Arvizu, Oyhenart Named Paloma Valley Athletes of Month

Holly Oyhenart and Josuha Arvizu received their Athlete of the Month awards from Cynthia Nemelka of RE/MAX Diamond Realty.

Baseball player Joshua Arvizu and softball player Holly Oyhenart of Paloma Valley High School have been honored as the Menifee 24/7 Athletes of the Month, sponsored by RE/MAX Diamond Realty, for the accomplishments in March.

Arvizu is a defensive leader in center field for the Wildcats, who are tied for first place in the Sunbelt League standings at 4-0 and are 9-4 overall. He also is hitting .296 with 7 RBIs.

In addition to athletics, Arvizu is an outstanding student. He excels in his advanced placement classes and has been accepted to the U.S. Naval Academy.

"Josh is an outstanding student-athlete," said his coach, Chuck Kemp. "He challenges himself every day with a stringent academic schedule that includes multiple AP classes. On the field, no one works harder than Josh. He shows tremendous leadership anchoring our defense in center field."

Arvizu said he is confident of the team's ability to win the league title this year, based on its league championship last year and returning experienced players.

"We want to build off the team chemistry we have to get even better," said Arvizu, whose team was 14-1 in league play last year. "As far as the academics, it's easy with coach Kemp because he expects us to be students first and then athletes."

Oyhenart, also an outfielder, is one of the leaders of the Wildcats softball team, which is 4-1 and one game out of first place in the league standings. She is hitting .542 with 10 RBIs.

"Holly is a very smart, reliable and hard-working athlete," said her coach, Briana Wells. "She is one of our team captains and has done a wonderful job filling the role as a leader both on and off the field. She is a mature athlete who understands that she must continually work hard to improve her skills. Her batting average is proof of her hard work and dedication to the game."

"I've been playing since I was little, and it's something I don't take lightly," said Oyhenart, whose team's only league loss was to Heritage.

Oyhenart has accepted a scholarship to Christian Brothers University in Tennessee.

Arvizu and Oyhenart received a certificate from Menifee 24/7 and a Target gift card from Cynthia Nemelka of RE/MAX Diamond Realty.