Contra Costa Herald

News Of By and For The People of Contra Costa County, California

Student from Brentwood at Antioch’s Givans Taekwondo on track for 2020 Olympics

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Heritage High denies him opportunity to graduate with class due to on-line schooling during training

CJ Nickolas with gold medal from the 2018 World Taekwondo Federation competition in Greece. Photo courtesy of Ed Givans.

C.J. Nickolas, a senior in high school, is headed to Taekwondo Senior World Championships in Manchester, England in May 2019.  He had to withdrawal from Heritage High School two days into his Senior year because he was one of eight athletes in the United States picked up by the United States Taekwondo (USAT) to train full time abroad and enter the European Taekwondo Open circuit.  The intention was to get these athletes ready for 2024 or 2028 Olympics.

However, Nickolas has defied the odds, outperformed the initial expectation, and is headed to the World Championships this year setting him on a track for the 2020 Olympics.  A few other things have to fall into place for him to make it, as well, but he’s definitely on track.

Nickolas is the son of Edward Givans, owner of Givans Taekwondo in Antioch, where Nickolas trains, and Denise Nickolas of Brentwood.

“His mom and I are very proud of C.J.,” the elder Givans said. “It’s been exciting to see him advance in his skills and the competitions.”

Arriving at this place in his life was not happenstance or luck for Nickolas.  He has put long hours, and extensive time into training over the years.  Nickolas has made many sacrifices to get where he is and says that even in the setbacks and losses and injuries, he knows he has to continue the grind.  He says he digs deep when it’s tough and keeps pressing his way.

Nickolas is finishing out his high school through an on-line school (CAVA) while he continues to train full time.  His travels in the past six months have taken him to compete in Greece, Poland, France, Croatia, Africa and Spain among other places.  He has one stop in Bulgaria before he heads back to England to train for Worlds.  CJ has been in Brentwood schools (Ron Nunn, Adams and Heritage) and has many ties to the community.

Sadly, he says, “I will not be allowed to participate in the graduation ceremony with my peers and I will be at Worlds during the Prom.”

Heritage High Principal Carrie Wells provided the reason Nickolas is not being allowed to graduate with this year’s class.

“He actually is not enrolled in our district, currently. In order to be enrolled in our district, he would have had to re-enroll in January, before the current semester,” she said. “His only option would be to enroll in Independence High School in our district. There would be seat time each week and check-in with the teacher.”

“It’s not that we don’t want him to graduate with us. But, board policy is pretty specific about that,” Wells added.

Nickolas puts that in the column of sacrifices and will continue his grind to get to the coming Olympics.

Allen Payton contributed to this story.

Alabama loses championship to Clemson in Antioch High grad Najee Harris’ Bay Area return

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Screenshot from ESPN2 of Najee Harris, #22 Alabama, stretching for the goal line during the 2nd Quarter of the National Championship game against Clemson Monday night, Jan. 7, 2019.

Najee Harris. Courtesy of rolltide.com

By Luke Johnson

“When he gets the ball, watch out,” said Shaun Alexander, former All-Pro running back.

Alexander was referring to Alabama running back Najee Harris when they bumped into each other at media day Saturday.

However, Harris did not get the ball too often come gametime.

Alabama lost to Clemson, 44-16, in the CFP National Championship at Levi’s Stadium.

In his Bay Area homecoming, Harris rushed for 59 yards via nine carries Monday evening.

“I just have a feeling that I didn’t do a very good job,” said Nick Saban, Crimson Tide head coach, in the postgame press conference. “I always feel that way. Even sometimes when we win, I think there are things that we could have done better or that I could have done better.”

Screenshot of Najee Harris falling just one yard short of the goal line. Alabama scored a touchdown on their next play.

With Alabama facing a large deficit in the second half, its offense ran mostly passing plays. Harris last touched the ball with 8:19 remaining in the third quarter. His 6.6 yards per carry led all rushers.

The Antioch-hometown running back had not played in the Bay Area since December 2016 – his final game in high school.

Harris was vital in Alabama’s comeback victory during last year’s national championship. His 64 rushing yards in the fourth quarter helped the Crimson Tide overcome a 13-point deficit.

He finished second on his team for rushing yards this season with 783. Senior Damien Harris had the most with 876.

Since Najee Harris won’t be eligible to enter the NFL draft until 2020, he could be the featured back for Alabama next season.

Liberty High Lions football team wins state championship

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Screenshot of video of Lions Head Coach Ryan Partridge holding the state championship trophy following his team’s victory Saturday night, Dec. 15, 2018. By Jesus Cano

Beat elite private school team from So Cal

By Jesus Cano, Herald Sports Reporter

NORWALK, Calif. — As soon as then-first year head coach Ryan Partridge and his Liberty High School football team won the 2017 NCS Division I Championship, they set their eyes on the next prize. And Saturday night, Dec. 15 at Cerritos College in Southern California, the Lions’ historic two-season run came to an end with a 19-17 victory over the Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) Trailblazers, allowing them to hoist the CIF Division 1-A State Championship.

“Every one of these kids deserve it. Every player is extremely important to this program. It’s just unbelievable, I can’t even put my thoughts into words right now.” said Partridge.

Sierra Canyon is a private pre-K through 12th grade day and boarding school where a variety of famous individuals have attended or send their children, including members of the Kardashian family, Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s daughter Willow and Ireland Baldwin the daughter of actors Alec Baldwin and Kim Bassinger, to name a few.

Tyerell Sturges-Cofer made his last high school football game memorable, rushing for all three of Liberty’s touchdowns on his 188-yard night. With quarterback Jay Butterfield struggling, the Lions’ traditionally pass-heavy offense was forced to turn to the ground attack, with Sturges-Cofer leading the comeback from down 17-7.

“Our O-line was doing an amazing job. We just kept fighting and going for the first down.” said Sturges-Cofer. “In the beginning of the season, coach said we were going for state. We won D-one last year, so we had to take another step and we did it.”

Sierra Canyon got on the board first with an 87-yard drive, capping off with a Chayden Peery one-yard sneak. Sturges-Cofer responded one play later, escaping for a 72-yard touchdown to tie the game.

The Trailblazers went on to light up the scoreboard in the rest of the first half. Josh Bryan added a 24-yard field goal to make it 10-7 in the second quarter. Brendon Gamble tackled on a 22-yard rushing touchdown, giving Sierra Canyon the 17-7 lead heading into halftime.

Sturges-Cofer was set up with the defense’s second touchdown of game, as they forced Sierra Canyon to fumble for a second time. It only took two plays for Sturges-Cofer to score with a 31-yard touchdown run that saw him knock down a pack of Traiblazer linemen to make it 17-13.

Liberty quarterback Jay Butterfield was rattled, unable to complete passes to his receivers, but stepped up when it was necessary by hitting Adrik Lamar to set up Sturges-Cofer for his game winning touchdown drive.

“Our defense picked me up especially throughout the whole game,” said Butterfield. “You never give up anytime, you always trust your receivers. No matter if it’s your top guy or your bottom guy.”

It’s been a whirlwind for Liberty over the past two seasons. The Lions won the NCS Division I championship in 2017, and in 2018 were able to finish the regular season 10-0, and win the BVAL for the first time in school history, while beating powerhouse Pittsburg for the first time since 2005.

As the Lions arrived from Southern California, they were greeted with roaring Liberty fans in the downtown Brentwood campus.

“We have the best fans supporting us at every game.” Butterfield said.

“We have such great community support. It just means everything. We set the culture of service and love.” Partridge added.

Brentwood’s Liberty High Lions football team to play in state championship Saturday night

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The CIS Division 1-A NorCal Champions to face Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth

By Jesus Cano

Liberty has been making history for the past two seasons, and now they are finally on the big stage, and want to leave Norwalk with gold.

The Lions took home a 33-21 victory over Valley Christian and were crowned the California Interscholastic Federation Division 1-A NorCal champions. Liberty also sealed its ticket to state and will take on the Sierra Canyon Trailblazers of Chatsworth this Saturday, Dec. 15 at 8 p.m. for the CIF Division 1-A championship 372 miles away at Cerritos College.

The aerial duo of quarterback Jay Butterfield and receiver Sione Vaki have been making it a nightmare for opposing teams’ secondaries. But receivers Adrik Lamar and Jerrin Easter-Williams have been stepping up to the occasion, as well. They each caught one touchdown in Liberty’s victory over Valley Christian.

The Lions run game is also as productive, with lineman like Josh McKey, Payton Zdroik and Reese Watkins, running back Tyerell Sturges-Cofer has been able to find the gaps and turn on the wheels. The senior carried the ball for 1,343 yards. And after a slow game against Pittsburg where he only ran for 59 yards, Sturges-Cofer bounced back. Brenden Bell can also carry the ball whe needed.

Liberty will be without key play, linebacker Nicky Einess, who suffered a concussion against Valley Christian. The defense is still stacked with many of its defensive lineman playing both ways. Vaki, Bell and Sturges-Cofer also play defense. Mason Padilla is a player that could lead the linebacker core.

On their way to the Bay Valley Athletic League championship, the Lions defeated most of their rivals by large margins including the Deer Valley Wolverines 60-12, the Freedom Falcons 55-21 and blanking both the Antioch High Panthers with a score of 52-0 and the Heritage Patriots 49-0.

Playoff stakes are riding on today’s 100th Big Little Game of Antioch vs. Pittsburg high school football

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Panthers to host Pirates for the historic rivalry

By Luke Johnson

One of the greatest high school football rivalry games will likely decide who gets a playoff bid and who doesn’t.

“If we lose tomorrow, we shouldn’t be in the open division,” said Pittsburg head coach Vic Galli.

The No. 1 and 2 seeds for the North Coast Section Open Division appear be locked in for De La Salle (9-0) and Liberty (9-0, 4-0 BVAL). In contention for potentially one of the other two seeds are Antioch (7-2, 2-2) and Pittsburg (6-3, 3-1), who play in the 100th Big Little Game Saturday.

Galli said Antioch’s greatest strength is its quarterback Willem Karnthong, who has passed for 1,120 yards and rushed for 406 this season.

Karnthong has 43 career touchdown passes and is seven away from breaking the Panthers’ all-time record.

The Pirates have to overcome injuries from star players to win the contest. Washington-bound nose guard Jacob Bandes and starting quarterback Tre Turner are ruled out for the game.

“Pittsburg’s greatest strength is the front seven — specifically, that triangle that anchors the middle: [Jack] Lacy, Bandes and [De’Jon] Benton,” said Antioch quarterback coach Juan Corral. “All 3 of those guys are Top 5 all time in their school’s history at their positions.”

Another weapon in Pittsburg’s arsenal is Willie Harts III, who has scored touchdowns via passing, rushing, receiving, interception, kick return and punt return this season.

Other key players for the Panthers consist of wide receiver Gaudie Campbell and linebacker Vinny Ballardo. Campbell is tied for most all-time receiving touchdowns at Antioch with 18 and Ballardo has averaged 100-plus tackles per season since he was a sophomore.

Game time is 1:30 p.m. at Antioch High School’s Eels Stadium at W. 18th at L Streets.

Pittsburg Diamonds dominate in season home opener

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Article and photo by Jesus Cano

Maybe the Pittsburg Diamonds just needed a change of scenery to have their fortunes change.

After being outscored 20-5 in their opening series against the reigning Pacific Association champion Vallejo Admirals, the Pittsburg hitters woke up as they defeated the Sonoma Stompers 18-7 in their season home opener.

The bats certainly came back to life.

After beginning the game with a rough start by Tyler Stiewart who surrendered a homerun in the first inning, returning player Wes Wallace smacked a three-run shot right after to put the Diamonds ahead 3-1.

“There’s guys looking for a scoring position so I’m looking for a pitch up there,” Wallace said. “It was 2-0 count, I’m just going to make sure to shrink my zone and make sure it’s a pitch I could drive. I got one that was up and put a good swing on it.”

Wallace finished the night 4 for 5 with six RBIs.

Stiewart continued to struggle, as he gave up back-to-back homeruns to the Stompers.

Pittsburg was handed a plethora of gifts in the fourth inning which saw a significant turn in the game.

Tied 4-4 Sonoma pitcher Robbie Kidd game in relief for starter Ethan Gibbons. Kidd struggled with his control, as he faced five batters, and gave all of them walks. Kidd exited the inning with two earned runs. It didn’t get better for Sonoma, as Pittsburg showcased its bats Rafael Valera doubled in two runs. Jordan Van Atta sacrificed to center and Patrick O’Donnell recorded an RBI single to lead the bottom of the fourth with a 10-4 lead.

Pittsburg never lost the lead after that, but that didn’t come with its trouble in the Stompers’ next crack at the bat. Miles Williams hit a two-run homer. Pittsburg pitcher Skylar Shaw-Fuss walked in a runner.

Pittsburg added 10 more runs to finish the game and snap it’s early season slump.

“We got a lot a question marks on the team, but the guys came out today and showed they were hungry and could swing the bats,” World Series champion and Pittsburg Diamonds manager Aaron Miles said.

One of the Diamonds top performers was Valera. While his jersey number is two, his lucky number as four, as he had four RBIs and had a four-hit game.

“I just wanted to be calm and relaxed at the plate,” Valera said. “If you get too rough or to hard you’re not gonna do good.”

The Diamonds play their home games at Winter Chevrolet Stadium located inside City Park at 60 Civic Avenue in Pittsburg. To learn more about the team and to view this season’s schedule visit www.diamondsproball.com.

Brentwood teen wins silver at World Junior Taekwondo Championships

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CJ Nickolas (left) and the other medal winners at the World Junior Taekwondo Championships on Thursday, April 12, 2018. Photo by Denise Nickolas.

HAMMAMET, Tunisia (April 12, 2018) — Team USA notched its second medal in as many days as the World Taekwondo Junior Championships continued in Tunisia. CJ Nickolas (Brentwood, Calif.) took the silver medal in the male -68kg division on Thursday, April 12, one day after Anastasija Zolotic (Largo, Fla.) won gold in the female -52kg class. Nickolas is a student at Givans Taekwondo in Antioch, California.

CJ during a previous competition. Photo courtesy of Team USA.

Nickolas breezed through his first two matches of the day with a 29-1 win over Somalia’s Abdullah Fuad Dahir and a 23-5 victory against Italy’s Andrea Riondino to reach the round of 16. He then scored a 12-3 win over Afghanistan’s Rashid Sarwari and edged Chinese Taipei’s Cheng-Chi Wei in overtime to advance to the medal round.

In his semifinal match with Serbia’s Dusan Bozanic, Nickolas broke an 8-8 tie with a scoring kick in the final 10 seconds to prevail and move on to the final. The gold-medal match against Iran’s Mohammad Mahdi Emadi saw Nickolas fall behind 5-1 after two rounds and then 13-2 early in the third. The American would rally to pull within 13-8 in the final minute but Emadi held off the charge to win by a score of 18-10 and claim the gold medal.

“I am proud of him,” said Givans Taekwondo owner Ed Givans, who is also Nickolas’ father.

CJ has a 4.0 GPA…he also plays basketball, runs track and is on a dance team at his church called Generation of Praise. His favorite book is Infantry – Born to Fight by his dad, Edward Givans. favorite TV show is American Ninja Warrior…favorite movies are Planet of the Apes, The Incredibles and Kingsmen/Secret Service…favorite singer is Stevie Wonder…favorite foods are Korean barbeque, burrito bowls from Chipotle and Sprite…favorite athlete is Derrick Rose…favorite taekwondo athlete is Alexey Denisenko…his mother is his biggest inspiration…his proudest moment in Taekwondo to date is making the Cadet National Team for a second straight year in 2015 and competing at the World Championships…favorite quote: “Practice as if you are the worst, perform as if you are the best.” – Mahatma Gandhi. CJ was awarded the 2015 Stanford TKD Athlete of the Year. View his page on the Team USA website.

 

2nd Annual Larry Damitz Memorial Race on tap at Antioch Speedway Saturday night

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Larry Damitz #15 after one of his wins in 2016. Damitz was a five-time Limited Late Model champion and was recently inducted into the Vallejo Sports Hall Of Fame. Photo by Paul Gould

By Don Martin II

The Antioch Speedway roars back into action this Saturday night, April 14 with an exciting six division All Star Series program honoring the late Larry Damitz. Featured divisions this weekend include the Wingless Spec Sprints, A Modified, B Modifieds, Limited Late Models, Hobby Stocks and Dwarf Cars.

In recent seasons, the division of choice for Damitz, who was racing well into his 80s, was the Limited Late Models. In his final seven seasons at Antioch, he won five championships and finished second in those other two seasons. He won over 50 Main Events in his illustrious career at Antioch Speedway alone, and he was also recently inducted into the Vallejo Sports Hall Of Fame.

For The Limited Late Model racers, this event is for them. They spent many years trying to beat the orange and blue #15 car, wheeled impressively by Damitz. Last season, it was Kimo Oreta taking the wheel and making sure the Sun Drop Racing team maintained their championship status. Though he was very consistent and won multiple races, he still had to fight off the challenges of 2013 champion Jim Freethy and Mark Garner.

Freethy and Garner are both expected to contend for this year’s championship. Garner was doing double division duty last season, but he has put his B Modified up for sale in order to focus on his Limited Late Model effort. The man who has won more Main Events in this division at Antioch than anybody else, Mike Gustafson, will be another driver to watch out for. He was a two-time feature winner last season. Chris Long is anticipated in the John Keith car, and other drivers to watch for include John Evans, Lori Brown, Chad Hammer and Ryan Cherezian.

The A Modified division kicked off their 2018 season two weeks ago with Nick DeCarlo scoring the impressive victory. DeCarlo tends to bounce from track to track, but he has championships to his credit at Watsonville and Petaluma. A decision on Nick’s behalf to compete for the Antioch crown would certainly make him a top threat. Reigning champion Bobby Motts Jr notched the second place finish at the opener as he attempts a title defense. Five time division champion Scott Busby has his eyes on a track record 73 career feature wins, and other drivers to watch for this week include Sean O’Gara, rookie Buddy Kniss, hard charger Trent Wentworth, Mike Salazar and Bobby Montalvo.

Fred Ryland might have been a surprise entrant at the opener as he was the 2017 Merced Speedway champion. However, he picked up right where he left off with another Antioch win. The 2015 Antioch champion, who also has a Hobby Stock championship to his credit, is rapidly approaching 50 career feature wins. Ryland’s presence in the field makes things very interesting and helps make Antioch one of the most exciting B Modified programs in the state. Other drivers to watch for in the field include 2016 champion Trevor Clymens, 2017 champion KC Keller, past Street Stock champion Todd Gomez, past Hobby Stock champion Guy Ahlwardt and Tommy Fraser.

The Wingless Spec Sprint division enters its 20th season on the roster, and it appears as if 2004 champion Bob Newberry has his sights set on the championship. Newberry won more Main Events than anybody last season before settling for third in the standings. Another driver to keep an eye on is the only driver to have competed in all 20 seasons in this division, 2017 runnerup Rick Panfili. A competitive group of racers in this class includes Alan Miranda, Roy Fisher, Shannon Newton, Brandon Burd, Abigail Gonderman, Adam Teves, James East and Bryan Grier, who hasn’t officially said if he’s attempting a title defense this year.

The Hobby Stock division continues to have a strong presence at the speedway. In the opener, Michael Cooper looked very impressive in scoring the win, leaving the battle for second between reigning champion Cameron Swank and 2010 champion Chris Sorensen. Past Super Hobby Stock and Figure 8 champion Jim Robbins threw his hat into the ring this year and looked very fast in the opener. Likewise, Chris Bennett also figures to be in line for his first career feature win. Other drivers to watch for this week include Jordan Swank, Travis Tabucchi, Ricky Foster, Josh Leach, Russell Shearer and Haley Gomez.

There was plenty of disappointment to go around in the Dwarf Car community after the rain out canceled what was sure to be a big event last week. Regardless, Mike Corsaro enters the season as the reigning champion. Corsaro may very well be the driver to beat this year as he has become very consistent in recent seasons. David Michael Rosa is knocking on the door to his first career feature win and may be another driver to watch in the championship hunt. Other drivers to watch for this week include last season’s top rookie, Devan Kammermann, Brian Gray, David Rosa, Charlie Correia and 2016 champion Kevin Miraglio.

It looks as if the weather will open a window and allow this exciting six division program to unfold. For further information on this and other happenings at Contra Costa County’s only place to watch auto races live and in person, go to www.antiochspeedway.com.

CHP Super Bowl Rreminder: Fans don’t let fans drive drunk

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On Sunday, February 4, football fans across the country will gather with friends and family to watch Super Bowl LII.  The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is teaming up with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to remind motorists to designate a sober driver before the game begins.

“Drunk driving is completely avoidable, but continues to be a serious problem,” CHP Acting Commissioner Warren Stanley said.  “We want motorists to remember that drinking and driving is a choice that can have catastrophic results.  If you choose to drink, do not drive.”

According to preliminary data from the CHP’s Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System, during last year’s Super Bowl, one person was killed in an alcohol-involved collision and 41 others were injured on California’s roadways.  That same day, there were 247 arrests made by the CHP for driving under the influence (DUI).  Consequences of a DUI arrest are jail time, the loss of a driver license, higher insurance rates, court fees, car towing and repair, and lost wages from time off work.

“There are no excuses when it comes to driving under the influence,” Acting Commissioner Stanley added.  “Have a game plan ready to avoid a tragedy.  Leave your car keys at home if you will be consuming alcoholic beverages, and use public transportation, a designated driver, or a ride-hailing service to stay safe.”

If you are hosting a Super Bowl party, be a team player and help keep impaired drivers from getting behind the wheel.  Make proper arrangements and designate your sober driver before the big game begins.  And remember:  Fans Don’t Let Fans Drive Drunk.

The public can help by calling 9-1-1 if they suspect a drunk driver.  Callers should be prepared to give the vehicle’s description, location, license plate number, and direction of travel.

The mission of the CHP is to provide the highest level of Safety, Service, and Security.