A note from Coach Bowman.

This article is dedicated to the parents and friends of the Fillmore High school girls tennis team. On 9-26-17, we played against Santa Paula at their high school courts. What made this event so special was the parental support of the team, not to mention Mr. Ito’s (Principal) appearance at the match. A special thanks to my friends, Sara, Gae, Joy, Ray, and Doug who showed up to watch the match. This is our foundation and a necessity for the team. This explains and reinforces the enthusiasm I see on the courts. I’m sure the parents were amazed to see their daughters playing the very technical game of tennis. Tennis is a skill based sport and takes a considerable amount of time to learn. I say that it takes about three months to learn all of the basic strokes; some may have a different idea. What is also great about this sport is the future opportunity to play with parents and friends down the road as tennis is a social sport and can b e played at all ages. Yes parents can learn too. Back to the team members; I am particularly amazed at two of my first year players, Ashley Tamayo and Jessica Flores, as they are tackling singles this season. This is a huge accomplishment to have the confidence to be on the court solo. Instilling confidence with this sport is always a positive outcome of athletics. Most of the girls are playing a sport they have never played before and are having fun! Briana, Karime, Maria, Marisa, and Amairani are getting better by the day. Good job team. We have work to do, lines to run, serves to master as we have more competitions down the road.

Submitted by Coach Tanya Gonzales

(9/21/17) Fillmore vs Santa Paula and all 3 teams came home with a victory!

Frosh scores: 25-22, 25-17, JV scores: 26-24, 25-15, Varsity scores: 20-25, 25-22, 25- 23, and 25-12. Key players were Johana Garcia with 3 serving aces, 5 kills, and 6 blocks; Dezeray Zavala had 8 serving aces, 15 digs, and 4 kills; Lindsey Brown walked away with 21 digs, a serving ace, and 2 kills; Tori Gonzales had 3 serving aces, 10 digs, 3 kills, and 17 assists.

(9/26/17) Fillmore vs Santa Clara all 3 teams won. Frosh scores: 25-21, 25-21; JV scores: 25-8, 25-17, Varsity scores: 25-12, 17-25, 25-17 and 26-24. Standouts were Johana Garcia 4 kills, 3 blocks; Lindsey Brown 13 digs, 1 ace, 5 kills; Dez Zavala 3 digs, 6 kills; Tori Gonzales 16 assists, 3 aces, and even though there are no stats Tori Villegas had a great offensive game.

Submitted by Coach Lindsey Cota

The Fillmore Boys Water Polo team’s first game this year was against Villanova on 09/13/17, and was a shut out, with Villanova taking the win. However, as a team we hung in there and grew from the experience. We had our second game of the season on Friday 09/15/17 against Nordhoff, and performed a lot better than we did against Villanova. Nordhoff left with the win, but we gained valuable experience and were proud to get some points on the board. Our high scorers for the game were Sam Guzman, and Juan Perez.

This is only the second year our school has had a program, and it's a very new sport to many members of our community. We are a very young team, and several of our 10 players have just learned to swim during our practices over the past few weeks. A few of them have just gotten to a point where they'll jump into the water, and allow their heads to be submerged. It's obvious that they have a desire to improve, and they strive to get better everyday. The tasks that lay ahead of them at the start of the season were definitely daunting for our non swimmers, and not everybody could handle the amount of effort and sheer will that they needed to have to make it this far. Two of our players in particular have improved by leaps and bounds. Jorge Lizarraga, and Eddie Rodriguez both began a few weeks ago as players who had to hold on to the wall and couldn't swim more than a few feet at most without stopping. Both players have now played in games, and Eddie plays for a full quarter at a time, at 100% effort without needing or asking for a break. The advancements they've made have been nothing short of spectacular and I'm very impressed by them.

Submitted by Coach Epi Torres

On Friday, Fillmore’s top Cross Country athletes competed at one of the early season quality meets, the Woodbridge Invitational. This meet is a pre-season indicator of how well your training and conditioning measures up to the other quality school programs that participate in this highly competitive Invitational.

The Freshman boys started the day off on a positive note. Jesse De La Cruz and Fabian Del Villar lined up at the starting line along with 227 other competitors. Jesse ran his way to an impressive fourth place finish running a 17:12.2. This was Fillmore's top individual finish on the day. He was followed by his teammate Fabian who also ran impressively finishing in 8th place and posted a time of 17:24.9. Both athletes were awarded medals.

The second race for the Flashes featured the tandem of Davis Flores and Jesus Martinez. There were 241 competitors in this race. Both harriers medaled with Davis finishing in 15th place and running a personal best time of 17:08.8 and Jesus finishing in 45th in 18:06.7.

The Varsity girls race had a total of 32 teams and 234 individuals toed the line. The Fillmore girls ran to a third place finish, 18 points behind 4th ranked CIF Southern Section team Bishop Amat. The Flashes were led by Junior Carissa Rodriguez who finished in 6th place in a personal best time of 18:01, she was followed by a much improved Diana Perez who finished in 13th place in 18:25.2, Vanessa Avila 29th in 19:07.3, Giselle Perez 57th in 19:48.8, Anahi Pascual 59th in 19:56, Jacqueline Perez 104th in 20:55.6 and Allison Recancoj 116th in 20:56. The girls were awarded a third place finish plaque for their fine effort. The top 5 athletes in this race were also awarded finisher medals.

The boys race had a total of 27 teams and 195 runners. Fillmore boys finished in 3rd place as a team placing them ahead of Bishop Amat the 8th ranked team in the current CIF Southern Section D4 rankings. The top performer for the Flashes this week, was senior Everardo Garcia Magana who finished in 14th place and posted the fastest time of the day for the boys in 15:40:8. He was followed by Michael Sanchez 19th in 15:45.2, Jesus Castro 36th in 16:05.4, Sergio Perez 40th in 16:16.8, Rey Laureano 16:19.3, Nick Villela 62nd in 16:40.4, and Jonathan Ordaz 65th in 16:44.7. The top 5 runners for Fillmore averaged an excellent 16:01 over the 3 mile course, and were awarded individual medals. This team also won a team plaque.

On Saturday the remainder of the Fillmore teams competed at the Ojai Invitational. For the first time this year they competed over a hilly, challenging course.

The first girls race was competed over a 3 mile course. Arielle Estrada led the Fillmore group finishing in 83rd place in 23:00.8. She was followed by Emma Orozco 117th in 23:46.3, and Michelle Reyes 135th in 24:32.4.

The boys followed and also ran the 3 mile course. Top runner was Matthew Munoz who finished in 150th in 19:45.8, he was followed by Alex Recancoj 151st in 19:46.4, Erik Hernandez 196th in 20:40.5, Gustavo Valdez 258th in 22:24.7 and Daniel Cruz 264th in 22:48.2.

The second group of girls ran a shorter 1.85 course. They were led by Jacqueline Ruiz who finished was 18th in 13:58.8. She was followed by Lorena Izarraras 30th in 14:30.8, Isabella De La Cruz 37th in 14:52.3, Paulina Fernandez 50th in 15:28.2, Sandra Murillo 62nd in 16:02.3, Eva Vieyra 92nd in 17:07.5, Liliana Felix 93rd in 17:08.4, and Emma Ortiz 102nd in 17:41.9. The top 4 Fillmore runners in this race were awarded finisher medals.

The second group of boys also ran a 1.85 course. Top runner for this race was David Bustos 60th place in 12:42.5. David was award an individual medal for his fine effort. He was followed by Luis Leon 65th in 12:51.4, Erick Gutierrez 74th in 13:04.5, Samuel Kafka 75th in 13:05.7, and Andrew Otineru 93rd in 13:38.4.

The Flashes will next compete on September the 20th at El Camino Real Park in Ventura. This will be the first of three league meets that will determine League Championships and which Varsity teams will represent the Tri-County Athletic Association at the Southern Section Division 4 CIF Prelims meet.

A note from tennis coach Bowman.

To catch up with past events, Fillmore high school girls tennis played against Villanova and Bishop Diego high schools. Playing these two tough teams has definitely raised the skill level of the Fillmore team. For example, Bishop Diego’s number one singles player is ranked in junior tennis in California, so you can imagine what it was like to return a killer serve from this great player. Considering this, playing against a very good player forces our Fillmore girls to play quicker and stronger. Even though Bishop Diego’s team was good, the Fillmore girls returned many tough shots and revealed the hard work endured over these past few months! I am proud to watch them compete against other teams. On 9-18-17, Fillmore played St. Bonaventure at the Ventura College courts with a final score of Fillmore 2, St Bonaventure 16. Briana Lopez, and Ashley Tamayo scored the two points for Fillmore. (Each set won is counted as a point in high school tennis) We hope to see our tennis fans at one of the following competitions; especially in Santa Paula being a hop skip and a jump from Fillmore. Fillmore will compete against Nordoff on 9-21-17 and 10-17-17, Santa Paula on 9-26-17, and 10-19-17, Santa Clara on 9-28-17, Laguna Blanca on 10-3-17, and Villanova on 10-5-17.

I want to thank the support of the parents of our girls team. This foundation is evident as the girls are respectful and enthusiastic to learn and improve their game . A special congratulations to a new player Jessica Flores for playing singles for the first time against St. Bonaventure. Great job Jessica! You should see this girl move on the court. Thank you to Fillmore high school and all of their support for the tennis team.

Submitted by Coach Tanya Gonzales

The Fillmore Flashes played Malibu on September 12th in Fillmore. Frosh: 25-16, 25-23 JV: 25-18, 25-20 Varsity lost to the sharks with each match closer to their opponent. Varsity: 4-25, 18-25, 18-25. Strong players for the evening were Kasey Crawford with 1 serving ace, 8 kills with some strategically placed hits. Lindsey Brown had 9 digs, 1 serving ace, and 1 kill. Tori Gonzales had 4 kills, 2 serving aces, a few balls saved on defense and 12 assists. Thursday, September 14th the Lady Flashes took on Thacher. Only JV and Varsity levels played and defeated Thacher. JV: 25-13, 25-17 Varsity: 25-22, 25-21, 25-18.

Submitted by Coach David Mac Donald

On Tuesday, September 12th Fillmore took on St. Bonaventure. The Lady Flashes won St. Bonaventure with a score of 258 to 275.

On Thursday, September 14th Fillmore hosted Bishop Diego and came out on top with a score of 239 to 240. Fillmore Girls Golf evens its record to 3-3.

All Youth Raiders Football & Cheer photos courtesy of Crystal Gurrola.
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All Youth Raiders Football & Cheer photos courtesy of Crystal Gurrola.

On Friday, September 8th Fillmore's Cross Country teams competed at the Rosemead Invitational. The course is fairly flat with many turns, a few hills, and 50 % grass. Eight races were contested, four at each grade level for both boys and girls.

The first race of the day featured the freshman girls. For the second race in a row, they were led by Isabela De La Cruz who finished in 72nd place in 25:02.5, followed by Liliana Felix 112th in 27:34.2, and Aliyah Heredia 117th in 27:48.2.

The freshman boys team had the top team finish of the day. They finished in second place overall, two points out of first. They were led by Rey Laureano, who finished in second place in an excellent 17:17.1. He was supported by outstanding running from Jesse De La Cruz 10th in 18:13.4, Fabian Del Villar 12th in 18:25.8, Matthew Munoz 28th in 19:05.5, David Bustos 92nd in 21:18.4 and Erick Gutierrez 131st in 22:44. The top 4 individuals in this race were also medal winners, and the team won a second place plaque.

The sophomore girls performed very well with all 3 finishing in the top 24 and medaling. Top finisher was Vanessa Avila in 6th place running a swift 20:12.2. She was followed by a much improved Giselle Perez 15th in 20:51.9, and Nicole Gonzalez 24th in 21:40.7.

The Sophomore boys finished in 8th place in the team competition. The best time in this division was turned in by newcomer Davis Flores. Davis ran an excellent 17:39.6 and finished in 11th. He was followed by Jesse Martinez 20th in 17:58.9, Alexander Manzo 35th in 18:46.5, Andrew Otineru 74th in 19:43.9, and Samuel Kafka 137th in 21:14.4. The top three runners were awarded medals for their top performances.

The junior girls team finished in 7th place in the team competition. They were led by Fillmore’s lone Division Champion Carissa Rodriguez who claimed 1st place in a race of 183 competitors. Her finish time was an impressive 18:44.4. Carissa was awarded a coveted 1st place champion trophy for her fine effort. Diana Perez also ran well finishing in 7th place, posting a time of 19:30.5. She was followed by Cecilia Cisneros 44th in 21:45.1, Emma Orozco 58th in 22:31.7, and Marisol Ramos 158th in 28:33.7. Four of these competitors were medal recipients.

The junior boys ran well enough to finish in 7th place as a team. The top three individuals in this race won medals. They were led by Sergio Perez who finished in 7th place running a season best of 16:56.9. He was followed by Antonio Villalobos 50th in 18:43.1, Alex Recancoj 52nd in 18:43.5, Joseph Magdaleno 88th in 19:43.2, Luis Leon 120th in 20:42.3, Daniel Cruz 124th in 20:54.6, and Jesus Cadena 142nd in 21:58.

The senior girls finished well. They were led by Jacqueline Chavez in 20th place running a time of 21:03.9, she was followed by Allison Recancoj 30th in 21:40.5, and Michele Reyes 52nd in 23:11. All 3 athletes medaled.

The senior boys ran a fine race finishing in third place and winning a team plaque for their strong effort. The top 5 finishers for Fillmore earned individual medals. Leading the charge was senior standout runner Michael Sanchez who showed he was in excellent early season form moving from 20th place to finish in 5th place in a time of 16:08.8, he was followed by Everardo Garcia Magana 13th in 16:33.6, Jesus Castro 19th in 16:49.1, Juan Ramirez 30th in 17:13.8, Jonathan Ordaz 59th in 18:18.9, Gustavo Valdez 81st in 19:21.2, and Eric Hernandez 95th in 619:56.0.

The Flashes will next travel as a split squad with several athletes traveling to the prestigious Woodbridge Invitational on Friday, September 15th and the other group competing on Saturday, September 16th at the Ojai Invitational.

Tori Pina leads the attack on the Panteras to get California United on the board.
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Submitted By Coach Tony Hernandez

After one whole week off, three California United teams kicked off the winter season by winning all three games.

U-13 Girls: Taking on the Oxnard Waves California United came out looking to make a statement against last season’s champion. They did just that with a 4-0 win behind a full game shutout from goalkeeper Yazmin Mercado. Scoring for California United was Isabella Regalado with 2 goals while Daisy Jimenez and Jennifer Abrego each had 1 goal as well. Plenty of assists as usual for this team as Jennifer Abrego has 2 and Valeria Jaimes and Daisy Jimenez each had 1.

U-12 Boys: This was a close game down to the end against Atlas with California United winning it 5-4. The big scorer of the game was Ivan Espino as he gets a hat trick (3 goals) in the season opener. Scoring the other two goals were Fernando Pastrana and Alonso Murillo with 1 each.

U-11 Girls: California United took on the Oxnard Panteras to start their season and walked off the field with a 2-0 victory. Scoring was at a premium in this game as we were well in to the second half before Tori Pina scored the first goal of the game after a great run. A while later, Marlene Gonzales scored the second goal of the game on a booming kick. This was more than enough for the defense which prides itself in getting shut outs with Gaby Martinez and Mikayla McKenzie sharing time as goalkeepers.

Submitted by Coach Tanya Gonzales.

Last Thursday, September 9th Fillmore hosted Carpinteria to kick off the first league match of the season. Fillmore’s Frosh team defeated Carpenteria in 2 sets final scores: 25-23 and 25-11; JV team won in 2 sets final scores: 25-13 and 25-17; Flashes Varsity lost to Carpinteria in 4 sets. Final scores were 25-21, 22-25, 19-25, and 23-25. All very close games, but Fillmore fell short. Fillmore’s standout players were Kasey Crawford with 4 serving aces, 11 digs, and 5 kills. Lindsey Brown had 12 digs. Tori Gonzales had 11 assists, 2 serving aces, 7 digs and 3 kills. The Flashes will host Thatcher on Thursday, September 14th for their second league game of the season.

Tuesday September 12, Fillmore hosted Malibu. Frosh team won 25-16 and 25-23. JV team won 25-18 and 25-20. Varsity lost in 3. 4-25, 18-25, and 18-25. Strong players for the evening were Kasey Crawford with 1 serving ace, 8 kills with some strategically placed hits. Lindsey Brown had 9 digs, 1 serving ace, and 1 kill. Tori Gonzales had 4 kills, 2 serving aces, a few balls saved on defense and 12 assists.

Junior Cecilia Cisneros who placed 64th in 22:47.51 at the UCSB Gaucho Invite. Photo Courtesy Kim Tafoya.
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Freshman Emma Ortiz who placed 87th in 13:07.87 at the UCSB Gaucho Invite. Photo Courtesy Kim Tafoya.
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Freshman Andres Gonzalez at the UCSB Gaucho Invite. Photo Couresty Kim Tafoya.
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On a hot day, Fillmore’s Cross Country teams competed in their first meet of the season at the UCSB Gaucho Invitational. Runners competed in one of two distances, a short course of 1.43 miles for the novice runners and a longer 2.99 course.

Fillmore girl newcomers started out the morning running the short course and finished well. They were led by Isabela de la Cruz 21st in 10:53.58, followed by Paulina Fernandez 31st in 11:04.51, Aliyah Heredia 62nd in 12:05.23, Soraya Negrete 63rd in Liliana Felix 69th in 12:22.62, Emma Ortiz 87th in 13:07.87 and Marisol Ramos 95th in 13:47.92.

In the longer girls race, the Flashes were led by Giselle Perez who finished in 44th place in 21:34.19, followed by Allison Recancoj 54th in 22:12, Nicole Gonzalez 59th in 22:27.12, Cecilia Cisneros 64th in 22:47.51, Emma Orozco 77th in 23:30.79, Jacqueline Chavez 83rd in 24:01.66, and Michele Reyes 103rd in 25:06.43.

In the boys short race, Fillmore finished in 9th place. Top finisher was Matthew Munoz 18th in 8:50.1, followed by Erick Gutierrez 47th in 9:36.98, David Bustos 59th in 10:03.17, Jesus Cadena 67th in 10:23.81, and Andres Gonzalez 84th in 12:17.77.

The final race of the day was run over the long course. Top performer for the Flashes was freshman Rey Laureano, who recorded a 42nd place finish in a time of 17:54.6. He was followed by Davis Flores 59th in 18:34.01, Jess de la Cruz 63rd in 28:40.91, Sergio Perez 72nd in 19:01.89, Jesse Martinez 91st. in 19:31.67, Antonio Villalobos 92nd in 19:32.91, Alex Manzo 94th in 19:36.02, Joseph Magdaleno 108th in 19:55.84, Alex Recancoj 117th in 20:10.71, Andrew Otineru 129th in 20:21.81, Eric Hernandez 133rd in 20:33.51, Gustavo Valdez 135th in 20:35.38, Jorge Acevedo 146th in 20:50.91, Juan Ramirez 172nd in 21:46.89, Sam Kafka 178th in 22:37.85, and Daniel Cruz 189th in 24:33.03.

The Flashes will next compete on Friday 9/08 at the Rosemead Invitation.

Written by Coach Bowman

Hi there this is my second year as the high school girls tennis coach. I have a great team this year; nine girls strong. We have three players returning from last year Lizzy, Briana, and Karime, along with six new players for the 2017-2018 school year. On 9-5-17, we will have played our first match against Santa Clara high school at the Oxnard Tennis Center. I am looking forward to keeping Fillmore up to date with the season as the girls face their opponents. Remember, tennis is not an easy sport to learn. These girls are learning fast or getting better and better after each practice. I encourage the high school girls to take up the sport of tennis as it builds confidence and good self esteem. If I can be a part of good character development, I am a happy coach. Backhands, forehands, service returns, volleys, overheads, and the list goes on of all the specific and challenging tasks to learn in the game of tennis. Lastly, on Tuesday mornings at 8:00 a.m, there is an adult group of intermediate to advanced tennis players gathering at the city courts. Come join us!