Gaona: Jackson looking forward to Tucson return

The Cienega graduate returns to Southern Arizona this weekend as Utah’s baseball team takes on the Arizona Wildcats for a three-game series at Hi Corbett Field. The first game is Friday night at 6 p.m.

“It’s weird being on the road, staying in hotels and stuff when I’m going to be back in my hometown,” said Jackson, a 6-foot-2-inch outfielder who has started in 11 games. “I’m just really excited to play in front of family and friends.”

While he’s certainly looking forward to seeing familiar faces, Jackson is even more excited about being able to treat his teammates to one of the city’s most well-known restaurants: Eegee’s.

“I’m going to get the Lucky Lime,” Jackson said with a laugh. “That’s the flavor of the month; I was hoping it would be something good so I could show the guys from Utah.”

Jackson admits to also missing authentic Mexican food and the mild winter weather in Tucson. But, he says, he couldn’t be happier playing at Utah. Jackson even has a Southern Arizona compatriot in Salt Lake City: Infielder Kellen Marruffo attended Sabino High School and Pima College.

Jackson was selected by the Texas Rangers in the 32nd round of the Major League Baseball draft last summer, but stuck with his original plan of playing for the Utes.

“It wasn’t what I was looking for, and I think everyone can kind of see that. But it’s still a blessing to be able to get drafted out of high school,” Jackson said of the pick. “I wanted to do both really bad, but it just seemed like a good opportunity to come to school and play in the Pac-12.

“It’s not like I’m missing anything, because if I would have went with the draft, I’d feel like I’d be missing out on something. But now I get to experience college and everything.”

Jackson, who also pitches, expects to be a much better player by the time he’s eligible for the draft again after his junior season in 2017. He was drafted by the Rangers as a pitcher, but said it’s too soon to project where he might fit as a pro.

“I’m really focused on now,” said Jackson, who is batting .161. “I haven’t been getting any innings on the mound, so I’ve just been focused on helping my team playing out there in the outfield.”

The Utes lost nine of their first 11 games, but have been hot lately. The team posted back-to-back wins against Kansas last weekend in games that were streamed live on ESPN3.

“That was something to mark off the bucket list,” Jackson said. “It was great.”

Jackson can knock something else off his short-term bucket list when he’s in Tucson this weekend by getting his Lucky Lime. Perhaps that’s not the only thing he and his teammates can take back to Salt Lake City.

“It’s going to be a fun time seeing everyone there,” Jackson said. “Hopefully we’ll come out with some wins to make it even better.”

Derksen gets double-double in Dons’ loss to Gonzaga

Amphitheater grad Tim Derksen finished off his junior season last Saturday with a big performance: The University of San Francisco guard-forward matched his career high in scoring and notched his first double-double.

Derksen’s 21 points and 10 rebounds were not enough, however, as the Dons lost to No. 7 Gonzaga 81-72 in the quarterfinals of the West Coast Conference tournament. The team finished the season 14-18.

The 6-foot-3-inch Derksen averaged 12.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steals per game this season.

Desert Christian’s Tyra honored for strong start

Five big games at the plate to open the season last week helped Desert Christian’s Courtney Tyra be named one of three MaxPreps/NFCA High School Players of the week, a national award.

The senior captain batted .789 with three doubles, two triples, three home runs, 19 RBIs and 14 runs scored as the Eagles rolled to a 5-0 start. She had multiple hits and runs scored in each game, and had six RBIs in each of the two most recent games.

Desert Christian reached the Division IV state quarterfinals in 2014, where it lost to San Manuel, the eventual champion. The Eagles played at Bisbee on Thursday.

CDO thrower Washington breaks school record

Canyon del Oro sophomore Turner Washington delivered a throw of 170-10 in the discus Wednesday afternoon, shattering the previous school record of 166-5, held by Aaron Tevis. To further put it in perspective, Washington’s mark was 9 feet farther than the distance that won the Division II state title last season.

Washington is one of several athletes to watch at next weekend’s Willie Williams Classic hosted by the UA.

Although Washington and the Dorados won’t be in attendance, the Desert Tune-Up Track and Field Invite on Saturday at Mountain View will serve as a primer for the annual meet, with 21 schools entered to compete. Field events begin at 9 a.m., and track events start an hour later.