Sports

Sports & Recreation

WITH Jim Hague

ogsmar@aol.com

Nutley’s Stoeckel a double threat

Fallyn Stoeckel had no choice but to be a good athlete, especially a softball player. After all, the Nutley High School junior has practically grown up on softball fields in Essex County.

After all, Stoeckel’s grandfather, Jim Sr., has been a long-time softball and baseball umpire who has been the assignor for the Essex County Tournament for almost 30 years. And her father, Jim, the former Belleville High boys’ basketball coach, has been a highly respected umpire as well.

“You can tell when someone has grown up around the game,” Nutley head softball coach Luann Zullo said. “I think Fallyn grew up just watching the game.”

“I think it always helped me to be around Dad,” Stoeckel said. “Dad pushed me along all the time and my grandfather goes to so many games and has always been around. It definitely has helped me.”

It’s certainly helped Stoeckel recently. The junior flamethrower has been dynamite, both pitching and at the plate in recent weeks, especially with the NJSIAA North Jersey Section 2, Group III playoffs in full bloom.

Last week, Stoeckel had about as good of a week both pitching and hitting that a player could have.

On the mound, Stoeckel won both of the Maroon Raiders’ state playoff games against Mendham and JFK-Iselin. Stoeckel fired a one-hitter against Mendham, striking out 15, in the Maroon Raiders’ 8-1 victory. Last Friday, Stoeckel struck out 14 over nine innings in the Maroon Raiders’ thrilling 7-6 win over Iselin Kennedy, coming back from a three-run deficit to do so.

At the plate, Stoeckel was an unconscious nine-for-11 over three games, the two playoff wins and a regular season tilt with Millburn. Stoeckel delivered three hits, namely two doubles and a triple, drove in three runs and scored three in a 14-0 victory. She had three hits, including a double and a triple, with one RBI and two runs scored in the win over Mendham and finished the week with three more hits, including a double and a triple, and had three RBI in the victory over Iselin Kennedy.

That pretty much sums up an impressive week.

Needless to say, Stoeckel has been selected as The Observer Athlete of the Week for the past week.

Stoeckel was fully aware that the games are much more important now with a possible state championship at stake.

“I’ve been more excited for the state tournament,” Stoeckel said. “I definitely think I perform better in

Call him Zach

Belleville transgender athlete a trailblazer for others

By Jim Hague ogsmar@aol.com

Zach Perez just knew from an early age that he just wasn’t right with the gender he was born with.

“I was probably about six or seven,” said Perez, a Belleville High School junior who runs track and plays softball. “I just wasn’t comfortable with girly things and girly clothes. I didn’t like the way I felt. I’d cry when they put me in something girly. I’d always want to go to the boys’ section in clothing stores.”

His mother, Fatima, also noticed the difference in his child who was born a girl.

“I would have to say that he always preferred comfortable clothes,” Fatima Perez said. “He just felt uncomfortable in dresses and shoes. I understood because I’d rather wear be in sneakers and shorts all the time.”

Zach Perez (born Madison Perez, but he calls that his “dead name”) said that he lived an uncertain lifestyle for the first 16 years of his life. In his heart, mind and soul, he was certain that he was meant to be a boy.

“Everyone who knows me knows that I always wanted to be a boy,” Zach Perez said.

Fatima Perez didn’t think there was anything wrong with the way her child dressed and acted.

But last December, on New Year’s Eve, Zach Perez made a power point presentation to his parents. In the presentation, Zach had strategically did all the necessary research to explain his situation to his parents. He wanted to become a transgender person, wanted to be recognized as a male instead of what he was born as.

“I spent a lot of time doing the research to fit my needs gender-wise,” Zach said. “I sat them down and explained everything to them in detail. I told them that I wanted to be Zach. I wanted to improve that part of my life.”

“He explained everything,” Fatima Perez said. “The presentation was thorough.”

Zach said that when he was in middle school, he had to deal with a lot of tragedy. He lost an aunt, a close cousin and then his grandmother.

“My mental health was bad,” Zach said. “I was going through a tough time. I talked to a therapist about my gender and she helped me to get more and more comfortable with it.”

So then there was the dramatic presentation to ring in 2021.

“I was a little worried about my parents’ reaction,” Zach said. “It’s not something you normally talk to your parents about. I just wanted to start the new year as the person I want to be. So I decided to come out then.”

Needless to say, the presentation caught Hector and Fatima a little off guard. Hector Perez is of Portuguese descent, while Fatima’s family originated in Puerto Rico.

“I think Mom was a little more open minded,” Zach

Photo by Jim Hague Belleville High School junior Zach Perez came out recently as being transgender and has remained a member of the Belleville softball program. .

ZACH

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Perez said. “They’re beginning to feel more comfortable with it.”

“I have to say we were a little shocked,” Fatima Perez said. “It was definitely unexpected. He was very thorough. He definitely researched it. But I just told him that we would be supportive every way we could be. As parents, we all want to be there for our children. It’s definitely not easy, but we’re going with it and be there for him.”

The pronoun use has been difficult, having to get used to saying “him” and “he” instead of “her” and “she.”

“It’s gotten a lot better with that,” Zach says.

Fatima Perez knew that her child was not the kind of person to treat it as a passing phase.

“He has always been the type of child who thinks things out,” Fatima Perez said. “We knew how he wanted to be. We knew how he wanted to proceed and we will support him in any way he wants to proceed.”

It certainly takes a ton of courage to come out in high school and admit a gender change. A closed-minded community might not know how to handle the situation.

“But Belleville is very acceptive,” Zach said. “There’s no need to be transphobic. There are other trans people here. No one seems to be mean about it at all.”

Perez said that he spoke to school counselors about the gender change.

“I told them about coming out and using the name I preferred,” Zach said.

He selected the name from the television show on the Disney Channel, “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody.”

“I just liked that name from the show,” he said.

Eventually, he will change his name legally to Zachary when he turns 18 next year, but for now, he’s Zach.

Zach Perez admitted that it hasn’t been easy telling everyone that he is transgender. But he felt the time was right to consent to this interview.

“We have a Diversity Club in school,” Zach said. “We also have a LGBTQ Club as well. Belleville is very accepting to it. I know there are other people in the school that are similar to me.”

And Zach loves being an athlete. He was the captain of the cross country team in the fall. He participates in track and field and martial arts.

But softball creates somewhat of an issue. He’s now a male playing in a female-oriented sport. However, Perez is just an outfielder on the junior varsity team.

“I don’t think it’s that big of a deal,” Perez said. “I’m not going Division I or anything. I’ve never played baseball in my life. I just love being with my friends and sticking with the sport that I’ve played my whole life. I’m working on getting stronger and getting more muscle to be the best player I can be. I like to run. It’s my favorite thing to do.”

Belleville head softball coach Chris Cantarella has no problem at all with Zach being a part of his program.

“I have no issues at all,” Cantarella said. “Everyone is super acceptive and supportive of each other. Zach has truly thought about this and he knows that this is who he is. It takes a huge amount of guts to make a mature decision like this. It’s been a very pleasant experience.”

Senior Joanne Calvacca, a teammate of Zach’s in both softball and cross country, considers Zach to be a “team leader.”

“He’s here and he’s here to play,” Calvacca said. “When he came out as Zach, I honestly thought it was great. It says a lot about our team and our community. There are a lot of people who don’t come out and keep it hidden. Zach has a lot of courage. He’s brave to do what he’s done. I’m very proud of him and happy for him. I’m so happy he decided to come out. I think it’s going to help awareness. A lot of people don’t know what it’s like to live their lives that way. It never should matter what his gender is. He’s a person first. It certainly says a lot about him.”

Zach knows that the road ahead will not be an easy one. For example, if he explores having costly transsexual reassignment surgery, he will have to undergo a series of hormone injections, but that cannot take place until after he’s turned 18.

Photo by Jim Hague Belleville’s Zach Perez is a transgender softball player with the Buccaneers and is making people more aware of transgenderism.

See ZACH, Page 11

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bigger games.”

Stoeckel came through in the clutch against JFK-Iselin, knocking home the gametying run before Sydney Hess plated the game-winner in the ninth inning.

“I knew that I had to do something for us, because it was a pretty high scoring game,” Stoeckel said. “I didn’t know that they (Iselin Kennedy) would be that strong of a team. I just concentrated at the plate and was lucky enough to get a pitch to hit.”

Zullo isn’t complaining about the production she has received from her ace pitcher, who wasn’t feeling 100 percent Friday.

“She was sick,” Zullo said. “She had a really bad cough. But that wasn’t going to stop her. She struck out four batters in the first inning. She is getting better every day. She works hard. She’s fine tuning the pitches she has and has not been complacent at all, working on others.”

Stoeckel had a brilliant freshman campaign for the Maroon Raiders, but like everyone else, she was slowed by the coronavirus that halted all sports last spring.

“That really hurt a lot,” Stoeckel said. “We knew we were going to have a strong team last year. So I knew I had to get a lot better than I was freshman year. I am definitely throwing harder now. My pitches are moving a lot better. I am better compared to my freshman year. I only had two games of 10 strikeouts or more.”

And Stoeckel had two of those last week alone.

“It’s a real thrill for me to be doing so well,” Stoeckel said. “And when I’m hitting well, I know that if I’m not pitching my best, I can still help the team win.” The Maroon Raiders are 21-3 and headed to the state sectional semifinals Wednesday against either Matawan or Woodbridge in Nutley’s Yanitcaw Park at 4:30 p.m. Stoeckel is perhaps the main reason why the Maroon Raiders are where they are. She’s batting .457 for the season with 14 doubles and 26 RBI. Pitching, she has surrendered just 21 earned runs in 147 innings pitched (an even 1.00 earned run average) with 165 strikeouts. You can’t get much better than that.

Zullo is confident that Stoeckel can play college softball.

“I definitely think she can play at the next level,” Zullo said. “It’s unfortunate that she lost last year and last summer was big. I think this summer will be really big for her in terms of recruiting.”

“I think about it a lot,” Stoeckel said. “I think this summer (playing for the New Jersey Fight) will mean a lot to me.”

There are still big games to be won for the Maroon Raiders.

“We have a special group of kids who do all the intangibles that other teams I coached didn’t have,” Zullo said. “They fight for everything and they have fun. I look forward to every game with this group.”

The Maroon Raiders also have a chance to win the Super Essex ConferenceAmerican Division title with regular season games against front runners Livingston, Verona and Mount St. Dominic on tap. The Maroon Raiders have to win all three of those games, but with Stoeckel on the mound, anything is possible.

“I trust my teammates a lot,” Stoeckel said. “Even when we fall behind by three runs like we did the other day, we have the ability to come back, as long as everyone does their job.”

As long as the kid standing in the circle holding the ball is ready to fire away.

Photo courtesy of Jim Stoeckel Nutley junior pitcher Fallyn Stoeckel.

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“I haven’t even gone to a doctor yet,” Perez said. “That’s something I’ll have to talk to my parents about. I’ll need some time to bring about that change. Any surgery is way down the line. I know it’s very expensive. Whether how far I’ll take it remains to be seen.”

Perez knows he’s subjecting himself to public scorn and criticism.

“People will say, ‘Why would you admit to it?’” Perez said. “I feel bad for people who just don’t understand. I know it’s a very sensitive issue. I don’t see the problem. It makes no sense to me that people will look at me differently. I’m just me.”

Perez knows that he’s being extremely courageous and brave coming out in public like this.

“I know that some may say that he was very brave for what he’s done,” Perez said. “Maybe if I’m showing people that I’m not afraid and can inform others about the topic, then that’s great.”

Fatima Perez, for one, is extremely proud of her son.

“He’s very courageous,” Fatima said. “I don’t know if he gets that from me. But to come out and tell his story, maybe some other children or even adults will do the same. He’s just a very bright kid with great grades. He’s very well rounded. He does every sport he wants. He makes us proud.”

Zach Perez admits he will now forever stand out in a crowd.

“I know I’ll never be completely normal,” Zach says with a smile. “I feel it should be normalized, not shunned. I wish it wasn’t that way. I just play high school softball for a small school. I just hope people are more accepting sportswise and not make it an issue.”

Brave people like Zach Perez are making transgenderism less of an issue every day.

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