A dozen Trojans join Sports Hall of Fame
Ten CVHS alumni and two CVHS coaches were inducted into the Castro Valley Sports Hall of Fame on April 21. Among the alumni recognized for their excellence during the ceremony were Juan Anderson, Roderick Bobbitt, Mariah Cameron, Michael Klews, Alexis Kollias, Nick Lima Mike Proulx, Anthony Reyes and Kelsey Santisteban. Former wrester and wrestling coach Brad Vadnais and former track and cross country coach Peter Brewer were recognized as well.
Brewer’s legacy as one of the most successful coaches to ever coach at CVHS earned him his honor.
Brewer coached track and field and cross country at CVHS from 1985 to 2008. In those years, he led his teams to 101 Hayward Area Athletic League titles and five NCS championships.
Brewer said the best part was realizing the work he and the students had put into the sport had gradually progressed both his skills as a coach and the athletes’ abilities.
“The kid learned a whole lot about him or herself,” said Brewer. “I learned a little bit more about how to be more patient with people that needed work.”
Cameron took on the challenge of balancing soccer and softball and on many occasions several other sports. During three out of four of her years at CVHS ,she was on the league championship winning team. During her senior year, Cameron and her team made it to the NCS semifinals but came just short of making the finals.
Even after leaving CVHS to play soccer for the Washington State Cougars, the sisterhood that formed from her years at CVHS was strong. The following year the team won the NCS championship and Cameron’s former teammates called her right away.
“I remember the night they won a bunch of them called me to tell about it, just screaming on the phone, so there was still that camaraderie and team bonding even after I left,” said Cameron.
Cameron exceled at Washington State, where she became team captain in her sophomore year and beyond. After college she went on to play in England, and is currently Switzerland’s top professional midfielder.
Klews was recognized for his time as an Alameda County All-Star football player and later a member of the University of Oregon Ducks. He started during the Las Vegas Bowl game in 1997 in the Duck’s 41-13 win against Air Force.
He originally only joined the frosh-soph team at CVHS to be with his friends and have fun. However, it wasn’t long before varsity coach John Brosnan noticed his talent and offered him a spot on varsity. When Klews declined Brosnan’s offer, Brosnan said he didn’t really have a choice.
“I’m very glad that I was pushed in that direction because obviously the opportunities and the memories that I have received are phenomenal,” said Klews. Brosnan would later recall that Klews was one of his favorite players.
Santisteban made the State Meet as the NCS champion in 2010, and set CVHS records in the 1,600 meters and 3,200 meters that same year. Santisteban always knew that she would run, and that she was good at it.
“It was kind of something I knew ran in the family,” said Santisteban. “And during PE growing up I would always be pretty good at running. I had friends joining the track team towards the end of middle school and I just found that I really enjoyed it, and I had a knack for it and I was good at it which obviously made it more fun.”
She continued her success during her years on the UC Berkeley cross country team, where she finished tenth in the NCAA Championships, the best ever for a Cal runner.