Aleena Garcia makes every thing look simple on and off the diamond. In a approach, sure, however solely as a result of she has devoted a lot effort and time to the three issues she values most: household, religion and softball.
Garcia, a senior shortstop at Whittier Christian Excessive in La Habra, leads her staff in nearly each offensive class, and her 12 dwelling runs rank twelfth within the state and tenth within the Southern Part. He’s third in California in runs scored (49) and boasts a .692 slugging share, .610 batting common, 50 hits, 17 doubles, three triples, 33 RBI and 5 stolen bases.
Not a day goes by that Garcia doesn't enhance intellectually, spiritually and bodily. A typical 24-hour interval begins at 5 a.m., after which he spends half-hour journaling or studying the Bible earlier than preparing for college. He has courses from 8 to 1:40 p.m., then one other two and a half hours of highschool observe. She workouts alone till darkish earlier than returning dwelling for dinner. Fortuitously, she by no means will get bored with the routine.
“I began enjoying baseball on the age of three, and once I was 6, I went straight to journey ball,” she remembers. “Dad was additionally my coach, which I'm glad for. I gained three nationwide championships between the ages of 8 and 10, which is one thing not everybody will get to do, and have since transitioned to journey softball on the highest stage.
“It's sort of ironic that I've at all times been an outfielder in baseball, however enjoying with guys rising up helped me change into a greater participant sooner and it additionally helped me be aggressive as a result of guys are very aggressive from the day they're born.”
Garcia first tried shortstop when she went to her first softball tryout and has performed the place ever since.
“I adore it,” she admits. “You progress probably the most.” That's the place I can use my athletic expertise.”
Of all of the directions and recommendation she absorbed alongside the way in which, nonetheless, her father, Rudy, had the best affect.
“He's been an enormous a part of my success and my journey on this sport,” Garcia mentioned. “From the day I began enjoying sports activities, he's pushed me to be the perfect, however he additionally is aware of who I’m as an individual.” He helped me change into a greater particular person and participant.”
Dwelling with two brothers, one older and one youthful, additionally accelerated Garcia's private and athletic development.
“It's a blessing,” he says. “Not everybody has brothers who compete at a excessive stage.
“My older brother Andy performed baseball when he was youthful and possibly he didn't comprehend it, however I used to be at all times attempting to be pretty much as good as him and be like him. My little brother Aaron was on the market operating round since he was in diapers. We observe collectively on a regular basis and on daily basis is a contest.”
Andy attended La Serna Excessive College and performed baseball till he was 11 earlier than switching to golf. He’s now a sophomore on the lads's golf staff at Cal State Dominguez Hills. Aaron, in the meantime, is following in his sister's footsteps as a shortstop and catcher.
“We observe collectively on a regular basis, we're by no means aside,” says Aaron, who’s ending eighth grade and trying to begin his personal highschool profession at St. John Bosco. “We're pushing one another and getting higher.”
Garcia spent the primary 12 months throughout the COVID-19 pandemic honing her expertise at EM Velocity and Energy, a coaching facility in Rancho Cucamonga that focuses on high-intensity, full-body exercises. When the pandemic subsided, she enrolled at Whittier Christian, a faculty with 428 college students about 10 miles from her dwelling in Pico Rivera.
“The principle motive I got here right here was my religion,” she mentioned. “We're not ashamed to speak about God and we're allowed to, so being right here helps me develop in that facet of my life as effectively.”
Dale Van Duyn is in his 18th season at Whittier Christian and believes Garcia is probably the most full participant he has ever coached.
“Throughout, certain,” he says with out hesitation. “He can hit, catch, throw, area, run the bases … he's the entire package deal. Normally when you could have a extremely good participant, they’ve entry to them and whereas she's very aggressive, she's additionally an exceptional teammate. He leads by his actions.”
Van Duyn is fast to level out that for all her God-given expertise, Garcia's success may be attributed to hours and hours of repetition.
“He works on his swing on a regular basis, at the very least 200 swings a day,” provides Van Duyn, who piloted the Heralds to Southern Part Division 5 titles in 2009 and 2010. “He works on each facet of his. the sport, not simply hitting. She really improved probably the most on her base run. Not solely is it the quickest I've had, it's additionally the neatest. I’ve little question he’ll succeed on the subsequent stage. If she fights, she'll get out on her personal.”
When requested what facet of the sport he likes greatest, Garcia's reply is no surprise:
“I get pleasure from all of them, however I’d say hitting. There are a whole lot of successes, however much more failures, and lots of people don't know cope with each side that effectively. I don't get too excessive or too low. The psychological aspect of hitting is one thing I actually, actually get pleasure from going by, and the sensation of hitting a house run is like nothing else!”
Regardless of being an influence hitter, Garcia isn't one to leap on gives outdoors the zone. He’s a pitcher's worst nightmare in that he’ll rely, stroll if there may be nothing to assault, and pounce on each error. She had only one hit in 82 at-bats this season.
“One of many keys to hitting is to maintain working at it,” he says. “It's no secret … the extra you hit in observe, the higher you hit in video games. One other secret is mindset, which not many individuals take into consideration. Considering onerous is so necessary since you fail lots on this sport. It's a sport of failure. When you're not doing effectively, you don't wish to get too low, should you're doing effectively, you don't wish to get too excessive. Preserve the mindset that you already know you're ok to beat anyone, and you already know you've succeeded earlier than, so each time you're on prime, you consider you are able to do it.”
On March 15, Garcia hit three homers and drove in six runs in opposition to Mary Star and went three for 3 within the Heralds' final sport with a double, triple, one RBI and two runs scored in a 13-2 rout of Los Altos. . For all her hitting potential, she was additionally stellar defensively, posting a .925 fielding share with 22 putouts, 40 assists, two double performs and simply 5 errors in 67 complete possibilities.
Stats like these will get the eye of any Division I program, and certain sufficient, when her dad flew round on Sept. 1, Garcia had 15 gives, together with from Oregon, Stanford and Texas A&M. Though Rudy had hoped to decide on Stanford, Aleena opted for UCLA, citing a number of causes:
“To start with, I felt at dwelling once I was there. I felt comfy with the coaches and gamers in a approach that was totally different from different locations I've visited. Second, it is among the most profitable packages. I might be there subsequent 12 months and race within the nationwide championship straight away. Third, it's near dwelling. I like my household and being so shut makes it simpler for them to come back and see me as a substitute of going elsewhere. Fourth, softball is just not endlessly. I think about myself an Olympian, I'm additionally concerned about psychology, and LA has a whole lot of connections.”
Garcia can't anticipate the day she dons the powder blue uniform.
“Committing to UCLA was the perfect second of my life as a result of it's been a dream of mine since I began enjoying softball,” she says.
“I noticed myself residing with them on daily basis for 4 years there and persevering with that relationship after school. The way in which they push one another, their competitiveness, how they compete in every thing they do … that's the place I wish to be .”
On Garcia's sizzling bat, the Heralds gained their remaining six common season video games, outscoring opponents 68-5 within the course of and going 8-0 in Olympic League play. In reality, in three seasons, Garcia's staff by no means misplaced a league sport.
Garcia needs nothing greater than to cap off her prep profession with one of many few issues she nonetheless hasn't completed on the diamond: a CIF championship. In her sophomore 12 months, the Heralds misplaced to La Mirada within the first spherical in Division 1 and final 12 months reached the Division 2 quarterfinals, shedding to Grand Terrace regardless of a house run by Garcia.
“We now have a really sturdy staff this 12 months with a whole lot of younger gamers who’ve are available and actually developed,” Garcia says. “However us older women are nonetheless right here to steer, all of us have an excellent relationship with one another so I believe we are able to win the title this 12 months.
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This story initially appeared within the Los Angeles Occasions.