You’ve probably read the story by now, but if not here’s what unfolded at White Plains HS: Angelei Aguirre committed to play ball at Cal.
Where the 6-foot senior is headed is impressive. The Golden Bears are ranked No. 6 by ESPN and No. 7 by SI in their respective preseason rankings. They return all five starters to a team that lost almost all its games to national powers, including three to national runner-up Stanford.
Obviously, the basketball program was appealing to Aguirre, but so was the school. Berkeley finished as the 21st-ranked school in the country in U.S. News and World Report’s 2008 list of America’s Best Colleges, and topped out as the No. 1 public university.
Aguirre made visits to Cal, Providence, LaSalle and DePaul, and nearly ended up at DePaul. They offered her a full scholarship on her visit to Chicago, but she liked the situation at Cal better. Both the university and the basketball program are stronger, and I know she prefers the warmer weather. (To those of you out there who aren’t geography buffs, winters are definitely warmer in California than they are in Illinois. Don’t believe me? Click here.)
Aguirre’s commitment ends an incredible four-year transformation for her that I hadn’t fully realized until during the ceremony. Her family moved her from Dallas and could’ve picked anywhere to live. The fact that they chose White Plains should not go unrecognized. Sure, the Tigers had great talent — a remarkable five starters from the 2006 team went on to Division I colleges — but Aguirre was a key piece on all four gold ball winners. This was the best run in program history by far (White Plains’ girls had won just won other Section 1 title before the 2004-05 season) and will forever be remembered. Had the family landed in Scarsdale (her father, Mark, said it was the other possibility at the time) the recent history at both schools may be changed. As one of my coworkers noted today, Aguirre and Jackie Alemany would’ve formed some tandem to battle Elise Bronzo, Danica Covington, Kim Adams and Liz Flooks, right?
Anyway, the other remarkable part of the afternoon was the tremendous outpouring of support for Aguirre. The crowd that packed the College and Career Center at White Plains High was a who’s who of girls basketball in the LoHud over the last few seasons. In fact, several members of the TJN all-star teams were there, including: all four D-I teammates from White Plains’ run and former teammate Nina Johnson, who now plays at Manhattanville; Nadia Duncan, Taylor Palmer and Patrice Wallace-Moore from Mount Vernon; Lauren Thomas of Rye Country Day (and formerly Ursuline); and teammates from this season, like Shelby Fields, Donika Rexhepi and Simone Tharkur. Many of them spoke and those who did cried (except Flooks, ever the competitor).
Aguirre was clearly overwhelmed. Her dad actually felt compelled to make the joke of the day, saying something along the lines of, “You think she’s perfect? Well, she’s not always perfect at home!”
It was a funny moment at an incredible ceremony…although I don’t think many people there believed him.
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Josh Thomson has done some of everything since joining The Journal News in March 2003. He began working for the Gannett weeklies during the winter of 2002 as a freelance writer. He joined the daily staff soon after and has since covered various high school and pro sports. Away from sportswriting, Josh lives in Westchester and spends his free time either with his fiancee, Sarah, or expertly managing his various championship-winning fantasy sports teams. He's visited 21 major-league baseball stadiums and insists that Fenway Park and Wrigley Field are the best by far. Josh graduated from Carmel High School in 1998, then went to Boston University, where, in 2002, he received a degree in communications with a minor in history.
