Pioneer Athlete Spotlight on Clayton Valley Charter’s Kyle Hetherton

Name: Kyle Hetherton
School: Clayton Valley Charter High School
Grade: Senior
Sports: Water Polo, Swimming

CVCHS senior Hetherton has been a varsity water polo player for his entire high school career and a team captain for the past two years. He has also been part of Ugly Eagles swimming for three years, the last two on varsity. He has filled the past 13 summers on the championship Dana Hills Swim Team in Clayton. Hetherton was most improved water polo player as a freshman and earned most inspirational last year when CVCHS reached the North Coast Section tournament.

His favorite part about being a CVCHS student athlete is how the school’s competitive nature pushes him to strive for the best. He also notes that the tight-knit friendships and leadership skills formed from team sports are unique and special.

Hard work pays off

As a youngster, Hetherton participated in basketball and baseball as well as swimming. His experience with different coaching styles and teams taught him that hard work pays off, which is reflected in his academics as well as sports achievements. Hetherton’s cumulative unweighted GPA stands at 4.0. His GPA was 4.0, 4.29 and 4.67 in his first three years and his current senior mark is 5.0.

He founded the Outdoor Community Service Club at Clayton Valley Charter and participates in Senior Men Club and the Spike Ball Club. Away from school he has volunteered for Contra Costa Food Bank, Diamond Terrace, Salvation Army, CBCA for the Art & Wine Festival and Octoberfest, Dana Hills Swim Team and interned for the John Muir Young Healers.

In order to earn spending money, Hetherton has worked at Mountain Mike’s, Pete’s Trees in Walnut Creek and currently at Moresi’s Chophouse in Clayton. His top college choice is UCLA, where he hopes to major in biology with a pre-med emphasis, which he wants to lead to medical school and eventually a career as an anesthesiologist. Hetherton thanks his mentor John Parker, his water polo coach Gabe Martin and his girlfriend Mikayla Brown for their support.

CVCHS student journalist Katherine Pugh wrote this Spotlight.

The Pioneer congratulates Kyle and thanks Athlete Spotlight sponsors Dr. Laura Lacey & Dr. Christopher Ruzicka who have been serving the Clayton and Concord area for over three decades at Family Vision Care Optometry.

Do you know a young athlete who should be recognized? Perhaps he or she has shown exceptional sportsmanship, remarkable improvement or great heart for the sport.

Send your nomination for the Pioneer Athlete Spotlight today to sports@pioneerpublishers.com

Katherine Pugh
Katherine Pugh
Student Writer

Katherine Pugh is a junior at Clayton Valley Charter High School. She enjoys running on the CVCHS cross country team in the fall in addition to the track and field team in the spring. Pugh also swims recreationally for Oakhurst Country Club in the summer. She is a part of the CVCHS Engineering & Design academy and finished her sophomore year with a 4.33 GPA. She’s also excited to be a representative for CVCHS’s ASB leadership group during her junior year. In addition, Pugh works as a hostess at Ed’s Mudville Grill in Clayton. She is very excited to be writing the Student Athlete Spotlight for the Concord Clayton Pioneer.

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