In Memory

Cyrus Allizadeh - Class Of 2004 VIEW PROFILE

Dec 20, 1985 - Mar 16, 2008


"He was one of those people you see every day, and they brighten up your day a little bit more"

Former Cal Baseball Player Found Dead, ~ The Daily Californian, Berkeley, CA

A UC Berkeley senior and former Cal baseball player was found dead in his apartment Sunday afternoon, according to Berkeley police. 

Investigators at the Alameda County Coroner's Bureau speculated that Cyrus Allizadeh, 22, died of self-strangulation. 

A Berkeley police officer arrived shortly after 5 p.m. at Allizadeh's apartment on the 2400 block of Parker Street, where the officer found the deceased body, said Berkeley police Lt. Andrew Greenwood. 

Friends said that Allizadeh may have been going through a stressful period. 

"He had been going through some tough times recently I think with his girlfriend, and with graduating this semester. I guess (he was) just stressing pretty hard about it," said junior Cal outfielder Tyler Waddell. "But he was always pretty reserved." 

Allizadeh, who was an infielder for the Bears, was a redshirt freshman on the team during the 2005 season. 

Senior second baseman Josh Satin, who said he saw Allizadeh every couple of weeks, said Allizadeh suffered a shoulder injury that year and then decided to give up playing for Cal. 

"He wasn't going to be a huge contributor, and I think he realized that and so he pursued other interests," Satin said. "But he lived with some of the guys on the team and was just always (around)." 

He went on to work for Cal event management, which staffs sports events, and continued to closely associate with the team and the program. 

"I saw him Saturday at the game," said junior pitcher Tyson Ross. "He was smiling, joking around, same old Cyrus, always the happiest guy." 

The team had a meeting yesterday morning with a therapist to discuss how to deal with the loss. 

"One thing he recommended was not self-medicating or being alone-just stick together and talk through it, that this should bring the team together," said senior designated hitter Jordan Karnofsky. 

Satin recalled how the two shared a mutual love for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Allizadeh was from Claremont, Calif., and Satin hails from Calabasas, Calif. 

"I only saw him every couple weeks, but I always enjoyed seeing him," Satin said. "We shared a lot in common. He was from L.A., a huge Dodger guy. I'd love running into him and get a 10-minute update on what he thought about the upcoming season, about the trades, about whatever the Dodgers were doing." 

Many members of the baseball team said they were "confused" to hear about the unexpected death. 

"He was one of those people you see every day, and they brighten up your day a little bit more," Ross said. 

______________________________________________________________________________

Cyrus Allizadeh, former baseball standout and 2004 graduate of Claremont High School, has died. The UC Berkeley senior was 22 years old.

Described by friends and family as a devoted sports enthusiast, Allizadeh worked as an intern during his time in college for the Oakland Raiders, Golden State Warriors and ESPN.

"He was probably the biggest sports fanatic that I know," said his friend, Alex Rainbow. "He loved to watch sports, he loved anything to do with sports, even down to playing his Xbox 360 sports games - that's all he played."

Allizadeh died March 16 in his Berkeley apartment, Rainbow said.

Allizadeh played baseball all four years he was a student at Claremont High. In 2004, his senior year, he was named to the Baseline League's All-League Team as the second-team shortstop, according to Daily Bulletin archives.

"He was a very important player from a leadership standpoint," said Rick Dutton,Claremont High School athletic director. "If you talk to any of his coaches, they would say nothing but great things about him. He was just one of those kinds of guys."

Allizadeh's 30-year-old brother, Eddie Allizadeh, said his brother was known in high school for being a player who could fill in for any role.

"He was definitely one of the best defensive players on the team," Eddie Allizadeh said." He had great hands, great instincts. That was his thing, being the middle infielder."

Cyrus Allizadeh walked on as a freshman to the UC Berkeley baseball team, but suffered a shoulder injury that kept him off the team after his first season.

He remained involved in Cal athletics as a member of the school's events management and kept in close contact with his former Cal teammates, Rainbow said.

"He still knew them and he still went to all their games," Rainbow said. "It was like they had lost a teammate even though he wasn't playing on the team anymore."

Cyrus Allizadeh, the youngest of four brothers, was born on Dec. 20, 1985, and grew up in Claremont.

He was a lifelong Los Angeles Dodgers fan and was close friends with several people who had family ties to the team. He was often in the team's dugout before games, Eddie Allizadeh said.

Cyrus Allizadeh is survived by his parents, Fred and Ofelia Allizadeh of Claremont; brothers Jim Allizadeh of Riverside, Danny Allizadeh of The Woodlands, Texas, and Eddie Allizadeh of Claremont; two nephews and three nieces.

Funeral services were held at the Claremont United Church of Christ on March 25, Eddie Allizadeh said.

The family asks that donations be made to the Cyrus Allizadeh Scholarship Fund, established by his brother, Danny Allizadeh, to benefit Claremont High School.

 

~ Inland Valley Daily Bulletin


Campus Reaches Out to Those Affected by Suicide~ The Daily Californian, April 10, 2008

As the pressures and strain of college life mount, suicide has become the second leading cause of death among college students. But for friends and family left behind, the grief and distress of such a loss can be hard to overcome. 


"If someone commits suicide or is hospitalized after an attempted suicide, a lot of stress can be caused to the larger community," said Rick Low, a consulting psychologist at University Health Services and project director for Cal Suicide Training, Education and Prevention Project. "The number of students that might be affected by a single suicide is never able to be known for sure." 

Last month, Cal's baseball team was forced to deal with the loss of a former teammate and friend, Cyrus Allizadeh, who was found dead in his apartment on March 16. Officials at the Alameda County Coroner's Bureau speculated that Allizadeh died of self-strangulation. 

"It was just such an enormous shock for the whole team," said Jordan Karnofsky, a senior who played on the baseball team with Allizadeh. "We all came together to talk for four to five hours after we heard and for a while, I couldn't think of anything else." 

While the Tang Center offered counseling for students who had been affected, many of Allizadeh's friends said they preferred to deal with their feelings alone or among friends. 

Senior Chanda Picott, who has known Allizadeh for years, said she found it difficult to mourn the loss of a friend she had seen the day before. 

"At first, it was hard to cope because we were both seniors and American Studies majors as well, and had talked about walking together at commencement," Picott said in an e-mail. "I questioned over and over again why he couldn't simply pick up the phone and call or come over to the house if he needed someone, but I also had to understand that there are some things that are better left unsaid." 

Knowing the right way to cope can be the hardest part, said Picott, who felt torn between wanting to turn to others and providing support. 

Many of Allizadeh's friends said they too had never expected to have to deal with such a difficult situation. 

"I kept thinking what could I have done differently, but it became clear that there was nothing anyone could have done," said senior Jeff Fritch, who knew Allizadeh since his freshman year. "In the first week, I was pretty much hands-off at school and if I let my mind wander in lecture, it went straight to that." 

According to UCPD Assistant Chief Mitch Celaya, there have been no completed suicides on campus property since January 2008. But in the last month alone, there have been three attempts at the Unit 1 residence halls. 

One of the three occurred last week, when a 19-year-old student attempted to jump over the balcony at Unit 1's Cheney Building. Mitchell said the student is now in hospital and receiving medical treatment. 

Jessica Dzubnar, a freshman and Unit 1 resident, was studying in the lounge and helped police pull the student back from over the balcony rails. 

"Originally after it happened I ran straight to my room and cried, thinking 'Oh my gosh, I can't believe this just happened,'" Dzubnar said. "I don't think you can register something like that at the time, but now it is all starting to hit me." 

The university has many considerations when responding to an attempted suicide on campus; they must first address the student's safety and later reach out to the affected communities, said Dean of Students Jonathan Poullard. 

"As a community, we should do as much as we can to support each other as we go through these trying times," he said. 

Students can be just as traumatized when it is their professor who has committed suicide, said junior Savina Shaffer. Shaffer said she experienced shock and distress when her physics professor, Michael T. Ronan, died from a fatal fall in October 2006 after telling students he was suffering from depression. 

"The shock and the unexpected nature of the situation is what made it really difficult for me," Shaffer said. "I just kept thinking that maybe I could have done something, or been a better student, or something. That was definitely the hardest thing for me." 

While suicide will always be difficult for students to overcome, they should try to remember the person's life rather than the way they died, Fritch said. 

"There are a lot of things that we just don't understand and probably never will," he said. "It is almost better to move past that and try to remember the good memories."


 





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