On Wednesday, August 21, 2024, Bakersfield College Athletics kicked off the fall season with their Fall Sports Media Day Event. This year, the event was held at the iconic Luigi's Warehouse. Guests were greeted with a pom-pom lined entrance, courtesy of the Bakersfield College Cheer Team lead by Heather Spring. The event began with Athletic Director, Reggie Bolton thanking Luigi's for hosting the event and everyone for coming out supporting BC Athletics. Mayor Karen Goh spoke to the audience, and said it best when she stated, "This is just not any media day, this is BC Media Day, This is Our School!" The mayor then lead the crowd in the chant, "WE ARE BC," and stated that Bakersfield College IS Bakersfield's college.
Next, the President of Bakersfield College, Dr. Jerry Fliger, spoke about how our athletes are, "not only leaders on and off the field, but they graduate at higher rates, with higher grades, and they persist." As the President continued to acknowledge that our athletes leave our college as leaders, he was excited for all of the new things BC Athletics has in store this year, and wrapped up with a resounding, "GO GADES!"
Interviewing the coaches and athletes was Bakersfield College announcer and alumni, Robert Chavez. Before the interviews began, Robert spoke about the long tradition of BC athletics and the excitement that surrounds a new season. He encouraged everyone to walk around the event and take advantage of the Booster Club's, "GO GADES" sponsorship opportunites and the GADES GEAR apparel sale happening for the event.
The interview portion of the event kicked of with BC's Cross Country Coach, Cesar Mireles. Athletes representing cross country were Kaitlyn Valdez, formerly from Independence High School and Jacob Perez, formerly from Frontier High School, who both qualified for the state meet last year and will be leading the team this season. Coach Mireles spoke about his time in Montana, his running experience and how he leades by example. Mireles competes and trains a lot, and loves to share that knowledge with the students. He teaches them that this sport is a process and they need to be consistent and stick to the program and to always believe in themselves. Mireles closed by saying how amazing it is to be back coaching at a place that he competed for back in 07.
Men's Soccer was next with returning coach, Vayron Martinez who had athletes, Alexis Rivas, Luis Gil, Alan Pineda, and Jordee Magana who scored over 50% of the goals last season. Magana gave credit for that success to his coach who gave him the confidence, and also his teammates who played well and set him up to score. The other players commented how, "good connections with each other, preparation, running, and overall team building is how they are preparing for this opening season." Coach Mireles ended with thanking the alumni and everyone for supporting the team.
New Women's Soccer Coach, Edgar Linares who is a local Foothill graduate began his interview with his athletes, former Mustangs, Melanie Mendizabal and Alexis Juarez. Linares shared that this season is starting off strong both academically as well as athletically. Alexis Juarez stated that as an incoming freshman she is excited to be working with such a great team and looking forward to a winning season. Melanie is happy to lend her experience to the team and has been working on her mindset as well as her fitness. Linares closed by responding to recruiting and keeping athletes local. He explained how Bakersfield has so much talent and he enjoys educating student athletes and their families about Backersfield College and how well-rounded the experience is.
The BC Golf Program was represented by new Head Coach, Nick Kaiser and Assistant Coach Andy Muro. Ashlyn Rice formerly from Centennial High School was described as, "one of Centennial's top golfers in the county, team captain, and one of the most committed golfers coach Muro has ever had." Now at Bakersfield College, Coach Muro says that the beauty of BC is that it gives student athletes like Ashlyn the opportunity to play their sport, but then be able to move on to colleges that they may not of been able to go to right out of high school. When asked what goals he has for his players, Coach Kaiser replied that golf is a tough sport and he wants players to learn the skills, stick with it, enjoy it and keep playing.
Men's Wrestling with Coach Marcos Austin and student athlete Adrian Juarez, formerly from Highland High School, kicked off their interview with successes in the program. Many wrestlers from last season have moved on to the next level of their wrestling and college careers, which shows how hard work in the classroom and on the mat make a huge difference. Adrian attributes his success to Coach Austin for helping him with set-up shots and increasing his athleticism.
For women's volleyball, Coach Carl Ferreira and former Liberty High School student athlete Kamryn Briggs explained why he likes the girls on the team to be the voice of the program. Kamryn stated that, "Going through the program at BC is very impactful, and you learn so many things from coach. Not only the athletic part of it, but also mental performance like being mindful of things..." When asked what the benefit is with his players being exposed to different club teams and other volleyball programs, Ferreira replied, "...I'm not just interested in Bakersfield College, I'm interested in what does it take for our program to be one of the best women's volleyball programs in the country; I don't care what level. Standards are a big deal."
Rounding out Media Day was Renegade Football Coach R. Todd Littlejohn and former Garces Ram, Julian Smith. Coach Littlejohn spoke about coaching through the ups and downs of last season and how maturity and good staffing can help during those times. "You don't dwell on them, you learn from them, and you move forward." Littlejohn highlighted the benefit of playing at Bakersfield College, and how it allows players to form those community relationships and work together for a common goal and form lifelong relationships. Julian shared that he chose this program because his brother benefited from it, he knows what it offers, and he trusts its process.
The event wrapped up with Robert Chavez again, thanking Luigi's for allowing Bakersfield College to hold Media Day 2024 at their location, all the supporters of BC sports, and most of all the community of Bakersfield. He reminded everyone of the partnership between BC and Rio Bravo Country Club being announced and celebrated on Saturday, August 24 with a plaque dedicated to all Bakersfield College sports on the 18th green.