Sam Denton is going for it

This article was originally published on ZU News.

Just one year after graduating from Azusa Pacific, Sam Denton is already working toward his dream of becoming a professional musician.

Denton’s first EP, For Now, dropped today, marking his first real foray into the music world. He has released five singles, including two that appear on the EP, which have accumulated nearly 250,000 streams on Spotify, but For Now represents more than just a few hit singles.

“These are things I’m dealing with now,” he said. “I’m letting myself be a little bit more emotional about things.”

The first single off the EP is entitled “Smoke in the Mirror”. In it, Denton explores the feelings he still has for a past relationship. He questions whether the feelings are real, or whether they are just deceptions in the chorus, ‘Smoke in the mirror/clouds in my eyes/got me over here questioning why I couldn’t realize/that you are over me/you’ll never be mine/got these rose colored lenses jading my mind.’

Denton recorded this song with his friend Samiere. He said their shared experiences made them want to record a song together.

“We found out we both had similar experiences with an ex-love interest type of person in our lives … we could understand where each other was coming from,” Denton said. “We could both write something cohesive that wasn’t going to feel like it was two different stories.”

The second single from For Now, “I Just Might,” plays off similar themes of falling out of love. Denton is honest in the chorus, singing ‘I know that I won’t be forgetting you for a long time/but if you want me to/well, I just might.’ “I just might” deals with a sad subject, but the background music, filled with synth and soft guitar chords, makes the song seem less sad, and actually upbeat and hopeful. 

“I want to be as authentic as possible in my music because that’s when people will be able to relate to it,” he said. “I’m trying to do something meaningful. I want to bring people together and make them feel like they’re not alone in the things that they’re feeling … to create music that is both catchy and songs that people will feel something real from.”

Denton’s work accomplishes this. His music is similar to artists like Lauv and Lany. They are all real in their lyrics and the pain behind them is evident. But the songs themselves make the subjects feel less full of pain, and more full of hope.

“I try to be really honest with where I’m at, addressing that,” Denton said. “I’ve tried to figure out how to process things and I still don’t really know, but I think writing music has been the one thing that has been really therapeutic for me.”

***

It’s July 27, and Denton is performing alongside two other artists, a local band and a singer from the East Coast, at a SoFar Sounds San Gabriel Valley concert. 

SoFar promises intimate shows, and they delivered on that front. Some thirty people, mostly teenagers and twenty-somethings, cram into the back room of an office building in Glendora. 

The cement floors and solid walls were obviously not designed with acoustics in mind, but the audience doesn’t care. They came to hear the artists sing. Many of them came just for Denton, who headlined.

When it’s his time, Denton walks on “stage” and introduces himself. He is vested in an oversized yellow button down, and has a red electric guitar slung over his shoulder. Denton’s slim figure looks like the textbook definition of a hipster, minus the glasses.

Denton opens with his most popular song, “Back to You.” His soft voice and guitar fill the room, as he sings about constantly wandering back to the same bad habits. He personified these habits as a person, but the song really just represents his struggles of being stuck in the same kind of patterns.

Denton sings two more originals before asking the crowd if they want to hear a cover. 

“Do you guys like Daniel Cesar?” he asks.

The crowd responds with enthusiasm and Denton launches into his version of the Grammy winning single, “Best Part.” The song is already a masterpiece, but Denton somehow manages to put his own spin on it, and he pulls it off.

Denton is a natural on stage. He doesn’t move around much, but he doesn’t have to. He just strums his guitar and let’s loose into the microphone, capturing the audience with his voice. It’s a small stage, but he’ll see bigger ones soon.

***

Denton has known he has wanted to be a singer for a long time. He started writing his first songs in middle school. While Denton knew music was the career he wanted to go into, his family wasn’t always supportive of his dreams.

“My parents told me they loved me but they really encouraged me to do something else,” Denton said. “I wanted to be a music major when I got here. If my dad had it his way, I would have been a business major. I compromised and chose communications.”

Although he didn’t study music, Denton was able to refine his craft by joining Men’s Chorale. In the group, he met another musician named Nathan Bowman and the two became instant friends. 

Bowman helps create the background music for all of Denton’s songs. After working with Bowman, Denton knew he needed to decide whether or not to commit to music.

“At a certain point in college, I just decided to go for it. I knew I would regret it if I didn’t try,” Denton said. “When I was wrestling with that decision, I was just really struggling with the idea of God’s will for my life. I second guessed myself so much. I feel like God has given me this and wants me to do something. This is the best way I can glorify him, so I’ve got to try and I know he’s going to be with me throughout the whole thing.”

Game Changer Tyler Endres ’10 Shapes Esports Culture

This article was originally published on APU.edu.

A long line of people wraps around an antiquated brick building in a nondescript area of downtown Santa Ana. The crowd anxiously awaits entrance, hoping to secure a front row seat to all the action. Inside, the atmosphere is electrifying and the spirit of competition palpable. Amid the cheers of hundreds of fans gathered around large computer screens, gamers of all levels battle it out. This is the burgeoning world of esports, and in just four years, Tyler Endres ’10, has capitalized on this international phenomenon by building a successful brand with his business Esports Arena expanding its reach and influence across the nation.

The early imaginings for Esports Arena began with Endres and his roommate Paul Ward ’10 while they were students at Azusa Pacific University. “During my freshman year, we loved playing Halo II. Everybody at APU played it back then. We would leave our dorm room in Trinity Hall open so people could come and play with us,” Endres said. “Soon, our RD asked us if we could host a Halo II tournament. We borrowed Xboxes and TV’s and had 16 four-person teams. It was awesome and we ended up winning.” Endres and Ward hosted the same tournament the following year. Unfortunately, their reputation preceded them. “We were too good and nobody wanted to play with us,” he said.

While he wasn’t quite at the professional gamer level, Endres was much better than the average player. He envisioned a place where he could compete with other players at a similar skill level so they could keep improving. “That’s how we came up with this idea of opening a facility where people can come out and play competitively every night of the week,” he said.

After Endres graduated, a job in restaurant equipment sales provided a means to an end. He saved up for three years before launching Esports Arena in Santa Ana. “We were really lucky to find this building. The owner loved the concept so much that he paid for all the renovations, which were quite extensive. We couldn’t have afforded them without him, so that was a Godsend,” he said. Renovations took more than two years to complete. By the time the arena opened in September 2015, Endres was down to his last penny. “I paid my rent check and if we didn’t open then, I couldn’t have paid rent the next month,” he said. “Then we opened and received some investments that relieved the financial burden.”

In the following months, a number of large gaming corporations rented out Esports Arena. Business was booming, but it was not what Endres had envisioned when he started the company. “We had so much success doing these events that we only chased events for a while. We had to ask ourselves what do we stand for, what message do we wish to communicate,” Endres said. “Our core product now is gaming for everybody. We want to develop a grassroots gaming community where people can compete at any level.”

It is this sense of community that inspires Endres. “When I look back to my time at APU, that’s what helped me the most. APU enables students to find community and feel like they belong,” he said. “Our community was gaming. I started this company because we had so many good friendships that came about through gaming and our love for it.”

Keep Reading: Careers in the Games Industry Have Moved Beyond Entertainment

The rapid success of Esports Arena spurred opportunities for business growth, including opening facilities inside the Luxor® Casino in Las Vegas and in Oakland, California.

Part of the new business model is a partnership with the largest retailer in the world, Walmart. The company came to Endres in early 2018 with the idea of putting mini Esports Arenas inside their stores. “Walmart owns a 30 percent market share in video game consoles, but the market is declining because you can just download most games at home. They were losing a huge chunk of the market and saw us as a potential solution,” he said. So far, Esports Arena is in five Walmarts across the country. Endres said the company plans to expand into many more stores in the coming months. “This allows Esports Arena to create its own ecosystem of esports with competitive players from around the country,” Endres said. “That's what I've always wanted to build.”

In addition, Esports Arena launched a series of gaming computers called OverPowered, available at Walmart. “They’re phenomenal machines. The equipment inside is really high quality and they’re available for a great price,” he said. “Knowing my brand is in the household of gamers across America is a really cool feeling.”

Even with the growth of his brand, on most days, Endres can still be found at the place where his success began, the original facility in Santa Ana. “We keep busy around here. We partner with a lot of professional gamers and influencers like Ninja, Dr. Disrespect, and even Cobi Jones.” The facility has a live broadcast center where thousands of people stream the esports action. During big events, Endres said everyone is running around chaotically, but they all love it. “It's an absolute blast. I hope I get to do this for the rest of my life.”

After just four years, Endres’ company has expanded across the country and he now employs 72 people. “I need to constantly remind myself what it’s all for. With all the changes, it’s tough to keep it in perspective,” he said. “I work for everybody who works for me. I’m only able to do what I do because of all these people God has brought into my life. It's definitely not all me. I thank God for that.”

Breaking News: Armed Robbery Near APU

This article was originally published on ZU News.

On Friday afternoon, Lamas Jewelry, located about half a mile from Azusa Pacific’s East Campus was burglarized by an armed robber. The Glendora Police Department and other law enforcement officers have contained the area and are actively investigating and searching for outstanding suspects.

The robbery took place in the Peachwood complex, which also houses APU’s Office of University Relations (UR), just four doors down. UR employees are on lockdown until further notice.

The APU community was informed of the robbery by a text/email/phone call from Campus Safety (DCS) at 12:53 p.m. APU’s Azusa campuses are not on lockdown; however, the community is advised to stay away from the area of Barranca and Route 66.

ZU News will provide updates as they come in.

Update 1:56p.m.

There was a reported shooting. According to Andrew Mendez of Azusa City News, police officers were involved in a shooting in Glendora near Vecino Drive and Route 66.

“At least one patient was transported to an area Trauma center according to Los Angeles County Fire,” Mendez said. “Traffic is shut down between Barranca Avenue and Grand Avenue, along Route 66.”

According to Mendez, multiple Glendora Schools are on lock down, but there isn’t a threat to students.

UR is still on lockdown. Employees report they are safe and secure. According to DCS, the area will remain on lockdown until Glendora Police Department Officers are satisfied there is no ongoing threat to the businesses or residents within the containment area.

Update at 4:09 p.m.

Glendora P.D. released a statement regarding the armed robbery, including a description of the suspect. Officers are still searching for suspect.

Update at 5:07 p.m.

One of the suspects in the armed robbery case was arrested at 4:45 p.m. and another was shot and killed by Glendora police, according to the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. 

According to a statement made by Los Angeles Sheriff Lt. Robert Westphal at a recent news conference, the suspect had not followed police commands and was shot. They were then taken to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center where they were pronounced dead. The names of the suspects have not been released, but one woman is reported to have been found in her car near the scene and was arrested. 

UR employees were let out from lockdown under police supervision at approximately 5:10 p.m, but Stanton Elementary School on 725 S. Vecino Ave. and Foothill Christian School at 242 W. Baseline Road are still under lock down.

President Ferguson Outlines Plans for this Year

This article was originally published on ZU News.

It’s been four months since Azusa Pacific named Paul Ferguson as Jon Wallace’s successor. In that time, Ferguson has worked with departments across campus, getting acquainted with the community and preparing for big changes.

Ferguson visited campus twice a week throughout April and May, before settling in on June 3. 

“[During] the eight weeks I’ve been here, we really have had a lot of fun, but I think we’ve also had a lot of success changing the things that needed to be changed quickly,” he said.  

The biggest changes are in the way upper management is structured, including the president’s cabinet, the academic cabinet and the administrative council. Ferguson has 12 direct reports, and these leaders, representing the main areas around campus, inform him about various issues and actions departments are taking. According to Ferguson, Wallace had about four, with a more layered structure.

“Enhancing communication, enhancing efficiency and enhancing accountability has brought us pretty far. The fiscal issues are improving. Enrollment is improving,” Ferguson said. “A lot of that is putting in place systems that better address challenges and really being able to observe those results in a faster, better way.”

After meeting with hundreds of administrators, faculty, staff and students, Ferguson said he has noticed one common thing about the APU community.

“Despite the challenges the campus has been through last year, as many people as I’ve engaged with, I have found that they want to do great things,” he said. “You can come out of a challenging time [feeling] discouraged and despondent and be unreactive … but the thing that’s exciting to me is that I’ve seen a real desire to move and to grow and to engage in a new era. For a new president coming in, that’s really neat. I like that. It makes my job a whole lot easier. My job is to help bring a new vision and a way to get there. Everybody really wants to do that.”

Ferguson met with SGA leadership last week, including SGA president Tayo Agbalaya, who will serve on the Strategic Plan Committee. The committee began meeting last week and will continue to meet throughout the year.

“Any time you have new leadership or are at a time in a university where you refresh your view of where you’re going and who you are, a strategic plan can come in as a catalyst … to bring the university community together, which is really necessary after the last year, and then articulate how do we do that well [and] what kind of systems need to be in place,” Ferguson said. “There hasn’t been a formal strategic plan at APU for some time.”

According to Ferguson, the committee, comprised of 28 individuals, agreed on five or six major themes of what the university needs to do. The themes are being finalized and will be released to the community in September. 

After they are released, Ferguson said the community will have a chance to provide feedback on what goals they want to go through with and which ones they want to discard. 

“The community will have great opportunity, intentionally, to weigh in every step of the way,” he said. “It really is a consensus document … it should be a catalytic document for APU.”

Aside from the strategic plan, Ferguson said he is focused on continuing to meet the community and getting to know the student body. He plans on speaking at chapel, although not as often as Wallace did. He also plans on being transparent with students and having tough conversations with them about issues on campus.

“If there’s something on your heart that you’re really bothered about, you’ve got to tell me,” he said. “Truth is truth. If it’s coupled with love, that’s grace and truth. That’s the balance we have to achieve. That’s what Christ-centered academics is at the end of the day, grace and truth in a wonderful way.”

Ferguson said a successful first year at APU will be defined by one thing.

“I think that if APU, on a number of levels, at the end of this year …  [has] a real, tangible sense of hope and confidence that APU is back,” Ferguson said. “APU has a great legacy. It’s not that I’m coming in and creating something that has never been here before … APU has incredible aspects of excellence, and the stumble over the last couple years made everybody frustrated and sad … We need to come back into our own.”

According to Ferguson, change is happening and it’s happening quickly.

“Rhetoric is cheap. Reality is hard,” Ferguson said. “There’s just such a spirit of can do [here] and I think that’s part of the APU DNA.”

Bon Appétit Comes to APU

This article was originally published on ZU News.

When Azusa Pacific students return to campus for the fall, they will notice big changes at APU’s dining venues. In June, APU signed a contract with Bon Appétit Management Company to run dining operations on campus.

In the transition, there was one closure—the off-campus bakery in Glendora. Beside that, the various venues will remain with most of the same menus, according to Sam Samaan, executive director of university services. 

“It should be the same concepts with different ingredients,” Samaan said.

In addition, according to Samaan, the prices of both dining plans and items at the different venues will not increase. However, the dining point system has changed. Previously, each dining point was worth $2. Now it is a dollar for dollar system.

“Nothing has changed in the cost of the dining plans. Just when we said 50 percent off last year, it’s not there [anymore], it’s just dollar for dollar,” Samaan said. “It’s the same cost, the same amount of power of purchasing. Nothing is changing. It’s just a systematic change.” 

Another thing that will remain the same is the employees, for the most part.

“Dining Services [full time] staff had the opportunity to move to Bon Appétit,” Samman said. “Bon Appétit opened the door for them and gave them the opportunity to join the team. I think most of them joined, the majority of the staff. The students are still under APU, they’ll work for Bon Appéit, but they’re going to be paid by APU.”

According to Samman and Bon Appétit District Manager Bob Rall, it is important to note that no students will lose their positions because of the transition. 

“Before we actually came in here, we told all the managers at all the venues to sign up all the student workers. Whoever was working here before, sign them up,” Rall said.

Samaan didn’t say if workers will receive the same amount of hours; however, the venues will all have the same hours of operation, except for Umai Sushi which will only be open for four hours daily.

This begs the question: what has changed?

Well, a lot. 

Executive Chef Anastacio Rodriguez is leading the transition in the kitchen. He said that while many of the items on the menus will stay the same, the ingredients and the way they’re made will change significantly. 

“It’s really simple. Fresh ingredients, local and seasonal artisanal style cuisine. That’s really it,” Rodriguez said. “When the meats come in [as] large primal cuts, we’ll break them down. Vegetables come in not processed. We don’t use any bases or any mixes and we make our own stocks.”

This is the Bon Appétit difference: everything is done from scratch. 

Bon Appétit is also known for their ingredients. At least 20 percent of all ingredients have to be purchased from local farms or sources within 150 miles of campus. 

“Here we’ll be using Mariposa Ranch for our beef. We’ll bring in some Mary’s Free Range Chicken. We will bring in Bread Artisan, which is a local artisanal bakery for most of our breads. We’ll use VR Green Farms for a lot of the produce. We’ll use Hollandia Dairy. The list is pretty massive,” Rodriguez said.

Perhaps the biggest selling point for Bon Appétit is how healthy the food is. Terri Brownlee, Bon Appétit’s director of nutrition and wellness, spoke about this. 

“We offer students an abundance of plant-based foods. You’ll see lots of fruits and vegetables, lots of grains. Certainly we will still have animal proteins in there, but sometimes in more complementary roles,” Brownlee said. “We also balance that with indulgent food choices. We’re not taking away anybody’s burger and fries options. We’re just making sure it’s balanced for students who want to eat that way.”

Brownlee said all Bon Appétit chefs complete extensive training and are FARE certified, so they know how to avoid cross contact to prevent allergy problems. She said part of the training is learning healthy cooking techniques.

“We encourage them to use those techniques to bring out flavors in food and not rely so heavily on salt, fat and sugar as the main flavor drivers,” Brownlee said.

How does all of this translate to the plate? 

According to Jennifer Carbajal, Bon Appétit general manager at APU, all feedback from students has been overwhelmingly positive so far, although the scope is limited. She said 1899 Dining Hall has served football players and residence advisors who arrived to campus early for training.

“We had comment cards that the football players filled out. They were pretty witty and fun to hear. One of them was ‘A yes for me, dawg’ from American Idol. One of them said ‘This is sick’ and we were worried at first, but then we realized he meant cool,” Carbajal said. “One of the comments was that the toast station was the best toast station he’d ever seen. That was unexpected, but a fun one.”

Rodriguez said he thinks students will immediately be able to tell the difference between the new dishes compared to the old ones.

“The food is good. It’s fresh. It’s seasonal. I think once they taste it and see the amount of work we put in to produce the food … they’re going to want to eat here,” Rodriguez said.

With the addition of APU, Bon Appétit now runs dining management at 13 faith-based institutions in North America. They also have 28 other accounts within 60 miles of APU. This is not their first time handling a big transition like this.

“Normally the transitions have gone well. I think our retention rate for units we’ve taken over in Southern California is probably around 98 percent. We do transition well. Clients stay with us,” Rall said. “With employees that we take on, we do cook more from scratch, so sometimes it can be a learning curve, but it’s beneficial teaching them a skill, so it goes well.”

Rall noted two other big changes from the transition. First, The Truck, APU’s food truck that would serve students on East and West Campuses, will not be returning, at least in the same role. Rall said it will be used for pop-ups and special events when it makes sense. 

Second, Rall said Rodriguez is planning on starting a farmer’s market at APU, which he has done at other institutions. There is no set date for the farmer’s market yet.

“We’ll test it here and see how well it goes,” Rodriguez said. “We like to make it lively. We’ll bring the farmers in and the beekeepers with honey. We’ll make it really cool so you guys can check out everything we bring in and connect with the farmers, so it kind of closes the loop of everything we do.” 

Check out Bon Appétit’s site here to see what else is new.

Amaris Harrison is Changing the Baseball Culture at Muir

This article was originally published in the Pasadena Independent.

There’s something magical about the number 37 for Amaris Harrison. The senior second baseman for Muir’s varsity baseball squad led the team with 37 hits, 37 runs and 37 stolen bases last season.

Harrison led Muir to an 18-8 record last year and helped the school end a 30 year playoff drought. Muir played three games in the postseason, including a wild card berth, losing in the second round.

“It was a tough season. There were a lot of ups and downs. It was like a roller coaster almost,” Harrison said. “There were a lot of family problems throughout the whole team, but we rebounded from that and finished off strong. We needed a lot of luck to get into the playoffs, but we made it and that’s all we care about.”

Harrison said he and his fellow seniors worked hard to change the baseball culture at Muir, from a struggling program to a winning one.

“It’s been good, just a little different, being the under dog. I’ve played for a lot of winning teams so coming into Muir my freshman year was different,” Harrison said. “The team is going to be young this year, but with the few seniors we have, we plan on teaching them how we played over the past few years. We want them to get that same mentality and we’re hoping to make the playoffs again this year.”

A big incentive to succeed on the field looms in the hallways of Muir in the form of Jackie Robinson, one of the most famous baseball players and athletes of all time, the man who broke the color barrier in professional baseball and changed sports culture forever.

“He inspires me a lot,” Harrison said. “It’s a really good feeling to go to his school. He’s up in the hallways and we have his number up on our scoreboard. It’s good because it gives us something to prove everyday. It’s a lot on our back, but we’ve learned to play with it and it’s a nice feeling.”

While his team goal is to get Muir back to the playoffs and hopefully grab a title, Harrison has some lofty personal goals as well.

“Last year I had 37 hits, 37 runs and 37 stolen bases. This year I want to have 50 hits, 50 runs and 50 stolen bases,” Harrison said. “I want to be better each year than I was the year before.”

While 37 hits might not sound like much to the average baseball fan, it is important to remember that the high school schedule is about one-seventh of the professional schedule. Harrison’s 37 hits translated to a .457 BA, a .564 OBP and a 1.083 OPS, all team highs and seriously high stats.

Harrison has grown into the player he is today after 13 years of practice through little league, club, and now his fourth year on varsity. He plans to continue to play ball in college, although he isn’t sure where at yet. He does know he wants to stay in Southern California to keep close to family.

After college, Harrison aims to play professional baseball, maybe for the Atlanta Braves, his favorite team. He compared his play to Ozzie Albies, the Braves’ second baseman who has a similar stature at 5-foot-8. However, after some reflection, Harrison changed his answer.

“My all time favorite player from the past that I see in myself is Adonis Harrison. He was a very flashy infielder that hits left-handed and throws right-handed just like me and displayed excitement to the crowd,” Harrison said. “I’m hoping to be like him one day.”

Dustin Allen Leads On and Off the Field

This article was originally published in the Arcadia Weekly.

Senior outfielder Dustin Allen is a leader on and off the field for the Arcadia Apaches varsity baseball team. Allen leads by example with his play where he led the team with a .410 batting average last year.

“Last season went really well for me, although it started out rough. I struggled at the plate. I had trouble finding myself for the first few games of the season,” Allen said. “Coming out of that was a great learning experience, having to work my way out of that rough patch.”

Allen rebounded in a big way, collecting 34 hits, scoring 28 runs, drawing 13 walks and stealing 13 bases, all team highs. These numbers led to a .495 OBP, second on the team, and a 1.122 OPS, highest on the team.

Allen spends most of his time in the outfield, although he is a strong left-handed reliever as well. Although he struggled his sophomore year on the mound, he found his stride and tossed 33.2 innings without allowing an earned run last year. Allen allowed 14 hits and 10 walks, which combined are less than the 32 batters he struck out.

Allen said the best moment of the season came when the team won league.

“I was on the team the past couple years and it was heartbreaking to lose league in such dramatic fashions,” Allen said. “To win league finally and share the joy with my teammates was pretty awesome.”

In his mind, there was one factor that led to Arcadia grabbing their first league title in more than five years.

“The whole team was really close last year. We had a really good bond with each other that showed on and off the field,” Allen said. “We had each other’s backs and picked each other up.”

Although Arcadia captured league and had a nearly perfect 25-2 record, they fell in the second round of the CIF-SS Division II postseason tournament.

“The ball just didn’t bounce our way that day,” Allen said. “That’s definitely a goal for this season, to correct that, play harder and win the CIF final.”

As far as personal goals go, Allen is mainly focused on getting stronger, bulking up.

“I’m about 175 [pounds] now, but I want to get up to 190,” Allen said.

The added muscle mass would help Allen increase his power behind the plate where he notched six doubles, three triples and two home runs last year.

Allen plans on playing baseball in college, but is not closed to the possibility of going pro out of high school.

“It depends on the spot I’m in draft-wise,” Allen said. “I’m definitely aiming on going to college, but we’ll never know until the time comes.”

Allen plans on studying criminal justice or sports management in college, both careers he could see himself going into and both careers his family has gone into. His grandfather was involved in criminal justice and his father played minor league baseball in the St. Louis Cardinals organization.

Allen aims to play professional baseball like his father, although he would rather play for his favorite team, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“That would be a dream come true,” he said.

Player Profile: Mikey Easter

This article was originally published in the Arcadia Weekly.

Mikey Easter wants to play professional baseball one day for his favorite club, the New York Yankees. For now, he’s content tearing it up at the high school level for Arcadia. 

Easter started playing when he was five years old. His whole family, from his grandparents to his parents, are all huge baseball fans. Easter recalls getting baseball toys when he was little.

“I would practice swinging in the living room with my dad when I was two,” Easter said.

Easter started out playing tee ball, then little league and travel ball. He still plays club baseball for CBA Marucci. Easter plays first base and catcher.

“I like both, but I prefer catcher,” Easter said. “I feel like I’m in every play and I have my pitcher’s back at all times. I feel like I’m more of a leader behind the plate than I am at first.”

Easter said he has a decent arm, but his best strengths as a catcher are framing and calming his pitcher down in tough situations.

This year Easter was one of Arcadia’s top hitters, as a sophomore. His batting average of .389 was the third highest on the team and he had the highest on base percentage at .516. Easter had 32 RBIs, 8 doubles, 3 triples and scored 18 runs. 

Although Arcadia fell short in the playoffs, Easter said the season as a whole still went really well. 

“We got one of our goals done, winning the Pacific League. We hadn’t won that since 2011. Bringing the Pacific League title back to Arcadia was a big deal for us,” Easter said. “I’ll always remember dogpiling on the field after clinching the league title.”

Easter is already in contact with a couple NCAA Division I schools, but he has not committed to one yet. He plans to stay on the West Coast for college, but isn’t tied to Southern California. Easter said he wants to major in business or sports management in college, although his ultimate goal is to go pro.

“It’s pretty far away, but I want to play pro ball. That’s been my goal ever since I was little,” Easter said. “Hopefully for the Yankees. My grandpa is a huge Yankees fan and I used to watch a lot of games with him when I was little and my parents were at work. That’s why they’re my team.”

When he’s not playing baseball, Easter enjoys hanging out with his friends or squeezing in a round of golf.

Although the season is still several months away, Easter is already preparing for it.

“This summer I’ve been going to the gym a lot, hitting the weights, hopefully hit more doubles and home runs next season,” Easter said. “I want to help the team win any way we can.”

Player Profile: Polytechnic Runner Evan Hayes

This article was originally published in the Pasadena Independent.

Until his freshman year at Polytechnic, Evan Hayes had never been into running. Then he joined the cross country team and discovered a new passion.

“When I started, I was kind of reluctant to run a lot,” Hayes said. “But the past couple summers I got into running every day, running longer distances and having really structured workout plans … Overall, I think I’ve become a lot more invested in running.”

Hayes, who is entering his senior year, never looked back. He finished the season last year as one of Poly’s top runners. Hayes finished fifth in the league and qualified for CIF prelims, then CIF finals. 

“Unfortunately I didn’t make it to the state meet, but hopefully this year I can finish highly at CIF finals and qualify for the state meet,” Hayes said. 

Besides going to state, Hayes said his big goal for this season is for the whole team to qualify for CIF. He believes the team can do this because they have a lot of talented underclassmen.

Hayes also runs for Poly’s track team, participating in the 800-meter, the mile and the two mile races.

Although the season doesn’t start for several weeks, Hayes is already training.

“After track ended, I took a two week rest period before training,” Hayes said. “My coach and I set up a workout plan for the summer with weekly mileage targets. I’ve been running in the high 30s and low 40s (miles per week) over the summer. By the end of summer, I hope to be running in the 50s or maybe even 60s to hit those goals of qualifying for state.”

After this year, Hayes plans to go to a small liberal arts school out of state.

“I kind of just want to get out of California,” Hayes said. “I love California, but I think it would be a good experience to get out for four years because I’ve lived in Southern California for my entire life. I think seeing a different part of the country would definitely be a good experience.”

Hayes doesn’t plan to run in college. He isn’t sure what he’s going to study yet, but he’s leaning towards history or economics because those are his favorite subjects at Poly.

For now though, Hayes is focused on training for this season. His summer will revolve around his running schedule.

“Most people don’t know how time consuming and how much energy you have to put into running long distance. They don’t understand the work I put into it,” Hayes said. “If you miss one workout, one run, that can have a big effect. You really have to watch the way you eat too. It does dominate your life a bit. It’s very taxing on your body. People don’t know how much time it takes to stay in shape for a runner.”

Player Profile: MHS Running Back Tyree Miles

This article originally appeared in the Monrovia Weekly.

Tyree Miles is excited for the Monrovia High School football season to begin. It will be his first and last season as a Wildcat.

Miles moved from Fontana earlier this year. He said the team has welcomed him in.

“It’s been a very good transition,” Miles said. “I love my team. I love my coaches.”

Miles plays three positions: running back, wide receiver and cornerback. He likes all three, but he favors running back.

“It’s a childhood favorite of mine. I’ve been playing it for the longest,” he said.

Miles has played football since he was five. He played all three years at his high school in Fontana and looks to contribute to the Monrovia team in a strong role. He said he’s been working on improving in the offseason.

“I’m trying to have better on the field vision,” Miles said. “I want to help the team win big this year. I want the team to be as good as we can and hopefully get a ring.”

Miles said his vision is his strongest trait as a running back. He compared his play to New York Giants star running back Saquon Barkley.

“He just has really good vision and cuts,” Miles said. “That’s what I’m trying to get my game to be, his level.”

When he’s not playing football, Miles enjoys relaxing and watching other sports including soccer and basketball.