Two Northwood athletes were presented the PCL Sportsmanship Award and eight Northwood athletes were recognized as IUSD Scholar-Athletes of the Year on May 14-15; four athletes were honored as Distinguished Timberwolf Athletic Leadership, two for the Tim O’Brien scholarship and two for the Athlete of the Year scholarship on May 22.
PCL Sportsmanship Award
Girls swim senior Genevieve Chomin and boys soccer senior Koyo Tanaka received the PCL Sportsmanship Award.
“It’s a huge honor to be able to represent my school,” Chomin said. “It’s amazing that out of the hundreds of athletes at Northwood and the thousands of athletes in PCL I was selected to be one of the 16 Sportsmanship recipients.”
The Sportsmanship Award is given to two seniors from each PCL school who consistently demonstrate exceptional behavior and are role models for their respective teams.
“The Sportsmanship award talks to the integrity of the sport and the integrity of the kid,” athletics director Sierra Wang said. “Are they a good teammate? Do they have integrity? Are they a good leader on and off the field?”
IUSD Scholar-Athletes and Athletes of the Year
Softball senior Riley Bajorek, baseball senior Casey Euper, wrestling senior David Grannis-Vu, cross country and track and field senior Sharice Laygo, boys swim senior Elson Lee, girls volleyball senior Alexandra Maloney, girls basketball senior Cassidy Pak and boys basketball senior Zaid Yunis were named IUSD Scholar-Athletes. Additionally, Bajorek and Yunis were named Northwood Athletes of the Year.
“Already, it’s really hard to do high school alone,” Wang said. “It’s even harder to do high school and then do four hours of practice every day after school. So to celebrate kids who have done that so successfully while going above and beyond at the varsity level, we give them the Scholar-Athlete Award.”
Seniors are honored as IUSD Scholar-Athletes for their outstanding work ethic in their game and in school. Of these Scholar-Athletes, one girl and one boy from each school are selected as Athletes of the Year.
“I’m really proud of everyone here and all of the hard work we’ve put into our sports,” Maloney said. “I’m super honored to be recognized. I want to say thank you to my coaches and my parents for supporting my athletic career.”
Distinguished Timberwolves Athletic Leadership
At the Distinguished Timberwolves Ceremony, boys wrestling senior James Armstrong, girls soccer senior Rylie Do, girls lacrosse senior Jaycee Hendrickson and baseball senior Kai Mo were recognized with the Distinguished Timberwolves Athletic Leadership award.
Northwood Athletics nominated these four for their commitment to be a positive influence and guide their teams accordingly.
“I think all of us here had really close bonds with our teammates,” Do said. “We all tried to talk to everyone throughout the season because when we graduate, they’re going to be the future of varsity. Making sure that our programs are bonded and close is important and I’m happy that this effort is appreciated.”
Athlete of the Year Scholarship
Girls track and field senior Ally Venezia and Grannis-Vu were given the Athlete of the Year Scholarship. This award is specialized for Northwood and honors two athletes who demonstrate unparalleled dedication and perseverance in their sport.
Tim O’Brien Scholarship
Boys basketball senior TJ Navarro and Pak received the Tim O’Brien scholarship. Tim O’Brien was one of Northwood’s original faculty members and through a 35 year old basketball coaching career, was inducted into the Southern California Interscholastic Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame. In his memory, this scholarship is given to athletes who embody his dedication and love for athletics.
“O’Brien was a great leader, great coach, and an even better person,” Navarro said. “He built the Northwood basketball program to what it is today. We feel his presence, so this award is special to me.”
