SARATOGA -- West Valley baseball third baseman David Estrada, designated hitter and right-handed pitcher Parker Kristall and assistant coach Kai Haake were honored at the state level as the 3C2A's 2026 awards were announced. Estrada, in his second year with the Vikings, was named NorCal Position Player of the Year. Kristall, in his first, was named the Big Stick Award Winner. Haake, who came alongside head coach Bobby Hill at the start of the 2024 season, was named the state's Assistant Coach of the Year.
Kristall, a sophomore from Perris, CA, entered his first year with the Vikings after spending last season at Wabash Valley College in Illinois. After spending his freshman year almost exclusively on the bump, Kristall made an immediate impact with the bat with the Vikings and became a shutdown closer down the stretch.
He made a name for himself early in his Viking career as a player who would come through in the biggest moments. In his first at-bat as a Viking, Kristall blasted a two-out, two-run triple off the fence in right-center that gave the Vikings a 2-0 lead. Just a handful of games later, in a matchup against an eventual Regional Final team in Santa Rosa, Kristall hit a monster three-run home run to turn a 4-3 deficit into a 6-4 lead.
On March 13, Kristall became the fastest Viking to ever reach the double-digit home run marker, hitting two in a game at Monterey Peninsula to tally double digits.
While Kristall's power was his calling card early in the season, he also showed a rare blend of speed, extra base power and bat-to-ball ability. His 22 doubles are tied for second-most in a single season in West Valley history, while his 33 steals smashed the previous single-season record. He even led the team with a .390 batting average.
Kristall is committed to continue his academic and athletic career at San Diego State.
Haake, who was a part of Hill's coaching staff at Mission College and has become an invalubale piece of all operations at West Valley, was named Assistant Coach of the Year in the state. The recruiting skills, player development skills and in-game management speak for themselves. Under Haake's eye as the third base coach in games, the Vikings have become one of the most aggressive and successful baserunning teams in the state.
But the Vikings have also had tremendous success sending student-athletes to the four-year level since Haake joined the coaching staff. Over his first two seasons, Haake helped send 25 different Vikings to the four-year level, while one (Nico Wagner, to the Atlanta Braves) was selected in the 2025 MLB Entry-Level Draft. Wagner's selection was the first straight out of West Valley since Ryan Williams in 2012.
Estrada's story has been written too many times to count. One of the greatest to ever dawn a Viking uniform, Estrada ended his career as the all-time leader in hits (158, previous 132), doubles (49, previous 29), runs scored (128, previous 112), walks (72, previous 63) while finishing 8th all-time with a .389 batting average.
His sophomore campaign was a magical one, hitting an unbeleivable .461 in conference play to help guide the Vikings through some trying times in the middle of the season. Estrada became the first Viking ever to hit four doubles in a single game, had a walk-off sacrifice fly to cap an eight-run comeback, and had one of the most memorable swings of the year to spark the Vikings' regional-winning performance.
Estrada is committed to continue his academic and athletic career at Hawaii.