Page 8 February 3, 2022 EL SEGUNDO HERALD
Adriana Ochoa from front page
photography and life drawing. Thinking
of photography as a career, she became a
photographer’s assistant. Still, she quickly
realized that she was often getting bumped
to second or third assistant due to the nature
of the fast-paced equipment setup and the
heavy lifting involved. It was then that a
friend of hers approached her.
Her friend worked at a NYC public high
school, and she told Ochoa that they needed
a photography teacher.
“No, no, no. I’m not a teacher. There’s
no way I’m a teacher,” Ochoa replied. With
her soft voice and shy nature, she never
saw herself standing in front of a crowd.
Reluctantly, she agreed to go meet with
the head of the department, knowing she
would leave the meeting without a teaching
job. “That following Monday, I was in front
of a group of kids, and I was terrified out
of my mind,” she laughs. As time went on,
her experience deepened, and her support
system grew. Ochoa began to love teaching,
especially working with high school students.
Every year she said she wouldn’t return for
the following school year, and every year
that she did, it got better and more fulfilling.
Her school near Jackson Heights in Queens,
Ochoa describes how much she learned by
teaching such a diverse student body.
During her time teaching, she met her
husband, a Covina, California native living in
New York at the time. When he got a job in
Los Angeles County, they found themselves
transplanted right here in El Segundo.
After working as the Art Docent at Richmond
Street Elementary for a bit, Ochoa
began to miss the New York eccentricity
and the magic of being able to walk around
and happen upon local shops and artists and
An art teacher from New York, Adriana Ochoa now holds art
workshops in El Segundo.
souvenirs that weren’t mass-produced. It was
around this time that a neighbor asked if
she would lead a private paint and sip class.
Ochoa not only loved the idea, but took it
a step further.
“Let’s not do the paint and sip,” she suggested,
“let’s do something different. Let’s
find something that you’ve never done before.”
For this event, Ochoa ended up leading a
lesson in string art in this neighbor’s apartment.
After that, Ochoa wanted to see what
else she could dive into.
She took a workshop for Shibori dyeing, a
Japanese practice of using indigo and folding
fabric a certain way to create a clean-cut
tie-dye effect, and began offering private
classes. Word got out about her work, and
residents started requesting classes from her
for any range of events, from birthdays to
bridal showers to work gatherings.
At some of the workshops, students began
asking if they could buy her example piece
at the end of class. Getting to know the area
and the people better, Ochoa recognized a
gap she could fill in sharing art with the city
and began running pop-up shops out of her
driveway, selling crafts, unique gifts, and El
Segundo-specific merchandise.
“When I first moved to California, I
needed stuff to send back east that said El
Segundo, California, right?” she asks. The
only thing available at the time were small
banners and stationery sets. So, she set out
designing logos and images that she could
send to private vendors to have them put
on t-shirts and hats. The clothing items
were so popular that this practice turned
into tea towels, coasters, potholders, socks,
and more.
Today, she runs her business online and
through pop-up shops, and she still offers
workshops in her backyard. Her hope for
the next step is to open a more permanent
space for her to sell and offer workshops,
though, with two teenage children, she says
she appreciates having flexibility for now.
Through her work, Ochoa hopes most of
all to share the lesson she learned about what
makes an artist. As a child, she says, we believe
we can do anything. As we grow, we begin
to limit ourselves with phrases like, “Oh, I’m
not creative.” Adriana Ochoa is here to tell El
Segundo that anyone can participate in art by
playing and taking the pressure off the product. •
Ochoa sells unique gifts and creations from her shop.
Eagles from page 3
lead at halftime. The Eagles went scoreless in
the third period, San Juan Hills pulled away
in the fourth period, and the Eagles fell 15-9.
In the third-place final, the Eagles closed out
the close game with a great defensive effort
and held off the Tartans 15-13. Mullane had
a breakout game with a season-high six goals.
Ramirez added four goals, Alpert had two goals,
while Torrez, Hale, and Sally Gonzales each
had one goal apiece.
The Eagles finish their regular season this
week with games against Torrance, Palisades,
Beverly Hills, and on Friday Mira Costa.
Girls Soccer Advances
to CIF Playoffs with Win
With their 4-1 win over South Torrance, the
Eagles will advance to the post-season and an
opportunity to defend their CIF Southern Section
Division 4 championship. The Eagles put
together a complete game on both sides of the
field. The offense used their passing skills to
penetrate the Spartan’s zone. Bella Munoz had
some looks, and Chelsie Charles had attempts,
but both came away empty.
Shelby Lyon scored her first of two goals
midway through the first half on an assist from
Bella Munoz to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead. In
the second half, Charles’ header inside came
close, and Munoz’s attempt was saved before
the Spartans tied the game. That tying goal
woke the El Segundo offense up. The Eagles
responded a minute later when Jayden Fode
passed to Lyon, who powered the ball into the
net. Later Holly Wilbanks’ corner kick gave
her team a 3-1 lead. Chelsie Charles finished
off the scoring with a powerful shot from the
middle and a 4-1 El Segundo win.
With the win, the Eagles improved to 10-4
on the year and secured second place. They’ll
head to the post-season next week after hosting
Lawndale yesterday.
Boys Soccer’s Epic Wins
Give Them Playoff Hope
The Eagles played host to North Torrance, the
two-time defending Pioneer League champions.
El Segundo’s focus and intensity were evident
from the start. According to the coaching staff,
the team played one of their better games of
the season. Coherent, togetherness, and they
followed the game plan, winning results with
their 2-1 win.
The Saxons took an early 1-0 lead before
the Eagles scored the equalizer late in the first
half. In the second half, Liam Moore took a
pass from Connor Moore and scored the goahead
and eventual winning goal.
With their playoffs hopes still alive, the Eagles
needed a win against South Torrance, one of the
top-ranked teams, to keep them alive; their 3-2
overtime win did just that. It was an epic display
Alyssa Mullane takes aim against West Torrance. She had a
breakout game against Glendora, scoring six goals. Evelyn Hale looks to score her third goal against West Torrance.
of competitiveness and served notice that the
Eagle’s 5-7 overall record is a bit misleading.
The Spartans came out with a lot of momentum
and pushed the Eagles with their pace
of play. They conceded an early goal to the
Spartans to make it 1-0. Later on, Gage Van
Kleeck had a set piece strike from about 25
yards out that went into the top left corner and
equalized the score l before halftime.
In the second half, El Segundo controlled the
pace and started to gain the upper hand. It was
a back-and-forth encounter. The Spartans ended
up scoring a scrappy goal late in the second
half. With three minutes left in the match, the
Eagles had a throw-in from the attacking area.
They sent everybody forward into the penalty
box to try to get on the end of it, including the
goalkeeper. The result was a goal from Josh
Lopez to tie the game during stoppage time.
The first 10-minute period of overtime was
even. Both teams created chances but came
away empty. Midway through the second
overtime Van Kleeck once again received a
loose ball at the top of the area. He struck a
low, well-struck half volley into the bottom
left corner, caroming off of the post and into
the back of the net. It was a golden goal,
meaning that it was an instant game-winner.
El Segundo celebrated the improbable win that
shocked the soccer world while the dejected
South Torrance players collapsed in disbelief.
The Eagles needed a win against Lawndale
yesterday for any hope of advancing to the
CIF playoffs. •
Tanner Ijams had five saves, including this one, against South Torrance. Ciara Doggett sets to pass against the Eagle’s win over South Torrance.