Jaxson Giusti, a junior baseball and football player at Mira Mesa High School, was the winner of the CIF’s inaugural Student-Athlete Leadership Award.
Giusti was captain of both teams and served as president of the San Diego City Conference Student-Athlete Advisory Council. In addition, he was a member of the school’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council.
Giusti is a student ambassador for Mira Mesa’s CTE program and is a student representative for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. He also volunteers with the San Diego Unified School District’s middle-school athletics program, mentoring young athletes, assisting coaches and working at clinics.
“Through my leadership experiences, I’ve learned how to effectively represent the perspectives of all students while also understanding the responsibility of the adults who lead the educational athletic programs,: Giusti said in a statement. “I’m confident in my ability to serve as a strong representative for student-athletes on committees responsible for education-based athletics.”
Diehl honored
The National Football Foundation named Carson Diehl of La Jolla High School one of its 63 Players of Distinction. Diehl was chosen from among 3,500 nominees nationwide, with players selected for their excellence in academics, athletics and leadership.
Diehl, a receiver/defensive back, was a first-team All-CIF player, a team captain and finished his high school career with a 4.0 GPA. He caught 65 passes for 1,009 yards and 11 touchdowns for the Vikings. He also had 25 rushes for 115 yards and three TDs and had 44 tackles and five interceptions.
Diehl is already in college, having enrolled at San Diego State in January after graduating early. He took part in spring drills for the Aztecs.
Sparby to San Marcos
San Marcos High School has hired Justin Sparby to replace Jeff Dufek as the school’s athletic director and baseball coach.
Dufek left San Marcos after 17 years as its baseball coach for Mission Hills High School, where he will serve as the AD but will not coach.
Sparby comes to San Marcos from Granite Hills, where he taught English and was an assistant baseball coach. He played baseball at Hilltop High and Southwestern College before earning a bachelor’s degree from UC San Diego. He also holds a master’s in education.
Holding their own
The 10 San Diego Section baseball team went 9-9 in the Southern California Regionals.
Cathedral Catholic led the way, beating top-seeded Bellflower St. John Bosco in the quarterfinals and advancing to the Division 1 title game, where the Dons lost to Huntington Beach.
Coastal Academy won the Division 5 championship after Verdugo Hills and Los Angeles Roosevelt got into a bench-clearing brawl in the semifinals. CIF rules state that players leaving the bench are automatically ejected and then suspended for their next game. The state CIF declared Coastal Academy the champion.
The 10 San Diego Softball teams finished 8-9 in the SoCal Regionals. Mater Dei Catholic swept through Division 1.
Helix advanced to the Division 3 title game, losing to Hanford West. Grossmont played in the Division 4 championship game, losing to Woodlake.
Date, time set for All-Star Game
The Padres-sponsored San Diego Section All-Star Game is set for June 28. The baseball showcase is set to begin around 5 p.m., shortly following the Dodgers-Padres 1 p.m. game at Petco Park.
The game is a nine-inning, East-versus-West format.
The West team includes shortstop Max Snakenborg (San Marcos), first baseman Jose Partida (Cathedral Catholic), infielder Kelle Leuck (Mt. Carmel), first baseman Leo Wilderman (Madison), outfielder Josh Priest (Cathedral Catholic), outfielder AJ Curry (University City) and third baseman Trey Kotsay (Cathedral Catholic).
The East roster includes twins Brady Gunn and Jimmy Gunn (Patrick Henry), Johrden Niebla (Southwest-El Centro), Caiden Dockan (Rancho Bernardo), Alrx Mestman and Tyson Bobo (Patrick Henry), Hugo Gonzalez and Brady Strachan (Rancho Bernardo) and Hamza Hatahet (Eastlake).