Page 9 - Reedley Exponent 6-21-18 E-edition

B3 | Thursday, June 21, 2018
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City/County football game
Former IHS and RHS players suit up one last time
File Photo / The Exponent
Paul Mitchell – shown here in a picture from 2012 with his wife, Madelyn – passed away in January after a long fight with cancer. Reedley College will honor Mitchell by renaming the gym floor "Paul Mitchell Court"
RC to rename gym floor
after Paul Mitchell
Staff Report
Paul Mitchell was the voice Reedley College Ti- gers basketball and football fans heard for 61 years and now his name forever will be etched in the minds of Tigers fans.
Reedley College an- nounced on June 12 that the State Center Community College District Board of Trustees unanimously ap- proved renamin the gymna- sium floor at Reedley Col- lege “Paul Mitchell Court.”
Mitchell, who died on Jan. 13 after a battle with cancer, was the public ad- dress announcer for Reed-
ley College football and men’s basketball from 1953 to 2014.
He was inducted into the Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000.
“I know how special Paul was to this commu- nity. He is already a mem- ber of the Reedley College Hall of Fame, but I wanted to do something else,” said George Takata, Reedley College director of market- ing and communications. “I thought what if we named the basketball court after him. Everyone liked the idea. How can you not do
See MITCHELL on page B4
ABOVE: Adam Simonian (left) and Bradley Collins, former Immanuel High Eagles football players, participated in the 64th Annual City/ County Football All-Star Game on June 15 at Lamonica Stadium in Clovis. RIGHT: Daniel Badilla, former Reedley High Pirates football player, played on the defense for the City Squad during the All-Star Game.
Photos by Chris Aguirre / The Exponent
By Chris Aguirre
Chris@midvalleypublishing.com
Playing in the 64th Annual City/County Football All-Star Game was the perfect ending for former Immanuel High standouts Adam Simonian and Bradley Collins.
The duo strapped on the pads one final time and helped lead the County team to a 10-5 victory over the City team on June 15 at Lamonica Stadium in Clovis.
For Simonian – who will attendFresnoStatethisfall – playing in the All-Star game was bittersweet.
“This makes me realize how much I am going to miss
football,” Simonian said. “This was probably going to be my last game ever. I was just tak- ing it all in and trying have the best time I could.”
Simonian will major in Ag business at Fresno State.
“Going out on the field and representing Immanuel was cool. I just wanted to give it my all,” Simonian said. “It was my way of giving back to all the coaches who helped mold me over the years.”
Collins, who started at wide receiver for the County team, said it also would be his final game.
See FOOTBALL on page B4
Krystale Gutierrez, former Immanuel High girls basketball standout, will attend and play basketball at Fresno Pacific University beginning in the fall. Gutierrez leaves Immanuel as the program's all-time leading scorer.
IHS standout Krystale Gutierrez heading to FPU
File Photo / The Exponent
The Reedley College Tigers football team will open their 2018 season on Saturday, Sept. 1 against De Anza College in Cupertino. The Tigers are coming off a 4-6 record in 2017.
Contributed
Krystale Gutierrez, for- mer Immanuel High Eagles girls basketball payer, will continue her basketball career at Fresno Pacific University.
“I am glad to say I chose Fresno Pacific University,” Gutierrez said. “It is close to home, my teammates were very welcoming, and the coaches create an environ- ment that I believe in. I'm very excited to begin my educational and athletic jour- neys here, and I am looking forward to the relationships I will build at FPU.”
Gutierrez reunites with
James Stevens, former Im- manuel High head coach, who coached Gutierrez her fresh- man and sophomore seasons in 2014 and 2015. Stevens has been the assistant coach at FPU for the past two seasons.
A two-time Central Se- quoia League MVP, Gutierrez leaves Immanuel High School as the program’s all-time lead- er with 1,678 career points. She ranks second in rebounds (921), assists (292), and steals (330) and helped the Eagles to three Valley Championships (2015, 2017 and 2018).
“Krystale is a proven win- ner and team leader who was asked to do a lot at Immanuel,
and we will focus on sharpen- ing her skills so that it trans- lates to success at our level,” said Tim Beauregard, Fresno Pacific women's basketball head coach. “She has played in multiple championship games and never wavered in her ability to find success on the biggest of stages. She has a versatile skill set and a worker’s mentality. She has shown the ability to score the ball from many different lev- els, and she will have an op- portunity to be a great player for us.”
Tigers open season on Sept. 1 against De Anza
6, Reedley College will re- sume Golden Coast Confer- ence against Gavilan College on Oct. 13 in Gilroy. They then will play San Jose City College on Oct. 20, at RHS.
They travel for a game against Merced College on Oct. 27, before playing their final home game of the regu- lar season on Nov. 3 against Monterey Peninsula College.
The Tigers end the regu- lar season on Nov. 10 against Hartnell College in Salinas.
A full preview of the Reedley College Tigers foot- ball team and schedules for the Tigers women's soccer and volleyball teams will be published in a future edition of The Exponent.
File Photo / The Exponent
RC football schedule
Staff Report
Coming off a 4-6 record in 2017, the Reedley College Tigers football team is look- ing for a breakout season in 2018.
Here is a look at Reedley College's 2018 schedule which was released on June 18.
The Tigers will open their season on Saturday, Sept. 1, against De Anza Col- lege in Cupertino.
Reedley College will then play Yuba College on Sept. 8,
in their home opener at Sal Gonzalez Field at Reedley High School.
The Tigers make a trip to San Pablo on Sept. 15 for a game against Contra Costa College.
Reedley College will then have back-to-back home games. On Sept. 22, the Tigers will play Foothill College. They then will start Golden Coast League play by hosting Cabrillo College on Sept. 29.
After a bye week on Oct.