Castillo becomes a Titan
MHS Jessenia Castillo signs with UDM
Monache High School slugger Jessenia Castillo accepted a full-ride scholarship to play softball for the University of Detroit Mercy and signed her National Letter of Intent in the Marauders’ gym surrounded by family, friends and former coaches on Thursday.
Described as the “best hitter” for the Marauders in the last 18 years by MHS head coach Dave Koontz, Castillo has the stats to back up that declaration. Last season she set the school record for home runs and RBIS with nine and 53, respectively, while also batting .514 with a slugging percentage of 1.018.
“Barry Bonds would be envious,” Koontz said when reading off Castillo’s stats to her supporting crowd. The left-handed hitter was also named The Recorder’s 2016-17 Co-orange Belt Softball Player of the Year and selected to the Visalia Times Delta’s All-county and Fresno Bee’s All-valley teams.
This season Castillo is batting .571 with 21 RBIS and trying to get her team to the CIF Central Section Division I Championship title game. Last season, the Division II top-seeded Marauders took down the sixth-seeded Apaches of Sanger in a 6-1 victory. Castillo was named the Most Valuable Player of the game after going 3-for4 with a single, double and a triple.
“This is an ultimate team player,” Koontz said. “This is a young lady who strives to be her best, be involved quietly I might add — very quietly — in her team’s success. First to get there, generally it’s a tie between her and [pitcher Chloe Rivas]. First to get there, one of the last to leave. If you’ve ever gone by our field on weekends, she’s out there.”
Along with Rivas and former-marauder Nicole Garcia — who signed to New Mexico State and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, respectively — Castillo is the third member of last season’s Valley championship team to sign with a NCAA Division I program.
The Titans play in the Horizon League where they went 12-10 last season and finished with an overall record of 18-34. This season UDM is 6-7 in league play with an 11-23 record. Castillo said she knows that playing for the Titans will be very different, especially with the cold weather of Michigan forcing everything inside, but she’s happy that she received this opportunity.
“I feel very special because not every one can say they can do it, so I’m really happy and I’m proud of myself for going over there,” she said.
On why she decided on UDM, Castillo said, “I went to go visit the campus and I really love the campus. And I love the coaching staff. I met all the players over there and they were really loving and it made me feel wanted and I felt accepted over there.”
Castillo’s hard work in the classroom was also pointed out by Koontz, adding that the senior boasts a GPA over 3.0. He said that although Castillo is quiet, she knew early on the importance of good grades and was constantly studying.
“She got it through her head early on that she needed to do the academics in order to succeed, to be able to do this,” Koontz said. “Every day. Every day, she’s done tutoring [or is] studying in the classroom. Everything she can do to keep her grades up to get this scholarship opportunity. I have no doubt, none, zero, that she will be a success at Detroit Mercy. I think they’re getting a heck of a bargain. This lady is exceptional.”