By Rick Assad
There are a few forms of hardship, and they can be financial or a personal loss.
Chloe Centeno, a recent Burroughs High graduate suffered the latter when her father, Chris, who played baseball at the same school, passed away during her junior season.
This is unimaginable for such a young person and it takes extreme inner strength to overcome such an obstacle.
Centeno showed great strength in face of this tragedy and it could be said that if anything, her father’s passing helped fuel her to reach extraordinary heights on the Bears’ softball team including this past season when the team went 21-7 and 8-1 for first place in the Pacific League as she led the team in runs batted in with 30, was tied for first with three triples and second in batting average at .447.
“Everything that I have done the past two years has really been for him, especially with softball. I have used that [his passing] to know that everything I am doing, I know he would be right there cheering me on,” said Centeno, who will be attending Fort Hays State University in Kansas where she will play softball and major in Sports and Human Performance. “I think he would be really happy with what I did this season, as I always made sure to be a leader.”
Doug Nicol has been the softball coach at Burroughs for a long time and saw Centeno’s determination to make her father proud.
“Chloe is just an exceptional person. Her dad was such a big part of her life and her development as a player and a person. He was at every game and coached her at every step,” he said. “What you see in Chloe today is what her dad instilled in her, which are the same things we try to develop in all of our players …. to become strong, independent women. When her dad passed, Chloe was faced with so much adversity, but she persevered through it like I have never seen it before.”
Nicol added: “Think about it, through it all, she never missed a practice or a game. She never made any excuses for anything, and she had every right to,” he said. “The true champion in so much of this is her mom, Barbara. She has been so strong and set the example for Chloe on how to face it head on and to be resilient in the face of tragedy. Her dad wanted Chloe to push through and to achieve her goals, and she did that. Everything she does she represents him, and her family, and she knows that is focused on making them proud each and every day.”
Centeno, who was second in hits with 42, second in slugging percentage at .713, second in doubles with 10, third in homers with three and third in runs with 25, and was named a team captain, added: “I feel like I am most proud of being a leader on the field and really always being there when my teammates needed it,” she stated.
Centeno’s roles have changed somewhat across her three seasons on the varsity as those teams qualified for the CIF Southern Section playoffs each year and went 66-19 overall and 23-3 in league action.
“Over my years on my Burroughs teams, I feel like I had a couple different responsibilities when it came to playing on the field, but I knew I would do anything my team needed to help them win,” she acknowledged. “With the offense part, it was really just making sure I moved the runners and scored them.”
Though her father isn’t here, he’s still a big part of who Centeno is.
“Playing softball means so much to me as it meant so much to my dad as well, ever since I was a little girl and hearing all the stories of my dad playing, I knew I wanted to play as well and be just as good as him,” she offered. “Softball is pretty important to me as I’ve played it all my life and really don’t see myself doing something different.”
Besides being a power-hitter, Centeno, who primarily played first base and third base, could hit for a high average, was a doubles machine and a run-producer.
You could say that all of these attributes put fear in the pitcher’s eyes.
“Before each at-bat, I really tried to get my mindset that I was going to beat the pitcher and she wouldn’t beat me,” Centeno explained. “I know every at-bat I would get a good pitch, and I needed to be ready for it so I would really get my timing down on deck and just look to see what the pitcher was throwing.”
Centeno spoke about what she tried to accomplish in the batter’s box.
“I feel like I’m really proving how I have the highest doubles in Burroughs and what really set me out to do it was that I knew hitting was a big part of my game and to really just use that to my advantage,” she stated.
Having some success can add to one’s confidence and it seemed to be so for Centeno.
“All my confidence really just comes from me knowing what I do and not getting too much in my head and really just thinking that it is a game and if I don’t do well this game, I can bounce back the next time,” she said. “It also comes from my teammates who have always been there for me and supported me.”
The Pacific League battle came down to Burroughs and Crescenta Valley.
“I feel like the CV game (a 4-2 win over the Falcons) we played this past year really stands out to me as we knew it was going to be a very tough game and would really help to see who would win the league,” Centeno said.
The clash against rival Burbank wasn’t as tough as Burroughs won 11-0.
“Playing Burbank is something that I look forward to every year knowing that it is going to be a good game and we are going to have a lot of eyes watching as well,” Centeno pointed out. “With playing our rival school, I feel like you can’t think too much of it being your rival. You really just have to think of it as another game, and it will come as easy to you as that.”
While Centeno says goodbye to her old friends, new ones will be made at the next level.
“I’m going to miss all the people I met through it and all the girls,” she said. “We are with all of the same people for so long and to really not see them anymore is very bittersweet.”
For Nicol, he knows that Centeno has left her mark and will continue to do so in college.
“What made her the person she is today is the way she was raised to never give up and to focus on her goals and dreams. To face challenges head on. To never make excuses no matter how hard or tough the adversity,” he said. “Her goal was to get a scholarship to play college softball, and she did that. Her goal was to be on the All-Pacific League team, and she did it three times. She wanted to be a Pacific League champion, and she did that twice.”
Nicol concluded his thought: “Those were all dreams and goals she set for herself, and she achieved them all. We, and I mean everyone at Burroughs, are so proud of her and what she has accomplished at Burroughs,” he added. “While many people contributed to Chloe’s success, it really all comes down to her having the drive, desire and work ethic to be the best version of herself as a person, and a player, that she could be to achieve all the goals she set for herself. She is a terrific example to all of our younger players, and she is going to be missed by all of us, but we are so excited to watch her succeed at the next level.”
