THE CAPTAIN—Adama Fall, a Royal High junior, excels in the long and triple jumps for the boys’ track andfield team. He also stars in football. Photos by MICHAEL COONS/Acorn Newspapers
Adama Fall doesn’t mind when people call him Adam.
It’s not that the Royal High junior’s real name is all that hard to pronounce. It’s literally just Adam with a short “uh” at the end.
Still, friends, teachers, coaches and football and track and field teammates can’t seem to figure it out, so they all call him “Adam.”
“Honestly, I don’t care. As long as you get the ‘Fall’ right,” he said, half-jokingly.
The Royal High senior is an understanding fellow. He’s aware his first name isn’t common in the states so he doesn’t make a big fuss. But in Senegal, where Fall grew up before moving to Simi Valley six years ago, his first name’s as common as, well, the name Adam is here.
Adama Mbengue, Adama François Sene, and Adama Sarr are professional soccer players who hail from Senegal. Adama Amanda Ndiaye is a female Senegalese fashion designer. The president of Gambia, a country almost entirely surrounded by Senegal, is Adama Barrow.
HIGHER GROUND—Royal’s Adama Fall jumps at practice earlier this week. Fall wants to win gold at the Coastal Canyon Leaguefinals.
No one’s calling the president Adam. So, from now on, call the Highlander by his real name.
Adama.
It’s not that hard.
It’s certainly not as hard as it was for Fall to learn English when he arrived as a fourth grader at Garden Grove Elementary School. He credits Julie Dietz for helping him learn his third language. He also speaks French and Wolof, a language used in a small swath of land in West Africa.
Born in Maryland but raised in Mbour, a city about 50 miles south of the capital of Dakar, Fall used sports as a way to make friends in America.
“Everything was different,” the junior said of Simi Valley. “It’s like being a newborn baby all over again. You just have to learn to settle in your environment.”
Fall only played soccer before moving to the U.S., but he quickly tried basketball and football; he suited up for the Simi Valley Vikings youth football team. He spent many evenings at Highlander football practices, tossing the pigskin around with fellow ball boy, Malachi Ae, a current Royal football teammate and longtime friend.
Fall played cornerback and receiver for Royal’s freshman squad, where he picked up the nickname “The Captain” because his accent resembled the one of the character in “Captain Phillips.” Fall admits he wasn’t a fan of the name at first, but he’s embraced the moniker. He is “The Captain” now.
A curious Fall wandered onto the track and field team as a 6-foot freshman. He initially wanted to try sprinting like his idol Usain Bolt, but his lanky frame made him an ideal fit in the triple and long jumps.
“He came in with every intention of making it to the top,” said Mary Conway, Royal’s fourthyear jumps coach. “He walked up and asked me, ‘How do you get on varsity?’”
He placed second in the triple jump at the Coastal Canyon League finals as a freshman, and he took home silver medals in the triple and long jump last spring.
“This year, it’s my time,” Fall said. “I’m confident I’ll be able to be on top this year.”
Tony Valadez, Royal’s secondyear head coach, said Fall, who has already leaped a personal best 21 feet, 2.75 inches this season, has the potential to rewrite the Highlander history book.
“He wants a school record,” the coach said. “I think he can break the long jump record.”
While Valadez believes Fall can soar past the 24-8.5 mark set by Oliver Jackson in 1999, Fall’s future is on the football field.
He started at cornerback and earned reps at receiver the past two seasons. He’s made an impact on both sides of the ball, but Royal’s old football coach, who has since been relieved of his duties, did not post stats online.
Still, Fall, a 6-foot-4 honors student with a 3.8 GPA, has gleaned interest from multiple college football teams. He recently took an unofficial visit to UCLA.
The thought of playing football and getting a free education never crossed Fall’s mind before he started high school.
“I wasn’t even thinking about college,” the 17-year-old said. “As a senior, I want to have more impact on the team. I’ve been training a lot this offseason. I feel like I’m a much better player.”
Come football season, fans and foes alike will watch out for No. 6.
And remember, it’s Adama Fall, not Adam.
OTHER HIGHLANDERS
TO WATCH
John Moore, a senior football standout, excels in the boys’ long jump and triple jump, and he runs on the 4×100-meter relay team.
Robby McCabe, a sophomore, is another jumper who started hurdling recently.
Connor Beckett, a junior, is Royal’s top hurdler.
Seniors Brecken Bonnar, John Burton, and junior Ryan Dunkleberger are sprinters.
Cameron Pench, a junior, has the top pole vault in Ventura County so far this season at 12-7.
Jordan Hanson-Nortey, a senior football player, excels in throws.
On the girls’ team, seniors Moriah Siverson, Lily Nice, sophomore Isabella Matola and freshman Delaney Schultze are standout sprinters. Schultze, a varsity golfer and soccer player, also gets air in the high jump.
Leilani Sanko, a junior, is a talented 300 hurdler.
Follow Jonathan Andrade on Twitter @J_ Andrade_.