NMI U14 national team goal keeper, Caleb Arriola earned a big applause from the crowd after showing an amazing effort during the East Asia Football Federation’s Youth Festival in Guam last month.
Arriola bested two other nominees for male student athletes, swimmer, Kenzuke Kimura and bowler, Raphael Zapanta.
The 12-year-old goalie was nominated by coach Nick Swaim during last week’s meeting of Northern Marianas Amateur Sports Association and was voted unanimously to the male student athlete of the month of July.
Although they finished last in the said festival, Arriola was among those who performed “miraculous” saves to defend NMI’s national team.
After the Youth Festival the NMI U14 which was organized early this year, by the NMI Football Association returned with a bundle of sportsmanship awards.
Maimi Shimizu who was nominated by NMI Triathlon Federation president, Russ Quinn was voted female athlete of the month.
Shimizu, according to Quinn was the first local female to cross the finish line in the Tagaman Triathlon. She was selected to represent the CNMI at the Kaike Japan Ironman Triathlon.
Shimizu ran in her first marathon distant run and finished strong for seventh place overall.
Eli Torgenson also of NMITF was voted male athlete of the month. He has been dominating several local races to claim his first Off-Road X-Terra Championship.
He recently finished first and sixth in the annual Off-Road X-Terra race on July 7 that started with a 750-meter swim, followed by 15-kilometer mountain bike course and thee-kilometer trail run.
Torgenson is set to leave for Maui, Hawaii on October to compete in the World X-Terra Championship.
