(June 8, 2012) Hakop Kaplanyan’s seven years of playing water polo really paid off this year when he was accepted to University of California, Los Angeles with a scholarship for water polo. “I went the extra mile, with all the hard work and effort I put into every practice, to reach where I am right now,” Kaplanyan said. After playing for Glendale’s Olimpiakan Reservner Water Polo club for so long, Kaplanyan thinks he grew the most during his high school years and became a much better all-around player.

Vincent Van Hoek , who has been playing volleyball for the last three years, plans on continuing to play during the summer so he’ll be ready to try out for the team at California State University, Northridge. He enjoyed spending a part of his high school years playing for the Crescenta Valley team, which made it as far as the third round of playoffs this year. This success gives Van Hoek the opportunity to leave his team proud and satisfied, especially considering the team hadn’t made it that far since 1998.

For Ali Minty , his commitment to both soccer and tennis on top of maintaining his grades is one of his biggest accomplishments. After playing tennis for six years and soccer for 12 years, three of which he played for Hoover High School’s teams for both sports, Minty is now moving on to the University of California, Davis.

At UC Davis, he plans on being a part of the soccer and tennis clubs, both of which play against other schools. Playing one of the riskiest sports in America, Marvin Alvarado is hesitant to pursue football once he graduates and goes on to college. Besides the physical aspect of the sport, Alvarado believes that football is also a mental sport that has really helped him grow as a person in the three years that he’s played for Hoover High School’s team.

“Leaving without any regrets,” Alvarado said, “I can always look back and remember the days I spent on that bus, in that locker room, in that huddle, and on that field.” After playing basketball for ten years, Michelle Tomasian tore her anterior cruciate ligament during her season this year.

Tomasian played for Glendale High School’s varsity team for three years and finished with a bang by earning her position as captain of the team. She doesn’t regret a single practice even though there were rough patches here and there. Sadly, though, Tomasian cannot play basketball at the moment due to her injury, but she hopes to get back on the court after recovering for a year or two after surgery.