Playing an integral part on two teams with Central Coast Section aspirations, Live Oak’s Sydney Barker was noticed in different ways on the soccer and field hockey fields.
As a defensive stalwart in soccer, Barker rarely basked in glory, instead she was comfortable just being a stopper and someone that could start an offensive rally. It was a different story in field hockey, though. Barker used her speed and intelligence to lead the Acorns in goals.
She was rewarded with her strong play with all-league first team honors for both sports and is the Morgan Hill Times Female Athlete of the Year at Live Oak.
In her final year at Live Oak, Barker was proud of what she and her team accomplished, she said.
“It was just a great feeling,” she said. “I’ve been playing both of these sports – field hockey for only four years – but it’s been a big part of my life thanks to my sister. (In my senior year) to go out guns blazing — both my season with both teams made it to CCS. We did really well in league. Having those records and being part of those teams is so great. We had such a great year.”
She wasn’t the only Acorn to have a strong senior season.
After leading the Acorns baseball team to the first CCS berth in three years, Live Oak senior John Forestieri was named the Morgan Hill Times Male Athlete of the Year for Live Oak. Forestieri for the second year in a row led the Acorns in hitting, carrying a batting average over .400 as Live Oak made a late season charge to earn a postseason berth.
Despite all that success, Forestieri is modest with the results.
“To me personally, I don’t really care about myself and like my statistics and all of that,” he said. “I’m just more focused on the win-loss column and just how the team overall is doing. If you can’t win games, that’s the whole point of the game is to win.”
And despite a slow start, for the first time on this three years on varsity, he got a taste of postseason baseball.
“In general we got off in on a slow start and then the way we worked, our chemistry got so tight toward the end of the year after that Sobrato win,” he said. “Once we hit one win, two wins and three wins, we just kept rolling from there. We just got on a streak.”
Forestieri was a vital to that hot streak. He led the Acorns with a .414 batting average, hitting one home run and driving in 18 runs. In 27 games, Forestieri had at least one hit in 24.
“You just got to have the mentality to put the ball in play and make solid contact to get a hit,” he said. “Most of teammates also did just as well as I did.”
Despite playing completely different sports, both Forestieri and Barker were leaders on their teams, helping the younger players develop once they left. For Barker, leaving a mark was just as important as finishing with strong statistics, she said.
“It makes me feel good because my teammates talk to me like that,” she said. “ ‘Oh Sydney is not going to be here. No one is going to score or play defense.’ It’s a really good feeling that they will miss me.”
Barker started high school as only a soccer player. Having played the sports since she was five, Barker expected to only play on the pitch in high school. But after watching her older sister excel playing field hockey, Barker believed it was the best way to get in and stay in shape.
“I did it my freshman year and I loved it,” Barker said. “It was something that was really fun because it was different than soccer. It was with my hands verses my legs in soccer. I started playing and just continued to develop.”
Eventually she was inserted as a forward in field hockey and the goals starting coming.
“Field hockey, it’s a lot different because the game is a lot more individual skill I guess,” she said “Soccer it’s really laid back. I always thought both were a lot of work. When you switch between the two sports, field hockey you get the ball and dribble and pass. Soccer is the same thing. You can stand there and pass. It’s virtually kind of the same game but it’s at a different pace.”
And after playing field hockey for only four years, she doesn’t want to stop, Barker said. She will play soccer for De Anza College next year.
“I’m planning on coming out and helping the Live Oak team because I’m staying local,” she said. “I’m keeping sports in my life. I definitely don’t want to stop playing them.”
Forestieri, who started playing baseball when he was five, will continue to play at Mission College next year, he said. He will be joined by other Live Oak players next spring.
“We are taking a staff over there and I’m really looking forward to it,” he said. “It should be another four years of baseball.”
