As the Highlanders gear up for their first league game in the new West Alameda County Conference (WACC), fans will be focused on what the starting lineup can muster against perennial powerhouses like Castro Valley and Bishop O’Dowd. Two freshmen additions to the team will help jumpstart Piedmont’s season.
Freshmen Jordan Torio and Sean Rodriguez are the first ninth graders to gain a beginning-of-season spot on the Varsity basketball team since 1996 PHS graduate Eric Forrest made the roster in 1992. Eric Flato (’06), the all time-leading scorer at PHS and a first team All-Ivy selection at Yale University did not even make Varsity his freshman year.
“We have six seniors on the team this year,” Coach Chris Lavdiotis said. “With half of the squad gone in less than a years time, to have two athletes with the potential of [Torio and Rodriguez] for four years will be excellent. Both have good understanding of the game and know where to go on the court, both with and without the ball.”
The decision to put Rodriguez and Torio on Varsity stemmed from their performance during this season’s tryouts, which were held on November 5 and 6.
“Both played extraordinarily. well and worked very hard. They also have a great mental approach,” assistant coach Terry London said.
Torio, a guard standing at 5’7”, may appear miniature compared to the rest his teammates, five of whom stand 6’4” or above. Regardless, his ball handling skills and quick footwork are well above par.
Prior to being selected for the Varsity roster, Torio played basketball whenever he could. When he was eight years old, he began taking the sport very seriously, playing on five different teams. At age 11, he started AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) and thereafter got a trainer, who he still works with today.
“Last summer I played with all three summer teams, Frosh, JV and Varsity,” Torio said. “I worked my way up proving to everyone that I can hang with people bigger, taller, and stronger than me.”
Rodriguez, a teammate of Torio’s since third grade, is a freshman guard, as well. After first meeting Lavdiotis last spring when he began practicing at open-gyms, he did not originally have an inclination he would make varsity.
“All I thought about was becoming the best player I could be and that’s still my mindset,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez’s father, formerly a local basketball star at Galileo High in San Francisco, introduced the sport of basketball to his son when he was just two years old. Since then, he has been working non-stop to improve his game. Playing for teams like North Coast Express (AAU) and Piedmont MVP, Rodriguez also spent much of his time practicing alone.
“I just shot and shot in the backyard and the downtown YMCA, and competed whenever possible,” he said.
As the season progresses, these two young players have their eyes set on helping the team in whatever way possible.
“I have two goals for the season and they are being the best player I can be and doing whatever the coaches need us to do,” Torio said.
“Being a freshman, I needed to realize I can’t be one of the stars of this team.” Rodriguez said. “Hopefully my time will come but this season is about the seniors: James, Aidan, Adam, Dylan, Hayden and Andy.”
Senior Dylan James-Kavanaugh, a third-year varsity member, is excited to have two freshmen on the team.
“We are a team above everything and they earned their spot fair and square,” James-Kavanaugh said. “You never know though, we may have to think of some funny ‘freshmen initiation’ things to pull.”
Torio and Rodriguez were able to get playing time in scrimmages earlier in the season, against St. Mary’s, Drake, and Bellarmine. Their main role on the team will be to continue working on their defense and getting used to the speed of Varsity ball.
“They’re improving every practice and they’re meshing with the older guys,” London said. “The rest of the season’s an open book, though, so we will have to see.”
(Jojo Yee) attribution
