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Copper Area News
Several baseball and softball players from the Copper Corridor earned more postseason honors with the release of the American Family Insurance Division IV Baseball and Softball Teams, as selected by azcentral sports.
Ray senior infielder Dominic Bravo and San Manuel junior infielder Shane Kelly were named to the first team. San Manuel senior pitcher Anthony Garcia was named to the second team.
San Manuel’s Alvaro Alvarez, Christian Dietz, and Andy Garcia earned honorable mention honors. Ray’s Derek Pacheco and Destry Yocum along with Superior’s Ricky Longoria also earned honorable mention recognition.
A total of five softball players from the Copper Corridor were named to the Division IV Softball First Team. San Manuel sophomore pitcher Lyana Waddell and junior infielder Alyssa Cuellar as well as Ray sophomore pitcher Stormee Galka earned first team honors. Superior junior infielder Cierra Navarrette and junior outfielder Hunter Flanagan also earned first team recognition. Five more softball players were named to the Second Team. San Manuel junior infielder Felicia Medina, senior outfielder Angelica Zuniga, and sophomore DH Ashley Vargas earned second team honors. Hayden senior catcher Devin Estrada and Superior sophomore infielder Gabby Salcido were also named to the second team.
San Manuel’s Felicia Gomez, Mariah McBride, Kadi Monfred, Angela Navarro, and Mireya Tamayo earned honorable mention honors. Superior’s Ivie Lopez and Ray’s Ashley Meza also earned honorable mention recognition.
Baseball and softball teams from Ray, San Manuel, and Superior earned berths in the respective 2014 Division IV State Championship Brackets. Hayden’s softball team also earned a berth in the playoffs and pulled off one of the biggest upsets in this year’s tournament in the first round. The San Manuel Miners won their second straight Softball State Championship and ninth title overall.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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