Tag Archives: Florida State

Giselle Juarez Named Most Outstanding Player After Leading Oklahoma to Women’s College World Series Title

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Giselle Juarez has ended her college softball career in epic fashion…

The Latina athlete and Oklahoma Sooners star pitcher threw her second consecutive complete game, and Oklahoma beat Florida State 5-1 on Thursday for its fifth Women’s College World Series title.

Giselle Juarez, OU

The Sooners lacked a dominant pitcher heading into the series, but Juarez answered the call, allowing one run on two hits in the decisive Game 3.

Oklahoma won Game 2 6-2 behind Juarez, who went 5-0 at the World Series and was named Most Outstanding Player. The left-hander allowed four runs in 31 1/3 innings.

Juarez, a super senior, was a first-team NFCA All-American in 2019 but had surgery on her left arm last year and struggled to regain her form.

“The beginning of the season wasn’t great for me, but I just kept grinding and trusting God’s plan for myself. He had this moment planned for me,” Juarez said.

Much of the crowd stood when Juarez took the circle in the seventh inning. Fittingly, the final out was a popup into her glove.

“Honestly, I was kind of hoping it didn’t go in the sun and that they would let me catch it,” she said. “But I mean, it felt so slow motion, and then just to look up after I caught it and see [Kinzie] Hansen running at me — surreal, awesome moment.”

After Juarez secured the catch, teammates mobbed her and “Boomer Sooner” blared over the sound system as the crowd of 10,830 at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium — mostly Oklahoma fans — celebrated the win just 25 miles from campus.

It wasn’t easy for the top-seeded Sooners — they came out of the losers bracket after dropping a stunner to Odicci Alexander and unseeded James Madison in the tournament’s opening game. But Oklahoma beat James Madison twice in the semifinal round, then recovered from a loss to Florida State in the championship series opener.

Oklahoma (56-4) also won titles in 2000, 2013, 2016 and 2017, all under coach Patty Gasso. The Sooners set the Division I single-season record with 161 home runs this season.

“For them to find out what it feels like and what it takes to win it — the future is really, really bright for the Sooners,” Gasso said.

Gonzalez Breaks NCAA Record for Career Field Goals

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Zane Gonzalez has kicked his way into the annals of college football history…

The Latino kicker for Arizona State University is the new NCAA record holder for field goals in a career.

Zane Gonzalez

Gonzalez hit from 35, 23 and 46 yards in Saturday night’s 23-20 win over UCLA to reach 89 career field goals, passing Florida State‘s Dustin Hopkins, who had 88 from 2009-12.

“Honestly it hasn’t really set in yet,” Gonzalez said afterwards, flanked by holder Matt Haack and snapper Mitchell Fraboni. “Any time you hold a national record it just speaks volumes. It’s a good way to go out senior year.”

The Sun Devils needed all of those 3-point tries after sputtering offensively in the first half and watching backup quarterback Brady White limp off with a right leg injury in the fourth quarter.

In Gonzalez’s career, he has connected on 89 of 111 attempts (80.2 percent).

“You’re talking about a monumental accomplishment there,” Arizona State coach Todd Graham said of Gonzalez. “I’m proud of Zane. That’s huge.”

He broke former UCLA kicker Kai Forbath‘s Pac-12 record (85) last week.

Aguayo Drafted in the Second Round of the NFL Draft

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Roberto Aguayo is headed to the National Football League…

The 21-year-old Latino kicker, who played for Florida State, was picked in the second round of the NFL draft.

Roberto Aguayo

Aguayo, the 59th pick overall, was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, becoming the highest-drafted kicker since Mike Nugent in 2005.

The NFL’s lengthened extra point has put new emphasis on the play, now effectively a 33-yard attempt. Aguayo was perfect on his 198 PATs in college. More pertinent, the 2013 Lou Groza Award winner was 69-for-78 (88.5%) on field-goal tries and didn’t miss on any of his 49 attempts inside 40 yards.

Aguayo, quarterback Jameis Winston‘s teammate at FSU, expressed a desire to play for the Bucs and seems likely to hold the job for years to come.

But Aguayo wasn’t the only Latino footballer picked during this year’s NFL draft…

Blake Martinez is headed to the Green Bay Packers…

The Packers selected the Latino inside from Stanford with the 131st pick, which arrived late in the fourth round, and contained a bit of a premonition from his mother, Carrisa Martinez.

“The funny part of it was, (my mom) was always telling me throughout the process, she was like, ‘I believe you’re going to end up at the Packers,'” Martinez said on a conference call. “And obviously it was just a lucky guess type of thing, but it’s just funny. My mom said right after, ‘Moms are always right.’ And I’ll take it.”

When his moment arrived, Martinez donned a green Packers hat and matching gray T-shirt, and immediately posted a family photo on social media. His father, Marc, had bought the gear in a pre-draft shopping spree that accumulated gear from all 32 teams — just in case.

Martinez, who stands 6 feet 1 1/2 inches and weighs 240 pounds, earned All-American honors in 2015 and was also named first-team all-Pac-12.

He recorded a team-high 141 tackles last season, and his 10.1 tackles per game led the conference.

The Packers, according to director of football operations Eliot Wolf, were enamored of Martinez’s all-around game. He flashed the ability to blitz, evidenced by 13 1/2 tackles for loss and 6 1/2 sacks over the last two years. He expressed confidence in his ability to cover, and Martinez said he served as the main coverage linebacker in nickel and dime packages last season. His 40-yard dash time of 4.67 seconds is far from blazing, but Wolf said the Packers have no qualms about his mobility or range.

“I felt like this last year I improved tremendously on that,” Martinez said. “I feel 100% confident to go out there and cover whoever I need to cover.”

Oklahoma’s Zack Sanchez was picked in Round 5 by the Carolina Panthers.

The 21-year-old Latino cornerback, picked 141st overall, is a ball-hawk who intercepted 13 passes over the past two seasons. His seven picks in 2015 tied for fifth nationally. Sanchez was not afraid to gamble, and sometimes paid for his mistakes. During his career at Oklahoma, he also recorded 134 tackles and three touchdowns.

“He’s instinctive. I think when you get into the fourth or fifth rounds, and find a cornerback with some instincts, this is a great pick,” said NFL Network’s Mike Mayock.

Thomas Duarte is switching coasts…

The 21-year-old half-Mexican American receiver, who played for UCLA, was picked in the seventh round by the Miami Dolphins.

The 231st pick overall, the 6-foot-2, 231-pound Duarte was drafted as a tight end.

Duarte turned pro with a season of eligibility remaining. He ranked second on the Bruins last season with 53 receptions for 872 yards and a team-best 10 touchdown receptions.

Aguayo Kicks Field Goal with Seconds Left to Lift Florida State to Victory Over Boston College

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Roberto Aguayo has earned hero status in Tallahassee, Florida…

The Latino placekicker made a 26-yard field goal with three seconds left in the game to give the Florida State Seminoles a 20-17 victory over Boston College on Saturday and help his team remain undefeated.

Roberto Aguayo

It was the Noles’ sixth win this season in a game in which they trailed or were tied in the second half.

The Seminoles, who have now won a school-record 27 consecutive games, have already locked up a berth in the ACC championship game but there are bigger goals remaining.

Florida State hosts the Florida Gators in the regular-season finale with a second consecutive undefeated season on the line. The ‘Noles have sat at No. 3 in the College Football Playoff rankings despite being the last undefeated team from a Power 5 conference.

Florida State (11-0, 8-0 ACC) had been plagued by slow starts throughout the season and the Seminoles went into the fourth quarter tied 17-17 with the Eagles. But with less than five minutes left, quarterback Winston helped engineer another game-winning drive.

“What I’m proud of is how they finished,” said the team’s coach Jimbo Fisher. “That’s what this team does. What people think of us is none of my business. That’s not our concern. We just play.”

Florida State took over on its own 26-yard line after Boston College missed a 43-yard field goal with 4:37 left and the Seminoles drove to the Eagles’ 8. Rashad Greene, who had two big drops in the first half, caught back-to-back passes for 11 and 15 yards to move the Seminoles within field goal range. The drive took 4:34 off the clock.

Aguayo, who missed a 40-yarder in the third quarter, said it was the first game-winner of his life.

“Yeah, it was to win the game but you can’t think of it like that because that’s when things will start going through your head, like, ‘Oh, this is a game winner I have to make it,'” Aguayo said.