Issue 19, 03.10.2011

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Baseball/Softball 2011 State player of the year candidate Chris Keck leads Amador Valley’s quest for section crown NorCal team rankings | Top players | Tourney dates Dig in. It all stars on page 18

TAKEDOWN! De La Salle shatters the record books. Pg. 14 HARDWOOD HEROICS Section titles get dished out. Pg. 26

S& S P AM TING C S IAL S LI s on C E C t SP LINI Star . 34!

C pg

all access

Amador Valley won’t be sneaking up on anybody this season. And they’re just fine with that. Page 18

Bob Larson

De la salle’s wrestling prowess runs deep at NCS meet. Page 14

Bob Larson

First Pitch ........................................ 4

Bob Larson

Behind the Clipboard ................... 6

Bishop o’dowd swarms way to 3rd ncs crown. Page 26

Health Watch ................................. 7 Locker Room ................................. 8 Game Day ....................................... 9

Jonathan Hawthorne

castro valley are section champs for first time. Page 27

SportStar of the Week ............... 10 Wally’s World ............................... 12

pressure welcomed for elk grove.

Page 22

Club Scene .................................... 17 In the Paint.................................... 26 Tee2Green .................................... 31 Camps + Clinics .......................... 34 Impulse .......................................... 37 Photo Finish.................................. 38

On the COVer Amador Valley shortshop Chris Keck.

Photo by Bob Larson.

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Chris Austria

March 10, 2011

SportStars™

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to take the title, or not take the title? that’s just part of the question

A

s a general rule here in the SportStars can only imagine what winning a high Magazine corporate offices — adding school state championship must feel like. the word “corporate” there makes us On the flip-side of that argument is sound a lot bigger, doesn’t it? — we don’t spend that by taking the championship, you’re a great deal of time pondering philosophical agreeing to end your competitive playing questions. career. And for the type of athletes who We’re sports people. are driven to compete for a championship We deal in wins and losses. Highlight reels. at the highest level, making that choice Statistical oddities and the like. There’s very can be extremely difficult. little time and energy devoted to hypotheticals.

Add that to the fact that every high But that changed this week. school athlete these days is chasing the As part of our newest Locker Room feature dream of playing at the collegiate level.

“Rapid Fire,” which debuted four issues ago, How many would trade a high school we’ve been working on questions to make the state championship for that dream? Even athletes who participate really have to think if they knew they’d never have another about their answers. We still throw in the occashot at a championship? sional softballs like what their favorite beverage Of SportStars employees who were is or who they think will win the Super Bowl, but polled, three took the state title and for the most part we’re trying to come up with called it a career. One chose a title-free questions to draw out the personality of some of college career. Another was permanently these kids. stumped by the difficulty of such a choice.

This week, one of our staff members conjured However, all of us agreed our thought up a doozy. And we know it was good because process is extremely different now as it led to more than a handful of office conversaopposed to what it was in high school. tions during the week. Some of us even took it outside the office and started polling our Potentially, we all may have answered diffriends. ferently back then.

Here’s the quandary, which coincidentally is In discussing how our three Rapid quite topical seeing as how the California InterFire athletes responded, one SportStars scholastic Federation state basketball playoffs employee thought it important to note just got under way: that these kids are currently involved in As a high school athlete, would you choose chasing down that state title. And that to win the state championship in your sport, even if they would sacrifice the glory knowing that it would be your last time playing for a college career, would they be able that sport at a competitive level? Or would to admit that during such an emotional you choose to never win a championship, but ride?Furthermore, would they want their extend your career at the collegiate level? answer to run in a public forum to be seen Amazingly, we condensed that into a 16by teammates who might feel differently? word question and you can see how our three Like I said. The question was a doozy.

Rapid Fire athletes answered on page 8.

Chace@ And thankfully, each of the three kids we As for the SportStars staff, there was mass asked took it in stride.

SportStarsMag.com debate. While the allure of getting to play the Now it’s your turn. sport you love and be part of a team for four (925) 566-8503 Our next issue will release on March more years is very appealing, I take the title 24, on the eve of the state basketball every time. championships.

We’ d like to devote some space to your I was never part of a championship team during my high thoughts on this question. school playing days, but I’ve covered enough state championIn the meantime, we’re going to turn our attention back to ship teams as a reporter to recognize the lifetime bonds that are formed through winning at the highest level. My one true topics that don’t make our heads hurt.

How about those A’s? The offense looks better. We’re championship experience came in a city slo-pitch softball league, and even that felt special when it happened. Thus, I optimistic. ✪

First PitCH Chace bryson editor

SportStars wants to get your feedback on how you’d answer the following question: As a high school athlete, would you take a state championship victory if it meant the end of your competitive playing career? Or would you choose to never win a title, but extend your playing career into college? Email your answer and reasonings to editor@sportstarsmag.com, and we’ll publish some of the responses in our March 24 issue.

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PhOne 925.566.8500 FaX 925.566.8507 edItOrIaL Editor@SportStarsMag.com editor Chace Bryson. Ext. 104 • Chace@SportStarsMag.com Contributors Bill Kolb, Erik Stordahl, Mike Wolcott, Jim Mannion, Mitch Stephens, Dave DeLong, Gary Xavier, Doug Gardner, Matt Smith, Clay Kallam, Jim McCue Photography Butch Noble, Bob Larson, Jonathan Hawthorne, Chris Austria CreatIVe dePartMent Art@SportStarsMag.com Production Manager Mike DeCicco. Ext. 103 • MikeD@SportStarsMag.com PUBLIsher/PresIdent Mike Calamusa. Ext. 106 • Mike@SportStarsMag.com adVertIsInG & CaLendar/CLassIFIed saLes Sales@SportStarsMag.com account executives Mike Wolcott Ext. 109 • MikeW@SportStarsMag.com; Patrick McCormick Ext. 102 • Patrick@SportStarsMag.com; Erik Stordahl • ErikS@Sport StarsMag.com (Special Sections, Calendar, Marketplace sales) reader resOUrCes/adMInIstratIOn Ad Traffic, Subscription, Calendar & Classified Listings info@SportStarsMag.com • Deb Hollinger. Ext. 101 • dIstrIBUtIOn/deLIVery Mags@SportStarsMag.com distribution Manager Butch Noble. Ext. 107 • Butch@SportStarsMag.com InFOrMatIOn teChnOLOGy John Bonilla CFO Sharon Calamusa • Sharon@SportStarsMag.com Office Manager/Credit Services Deb Hollinger. Ext. 101 • Deb@SportStarsMag.com BOard OF dIreCtOrs Dennis Erokan, CEO, Placemaking Group Roland Roos, CPA, Roland Roos & Co Susan Bonilla, State Assembly Drew Lawler, Managing Director, AJ Lawler Partners COMMUnIty sPOrtstars™ MaGaZIne A division of Caliente! Communications, LLC 5356 Clayton Rd., Ste. 222 • Concord, CA • 94521 info@SportStarsMag.com www.SportStarsMag.com

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sometimes a gold glove just isn’t enough to crack the everyday lineup My baseball coach said in practice “If you hit, you’ll play.” I’m not the best hitter on the team but I’m really good on defense and I’m fast. Why does the coach like guys who hit more than guys who field?

H.R., Antioch

F

irst, the general consensus is that the most difficult thing to do in all of sports is hit a baseball. After all, the object is to hit a rapidly moving round object squarely — and when you factor in human beings’ innate fear of rapidly moving objects, the task gets even harder.

So the reason the coach likes good hitters is that there are relatively fewer of them than there are good fielders. It’s just like basketball: There are more good 5-9 players than there are 6-5 players, so coaches are going to favor the good 6-5 player over the good 5-9 player.

There’s another reason, too, and it has to do with what’s known as SABRmetrics, which is the arcane art of analyzing baseball statistics until they do cartwheels and speak in Sanskrit. Before the age of SABRmetrics (named for the Society for American Baseball Research), people would say that a great shortstop who hit .220 was worth playing because he saved more runs defensively than his offensive limitations cost the team. Then, however, the numbers started getting crunched, and it became clear that even though a brilliant defensive shortstop does indeed prevent runs, it turned out he needed to hit better than people thought to justify his spot in the lineup.

Now as a member in proud standing of the good-field, no-hit club, I always wanted to believe that a shortstop who can make

plays in the hole and range over the middle could make up for a lack of power and batting average, but sadly, it’s just not true.

After all, the winner of the game is determined by who scores the most runs, not who turns in the most Web gems, so that agile shortstop who considers a fly to medium left a long ball isn’t going to help the team win more than the slower, more erratic fielder who hits .320 with a bunch of doubles and triples.

Which leads us directly to what perceptive readers will note is a common theme in this feature: Coaches want to win, and regardless of who they like or dislike, or what their stylistic preferences might be, their first priority is to give their team the best chance to win. So even if your coach truly appreciates the balletic dazzle of a neatly turned 6-4-3 double play, I guarantee he likes winning the game better, even if it’s 7-6 with three errors up the middle.

Finally, a coach also looks at who he has on his team, and if it just so happens he has a bunch of really good hitters, he might well decide that he can play a third baseman who has a great glove but whose best offensive attribute is a well-placed sacrifice bunt.

I’m guessing, though, that your coach has determined that his team’s biggest need is more offense, and so he’s making it clear exactly what his priorities are.

Now, those priorities may not be music to your ears, but at least he’s up front about them — and you know what you have to work on to find a regular home on the lineup card.

behind the Clipboard Clay kallam

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March 10, 2011

To submit a question for Behind the Clipboard, email Coach Kallam at clayk@ fullcourt.com.

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Free clinic aims at protecting arms of young pitchers By erIK stOrdahL | SportStars

As the baseball season kicks off for most players, it has been on-going for those who compete on club teams and play year-round.

Baseball is no joke to these players; they eat, sleep and breathe baseball. They travel all over the country to compete in some of the highest tournaments. No doubt their bodies take a toll, and for the pitchers, their arms become susceptible to serious injury.

That’s why Sutter Delta Medical Center wants to help. They’re hosting an event on April 7 with special guest Dr. Benjamin Busfield on how to minimize risk of serious arm, shoulder and elbow injuries.

With experience in assisting in the care for the Los Angeles Lakers, Dodgers, Kings, Sparks and Anaheim Ducks, Dr. Busfield has been around athletes and serious injuries.

Dr. Busfield contends that even if a pitcher throws as few as 50 pitches in a game, he’s still putting his arm at risk of serious injury. Naturally, if the pitch count goes up, so does the probability of injury.

Dr. Busfield has a solution for this growing problem. “For children ages 7-14, four days

of rest should follow where more than 66 pitches are thrown,” says Dr. Busfield, who is an orthopedic surgeon for the East Bay Physicians Medical Group. “For ages 15-18, the same rest period should follow where more than 76 pitches are thrown.”

Most young pitchers throw nothing but fastballs, but those who also throw curveballs and sliders may experience an increased risk of injury.

“Curveballs...increase the risk of shoulder pain by 52 percent, “Dr. Busfield explains.

“And sliders increase the risk of elbow pain by 86 percent.”

Without delving into all of Dr. Busfield’s April 7 lecture, he maintains the one thing he wants parents, players and coaches to take from this event is not to let your kids overuse their arms. If they start experiencing pain, they should seek orthopedic care.

This free event is open to everyone and will be held at the gymnasium of Deer Valley High School from 6:00 to 7:00 pm on April 7 and is hosted by the Sutter Delta Medical Center. Please call (925) 779-3608 or email Lombaa2@sutterhealth.org if you have questions. ✪

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Complete the uniform: Wear a mouth guard

articipants in almost every sport can avoid the pain and expense of many injuries if they are equipped with the proper safety gear for that activity, including a properly fitted mouth guard.

The American Dental Association estimates that mouth guards prevent more than 200,000 injuries in the high school and college sports annually. Still, mouth guards are not standard issue for many sports.

Boxing is the only professional sport that requires mouth guards. In organized amateur sports, the only ones with such mandates are boxing, football, ice hockey, men’s lacrosse and women’s field hockey. A 1995 study on the high incidence of oral injuries showed that in football, where mouth guards are mandatory, only .07% of all injuries involved teeth and the oral cavity.

Conversely, in basketball where mouth guards are not worn, 34 % of all injuries to players involved teeth and/or the oral cavity.

With more than 5 million teeth knocked

out in athletic events each year, its evident that athletes do not realize the fundamental importance of mouth guards.

JUST THE FACTS: ■ Dental injuries are the most common orofacial injury of participation sports.

■ The purchase of a properly fitted mouth guard will be less costly than the expense and treatment of a fractured tooth (average cost to repair and for follow-up treatment: $500).

■ Athletes are 60% more likely to incur damage to the teeth when not wearing a mouthguard.

■ Every athlete involved in contact sport has about a 10% chance per season of an orofacial injury or a 35-56% chance during an athletic career. ✪

Health Watch bruce Valentine

If you have questions or comments regarding the “Health Watch” column, write the Sports Medicine For Young Athletes staff at Health@ SportStarsMag.com.

March 10, 2011

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HE SAID WHAT?!?

“They’re so explosive. I thought we’d played them really tough, and then all the sudden they get on a roll and before you know it you’re down 12 and you have a real problem on your hands.”

De La Salle basketball coach Frank Allocco on Castro Valley, which used a 17-4 run to break open a two-point game and roll to a 60-42 win in the North Coast Section Division I final.

RAP ID FI RE

It’s a truncated version this week, but no less rapid.

Fave pregame food or drink?

Ways baseball/softball players can cope with a rainy March It’s that time of year. Basketball and wrestling are winding to a close. Baseball and softball are trying to swing into form. But Old Mother Nature has other plans. Late February and early March: When nonleague schedules founder in incessant, intermittent rainfall. What is an anxious, eager base- or softballer to do while she/he waits for the swamp, er, field to dry out enough to be playable? Here are our top five suggestions.

1. MLB2K11. You know, to keep your tactics sharp. Or something.

2. PLan FOr yOUr Fantasy BaseBaLL draFt. We hear there might be some Giants worth looking at.

3. WOrK On yOUr BraCKet. Heck.

Work on seven or eight of them. It’s called March Madness for a reason, kids. Go crazy.

4. hOMeWOrK. Just a thought. Oh, OK. You’re right. That’s just too crazy.

5. UM. BOO-RAY*, ANYONE? * Editor’s note: Boo-Ray, aka, Bourré or Bouré, is a trick-taking card game that originated in Louisiana. It is similar to Spades or Hearts. Reneging on your Boo-Ray debts could get you shot at by Gilbert Arenas. We don’t recommend it.

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SportStars™

March 10, 2011

Gatorade

What would you do with $1 million?

Buy a house

ions.

Here are three athletes vs. the same six quest

Dream car?

Lamborghini

Dream job?

Sports agent

Mike Peterson Northgate

Porsche

Red Gatorade Margaret Huntington Bishop O’Dowd

Little hot dog weenies

Donate to charity

$

Spoil my friends

Lamborghini

WNBA player

Sports broadcaster

Win the state title but never play again oR never win anything but play in college?

Favorite highlight this season?

WIN

Scoring 29 in our season opening game

LOSE

WIN

Sinking the gamewinning shot in NCS final

Beating El Cerrito to win NCS title

Ryan Zirkle San Marin

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Martinez Relays gear up for year No. 79 On March 19, as many as 25 high school track team from across Northern California will descend upon Alhambra High in Martinez for a long-standing tradition — the Martinez Relays.

It will be the 79th running of the relays, which will run this year under a slightly new name to honor the former longtime Alhambra Track and Field coach Tim Burder, who passed away in November of 2009. Bruder was the school’s track and cross-country coach for 23 years, and was the driving force in keeping the Relays going through the years.

The Martinez/Tim Bruder Relays will officially get underway with 4x1600 relay at 8 a.m. on Alhambra’s Upper Field.

The field events will begin at 8:30. And SportStars, an official media sponsor at the event, will be there all day.

The Relays is the oldest and longest-running event of its kind in the state. Its loose and fun format remains widely ap-

pealing to the teams and athletes that attend each year. Everything at the event is considered a relay, meaning no individual marks are scored, only combined team scores.

The lunch break also features the traditional exhibition steeplechase. It also is taking on a new name as the The Tim Bruder Memorial Steeplechase.

“It’s just an exhibition but has always been a popular event,” Alhambra track and field coach Angela Paradise said of the steeplechase. “Anybody can participate, so a lot of the kids try to get their coaches to run.”

Among the many schools expected for this year’s event include Concord, Northgate-Walnut Creek, Deer Valley-Antioch, Carondelet-Concord, Las Lomas-Walnut Creek and El Dorado-Placerville, which has attended for several years despite the two hours of travel required of it.

— Chace Bryson

game day

Girls basketball boys basketball

Bob Larson

March 19 — We’ve officially reached the March Madness portion of the high school basketball season. Folsom High School will once again play host to the California Interscholastic Federation Division IV and V Northern regional championship games. There’s a good chance Gabby Green (pictured) and her St. Mary’s-Berekely teammates will be there to defend their NorCal title and get back to the state championship where they lost 58-44 to Harvard-WestlakeNorth Hollywood a year ago. The Panthers (27-4) have the top seed in the regional bracket after winning the North Coast Section crown.

Bob Larson

March 19 — No longer named Arco Arena, the Power Balance Pavilion will play host to six CIF Northern regional finals, including the boys championships for Divisions I-III. Sacramento High and senior center Robert Garrett (pictured, right) hold the top seed in Division III, where they will be hoping to gain the state title berth that was denied them a year ago by Richard Longrus (also pictured) and Bishop O’DowdOakland. As for Bishop O’Dowd, it was upset in its section semifinals and will need to fight its way back to the state finals by winning on the road.

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of the week

t

Briana Gaines dougherty valley-San ramon . soccer/hoops . senior Most athletes never get to play in a championship. Many who get there don’t end up winning. Yet, Briana Gaines won two championships in less than a week. That’s right. The Dougherty Valley senior helped the Wildcats win the NCS Div. II soccer championship when her No. 10 seed squad stunned the No. 1 seed and defending champion Bishop O’Dowd in a 1-1 tie, 4-2 in penalty kicks on Feb. 26. She scored the title-clinching goal.

Just six days later, she and her basketball teammates hoisted the NCS Div. II girls basketball trophy on Mar. 4 as the Wildcats held off Clayton Valley 46-45 in heart-racing affair. sportstars: Can you describe the range of emotions you’ve experienced from the past week?

Briana Gaines: It’s hard to put into words.

Both of my teams gave it their all for the last games. I’m just really happy to be on both teams. It was really exciting. We were the underdogs the whole way through for soccer. no one expected us to win. It’s crazy to win. sportstars: What did your parents think about your playing two sports?

BG: My parents basically said, “If your grades slip then it’s over.” I was able to keep my grades up. It all worked out. Both of my coaches were understanding and my parents were supportive. sportstars: Which was better: Upset of O’Dowd or the one-point victory against Clayton Valley? Why? BG: Upset over O’Dowd. Everyone thought we were gonna lose. We were soo excited we won. We just dominated the game.

BrIana’s QUICK hIts Soccer or basketball: Soccer Favorite subject: Psychology Favorite hobby: Harry Potter series (books and movies)

powered by:

Butch Noble

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March 10, 2011

honorable mention

juan anderson The Marquettebound senior forward led the Trojans to their first NCS Div. I title with 14 points and 10 rebouds as Castro Valley topped De La Salle 60-42 in the March 4 championship at McKeon Pavilion in Moraga. As a result, Castro Valley earned the No. 1 seed in the NorCal playoffs.

jeff matteri The Freedom tennis player became the first player of the host school to win the singles event at the Richards/Kelly Memorial Tournament on Feb. 26. Matteri ousted Lodi’s Jared Weeks in the championship played at Diamond Hills Athletic Club in Oakley.

jillian jenkins In the first sanctioned CIF State Girls Wrestling Invitational, the Albany junior won the 235-pound division by defeating sophomore Jessica Walker of Santa Monica on a Technical Fall in the second period. Albany as a team finished fourth with 67.5 points in the tournament on Feb. 26.

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No horsing around: Danville’s tyrrell has a true gift for riding W e’re closing in on our one-year anniversary here at SportStars Magazine, and to say we’ve already featured just about every kind of young athlete imaginable would be no stretch.

We’ve written about football players and water polo standouts, cheerleaders and golfers, basketball players and soccer stars, and even mixed martial arts and women’s roller derby.

(What, you don’t remember the Undead Bettys?)

Danville’s Emma Tyrrell probably could have made the pages of this magazine in many of those sports, and played soccer with her friends in earlier years. But these days, she’s dedicated herself to a sport that probably seems as foreign to many kids her age as it does difficult for any adult outsider to grasp.

After all, she’s not just bouncing a ball or throwing it — she’s dealing with a 1,200-pound animal that has a brain of its own.

And succeeding. Big-time.

Tyrrell, a 14-year-old freshman at San Ramon Valley High, is among the Bay Area’s brightest young talents in the world of equestrian competition. It’s a sport that requires both mental and physical strength, an amazing amount of dedication and, of course, the ability to handle a 1,200-pound animal — physically, and mentally.

Erika Carlson, an East Bay sports psychologist who often trains alongside Tyrrell at Kelly Maddox Training, Inc. west of San Ramon, put it best.

“Riding is as technical as golf,” Carlson said, “except imagine if each of your clubs had its own brain.”

And in Tyrrell’s case, she’s carrying around two sets of clubs. She rides a horse named Joe three times a week, and her usual show animal, Goose, the other three. They think differently, and react differently to her commands.

“Joe’s a jumper — he likes to go very fast,” said Tyrrell, who has ridden for seven years. “Goose is an equestrian horse.

“There are different disciplines: Jumpers, hunters and equitation. At the show you’re judged on things like body position and making the course look easy.”

On a 1,200-pound animal, with its own brain.

Sound a little more complicated than throwing a ball?

You’re right. And that’s why Tyrrell, as driven to succeed as any athlete we’ve featured, has thrown herself into the sport with the highest level of dedication possible.

When asked to describe Tyrrell as a rider, Maddox doesn’t hold back words.

“She’s a superstar,” Maddox said. “She is extremely dedicated, very responsible and has huge goals that I know she will reach.

“Riding is a huge commitment and we travel a great deal.

She does an amazing job of balancing school and her riding.”

Her riding usually takes up no fewer than six days a week, whether it’s three hours after school during the week, several hours on the weekend or traveling anywhere around California (or even other parts of the country) for competitions.

On Saturday mornings, you can usually find her at Maddox’s training facility, training alongside a half-dozen or so other riders on all aspects of equestrian competition, including jumping.

While it all starts with the practice, training and dedication, the competitions are where Tyrrell has really made a name for herself.

In a series of horse shows at Woodside last spring and summer, Tyrrell was reserve champion in the Children’s Hunter Division; an Equitation Flat winner; winner of the Horse and Hound Medal; and a reserve champion in the

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Wally’s WorlD Mike Wolcott MikeW@ SportStarsMag.com (925) 566-8500 Ext. 109

Bob Larson

Emma Tyrrell, a freshman at San Ramon Valley High in Danville, works through some jumps with her horse, “Joe.” Tyrrell trains and competes for Kelly Maddox Training out of San Ramon.

Equitation Division and champion of the .90 meter jumpers.

Then, at the Sonoma Classic Horse Show in August, she qualified for the prestigious Hudson and Company medal finals.

She’s already followed that up this year with a series of ribbons — including second place in the Pacific Coast Horseman’s Association Medal — at the Northern Winter Classic III in Sacramento in February.

“She is riding great and had another super show,” said Maddox, who has had Tyrrell as a student for four years.

It’s all part of a master plan and a big set of goals Tyrrell has set for this year. She’s aiming for the equestrian regional in Southern California, the finals in Kentucky, and the Ma-

clay Medal Finals in New York at the end of the year.

(For outsiders, that’s sort of like deciding you’re going to make the Sweet 16, roll on to the NCAA Title and then, just for kicks, try to win the NBA championship as a bonus.)

What is it about this sport that has her hooked?

“My friends mainly do soccer and swim,” Tyrrell said. “But I just like having a horse that I can talk to. It’s like competing with a best friend.”

At shows, that’s a best friend named Goose that outweighs her by about 1,100 pounds, has a brain of its own and has proven to be a valuable part of a championship combination.

A winning team, each athlete complementing the other.

Now, that’s the true definition of a SportStar. ✪ Upload photos and team stats! www.SportStarsMag.com

Bob Larson

William Walker prepares to take down Antioch’s Kyle Clark in the 215-pound final at the North Coast Section wrestling championships on Feb. 26. Walker was one of a record-six Spartans to win individual crowns at the event.

No exaggeration

De La Salle wrestling makes a mockery of the record books en route to another NCS crown 14

SportStars™

March 10, 2011

H

By BILL KOLB | Contributor

yperbole abounds in sports.

People toss around terms like “historic,” “unprecedented” and “record-setting” like heavyweights toss around 103-pounders. Or meatball subs.

Everything is a superlative. The best. The most. The greatest.

All of that dilution makes what the De La Salle High School wrestling team did at the North Coast Section championship tournament on February 25-26 at Newark Memorial High School all the more difficult to describe.

One coach might have summed it up best when he said, in passing, “The finals are like a De La Salle dual-meet.”

That wasn’t much of an exaggeration. The Spartans put an unprecedented eight wrestlers into finals. Of those eight, an historic six won individual titles. All of that contributed to De La Salle’s record-setting team total of 309 points.

With more than 25 years in as the varsity coach at perennial section power Liberty, Greg Chappel has seen his share of dominant teams in the section. Was this year’s De La Salle performance the best he’s ever seen?

“Probably,” Chappel said. “James Logan had some years where they were really good. But this has definitely got to be one of the best ever.”

In 40 years of the North Coast Section tournament, no team had ever broken the 300-point threshold. De La Salle set the bar last year when it racked up 270.5 points for its second-straight overall team title.

Prior to that, James Logan’s 261.5 points in 1995 was the high-water mark. The Colts put four wrestlers into the finals that year and all four won titles. That year’s team still holds the mark for largest margin of victory, outdistancing second-place Mission San Jose 261.5 to 132.5 for a 129-point spread.

Second-place Liberty notched 188.5 points this year, 120.5 fewer than De La Salle – the second-largest margin of victory in the tournament’s history.

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Before the Spartan Six of Joe Ramirez (112), Joe Moita (125), Alex Abono (140), Curtis Siegfried (160) Luke Sheridan (189) and William Walker (215) all got their hands raised in their final section matches, the most individual titles any one team had won in a single year was four. Logan did it in 1995 and 1996. De La Salle also had four individual champs in 2004, when it placed second to James Logan.

Throw in the fact that Jon Jay Chavez (119) and Dylan Wynn (285) also advanced to championship matches, and De La Salle had a wrestler in eight of the 14 finals. Before this year, the most anyone had put in the finals was James Logan’s seven in 1996.

It bears mentioning that freshman Chavez lost his final match to No. 1 seed Tyler Stevenson of McKinleyville, a junior who placed third at 112 last year, by one point (3-2). It also is worth noting that Wynn dropped his title match to No. 1 seed and defending champ Orry Elor of College Park 2-1 on a stalling call in the third period of a match in which neither wrestler scored an offensive point. So to say that the Spartans were within a couple of points, literally, of racking up eight individual crowns isn’t much of a stretch.

“We had eight high seeds and they all came through,” De La Salle coach Mark Halvorson said. “And a lot of the young guys contributed. … It takes everybody to do it. These kids, team is important to them. They wanted to win and they did a good job. They set a goal of scoring 300 points and they went out and got it. They wrestled really well. … This is the most kids we’ve ever taken to state. And to have six champions here when the most we’ve had before was four … and eight guys in finals — it was big.”

De La Salle qualified 13 wrestlers (out of a possible 14) for the NCS tournament after dominating the East Bay Athletic League.

All 13 won at least one match, meaning everyone who qualified scored a point for the team.

Of those 13, a whopping nine qualified for the California Interscholastic Federation championship tournament in Bakersfield — the elite eight who made finals and senior Tyler Hunter, who placed fourth at 145. The top four placers at NCS advance to state.

Ten of the 13 earned NCS medals, with sophomore Aaron Pease taking eighth at 171.

Want another eye-popping statistic? The Spartans had scored 181.5 points BEFORE any of the medal rounds had been wrestled. Which means they had already almost outscored second-place Liberty. It also means that they scored 127.5 points in the semifinals, two consolation rounds and the medal matches. Only five of the other 110 teams in the tournament scored more than that in two full days of competition.

That preponderance of points meant a relatively easy team victory, the Spartans’ third in a row — which means yet another flirtation with history.

Prior to this year, James Logan was the only team to have notched three straight NCS overall titles. The Colts won three in a row from 1998-2000 after having won five in a row from 1992-96.

“They are well-organized and disciplined,” College Park coach Jim Keck said of the Spartans. “Everybody is on the same page. Everyone is on task. They are also all good kids, very respectful.”

Baldazo, Pereira narrowly miss state crowns Sometimes the other guy is just a little bit better.

That axiom became painfully clear to a handful of local wrestlers at the California Interscholastic Federation championship tournament at Bakersfield’s Rabobank Arena on Saturday, March 5.

Liberty senior Jesse Baldazo (145) and Newark Memorial junior Victor Pereira (152) both romped all the way into championship matches, only to come up just a little short.

Baldazo, ranked No. 4 in the state entering the tournament, couldn’t get the takedown he needed in his 4-2 loss to top-ranked Jake Elliot of Oakmont. Baldazo exacted a measure of revenge when he knocked off No. 2 Damien Arredondo (Buchanan) to reach the final. Arredondo beat Baldazo 2-1 at the Doc Buchanan Invitational earlier in the season.

The second-place finish marked the culmination of a bounce-back year for Baldazo, who finished No. 8 at 140 in 2010 despite being ranked in the top 5 most of the season.

He also recovered from a significant shoulder injury sustained over the summer.

Baldazo was as focused as he had been all season in winning his second-straight North Coast Section championship on Feb. 26. “I feel like I’m starting to peak right now,” he said. “I’m ready for state.”

Liberty coach Greg Chappel seemed certain his star was set to make a run at a state title. “He’s doing what he needs to do to win,” Chappel said. “He won the section championship and pinned everybody to get there. I think he’s ready to go.

His goal is to win a state championship, and he’s in position to do it. … State is all about whose head is screwed on right.

Bob Larson

Newark Memorial’s Victor Pereira, top.

Jesse is stone cold. He doesn’t get emotional or out of sync.”

Like Baldazo, Pereira simply ran into a tough matchup on the elevated center stage on Saturday. Santa Fe’s Joey Davis staved off Pereira’s attempts to turn him and held on for a 9-5 win. Davis, also a junior, was ranked No. 1 ahead of Pereira entering the tournament.

College Park senior Orry Elor also saw his title hopes come up short. Elor, ranked No. 3 at 285 after winning his second-straight NCS heavyweight title, lost a hotly-contested semifinal to top-ranked Nick Nevillis (Clovis) by one point in double OT. Nevillis won the title, and Elor rebounded to take third. NorCal’s other individual crown belonged to Chico’s Nahshon Garrett. The senior joined the list of wrestlers who have won state more than once, dominating the 112 bracket for his second-straight title after last year’s 103 crown.

— Bill Kolb

Blazing in Bakersfield As if all that weren’t enough, the Spartans took their talents south — to Bakersfield — to test their mettle against perennial Central Section powers Clovis and Bakersfield at the State Tournament at Rabobank Arena.

Continued, page 36 Support Your Local Business • Say You Found Them In SportStars™

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club scene

Diablo FC prepares to host 12th annual Diablo Cup By erIK stOrdahL | SportStars The Diablo Cup is right around the corner as teams from all over Northern California will be descending upon Concord for U15-U19 boys and girls tournaments.

Hosted by Diablo FC, the 12th annual tournament includes an entry fee of $625 and there’s still a spot available for a U15 girls team. The Cup will be played March 12-13 at various sites throughout Concord, and fans should witness high quality matches as teams will use this tournament to prepare for the 2011 State Cup. Every team is guaranteed three games over the two-day stretch. Remember that March 13 is Daylight Savings; be sure to set your clocks an hour ahead so as not to miss any games. View the brackets online at http:// www.diablofc.org/tournaments/DiabloCup/2011 For field and weather updates, call (925) 779-2102.

boxing Former SportStar of the Week Honorable Mention boxer Daniel Thomas won the 2011 Northern California Golden Gloves Championship in the 152-pound open senior division.

Boxing for Community Youth Center in Concord, Thomas defeated Will Blake of Newcastle, Jacob Operalski of Oakland and William Walters of Sacramento during the week of Feb. 22-26 to take home the top prize.

What makes this accomplishment even more impressive was the other battle Thomas was fighting: a flu virus.

Get your club team in the scene!

Email your game/tournament results to eriks@sportstarsmag.com He advances to the Golden Gate Regionals on March 12.

Water polo The Lamorinda Water Polo Club U16 Platinum Division won the KAP 7 International Tournament in Irvine on Feb. 13.

Coached by Clarke Tamariki and Trent Calder, the Lamorinda Boys U16 team reigned supreme in what’s considered to be the top winter water polo tournament in California.

Before knocking off Olimpiakan Reservner of Glendale 12-7 in the championship, the Lamorinda boys disposed of Coronado 24-2 followed by the San Diego Shores 13-7 in the quarterfinals. Saddleback-El Toro proved to be Lamorinda’s biggest test as it edged them 7-6 in a semifinal overtime victory.

The squad is comprised of freshmen and sophomores who attend Acalanes, Campolindo, Miramonte, San Ramon Valley and Marin Catholic High Schools.

Standout players from the tournament included goalie Drew Holland, who anchored a superb team defensive effort.

Charlie Wiser scored three goals in the semifinal win over

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Bob Larson

Diablo FC’s Marchella Hughes (left) battles Placer United’s Jordan Holt during a tournament in August.

SET club with three goals, including the game-tying shot with seven seconds remaining to send the game into overtime.

JD Ratchford led the team with three goals in the championship. He also contributed four goals in the quarterfinal win against San Diego Shores.

The squad includes: Wiser, Connor Neumann, Tyler Kirchberg, Thomas Carroll, Tommy Bush, Ratchford, Holland, Clay Smudsky, Nick Solit, Jack Fellner, Adrian Shestakov, Jake O’Malley, Reid and Grant Sivesind.

Lamorinda Water Polo Club is a year-round USA Water Polo Club and is open to any individual who wants to learn about the sport of water polo, develop new skills and enhance their attained skill level. For more information, visit the website http://www.lamorindawaterpolo.org.

March 10, 2011

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One year after the best season in program history, the Amador Valley baseball team is ready to be the hunted

By ChaCe BrysOn | Editor

It’s 2:15 on a gray Wednesday afternoon in Pleasanton.

There are dark masses of clouds in every direction. These aren’t just rain clouds. These are the types of clouds that, if given the power of speech, would say — in a deep Charlton Heston-like voice — ‘Go away. Unless you want to get very, very wet.’

Yet above the Amador Valley High baseball field, the sky is blue. And the collective mood is light as the Dons players show up for their seventh period baseball class — which also doubles as the first 40 minutes of practice each day.

This day will be a bit different, however. Because this is the first day it becomes evident that the 2011 season is going to be a bit different from its predecessor.

“I knew this was coming” Amador Valley coach Lou Cesario said of his practice being delayed while four of his senior leaders followed a cameraman around the field as the rest of the team waited to begin its stretching routine.

This isn’t Cesario’s first rodeo, currently in his 10th year coaching the Dons. But even a first-year coach would be able to figure out that winning the school’s first section title, returning 11 seniors, and landing the state’s No. 2 ranking to open the season are all likely to bring some additional attention to the program.

One game into the season last year, the atmosphere was much different. And it stayed pretty much the same for the following 20 games or so. It wasn’t until Amador Valley claimed its first East Bay Athletic League title in 30 years that other teams realized the Dons might be a team worth paying attention to.

“We were able to stay under the radar through the whole year last season, basically,” said Chris Keck, the Dons’ senior shortstop. “This year will be different.” ◆◆◆ Keck is just another one of the reasons why. The 6-foot-3, 180-pound standout who throws right and bats left, is committed to UCLA and is an early candidate for State Player of the Year.

And yet, Keck — who hit .462 with 26 RBI despite being walked 31 times in 28 games — might also stand as a reason why this Dons team could remain greatly unaffected by the attention last year’s success has created.

Undoubtedly the alpha dog in the Amador Valley dugout, Keck takes an unassuming and quiet approach to his leadership role. Keeping things lose.

“He’s just one of the guys,” senior pitcher Nick Piscotty said of Keck. “We keep things pretty loose in practice, and Chris is kind of the ringleader when it comes to chirping at guys. And 18

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Nick Piscotty fires a pitch in Amador Valley’s seasonopener against IrvingtonFremont on Feb. 26. He earned the win, striking out eight.

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then when he makes a mistake, everyone piles on him and he takes it in stride.”

It’s not surprising that a group comprised of 11 returning seniors is going to have good chemistry. However, the Dons’ cohesiveness was evident during last season, as well. Keck even singled it out as the biggest factor in the team’s run to the North Coast Section Divsion I title.

“It’s going to sound cheesy, but our biggest strength was chemistry and trust,” Keck said. “Throughout the entire year each guy trusted every other player. And every time a certain player came up in a big situation, we knew they would produce. And they always did.”

The numbers the Dons put up during the 2010 campaign were video-game like in their absurdity.

■ An overall record of 25-3, which included going 9-0 on the road (13-1 when including neutral sites) and finishing the year on a 14-game winning streak.

■ Outscoring opponents 199-72, including a 12-1 victory over cross-town rival Foothill in the NCS final.

■ A team batting average of .343, with six different players hitting at least one home run (Keck led the team with four).

■ A 2.12 staff ERA and a 2-to-1 strikeout to walk ratio over 175 innings of work.

“I tried to enjoy it as much as I could,” Cesario said of last season. “And then coming back, you’re excited about it but you understand that there are new challenges that face you. ...

We know it’s not going to be easy and that we have a bulls eye on our chest. We’ll try to just keep it simple for them.” ◆◆◆ Things weren’t all that simple for Nick Piscotty a year ago.

At least not at the outset of the year.

Piscotty’s older brother Stephen left a monster footprint on the Dons’ program from 2006-2009 before taking his talents to Stanford and being named All-Pac 10 honorable mention

as a freshman. And Cesario believed early on that Nick was struggling a little with the expectations of living up to his older brother’s example.

“I had some concerns that there were some external pressures,” the coach said. “I just felt that Nick was trying to live up to what Stephen had done. So, I sat down with him and just told him to make his own path and his own way.”

After going 1-1 over the first month, Piscotty busted out in April with an 11-strikeout effort despite a taking no-decision in the Dons’ 9-7 victory over Huntington Beach at the San Luis Obispo Tournament. He would go on to post a 5-0 record over his last eight starts of the season.

Piscotty won both of his playoff starts, allowing just one run over 11 innings and beating James Logan 5-1 in a completegame semifinal victory. He was rewarded in the offseason by having several colleges recruit him before he eventually chose Duke.

“Each time he pitched, he got much more comfortable with himself,” Cesario said. “His confidence just continued to rise.

He’s really taken ownership in developing himself as a baseball player and a pitcher.”

And that’s an important fact, considering that the Dons’ ace from a year ago — Michael Mallory (8-0 with a 1.33 ERA in 2010) — may miss a good portion of the season due to injury.

Piscotty is now the unquestioned No. 1 hurler on the still very-experienced staff. And he’s pitching like it. In Amador Valley’s season opener against Irvington on Feb. 26, the 6-foot-3 right-hander struck out eight over four shutout innings.

“I know we have a deep pitching staff,” Piscotty said. “I’m not feeling too much pressure to carry it all (in Mallory’s absence).”

It’s also pretty comforting that third base is the only position behind him featuring a new starter for 2011. A few guys

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have switched positions, but it’s about as experienced as a defense can be to start a season.

“I know that all I really have to do is consistently get the ball over the plate,” Piscotty said. “I have confidence my defense can make the plays.”

The Dons played error-free in the 3-0 defeat of Irvington. ◆◆◆ Keck and Piscotty will garner much of the attention early on, but there are still several guys who Cesario expects to play key roles if the Dons are to repeat as league and section champs.

Alex Osterholt, who boasted a 2.27 ERA in 46 innings of work last season, will get the first shot at being the No. 2 starter.

Joe Maroney, who Cesario said “could be one of the best defensive centerfielders in the Bay Area,” is moving into the infield to take over second base. But that doesn’t mean the outfield is being left in the hands of novices. All three expected starters saw significant time on the grass a year ago.

“The way it went down last year, we had a different guy stepping up every game,” Cesario said. “Every one of these guys was part of a game-winning hit or played a role in a game-winning rally.”

With the photo shoot finally over, Cesario watches as his team goes through its warm-up routine. It unfolds the way all the others have. It could be the start to any other practice.

And the sky overhead is still blue.

“There’s a lot of things that we can’t control,” Cesario said.

“The rankings are out there and everybody’s schedule has us circled. We’re gonna see the best from everybody. And we want it that way, because we’re proud of what we’ve done and where we’ve gone.” ✪

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2011 NorCal baseball

10 Players to Watch (listed alphabetically) ■ J.D. DAVIS, P/3B, SR., ELK GROVE — Was named State Junior Player of the Year

by CalHiSports.com after driving in 60 runs and posting a 1.99 ERA over 67 innings.

■ TYLER DAVIS, P/3B, SR., ARCHBISHOP MItty-san JOse — The ace of the state’s top-ranked team to open the season. He went 11-0 with a 2.87 ERA in 2010.

■ BILLY FLAMION, P/OF, SR., CENTRAL CathOLIC-MOdestO — An AFLAC AllAmerican in August, Flamion hit .465 with 7 HR in 2010. He was also 9-2 on the hill.

■ TYLER GOEDDEL, 3B, SR., ST. FRANCIs-MOUntaIn VIeW — UCLA-commit is ranked among the top 3B prospects in the country.

■ JOHN HOCHSTATTER, P, SR., SAN raMOn VaLLey-danVILLe — Went 1-0 with a 1.59 ERA and 10 strikeouts over 11.1 innings with the Team USA 18U squad last summer.

■ CHRIS KECK, P/SS, SR., AMADOR VaLLey-PLeasantOn — The UCLAbound Keck hit .462 with 26 RBI and 26 runs scored over 28 games in 2010.

■ JAMES MARVEL, P/INF, JR., CAMPOLIndO-MOraGa — Tossed a completegame one-hitter with eight strikeouts in the Cougars’ North Coast Section Division II championship victory.

■ ALEX MICHAELS, OF/P, SR., ST. Mary’s-stOCKtOn — All Michaels did last season was pound out 53 hits (w/ 14

Jonathan Hawthorne

■ CHAZ MEADOWS, P/SS, SR., CLaytOn VaLLey-COnCOrd — Committed to Long Beach State following a junior season in which he went 13-1 with 103 strikeouts in 82.1 innings. doubles!) with 43 runs scored and 30 RBI. ■ ROBERT STEPHENSON, P, SR.,

aLhaMBra-MartIneZ — Legit first-round draft prospect tossed a perfect game against Encinal in his first start of 2011.

March NorCal top 15 SportStars’ preseason Northern California baseball rankings. Teams from the Central Section are not considered. Records are from 2010.

1. Archbishop Mitty-San Jose ..31-3 2. Elk Grove ..............................29-6 3. Amador Valley-Pleasanton ..25-3 4. St. Francis-Mountain View ...22-6 5. St. Mary’s-Stockton ..............27-7 6. Serra-San Mateo ..................25-7 7. Campolindo-Moraga ............21-7 8. Jesuit-Carmichael ................24-8 9. Alameda................................21-9 10. Clayton Valley-Concord .....22-5 11. San Ramon Valley-Danville ..18-8 12. Pleasant Grove-Elk Grove .26-5 13. Turlock ................................24-8 14. Alhambra-Martinez ............23-5 15. Miramonte-Orinda ..............21-6

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Mark your calendars!

A few key tournament/showcase dates to note March 26-29 — Willie Stargell Memorial Tournament, Encinal HS, Alameda April 2-5 — Gordie Classic, Livermore HS April 2-7 — Alhambra Easter Tournament, Alhambra HS, Martinez April 18-21 — National Classic, Cal State Fullerton April 18-21 — Knights of Columbus Spring Classic, Serra HS, San Mateo April 25-30 — Valley Christian/SJ Sharks Crown Classic, Valley Christian, San Jose May 7 — Dave Stewart HS Showdown, Oakland Coliseum

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SportStars joins the support of Oakland A’s Little League Days Little Leaguers will be the toast of the Coliseum twice this season By erik stordahl | SportStars

Oakland A’s Little League Days are back for 2011 and SportStars is proud to be a part. Join the A’s and us on April 17 when the A’s take on the Tigers, and again on May 15 against the White Sox. These are the only two Little League Days this season so be sure to take advantage of them.

These are the ideal games to attend with your parents, teammates and coaches while dressed in your team’s garb. Come don your team’s colors and tell everyone who’s number one. Little League teams from all over the Bay Area will be in attendance on this momentous occasion. This year there will be a pregame festival plus an on-field parade for uniformed players and coaches. Also, there will be a special A’s giveaway item for kids ages 14-and-under, along with discounted tickets. For groups of 100 or more, you’ll receive an invite for a pregame chalk talk.

It’s events like these that make us at SportStars happy to do what we do. We enjoy covering youth and teen sports. And to see teams, families and communities come together and share a common interest is a special thing to experience.

The discounted ticket prices are as follows: ■ Lower Box — $25 (reg. $30)

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Oakland Athletics

A’s infielder Adam Rosales greets Little Leaguers on the field during one of the onfield parades at a 2010 A’s Little League Day.

■ Field Level — $20 (reg. $26) ■ Plaza Level — $16 (reg. $24) ■ Plaza Reserved — $7 (reg. $9).

Don’t get left out. Come experience Oakland A’s Little League Days in 2011. Get your tickets now.

For more information on Oakland A’s Little League Days, call (510) 638-GoA’s (4627) or email groups@ oaklandathletics.com

March 10, 2011

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tHUNDeRiNg exPeCtatioNS Lofty state, national rankings won’t sway the focus of the Elk Grove softball team

By MItCh stePhens | Contributor

Elk Grove High School softball coach Jeff Alexander got the call from a parent on Feb. 18.

“Did you hear?” the parent said, barely able to control his excitement.

“No what?” Alexander said.

“We’re No. 2 in the nation. Not the state, but the nation!”

That preseason national ranking was by way of MaxPreps. com. A week later, Cal-Hi Sports made the Thundering Herd its No. 1 team in California.

It’s understandable to a point. Elk Grove, located just south of state capital Sacramento, finished as high as No. 6 nationally last year with a 25-4-1 team. It returns one of the state’s top senior pitchers in UC Santa Barbara-bound Shelby Wisdom (0.54 ERA, 269 strikeouts, 23 walks, 143 innings in 2010).

But the Thundering Herd also needs to fill three infield spots left vacant by graduation, including both middle infield positions.

Alexander tried to act excited by the news, but his true reaction was: “Oh joy.”

The ninth-year coach for one of Northern California’s top programs from the Sac-Joaquin Section isn’t much into hyperbole. And certainly not preseason rankings.

If the Thundering Herd has embraced any mottos during his eight seasons, which features two SJS titles and three runner-up finishes, it’s been this: “Finish the play” and “Don’t go backwards.”

In other words, stay utterly focused on the task at hand.

Don’t get caught up in things you can’t control.

“Never wish you could have prepared better,” Alexander said.

Don’t get the idea that Alexander, in the pest control business by day, is a killjoy. He recognizes that state and national rankings are an honor, good exposure for his players and helpful to land future standouts.

After all, the Elk Grove Unified School District implements open enrollment for ninth graders – in a city of 143,000 meaning they can choose whatever high school they’d like to attend.

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Chris Austria

Elk Grove’s Shelby Wisdom earned all-state honors a year ago after helping pitch the Thundering Herd to 25 wins and a section title as a junior. She had 269 strikeouts in just 143 innings of work.

Parents of ambitious softball players will likely gravitate toward sending their kids to nationally-recognized schools.

“So,” Alexander said. “The rich get richer.”

But the detailed coach said national rankings are “also the kiss of death.” Especially when you have “young pups,” like the Thundering Herd possess this season.

The starting middle infield spots have been filled by a pair

of very talented but raw freshmen in Anessa Kaylor and Kaitlyn Pires.

Through two games — a 13-1 win over Casa Roble-Orangevalle and 3-2 triumph over Lodi — the Thundering Herd has shown signs of its talent and youth.

In the win over Casa Roble, the Herd had 13 hits, including two doubles, three triples and a home run by returning AllLeague outfielder Maryssa Harris.

“I was really surprised how we hit the ball,” Alexander said.

“I don’t see us as having a dominating lineup, but we really hit some rockets.”

Alexander warned of some defense lapses in the game and coverage errors, and those showed up more prominently in the narrow win over Lodi. An error led to both Lodi runs.

“That was not a victory to celebrate,” Alexander said. “We have a ton of work to do.”

But with Wisdom flinging the ball, many of Elk Grove’s shortcomings can be masked.

The athletic 5-foot-6 senior has been playing since she was five when her mom Joylynn coached her in T-Ball. She followed in her older sister Janelle’s footsteps at Elk Grove, and is pushed by her ASA Sacramento Lady Magic pitching teammate Ally Carda, who has committed to UCLA. Carda attends rival and cross-town school Pleasant Grove, Upload photos and team stats! www.SportStarsMag.com

2011 NorCal soFtball

March

10 Players to Watch (listed alphabetically) SHELBY WISDOM, P, SR., ELK GROVE — Led Thundering Herd to a section title with a 0.54 ERA and 269 strikeouts while also batting .338.

ELIZABETH PEREZ, P, JR., JOHANSENMOdestO — The ace of the No.5-ranked team in the state to start the year, Perez was 22-4 with 0.62 ERA in 2010.

ALLY CARDA, P, SR., PLEASANT GROVEeLK GrOVe — UCLA-bound, Carda struck our 331 batters en route to an 18-6 record and 0.54 ERA. She also hit a robust .512.

KASEY STANCHECK, P, SR., OAK RIDGEeL dOradO hILLs — Stancheck was all-state after posting 25 wins to lead the Trojans to a fifth-straight section title.

MALENA PADILLA, OF, SR., FREEDOMOaKLey — Will be the backbone of the Falcons’ offense this year after hitting .482 with 27 RBI and 30 runs scored in 2010.

which Wisdom and the Thundering Herd beat three times last year en route to the SJS title. Carda had 18 wins last year, an 0.54 ERA and a remarkable 311 strikeouts in 169 innings.

“She’s definitely been my best friend since the eighth grade and she definitely helps push me,” Wisdom said. “We have a very friendly rivalry.”

Wisdom isn’t the power pitcher Carda is, instead relying on six pitches. Her favorites are the screwball and change-up. Everything she throws possesses remarkable movement.

Through two games, she hadn’t allowed an earned run and has 23 strikeouts and two walks in 12 innings. As talented as she is on the mound, Alexander said Wisdom is an equally good teammate.

“She’s a great kid,” he said. “She’s not loud, but business-like on the mound. She’s a competitor with a capital C. We all have come to know that glare when she’s not happy.”

She was nothing but happy when the Thundering Herd defeated Johansen-Modesto 6-3 in the second-game of a doubleheader to claim the SJS title last May 28.

“I was kind of in shock when it happened,” Wisdom said of winning the title, the team’s first since 2004. “I believed in our team, but when the moment finally came I just remember jumping up in the air, hugging my catcher and then it was all a blur. It still seems unbelievable.”

Elk Grove was beaten earlier in the day 6-5 to force a deciding game. Wisdom had eight strikeouts and a walk and gave up three earned runs in the title game. But she also had two hits, including a two-run homer.

“She’s not a tall, dominating figure on the mound in the mold of the Cat Osterman,” Alexander said. “But she’s a flat-out athlete. If she wasn’t pitching, she’d play shortstop. She

RAEANN GARZA, P, SO., JAMES LOGANUnIOn CIty — Just a freshman, Garza was the winning pitcher in the Colts’ 4-3 sectionchampionship victory over Freedom last June.

DANIELLE HENDERSON, 3B, SR., sheLdOn-saCraMentO — Already committed to join her older sister Jolene at Cal, Henderson boasted a .510 average with 30 RBI last season.

VANESSA ALVAREZ, P, JR., ARCHBISHOP MItty-san JOse — It might be hard to top her sophomore campaign of 293 strikeouts, a 0.15 ERA and a 24-2 record.

JANELL LARONT, P, SR., VALLEY CHRIStIan-san JOse — A dual-threat, Laront had 26 wins in the circle while leading the team with a .419 average and 32 RBI.

MEGAN AVERITT, OF, SR., ALAMEDA — We don’t know if she speaks softly, but we know she carries a big stick. Averitt hit .610 with 47 hits and 35 runs scored in 2010.

hits the ball a ton, runs like the wind, she does it all. But she’s definitely a pitcher. She’s our pitcher and that’s what she’ll do in college.”

Center fielder Jordan Brenner is another college player — she’ll play next year at San Francisco State. She was the team’s leading hitter last year at .449.

“She runs like the wind and is a great slap hitter,” Alexander said. “She’s got a great arm from the outfield.”

Other returning starters are catcher Alycia Fields and third baseman Carlee Gray, both juniors. “(Fields) stepped up as a freshman and just got better and better,” Alexander said. “Carlee is another third-year player who is very versatile.”

Gray moves over from first base, which is now being shared by junior Alexis Saborio, sophomore Erikka Burke and versatile senior Kimberly Wilburn.

With Harris and Brenner holding down left and center, right is being shared by either Wilburn, sophomore Sarah Hannah or senior Jessica Venturelli. Talented Morgan Evangelista, a catcher, joins Pires and Kaylor as the team’s only ninth-graders.

“We lost four really good players from last year, so we really need to push harder this year,” Wisdom said. “Of course we have a target on our backs now. Everyone wants to beat us. But our goal is strong and true – to get back to Wednesday night.”

Wednesday is traditionally the night SJS championship games are played. Wisdom welcomes the target and has embraced the national rankings.

“I think we deserve it, but it should only make us more determined to keep it,” she said. “We can’t sit back. We have to keep pushing forward.” ✪

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NorCal top 15 SportStars’ preseason Northern California softball rankings. Teams from the Central Section are not considered. Records are from 2010.

1. Elk Grove .............................. 25-4-1 2. Pleasant Grove-Elk Grove .......24-7 3. James Logan-Union City ........25-5 4. Oak Ridge-El Dorado Hills.......27-5 5. Johansen-Modesto ..................28-6 6. Sheldon-Sacramento ........... 20-9-1 7. Archbishop Mitty-San Jose ......28-3 8. Valley Christian-San Jose ........25-5 9. Freedom-Oakley ......................24-3 10. California-San Ramon ...........16-6 11. Pioneer-San Jose ...................23-9 12. Pinole Valley-Pinole ...............21-7 13. Concord ..................................24-3 14. Rancho Cotate-Rohnert Park ..22-5 15. Heritage-Brentwood .............17-10

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Mark your calendars!

Key tournament/showcase dates to note March 10-12 — Queen of the Mountain, Willow Pass Park, Concord March 10-12 — Victory Preseason Tournament, multiple sites, Elk Grove/Sacramento March 18-19, 25-26 — Charlie Miguel Invitational, Pioneer HS, San Jose March 31-April 2 — Standley Cup, Oliver Park, Hayward April 1-2 — 27th Annual Napa Tournament, Napa HS April 7-9 — Livermore Stampede, Robertson Park, Livermore April 14-16 — Reed Easter Tournament, Shadow Mountain Park, Reno, NV. April 15-16 — Stephanie LeDoux Tournament, Roseville City Parks, Roseville April 28-30 — NorCal Classic, various sites, Tracy

March 10, 2011

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Baseball, softball retail we

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Sup

websites giving away DeMarini bats

om

First of all, any baseball or softball player who knows how to shag a fly, pick a ball out of the dirt, or lay down a drag bunt, ought to know about BaseballSavings.com and SoftballSavings.com.

The websites exist as an online retail resource for some of the finest baseball and softball gear available.

With name brand items at severe discount prices, it’s a no-brainer to become the next bookmark on your web browser. Save up to 75 percent on Mizuno apparel, or 85 percent on Mizuno cleats. You name the brand: Under Armour, Rawlings, Nike — you’ll find major savings on all of them. Players can outfit themselves, or coaches can outfit their entire team.

If that alone doesn’t entice you to check out the sites, the fact that each one is holding a DeMarini bat giveaway just might. At BaseballSavings.com, you can enter to win the DeMarini Voodoo Black ST. The Voodoo Black contains DeMarini’s direct connect power technology and it also meets the BBCOR standards required for high school competition.

The Voodoo also has a two-piece endcap designed to reduce vibration while pushing

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the energy to the sweet spot for more power.

For the softball player, SoftballSavings.com has the same contest and is giving away your choice of the DeMarini J2 TFS Composite SP, or the CF4 Composite FP. For the high school fastpitch players, the CF4 is the bat of choice. The CF4 Insane is built specifically for the player seeking a little extra power in their swing. The weight of the bat is evenly distributed all the way down to the end of the barrel. You’ll have more mass at full extension, which brings greater swing speed and perhaps just enough extra pop to allow you to stretch that double into a triple.

As for the J2, the TFS stands for The Fly Swatter and works as a menace on the slopitch diamond — which might mean that even Mom or Dad may want to log onto SoftballSavings and enter, after you get them to order you a new pair of spikes, of course.

Finally, upon entering the contest you’ll be given a chance to enter up to five friends and receive an additional five entries in the drawing. We suggest entering five teammates, that way your team benefits no matter who wins the bat.

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in the paint

Bishop O’Dowd girls deliver on second chance, win third straight NCS title

By Chace Bryson | Editor After giving up a 13-point fourth quarter lead, watching a winning layup incomprehensibly spin out at the buzzer to end regulation, and trailing by one with 24 seconds left in overtime, the Bishop O’Dowd-Oakland girls had every reason to think the basketball gods had decreed the Dragons were not going to beat Campolindo-Moraga in the teams’ March 5 clash for the North Coast Section Division III title.

And then Margaret Huntington — who took aforementioned shot which rimmed out at the buzzer — was in the right spot at the right time.

Lariel Powell’s driving lefthander hit off the rim with eight seconds left in overtime, and Huntington followed the miss with a layup that hit nothing but backboard and net.

Campolindo’s Amanda Forshay was able to dribble the length of the floor, but her 3-point heave at the buzzer sailed wide and Bishop O’Dowd claimed a 66-65 victory to win its third straight section crown and earn the top seed in the California Interscholastic Federation Division III Northern regional tournament which began March 8.

“I hope someone else beats them,” said Campolindo coach Clay Kallam, whose team enters the CIF tournament on the opposite side of the bracket as Bishop O’Dowd. “They’re really good, and they’ll make some adjustments. Malik (McCord) is a good coach and I don’t think we’ll have the same success with our zone defense as before. I have a feeling they’ll take us seriously if we play again (for the NorCal title).”

The thrilling finish to the section final capped a game of runs, which began with Campolindo jumping out 21-11 thanks to a pair of long 3-pointers from Annie Ward (16 points).

But when Annelise Ito picked up her second foul, Bishop O’Dowd came storming back, thanks in great part to the sterling inside play of K.C. Waters (20 points, 10 rebounds) and Iderah Chidom (14 points despite fouling out in the fourth quarter).

“We had no answer for Waters,” Kallam said. “She’s so agile and shoots so well that once she gets the ball near the basket there’s just not much you can do. And Chidom doesn’t allow you to concentrate on Waters because she’ll hurt you in the paint as well.”

At the half, the Dragons led by eight, and when Ito picked up two more fouls in the third quarter, the margin extended to 13 going into the fourth quarter.

But despite the fine play of sophomore point guard Ariell Bostick, Bishop O’Dowd’s offense stalled in the last eight minutes, and the Cougars fought their way back into the game. Forshay (16 points) and freshman Ashley Ewing (10 points) sparked a run that eventually got the Cougars a late lead, but as time ran down in regulation, the score was tied.

The Dragons got the last shot when Bostick zipped a pass to Huntington under the basket. Her point-blank shot was just tipped by Ward as it left Huntington’s hand, giving it an unusual spin – and after circling around the rim, the ball spun out as the horn sounded, sending it into overtime.

The teams traded the lead back and forth during the extra four minutes, and a Forshay drive put Campolindo ahead 6564 with 24 seconds left. But this time Huntington didn’t miss.

It was a devastating defeat for the upset-minded Cougars, but certainly an encouraging effort considering the Dragons defeated them by 42 points when the teams met in the NCS Division III semifinals a year ago.

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Bob Larson

TOP: Bishop O’Dowd guard Randi Jackson (left) has no problem pointing out the star of the Dragons’ championship overtime victory over Campolindo-Moraga —Margaret Huntington, who made the game-winning shot with 6 seconds remaining.

RIGHT: Campolindo’s Ruthie Shapiro (middle), is hounded in the paint by K.C. Waters (44) and Randi Jackson (10).

“When we started going at them more, we were able to score,” Kallam said. “Ewing came in in the fourth quarter and really gave us a spark. Ruthie Shapiro was sick, and so Ashley had to play a position she’s never really played before, and did a great job.”

In the end, though, too much inconsistency in the middle of the game doomed Campolindo’s effort.

“We keep waiting for the game when we’ll play four full quarters,” Kallam concluded. “We played two pretty good quarters, but the other two we just couldn’t get in gear.”

Bishop O’Dowd begins its quest for a state crown on March 10 when it hosts the winner of a first-round matchup between Acalanes-Lafayette and Vanden-Travis AFB. Campolindo’s regional tournament began with a first-round game against Christian Brothers-Sacramento.

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in the paint

Castro Valley breaks through Berkeley, Carondelet for its first section crown on another collision course

By Chace Bryson | Editor

How many Trojans does it take to bring down a Spartan empire?

Just Juan.

That is if you’re talking about Juan Anderson, the Marquette-bound senior of the Castro Valley boys basketball team.

Actually, even though Anderson delivered a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds against defending-champion De La Salle-Concord in the North Coast Section Division I final on March 4, Castro Valley won its first NCS title behind a very balanced attack led by a group of seniors that were relieved to finally get over the hump.

“Anyone who’s followed us knows that the playoffs haven’t been kind to us the last three years,” Castro Valley coach Nick Jones said.

“But most of this group has been with us since they were sophomores, and they are playing the best basketball they’ve played in three years.”

De La Salle was seeking its third Division I crown in four years and many thought that the team which had been there before would outlast the new school at the party.

Not so.

Late in the third quarter after De La Salle had cut Castro Valley’s lead to 30-28, senior point guard Roderick Bobbitt sunk a coldblooded 3-pointer that ignited a 17-4 Trojans run to put the game out of reach. Bobbitt led all scorers with 20 points. Fellow senior Chris Read had 11 points and six rebounds.

“There’s no question that they’re a talented team,” De La Salle coach Frank Allocco said of Castro Valley. “Their first five players are extremely talented and they play together well. They run the floor and they’re so explosive.”

The Trojans never appeared panicked as the game unfolded in front of a capacity crowd of more than 4,000 at Moraga’s McKeon Pavilion. Even when the pace of the game was favoring the methodical offense of De La Salle.

“The thing that when you play De La Salle, is that you have to be mentally tough,” Jones said. “Their defense and precision offense is going to wear on you. But I think my kids did a really good job of riding the wave. They just kind of stayed together and we just kept playing.”

The Trojans now head into the California Interscholastic Federation Division I Northern regional tournament as the No. 1 seed. De La Salle garnered the No. 2 seed. Both will

Boys CIF Northern regional at a glance ■ FAVORITES — Div. I: Castro Valley; Div. II: Archbishop Mitty-San Jose; Div. III: Sacramento; Div. IV: Salesian-Richmond; Div. V: St. Joseph Notre Dame-Alameda.

■ CINDERELLA POTENTIAL — Div. I: Oakland; Div. II: Chico; Div. III: Bishop O’Dowd-Oakland; Div. IV: Sacred Heart Prep-Atherton; Div. V: Vacaville Chrisitan.

■ PREDICTED CHAMPS — Div. I: De La Salle-Concord; Div. II: Mitty; Div. III: Sacramento; Div. IV: Salesian; Div. V: Pinewood-Los Altos Hills.

Jonathan Hawthorne

Castro Valley senior Juan Anderson scored eight of his 14 points in the second half to help the Trojans clinch the NCS Div. I final against De La Salle-Concord.

host quarterfinals on March 10.

“We’ve come along way in four years,” Jones said. “Everybody has grown up and really embraced this. ...When they were sophomores, it was new. Last year, I think we got a little ahead of ourselves and weren’t quite ready for it. This year, they’ve been ready for the big stage from Day 1.”

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By clay kallam | SportStars

With seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter of the tightly-contested North Coast Section Division I girls championship game, Carondelet-Concord led Berkeley 52-43.

Portia Velasco had just scored the last of her 10 points, and it had been nearly four minutes since the Yellowjackets had changed their side of the scoreboard.

But that was the last basket the Cougars would make, and after the intense fourth quarter had played out, Berkeley managed a 55-53 win and an NCS Div. I title.

The dramatic finish — which concluded when Carondelet guard Hannah Huffman’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer bounded of the rim — concluded the third game this season between the two powerhouse programs, each decided by three points or less. The Yellowjackets have won two of the three, including each of the past two meetings.

However, one would be crazy to think that a fourth meeting isn’t on the horizon when the California Interscholastic Federation Division I regional championship takes place March 19 at Power Balance Pavilion (formerly Arco Arena) in Sacramento.

The teams earned the top two seeds in the regional bracket. After first-round byes they begin their path toward another clash on March 10. If the third showdown was any indication, a fourth meeting should be dramafilled. There was enough drama alone in the final 20 seconds of the NCS title tilt. Huffman drew a foul with 17.4 to go and went to the line with a chance to tie the game. But she missed both. Khristina Hunter rebounded for Berkeley and was immediately fouled – and missed the front end of a one-on-one with 15.7 remaining.

The Cougars brought the ball up and coach Margaret Gartner called timeout to set up a sideline inbounds play, but Jasmine Guinn anticipated the pass, stepped in front and headed downcourt for a completely uncontested layup to seal the game – except she missed. The ball rolled off the front rim with five seconds left, and Carondelet called a timeout with the ball at half court with two seconds remaining. The inbounds play went to Huffman, who was well-guarded and had to settle for the long 3-pointer.

The Division II game was just as exciting, with late free throws made and missed deciding the Dougherty Valley-Clayton Valley outcome. In the end, Rayven Brooks’ two free throws stood up for a 46-45 Wildcat win,

Girls CIF Northern regional at a glance ■ FAVORITES — Div. I: Berkeley; Div. II: St. Mary’s-Stockton; Div. III: Bishop O’Dowd; Div. IV: St. Mary’s (Berkeley); Div. V: Pinewood.

■ CINDERELLA POTENTIAL — Div. I: St. Francis (Sacramento); Div. II: Dougherty Valley; Div. III: Vanden; Div. IV: Marin Catholic; Div. V: St. Joseph Notre Dame.

■ PREDICTED CHAMPS — Div. I: Berkeley; Div. II: St. Mary’s-Stockton; Div. III: St. Ignatius; Div. IV: St. Mary’sBerkeley; Div. V: Eastside College Prep.

Bob Larson

Brittany Boyd (with ball) and Berkeley has won two of three tight games this season over Hannah Huffman (22) and Carondelet-Concord. and a top seed in NorCals.

Of course, North Coast Section wasn’t the only section with lots going on. Pinewood beat Eastside College Prep for the fourth time to win the CCS Div. V title and Del Oro gave St. Mary’s of Stockton its toughest test since mid-January before losing 70-65 in the Sac-Joaquin Section Div. II finals.

Perhaps the biggest upset of all was Sacred Heart Cathedral knocking off St. Ignatius – the team many thought would be the top seed in NorCals’ Div. III, 64-48.

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March 10, 2011

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29

running isn’t always the answer to conditioning

T

raining the proper energy systems is vital when conditioning young athletes for their respective sports.

Have you ever seen or heard of a baseball team using a three-mile jog for conditioning, or football players who are drilled into the ground by being pushed to the limit every practice? What are we doing to our young athletes?

Unfortunately your young athlete thinks that they are getting better by these misappropriated conditioning protocols.

The fact is that a trainer or coach needs to understand the energy system that is specific to the sport when implementing an effective conditioning program.

The intensity and duration at which your young athletes train should closely match that of the sport.

The adaptations that occur with training are specific to the training that is being prescribed. This is why it is a must that coaches and trainers must initially conduct a needs analysis of the athlete’s respective sport. This includes the movements that make up the sport as well as the strength, speed, power and endurance, and also what muscles are involved in these movements during play.

Here is a quick review of the specific energy systems that should be considered when analyzing the demands of a specific sport: This anaerobic system can be broken down into two sub-categories, the Phosphagen or ATP-CP and the lactic anaerobic category.

■ Phosphagen(ATP-CP) can support high intensity activity for approximately 0-20 seconds ■ Lactic Acid (Glycolic) metabolism can support high intensity activity for 20 seconds to a maximum of two minutes.

The aerobic system with oxygen can support moderate levels of work for long periods of time, and low levels of work almost indefinitely.

So let’s focus on a sport such as soccer in

which players are often required to constantly keep moving. This gives the impression of great “aerobic” demand. Many coaches take this assumption and literally “run with it” by emphasizing aerobic-type conditioning almost exclusively.

On the soccer field, it has been shown that the percentage emphasis on aerobic metabolism is as low as 0-20 percent (with the 20 percent being halfbacks or link players). This would mean that a greater than 80 percent emphasis can be placed on the anaerobic system.

So does it makes sense to have soccer players run five miles — which is highly aerobic — if the research shows that greater than 80 percent emphasis in on the anaerobic metabolism? No, I didn’t think so.

So, knowing the energy system categories and what the sport demands — in this instance, soccer — the coach or trainer can program and implement a well-rounded conditioning program such as the one below: ■ Alactic/anaerobic energy system (60 percent): 10 X 20-yard agility runs with a 1:5 work to rest ratio +15 X 30-yard sprints with a 1:5 work to rest ratio.

■ Lactic/anaerobic energy systems (20 percent): 10 X 100-yard striders with a 1:1 work rest ratio.

■ Anaerobic / Aerobic (20 percent): 110-yard Fartleks (stride 30 yards, sprint 40 yards, stride 30 yards, walk 10 yards) for 10 consecutive minutes By identifying which energy system and work-to-rest ratio is mostly used in your young athletes’ sport, coaches and trainers will get the most out of your young athlete; resulting in improved athletic performance.

training time tim rudd for iyCa

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Tim Rudd is an International Youth Conditioning Association specialist in youth conditioning (level 3), speed and agility (level 2), and nutrition specialist (level 1). You can contact him with questions or feed- back at tim@ fit2thecore.com.

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tee2green

C’mon now, ditch the skis and grab the clubs

Keep an eye on Tee2Green for golf news and opportunities throughout the spring By erIK stOrdahL | SportStars

Christmas is over. So is New Years. And so are all those false alarms about snow. It’s time to dust off your clubs and hit the fairways.

There are many ways for golfers of all levels to experience golf this spring and summer — and there’s a good chance you can find out about them right here in SportStars’ Tee2Green section.

For beginner golfers of all ages, each course has at least one resident instructor who can teach the basics. Learn what a handicap is, understand the importance of fixing a divot and be able to decipher between a 9-iron and 5-wood while knowing the importance of both.

The ideal program for kids to learn the basics of golf is The First Tee Program. A nationwide syndicate, The First Tee has several chapters all over Northern California.

They teach not only the rules of the game but also valuable life lessons such as integrity, honesty and sportsmanship.

Young golfers with experience can take part in the new summer tour provided by the Northern California Golf

Association (NCGA) and Northern California Professional Golfer’s Association (NCPGA). Travel all over California and play in tournaments amongst peers. Rack up points throughout the season and compete for top honors. This is ideal for high school golfers looking to stay competitive during the offseason.

Country clubs are Butch Noble perfect for hosting Carondelet-Concord’s tournaments, beneMiranda Zulueta. fits and other charity events. Lots of money can be raised for worthy causes while at the same time bringing together a community.

Public courses offer special rates and deals on their 9-hole and 18-hole courses along with their driving ranges.

Find the deal that best suits you and your foursome. Try to keep in mind that golf will always be one of the most frustrat-

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ing games on earth — have fun out there! And remember that it’s a long season, so there’s plenty of time to hone your skills so you can shoot lower scores.

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Playing golf and learning life skills both require a proper pace This winter I’ve enjoyed the good fortune of getting out and playing 18 holes at Los Lagos Golf Course with several of The First Tee of San Jose’s “Ace” participants — 12 of them, in total, who’ve progressed through our five-level life skills program over several years.

They’re an elite group in that they’re the first young people to have been able to reach this point in our organization’s program since its inception in 2005.

I’m proud to have them as our ambassadors as they play, and even more proud to have them as playing partners.

“Pacing our play” is a priority in The First Tee of San Jose’s program. Ideally, we pace our participants as they move from second to 12th grade so that they’re learning life lessons that are appropriate for their stage of development. For example, younger participants learn more about interpersonal skills such as how to “meet and greet,” while older participants learn more about goal-setting such as how to take smaller steps toward attending their college of choice.

We’re pacing them for the entire round of our life skills program because we believe that’s the best way to build their character

Getting elected thanks to the First tee

Get involved!

Visit your local chapter of The First Tee to become a participant, volunteer or supporter. the FIrst tee OF san JOse the FIrst tee OF trI-VaLLey www.thefirstteesanjose.org www.thefirstteetrivalley.org 408-288-2937 925-462-7201

First tee Files George Maxe

the FIrst tee OF COntra COsta www.thefirstteecontracosta.org 925-686-6262

— with consistent, sustained mentoring from caring volunteers. The good character of our twelve Ace participants is very apparent, especially after 18 holes.

Playing at the proper pace of play is important for everyone’s enjoyment of the game. That’s why we teach it to our participants, especially as it relates to showing respect for other golfers. This spring, The First Tee of San Jose is beginning a new “oncourse” class which will reinforce etiquette and rules. Each foursome will be guided by a volunteer mentor, who will help them learn the importance of playing at a proper pace among other things.

Our goal is for our over 500 currentlyactive participants to develop the same good

first tee, firsthand

the FIrst tee OF OaKLand www.thefirstteeoakland.org 510-352-2002

character and enjoyment of the game that our first twelve Ace participants have. What’s more, we want golfers outside of The First Tee of San Jose to be proud to have our young people as playing partners.

Be sure to look for The First Tee at the Bay Area Golf Show in Santa Clara!

First Tee Files is a rotating column featuring administrators of four Bay Area chapters of The First Tee — Contra Costa, Oakland, San Jose and Tri-Valley. George Maxe is the Executive Director of the First Tee of San Jose. Find out more at the following websites: www.TheFirstTeeContraCosta. org, www.TheFirstTeeOakland.org, www.

TheFirstTeeSanJose.org and www.TheFirstTeeTriValley.org.

One of the nine core values preached in the First Tee Program is perseverance. As golfers know, not every shot will be your best, and not every game will be star quality. But pushing through will not only make you a better golfer, but a better person. With tools learned before, like STAR and The 4 R’s, we can make sure we stay relaxed and confident in every path of perseverance we take.

When I started high school, I had the dream to become class president. I worked hard and gave the best campaign for freshman class president I could. I did not win but I just kept in my mind that next year was a new election. So my sophomore year I ran again, and lost again, but I did not let it get me down.

Because the First Tee had taught me perseverance, I knew that I shouldn’t give up, so for the third year in a row I ran for class president — and won. Through the First Tee’s lesson of perseverance, I achieved success.

eddie estrada

Eddie Estrada is a senior at De La Salle High.

He has been a member of The First Tee Contra Costa for six years. Contact him at eddieestrad@gmail.com.

notes from the pros

save strokes by learning how to track & analyze your stats I am surprised to learn that the high school team I coach has had very little experience using statistics to track information regarding on-course performance.

It’s simple, accurate and takes very little time.

When I polled the team, I was shocked to learn that most players had little to no idea how to use stats to figure how to shave four to five strokes off their scores.

Simply by tracking the following categories — fairways-hit, greens-in-regulation, number of up-anddowns, and total number of putts — it becomes very obvious to me where the problems lie with a golfer’s game.

Teaching players how to track this information, analyze it, and apply it to their

game, helps each golfer to take responsibility.

Simply remembering what happened on the course, and taking a few minutes to review it, can organize the golfer and guide his or her next practice session.

Often times the total number of putts determines whether the golfer played well or not.

The course the round was played on, and the conditions, should also be considered.

Keep better track of your statistics and you too are likely to see positive results in a shorter period of time.

Dave De long

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Dave DeLong is the PGA professional and director of instruction at Boundary Oak GC. Contact him at ddelongolf@aol.com.

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March 10, 2011

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camps + clinics baseball/soFtball the Pitching Center We develop baseball players to their full potential.

The Pitching Center has grown to become the Total Player Center (TPC), a full-service baseball and softball training academy. Age- and skill-specific programs are available for students ages 8 – High School. Info: 925416-1600, thepitchingcenter.com sportForm Based in Concord, SportForm provides Individual and team instruction in baseball, softball and lacrosse.

Highly trained professionals provide accelerated and advanced skills clinics. Prepare to Preform! Info: 925459-2880.

basketball Saint Mary’s College camps Spend your June and July learning fundamentals or honing your skills at McKeon Pavilion. Plenty of options are available. Registration and info: 925-631-4386, smccamps@stmarys-ca.edu; www.smcgaels.com.

CHeer CheerGyms.com Cheergyms.com offers the best clinics in California!

Customize your clinic to fit your needs from basic stunting techniques or working on twist cradles out of one leg stunts, we take your team to the next level! Info: 866-685-7615, www.CheerGyms.com east Bay sports academy Our Summer Day Camps offer the best combination of gymnastics, cheerleading and summer camp fun! Recreational and competitive athletes benefit from training with the best, most committed coaches. Our 10,000 sq. foot facility is clean and bright with the newest equipment. Be a part of the fun and make friendships that last a lifetime! Info: (925) 680-9999, www.EastBaySportsAcademy.com.

eNriCHMeNt dianne adair Programs Dianne Adair offers a wide variety of enrichment programs for your child, during the school year and throughout summer. Discover a fun and exciting place to be before and after school. Activities include: Home work help, 4th & Up Club, art and crafts, science, sports, and games. Our exciting summer camps include weekly field trips which could include the Exploratorium, Chabot Space Center, Marine World, Lawrence Hall of Science, water parks, Tilden Park and more. Info. www.dianneadair.org.

E.Nopi and Palm Academy Palm Academy provides academic enrichment for students throughout the summer. Students attend a variety of classes including English, Math, Art, Science, Biology, and Critical Thinking using the E.nopi learning method which is one of the most popular learning curriculums worldwide! Palm Academy’s “Summer Camp Spectacular” offers day camps with one-week or one-day programs to provide the flexibility for your busy schedule. Abrakadoodle Art Camps inspire kids to reach beyond and create art that is unique to them. Let imaginations soar! Palm Academy, Fremont, (510) 9799794 or E.Nopi, Newark, (510)79ENOPI (36674)

programs build confidence and enables clients to reach personal goals that benefit them in all parts of life.

Beginning riders or experienced equestrians, we have a place for you. I provide instruction in horsemanship on the ground and in the saddle while having fun. Info: 925-228-1801; http://www.kimshorsetraining.com/ franklin_canyon.html Castle Rock Arabians You don’t need “True Grit” to saddle up at Castle Rock Arabians—you just need a desire to learn how to horseback ride. In just a few basic lessons you can see the country from the back of a horse—the best form of transportation in history! Activities for tweens and teenagers, where we build team spirit through various team activities on horseback. Visit the ranch by appointment. Info: 925-933-3701, www. castlerockarabians.com

FitNess Fit 2 the Core As a Youth Conditioning, Speed/Agility and Nutrition Specialist with the IYCA, Fit-2-The-Core Training Systems offers an innovative approach to getting young athletes back on the field post-rehabilitation (which get your athletes to normal function), continuing the process by progressing their bodies to handle what they must endure on the field or court. Sign up today for your two-week free pass at www.fasteryoungathletes.com or Call 925-639-0907.

Walnut Creek Sports & Fitness Walnut Creek Sports & Fitness offers over 70 group classes per week. Brand new bamboo group fitness floors for extra shock absorption makes Zumba, Yoga, and BodyPump state-of-the-art. The Pilates reformer studio provides a calming atmosphere while our cycle studio revs and energizes. Members also enjoy our heated pool, sauna, spa, and steam-room. Massage, skincare and chiropractic services are available. Call us today for your free week pass! Info: 925-932-6400, www.wcsf.net

Football NorCal Football Camps Led by Marin Catholic High coach, Ken Peralta (San Francisco 49ers High School Coach of the Year,) Camps serve youth ages of 7- 14. We help each child reach his full potential as a football player and young person. We understand youth football is the foundation that high school and higher level programs are built upon. Our focus is building a foundation that is solid and lasting. Info: 650-245-3608 . www. norcalfootballcamps.com

GolF Dave DeLong Junior Golf Camp In its seventh year, this is a great camp for advanced and beginning junior golfers. Camps are designed for golfers 7-15. Camps include a 4 to 1 ratio of students

Continued, page 38

eQUestriaN Kelly Maddox Riding Academy Enjoy a week of fun-filled learning as you develop new friendships with other horse-crazy kids. Learn basic handling and grooming, how to saddle and bridle your horse. You will develop a balanced riding seat and control of your horse. Weekly activities include learning horse colors, markings and breeds; arts and crafts; a farrier demonstration and human horse show; bareback riding and more! Info: 925-575-4818, www.

KellyMaddoxTraining.com.

Franklin Canyon Stables Franklin Canyon Stables in Martinez provides two covered arenas and easy access to trails. Instruction

34

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Continued from page 15 Riding the high of thrashing the competition at NCS, Sheridan & Co. had great expectations at state.

“We set our goals as high as possible,” Sheridan said. “We expected to win (NCS). We’re going to state expecting to win it. We don’t just want to win, we want to dominate.”

Though the Spartans could not stand between Clovis and its record ninth state crown, they did break into long-since-charted territory for an NCS team.

De La Salle scored 82.5 team points to place fourth overall, behind Clovis (186), Bakersfield (177) and Selma (100) and ahead of Lemoore (76).

It is the highest team finish for an NCS team since Logan finished third in 1996 (100.5).

Sheridan led the charge, matching his 2010 finish by taking home the third- place trophy.

He entered the tournament ranked No. 2 in the state and dropped a brutal 3-2 semifinal decision to San Clemente’s Preston Quam, the No. 3-ranked 189-pounder. Quam, though,

FEBRUARY SWAG BAG WINNER

Bob Larson

Alex Abono (top) wrestles Terra Linda-San Rafael’s Erick Figueroa in the 140-pound NCS final. Abono won the match and advanced to the CIF state tournament where he earned a fourth-place medal. got wrecked by four-time CIF medallist and three-time champ Morgan McIntosh of Calvary Chapel-Santa Ana.

Abono also made a nice run. After going 3-2 in his state debut as a sophomore at 130 in 2010, the junior blazed into the semifi-

The February SportStars Magazine SWAG BAG winner is: Jana W. FrOM san raMOn. You win a Pair of NorthStar at Tahoe lift tickets plus, a $20 Gift Card to Scandia Family Fun Center along with a Free Hour pass at Sky High Sports, $20 in Golfsmith Golf & Tennis Gift Cards, $10 Ace Hardware Gift Card, and a Halo Headband (the most advanced headband on the market). Congratulations!

ENTER TO W I N

nals before falling to eventual champ Isaiah Martinez (Lemoore). Abono pinned Bakersfield’s Maxx Ramirez to reach the third-place match, where he dropped a tough 4-2 decision to Buena Park’s David Meza. Abono had beaten Meza 6-5 in the quartefinals on Friday.

Walker, a junior who missed the bulk of the season due to an injury sustained playing football, was a pleasant surprise for the Spartans. He started with an EBAL championship, then went on a tear through the NCS field, topping No. 1 seeded Kyle Clark of Antioch 7-2 for his first NCS title.

He won his first two state matches before losing in the quarters to eventual champ William Knowles of Calvary Chapel, and ended up placing 7th in the state to cap what was essentially a remarkable three-week season.

Moita, who placed fourth at 103 POUNDS in 2010, went 4-2 and missed medalling by one match.

Siegfried and Wynn both went 3-2, Hunter went 1-2, and Chavez and Ramirez went 0-2.

!

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adVertIsers Atherton Lacrosse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Back Forty BBQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 BaseballBattingCages.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 BaseballSavings.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24 Bear Valley Ski Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 Big C Athletic Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Big O Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Bob Larson Sports Photography . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Cabernet Indoor Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 Cal Athletic Camps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Castle Rock Arabians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Championship Athletic Fundraising. . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Cheer Gyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Clayton/Countrywood Fitness Centers . . . . . . . . . .34 Club Sport Renaissance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Coach Rick Golf . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Community Youth Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 Club Sport Valley Vista . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Concord Movie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Crowne Plaza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Dave DeLong School of Golf . . . . . . . . . . .35, 37 Diablo Car Wash & Detail Center . . . . . . . . . . .29 Diablo Rock Gym . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

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Diablo Trophies & Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Dianne Adair Enrichment Programs . . . . . . . . .30 eTeamSponsor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 e.nopi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 East Bay Sports Academy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Excellence in Sport Performance . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Farmers Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Fit 2 The Core . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Franklin Canyon Golf Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Franklin Canyon Stables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 Heavenly Greens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Heritage Soccer Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16, 33 Hometeam Sports Photography . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Jory’s Flowers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Kaiser Permanente . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28 Kelly Maddox Equestrian Training . . . . . . . . . .16 Kinders BBQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 Lone Tree Golf & Event Center . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Mare Island Golf Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 NorCal Youth Football Camp . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Odwalla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Peninsula Building Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Rocco’s Pizza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 SP Gear Screenprinting & Embroidery . . . . . . .29

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Saint Mary’s Athletic Summer Camps. . . . . . . .33 Sherman Swim Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Simply Selling Shirts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Sky High Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Smokin Okie’s BBQ Joint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 SoccerSavings.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 SoftballSavings.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 Stanford Golf . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 State Farm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Sutter Delta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Team Zero Video Productions . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 TGW.com The Golf Warehouse . . . . . . . . . . . .31 The Ecco Store . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32 The First Tee of Contra Costa . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 The First Tee of Oakland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 The First Tee of San Jose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 The First Tee of Tri Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 The Pitching Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 USKS Martial Arts Concord. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 USTA Northern California . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Walnut Creek Soccer Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 Walnut Creek Sports & Fitness . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 Walnut Creek Swim Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

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Mail: SPORTSTARS Interactive, 5356 Clayton Road, Suite 222, Concord, CA 94521 • Fax: 925.566-8507

Upload photos and team stats! www.SportStarsMag.com

IMPULSE science meets hockey, sort of Dry Ice Roller Hockey. It sounds like the perfect marriage between science geek and sports buff, doesn’t it? Dry Ice Roller Hockey Arena in Oakland offers competitive hockey leagues for hosers and canucks of all kinds. Whether you’re a beginner lacing up a pair of skates for the first time, a seasoned vet ready to terrorize the boards again, or a washed-up old-timer with something to prove, Dry Ice is your place. Maybe playing in a league isn’t your thing and you just want time to practice your skills. Dry Ice offers Open Stick Time Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 5pm - 7pm for just $5 per skater. Give ‘em a call: (510) 638-9097 or visit their website: dryicehockey.com to learn more.

Next best brain bucket Get ready party animals!

Do your kids like totally awesome birthday parties? If they don’t, then it sounds like Pin the Tail on the Donkey and Costco cake will suffice for another year. For the cool kids out there, USKS has their Ninja Birthday Parties hosted by Sensei Joel (your favorite fun-time Sensei).

Sign up now so you and your friends can learn how to wax-on and wax-off, conquer a crazy obstacle course and play some fun games. Give USKS a call at (925) 682-9517 and schedule a ninja birthday party today.

From the same people that brought us the snazziest, safest football helmets, comes their venture onto the baseball diamond. The Xenith X1 Baseball helmet is the hottest helmet soon to hit the market. Here’s a helmet that both athletes and parents will like. It has the look and pizazz of a Lamborghini while owning enough padding and cushioning to rival Volvo for all the top safety awards. Gone are the days of donning helmets with more wires than all of your classmates’ braces combined. Step up to the plate in style with Xenith. Find them online at www.xenith.com to order yours now.

replace your divots!

How’s the weather up there?

Fix your divots in literally two seconds with the Sand Caddy. Don’t believe us? Check out their video at www. sandcaddy.com to see it with your own eyeballs. This invention is so practical and so necessary for every day course use that it was named Best New Product at the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando on Jan. 29. All you have to do is fill it with sand, store it in your pocket, use when necessary then refill.

How can something so revolutionary be so simple? It had all of us here at SportStars thinking “Why didn’t we think of that first?!”

And the best part: price. For only $9.95 you can be the proud of owner of a SandCaddy.

Not that you needed another incentive to check out Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, but they are unveiling a brand-spankin’ new ride.

Introducing the SkyScreamer.

Strap into a swing then rise 150 feet above ground with your feet dangling as you spin around in a circle going over 43 MPH. Yikes ... it’s dizzying just typing all of that. Six Flags Discovery Kingdom celebrates its 25th Anniversary when it opens on March 19. The SkyScreamer opens in late spring. Doggy bag not included. Go to www.sixflags.com/discoverykingdom/rides/skyscreamer to watch a video previewing this death-defying ride. If that sounds a little too thrilling for you, then explore Discovery Kingdom’s vast wilderness of animals from all over the world. Come face to face with elephants, giraffes, sharks, lions and chimps.

— By Erik Stordahl

Support Your Local Business • Say You Found Them In SportStars™

March 10, 2011

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photo finish Liberty-Brentwood wrestler Nico Serrano (left) and Healdsburg’s Adam Hendrickson give new meaning to head-to-head matchup during the 135-pound final at the North Coast Section Wrestling Championships on Feb. 26. Hendrickson won the match to claim his second NCS title. He went on to grab a sixth-place medal at the CIF state championships on March 5.

Photo by bob larson

Want to submit your pic for Photo Finish?

Send it to us at editor@SportStarsMag.com Photos must be 300 dpi and at least 10 inches wide in the jpeg format. Please identify every person in the photo and include your contact information.

camps + clinics to teachers where safety is the top priority as well as player development and enjoyment.

Golfers will play Boundary Oak Course, Walnut Creek. Info: 925997-3683; www.delonggolf.com Coach Rick Golf Learn to play on the course, where it matters with Coach Rick!

Golfers of all ages can sign up for clinics offered by Coach Rick starting now throughout summer.

Info: (510) 917-6442 • www.

ThePersonalGolfCoach.com The First Tee-Contra Costa The First Tee Summer Camp is a youth development program for boys and girls 7-18. Participants learn about golf and life skills and values inherent to the game, rules and etiquette and The First Tee Nine Core Values- honesty, integrity, sportsmanship, respect, confidence, responsibility, perseverance, courtesy and judgment. Summer camps at Diablo Creek Golf Course in Concord. Info: www. thefirstteecontracosta.org; angela@ thefirstteecontracosta.org or 925686-6262 x0.

The First Tee-Oakland The First Tee of Oakland has delivered The First Tee Life Skills Experience to over 262 participants. Each receive a min. 12 hours of instruction over an 8-week period. Instruction is at three Oakland courses: Metropolitan Golf Links, Lake Chabot GC and Montclair GC. The First Tee of Oakland’s programs are accessible and affordable to children of all cultures and social strata, or physical disabilities. Info: 510-352-2002; www.thefirstteeoakland.org.

The First Tee-San Jose The First Tee of San Jose develops

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youth through the game of golf throughout Silicon Valley. We provide educational programs that build character, instill lifeenhancing values and promote healthy choices. Participants learn to appreciate diversity, resolve conflicts, build confidence and set goals. We welcome participants ranging from second to twelfth grade. Scholarships available.

Info: 408-288-2973; www. thefirstteesanjose.org.

The First Tee-Tri-Valley The First Tee of the Tri-Valley is a youth development organization using golf and its etiquette to teach important core values and life skills. We offer seasonal The First Tee Life Skills Experience Classes and Summer Camps for ages 7-17, held at the Pleasanton Golf Center on the Alameda County Fairgrounds. Spring classes begin as early as March 5 and summer classes begin on June 14. Junior Golf Summer Camps are held weekly. Info: 925.462.7201, www.

TheFirstTeeTriValley.org

LACROSSE Atherton Lacrosse Our lacrosse camps are designed for boys and girls ages 5-14, who are beginner or intermediate players. Lacrosse is a relatively new sport on the West Coast and we make every camper’s first introduction a memorable experience!

Atherton Lacrosse Camps has been introducing both boys and girls to the sport since 2005. Our group of coaches and staff are leaders in the lacrosse community with one goal in mind- making the FUNdamentals of lacrosse FUN! Info: 888-526-3330, www.

March 10, 2011

AthertonLacrosse.com.

SportForm Based in Concord, SportForm provides Individual and team instruction in baseball, softball and lacrosse. Highly trained professionals provide accelerated and advanced skills clinics. Prepare to Preform! Info: 925-459-2880.

MARTIAL ARTS USKS (UNITED STATES KARATE SYSTEMS) Adult and children’s programs, kick box fitness, mixed martial arts.

Providing excellence in martial arts instruction and services for the entire family. 925-682-9517; www. usksmartialarts.com

OUTDOOR SPORTS Bear Valley Mountain Bear Valley has six camps with multiple sessions including: Soccer, Archery, Tennis, Climbing, Cycling and Day Camp. Summer Camps offer outdoor recr programs for the whole family; overnight resident skill camps and day camps, too.

Day camp sessions overlap the skill camps, so each member of the family can select an activity or enjoy a day on the lakes or mountain bike trails.

Overnight Skill Camps include: Soccer (ages 9-16) featuring the University of Santa Clara Coaching Staff; Archery (Ages 9 – Adult) including JOAD training; Tennis (Ages 9-14); Climbing (Ages 1216); Cycling (Adult) Day Camps for Kids 3-18 provide mountain fun for ages 3-8(Cub) and ages 12-18 (Grizzly): Rock Climbing, Sailing, Canoeing, Hiking, Swimming, Disc Golf, Arts and

crafts, Kayaking, Biking, Wilderness adventures and more! Info: www. bearvalley.com

SOCCER Heritage Soccer Club Heritage is a Pleasant Hill/Martinez based competitive soccer club.

Players ages 8-18 can tryout, compete at the highest levels and travel the country playing in some of the biggest tournaments. Learn new skills and hone existing ones from top flight coaching staff with years of experience spanning the high school and college ranks. June is the third annual 6v6 Blowout Tournament. Go to www.heritagesc. com to learn more.

SWIMMING-DIVING Walnut Creek Swim Club WCSC is a recreational team sponsored by the City of Walnut Creek celebrating it’s 50th anniversary. Head coach, Brad Hoy has deep roots in the community as part of every one of those 50 summers. Led by his experience, his staff is the finest in the area. WCSC believes in finding the healthy balance between competition and family fun to produce well-rounded young athletes. Info: 925-766-5664 Sherman Swim School We are a Lafayette swimming and diving school celebrating our 50th year. Our year-round schedule allows children and adults to learn, retain, and improve their swim skills with little interruption. Come spend your summer in our warm waters. Info: 925-283-2100, www.

ShermanSwim.com

TENNIS Summer Tennis at Valley Vista Get your kids involved in tennis, one of the fastest growing sports the whole family can enjoy. Enroll in tennis camp at ClubSport Valley Vista. ClubSport Valley Vista has successfully hosted summer tennis camps in Walnut Creek for more than 30 years, with expert instruction. Info: 925-934-4050, www.clubsports.com

WRESTLING Community Youth Center The CYC in Concord offers three types of week-long wrestling camps. Elementary Camp for ages 5-10 runs July 5-8. All Corners Camp for ages 11-18 runs July 18-22, and Advanced Camp serves the same age group and runs Aug. 8-12. Camps are 9 a.m.-3 p.m. daily at the CYC. Info: 925-671-7070, Ext. 229, www. communityyouthcenter.com.

MULTI-SPORT Cal Athletic Camps Cal Camps are offered in a variety of sports for girls and boys 5-19, with week-long, half-day, fullday and overnight options, and several choices for adults— the Cal Football Women’s Huddle, Volleyball Adult Skills Camp and Adult Tennis Camps sponsored by coaches Amanda Augustus and Peter Wright.

Most camps take place on campus in Berkeley from June through August. Cal Rowing/Crew Camps include land practices at the Cal ERG room and rowing practice at

the T. Gary Rogers Rowing Center.

Cal Golf Camps are at Metropolitan Golf Links in Oakland and at Mira Vista Golf & Country Club in El Cerrito.

Cal Athletics Camps include: Baseball, Boys’ and Girls’ Basketball, Boys’ and Girls’ Rowing/Crew, Field Hockey, Football, Boys’ and Girls’ Golf, Rugby, Boys’ and Girls’ Soccer, Strength & Conditioning, Boys’ and Girls’ Swimming, Boys’ and Girls’ Tennis, Volleyball and Water Polo.

Info calcamps@berkeley.edu.

Renaissance ClubSport Renaissance ClubSport announces it’s ninth season of camps in Walnut Creek. Spring and summer Sports camp is one of our most popular, lead by seasoned directors. Sports Day Camp is for children 5-12 and focuses on a different sport each day including: football, soccer, swimming, basketball, bocce, kickball, racquetball and karate.

Spring camp runs April 4 and April 25, summer camps June 13 thru Aug. 19. Enrollment is open and early registration is encouraged!

Info: 925-942-6344. www. clubsports.com Cabernet Indoor Sports Go Indoors for Spring Training: The Chevy Experience Camp at Cabernet Indoor Sports, Livermore (U5 & U6) is a 1-day Soccer Academy administered by top professional athletes teaching in an environment that increases retention, promotes ability, and encourages laughter and enjoyment. Spring Training Camps are with ANDREW ZIEMER and other top coaches. Attend this special camp and learn the Z Way. Info: 925-455-8300, www.ziemer. com

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