Article 81: Dunston Jr. to be a Commodore

November 18, 2010

Shawon Dunston Jr. of Valley Christian High has decided to join the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and become a Vanderbilt Commodore in Nashville. Dunston is a centerfielder for the Warriors as they went 19-12 in the West Catholic Athletic League last year.

Dunston has college offers from Arizona, Georgia Tech, Oregon, Oregon State, and Wake Forest. Vanderbilt won out because of the combination of its academic prestige, location, and baseball program. US News ranks Vanderbilt as the 17th best national university. Vanderbilt was founded in 1873 and was endowed by Cornelius Vanderbilt, a railroad and shipping entrepreneur. Dunston Jr considers himself to be a "California kid" but wanted to leave home to play baseball. In addition, his older sister, Jasmine, is attending Tennessee State University, which is a few miles from Vanderbilt.

As for the baseball reasons to attending Vanderbilt, Dunston cites the program's dominance, coaching staff, and his Nashville visit. Vanderbilt finished last season 46-20 and was ranked No. 15 by Rivals.com. The season included its fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. In Coach Tim Corbin's seven years, Vanderbilt has reached the tournament in six years.

Dunston says about his future coaching staff, "Coach Corbin is the man. I like his vibe a lot as he is a very good person and a good coach. He is a player's coach and he likes to get after it, and I can't wait to play for him. Coach Holiday is the hitting coach and he recruited me along with Coach Corbin and he knows his hitting. His brother is Matt Holiday who is the All-Star outfielder with the St. Louis Cardinals." What this Valley High senior says about his Nashville visit, "I went on my official visit to Vanderbilt in early September and I just fell in love right when I got there. I told myself that this is where I want to play college baseball in the SEC. The Vanderbilt program has produced more drafted players out of college in the last seven years. That is important to me because after college baseball, the goal is to be a very high draft pick."

Perfect Game USA is one of the larger baseball scouting services. Before Dunston made his decision, Vanderbilt had the fifth best recruiting class according to Perfect Game USA. Including Dunston, Vanderbilt's upcoming baseball class has three Aflac All-Americans and one Under Armour All-American. Expect the Commodores to continue to make some noise in the SEC and in the College World Series in Nebraska. Dunston is relieved that the recruiting process is over. Initially, he had over a dozen schools courting him. That was fun at first, but the pressure to make the right decision was becoming hectic.

Not surprisingly, Shawon Dunston Sr. happens to be Shawon's father. And the elder Dunston was the No. 1 overall MLB pick in 1982 and went on to play for the Chicago Cubs and a few other MLB teams. Dunston Sr was known to have a strong arm at shortstop in his playing days. Dunston Sr is currently working as a special assistant for the San Francisco Giants. Shawon credits his baseball success and guidance to his father. He says, "My dad is the one that first put a baseball glove on my hand at a young age. With the college process, he helped me out. For the final decision, he told me that I am going to school for myself not for him. So, the school has to fit my needs. With the baseball draft, he just says to keep it simple and don't worry about it." Junior knows that he cannot control the MLB draft but he can continue to work hard and have a very good spring.

Getting drafted in baseball is important for him, but earning a solid education was more important. As a result, Dunston Jr. is itching to get to the Nashville campus. He credits this past summer for helping him get the necessary exposure.

Shawon participated in the Perfect Game Nationals in Florida, the Areacodes games, and the Aflac All American game. The Perfect Game Nationals is where he got his name out to the entire country and the reason why he became an Aflac All American. He ran a 6.58 in the 60 yard dash and was one of the best athletes in attendance. Ironically, National League Rookie of the Year Buster Posey convinced his dad to allow him to go to the Perfect Game Nationals along with his friend Dylan Delso of Oklahoma, who is another high level prospect who is going to Arizona State. The Areacode games was a good experience as he got to play against the players that he first saw in June again in August. The Aflac All American game was the best game he has ever played in and his best baseball memory and accomplishment. The game was on national TV that has the best high school players in the nation.

At 6-foot-2 and 165 pounds, Dunston Jr. is a developing five tool player. At the center fielder position, Dunston Jr has above average speed to play very good defense. He has a good throwing arm to make assists from the outfield. He is primarily a line drive hitter but is developing his power game. He tries to get on base to create havoc with his speed.

He will put those tools to use for Valley High as his team goal for the upcoming season is try to win a WCAL and CCS championship. Individually, he wants to be more of a leader out on the field and let his game do the talking. As a player, he looks to change the game with his speed, his arm, his hitting, and his outfield defense. Dunston Jr. is humble as he knows that he has a long ways to go to get to the desired level of performance.

Watch for this Warrior to have another impact year for his Valley High team in San Jose this upcoming baseball season. And then watch for Dunston Jr to convert into a Commodore in 2011.

Article 63: Two-sport star commits

October 8, 2010

Braden Bishop has the athletic tools to be a star on both the baseball diamond and the football field. Currently as a junior, Bishop is the two-year starting varsity wide receiver for the St. Francis Lancers. As a sophomore, he accounted for 21 catches for 425 yards with 6 touchdowns and also had 488 return yards with 2 touchdowns. This helped the Lancers to go 9-4 in the season that ended with a CCS Championship 27-22 loss to Bellarmine. His efforts helped earn him WCAL (West Catholic Athletic League) Honorable Mention. For his junior year, he wants to lead the football team to WCAL and CCS championships. Individually, he wants to make WCAL First Team and set the touchdown record for wide receivers for the Lancers.

Bishop is also the three-year starting varsity center fielder for the Lancers. Last year, he had a .425 batting average, 1 home run, 27 runs batted in, 38 runs scored, 9 stolen bases, .588 on base percentage, and .651 slugging percentage. The Lancers went 22-6 and had playoff losses in the first round WCAL playoffs to Saint Ignatius and in the first round CCS playoffs to Menlo Atherton. His consistent play earned him WCAL First Team.

This dual sport star made the decision this past summer to commit to the University of Washington on a baseball scholarship. Even though his junior year had not started, Bishop made this early decision because he says, "I decided to commit early because it all felt right. When I got on campus, it felt like it was the right fit for me. I saw all the schools I was considering and I never got the feeling like I did when I went to UW."

Bishop did not want to be geographically close to home as he wanted to experience someplace new. But at the same time, he wanted to be comfortable with the environment. Bishop has a close connection with Washington Assistant Baseball Coaches Dave Nakama (Nakama's two kids attend high school with Bishop) and Jordon Twohig (Twohig coached Bishop when he was 13 and is a close family friend). As a result, the Seattle campus would be in some ways a home away from home for this Lancer. In addition, Bishop sees the Washington baseball program taking steps in the right direction and the potential to reach the College World Series.

At 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds, Bishop can run 4.49 seconds in the 40-yard dash and has a vertical of 32 inches. His conditioning can be attributed to his mother Suzy, who was a former marathon runner in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. In a recent game against Oak Grove, Bishop made an impossible catch where he turned the wrong way and caught the pass. This uncanny receiving ability translates well to the baseball diamond as he mans center field for the Lancers. The Lancers run a West Coast offense that takes advantage of Bishop's speed, route running, and receiving ability.

This Lancer has been on the varsity team for both baseball and football since his sophomore year. He models his football game after former Lancer and former Cal Bear wide receiver, Chase Lyman. In baseball, he compares his game to former Cal Bear and current Chicago Cub prospect, Brett Jackson. During the offseason, Bishop works with his trainer on quick bursts of speed drills, quick lateral movement drills, and change of speed sprints.

Bishop's athleticism and dual sport status did garner attention from colleges for both sports. Before committing to Washington, he had baseball inquiries from Arizona, Arizona State, Cal, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, and Washington State and he had football contact from Boise State, Cal, Colorado, Colorado State, Northern Arizona, Northern Colorado, Northwestern, Oregon State, and Stanford.

This Lancer was looking for aggressive, good coaching staffs for both baseball and football. For football, he wanted to play for an offense that would air it out. If given the opportunity by the Washington football staff, Bishop would consider playing football for the Huskies as well. For baseball, he wanted to play for a team that had a chance to get to the College World Series. This Lancer wanted to be in a big city such as Seattle with professional sports teams. Bishop did not want to go to an overly hot climate, but did not mind the cold. He wanted the college to be also a prestigious Pac-10 school.

Bishop comes across as being more mature than most of his high school peers. He was quite calm and deliberate in his decision. As a sophomore, he was the youngest member of the Lancer football team that was battling their way to the CCS Championship. In 2004, Bishop's paternal grandfather passed away. Bishop had a very close relationship to his grandfather and had to overcome this emotional setback.

St. Francis High Baseball Coach Mike Oakland says, "Braden is an outstanding young man. He is extremely focused and determined. Braden has the work ethic of an elite athlete and will certainly be successful at the next level as he has already been at the high school level. Braden has many great character traits that make him the well respected student-athlete that he is today. Braden pays close attention to detail and is very conscientious. Braden is mature for his age and can do many things on the baseball field to help the program be successful. His biggest asset is his speed and competitive nature. He is also a very accomplished hitter and defender. I can't say enough about this kid, he is a pleasure to coach and fortunately has the athletic skills to make him a standout player in the WCAL."

As a sophomore, Bishop's football teammate, middle linebacker Robert Calcagno, gave him the nickname, "Franchise." Even though the Franchise has already committed to the University of Washington, the Mountain View community can still enjoy the athletic exploits of this two sport star for the next two years at St. Francis High.