Anderson, Antu take part in Early National Signing Day

San Marcos head baseball coach Bryan Webb saw the potential in Selvin Anderson when he decided to move the catcher up to varsity in the middle of his freshman year. 

Anderson became the 36th player to sign a letter of intent under Webb and the coach has watched him work and get better each day.

“We knew he had some power, but when he got in the weight room, the power exploded at the plate and you know, I’m seeing where he was hitting maybe 320-330 feet, and they were barely going to the wall,” Webb said. “Now he’s hitting for 410-420 foot shots and that’s where I’ve seen him really improve. I’ve seen the speed increase. You know he was a tall, lanky kid but he was uncoordinated, and now he’s running a 6.7(-second) 60(-yard dash) and that’s considered, tier-one speed.”

The senior developed his game through hours of training with his father, Eric Anderson. Eric played Division I football for Texas Christian University after graduating from San Marcos in 2002. He knows that college competition is another step up from high school, which is why he built a batting cage at their home in order to simulate game situations, practicing until 12 and 1 a.m. getting ready for this moment. Selvin’s father is extremely proud of where he’s come and knows the catcher has put the work in to get where he’s at.

“Being a father, man, it feels really, really great and knowing that he’s going somewhere good, I feel even better,” Eric said. “The next level is hard. It’s very hard. You gotta keep practicing every single day to get better and better because I tell him, ‘If you’re asleep, somebody’s out there working.’ That’s why I built that cage in our backyard. It has everything, the pitcher’s mound has everything you could think it has.”

Selvin spent time perfecting his craft in those cages and it all paid off when he signed with Coastal Bend College inside the San Marcos Performing Arts Center on Wednesday morning during Early National Signing Day. Selvin will be joining a Cougars squad that went 15-11 last season as a utility player.

”It took a long while. I mean, a lot of hard work and dedication. Every day was a grind,” Selvin said. “I just want to thank the guy up top for everything that he’s done. I want to think my family, I thank everybody that has pushed me through like my whole season in my whole career, and just thank you for like the journey now, and I can’t wait for the new journey.”

Senior Libero Julia Antu was forced to play setter during the first three years of her high school career and it was something she dreaded. In her senior year playing for San Marcos, her head coach, Jared Te’o, made the decision to move her to libero and Antu shined.

She was voted the team captain by her peers. Even with a shy personality, the advancement of her confidence was highlighted in her game even more, making it easy for college coaches to take notice of and Western Colorado University made the offer. Not only did she boost her own confidence throughout the season but also that of her teammates. 

“She’s just amazing, honestly, like she talks to all of us. She’s honest and knows what we need when we need it, and she’s just very encouraging,” senior middle blocker Samantha Booth said. “She’s always there for us and we can just feel like we can go to her with anything.”

The libero did face adversity during some of her club days playing for the Austin Juniors, as there was a minor discrepancy about making the highest level of the club. Overcoming that led her to be one of the best players in high school. 

“There’s been a lot of adversity, about making like the highest team and stuff, so I’ve had to overcome that and still know my worth,” Antu said. ”They’ve taught me a lot of things and I’ve not always had the most playing time and I’ve had to work really hard to earn my spot. So I think I’m really appreciative to have that work ethic.”

It’s been a successful two days for Antu. The night before her signing day, she became a part of the Lady Rattler volleyball program’s first playoff team since 2017. Te’o always believed in Antu’s ability despite only knowing her for two years.

“This is my first official high school kid that signed, so that will always be a special place. And there’s really no one else that I would rather be than Julia.” Te’o said. “I have known her the longest. She was the only kid I knew coming in here. So I’m super happy for her. I knew she could do it, it’s just a matter of finding the right spot.”