Learning from these Great Men...
Coach Gabriel Espinoza
A young coach stands out along the sidelines at varsity football games this year. According to Gabriel Espinosa (’21), “The team is great this year and I am grateful to Coach D’Andrea for the opportunity to help coach.”
Here's the back story. Growing up, Gabriel had many friends who attended Western, "Like the Omanga twins, Louis Saylor, Landon Lord, Berhane Linbeck and Charlie Mohr, and I dreamed of going there. In 2020, after what seemed like a miracle, I was able to attend for 8th grade.”
In Gabriel's words, "In uniform on my first day of school, I walked around with a sense of euphoria, finally I was here! Guys welcomed me with open arms, I was so excited, like I was always part of it. I used to dread school, but at Western, I had my best academic year ever. I enjoyed learning with the teachers. They were great for me, every one of them, even the difficult classes like Latin. I felt at home at Western."
"I couldn’t be physical at my old school. At Western, boys wrestle in the dirt and get outside in the fresh air. It was more competitive athletically, and we had a good football season. During that year, when other teams were wearing masks, we didn’t have any restrictions."
"When rugby was about to begin, Mr. DeJarnette came to our PE class and gave us a great speech. 18 of us eighth graders signed up and other boys joined in. We had our team! I remember a game against our rivals at Regis School. They were well-coached and experienced, big strong guys. The game was back and forth but near the end, we were down by five. They kicked off right to me. I ran right up the middle, then offloaded to Berhane, who headed for the sideline and scored, they couldn’t believe it!"
"During that season, we were always the underdogs, outmanned, and our guys were small and inexperienced. In the end, many of us went on to play at Strake and St. Thomas. Spenser Sierra is playing at Spring Hill College, Charlie Mohr at Tennessee and Jackson Hebert at Blinn/A&M."
Gabe ran for Shell in the Heroes Race in 2021, and crosses the finish line after navigating the mud pit, with his classmate, Jackson Hebert (Raven) cheering him on
"My Shell teammates elected me to run the Heroes race. When I started, we were in last place, but everyone cheered me on, right through the gnarly mud pit. Berhane Linbeck (Water), not even in my house, cheered me on all along the way. I’ll never forget it. Western is where I belonged!"
Gabe turned up on the front page of the WA website running in the relay for Shell, alongside his 2021 classmates, Louis Saylor (Raven), Edward Bocock (Green) and Marc Orendain (Water)
"My Shell teammates elected me to run the Heroes race. When I started, we were in last place, but everyone cheered me on, right through the gnarly mud pit. Berhane Linbeck (Water), not even in my house, cheered me on all along the way. I’ll never forget it. Western is where I belonged!"
Someone said, "They look like brothers!" Head football coach Brian D'Andrea with Gabe near the garden