18 June 2021 | prestonhollowpeople.com
Sports
MARTIAL ARTIST: SCOTT AIMS FOR OLYMPIC BERTH IN KARATE
Jesuit grad is the top American medal hopeful for debut sport in Tokyo TOM SC OT T ’ S NINE INTERNATIONAL TITLE S HAVE SPANNED THE GLOBE . Year Tournament
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2012 Pan American Championships Nicaragua 2014 Pan American Championships Peru 2015 Pan American Championships Canada 2015 Karate1 Premier League
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2016 Karate1 Premier League
France
2017 Karate1 Premier League
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2018 Pan American Championships Chile 2019 PKF Senior Championships
Panama
2019 Karate1 Series A
Canada
Tom Scott is the top-ranked American athlete in karate, which will debut as an Olympic sport this summer in Tokyo. (PHOTOS: COURTESY TOM SCOTT)
By Todd Jorgenson People Newspapers
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aving karate as an Olympic sport for the first time this summer in Tokyo gives Tom Scott a golden opportunity. The Jesuit graduate has ranked among the top international athletes in the kumite discipline for years. In June, he will learn whether he has a chance to make history as the top American medal hopeful. “We’ve always pictured ourselves as Olympic-level athletes,” Scott said. “Karate has always been one of the little brother sports out there. It’s just something we’re happy to have a shot at it.” Scott will head to a qualification tournament in Paris June 11-13. He competes in the 75-kilogram weight class, for which 10 athletes will make the Tokyo field. The
top four in the world rankings in each class earn automatic bids. So does the top performer from Japan, the host nation. The top three finishers in the June tournament and two wildcard invites will round out the field. Scott ranks No. 6 in the world, putting him in favorable shape. “You want to make it, but thinking about that isn’t going to help,” he said. “You just have to focus on the basics and execute your fundamentals.” Scott started karate when he was 8. By the time he was 14, he was a member of the U.S. Junior National team and had to miss the first week of his freshman year at Jesuit because of a tournament in Chile. After graduation, Scott earned a degree from TCU, but the demands of college caused him to reduce his travel schedule and contemplate his future.
“You have to do karate because you love it,” Scott said. “A lot of kids we lose because they want to play sports that can get you into college. For me, the choice was clear. I could have been second or third-string on the football team or travel the world to all these different events.”
We’ve always pictured ourselves as Olympic-level athletes. Tom Scott Scott, 31, earned gold at the Pan American Games in 2015 and 2019. In 2019, his schedule included events in France, Dubai, Austria, Panama, Morocco, Turkey, China,
Canada, Japan, Spain, Russia, and Chile. Then came the COVID-19 pandemic, which not only interrupted his training but delayed the Olympics a year. “It was really stressful,” Scott said. “I fell back in love with my sport during the last year by really enjoying it more rather than just grinding because of the Olympics.” Since high school, Scott has taught at the Academy of Classical Karate in Plano, operated by his longtime coach, Brody Burns. Karate won’t be part of the Olympic program in 2024 in Paris, and its status for 2028 in Los Angeles remains undetermined. However, Scott isn’t sweating his first — and possibly last — chance. “The Olympics is not an end for me,” Scott said. “I can make a living doing what I love, and still compete, and enjoy the sport for as long as I’m healthy.”
Dobbs Caps Ursuline Soccer Legacy With Scoring Milestone
By Todd Jorgenson People Newspapers
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Kylie Dobbs was aware of the milestone when she took the field on March 5, but she had more important accomplishments on which to focus. Nobody in the storied history of the Ursuline soccer program — which includes 28 state titles and numerous Division I college signees — had ever scored 100 goals in a Bears uniform. Heading into this season’s TAPPS 6A championship game against Houston St. Agnes, Dobbs had 99. The senior’s historic first-half goal was the game-winner, and she later added three more for good measure, finishing her career with 103. Ur-1 PCP_June2021-1x10Banne_Final.pdf suline’s state title cemented Dobbs’ status in Bears lore.
“For her to be the first player to score 100 goals, really says something with all of the talent that’s come through the school,” said Ursuline head coach Darrin Hedges. “Our entire team took her getting to 100 as a personal goal. We knew we would succeed as Kylie succeeded.” Dobbs finished her senior season with 49 goals in just 20 games. But the last four will forever be the most memorable. “For my team, I wanted to score. Then I just wanted to push for another, and another. After the first one, they started rolling in,” she said. “As the season went on, [100] started getting within reach. It wouldn’t have happened if the team hadn’t really pushed and helped me get there.” Hedges, 5/6/2021 2:44:39 PMa local coaching veteran who just wrapped up his second season at Ursuline, said Dobbs is one of
Kylie Dobbs scored 103 goals in four seasons for Ursuline, including 49 during her senior year. (PHOTO: CHRIS MCGATHEY) the most gifted offensive players he’s ever coached. “She can score several different ways,” Hedges said. “She can score
with speed and has got a rocket of a left foot — whatever it takes to put the ball in the back of the net.” After the season, Dobbs signed
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late in the recruiting cycle to play collegiate soccer at the University of Missouri, which will enable her to pursue journalism and eventually sports broadcasting. “It all worked out by staying patient,” she said. “I wanted to play somewhere that I would be happy at the school even without soccer. It was meant to happen.” Dobbs’ historic year earned her numerous accolades, including TAPPS first-team all-state recognition, and a nomination for United Soccer Coaches All-American status. “The environment of Ursuline soccer doesn’t compare to anything else. It’s a pride thing. You want to work hard for all the girls ahead of you, or behind you, or next to you,” Dobbs said. “I’m happy that I could leave my mark on something that has meant so much to me.”
