Athletes of the Week April 26

Xavier Efford

A senior on Delmarva Christian's baseball team, Xavier did a little bit of everything in the Royals' 4-3 win over Polytech April 16. After playing solid defense at shortstop, Xavier came on in relief in sixth inning, striking out seven, walking zero and giving up only one hit over three innings. In the bottom of the eighth with the game knotted 3-3, Xavier sent a line drive into left to walk it off for the Royals, ending his day at the plate with two runs, two RBIs and three walks. He said he likes to pitch more than play shortstop because he can help his team every play, but he enjoyed the game-winning hit more than the win he secured for himself. He has been playing since T-ball, donning jerseys for the Henlopen Wave, Delaware Storm, Delaware Titans, Delmarva Aces and his current travel team the Delmarva Destroyers. Xavier plans to play baseball at Del Tech before hoping to move off to a bigger school to earn a degree in physical therapy. 

Harper Mamele 

This 5-foot-11 freshman at Cape plays four sports seasons, starting with volleyball in the fall, basketball in the winter, track in the spring and beach volleyball in the summer. At the Robert Neylan Relays at Dover High April 19, Harper won the high jump by clearing 5-feet-2-inches just three days after jumping a personal best 5-feet-3-inches in a home meet versus Sussex Tech and Polytech. “I have the best jump in the state this year, and I’m hoping to break the Cape school record of 5-4. That record is held jointly by Janell Savage (1999) and Cierra Seth (2008). The arm action in high jumping is the same in volleyball,” Harper said as she prepared to board the morning bus for Academic Challenge. “I like to jump when there’s a race on the track. It's my background music, and I always envision myself going over the bar.” A confident kid may not have her eyes set on a state championship, but she only sees herself going over the bar.  

Zuleyka Martinez

A 34-year-old mother of six who is pretty new to the sport of running, Zuly was the top female finisher at the Oy Vey 5K April 23 at the Seaside Jewish Community Center outside Rehoboth Beach. She ran to a time of 22:04. Zuly is a lovable character on the running scene; she works as a mechanic in her boyfriend’s garage, 3R Auto. She also does hair. Her passion is her artwork, painting in particular. “I love running for Fusion Racing and Races2Run, and the Seashore Striders races are like no others,” Zuly said. “What I find that I love and enjoy about running is the cheering from every volunteer and runners and walkers. Sometimes when you just hear that, ‘You got this girl,’ that's just the push you need to keep going. My goal this year is to focus my training on the full marathon. I haven't done one yet. I have learned that the hard work pays off.”

Allison Ortiz-Rivera

Mariner Middle School eighth-grader Allison Ortiz-Rivera circled the oval twice in 2:34.5 to set a new school record in the 800 meters April 22 at Legends Stadium on the campus of Cape Henlopen High School. Ortiz-Rivera split 1:15 and closed with a time of 1:19 to set the mark. Allison is no stranger to running fast, as she has been an All-American in cross country with her Seashore Striders club, where she started racing with back in third grade. Allison is the treasurer of the Junior Honor Society and is a member of the Mariner BPA Club. Next up, Allison has set her sights on the Mariner 1,600-meter record of 5:50. Allison is coached this spring by former Cape standout Rebecca Pepper, who has held several records herself in her high school days.