Golden Valley tight end Souza to Pacific University on academic scholarship

Michael Souza always wanted to play college football. The Golden Valley senior tight end will get that chance because he took care of business in the classroom.

Souza accepted an academic scholarship that will cover half the cost for him to attend Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore., and he’ll get the opportunity to play for the Boxers.

“When you’re going through high school, you won’t think all your work in the classroom will be rewarded,” said Souza, who has a 3.6 GPA. “I’m happy all that hard work paid off. It feels great.”

Pacific University coaches showed interest in the 6-foot-3, 203-pound Souza in January and he took a visit to the campus in March and he quickly felt at home there.

“I like the atmosphere and you could feel the prestige being there,” Souza said. “I got to talk to a professor about the academics. Talking to the coaches, I could tell they want victories. They set lofty goals for their students.”

Souza wants to go to a school that is going to challenge him in the classroom and on the football field. Getting away from the drought seemed appealing as well.

“I like that everything is green up there,” said Souza, who caught 10 passes for 128 yards for the Cougars last fall. “It’s a little rainy and I like that.”

Chowchilla’s Grissom signs with Cal State East Bay

Chowchilla senior Kelby Grissom recently signed a letter of intent to accept a partial baseball scholarship from Cal State East Bay.

Grissom initiated contact with East Bay coach Bob Ralston and that led to a visit where he was able to watch practice and tour the campus.

“I liked the fact that they have a brand new business building and they have new freshman dorms,” Grissom said. “They have a nice baseball facility, and I really liked the coaches and players.”

Coming out of a small town like Chowchilla, Grissom was unsure if he’d get an opportunity to play at a four-year college right away. However, after playing summer ball with some players from bigger high schools, Grissom knew he could compete.

Grissom was the North Sequoia League Utility Player of the Year. He’s hitting .400 with 22 runs and 24 RBIs this season. On the mound, Grissom is 8-2 with a 1.03 ERA.

“I’m super excited,” he said. “I’ve wanted to play college baseball since I was a kid. I remember watching college games on TV. To finally have that paper sitting in front of you was awesome.”

Gauchos sweep swimming titles

The El Capitan boys and girls swim teams finished their perfect run to Western Athletic Conference championships by winning the league meet.

The Gauchos girls were led by Marion Carpenter, who took home titles in the 200-yard individual medley (2 minutes, 22.85 seconds) and 100 backstroke (1:05.50). Also winning individual titles for El Capitan girls were Metzli Enriquez in the 500 freestyle (6:00.24) and Madison Nolan in the 100 breaststroke (1:14.18).

The El Capitan boys were led by double-winner Jacob Mumford(500 freestyle, 5:30.48; 100 breaststroke, 1:10.23). Evan Spiva also won the 200 IM (2:20.29).

Merced’s Ciudad wins CCC title

Merced’s Juan Ciudad defeated Golden Valley’s Cesar Nava 6-4, 6-4 to win the Central California Conference tennis championship on April 30. Nava had won the past two league titles.

Ciudad also was named the CCC MVP after winning all but one conference match.

Merced’s Jordan Cabrera and John Miao won the doubles title with a 5-7, 6-1, 6-3 win over Atwater’s Chris Smith and Jake Spangler.

This story was originally published May 6, 2015 at 9:48 PM with the headline "Golden Valley tight end Souza to Pacific University on academic scholarship."