Stacy Redondo-Santa Cruz Obituary, Death – A stroke took the life of a 52-year-old former Cholla High School student who went on to earn four varsity letters as a utility player for the University of Arizona softball team coached by Mike Candrea from 1989 to 1993. She passed away recently. Later in his career, Redondo-Santa Cruz guided Salpointe Catholic to postseason appearances in 2013 and 2014. Prior to that, he was a member of the national championship teams that Arizona had in 1991 and 1993. Redondo-Santa Cruz began her career as a teacher in Tucson after completing her education at NAU, where she received both a bachelor of arts degree in Education and Spanish as well as a master’s degree in Early Childhood Development. Her experience includes teaching, most recently at Roskruge Bilingual Magnet School where she was in charge of the third grade. In addition to that, she was a faculty member at the Drachman K-6 Montessori Magnet School.
She was awarded the Extra Yard Award by the College Football Playoff Foundation in 2021 for her work at Roskruge, which came with a monetary prize of $1,900 in her honor. Susie Parra, a former teammate of Arizona’s who is now in the Pac-12 Hall of Fame, said on Facebook “WE LOVE U!” along with the tag “feeling heartbroken.” When Redondo-Santa Cruz played at Arizona, Stacy Iveson was an assistant coach at Arizona, and she posted on Facebook that she was “shocked and so so sad.” Another former Arizona teammate, Marcie Aguilar, expressed her distress, saying, “My heart hurts so much.”
When Candrea resigned in 2021, Redondo-Santa Cruz told Steve Rivera of AllSportsTucson.com that the famous coach was the “single-most influential man in my life” other than her own father. Redondo-Santa Cruz was speaking in reference to Candrea. “When he first got to Tucson, he’d come watch my games at Cholla High,” Redondo-Santa Cruz said of Candrea. “He’s been here ever since.” “When he recruited me, he was so enthusiastic about developing a great program at Arizona that it was contagious. I seriously entertained the idea that I could play a role in the formation of that team. “When that desire finally came true for the first time in 1991, and then again in 1993, I could not have been happier or prouder of myself. I care deeply for him and want nothing more than for him to be content in his retirement. There are three children in the Redondo-Santa Cruz household, in addition to a sizable direct and extended family.