Scotts Valley High School Falcon Club will induct 10 new members into the Hall of Fame at 6 p.m. Friday, Oct 18, at the Back Nine Grill, 555 Hwy 17, Santa Cruz.
Honorees are:
Coaches
- Reggie Stephens — Football, basketball and softball
- Gretchen Schmitt — Cross country and track
- Rick Silver — Girls basketball and football
Athletes
- Grace Giguiere — Basketball, softball and tennis
- Dom Parrish — Wrestling
- Jack Pasquini — Basketball and football
- Vanessa Fraser — Cross country and track
- Jessica Kain — Cross country and track
- Shane Carle — Baseball
- Negine Mansour Sewitsky — Soccer
This will be the fifth group inducted into the Hall of Fame, resuming the tradition after the Covid-19 pandemic as Scotts Valley High School marks its 25th year.
2024 Inductees
Reggie Stephens is a long-time trainer, coach, and mentor for both high school and college level athletes.
Reggie attended high school in Santa Cruz where he was a three-sport, All-County athlete, excelling in football. He went on to play at Cabrillo College, then Rutgers University, and ultimately was signed by the New York Giants where he played for 5 years, including the 2000 Super Bowl.
He returned to Santa Cruz in 2010 when he started training and coaching boys and girls in basketball, softball, and football. He formed a nonprofit, the Reggie Stephens Foundation, whose motto is “Seek Believe Achieve!” to help the youth of SC County and beyond realize that hard work and a positive attitude can get you far in life.
He has dedicated countless hours, free of charge, to support and educate the youth of Santa Cruz County.
SVHS is fortunate to count him one of our own.
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Rick Silver coached within the Scotts Valley School District for 22 years, coaching girls basketball at both the middle and high school levels.
His consistent and encouraging coaching style provided the continuity to develop athletes through all levels of the program and forged a team at the high school level that was a force to contend with for multiple years. During his 16 years at SVHS, the team was solely or part of 7 SCCAL league titles, and made 10 CCS appearances and 3 Nor-Cals.
He was the coach and mentor of 7 SCCAL MVP’s.
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Gretchen Schmitt did double duty at SVHS, coaching both cross country in the fall and track in the spring.
She began in 2014 coaching the high jump, but by the 2017 season she was head coach and distance coach for the team. She focused on the complete individual, not only coaching on running technique but also on training schedules, their high school experience, and on to college and life goals.
During her tenure, the cross country team consistently was SCCAL champion, was 2nd in CCS in 2018 and 2019, and qualified for State in those years also. Several individual runners also qualified for State competition, and numerous athletes qualified every year for CCS track events.
She laid the foundation for the cross country and track powerhouse that SVHS is today.
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Shane Carle is a 2010 graduate of SVHS who excelled on the baseball field.
By his sophomore year he was playing varsity, starting pitcher and 3rd base. In his senior year he led the team to the SCCAL championship and the CCS playoffs. He was Player of the Year for SCCAL in 2010. He went on to play ball at Cabrillo College, and won a full ride scholarship to CSU Long Beach.
In 2013 he was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 10th round. During an 8-year career in MLB, he pitched for several major and minor league teams, including the Colorado Rockies and the Atlanta Braves.
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Jessica Kain is a 2019 graduate of SVHS where she was a 4-year varsity runner on the cross country and track teams.
She was a recognized leader, elected captain of both teams her senior year. The 1600-meter was her event: she was SCCAL champion, placed 2nd at CCS, and qualified to compete at the State level in that event.
Post high school, Jessica ran for San Diego State where she was consistently a top finisher for the Aztecs and earned All Mountain West honors in the 1500M and the mile. She was the anchor for the distance medley team that set a school record.
She will be pursuing a professional running career.
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Dominique Parrish is a 2015 graduate of SVHS where she launched a wrestling career that quickly moved beyond the boundaries of the local community.
In 2014 and 2015 she was the State champion in her weight class. In 2014 and 2015 she was also the Folkstyle Junior National Champion, and in 2015 she was third in the UWW Junior Nationals.
By 2016 she was 4th in the University Nationals and was competing and winning at international tournaments. She is a 3-time U23 World Team member, and won the gold medal in 2022 World Wrestling Championships in Belgrade, Serbia.
She qualified and competed for Team USA at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.
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Vanessa Fraser is a 2013 graduate of SVHS where she participated in varsity level cross country and track all four years.
She made First Team SCCAL cross country all four of her high school years and spearheaded the team that qualified to compete at the State level for the first time, becoming the State Div 4 champions in 2011 and 2012, as well as SCCAL and CCS champions in 2012. Switching to track in the spring, she was a 3-time state qualifier.
She led both cross country and track as the team captain in 2012-13. After graduation Vanessa attended Stanford where she was a walk-on for cross country and track.
She became Stanford’s No. 1 runner at the 2015 NCAA Cross Country Championships and has all-American honors in cross country and indoor and outdoor track. Through her dedication and hard work, she moved into the top 5 All-time list at Stanford in the 1,500, 5,000, and 10,000.
After graduating from Stanford with a degree in management science and engineering, she signed to run professionally with Bowerman Track Club from 2018-2022.
She is now training with Team Boss, in Boulder, Colo., and has signed a deal with Saucony. Whenever she is in the area, she still reaches out to SVHS teams: she comes to practices, gives talks, and encourages athletes both in person and via calls and texts.
She is a huge role model for our local runners.
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Jackson Pasquini is a 2012 graduate of SVHS where he excelled at both football and basketball: He was a 4-year basketball player, scoring over 1,000 points and being selected his senior year to First Team All-SCCAL.
He was the quarterback of the varsity football team for two years, leading the team to successive winning seasons and again being selected his senior year to First Team All-SCCAL. He was voted male athlete of the year as a senior in 2012.
He went on to DeAnza Junior College where he continued to play basketball (2012-2014) and was selected to First Team All Coast Conference as a sophomore. He won a scholarship to Cal State East Bay and played the 2014-2016 seasons there.
After college, he joined the Finland Professional Basketball League (2017-2018) and spent a year with Oulun NMKY.
He is currently playing in the Pro Am in Sacramento and is employed full time as a firefighter with Alameda County Fire District.
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Negine Mansour Dewitsky is a 2008 graduate of SVHS, where she was a 3-year starting forward on the varsity soccer team and a vital component in the program’s success in those years.
SVHS career highlights include SCCAL champs in 2005-06, competing in the CCS Div 3 final games in 2005-06, 2006-07, and 2007-08, and culminating in winning the Div 3 CCS Championship in 2007-08, where she scored the single and winning goal.
She was selected to SCCAL All-League First Team all three years, led the team in scoring her senior year with 11 goals and 6 assists, and accumulated 20 goals and 12 assists in her high school career.
Negine attended Holy Names University where she was a 4-year starter for the Hawk’s women’s soccer team. During her tenure the team won the CA Pac Conf in 2009 and 2010 and participated in the NAIA National Tournament in 2009 and 2011.
Negine won honorable mention as an All-Conference player in CA Pacific in 2009 and 2010. She not only excelled on the field but as a student-athlete, becoming a member of Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society and Daktronics Academic All American Cum Laude.
She subsequently attended the Law School of Lewis and Clark to obtain her law degree, returning to SVHS as a volunteer coach for the women’s soccer team while she was home studying for the bar exam. Negine is an outstanding role model and mentor and has helped assure the success of the program at SVHS.
She and her family now reside in the area and she practices law with Brereton, Mohamed & Terrazas LLP in Santa Cruz.
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Grace Giguiere is a 2016 graduate of SVHS where she was on a court or athletic field every season.
For 3 years she was selected for First Team in softball, also years the team was league champs. She played four years of girls’ basketball, was team captain her senior year, when she also was selected First Team All-league Basketball, and once again were League champs.
She also excelled on the tennis court, where in her senior year she was team doubles champ and team captain. She was a consistent and steady leader who inspired her teammates to work harder and play smarter. She was voted SVHS Female Athlete for the class of 2016, and was selected by the Santa Cruz Sentinel as Female Athlete of the Year in Santa Cruz County.
Grace went on to Cabrillo College where she continued to excel, becoming a top player on the women’s basketball team where, as team captain, she led them to their first Conference championship in 40 years; she was also selected to the first team All-Conference.
On the softball field, she was once again team captain and one of the top hitters on the team.
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The price is $50 per ticket and includes a buffet dinner, cash bar and induction ceremony. Buy tickets at https://falconclubhalloffame.com/