Athlete of the Week: Reese stays strong for dad, Del Norte High

By Michael Bower

Two years ago, Del Norte High senior baseball player Garret Reese lost his mother. Many high schoolers would have fallen off track after such a monumental loss, but not Reese. His father, Rick, kept him moving forward.

Del Norte High senior Garret Reese will be the first member of his family to attend college. Photo by Steve Logsdon

“My dad has been really strong helping me through it,” said Reese, who has a sister, Madison, a sophomore at Del Norte High. “It has been tough on him, losing the love of his life. He does everything. He works, comes home and has dinner made and everything in order by the time I get home from practice. It is crazy how much he does. I really love him.”

Reese is certainly making his father proud. The catcher will become the first member in his family to attend college next fall, as he earned a partial baseball scholarship to San Diego Christian College in El Cajon.

“It hasn’t really hit me yet,” Reese said. “It is my dream come true to go to college. I know once I get there I will be ecstatic about what I have done and for all the hard work my dad has done to keep me going.”

Baseball is life for Reese, who plans on majoring in business administration and minoring in marketing. Whether it is just tossing a ball while watching TV or out at practice with the team, Reese does something baseball related every single day. He is playing with a team 11 months out of the year.

“I love baseball,” Reese said. “It is my passion. It got me into college. I am going to take it as far as I can.”

Reese has made his mark on the two-year-old varsity program at Del Norte. He was the first player to earn a scholarship and has led the team in hitting the past two years. He was named to the all-league team as a junior and is a lock to be selected again this year.

“He is a grinder and a hard worker,” Nighthawks coach Rielly Embrey said. “He is not a real vocal guy. He goes about his business. I refer to him as a professional hitter. He is very consistent for us and a real clutch hitter.”

Reese put together three stellar games for the Nighthawks in three victories last week. He went a combined 5-for-10 with three runs, two RBIs and two stolen bases in wins over Mission Vista twice and Canyon Crest Academy.

For his efforts, Reese is the Velocity Sports Performance Athlete of the Week.

“We came out last week knowing that we needed to win every game from here on out in order to make the playoffs,” said Reese, who is hitting over .350 and has two home runs this season. “Our mindset right now is to continue working hard and winning to get into the playoffs.”

Del Norte will continue its drive for the playoffs today (Thursday) at Valley Center.

No related posts.

Short URL: http://www.pomeradonews.com/?p=24370

Posted by Michael Bower on May 9 2012. Filed under Athletes of the Week, High School. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry