opportunity and have a full ride to college, and I know all my work has paid off.”

“I listened to Owl City on repeat,” said Lee. “I focused and concentrated, stretched and super hydrated.”

When 3 p.m. hit, Castro Valley High’s school bells rang and unlike the usual hubbub of after school excitement, silence surfaced around CV’s tennis courts as spectators watched the final matches of the HAAL Tournament with great anticipation. The main attraction of the day was the singles match between Mariner Jana Lee and Castro Valley Trojan junior Sarah Lemp.

Deja vu hit Lee as she found herself playing against the same opponent that ended her advancement to the finals at last year’s HAALs. Lee, however, refused to face the same outcome as last time.

Lee quickly triumphed over Lemp in the first set, winning 6-0. Although most players typically hydrate themselves with either water or Powerade, Lee drinks both. During changeovers, she sips a bit of water, takes a bite of a chocolate brownie Cliff Bar, and then gulps down some Powerade.

“That’s just what my body is accustomed to, it gives me energy and something to chew on,” Lee said.

The second set, however, was not such an easy win. Both players played an intensely long set, packed with more rallies than Lee’s liking.

“I should have tried to change up the pace more,” Lee said.

In addition to the rigorous rallies, Lemp’s alleged bad line calls cost Lee a few games and stripped her of her composure. Filled with frustration, Lee called for a line judge and tried to relax.

“I tried to calm myself,” Lee said. “I told myself to look it over later and super focus on winning the match first.”

And win was just what she did. Despite her annoyance with the bad calls, Lee beat Lemp 6-4 in the second set and gloriously maintained her ranking of first seed.

“This is everything I’ve been practicing for,” Lee exclaimed, “I really wanted it, so badly.”

As she moves on to NCS, Lee continues to prepare herself for her upcoming match on Tuesday November 17th at Santa Rosa High School. Physically, Lee plans on playing some practice sets with competitive players. Mentally, Lee feels that confidence is the most important mindset to go into a match with.

“I know I’m at least some sort of challenge,” Lee said.

While bystanders will watch the NCS match in silence, Jana Lee’s mind will be blasting Owl City on repeat and maintain one simple thought, “Bring it home.”

“Tonight was a huge disappointment for all of us, coaches, players, and even the fans. We went in expecting a win and unfortunately it didn’t happen,” Captain Stefany Taylor said.

Moreau’s sweep of the Trojans in the regular season didn’t seem to carry over to the postseason as the playoff atmosphere in the Trojan Den proved to be a true home-court advantage.

“We were too confident,” Jessica King said.

“We all worked very hard but in the end Castro Valley was coming after us since we had beat them twice already,” Rebecca Quintero said.

Playing like a team that was looking for revenge, Castro Valley swept Moreau in three straight and almost led the entire match.

Moreau started extremely fast in game three taking a 9-1 lead, but surrendered the lead when questionable calls were made by the line judges, who ironically volleyball players on Castro Valley.

“We had some really good plays, but it just wasn’t our day,” Jade Santos said.

The night wasn’t all bad for the Moreau Girls volleyball team as superstar Stefany Taylor received the Player of the Year Award and First Team All-League in the HAAL. Laura Burckhardt and Megan Scully also were awarded First Team honors and Jade Santos and was given Second Team All-League. Honorable Mention went to Melissa Paterson and Rina Taufa’asau-Tui.

The team now looks ahead to NCS, which begins next Wednesday and hope to regain their excellent play.

“As a team we know for a fact that we are better than how we played tonight,” Quintero said.

“The team has a lot of potential and one loss isn’t going to bring us down. We still have NCS to look forward to and tonight’s game is in the past,” Taylor said.

The girls find out who and where they play this Sunday and are looking to extend their postseason.

Zachary DeCastro for the Explorer

The varsity Moreau football team defeated the Albany Cougars at home last Friday, October 9, 54-13.

Scoring started off early in the first quarter with an 80-yard run by running back Chris Allen for the Mariners. Running back Brandon Nugent finished off the drive with a 14-yard run for a touchdown.

In the second quarter, Mariner quarterback Adam Robinson connected with tight end Jeff Becker for a 35-yard touchdown to make the score 14-0.

The Cougars still had some fight in them. They intercepted a Robinson pass and returned it for a 55-yard touchdown. Soon after, the Cougars returned a punt for a touchdown, but the play was called back because of a penalty on the play. The Cougars, again, bounced right back and completed a 70-yard touchdown throw. With the extra point blocked, the Cougars brought the game close: 14-13 Mariners.

The Mariners countered with two touchdowns to end the quarter. Joey Fiandor, returned a kick-off for 90-yards. Wide receiver Brannon Pantoja, grabbed a 25-yard touchdown pass to end the half.

At the half, the Mariners lead the Cougars: 28-13

In the third quarter, the Cougars tried for a first down on 4th and 5. They were sorely disappointed when it backfired as Nugent flew in for the sack, which resulted in a turnover-on-downs.

The Mariners never backed down, lighting the scoreboard up twice more in the third quarter. A muffed punt recovery by Kyle Cardana led to a 4-yard touchdown run for Allen.

Allen would then make another spectacular effort with a 53-yard run, made possible through openings created by the offensive line. Nugent finished the drive off with yet another touchdown.

Finally, in the fourth quarter, Nugent scored his third touchdown of the night, completing Moreau scoring for the game. The Cougars conceived a last ditch effort with a touchdown followed by a two-point conversion, but that was not enough.

“We worked hard during summer and it all comes up to the defining moment of whether we execute our jobs right or we just come back even stronger,” wide receiver and cornerback senior Mark Nisnisan said.

This improves Moreau’s league record to 2-0. They are going to defend their undefeated record Saturday, October 17th, against the Panthers of St. Mary’s College High School in Berkeley.

The 26th annual Mariner Invitational was held at Garin Park on October 17, 2009.
Former head Cross Country coach and current history teacher, Phil Wilder, established this annual event in 1984 with a specific goal in mind. “I was looking for a way to promote the sport,” Wilder said.

Today, Wilder’s goal has been reached. “There were 1400 runners from 47 schools at the meet,” head Cross Country coach, Enrique Henriquez, said.

Despite the competitive environment, the Cross Country Team managed to make it in the Top 4 of each race.

The Frosh/Soph Boys Team came in 2nd place, missing first place by 2 points. The Frosh/Soph Girls Team came in 4th place. “Considering there were only eight of them, this is very good,” Henriquez said.

The JV Boys Team came in first place. The JV Girls Team came in 2nd place.

Both Varsity Boys and Girls Teams came in first place.

Runners also made significant improvements in race times.

Senior Michael Capule, a new member to the team, broke his personal best by 2 minutes.

Senior Erik Zaro almost broke the all time of 13:30 for the 2-mile race at Garin Park, but fell short 7 seconds.

Junior Victor Fuerta also almost broke all-time but fell short 0.4 seconds.

Senior Anne Marie Vicencio shaved off 5 minutes from her personal best time for the 2-mile race.

Junior Andrew McIntire believes Moreau Cross Country’s success at the invitational sends as important message to other teams. “It shows we know our course well and we know what we are doing,” McIntire said.

Along with being a successful golfer, Lau is a player who everyone enjoys having on the team. “ She’s funny,” Bright said. “She always has a positive attitude. She’s fun to be around” freshman teammate Carina Mendoza said.

Indeed, making friends was the main reason why Lau joined Golf. “I wanted to meet new people. I wanted to try it because its (Golf) new to me,” Lau said.

After playing for about a month, Lau enjoys playing Golf. “It’s fun. I like that its outside. I like the girls on the team.”

Lauren has quickly discovered the keys to becoming a successful golfer. “Staying positive during the game. Taking advice from other girls and the coach.”

Smith creates a positive environment within the team from which everyone can benefit. “He has a good attitude that makes everyone feel better and work harder”, senior Elliot Lopes said.

Karissa Canonizado, varsity girls captain, recognizes Smith’s commitment to the team. “He is one of those people who constantly shows up to practice. He’s always pushing it.”

She has noticed a change in his performance. “Since he seems to be devoted to the sport and takes practice seriously, I’ve seen him improve.”

Smith accredits his success to his teammates. “It is my teammates pushing me (and) when they get better that makes me want to do just as good as them,” he said.

Smith believes that the team’s success is determined by how well the teammates work with each other. “I don’t think just an individual can make a team better its the whole team and how they make each other better.”

Battling through the arduous workouts has helped him gain an appreciation for his teammates. “It feels like a family,” Smith said.

Smith’s personal goal is quite simple. “My goal is to do the best I can and put in my all for every race to help the team as much as possible.”