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O’DOWD TO CELEBRATE BOOK THAT DEPICTS ITS 2015 STATE TITLE
Many state champions get their stories told by news organizations.
Some of the best get their own book.
But it’s rare to see a graphic novel that depicts a state title run. That’s the treatment Bishop O’Dowd got on its journey to the 2015 CIF Open Division state championship.
Gene Luen Yang, a New York Times-bestselling author and illustrator who was teaching at O’Dowd, approached Dragons coach Lou Richie about embedding with the team.
Richie was on board.
What came next surprised many within the O’Dowd community.
“Unbeknownst to us, he was an iconic graphic novelist,” Richie said. “He would go on all the trips with us, and we’d have good conversations. Got to know him and his family, and he started showing me some of the sketches. And it was like, ‘Wow, I’ve never seen myself in a sketch.’ And seeing some of the other players, it was pretty cool.”
Yang showed Richie the storyline of the book, “Dragon Hoops,” about six months after O’Dowd won the title with a 65-64 victory in overtime over Mater Dei-Santa Ana at Cal, and Richie loved how it memorialized his team’s journey that year.
“Sure enough, the book was released, and it was like, ‘Wow,’” Richie said. “What a documentation of the history of our season. So many other pieces were interwoven and brought up. He was very inclusive talking about our different characters, players on the team, and how they each had their own individual piece that was woven into the final product.
“As a history major, I absolutely love it, because there is so much history to be told.”
Now, Yang is re-releasing the 2020 book in paperback edition. O’Dowd will hold a ceremony to christen the occasion in its theater on March 30, roughly coinciding with the 10th anniversary of the state championship.
The Dragons are the only boys team in the history of the Open tournament (2013-present) to win a state title. Reminiscing brings fond memories of that group for Richie.
“His ability to connect with the kids and get them to open up and share, and then his ability to do the research, created this phenomenal book,” Richie said. “So many underlying themes. All the players still talk to each other. They’re all doing well. It’s just incredible to see the young people grow up.”
– Christian Babcock
CHAMPS RECOGNIZED: CARONDELET HONORS ITS STATE WINNERS
Carondelet capped a memorable postseason run last weekend, beating Sage Hill-Newport Beach 51-48 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento to capture the Division I state championship.
Thursday, the Concord school celebrated the state champs with a ceremony on campus.
Carondelet won its final six games, including victories over St. Francis, Bishop O’Dowd, Cardinal Newman and St. Mary’s-Stockton to win the regional title.
In a tightly-contested state final, Layla Dixon made two late free throws to give Carondelet the lead and Oliva Smith added two more to complete the scoring.
It was Carondelet’s second state title but first since 2004.
– Darren Sabedra
PITTSBURG: BASEBALL TEAM AIMS FOR ANOTHER LEAGUE CROWN
It’s hard to spot a weakness anywhere on Pittsburg’s baseball roster.
The Pirates, led by a star-studded lineup and one of the East Bay’s top pitching staffs, have started the year with eight consecutive wins and are on track to have a better season than the one they had in 2024 – a year in which Pittsburg got hot late and won the Bay Valley Athletic League title.
With most of last year’s team back in the fold, Pittsburg believes it could win a league title again and maybe even more.
“The expectation is just to come out and win our league and try to see how far we can get in the playoffs,” senior pitcher Desmond Toomer said. “And that’s about it. Nothing else to it.”
Pittsburg – ninth in the latest Bay Area News Group rankings – certainly has the talent to do it as the Pirates have numerous Division I college prospects, including JJ Robinson (BYU), Ty Thompson (Cal Poly) and Devin Simonton (San Diego).
BVAL pitcher of the year Diego Deluna and right-handed pitcher Desmond Toomer are steady on the mound.
“We just continued what we started last year,” coach Marco Cartagena said. “We have a team that’s very good and athletic that allows us to play the game we want to play.
“One thing we do have this year is an expanded lineup, so one through nine can hit and that’s fun. When you have guys who can do that and play the game the way we want to play, that’s huge for us.”
Pittsburg has tested itself early with a tough schedule that includes wins over Vacaville, Castro Valley and Irvington. The Pirates will have another tough stretch of games with James Logan, Campolindo, American Canyon and Granada to close out non-league play.
“We’re getting into the toughest part of the schedule and we got a lot of good teams coming up,” Cartagena said. “The 8-0 start is good, but we got some tough teams coming up, especially with our league, which is going to be tough. It’s a good way to get those games early and get those wins early that will help us get through our league.”
– Nathan Canilao
COACH CELEBRATES 400TH BASEBALL WIN AT LINCOLN-SJ
It takes a lot of years to compile 400 career wins.
Lincoln-San Jose coach Stuart Piraro has been at this while. The Lions’ 27th-year coach has seen a lot of milestones come and go.
Three seasons ago, Piraro won his 400th game across a head coaching tenure that included stops at Gunderson and San Jose. Now in his 33rd year as a head coach – and 40th in coaching overall – Piraro has won 400 games at Lincoln alone.
The Lions clinched Piraro’s 400th win against Del Mar last Saturday, a 7-1 triumph at home. And though he’s seen many others, this victory – No. 451 overall – stood out for the coaching lifer.
“It’s a special group of guys that have been together for a while,” Piraro said. “We have four players that are seniors on the varsity that have been on the varsity since their freshman year. So there’s a unique tightness and camaraderie. Every group’s special. This had a certain uniqueness to it because of the longevity of being together on the varsity team.”
Piraro had a special celebration planned for the occasion. All of Lincoln’s players autographed a baseball, which Piraro brought to his parents’ grave site.
The coach has learned a lot in his four decades in the dugout. But there’s always something fresh to find out.
“Every year, you’re learning something,” Piraro said. “And the older you get, you find out that it’s not so much the X’s and O’s. I mean, you want to be a good technician and a good teacher, no doubt about it.
“But when you get older, you understand that the relationships with your players are important. You’re trying to figure out, ‘What can you do to get them to play harder, to buy into whatever you’re trying to sell?’ And I don’t think that’s always been the concept when you’re a younger coach. But as you get older, relationships mean a little bit more.”
– Christian Babcock
CITY COLLEGE OF SAN FRANCISCO MEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM TAKES STATE TITLE
The City College dynasty continued over the weekend.
The Rams won their fourth title in nine years, defeating Fullerton College 75-58 on Saturday at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut.
Stuart Hall-San Francisco graduate Miles Amos scored a game-high 20 points and grabbed five rebounds in the win. Riordan alums King-Njhsanni Wilhite and Antonio Pusateri played key minutes as starters and combined for 10 points.
CCSF completed its season as the No. 1 team in the state with a 32-1 record with its only loss coming to Las Positas College, which made it to the Elite 8.
– Nathan Canilao
BIP ROBERTS CLASSIC TO SHOWCASE OAKLAND’S TOP BASEBALL TEAMS
The top baseball teams in Oakland will all be in one place on Saturday.
The Bip Roberts Classic will take place at Raimondi Park in West Oakland. The showcase will have four games starting at 9:30 a.m.
El Cerrito vs. Moreau Catholic will kick off Saturday’s action, followed by Oakland vs. Mt. Diablo, St. Mary’s-Berkeley vs. Berkeley and ending with Oakland Tech vs. Bishop O’Dowd at 5 p.m.
Tech, which won the Oakland Section title last year, will be looking to win its first game against O’Dowd in 11 tries. The teams played each other last season with the Dragons winning 6-1.
– Nathan Canilao