Bubba Filia of Irvine High was named PCL male athlete of the year. (Photo Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone)
Irvine High senior Bubba Filia wraps up his remarkable athletic career at the school with one more game Friday night.
Filia will be a catcher on the Pacific Coast League team that takes on the Sea View League Friday at 6 p.m. in the Ryan Lemmon Showcase at the Great Park Baseball Stadium Complex Five Point Stadium.
Last week, Filia played for the South team in the Orange County all-star baseball game.
Filia had lots of fond memories of his four year varsity career and capped it off by being named the Pacific Coast League male athlete of the year by the Orange County Athletic Directors Association.
“It’s a great honor,” said Filia, who was also Irvine’s male scholar athlete of the year. “The Pacific Coast League is a great league with a ton of great athletes from every school and to be recognized as one of the top male athletes in the league from my class is a big honor and I appreciate the award.”
Filia, who is headed to UC San Diego to play baseball, had a busy senior season as the quarterback on the football team and the catcher on the baseball squad.
In football, Filia led the Vaqueros into the CIF playoffs and was named OC Sports Zone All-Irvine offensive MVP. Filia completed 167 of 309 passes for 2,116 yards and 20 touchdown passes. He also had 85 carries for 446 yards and had six rushing touchdowns. Filia broke four career passing records at Irvine.
Filia was also a catcher and did some pitching on the baseball team, which reached the CIF playoffs and advanced into the quarterfinal round for the first time since 2001. Filia was named PCL player of the year.
Filia batted .383 with one home run, 13 RBI, 10 doubles, four triples, two stolen bases and 10 runs scored and had a .464 on base percentage. Filia also came to pitch out of the bullpen and had a 1-0 record with a 1.70 ERA.
Yet, Filia said the memories at Irvine involve more than his accomplishments on the football and baseball fields.
“All the achievements I’ve gotten through the years have been great but I think what I will carry most with me is the relationships that I’ve built in my years at Irvine,” Filia said.
“I feel there are people at Irvine High School that I’m going to be friends with for life and when we say teammates for life at Irvine in our football program, I really think it means something.”
Filia said he was pleased he could help both the football and baseball teams reach the playoffs.
“Going to the playoffs for both sports was a great achievement for our teams,” he said. “Both teams set out at the beginning of the season to make playoffs and to achieve that with the guys who were on the team was a big deal for us and I’m really happy to cap off my senior year with playoff berths.”
He wants to be remembered as one who was there for others.
“I want my teammates to remember me as a great teammate, a guy who they could come to whenever they needed but also a great competitor on and off the field and around campus, I would want people to remember me as a positive influence and a friendly face.”
Filia made it a point to thank his parents, Stacy and Mike Filia.
“My parents have been a huge part in my athletics and my life in general,” he said. “They’ve always been there in my corner supporting me in everything I’ve done and I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them and all their support and love and being in the stands for me. I truly owe it all to them. I love them.”
-Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com
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