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room: Reailty TV isn’t what it used to be (good?) but sports has taught us how to get reality and get it done right. For reals.

Fence: 34 The Tryouts, sign-ups, fund-raisers and more!

37 Advertiser’s index 4

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S.O.S: Save Our Sports EDITOR’S NOTE: September was a rough month for professional athletes, the NFL in particular. It stirred strong feelings in our Sac-Joaquin edition coordinator and writer, Jim McCue. He sent this to me and I felt it deserving of this page this month. Hopefully you do too.

I

am reaching out to high school student-athletes, particularly male athletes, with a desperate plea.

Professional sports are a mess and the public’s trust in its leaders, stars and everyday players is dwindling due to scandals erupting in most of the major sports over the last several years. While the NFL is at the forefront of the numerous disasters threatening to bring down pro sports as we know it, the problems persist in most sports leagues and competitions.

The root of the problem seems to be the misbehavior, bad decisions and illegal actions of numerous “adult” athletes. Domestic violence. Child abuse. Performanceenhancing drugs. Racism. The list of ugly transgressions goes on and on.

Because the adults in professional sports are seemingly unable to correct their ways, I am calling on the next generation of student-athletes to save professional sports for future generations to enjoy. Athletes—even high school athletes—are role models that can shape the way that future generations of athletes act and transform the image of amateur and professional sports.

Because it would be weak to call out student-athletes and provide no suggested solutions, I offer the following ideas to improve the image of sports and the trust and faith that spectators and fans have in them. ›› Be a man. Respect parents and authority, using reason and logic to voice a difference in opinion rather than force. Treat your girlfriend (future wife) with respect and never lay a hand on her. Love and respect young children, especially your own. If you were raised in an abusive environment or were disciplined with force, you can learn different ways to act. You are the one who can break that cycle. ›› Lead with actions. Not everyone is a team captain that calls a team into action, but everyone can display leadership without speaking a word. Be inclusive on campus and on the field/court. If you see someone being bullied in person or online, step up and bring it to an

end if you can. Reach out to students outside of your social circle and discover people interested in music, art and engineering, as well as students in special education classes with diverse abilities. You might learn some new things, including some things about yourself. ›› Work hard and compete naturally. Physical training/therapy, time, and hard work is what will make you better in your sport. Resist shortcuts. If you achieve success through hard work and determination, others will notice and follow your work ethic. ›› You are a student-athlete. Period. On the playing field and off, be color blind and accepting of different beliefs, cultures and languages. Compete with a display good sportsmanship toward opponents regardless of what they look like, what they say to you or how they act. Hold the high ground. ›› Behave like someone is always watching. Don’t think that you can be a model citizen in the classroom, on the playing field and in the community while acting foolishly online. What you do and say on social media sites and apps matters. Recruiters are watching, the media is watching, parents are watching, and the next generation of athletes is watching what you do and say on Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.

These are just a few things that you can do. Today’s student-athletes fortunately have the mistakes of current and past professional athletes and amateur studentathletes to learn from at their disposal. They also have excellent resources such as the Character Combine to teach student-athletes how to improve sportsmanship and reputation through character lessons.

I believe the future of professional and amateur sports can be saved from today’s scandals and tragedies by today’s student-athletes — from the state record-breaking quarterback to the third-string outfielder that may not get a single at-bat, but shows up and works hard every practice. I have seen many of the actions I call for, but hope that they might be more openly or consciously displayed.

I believe that you can do these things, not because it is good PR or looks good on a transcript, but because it is the right thing to do. For you, your family, your friends, your teammates, your classmates and your community. And maybe even for the future of sports. ✪

join our team PHONE 925.566.8500 FAX 925.566.8507 Editorial Editor@SportStarsOnline.com Editor Chace Bryson • Chace@SportStarsOnline.com Staff Writer Jim McCue • JimMcCue16@gmail.com Contributors Bill Kolb, Matt Smith, Clay Kallam, Ben Enos, Dave Kiefer, Liz Elliott, Tim Rudd, Trevor Horn Copy Editor Bill Kruissink Photography Bob Larson, Jonathan Hawthorne, James K. Leash, Norbert von der Groeben, Phillip Walton, Doug Guler, Dean Coppola, Berry Evans, III Marketing/Events Ryan Arter Editorial Intern Mike Young Creative Department Art@SportStarsOnline.com Production Manager Mike DeCicco • MikeD@SportStarsOnline.com Publisher/President Mike Calamusa • Mike@SportStarsOnline.com Advertising Sales@SportStarsOnline.com, 925.566.8500 Account Executives Camps & Clinics: Ryan Arter • Camps@SportStarsOnline.com Alameda County: Berry Evans • Berry@foto-pros.com Central Valley, World Events: Anthony Grigsby • Area Director anthony.grigsby@worldeventssports.com Darin Wissner • dwissner@wordeventssports.com Reader Resources/Administration Subscription, Calendar, Credit Services Angela Paradise • Info@SportStarsOnline.com Distribution/Delivery Phillip Walton • Mags@SportStarsOnline.com Information technology John Bonilla CFO Sharon Calamusa • Sharon@SportStarsOnline.com community SportStars™ Magazine A division of Caliente! Communications, LLC 5356 Clayton Rd., Ste. 222 • Concord, CA 94521 • info@SportStarsOnline.com www.SportStarsOnline.com

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Kevin

Davidson McClymonds-Oakland - Football - Junior For the past two seasons, McClymonds has been right on the cusp of breaking through to the Division IV CIF State Championship bowl games. Last year, they missed out on the trip to Carson by a mere three points in a 17-14 loss to Central Catholic-Modesto. This year could be different thanks to Davidson, a junior transfer from San Ramon Valley who has been scorching opposing defenses over the Warriors’ 4-0 start.

Davidson’s most recent effort solidified his SportStar of the Week selection after he passed for 438 yards and six touchdowns against a very good Analy team. McClymonds won the game 55-14. Two weeks earlier, Davidson passed for 216 yards and five touchdowns in a 32-22 win over Salesian. Read more about Davidson and red-hot McClymonds in the Red Zone beginning on page. 24. ›› IN HIS OWN WORDS: “We knew it was going to be a tough game,” Davidson said of the win against Analy. “We came out and had the right attitude and smacked them in the mouth. It was an awesome win.”

honorable mention Malik Blackburn: The Concord senior running back rushed for 203 yards and 3 TDs on 25 carries while adding 82 yards receiving and another TD in a 50-21 nonleague win over Deer Valley on Sept. 26.

Chloe Hansel: The Las Lomas junior cross country standout took first place in the Div. III race at the prestigious Stanford Invitational on Sept. 27. She finished the 5K course in 17 minutes, 29 seconds.

Yoonhee Kim: Dougherty Valley’s junior golfer shot a 1-under 71 to tie for medalist honors at the Poppy Ridge Classic on Sept. 15, and carded a 2-under 34 at Blackhawk in a DFAL win over Campolindo on Sept. 24.

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Rapid Fire

Giovanni Panameno Clayton Valley Charter Lacrosse

JOHNNY CAPRA Placer-Auburn Football

What tv show's return do you most anticipate Supernatural

Trending What’s hot this week in the world of stuff that’s hot Apple gave every iTunes user a free U2 album. Your dad doesn’t get why you aren’t more excited.

The University of Baltimore is offering a course in the spring on Marvel Comics. In conjunction with this announcement they’ll now be known as The ‘University’ of Baltimore.

Turns out your iPhone 6 can bend if you keep in your back pocket and their latest software update was dead on arrival. But on the plus side, it’s got U2.

halloween costume plans Batman

My head coach, Joey Montoya

Favorite scary movie

The Conjuring

Sharknado

best thing about homecoming week Football game

Everyone dressing up each day

top bucket list sporting event World Series

We were gonna write something about how the NFL hasn’t had another embarrassing scandal in a few days but by time we write this, it gets printed and then delivered they probably will. So nevermind.

College football

FIFA World Cup

Alex Winter announced that he and Keanu Reeves will reprise their famous rolls in the upcoming ‘Bill and Ted 3.’ Your dad doesn’t get why you aren’t more excited.

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Top 5 most important elements to reality tv success (sports-style!)

Are you watching FOX’s latest stab at reality television, Utopia? Yeah. Us neither. And if the ratings are any indication, apparently the rest of America can’t really be bothered all that much. Maybe we’re burned out on reality. Maybe shows about mostly naked, loosely moraled folks frolicking in nature have jumped the shark. Or maybe there’s an easier explanation for why this one isn’t catching on: It’s too nice. Sure, sure, you can watch 24/7 on the interwebs, and there are nudie people and splinter groups and baptisms (muh?). But, unfortunately, there hasn’t been enough catfighting or backbiting or sabotage. We’re pretty sure that, if we were cooking up a reality show, we could bring the spice. Here are our Top 5 most important elements for a successful reality show (Sports Character Edition): 1. The Jackass — Somebody has to be a complete, insufferable, unapologetic boor, so that everyone has someone to root against. Leading candidates: Mark Cuban, Jim Harbaugh, Richard Sherman, The Philly Phanatic.

2. The Smooth Operator — Slick. Charming. Always says the right thing. Has great hair. Usually forms an alliance within 20 seconds of the start of the show. Invariably ends up as one of the final contestants, at which point everyone turns on him for having been too slick, charming, eloquent and coiffed. Think: Pat Riley, Tom Brady, Mel Kiper, Jr., Derek Norris. Wait. Scratch that last.

3. The Cheater — Who better than Bill Belichick to excel in an environment populated with hundreds of hidden cameras? Can’t you just imagine him stealing food, peeing in the water supply, or sabotaging his own team to get rid of his rivals? Honorable mentions to: Lance Armstrong, Gaylord Perry and the entire 1951 New York Giants team.

4. The Easy Mark — If you’re looking around the campfire and you can’t pick out the sucker, it’s probably Jerry Jones.

5. The Puppet Master — This is the devious one. The one who lies in the weeds like a snake, pulls the strings, and lets everyone else do the dirty work. The one whose most ingenious plots usually backfire in the most spectacular fashion when s/he overthinks it and over-meddles. And by s/he, we, of course, mean Billy Beane. Cespedes for Lester in the middle of your best season as GM? Really?

— Plutarch Heavensbee Kolb

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count 'em Number of touchdowns Alhambra-Martinez wide receiver Grant Hill scored in a three-game span from Sept. 12-26. Hill, who told SportStars that his pregame playlist included the Red Hot Chili Peppers, has been red hot himself. He caught five touchdown passes in a Sept. 12 win over Armijo-Fairfield and three more in defeating Washington-Fremont on Sept. 19. Then on Sept. 26, Hill had two TD catches and rushed for another two as the Bulldogs rallied from a 20-point halftime deficit to beat Miramonte-Orinda.

say what?

“We took that whole fourth quarter down. We got in our Dean Smith Four Corners offense.”

Foothill-Pleasanton coach Matt Sweeney describing the Falcons’ 13-play, 85-yard touchdown drive that milked nearly seven minutes off the game clock in a 40-28 win over San Ramon Valley-Danville on Sept. 26. It was the first time Foothill had defeated their East Bay Athletic League nemesis since 2008.

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NorCal’s Venerable Venues A look at five of the best football stadiums in the North State If anyone out there knows me from my days of working for Student Sports Magazine and ESPN, you know I’ve done columns and features about the most unique or best places to watch football games several times over the years.

But this list does change. It does because some high school stadiums have to be repaired or demolished and rebuilt entirely due to earthquake protection. New schools and new stadiums also open every year.

My favorite place I’ve ever been to see a high school football game in Northern California, in fact, is one of those stadiums that had to be taken down. That would be the one and only Napa Memorial Stadium. Before it had to be demolished, the height of its grandstands, the Quonset huts at one end zone each painted in the school colors of Napa High and Vintage High and the fact that there was no track separating the stands from the sidelines made it incredibly intense.

I had the pleasure of covering several of the Napa vs. Vintage Big Games in the 1980s and 1990s at Napa Memorial Stadium and went there several times for CIF Sac-Joaquin Section playoff games. Sure, for the teams themselves, Napa Memorial Stadium was a pain because the dressing rooms were a couple blocks away at Napa High. But that only added to the experience for the fans.

Napa Memorial Stadium is still a good place to see a game, but the rebuilt version lost its charm from the old place. Imagine someone in Boston rebuilding Fenway Park or someone in Chicago doing the same to Wrigley Field. It’s hard to see how that charm could be recaptured.

Here then is my current top five list of the best places to watch a football game in Northern California: 1. Alex G. Spanos Stadium, Lincoln of Stockton Call me biased because my son, Sean, graduated from Lincoln on the field last June, but I always thought Lincoln’s home stadium was among the best in California even before I started living in Stockton in 1993. It offers the prerequisite for me of not having a running track separating the fans from the players and the stadium was improved several years ago by the addition of a college-like foyer entrance. Sycamore trees still stand tall on one end of the field while the other side is enclosed by more stands. The press box also is one of the best anywhere with more than one level. The reason Lincoln’s stadium is so nice is because it is located about two blocks from the longtime residence of San Diego Chargers’ owner Alex Spanos and many of his grandchildren played inside the

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Central Catholic takes in sunset at Spanos Stadium. stadium. He and the Spanos family obviously made such a venue possible and deserve a lot of credit for their contributions, not just to Stockton but to the entire state.

2. Prairie City Stadium, Folsom With its signature blue turf and with teams in recent years that have been among the best in the state, Folsom officials have recreated a Texas-style atmosphere for its home games. The Bulldog band is one of the best around, too. It’s bigger than my No. 1 place at Lincoln of Stockton but not as intimate.

3. Dunlavy Stadium, Sonora This venue was built in 1937 when 5,500 seats were planted on the side of a hill.

Dunlavy often is mentioned as one of the most unique places to see a game, but it’s also one of the best. A fan can easily visit a restaurant or watering hole in nearby downtown Sonora before or after a game. This season, Sonora has had to wait to have its first home game until October due to a renovation project at the stadium and track. Despite the delay and moving from the Valley Oak League to the Mother Lode League, the Wildcats still have Dunlavy Stadium as their home and nothing will ever change that.

4. George Washington High Stadium, San Francisco For stunning views of the Golden Gate Bridge, and an enclosed sensation that is a must for any great place to watch a game, this place might be No. 1. So many games in the city, however, aren’t played on Friday night and aren’t heavily attended. I wish they were, but they aren’t, which makes watching games at other places more enjoyable. Still, as MaxPreps recently wrote, Washington’s stadium is one of the 10 high school football stadiums in the nation to see before you die, and I’d agree. Galileo’s George White Field doesn’t have a view of the Golden Gate Bridge, but it’s more historical (it was named O.J. Simpson Field at one time). If you can watch a game from one of the higher floors of the high-rise apartments across the street you’ll get a view of the action that you’ve never seen before.

5. Ron Calcagno Stadium, St. Francis-Mountain View What sets apart this place from just about anywhere else is a magnificent Bay Tree that dwarfs the goal post at one end of the field, not to mention the school’s gymnasium. The Bay Tree also is even considered a symbol of the school. Some teams playing at St. Francis on a Friday night, especially Serra-San Mateo, might actually also think that tree casts some sort of spell preventing them from beating the host Lancers. ✪

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California football Rankings

De La Salle’s Antoine Custer Previous ranking in parentheses; through Saturday, Sept. 27 1. (1) — St. John Bosco-Bellflower 3-1 A 34-31 loss to Bishop Gorman-Las Vegas in game with mythical national title implications isn’t enough to drop the Braves just yet.

2. (2) — De La Salle-Concord 5-0 Two toughest tests for Spartans so far were 56-28 win over Byrnes (SC) and 47-24 over Servite-Anaheim.

3. (3) — Mater Dei-Santa Ana 4-0 Some who’ve seen all the top SoCal teams in the early going think Monarchs are most complete 4. (5) ▲ Folsom 5-0 After obliterating Granite Bay 63-0, Bulldogs move up to spot previously occupied by Servite-Anaheim.

5. (6) ▲ Alemany-Mission Hills 5-0 Warriors are playing No. 6 Chaminade-West Hills in their league opener.

6. (7) ▲ Chaminade-West Hills 5-0 Eagles have been right behind Alemany since the start of the season and there was no reason to change it as teams set to face off 7. (8) ▲ Centennial-Corona 3-2 One of Huskies’ two losses was to Mater Dei; the other was to Bishop Gorman by one point 8. (9) ▲ Oceanside 5-0 After Helix-La Mesa loss, Oceanside looks like the top team in San Diego Section.

9. (10) ▲ Serra-Gardnea 1-0 The Cavs’ only loss is to Bellevue, Wash.; opened league with win over state-ranked Notre Dame-Sherman Oaks.

10. (4) ▼ Servite-Anaheim 3-1 Friars deserve to stay in the Top 10 due to the insanely difficult schedule they are playing 11. (11) — JSerra-San Juan Capistrano 5-0 Lions are in the same Trinity League as the Friars, St. John Bosco and Mater Dei. 12. (12) — Long Beach Poly 4-1 Jackrabbits have a loss to Centennial-Corona, but do have win over Westlake-Westlake Village.

13. (13) — Mission Hills-San Marcos 4-1 After a bye, the Grizzlies will take on Oceanside on Oct. 10.

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14. (14) — Lutheran-Orange 4-1 Lancers lone loss belongs to Centennial-Corona; blew out Vista Murrieta 37-3 for fourth win.

15. (15) — Grant-Sacramento 4-0 Battle for No. 2 in Sacramento behind Folsom is to be settled Oct. 3 when Pacers play Elk Grove.

16. (16) — Westlake-Westlake Village 3-1 Lions bounced back from a loss to Long Beach Poly with a 41-14 triumph over Dominguez-Compton..

17. (17) — Santa Margarita-Rancho Santa Margarita 4-1 This is the sixth of the six Trinity League teams that are all in the State 25.

18. (19) ▲ Elk Grove 4-0 Spencer Sheff rushed for three TDs as the Thundering Herd romped past Davis.

19. (18) ▼ Edison-Fresno 4-0 Own a one-point win over defending Div. I state champ Bakersfield.

20. (20) — Bakersfield 3-1 To get back to CIF Bowls, the Drillers can’t afford to lose another game.

21. (21) — Foothill-Pleasanton 4-0 No. 2 team from the Bay Area took care of business in leagueopening win over previously-ranked San Ramon Valley-Danville 22. (24) ▲ Chino Hills 4-1 Owning wins over Bishop Amat-La Puente, Hart-Newhall has pushed the Huskies up.

23. (NR) ▲ Crespi-Encino 4-0 Unbeaten Celts were an easy choice to join the rankings as a replacement for Loyola-L.A. 24. (25) ▲ Bellarmine Prep-San Jose 3-0 Bells face also-undefeated St. Ignatius-S.F. in West Catholic League opener.

25. (22) ▼ Notre Dame-Sherman Oaks 3-1 Knights’ loss last week was to No. 10 Serra-Gardena in a competitive matchup Dropped out: Previous No. 23 Loyola-L.A.

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11

THREE Sports? Are They A

TWO Bit Idea Whose Time Has Come?

Is It Better To Focus On

ONE?

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I love playing a lot of sports and I’m pretty good, I guess. I would like to try to play three varsity sports in high school, but my dad says I’m crazy. He says I’ll be trying to do way too much and I won’t get that good at any of them.

My granddad says it’s great, and he misses the days of three-sport athletes. I’m not sure what to do – I’m in eighth grade right now.

J.D., Pittsburg

F

irst, let’s harken back to those halcyon days of three-sport athletes that your granddad – and a bunch of other folks – seem to think were so wonderful.

Let’s assume that there’s value in playing sports. Let’s assume that it’s a benefit to learn the lessons from long days of practice and the immediate heat of competition.

If that’s true, then all those three-sport athlete do is deny opportunities to others to get those benefits.

And what is the advantage? I confess I’ve never been sure. Maybe it’s because your granddad really liked going to high school back in the day, and that’s how things were.

Maybe it’s because your granddad was a three-sport athlete. Regardless of the reason, I’ve never thought the days of three-sport athletes were anything special, and that, in a way, those all-around stars were more than a little selfish. They hogged the experience and the glory — that hardly seemed fair.

Now let’s turn to your dad’s point of view. The sad truth of modern youth sports is that specialization becomes necessary way too soon, and that acquiring skills and experience is a zero-sum game. By that I mean you only have so much time. The time you spend getting better at

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baseball, is time you can’t spend getting better at basketball.

That said, I do think playing two sports in high school makes some sense, especially in the first couple years. There are proven benefits to cross-training, and playing more than one sport helps prevent burnout and repetitive-stress injuries. But three? That’s a killer.

First, that means you start practice in midAugust and you basically never have a day off until the middle of May. You’ll be practicing or playing over every vacation break, and you’ll be expected to be 100 percent committed to each sport – and you’ll get pressure from each coach to work on their sport as much as you can.

That pressure intensifies in the summer, because what you do in the summer is where you’ll see the most improvement, and you can’t play three sports in the summer — there are only so many hours in the day.

So my advice would be to split the middle: Pick two sports as a freshman and see how it goes. It might turn out you like one more than the other, it’s pretty easy to choose one to focus on. Maybe you play both sports all four years, and maybe you don’t. But after your freshman year, you’ll most likely need to make a decision as to which one you’ll spend your summer working on. You can still play the other, but even two is too many for all but the most exceptional athletes. ✪ Clay Kallam is an assistant athletic director and girls varsity basketball coach at Bentley High in Lafayette. To submit a question for Behind the Clipboard, email him at clayk@ fullcourt.com

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Norbert von der Groeben photo

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N

Nick Bisconti’s best day was one of his worst.

The greatest news of his life was tempered by the sudden realization of what he would be missing. The Menlo School water polo star was caught somewhere between elation and distress.

Bisconti, a high school junior at the time, had just received a call to join the U.S. National Team — not the junior team, but the BIG BOYS — for a June exhibition series against Serbia.

He would follow up with the FINA World Youth Championships in Istanbul, Turkey, in August.

“It was mind-blowing to get the call,” Bisconti said. “I was through the roof.”

But just as he digested the news, Bisconti realized he would miss Menlo’s trip to Coronado, for its annual preseason training camp in the San Diego-area beach town. The trip always ends with a two-hour workout under the direction of Navy SEALs. And when it is done, the exhausted Knights gather in the ocean, and let the sweat wash away as they float beyond the breakers. They grasp hands, and dedicate themselves to the upcoming season and one another.

It is an intensely moving and emotional moment, one that remains a highlight of Bisconti’s year, and even his life.

But, with the national team call-ups, Bisconti realized he would miss his final Coronado trip, the one that would bring his senior season into focus.

Bisconti didn’t play a lot, but he learned a lot. He trained with the team for 6-8 hours a day and learned from players like Olympian John Mann and up-and-coming two-meter man Conner Cleary.

Bisconti learned how physical water polo can be. He was lifted out of the water by a single hand of a Serbian player and discovered ways to use his body to make up for his relative lack of strength, at least until he adds some bulk. He discovered the kind of effort and persistence it takes to compete at the highest level in the world. And, above all, he learned how much he loved water polo.

Nick came home and told his mother, Dana, that he wanted to pursue water polo to the highest levels possible, and to the Olympic Games. “It’s a lifestyle decision,” Bisconti said. “That experience showed me what I want to gain from the sport.”

Bisconti feels he has just begun a new phase of his water polo career, one beyond that which earned the 6-foot-6 center Peninsula Athletic League Bay Division Most Valuable Player, firstteam All-Central Coast Section and fourth-team All-America honors as a junior while the Knights finished second to Atherton rival Sacred Heart Prep in the CCS Division II final.

“Nick has natural ability combined with a sense of passion,” Menlo coach Jack Bowen said.

“He’s very self-motivated. He’ll tell me, ‘Push me as hard as you can.’ He’s watching more game film than I have. He’s engaged with everything he’s doing. And he’s still not comfortable. He wants to go beyond that.”

Bisconti did not come to the sport naturally. He never was a competitive swimmer, and didn’t begin to play water polo until seventh grade. In fact, he may never have discovered it if not for a serious ski accident.

On a family trip to Vail when Nick was in sixth grade, the conditions were icy when he lost control, launched off a cliff and landed on a frozen pond. Nick had grown up skiing and was only an hour into the trip when the accident happened. He woke up in the hospital with a broken pelvis.

He always had been athletic, playing baseball and basketball. But when Nick regained the ability to walk three months later, conventional sports were off limits.

Someone suggested water polo.

“It was making the best of a bad situation,” Bisconti said. “But after a week of playing, I fell in love with it.”

This is where Bowen came on to the scene. And this was not insignificant. Bowen, Menlo’s coach and a former U.S. National Team goalie, has become an example of who Bisconti wants to be.

Bowen was a philosophy major at Stanford and his insights into the human character provoke thought and learning tools for his team. A published author — he has written several books — and once a drummer in a rock band, Bowen was so entranced by goalkeeping that he wrote his honors thesis on the psychology of the position.

Bowen is a coach who has a lot to offer and appreciates a player willing to accept that knowledge, and says that this entire senior class fits into that category. Bisconti embraces it, even being inspired by

Story by David kiefer, contributor 16

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North Coast Section: Campolindo Girls Not Slowing Down For the past two years, 6-1 on the young season, and three of the past four, with the team’s only loss the North Coast Section to San Ramon Valley — Division II girls water polo the defending NCS Div. I tournament has been champions, and arguably Campolindo’s show. the best team in the Bay But after graduating Area. five seniors — including “I think this years team national-talent Annika is really different than the Jensen — the Cougars past years,” senior capentered 2014 wondering tain Anya Morill said. “Its what the season might definitely more of a team hold. effort, instead of starters From the looks of it versus non starters, which early on, it seems like is really awesome. It really Rachael Lewin more winning. brings the team together Campolindo was ceras a whole, and it’s a tainly in good spirits following a convincing 14-3 nonleague win different kind of game.” over Marin Catholic on Sept. 24.

Campolindo is attempting to become the third girls program “I feel pretty good,” Cougars coach Kim Everist said after the to win an NCS title in three consecutive seasons, joining San match. “We’ve got 4 starters returning, who have been in the Ramon Valley (which is actually aiming for a fourth straight title last 3 NCS Championship matches. Having said that, the back this season) and Monte Vista. The Cougars clearly have the half of the team is really young, we have a lot of freshman and confidence. sophomores with a nice group of seniors. The experience is “I love this year’s team,” Lewin said. “Coming in with eight great and it leads to good team chemistry” seniors and a lot of young players, it was tough at first. We There’s certainly talent too. Hannah Buck, Brooke Presten, weren’t really sure how we were going to get along ... Honestly Rachael Lewin, Katie Klein and Olivia Price compose a very during the first week of practice, we all started meshing really imposing attack for Campolindo. well. ... We’re really a tight group out there” ✪ The win over Marin Catholic pushed the Cougars record to — Michael Young

Bowen’s out-of-the pool interests, such as writing. Bisconti often creates his own short stories and poetry. Bowen, who writes a blog for Santa Clara University’s Institute of Sports Law and Ethics, finds Bisconti not only reads his work, but takes the time to understand and even debate it.

Bisconti follows-up with his teachers if he misses a class. He treats others with respect and remains humble.

Menlo’s senior class is irreverent yet serious. They can dance on the pool deck, but be focused at game time. Bisconti is not the only standout. Players like Weston Avery and Andreas Katsis take as much responsibility for the Knights’ success as Bisconti.

The team is close and has been since they first took the pool together under Bowen as Menlo middle schoolers. Victories and titles, such as last year’s in the PAL Bay Division, are almost secondary to their friendship and camaraderie. Part of that was developed with the Navy SEAL training.

The tradition began in Bowen’s second year at Menlo. Coronado was chosen because that’s where Bowen went to school and the Islanders’ high school program annually is one of the best in the state. Menlo will train with the Coronado team and have planned activities on the island.

During this first trip, the team was scheduled to have a barbecue mixer with the Coronado girls soccer team. The Menlo players were out touring and only one arrived at the event on time. Bowen was livid. The next day was supposed to be another day of sightseeing, but Bowen instead called a friend, a former teammate-turned-Navy SEAL and proposed a Navy SEAL lesson in humility.

When the Knights arrived, the soldier immediately ordered the on-time player to do 50 pushups. This player had just transferred in and was something of an outsider to his teammates, who watched as he struggled onward. Finally, one of the senior leaders dropped to join him and within seconds the entire team were struggling through their pushups together.

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This is more like it, Bowen thought. And every year since, the Coronado weekend concludes with a series of physically demanding team-building exercises. By the end of the two hours, their muscles can take no more. Every task is painful and challenging. Sweat dries into salt crystals, leaving white streaks on their faces as their muscles shake and tremble, and the mind tries to find a reason, any reason, to allow the body to continue.

For Bisconti, the player who demands to be pushed, this is what it’s all about. As the team holds hands in the ocean, Bowen looks everyone in the eye and reminds them, “We’re in this together.”

That’s why Bisconti’s national-team high was immediately met by a Menlo team low. Bisconti was in Turkey playing for a world championship when the Knights were getting pushed to the limit on the remote Silver Strand beach. When it was over, after being pushed to the point of collapse, the relief and satisfaction showed on their faces. They did it. The only thing missing to make the day complete was their senior captain.

As they regained their strength, Bowen called the team together. They gathered arm in arm while Bowen talked about the values the team is based on. When he was done, he unfolded a piece of paper. It was a note from Bisconti.

“I wish I could be with you,” Bowen read out loud. “My Menlo team is important to me … I miss you guys … I’m thinking about you every day …”

Bowen could hardly keep his emotions in check as he put the letter away. Then the team stepped into the ocean, swam beyond the breakers, and held hands.

“It’s hard to find those moments when you can get really practical core values explicitly shared by people who care about each other,” Bowen said.

It’s a bond forged beyond the breakers among young men who have learned what it takes to push through pain. That’s what builds a winning team and that’s why Bisconti, even as he wore national-team colors, remained, unshakably, a Knight. ✪ Follow us on Twitter & Instagram, and like us on Facebook!

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A fiery young coach has long-suffering Liberty football on the cusp of its best season in decades

W

ith the great majority of his football coaching career still in front of him, Jeff Walters will face many critical moments in front of his teams.

They will be moments which transcend the typical pregame or postgame address; moments which come along only a few times a season. They will be moments when he must choose just the right tone and just the right message.

Walters, who turns 29 on Oct. 12, faced one of those moments on Sept. 19 in the immediate aftermath of just his 15th game as coach at Liberty High.

His team was gathered near the goal post of the south end zone at Monte Vista. It had just completed a milestone victory. In knocking off the six-time North Coast Section championship program from Danville — by a slightly sloppy, yet still convincing score of 34-7 — it had become the first Lions team to begin a season 4-0 in more than 40 years.

After spending a few minutes talking to a reporter, Walters took the stage in front of his team and paused.

And then he thundered.

His tone was stern. His message was this: Do not be satisfied. You aren’t as good as you think you are. Yet. The truth of the matter — which Walters invariably knows, and has probably been told by any number of Liberty alumni and fans throughout the Brentwood community — is that this Liberty team IS that good. It’s big, fast and physical with experience at nearly every position.

But running a program that can claim just five winning seasons since 1980, hasn’t won a league title since 1985 and still seeks its first NCS playoff victory, Walters understands that his goal isn’t simply to win — it’s about teaching the habits and characteristics of winning.

“We preach to them to play for each other; play for the moment,” Walters said as he watched over the 15 minutes of drill work that began the team’s practice on the Monday following the win over Monte Vista. “Just play intelligent. That’s ultimately what’s going to dictate our success this year. When we get into that close game, are we the ones that keep our cool heads? Or are we the ones who lose our heads and start being something we’re not?”

As it turns out, one can add another descriptor to this Lions team: coachable.

In the week following the Monte Vista victory, Liberty found itself in a dogfight against an athletic and physical San Leandro team. The Pirates had a 1st-and-goal from the 1-yard line mid-way through the third quarter of a 7-7 tie. Liberty’s defense held and forced San Leandro to settle for a go-ahead field goal.

The Lions defense kept grinding until the offense finally rewarded it with a game-winning touchdown on a 60-yard run by Willie Williams with 8:39 left in the game. Williams, an electric wide receiver with speed to burn, is one of the few starters who’s a newcomer to the team.

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Williams — who admits to not having the most stable home life as he and his mom have “moved around a lot” — transferred to Liberty from McClymonds in January 2014 and has found some solid ground on the Brentwood campus. It’s also given him his first chance to play interscholastic football after more than a decade of Pop Warner.

“He got my attention when he started playing basketball (at Liberty),” Lions senior safety Kyle Trego said. “He came over and introduced himself to me and said ‘I can’t wait until football season.’ He was talking about football during basketball season. He couldn’t wait. I saw how athletic he was. He was dunking and I was like ‘Who is this kid?’”

Coincidentally, that’s exactly what opposing coaches and players have been asking themselves about Trego after facing him on the football field the past two seasons.

The hard-hitting free safety carries the nickname of “The Missle” and is unquestionably the linchpin to the fierce Lions defense. He is a two-time first-team All-Bay Valley Athletic League defensive honoree, including a unanimous selection as a sophomore in 2012.

In now his third season on varsity, few Lions are more qualified to put the program’s recent success into perspective.

“Since Coach Walters came in (in 2013) it’s been a positive attitude ever since,” Trego said. “It’s a new feeling. My sophomore year, it was still football, but now it’s kind of special. (Walters) showed that he truly believes in us, and he puts all his faith and effort into us.”

Walters’ road to Liberty had more than a few stops. He’s a graduate of Del Oro-Loomis, where he played quarterback for the Golden Eagles and well-respected coach Casey Tay-

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Coach Jeff Walters lor. After graduating from Chico State, Taylor welcomed Walters back as an assistant coach for two seasons. Walters then spent single seasons at Whitney-Rocklin and Durham before landing a teaching job and assistant coaching position at Freedom — the chief rival of Liberty.

Walters was providing support to the Freedom JV staff from the coaches booth in 2012 when he first got a notion of the type of talent he now coaches as seniors at Liberty.

“That (Liberty JV) team won on a last-second field goal,” Walters recalled. “I was coaching in the booth and Liberty PA announcer, Tom Dempsey, almost knocked me over as he ran down the stairs yelling that somebody needed to

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grab the victory flag. That’s kind of when I knew that in my heart, Liberty was a place I could see myself being.”

That following spring he was applying for the head coaching position after former coach Nate Smith chose to step down to spend more time with family.

The Lions won their first two games under Walters, only to give them back after a paperwork error led to the use of an ineligible player. The team, rallying behind Walters’ motto of ‘Pride Matters,’ recovered to finish 5-5 and make the NCS Div. I playoffs where it pushed perennial power James Logan-Union City to the limit before succumbing 14-7.

Freedom coach Kevin Hartwig was not surprised at how quickly Liberty transformed.

“He just had an energy and willingness to learn,” Hartwig said of Walters’ time on his staff. “Knowing him and his energy, that was what (Liberty) needed. He got that whole school to buy in.”

Indeed, “Pride Matters” is a mantra used across Liberty athletics now.

Walters is quick to heed his own advice, though. He’s not going to be satisfied. He’s not as good a coach as he or others might think he is. Yet. “Obviously, this isn’t something that I want to go away,” Walters said. “I love the feeling, so I want to make sure the school and especially the players understand that it takes hard work to stay on top. Everyone is trying to knock you down.

“It shouldn’t be something where we feel special anymore. It should be ‘This is what we’re expected to do, so let’s just do it.’” ✪

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ARMED&

Perennial Oakland power hopes new QB keys state bowl aspirations

Keith Davidson. Photos by Phil Walton

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Just minutes after his McClymonds High football team rolled to a 55-14 drubbing of Analy-Sebastopol, Warriors coach Michael Peters looked over at the 6-foot-4, 210-pound quarterback standing just to his left and issued a proclamation for those within earshot to hear and take with them.

“He’s not from San Ramon anymore,” the coach exclaimed. “He bleeds Orange and Black.”

If the results are any indication, Kevin Davidson is acclimating quite nicely to his new home in West Oakland. On this particular night, that McClymonds comfort level showed through to the tune of the San Ramon Valley transfer completing 21 of 27 passes for 438 yards and six touchdowns against an Analy team that will most likely be challenging for a North Coast Section Division III title come season’s end.

“They’re ranked No. 2 for Division III, we’re ranked No. 2 for Division IV and we knew it was going to be a tough game,” Davidson said. “We came out and had the right attitude and smacked them in the mouth. It was an awesome win.”

What Davidson has managed to do most impressively is fit into a group of players that was already among the area’s best before he set foot on the Oakland campus. McClymonds features talent at nearly every posi-

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dangerous tion thanks to a roster highlighted by 20 seniors, and the experience that Davidson has to draw from is showing through both in the results column and in the box score each and every week.

Against Analy, the numbers that popped off the page came from the receivers, all of whom are seniors.

Javin White hauled in six passes for 144 yards, Quadry Wesley added five grabs for 136 yards, Kevin Shaa caught three passes for 70 yards and Anthony White had three receptions for 62 yards. Not to be forgotten, running back Lavance Warren added 153 yards of his own on the ground.

It’s certainly not a bad quintet of seniors for the new quarterback to rely on.

“It’s just been the motivation between them,” Davidson said. “We’re pretty much just brothers and it’s a link that can’t be broken. We’re going to keep moving and keep winning every week.”

Davidson’s ability to find those targets came to the forefront against Analy and became even more impressive when he had to improvise.

Several scrambles by the Warriors’ quarterback resulted in big plays, with one particular throw off the back foot arcing just over a Tigers defender and falling into the arms of a waiting Wesley for a 45-yard score.

“He worked hard all offseason. He’s throwing to some good guys too,” Peters said. “He had a great game tonight but I still think he has bigger games to come. Way bigger games.”

Lost in the numbers game might be the defense, but a unit captained by defensive back Bomani Bassett, linebacker Lester Stanley and defensive back Warren gave Analy little in the way of consistent offense.

They pressured Tigers quarterback Will Smith and limited speedy run-

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LaVance Warren

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Marcel Jackson ning back Ja’narrick James to the point that Analy produced just 204 yards of total offense.

That performance falls in line with what McClymonds has done defensively through its first few games. The Warriors pitched a shutout in a 48-0 victory over perennial small-school power Ferndale, and they haven’t allowed more than 22 points in any single game. That’s led to a 12.5-point per game average and, when combined with an offense that is averaging 51.5 points per game itself, has proved that a trip to West Oakland will be a tough one for any team this season.

But, Peters knows there is still work to do and, at least against Analy, the ugly side of the game showed up when it came to yellow laundry strewn about the field. A steady stream of penalties plagued the Warriors, leaving McClymonds with plenty to emphasize in practice as it headed into a bye week.

“We came to play. Like my (assistant) coach said, we had a great week of practice. They practiced hard and, like he said, good things come when you practice hard,” Peters said. “But, we’ve got to be more disciplined. We had too many penalties and down the line, it’s going to hurt us.”

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That focus on what lies ahead likely draws the Warriors’ memory to what has happened the past two seasons. In each of the past two years, McClymonds has fallen in the California Interscholastic Federation Northern Regional game, with both losses coming at the hands of Central Catholic-Modesto.

Two years ago, the Warriors weren’t ready for that stage and the result was a lopsided 42-12 defeat to the Raiders. Last year, an early injury to Warren left McClymonds scrambling for an alternative but the Warriors nearly overcame it in a 17-14 loss at Lincoln High in Stockton that showed how closely matched the teams really were.

So, what makes Peters and the Warriors feel like this could be the year that the result finally turns in their favor and a trip to the CIF bowl series in Carson is in the cards? Look no further than that group of 20 seniors and a junior quarterback who, week by week, appears more and more to be the missing piece that could bring the entire puzzle together.

“We have guys who have been there twice and it’s hard getting that sour taste twice,” Peters said. “We want to taste the sweet part.” ✪

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Vista del Lago’s high-flying offense adds ground forces

Apparently the Vista del Lago Eagles go as junior running back Colby Carrera goes.

After the team started the season with three losses, including a pair of defeats by a total of seven points, the legs of Carrera have lifted the Eagles.

The 5-foot-9, 180-pound back was seldom used in Vista’s first two games before giving the running game a boost with 9 carries for 72 yards and a touchdown, mostly in the second half of a 31-25 loss to Sacramento. Carrera was inserted as a primary ball-carrier for a Week 3 matchup with Bradshaw Christian-Sacramento, and he responded with 216 yards rushing on 22 carries and 4 touchdowns.

Head coach Mike Struebing continued to ride the legs of his new workhorse in a 62-51 upset victory over Placer-Auburn in Week 4. Carrera eclipsed 200 yards for the second consecutive game, racing for 211 yards and six touchdowns to improve the Eagles’ record to 2-3.

The newfound running game has done more than just put up points. Carrera’s running has taken pressure off of senior quarterback Matt Jimison. “(Colby) is a tough runner who allows us to be very balanced in our play calling,” Jimison said. “His success forces teams to put another defender in the box, which allows me to get a better look at the secondary for when we throw the ball.”

The highly-recruited Jimison, who threw for more than 3,200 yards while completing 65 percent of his passes as a junior, has seen his efficiency and completion percentage skyrocket in the Eagles’ two wins. While Jimision connected on just 55 percent of his 128 pass attempts in three shootout losses, he has completed 28-of-33 passes (85%) in two wins for 370 yards.

The increase in efficiency has translated into fewer intercep-

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James Leash photo

Colby Carrera tions and fewer sacks. Jimison was picked off four times and sacked 12 times in Vista’s three losses before going INT-free and sacked just twice in two wins.

“A lot of our success comes from our offensive line, who have been pretty dominant,” Jimison said. “Those guys are putting in the real work which allows me and Colby to make plays.”

WELL-USED TIMEOUT

Foothill-Pleasanton coach Matt Sweeney watched his offense take nearly seven minutes off the game clock as his team clung tightly to a 34-28 lead against a San Ramon Valley-Danville team that had the Falcons’ number for five straight seasons.

Faced with a 3rd-and-4 and 3:03 left on clock, and San Ramon Valley out of time outs, Sweeney called the play knowing a first down essentially ends the game. Then just before the snap, he called timeout. And he changed the play.

The new play resulted in a 26-yard touchdown pass from Kyle Kearns to Parker Moberg, clinching a 40-28 East Bay Athletic League-opening win and taking the Falcons to a 4-0 start.

“I just kept waiting for their safety to come up (to defend the run),” Sweeney said of his decision to call timeout. “I figured we’d go for it. The kids still got to make the plays, and Kyle hit him in stride. If it works great. If it doesn’t you go ‘What the heck are you doing? The clock’s stopped.’”

RUSH STREET

After the performance put on by the De La Salle running game against the then-No. 4 team in the state, Servite-Anaheim, it’s hard not to figure that the Spartans may have one of their deepest backfields in quite tome time. Antoine Custer ripped off 259 yards and three touchdowns on 22 carries while Andrew Hernandez added 110 yards and three more touchdowns. Je’Vari Anderson added some hard running in limited carries and quarterback Anthony Sweeney did as well. The total was a dominant 461-yard rushing effort that lead to a 47-24 win and a 5-0 start to the season. ✪ — Jim McCue & Chace Bryson

Records are through Sept. 26 1. (1) — De La Salle-Concord 5-0 2. (2) — Folsom 5-0 3. (3) — Elk Grove 4-0 4. (4) — Grant-Sacramento 4-0 5. (5) — Serra-San Mateo 1-2 6. (6) — Milpitas 4-0 7. (7) — Valley Christian-San Jose 2-1 8. (8) — Clayton Valley Charter-Concord 5-0 9. (9) — Foothill-Pleasanton 4-0 10. (12) ▲ Oak Ridge-El Dorado Hills 4-1 11. (13) ▲ Bellarmine-San Jose 3-0 12. (15) ▲ Vacaville 3-1 13. (14) ▲ Campolindo-Moraga 5-0 14. (10) ▼ Pittsburg 3-2 15. (18) ▲ California-San Ramon 3-1 16. (20) ▲ Rocklin 4-0 17. (NR) ▲ St. Ignatius-S.F. 3-0 18. (19) ▲ Sacred Heart Prep-Atherton 2-0 19. (NR) ▲ St. Mary’s-Stockton 3-1 20. (11) ▼ Los Gatos 3-1 DROPPED OUT: No. 16 Granite Bay and No. 17 San Ramon Valley-Danville BIGGEST MOVER: Rocklin and St. Ignatius-S.F. both hopped four spots as the bottom half of the rankings got a majority of the shake-up. Rocklin moved from No. 20 to No. 16 after a strong win in its Sierra Foothill Leagueopener against a previously unbeaten Woodcreek-Roseville team. The SFL does the Thunder no favors as it will take on No. 10 Oak Ridge on Oct. 3. St. Ignatius jumped into the rankings without playing thanks to St. Mary’sStockton knocking off previous No. 11 Los Gatos 35-32.

The win put St. Mary’s into the ranks at No. 20 and St. Ignatius in at No. 17, thanks to the Wildcats holding a 27-24 OT win over the Rams earlier this season.

NEXT TEAM UP: McClymonds-Oakland (4-0). After a dominant 55-14 win over Analy-Sebastopol, the Warriors seem almost assured of a 10-0 regular season and another Silver Bowl appearance. Mack is poised to be ranked before long.

KNOCKING ON THE DOOR (alphabetically): Alhambra-Martinez (5-0), Analy-Sebastopol (3-1), Archbishop Mitty-San Jose (2-1), Central Catholic-Modesto (3-1), Del Oro-Loomis (2-3), Enterprise-Redding (3-1), James Logan-Union City (3-1), Liberty-Brentwood (5-0), McClymonds-Oakland (4-0), Palma-Salinas (4-0) and St. Mary’s-Berkeley (5-0).

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training time: tim rudd for iyca

In my last column I discussed the history of Heart Rate Variability and how it can be used to customize the training process, helping athletes reach new levels of performance.

The first thing HRV can be used for is to measure the current aerobic fitness level of the athlete.

Why is this important? Well, with HRV we measure athletes’ adaptability to stress (HRV) and their resting heart rate, this is a measure of their cardiovascular efficiency.

So at first, I use it to measure the current state of an athlete’s fitness and adaptability threshold. I then use it as a method to customize their strength and conditioning program.

As a trainer, my goal for team-sport athletes is to have them reach a resting heart rate under 60. Depending on the sport, using soccer as an example, I want the athlete’s HRV to be in the 90’s. I then know the athlete will have an efficient cardiovascular system that other qualities of fitness — such as power, speed, strength and power endurance — which can be built on.

When you look at these two numbers, think of them as your athlete’s fitness and adaptability-to-stress gap: Resting Heart Rate: 58 HRV: 90 This is a good indicator of an athlete who has a high adaptability to stress and is also cardiovascularly efficient. The aerobic system plays a big role in how fast and how efficiently athletes recover from each play, which will take them above their anaerobic threshold. This is a very inefficient system, but it is this system that provides the power which allows athletes to make explosive plays on the court or field of play. With a more efficient aerobic base, they will drop below this threshold quickly, recovering faster and allowing them to continue to make more plays throughout the game.

On the flip side, here’s an example of an athlete with a lower HRV score and a higher resting heart rate: Resting Heart Rate: 68 HRV: 74 This is either an indication of chronically stressed athlete, or an athlete who has a very inefficient aerobic base and thus a smaller adaptability stress threshold.

In this case the athlete will struggle to recover after each play and rely too much on his or her anaerobic system (inefficient), greatly reducing his or her ability to make explosive plays throughout a game. If athletes stay too long in their anaerobic system, power output will greatly decrease and so will performance and health — also making them at greater risk of injury.

With a high resting heart rate and low HRV score, you realize that the heart is very inefficient, so low-intensity cardiac output training can be of significant value.

With a strong aerobic base, the athlete can move to high-intensity training protocols such as Anaerobic Threshold Training, High Intensity Interval and Glycolytic Intervals. Then trainer and athlete can start to focus on sport-specific qualities of the athlete’s sport. These strategies require specific heart rate parameters for intensity and recovery to maximize effectiveness.

Outside factors of training and playing can also be managed this way. The HRV and RHR scores give us the readiness score of the athletes, telling us how much stress an athlete is ready to adapt to on any given day. If the athlete’s readiness is low, the training program is adjusted to a recovery workout aimed at raising that readiness. If readiness is high, than it’s Go Time. This training process can be key to maximizing athletes’ performance potential, health and helps to ensure they peak on game day.

In the next column I will go over a case study of an athlete where I use HRV to maximize fitness and performance. ✪ Tim Rudd is an IYCA specialist in youth conditioning and owner of Fit2TheCore.

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notsoSUDDEN

health watch: Elisha Cusumano

Becoming aware of overuse injuries that can sneak up on the always-active young athlete

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When you think of a sports injury, most athletes are thinking of an acute injury resulting in swelling, sudden pain and maybe even deformity. However, not all injuries are caused by a single sudden incident.

Another type of injury known as overuse injuries can occur gradually over time when an activity is repeated so often that the body does not have adequate time to repair and heal. These injuries can affect bones, muscles, tendons and even growth plates in the young athlete. A couple examples of an overuse injuries include plantar fasciitis and stress fractures.

Plantar fasciitis is present when the plantar fascia — the fibrous band of tissue that reaches from the heel to the toes — becomes progressively tight due to constant use. Early detection signs include general soreness on the heel and plantar fascia which increases in significance over time. Pain, which can be quite significant, will eventually settle near the attachment to the heal bone (calcaneus). A tell-tale sign is sharp pain upon the young athlete’s first step out of bed in the morning or after long periods of sitting.

This is due to the lengthening and weight loading of the plantar fascia after it has spent significant time in a shortened, non-weight bearing state.

Plantar pain can severely limit an athlete’s ability to train, especially since the majority of the pain is felt at the beginning of a workout, making it hard to progress beyond the first 10-15 minutes. It is important that young athletes, parents and coaches recognize that

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pain in the heel is a major indicator that it’s time to stop activity and see your physician. Immediate interventions should include; stretching the plantar by applying pressure to the toes and pulling them back towards the shin and rolling the plantar out. You can freeze a bottle with water and use that to roll the foot and ice at the same time.

A stress fracture is a small crack in the bone that slowly forms over time. Bone is consistently being broken down with activity and being rebuilt during the rest period, a process called remodeling. As new bone develops it replaces older bone. However, if an athlete’s activity is too constant, the breakdown of older bone occurs faster than the body can make new bone. This results in the bone becoming weak, which can lead to a stress fracture. These occur most often in the shin (or tibia bone) and the various bones of the feet.

The most common sign is pain that develops over time in an isolated area, increases with weight-bearing activity and is pain free or near pain free when at rest. If you believe you may have a stress fracture, seek the advice of your physician immediately, as further diagnosis will be needed to assist your recovery.

Keep in mind rest and recovery are an extremely important in remaining healthy. ✪ Elisha Cusumano is a certified athletic trainer for USCF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland and its Sports Medicine Center for Young Athletes. She is also an assistant trainer for Holy Names University.

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powered by trucks: anthony trucks

There are steps to good strength training. Don’t skip any Most athletes, at least the ones I train, primarily are looking to develop as much power as possible.

Whether its lower body power for sprinting or upper body power for discus throwing, the goal is to produce as much power as you can. I have noticed over my last 12 years in the industry that people want to shortcut the process to develop that power, and in doing so they hinder their ability to actually create the best power possible.

They do this by going directly into the power phase of training by working on muscle firing speed, and never developing the physical attributes necessary to increase the underlying factor of power: strength.

In order to increase strength, one must start from the ground up and take part in the cumulative effect of training. There is always a base that underlies everything right down to the smallest intricacies. I have found that when you start at that small base and build up, you exponentially increase your ability to develop great strength and explosive power.

For example, if I want to increase my lower body power, a great exercise is the power clean. Once you develop the correct technique of the lift, you can add much more weight and increase power — but that takes great strength. In order to increase the weight on the bar, you have to be able to hold more weight on the bar. In order to be able hold more weight on the bar, you have to have great grip strength. So the underlying base is grip strength in this area.

Most people would skip right to doing plyometrics and jumping without developing this area first. So instead of jumping right to the end training point, start to think about how you can take it right down to the base to increase the results you can get ten fold. ✪

Build a base Anthony Trucks is an IYCA-certified trainer who covers weight training for SportStars.

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flexor tendons: scott tanaka

DIGITDANGER

With football and other fall sports in full swing, its a good time to focus on flexor tendon injuries, specifically jersey finger. Jersey finger is an injury that can happen in tackle sports when one player grabs another’s jersey and a finger gets caught. As a result, the tendon is pulled off the bone. The type of tendon affected by jersey finger is known as a flexor tendon. These tendons are on the palm side of the hand and control finger movement. When one of the flexor tendons is partially or completely torn, the resulting injury is jersey finger.

SYMPTOMS

›› An open injury, such as a cut, on the palm side of the hand, often where the skin folds as the finger bends ›› An inability to bend one or more joints of your finger ›› Pain when your finger is bent ›› Tenderness along your finger on the palm side of your hand ›› Numbness in your fingertip

DIAGNOSING

In addition to applying a bandage for any cuts, as well as elevation and icing, it’s important to see a doctor as soon as possible if you suspect jersey finger. The hands are very delicate, full of nerves, bones, muscles and tendons, and untreated injuries may lead to long-term damage and loss of function. Your doctor will perform a physical examination, testing for finger strength, ability to flex the finger, and nerve damage. You may also have an X-ray to see if there is damage to the bone.

TREATMENT

Your doctor may place your hand in a splint for protection. If the the tendon is completely torn, it often must be repaired surgically. Partial tears may be treated in a splint or cast. An orthopedic surgeon who is specially trained in hand and upper extremity care typically performs the surgery within 7 to 10 days after the injury. If your injury is restricting blood flow to your hand or finger, your doctor will schedule an immediate surgery. Recovery from surgery usually takes several months. Specialized therapy is required early on to prevent stiffness and to regain finger strength and full range of motion. ✪ Scott Tanaka, M.D., is an orthopedic surgeon with Summit Orthopedic Specialists in Carmichael, who is fellowship-trained in upper extremity care. Dr. Tanaka provides specialty treatment for orthopedic conditions of the hand, wrist, elbow and shoulder.

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get mental: erika carlson

Times have changed. Coaches, parents and athletes better understand the need for mental training more than ever before. The field of sport psychology has worked diligently to overcome many of the myths and stigmas related to doing this type of work. Back in June, I discussed the Top Four Myths of Mental Training. You can read all about those myths by visiting the SportStarsOnline. com link at the end of this column.

A quick reminder: ›› Myth #1: Good physical training is enough ›› Myth #2: Good focus means, “really pay attention to the game.” ›› Myth #3: If you can see it (visualize it), it will happen. ›› Myth #4: “I play better mad.” ›› Myth #5: “We lost because we were over confident.” — This is a common statement, especially in team sports like soccer. It generally infers that we had too much confidence. The truth is, when a team feels they were “over confident,” it’s more likely they had false confidence. They thought they were prepared and therefore confident, but they were not. You can’t have too much confidence when you’re talking about real, true confidence. ›› Myth #6: “I already have goals, so I don’t need to set them.” — If you’re like most of the athletes I see, you already have outcome goals. These include wins, times, cuts, making a team and earning a scholarship. However, you probably don’t have performance and process goals. These are the “how-to” goals you need to achieve your outcomes. A detailed goal plan helps get athletes engaged and accountable to developing their best preparation and performance every week. ›› Myth #7: “If I think more carefully about how to execute properly, my performance will get better.” — The correct answer here is, sometimes. This holds up in training (learning mode) but not in game performance. Many decades of sport psychology research tells us that best performances are strongly correlated with less thinking. Having to think through how to properly execute skills slows down response time. Under the pressure of the game, you need to switch to right-brained, autopilot mode to perform your best. This is a skill that great athletes know how to do well.

Great athletes train physically, technically, tactically…AND MENTALLY!! ✪ Erika Carlson is a certified mental trainer and owner of Excellence in Sports Performance in Pleasanton. Visit her first column on mental training myths at SportStarsOnline.com/columns/Mental/ Myths-1

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BEATING THE BIG C Ok, so we know the topic of cancer can be a bit depressing.

However, it never hurts to get all the knowledge you can about about it. And who better to draw knowledge from than actual physicians?

Our friends at Sutter Health East Bay are hosting a Physician Panel on Cancer Prevention and Treatment. Sutter Delta’s surgeons and oncologists will join together to talk with you about cancer prevention, strategies, treatment and recovery. It happens on Oct. 11 from 9 a.m. to noon at Sutter Delta Medical Center in Antioch. And the best part? It’s free! For more info, email kellyki@sutterhealth.org

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build your brand

Ok, you’re not Vernon Davis yet, and nobody is buying stock in your athletic endeavors. But, if you’re trying to get your name out there to coaches at the next level, we might suggest creating your own web site at PrepStarsOnline.com. Everything is customized, so you’re not stuck with the same cookie cutter look. You can choose your own URL, add video highlights, stats, incorporate your social media accounts — you name it! And, we even have a coupon code (SPORTSTARS) for you to save $50. Get to it and then send us your web address so we can promote your brand.

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master the mental We often ask athletes their career aspirations and “a career in sports” is definitely the most popular answer. And if you think about the direction of sports and athletic performance, you can’t ignore the growing emphasis on mental training and sports psychology. Which is why we think some of you may want to check out the Sports Psychology degree program at John F. Kennedy University, which features campuses in Pleasant Hilll, Berkeley and San Jose. Look it up at www. jfku.edu.

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Coverage of NorCal Rugby About to Get a Boost It won’t be high school rugby season until January, but the Northern California Youth Rugby Association made news on Sept. 29 when it announced a media partnership with SportStars Magazine. That’s right, get ready to see a lot more rugby coverage here in Club Scene and throughout the magazine.

The NCYRA turned 4-years old this past August and has established itself as the premier organization for rugby from 8U up to the high school level. Club programs from throughout the Bay Area and Greater Sacramento Region compete within the NCYRA, which made the partnership a no-brainer on both ends.

The partnership makes this magazine and its digital extensions the voice of the NCYRA, which will include features, a NCYRA-generated column, team rankings and more. Most of that coverage will begin with the 31st annual Sacramento KickOff Tournament on Jan. 25-26 at Rancho Cordova High.

“Our vision is to continually build the sport and enjoyment of rugby,” NCYRA Executive Director Mark Carney said in a press release. “We are looking beyond our own communication vehicles for a partner reaching larger and broader audiences. ... Rugby has experienced tremendous growth throughout the U.S. in recent years and generated excitement and participation throughout California. Northern California especially is at a high point. Having the ability to reach beyond our usual audience via coverage and columns in SportStars is an attractive growth strategy for us.”

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There won’t be any action on the pitch in October, but the NCYRA is holding two college fairs for players interested in playing collegiately. The fairs are scheduled for Oct. 25 at AcalanesLafayette and Oct. 26 at McClatchy-Sacramento. Both events will take place between 6:30-8:30 p.m.

SYNCHRONIZED SWIM

The Santra Clara Aquamaids shined in international waters once again in September. The club sent 10 swimmers to the 2014 Mediterranean Cup in Alexandroupolis, Greece, from Sept.

4-7 and helped the U.S. Team finished fourth overall.

It was the Aquamaids squad which earned the first U.S. bronze medal of the event with its performance in the 10-swimmer free combination routine. It was the first time that a U.S. team has reached the podium at the Mediterranean Cup in more than five years. The team consisted of Emily Anger, Camryn Carrasco, Nikki Dzurko, Hailee Heinrich, Rachel Lau, Emily Lu, Jacklyn Luu, Anna Piskun, Rachel Ye and Gracie Young.

SOCCER

The Diablo Futbol Club recently began its U5 and U7 Recreational League. The season continues with Saturday games throughout Octobert at Boatwright Sports Complex in Concord.

The club is now preparing to begin its regular season sign-up period. The first tryout dates begin Jan. 18. ✪

James K. Leash

Matt Ternan of the Jesuit High rugby team takes the ball upfield against Granite Bay last May.

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❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒ ❒❒

A Higher Perspective........................................................................................................37 Bay Area Rhino Court.......................................................................................................16 Big O Tires Northern California/ Nevada.............................................................................2 Bigfoot Hoops............................................................................................................23, 40 Borge U S A Indoor Soccer League....................................................................................26 Catchflame.Com...............................................................................................................33 Championship Athletic Fundraising.................................................................................22 Cheergyms.Com...............................................................................................................18 Club Sport..........................................................................................................................5 Community Youth Center.................................................................................................37 Core Performance.......................................................................................................33, 35 Core Volleyball Club..........................................................................................................34 Diablo Futbol Club............................................................................................................38 Diablo Rock Gym..............................................................................................................33 Diablo Trophies & Awards.................................................................................................33 East Bay Bulldogs Basketball............................................................................................35 East Bay Parks..................................................................................................................33 East Bay Sports Academy.................................................................................................12 Excellence In Sport Performance......................................................................................27 Foundry............................................................................................................................39 Halo Headband................................................................................................................37 Home Team Sports Photography......................................................................................33 Kangazoom......................................................................................................................32 M L B Scout Online...........................................................................................................35 Mountain Mike’s Pizza......................................................................................................17 Muir Orthopaedic Specialists............................................................................................30 Passthaball.......................................................................................................................37 Prepstarsonline.Com........................................................................................................24 Renaissance Club Sport....................................................................................................31 Rhino Sports Of Northern California.................................................................................16 Rocco’s Pizza.....................................................................................................................33 San Ramon Slammers Baseball........................................................................................34 Sky High Sports................................................................................................................33 Sport Clips........................................................................................................................25 Sports Gallery Authenticated...........................................................................................34 Sports Stars Magazine......................................................................................................33 Sportstars Magazine Wing Stop.......................................................................................36 Stevens Creek Toyota........................................................................................................19 Sutter Health East Bay........................................................................................................3 The First Tee Of The Tri Valley............................................................................................34 The Golf Club At Roddy Ranch..........................................................................................32 Tpc / The Pitching Center..................................................................................................16 U C Davis Health System...................................................................................................29 U C S F Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland......................................................................29 U S Cryotherapy................................................................................................................18 United States Youth Volleyball League.............................................................................36 Wingstop.........................................................................................................................13

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