PV alumni return home for coaching roles
Standout athletes Hernandez, Whitburn will take on assistant coaching duties
CHICO >> Grace Hernandez excelled in the pool, eventually earning a Division I scholarship to swim at Purdue.
Brooke Whitburn discovered track and field when she realized softball was no longer the right fit, then turned the sport into a scholarship to attend Chico State.
Both Hernandez and Whitburn graduated from Pleasant Valley High in 2013. And now both have returned to their alma mater in coaching roles, hoping to each become an inspirational figure for young, female athletes.
“I had so many strong female role models in my family and my coaches,” Hernandez said. “I’m just really excited for the opportunity to be that for some of the young ladies. I think it’s so important to have people who believe in you and that can show you you can do whatever you want to do.”
Hernandez was a standout swimmer for the Vikings. Before she was in high school, she coached for the Chico Aquajets. Her success for the PV swim team led her to earn a Division I scholarship to Purdue.
“Swimming not only gave me the opportunity to swim in college and get an education but it taught me so many life skills — time management, setting goals, taught me to be ambitious,” Hernandez said. “These are all skills that I will be using the rest of my life.”
Hernandez, a three-time Northern Section swimming champion, joins the Vikings as an assistant coach. This will be her only season coaching since she’ll be off to complete her residency in the summer. Hernandez is currently attending medical school at Drexel Uni
“I was really excited to give back in some way to the community who really helped me grow into who I am.”
— Pleasant Valley High assistant swimming coach Grace Hernandez
versity in Philadelphia.
“Something I’ve been passionate about is the local swimming community and it’s really been struggling … we just don’t have a lot of support in terms of a community pool we can even use. It’s been hard to watch from a distance,” Hernandez said. “I was really excited to give back in some way to the community who really helped me grow into who I am.”
Hernandez grew up in a family of swimmers. Hernandez is the daughter of Jill (Symons) Hernandez, who competed for the United States swim team for the 1974 world championships. Up until high school, Hernandez said she swam for fun.
Hernandez said her former coaches, Christine Lockhart and Pam Jackson, were both influential role models. Swimming was empowering since she never doubted her own abilities, Hernandez said. Now, Hernandez is pursuing a career as an orthopedic surgeon, a field that is predominantly male, Hernandez said.
“It’s become more important to me because of that,” Hernandez said. “We need to be letting females know subconsciously that they can do what they want to do. There should be no limits.”
Last year was supposed to be Whitburn’s first season as a coach with the PV track and field team. However, a few weeks into the track season, COVID-19 forced a shutdown of all sports, cutting the season short.
Whitburn said she’s always wanted to coach. She graduated from Chico State in 2017 and decided to go back to school to earn her teaching credential. She’s currently student teaching within the physical education department at PV.
“I was very lucky to get my teaching placement at PV just because I know so many of the teachers and the staff. It felt really comfortable,” Whitburn said. “It’s been very nice being back.”
When she heard that Pleasant Valley needed a coach to help with jumps, she hopped on the opportunity. She’ll be coaching the long jumpers. In high school, Whitburn competed in long jump and triple jump. She also is a three-time Northern Section champion.
“We have students who aren’t doing other sports who want to do track. It’s already considered a second sport,” Whitburn said. “Track was my first sport. There’s nothing wrong with track being your sport.”
Whitburn decided to pursue track when she no longer wanted to play softball.
“Essentially it’s what got me into college. I didn’t really ever have a plan for college,” Whitburn said. “Finding track and something that I could excel in and get a scholarship to college is probably the biggest impact on my life out of anything I’ve done.”
At Chico State, Whitburn emerged as a decorated track athlete. She finished third in the nation, earning a spot on the podium in the heptathlon in the NCAA Division II finals her senior year.
“I want to help pave that path and guide them on the process how (how to qualify for scholarships),” Whitburn said. “Without my coaches, having someone who is there and knows the process and how to help, that’s my goal.”