For the next several weeks we’ll be featuring some of the top graduating senior athletes from Analy and El Molino High Schools, recalling their many highlights and accomplishments.
Although there are far too many athletes to list, the students selected in the coming issues all had one thing in common: they represented themselves and their schools with tremendous talent, dedication and sportsmanship.
Patrick Atkinson
El Molino’s Patrick Atkinson was as versatile as they come in a multi-year varsity career in basketball and baseball, rising to become one of the top players on each team. A small forward on the basketball court, he was the second leading scorer on the Lions team in a standout senior campaign, averaging about seven points per game.
His best moments were on the baseball diamond during three stellar varsity seasons as one of the team’s best pitchers and hitters. Although his senior campaign was cut short, Atkinson recorded batting averages of .405 and .309 during his sophomore and junior years, finishing among the leaders in hits and runs batted in. On the mound, he was arguably his team’s best starting pitcher, recording a combined earned run average of about 1.80.
Kaija Bazzano
Analy’s Kaija Bazzano was a standout for many reasons in a stellar high school sports career in soccer and baseball, stamping her teams with dedication and toughness.
A four-year star on the soccer field, Bazzano established herself as one of the best goalies in the Redwood Empire, using great quickness and athleticism in front of the net. Her best season may have come her junior year when she allowed just 15 goals in 19 matches, one of the best stat lines in school history. Along the way, Bazzano led her teams to a pair of league titles and yearly trips to the North Coast Section playoffs.
The talented senior was a pioneer of sorts on the baseball diamond in a pair of varsity seasons as a reserve infielder, where she was among the few girls to ever wear a Tiger uniform.
