College Update: Chamberlain among NCAA top 10 for Pepperdine volleyball
The following are updates on local athletes at the collegiate level.
Max Chamberlain (Burroughs High, 2015) Pepperdine men’s volleyball junior: The former Pacific League Player of the Year proved to be a force in the middle this season for the Waves, finishing in the top 10 in the nation in blocks.
The 6-foot-7 middle blocker earned a place in the starting lineup and played a large part in the Waves’ success. For his efforts Chamberlain was named an All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation second-team selection.
Starting 19 of 20 matches, Chamberlain finished with 85 blocks. He averaged 1.16 blocks a set, which put him No. 7 among NCAA Division I players. In addition, Chamberlain tallied 89 kills, 23 digs, 21 aces and scored 154 points.
Chamberlain posted a career-high 10 blocks on March 1 against BYU.
Pepperdine saw its season come to a close April 14 with a 25-22, 25-19, 26-24, 25-18 loss to USC in the conference quarterfinals. Chamberlain had five kills and three blocks in the setback.
The Waves posted a 15-7 record and were 8-4 in MPSF play.
Caitlyn Brooks (Burbank High, 2015) Notre Dame softball junior: The former multiple All-Area Softball Player of the Year and Burbank Leader Girls’ Athlete of the Year helped the Fighting Irish to a successful season.
For the 20th straight season, Notre Dame qualified for the NCAA Division I Softball Tournament. In addition, it is the 30th consecutive season the Irish (34-23) finished with a winning record.
Notre Dame, which went 13-10 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, lost in the conference semifinals May 11 to Florida State, 6-1. Brooks, a pitcher and designated player, had two walks. Brooks was named to the ACC Championship All-Tournament Team.
In the NCAA tournament, Notre Dame ended its season May 20 in the Lexington Regional with a 2-1 victory against Michigan and a 8-0 loss to Kentucky, which won the regional. Against Michigan, Brooks had a walk and against Kentucky she drove in a run.
On the season, Brooks started in all 57 games for the Irish. Along with a .272 batting average (40 for 147), she led the team in home runs with nine and runs batted in with 38. In addition, Brooks walked 33 times. In the circle, she was 1-1 with a 3.50 earned-run average with 19 strikeouts and 22 walks over 32 innings.
Christopher Peres (Burroughs High 2015) La Verne baseball junior: It was another award-winning season for the former Indians player, who was a force at the plate and on the mound for the Leopards.
For the second season in a row, Peres was named American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings NCAA Division All-West Region, making the third team.
Peres was also a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference first-team honoree.
On the mound, Peres led the SCIAC with nine saves and ranked third on La Verne’s squad with 49 strikeouts. In 17 appearances, he finished 2-1 with a 3.57 earned-run average over 40 1/3 innings. At the plate, he hit .352 (31 for 88) with 22 RBI, 20 runs, 11 walks and five doubles.
La Verne (29-14, 19-5 in conference) captured a share of the SCIAC championship with the University of Redlands (19-5 in conference). It was the Leopards’ 21st SCIAC title and first since 2012.
La Verne concluded its season May 5 in the SCIAC Postseason Tournament, losing to Redlands, 10-3, and Chapman College, 10-3.
The team also featured Christopher Ligot, a Burbank resident who attended Alemany, and former Burroughs players Ryan Galan and Roy Hirota. Ligot was third on the team in hitting (.364 with 47 hits, 33 runs, 22 RBI and 10 doubles).
Michelle Santiago (Burroughs High 2015) Mount San Antonio College softball, sophomore: The catcher and former Indians standout played a key role in helping the Mounties capture a state championship.
On May 20, Mt. SAC came from behind to earn a 5-4 victory at home over Palomar to claim the California Community College Athletic Assn. Championship. In the title game, Santiago was one for one with a walk, a sacrifice and a run batted in. Santiago put the Mounties ahead, 2-1, with a sacrifice fly to left field in the third inning. In the bottom of the sixth, Santiago came around to score on Vicky Gutierrez’ game-winning three-run home run.
Santiago was named the tournament’s most valuable player as she went five for 11 with a walk in four tournament games, hitting two home runs, scoring five runs, driving in eight and hitting safely in all four games.
“Gosh, it means everything to me. I’ve been waiting for this moment and this was the team it was meant to be,” Mt. SAC coach Ruby Rojas told the college’s website. “What better way and place to do it than in your home stadium.”
Mt. SAC (41-7, 10-2 in conference) defeated College of the Canyons to win the CCCAA Super Regionals and also captured a South Coast Conference North championship.
Santiago, who was an all-conference first-team selection, was third on the team with a .390 batting average (39 for 100) and had 19 RBI, 16 runs, six doubles and two home runs. She also struck out just five times.
Prior to coming to Mt. SAC, Santiago played for Arizona Western, hitting .473 as a freshman.
Twitter: @jefftsports
