SJ Issue 60, February 1, 2013

Our Super Bowl XVLII Questions.

Pg. 9

vol. 4. issue 60

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athletes of the fall gabby palmeri jake browning sportstars cup 2013 is your school no. 1 ?

boys hoops old habits die hard

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pitch: It’s great when 6 first your team makes it to the big game (ahem, 49ers) but you better savor it because there’s no guarantee you’re ever getting back (ahem, Dan Marino). of the year: Who 20 Athletes dominated the fall? Stop guessing and flip on over.

Dozen. It’s almost 14 Diamond baseball time and we know who the best players will be. you could count out Foothill 16 Sure, and Franklin boys hoops. But that probably won’t work out for ya.

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not 26 It’s all about getting bigger, it’s also about protecting yourself.

Time!

27 Tri Who’s ready?

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We all know 11 Clipboard: wrestlers are among the hardest

room: Let us handle 8 locker Media Day. We got this. of the Week: 10 SportStars Darin Johnson, Sheldon-Sac Ain’t a Super Bowl if 31 IMPULSE: you ain’t got the right gear. Also, we like to say ‘ain’t’.

working athletes out there. So where’s the love? on the cover: St. Francis-Sacramento volleyball’s Gabriella Palmeri (photo

by James K. Leash); inset, Folsom football’s Jake Browning (photo by Doug Guler).

Fence: Tryouts, sign-ups, 32 The fundraisers and more!

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Surviving the Big Game Die-hard fandom brings the extreme highs and the gut-wrenching lows, but not always perspective

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t approximately 3:30 p.m. on Feb. 3 I’m going to be the definition of anxiety.

I will be in my living room, quite possibly pacing, and waiting for the first play of the 49ers first Super Bowl appearance in 18 years. I’ll be excited, nervous and jittery — basically a basket case for the three and a half hour length of the game.

And it’s gonna be great. (Well, my wife may say otherwise. I can already hear her saying ‘Calm down.’)

I can vividly remember the first two times I felt this way while watching sports. Both of them occurred in 1989.

The first one probably qualifies as my watershed moment as a die-hard sports fan. I was a fan of the 49ers before Super Bowl XXIII. I had watched several games and knew most of the players, but I had never truly absorbed and invested myself in a game until that day. I remember living and dying with pretty much every play of that storied game between the 49ers and Bengals, and the pure exhilaration of seeing Joe Montana deliver the perfect strike to John Taylor Chace@SportStarsOnline.com with 34 seconds left in the game.

(925) 566-8503 The VHS recording of that game has been a treasured family heirloom for years, and I still have it despite the fact that I’ve since obtained a DVD version.

Super Bowl XXIII didn’t just make me a 49ers fan, it made me a fan of being a fan — that investing in a team and believing in them was made all the more worth it when that team reached its apex.

It’s also what helped me get through the second time I remember reaching near basket case status watching a sporting event.

Ten months later, my Mom — awesome Mom that she is — wrote me a doctor’s note to get out of school for Game 5 of the National League Championship Series. And while this was probably a great day for many Bay Area sports fans, it wasn’t for me. I was pulling for the Chicago Cubs, my adopted team thanks to cable television and WGN. As many of you may know, the Cubs’ season ended that day with a 3-2 loss to the Giants. Perhaps I hadn’t totally grasped what being a Cubs fan meant at that point, because I remember not being totally crestfallen. I remember the pre-game anxiety and the disappointment of defeat, but I also remember the belief that my team could eventually get there again. And it would go better.

It worked for the 49ers, of course. But I’d have to wait awhile for the Cubs.

And that’s the thing.

It’s incredible how good we have it as Bay Area sports fans right now. And part of the reason for my high anxiety by kickoff of Super Bowl XLVII will be the fact that I no longer assume my team’s next visit is around the corner.

And whether I get off the emotional roller coaster at the end of the game celebrating a victory or lamenting a loss, I’m going to do my best to remind myself how good it was watching this 49ers team get back to the big game.

It’ll be harder to do if they lose. But, I’m a Cubs fan. So I have some experience. ✪

First Pitch

Chace Bryson Editor

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PHONE 925.566.8500 FAX 925.566.8507 Editorial Editor@SportStarsOnline.com Editor Chace Bryson • Chace@SportStarsOnline. com Staff Writers Erik Stordahl, Jim McCue Contributors Bill Kolb, Mitch Stephens, Matt Smith, Clay Kallam, Bryant West, Dave Kiefer, Liz Elliott, Tim Rudd, Jonathan Okanes Photography Butch Noble, Bob Larson, Jonathan Hawthorne, James K. Leash, Norbert von der Groeben, Phillip Walton, Doug Guler Intern Ryan Arter Creative Department Art@SportStarsOnline.com Production Manager Mike DeCicco • MikeD@ SportStarsOnline.com Publisher/President Mike Calamusa • Mike@SportStarsOnline.com Advertising & Calendar/ Classified Sales Sales@SportStarsOnline.com, 925.566.8500 Account Executives Erik Stordahl • Erik@SportStarsOnline.com, Phillip Walton • PWalton@SportStarsOnline.com Sac Joaqin edition: Dave Rosales • DaveRosales64@gmail.com Reader Resources/Administration Ad Traffic, Subscription, Calendar & Classified Listings info@SportStarsOnline.com Distribution/Delivery Mags@SportStarsOnline.com Information technology John Bonilla CFO Sharon Calamusa • Sharon@SportStarsOnline.com community SportStars™ Magazine A division of Caliente! Communications, LLC 5356 Clayton Rd., Ste. 222 • Concord, CA 94521 •info@SportStarsOnline.com www.SportStarsOnline.com

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rapidFIRE Valentine’s Day? Beach, mountains or big city?

Good or Bad?

$500 shopping spree: Where you going?

Make you own holiday Kiss a Basketball Player Day

Big City

Major sporting event you want to see

3 essential road trip snacks

World Series, Game 7

Mexican Coke, Peanut Butter Cups, Morucci’s 6 3/4 sandwich

Scott Dresser, Las Lomas basketball

Beach

NorCal Swim or Nordstrom

National Swim Day

Gummies, Goldfish and Carrots

Chelsea Chenault, Carondelet-Concord swimming

count ‘em

187

Combined points scored by Brookside Christian-Stockton junior Tiara Tucker over just three games earlier this month. She scored 63 on Jan. 11, 73 on Jan. 18 and 51 on Jan. 22. Tucker is averaging 29.4 points per game through the Knights first 22 games.

WRESTLING: SJS Masters Tournament, Feb. 22-23, Stockton Arena, all day — Northern California’s best shot at an individual state champion this March is likely to come from the SJS. A handful of of the state’s top-ranked wrestlers will take their first big step toward a spot on the CIF podium.

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GIRLS HOOPS: Heritage-Brentwood at Deer Valley-Antioch, Feb. 5, 7 p.m. — The BVAL championship and a top 4 NCS Div. I seed will likely hang in the balance.

GIRLS HOOPS: Kennedy-Sacramento at Sacramento, Feb. 8, 7 p.m. — Expect the Metro Conference title to be on the line.

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Top 5 Questions we Would Have Asked for Super Bowl XLVII’s Media Day Media Day at the Super Bowl is serious, serious business. As we’re sure you’re aware. We mean, name one other time when knuckleheads from such far-flung media outlets as Tokyo and Buenos Aires can don pink feather boas and outlandish fluorescent sunglasses and ask inane questions of grown, violent men, whose first response would normally be to leave them a smoking ruin? It’s like a lion-taming exercise on live television! Take that, Siegfried and Roy! Anyway.

Surprisingly enough, there are a few stones that the so-called ‘media’ leaves unturned at the three-ring circus that is Media Day. We’re here to give you the Top 5 questions that we would have asked.

1. For Mr. Linebacker Ray Lewis. Mr. Scripture T-Shirt. Saintly One: What’s your story for if someone gets knifed in your limo after this one?

Throughout the week we like to poll our Facebook fans on random things that come to our mind here at SportStars HQ. Come ‘Like’ us at facebook.com/sportstars to join the conversation.

This week it was YOU who asked US.

2. For Mr. Place Kicker David Akers: Has anyone put you in touch with Scott Norwood? It’s just a question. Laces out, Dan!

Why are there no pics of the Deer Valley Newark Memorial game, from Monday? — April P., reacting to our coverage of the MLK Classic at Haas Pavilion.

3. For Messrs. Quarterback Flacco and Kaepernick: These are not the quarterbacks we were looking for. Please discuss your use of the Jedi Quarterback Trick.

Just for you, April here’s a picture of Deer Valley’s Kendall Smith driving to the basket in the Wolverines’ 55-54 win over Newark Memorial. How about that?

What’s that? More? Sure, why not?

Head over to SportStars Online.com to check out more.

And give a shout out to Jonathan Hawthorne for the good pics.

4. For Coaches Harbaugh and Harbaugh: Mom always did like one of you best, didn’t she? Tell us about it.

5. For Mr. Backup, Alex Smith: Dude. Really? You’re way too calm about this. At what point do you just go on a four-state shooting rampage? Not that you’d hit anything in stride … but still.

— Bill Kolb

BOYS/GIRLS HOOPS: NCS Playoffs, first round, Feb. 19-20, various sites — Look for matchups between mid-range seeds from different leagues. Trust us.

BOYS/GIRLS SOCCER: NCS Soccer Championships, Feb. 23, various sites — If one site hosts a doubleheader, go there!

BASEBALL: Serra-San Mateo at De La Salle, Feb. 23, 2 p.m. — The defending NCS Div. I champions open 2013 against the 2012 WCAL champs.

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BOYS HOOPS: Sheldon-Sacramento vs. Salesian-Richmond, Feb. 2, Albany HS, 7 p.m. — This might very well be a preview of the CIF Open Div. Northern Regional championship this March. The schools have shared the top two spots of the SSM NorCal Top 20 since the calendar turned to 2013.

WRESTLING: NCS Div. I-II East Bay Duals Championships, Feb. 9, James Logan HS, all day — Can any team stop De La Salle from fifth straight crown?

BOYS/GIRLS HOOPS: WCAL Championships, Feb. 14, Foothill College, 6 p.m. — Few tournaments more competitive. Girls final at 6; boys at 8.

BOYS/GIRLS SOCCER: CCS Soccer semifinals, Feb. 26-27, various sites — Two days of matches with a trip to the CCS finals on the line. Sign us up!

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With key Huskies out due to injury and illness, Johnson scored a career-high 42 points in a 97-92 shootout win over Bay Area power Deer Valley-Antioch.

He scored 19 in the third quarter alone. His performance outshined Kentucky-commit Marcus Lee in the process. In Sheldon’s following game, Johnson led the section’s top-ranked team to an 85-79 win over neighborhood rival Pleasant Grove-Elk Grove.

He finished with a game-high 28 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including 3-for-4 from beyond the arc.

SportStars Magazine: What has the acclimation process been like at Sheldon?

Darin Johnson: It’s always a little hard starting something new, but I am getting used to the school and the people. On the court, I am getting used to the pace of play and I think that I am getting very comfortable with the team. Everything’s going smooth now.

SSM: How hard was is having to watch the team from the bench while you waited to be eligible to play?

DJ: It was real hard to sit and watch because you want to be out there with the team. It was tough, but it also helped me a lot because I was able to see things from the bench that are helping me now.

SSM: Do you feel that the team is jelling as you get closer to the playoffs?

February 1, 2013

honorable mention

darin johnson

tiara tucker

sheldon-Sacramento . basketball . senior

The Brookside Christian-Stockton junior guard set section and NorCal records in back-to-back games. She scored 63 points in a win over Stone Ridge Christian, 73 in a win over Millennium-Tracy.

isaiah pineiro The PlacerAuburn senior scored 22 points for the Hillmen in a 65-43 victory over Lincoln to snap the Zebras’ 13-game winning streak. He followed that by scoring 16 points with 15 rebounds in a win over Foothill-Sacramento.

stephanie geyer

Ralph Thompson/AnySportphoto.com DJ: I feel like we are starting to come together and the chemistry is always improving. It’s easy to play with D’Erryl (Williams) and Dakarai (Allen) because they are such unselfish players and can play with anybody. I think that we are getting better every game, but we are not all the way there yet.

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The Del OroLoomis senior forward had 25 points and 17 rebounds in the Golden Eagles’ 58-53 victory over Nevada Union-Grass Valley to take claim first place outright in the Sierra Foothill League.

She averages a team-leading 16.2 points and 8.4 rebounds.

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Wrestling may not be the hot sport, but it deserves its due I’m a wrestler, and I work really, really hard. I know other sports are hard, but nothing’s as tough as wrestling. But nobody seems to care about wrestling, and other sports get more publicity and more fans. It’s just not right – why don’t wrestlers get as much credit as other athletes?

R.G., Brentwood

hat’s a great question – which means there’s not a simple answer.

Even though wrestling is a team sport in high school, it’s much more like cross country or swimming or track, which is to say it’s an individual sport with a team aspect. And though it wasn’t always this way, team sports are now much more popular than individual sports when it comes to fan support and participation.

And another historical factor is at work. Back in the 19th century, wrestling was the most important man-to-man individual sport. Boxing was considered to be one step above savagery, and so wrestlers were treated with great respect. (They still are in many Eastern European and Middle Eastern countries.)

But the emergence of boxing — bloodier, more violent, more spectacular — pushed wrestling into second place, and then professional wrestling stepped into a niche in the sporting marketplace. The

T

jokey pros had some athletic ability, but they were more concerned with heroes, villains and goofy scenarios than true competition, and that made it even harder for legitimate wrestlers to be taken seriously.

Lately, of course, mixed martial arts has further crowded the arena inhabited by wrestling, professional wrestling and boxing, and the vast majority of the sporting public never sees real wrestlers in any kind of significant action except at the Olympics — and then only if NBC deigns to show some wrestlers in between wall-to-wall coverage of beach volleyball.

And sadly enough, an unintended consequence of Title IX and the increased female presence in interscholastic sports at all levels has hurt wrestling.

Junior colleges and colleges have been forced to cut back on male sports due to a very unfortunate interpretation of the idea that women should have equal access to sports after high school.

First, it was determined that colleges must give out the same number of scholarships to men and women, which might make sense theoretically but in practice, ignores the 85 scholarships for football.

Since men’s programs start off with 85 more scholarship athletes than women’s programs, other men’s programs have had to be cut. Wrestling, which has relatively large numbers, was an early casualty.

Even worse, it was then decided that the percentage of female athletes needed to match the percent-

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age of female students in a particular university, which ignores the fact that more males are interested in playing sports than females (for whatever reason).

That meant that male participation was tied to female participation and at Diablo Valley College, for example, a strong wrestling program was cut because the proportion of male-to-female athletes did not match the proportion of male-to-female students.

Add to all this the tremendous physical and mental demands of wrestling, and a legitimate concern about the negative impacts of cutting weight, and wrestling has simply faded into the background of American sports. I’d like to say that better days are coming, but it really doesn’t look that way. Wrestling is a great sport, demanding and rewarding, and wrestlers deserve as much (if not more) respect than most other high school athletes, but sometimes, as my long-ago history teacher used to say, life just isn’t fair.

Remember this, though: In the end, what you get from sports isn’t credit from outsiders or shiny trophies; it’s what you learn about yourself, and how you grow as a person, that are the real benefits of athletics. ✪

Behind the Clipboard Clay Kallam

Clay Kallam is an assistant athletic director and girls varsity basketball coach at Bentley High in Lafayette.

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

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Points Accolades 1. St. Francis-Sacramento*

5,100

2. Granite Bay

4,400

3. Davis

2,950

4. Central Catholic-Modesto 2,000

5. Placer-Auburn

1,550

6. (tie) Rio Americano-Sac.

1,500 1,500

Folsom 8. Vista Del Lago-Folsom

1,400

9. (tie) Bella Vista-Fair Oaks

1,000

Jesuit-Carmichael*

1,000

SportStar of the Season: Palmeri (Girls VB). League Titles: Girls VB, Girls WP, Girls Tennis, Girls Golf. Section Title: Girls VB, Girls Golf, LaRocco (Girls Golf).

League Titles: Football, Boys Soccer, Girls VB, Boys XC, Girls XC. Section Titles: Football, Girls Tennis, Bell (Girls XC), Brendel (Boys XC). NorCal Title: Football.

State Title: Football, Bell (Girls XC) League Titles: Girls VB, Boys Soccer, Boys WP, Girls WP, Boys XC, Girls XC. All-State Athlete: Stapleton (Boys WP). Section Titles: Boys WP, Girls WP, Girls XC, Boys XC, Scranton (Boys XC), O’Keeffe (Girls XC). Scholastic Title: Boys XC. State Title: Boys XC League Title: Football. Section Titles: Football. NorCal Title: Football.

State Title: Football.

League Titles: Football, Girls VB, Boys Soccer, Boys XC, Girls XC. All-State Athletes: Vanderdoes (Football). Section Title: Boys XC. League titles: Boys Soccer, Boys WP, Girls WP. Section Title: Girls VB, Boys WP, Girls WP. League Titles: Football. All-State Athletes: Browning (Football). Section Title: Football.

League titles: Football, Girls VB, Boys Soccer, Girls XC. Section Title: Boys Soccer, Girls XC. League Titles: Boys Soccer, Girls XC. Section Title: Boys Soccer, Girls XC.

League titles: Boys Soccer. Section Title: Boys Soccer.

* POINT TOTALS DOUBLED DUE TO BEING SINGLE-GENDER SCHOOLS

Thanks to volleyball players such as (from left) Hannah Liserra, Allie Wegener, Gabriella Palmeri and Loni Kreun, St. Francis leads our first Sac-Joaquin SportStars Cup rankings.

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Since we began producing our own Sac-Joaquin edition in early 2011, SportStars has kept a watchful eye on the many athletic accomplishments across the Sac Joaquin Section. But this year, we are kicking it up a notch to recognize the best of the best. SportStars has created a formula to determine the best high school athletics program in the section. That school will be acknowledged as the 2012-13 SportStars Cup winner at the end of the school year.

The SportStars Cup awards points for league titles, section championships, and regional and state performance to recognize the most successful program.

The points are awarded as follows: 100 — Have athlete named SportStars of the Year (Fall, Winter or Spring) 200 — Win team league title 250 — Have athlete be named AllState (First-team overall only) 300 — Win section title (team or individual) 350 — Win scholastic section title for highest team GPA 400 — Win individual NorCal title 500 — Win team NorCal title 700 — Win individual state title 1,000 — Win team state title After sifting through the fall seasons of more than 150 schools, there are clear leaders at the one-third mark.

Granite Bay distanced itself with an incredible fall season that included league titles in most fall sports, section crowns in football and golf, individual section titles in cross country, and state titles for the football team and freshman Maggie Bell in cross country.

St. Francis is the overall leader by virtue of the multiplier given for being an allgirls school. The girls’ volleyball team led the way for the Troubadours with a run to the state final. Team section crowns in cross country and golf also boosted their total. Davis was the next-highest coed school with impressive performances in the non-marquee sports. The Blue Devils’ water polo teams swept the section Div. I championships and Jack Scranton and Fiona O’Keeffe captured the boys and girls individual section titles in cross country.

Adjustments are certain to follow in the coming weeks as the first-team AllState football team is announced and the winter championships get under way. Buckle in and enjoy the ride. ✪

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Hand-picked standouts from the teams of All-Star Academy’s Baseball Media Day Can it really be spring already?

Those intermittent pings you’re hearing as you walk by the nearest high school campus seem to say that it is.

Baseball season is upon us. Official practices for nearly all the Northern California sections will begin the first week of February, and we’ll have games just two weeks later.

It’s go time.

And to get into the spirit, we’re lending our support and taking part in the All-Star Academy training center’s Baseball Media Day from 7-9 p.m. on Feb. 12 at the Decathlon Club in Santa Clara. All-Star Academy’s Brady Austin organizes the event that brings together the coaches of 12 South Bay programs to talk about their upcoming season and expectations for various media outlets.

“We feel it is important to support the efforts of our high school athletes and their coaches and to improve communication with our towns and communities,” Austin said in a press release. “Baseball Media Day is a great way to establish these relationships to promote the sport of baseball at the youth level.”

The 12 programs participating this year include West Catholic Athletic League heavyweights, Archbishop Mitty-San Jose, Bellarmine Prep-San Jose, St. Francis-Mountain View, Valley Christian-San Jose and defending league-champion Serra-San Mateo. Also expected to attend are Palo Alto, Menlo-Atherton, Homestead-Cupertino, Mountain View, Saratoga, Santa Clara and Wilcox-Santa Clara.

Each coach attends along with at least one selected player who they anticipate will play a strong leadership role on their team in 2013. SportStars wanted to find a way to honor those players — which gave birth to the Diamond Dozen.

We asked each coach in advance who they would like to nominate for this preseason award, and have presented them here with a rather cool baseball card treatment. We’ll also be on hand the night of the event to present each player with an award recognizing their inclusion in the Diamond Dozen.

We’re not the only one lending a helping a hand to this event. All-Star Academy has also picked up sponsorship help from kmvt Community TV, All-Out Baseball, r&b productions and Mizuno. And for those high school baseball fans living in the nearby area, you don’t have to be among the media elite to be a part of this event. It’s free and open to the public.

Now, we’re off to buy us some sunflower seeds.

Enjoy the Diamond Dozen and we’ll see you at a diamond soon. ✪

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Foothill guard Anthony Williams is the Mustangs leading scorer, averaging 15 points per game. James K. Leash photos 16

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Two perennial league championship programs are in underdog roles. They shouldn’t be counted out yet

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By jim mccue | Senior Contributor

eading into February, Foothill-Sacramento coach Drew Hibbs and Franklin-Elk Grove coach Jesse Formaker are typically able to look ahead to the postseason. Playoff seeding and potential matchups are in play while they try to plan a path to Sleep Train Arena and the Sac-Joaquin Section finals.

This season, Hibbs and Formaker have been forced much more into the moment of getting through each game, merely in hope of finding a way to the postseason. Not that taking things one game at a time is new for either coach, but the urgency and importance of each practice, play, and matchup has grown with each coach’s program hovering around the .500 mark.

“It’s new territory for us,” Hibbs said of the Mustangs’ 10-12 mark. “Record-wise, I have not been in this situation at Foothill. I knew we weren’t going to be as good as last year, but we are still trying to find our identity.”

Foothill has qualified for the playoffs in each of Hibbs’ 15 seasons at the helm, including 2011-12 when the Mustangs won the SJS Division III title behind a 29-4 record. A large number of key players from that team graduated — including two-year captain and three-year varsity star Michael Bryson — leaving Hibbs with a rare rebuilding project.

Bryson led the team with an 18.8 points per game average, but the biggest void he left when he took his game to UC Santa Barbara was leadership.

Whether it was taking the big shot or keeping the team focused at practice, Bryson was the glue that held the Mustangs together. In contrast, this year’s team is still searching for that leadership with just five Pioneer Valley League games left on the regular season schedule.

“In theory, the next group has always stepped up and assumed the leadership role, but this group doesn’t have the same personality in regards to leadership,” he said. “Accepting the differences in our makeup and accepting new roles has been difficult for this group.”

Despite the struggles, though, Foothill (10-12, 3-2 PVL through Jan. 27) has shown promise and is still in position to earn a postseason berth with a share of the league title. Seniors Anthony Williams and Douglas James are averaging 15 and 14 points per game, respectively. Meanwhile, the team’s underclassmen are logging valuable minutes that could pay dividends in the playoffs and beyond.

Hibbs, who has won a pair of state titles at Foothill, has a reputation of running a tough, disciplined program and playing challenging schedules. This year, the program had to eliminate its freshman team and Hibbs is working hard to instill the work ethic and grit that he learned at South Tahoe High School under coach Tom Orlich.

Hibbs makes no apologies for his coaching philosophy.

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Records through Jan. 27 (source: MaxPreps.com) 1. (1) Salesian-Richmond 18-3 2. (2) Sheldon-Sacramento 16-4 3. (3) Modesto Christian 18-2 4. (4) Archbishop Mitty-San Jose 15-4 5. (5) Bishop O’Dowd-Oakland 16-3 6. (6) Deer Valley-Antioch 16-4 7. (7) De La Salle-Concord 16-3 8. (9) Serra-San Mateo 16-3 9. (8) Pleasant Grove-Elk Grove 17-4 10. (10) Capital Christian-Sacramento 19-2 11. (11) Dublin 16-4 12. (12) Sacramento 16-6 13. (13) Monte Vista-Danville 16-4 14. (14) Antelope 16-6 15. (15) San Leandro 16-4 16. (16) Newark Memorial 12-7 17. (20) El Cerrito 14-5 18. (NR) Bellarmine Prep-San Jose 14-4 19. (NR) Palo Alto 17-1 20. (NR) Freedom-Oakley 13-6

DROPPED OUT

No. 17 Mt. Eden-Hayward, No. 18 St. Ignatius-S.F., No. 19 Sacred Heart Cathedral-S.F.

BIGGEST MOVER

There was very little movement among the Top 15 during the last week of January, but the bottom of the Top 20 got a bit of a shake-up. El Cerrito has been close to dropping out a handful of times, but continues to rally.

This week they move up three spots to No. 17 after solid wins over St. Joseph-Notre Dame-Alameda and St. Patrick/St. Vincent-Vallejo. Two teams which had fallen out of the rankings, Bellarmine and Freedom, returned.

TEAMS STILL RANKED FROM PRESEASON TOP 20: 14 NO. 1 vs. NO. 2

For the second time this season we’ll have a matchup of the top two teams in our rankings as No. 1 Salesian hosts No. 2 Sheldon on Feb. 2. The last time we had a 1 vs. 2 was Dec. 22 when then-No. 2 Salesian knocked off No. 1 Mitty 72-51. The Pride haven’t budged from the top spot since.

KNOCKING ON THE DOOR

Enterprise-Redding (17-3), Heritage-Brentwood (15-5), Oakland Tech (14-5), McClymonds (12-7), CampolindoMoraga (15-5), Montgomery-Santa Rosa (16-5), Mt. Eden-Hayward (16-4), Piedmont Hills-San Jose (15-4), West-Tracy (17-6), Bentley-Lafayette (18-1).

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“The guys who have put their hearts into the program and gone through it, I think have come out better players and better people,” Hibbs said. “There are life lessons learned as a Mustang. How you handle adversity shows character, and that is something these kids will face all of their lives.”

Foothill hopes to find a way to overcome the adversity to qualify for the playoffs where Hibbs believes his team would be a formidable foe. The Mustangs have proved worthy competitors when they have shown consistency in their execution, giving the coach and his players the dream of playoff success to chase.

“I am hoping that we can come through this season to say that we had some adversity but stayed the course to advance to the playoffs,” Hibbs said. “We just need to stick to the blueprint to be successful.”

Foothill played one of its better games in defeating Formaker’s Franklin team in the Common Good Classic at Antelope High on Jan. 19. The Wildcats (11-12, 4-2 in Delta Valley League play) have struggled with similar bouts of inconsistency, but also have a legitimate shot at winning their league championship in a rebuilding year.

Franklin has won the last four Delta Valley titles, but graduation and the transfer of star Darin Johnson to Sheldon-Sacramento altered the team’s expectations.

“The adjustment of expectations is more difficult for the kids on the team this year,” Formaker said. “They feel a certain amount of pressure — from friends, classmates, and themselves — to rise to the expectations that have been set by previous success.”

On occasion, the Wildcats have shown flashes of success.

In a recent league game on the road, Formaker’s team shut down host Davis and its high-scoring offensive “system.” The 75-67 victory was the result of excellent game planning and near flawless execution on the court. Unfortunately, two nights

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later, the Wildcats came out flat against Laguna Creek-Elk Grove and fell behind 15-2 before losing 56-51.

“Consistency is our biggest issue,” Formaker said. “You don’t know what to expect on a night-to-night basis.”

The driving force behind the inconsistency, according to Formaker, is the lack of varsity experience. Too often, his players are looking at each other to see who will create or take the big shot. Senior guard Victor Rustin is a three-year varsity player, but his role in past seasons has always been that of the fourth or fifth option on offense. He has stepped up his game, as has junior forward Benson Osayande, who was on the junior varsity squad last year. But Franklin still boils down to a work in progress.

With a young, inexperienced team, Formaker still has an opportunity to win another league title and maybe even make some noise in the postseason. Four teams shared the league lead at the end of last week, and the race is wide open with the top four teams having traded wins and losses with one another.

“Theoretically, we are still in position to win the league, or at least win a share of the league title,” he said. “I’m glad that I can still say that and hope the kids can take that opportunity and make the most of it.”

Despite having the league title as an attainable goal with four games left on the schedule, Formaker puts a greater value on the growth of the team over wins and losses.

“It’s easy to be distracted from the real goal of coaching, which is to interact with students and teach young men,” Formaker said. “We have been fortunate to be successful, but I didn’t get into coaching to only win basketball games.”

“I will remember this team more than some of the championship teams I have coached because these kids have been challenged in so many ways and have responded to the challenges.” ✪

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Franklin junior forward Benson Osayande, left, has made a solid impact in his first varsity season with the Wildcats.

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BEST OF THE FALL BOYS COACH

Ernie Cooper, Granite Bay Football: The school’s only football coach since it opened in 1996, Cooper guided the Grizzlies to victory in the CIF Division I State Bowl game. After starting the season 1-3, Granite Bay won 11 consecutive games. The state bowl game victory was a comefrom-behind effort, as well.

GIRLS COACH

Shelby Weinberger, Oakmont-Roseville Volleyball: The second-year coach led the Vikings to an improbable 34-3 record and the SJS Division III championship. Oakmont had winning streaks of 16 and 14 games during the season, and capped its remarkable playoff run by rallying from a 2-0 deficit to defeat two-time defending section champion Vista del Lago in the final.

MALE RISING STAR

Justice Shelton-Mosley, Capital Christian-Sacramento Football: The sophomore running back rushed for 1,108 yards and 17 touchdowns in helping the Cougars to a 10-2 record and the No. 4 seed in the SJS Division IV playoffs. SheltonMosley exploded for a 6-TD effort with 273 all-purpose yards in a 62-0 win over Lindhurst. He recorded three rushing touchdowns and scored on a pair of punt returns and an interception return.

FEMALE RISING STAR

Maggie Bell, Granite Bay Cross Country: The freshman won league, section, and CIF State Cross Country titles despite starting the season on the JV roster.

Bell capped her amazing season by leading nearly wire-to-wire in the state Division II race at Woodward Park in Fresno.

She won the state individual championship by finishing the 5,000-meter course in 17:29, four seconds ahead of the next finisher. ✪

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female athlete of the year: fall

THE PALMERI FILES

›› THE STATS: The senior outside hitter led the Troubadours with 447 kills, 403 digs, 36 blocks, 30 aces, and 321 serve receptions. She was named first-team All-State by MaxPreps.com. ›› SIGNATURE PERFORMANCE: Palmeri racked up 21 kills and 18 digs in rallying her team to the Division I NorCal title. The Troubadours lost the first game against section rival Granite Bay before rebounding to win the next three. ›› FAVORITE ATHLETE: Jesse Owens: “He trained and worked incredibly hard to achieve his success and break world records, but he also had to overcome the racism of the time. ... I admire him because he took risks to compete and did not let fear hold him back.”

›› WHAT’S NEXT: After winning SJS titles in her junior and senior seasons, she will head south to play at Pepperdine University on scholarship. “It’s always been Pepperdine ever since I got to high school,” she said. “At first, it was probably the location, but I liked it even more when I learned more about the school and the program.”

Gabriella Palmeri Volleyball - St. Francis-Sacramento - Senior Location, location, location. St. Francis senior outside hitter is a big proponent of finding a great place and enjoying all that it has to offer.

So it’s no surprise that the section’s top recruit settled long ago on taking her game to Malibu and Pepperdine University.

It also explains why she has thrived at the all-girls school in Sacramento.

“The community here is like no other,” Palmeri said of the college preparatory campus. “I have seen the school come together (in times of joy and sorrow) throughout my four years here.”

St. Francis has certainly enjoyed having Palmeri on campus — and on the girls volleyball team, as she helped bring home the last two of the program’s 12 Sac-Joaquin Section championships. As one of the team’s eight seniors on the roster, Palmeri was a leader for the Troubadours on the floor and in the huddle.

That leadership was evident and most needed in the CIF Northern Regional Division I final against section foe Granite Bay. After suffering a surprising 25-16 opening set loss to the Grizzlies, Palmeri took over in a tight second set that turned the match around for the Troubadours. She hammered down five kills down the stretch of a 26-24 second-set win and finished with a match-high 21 kills as St. Francis won 3-1.

“I think that we might have underestimated their ability,” Palmeri said. “Losing that first set showed us that we needed to

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respect the opponent, and showed us that things were serious.”

Palmeri has been a serious recruit for a few years as a top player for one of the area’s best high school programs as well as the Nor Cal Volleyball Club. She committed to Pepperdine during her junior year and will head to Southern California in mid-July to start training.

She has always had a desire to play volleyball at Pepperdine — the Malibu campus being an admitted draw — but her decision has strengthened throughout the recruiting process.

Getting to know the program and the school better has Palmeri excited.

St. Francis has been no stranger to success, and 2012 was among the school’s greatest seasons in girls’ volleyball. The team posted a 38-3 record, but fell short of achieving its goal of winning a second state title for head coach Alynn Wright.

After the Troubadours lost 3-1 to Marymount-L.A. in the state championship match, Palmeri said that the disappointment was short-lived.

“It is always tough to lose, and focusing on what you could have done better,” she said. “Later that night, though, we were laughing and enjoying each other’s company, and were sad only because it would be the last match so many of us would play together.”

Just another product of being in the right place with good people. ✪ — Jim McCue

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HONORABLE MENTIONS Sara Scarlett, Senior, Woodland

Scarlett shot a 70 at The Reserve at Spanos Park in Stockton to win the SJS Masters individual golf championship. In her final high school season, the University of Texas-bound golfer advanced to the NorCal and State Tournaments as an individual qualifier.

Avery Dotterer, Senior, Rio AmericanoSacramento

The All-Section goalkeeper led the Raiders water polo program to a 10th SJS Division II championship in 11 years. She recorded 4.25 goals-against average.

Rio Americano outscored its playoff opponents 49-13, including a 13-0 shutout of McClatchy-Sacramento in the SJS semifinals.

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male athlete of the year: fall

Connor Stapleton, Senior, Davis

Folsom - Football - Sophomore

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expectations most observers had for Folsom and especially for Browning. The Bulldogs compiled a 14-1 record, league and section championships, and a marquee CIF Regional bowl matchup with eventual state-champ De La Salle.

“That kid is a special talent,” renown De La Salle coach Bob Ladouceur said of Browning after the Spartans ended Folsom’s season with a 49-15 victory.

Meanwhile, Browning and his 2013 teammates are already back at work.

“We have already started up working every day in class, so we have high expectations for next season as always,” Browning said. “It’s not any different than last year.”

“I have a year under my belt now, so I know more what to expect. But I try not to predict too much and just let it play out.”

Playing it out for two more years in the Bulldogs’ high-powered offense could bring more records and accolades into play for the sophomore, who has already received a scholarship offer from Utah after his breakout season. Browning, though, is content to take things one game at a time.

“There are no real expectations,” he said of personal and team goals for 2013. “It’s just how much work you put into it is how much work you’ll get out of it.”

Not surprising to hear from a team leader with an impressive background and resources.. ✪ — Jim McCue

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›› THE STATS: Threw for a state record 5,246 yards while leading the Bulldogs to the SJS Division II title and a 14-1 record. Browning tossed for multiple touchdowns in 14 of 15 games, and finished with 63 — just two shy of the state record. ›› SIGNATURE PERFORMANCE: Browning completed 34-of-51 passes for 689 yards and 10 touchdowns in his first varsity start, a 68-28 victory over Woodcreek-Roseville. It set the section record for passing yards in a game and tied the national mark for TD passes in a game. ›› FAVORITE PLAYER: “I like a combination of a bunch of different ones,” he said. “I like some of the older players and the players nowadays. I try to take things that they do well and put them into how I play and carry myself.” ›› WHAT’S NEXT: Jake will not be a surprise to any opponents during his junior or senior seasons, but he has a good start in his pursuit of the state’s top marks for career passing yards (11,022 — Michael Herrick, Valencia) and touchdowns (146 — Jimmy Clausen, Oaks Christian-Westlake).

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Jake Browning It’s fair to say no one expected Jake Browning to break the California record for passing yards in a season as a sophomore in his first varsity campaign.

But the young signal-caller’s success in 2012 was not a surprise to coaches, teammates, or himself.

Browning has resources most young quarterbacks can only dream about. His father, Ed, was a star quarterback in Southern California who went on to play at Oregon State; Folsom co-coach Troy Taylor is among the best talents to come out of the area and became Cal’s all-time passing leader before a brief stint in the NFL; and Folsom’s spread offense has helped produce a legacy of great quarterbacks in recent years, including David and Dano Graves, Tanner Trosin, and Cary Grossart.

“I haven’t had to go very far for a lot of help,” Browning said.

“It’s pretty much right here.”

He keeps in close contact with Trosin — whose passing yardage record he broke before the 2012 graduate could hardly enjoy it — and seeks advice and wisdom from the other former Bulldogs whenever he can. But it is his father and Taylor, a quarterback guru, who have worked with Browning for years at The Passing Academy, a local coaching and mentoring program.

The result of good passing genes, staunch support from family, and excellent tutoring was a season that exceeded the

THE browning FILES

The two-time high school All-American led the Blue Devils to the program’s 14th SJS title behind a four-goal effort in the team’s 13-5 victory over Granite Bay in the final. Stapleton finished the season with 124 goals and ended his high school career with 353.

Trevor Jackson, Senior, Bella Vista –Fair Oaks

The midfielder led the Mustangs with 25 goals and 15 assists in his first high school season at the school after moving to the area from Arizona.

Jackson assisted on a goal and recorded a shootout goal in Bella Vista’s victory over Turlock in the SJS Div. II final, the second consecutive section crown for the Mustangs (20-0-2).

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It’s not only about

bigger, faster, stronger

It’s also about protecting your body

Training Time Tim Rudd for IYCA

I recently spent four days with Eric Cressey at his Elite Baseball Mentorship program, held at Cressey Performance just outside Boston. He is known for his work with elite baseball players. But he also works with college, high school and middle school athletes.

I was impressed with the fact that he has a physical therapist and a pitching coach working right along with his strength coaches to improve all the qualities of his athletes and ensure the highest level of performance.

I mention this because it leads right into the second missing link for optimizing your athlete’s performance and staying healthy. I explained previously in SportStars how recovery and regeneration strategies are the missing link for unlocking young athletes’ performance potential. If athletes just play without any consideration for counteracting the stresses placed on their bodies, not only will their performance suffer, but so will their bodies.

These strategies are more than just something they do before training or practice; it is a vital part to an athlete’s success. These are things they should also be doing outside of the gym and practice.

An effective strength and conditioning program should be considered a body care program that involves more than just lifting, plyometrics, speed work, power and conditioning. Often times, programs just build strength on dysfunction by throwing inappropriate exercises at athletes, speeding up the erosion of performance and health.

A comprehensive strength and conditioning program starts with assessing the athlete’s sporting and injury history and current pathology (if there is any). Next comes a static and dynamic assessment of the athlete’s joints, using the prior information as an indicator of movement dysfunction. The assessment is thoroughly explained to the athlete and parent as a blueprint for improving the athlete’s current situation for performance enhancement is laid out.

Young athletes need to know why they’re doing it, how to do it and what the outcome will be.

Below is a blueprint for the warm-up each athlete takes part in when they come in for their strength and conditioning program. It is highly dependent upon the assessment process. This can be considered for regeneration or recovery.

1 2 3 We work on the athlete’s breathing patterns by teaching how to appropriately use her diaphragm in exhalation and inhalation, which strengthens her intra-abdominals, particularly the ones that help to set their pelvis in a more neutral position. This has a positive impact on mobility and stability throughout the whole body.

Self-myofascial techniques with foam rollers, medicine balls, lacrosse balls and The Stick for improving the quality of the tissues of the joints of the body.

If the athlete needs static or dynamic stretching, this is the part of the program for it.

4

This is the activation portion of the athlete’s warmup. It targets the overactive and underactive tissues throughout her body and addresses their limiting factors, starting from groundbased to standing and from simple to complex.

The focus is to activate and lengthen the muscles throughout the body preparing them for the workout ahead. Simultaneously, it is also addressing any movement dysfunctions that are limiting the athlete’s performance and health.

Within the strength program itself certain corrective exercises will be put in throughout the program, addressing the most pressing limiting factors of the athlete.

But don’t be confused; strength movements when appropriately prescribed and performed, are corrective exercises themselves. Done correctly, these movements will improve strength, stability and mobility throughout the athlete’s body while ensuring optimal performance and health in their respective sports and daily lives. ✪ Tim Rudd is an International Youth Conditioning Association specialist in youth conditioning (level 3), speed and agility (level 2), and nutrition specialist (level 1). For more information, email him at tim@fit2thecore.com.

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tristeps: liz elliott

Tips as triathalon season nears Triathlon season officially begins February 1.

Most of you have been working out less. Even if you are a seasoned athlete, you will be starting from a fitness level based on what you have been doing recently. Although you may be excited to get started, when beginning again, start at your current fitness level. Here are some tips to get you started on a good note, and set up a great season: To stave off injury and illness, follow the three Ps: patience, pacing and persistence.

Plan out your season. Set your goal races for the entire year.

Decide what are your “A” races, and the “on the way” races to those races. With a plan and goals, you can then relax, and take each practice day by day.

If you’ve spent the winter working on a treadmill or bike trainer, transition to an open trail or road slowly, alternating workouts. It lets your body adapt.

Early spring in California is usually cold, and late spring is usually wet. Keep your feet dry, and your body warm. Many thin layers of wicking clothes are better than a few thick layers. Shed layers as you warm up

A running partner can be a great motivator in cold-weather.

Set up a good training pattern now, early in the season.

Do some leg and core strength exercises at every practice early in the season. Strengthening muscles now will help your body recover throughout the season.

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powered by trucks: anthony trucks

Your body is a machine: Don’t guzzle the gas Have you ever had that feeling of just being completely drained after a workout? I don’t mean simply tired, but out of juice? The feeling that lasts more than just over night where you don’t exactly need sleep, you just can’t seem to gather the drive to even move or motivate yourself to do anything?

Congratulations, you have drained your nervous system, CNS for short. What’s your CNS? The CNS is the body’s ability to fire muscles and control the body successfully. And when you tax it too much, you drain the body’s ability to quickly recover it. Every rep you take in the weight room has a specific amount of drain on the CNS — and the type of exercises you choose directly affect the drain.

Let’s use an example. Say your body has 10 gallons of gas to use during the workout to be able to recover adequately.

If squats take three, bench press takes two, dead lift takes three and power cleans take three — and you do all three in the same day — then you have obviously exceeded the body’s sufficient 10 gallons to use. Or, one of the lifts is NOT getting the best work it can. The result is slow recovery and a “groggy” feeling that can last multiple days. The goal is to find and feel that threshold level, and then not to exceed it in a given workout. This experience comes over time where you learn your body.

Simple keys to avoid that

groggy feeling: ›› ›› ›› ››

Do the most taxing multi-joint “BIG” lifts early in the workout Train hard and rest harder Food is KEY to recovery

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Stay away from doing more than 2 “BIG” lifts in the same workout

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Health Watch: Kelli Adams You have heard this name before. But do you know exactly what it is? Turf toe is an injury that, approximately 90 percent of the time, will affect your big toe.

It is an injury to the soft tissue and joint (the first phalanx).

Usually it is associated with football players because of playing on rigid surfaces such as artificial turf. However, this injury can happen to anyone who is doing something that causes the big toe to extend beyond its normal range. Hyperextension of the big toe can happen when athletic shoes that have very flexible soles “grab” the turf, for example.

During the push-off phase when running, the big toe may stay flat and doesn’t lift to push off. Another example is if you fall forward or are tackled and the big toe stays flat.

Turf toe can be very debilitating for athletes who need to jump, accelerate or quickly change direction. Symptoms may include swelling, pain and decreased movement in the big toe.

It is highly recommended to see a sports medicine/orthopedic doctor to rule out other injuries such as a bone fracture.

Rest is important as well as ice/elevation when treating turf toe. The big toe may be taped/strapped or even immobilized with a walking boot to relieve stress to the joint. After a rest period, athletes can benefit from physical therapy to re-establish range of motion, strength and movement mechanics. Turf toe can be stubborn and can become a chronic problem if left untreated or not allowed to heal properly. Evaluating shoe wear, investing in orthotics and working on gait/running mechanics are important elements to preventing this injury from reoccurring.

Kelli Adams is a physical therapist assistant.

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fitness: chris corrales

Stretch like you’ve already been injured As athletes, nearly 85-90 percent of our training is about pushing through and completing a goal. We become very familiar with what it takes to advance and achieve.

Physiologically speaking, this state corresponds to the state of the sympathetic nervous system, otherwise known as “fight or flight.” The sympathetic state is just one side of a whole. The other side is the parasympathetic nervous system, known for its qualities of “rest, relax, and recover.” The parasympathetic state and its role in stretching is important, but often overlooked.

Have you ever sprained or strained a muscle? If you have, then it is very likely that to assist your body’s recovery, you intuitively stretched or moved in ways that helped release stiffness or soreness. Most likely it was a slow, careful, methodical movement, right?

Now imagine being healthy, feeling good and ready to go. When we’re feeling good, we often fall into the opposite mode — our stretches are quick and we’re not quite present. We might self-prescribe stretches because we know they are good for us, or because we’re supposed to. What’s going on is that we’ve simply failed to focus and deepen. In other words, we exercise our sympathetic nervous state, but fail to involve the parasympathetic state necessary for us to relax and recover.

One of the tools I use to get into this parasympathetic state is to mentally revisit a past injury, or a time when I was forced to slow down. During those times, my body demanded quality movement and awareness. This is the ideal state to embody when stretching. So, next time you’re getting ready to stretch, pause external conversations, focus within, and move deliberately. The first time you practice this, try it for three to five minutes. As it becomes familiar, and the value becomes more apparent, increase your time. This is a great tool to develop a quality stretch, and to integrate the nervous system.

Chris Corrales is the advanced bodywork and movement educator for the Tri-Valley area. Find him at www.medicinevolution.com

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Welcome to Impulse, your one-stop shop for gadgets, gizmos and gear. Compiled by staff writer Erik Stordahl, Impulse provides you with the latest and greatest of what’s hot. The Super Bowl is upon us and we’re way past time for speeches. All that’s left is gearing up for your party. Here are some essentials.

popchips

We’re sure any party you go to will be filled with endless nachos, 47-layer dip and enough junk food to satisfy an army of trick-or-treaters. While vowing to eat only celery and carrot sticks is noble, we’re here to let you know there’s a tasty alternative. Yes, we’re talking about popchips and they’ve got a murderer’s row of healthy choices. Choose from an abundance of flavor with their tortilla chips: ranch, nacho cheese, chili limon, and salsa. Find the one for you and snack on.

49ers foam finger

This is probably the only time you’ll wear one of these but it comes highly recommended.

We suggest taking it off when going for the bean dip.

Alex Smith jersey

You might be wondering why on earth would you want to rep that dude anymore. It’s easy. He’s still a good guy to root for, his jersey will be cheap and if something were to happen (*finding wood to knock on*) and he ends up winning MVP, you’ll be looking pretty smart.

Vizio 3D TV

The price of one of these is the same for a seat in the nosebleed section of the Superdome. We suggest going with the former and charging your friends $50. If you invite 40 friends, you’ve broken even! The action will look so realistic, you’ll think you’re just a few feet from the field.

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No Tall Tale Ron Hirschman may be shorter than some of his players, but his Mustangs win at an unprecedented clip By clay kallam | Contributor Ron Hirschman didn’t start out to be a basketball coach — and in fact, he’ll be the first to admit he doesn’t really look like one.

“I’m 5-5,” he says, “on a good hair day,” and even though he played varsity basketball at Castro Valley back in the day, his primary sport was always baseball.

“My main goal was to be a baseball coach,” he says. He played a little at thfe junior college level, but when he first started teaching at Stone Valley Middle School in Danville he got offered the chance to coach junior varsity girls’ basketball at Monte Vista, which was just down the road.

After one year, Jeff Koury, then the boys coach, asked Hirschman to coach the boys JV, but the girls varsity job opened up, and Hirschman decided to take it.

“We had some talent, and we won the league,” said Hirschman, “and I forgot about coaching baseball.”

monte Vista girls

Monte Vista coach Ron Hirschman is in his 23rd season.

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Mustangs guard Angela Rigo looks for teammates in a Jan. 25 game.

Phillip Walton photos

He still leaned on the fiery Koury, though, for inspiration and advice. “I learned so much from Jeff,” says Hirschman.

“He was my mentor.”

Koury was also one of the more animated coaches (to put it politely) of his time, and Hirschman concedes he was emotional on the sidelines as well.

“I don’t think I was getting respect from the referees because of my height,” he said, but he’s calmed down during his 23-year career. “I’ve only gotten one technical in the last eight or nine years — you learn that referees aren’t why you lose.”

But Hirschman still makes his opinions known, though officials are used to him now. “They give me some rope,” he says, “and it’s fine as long as I don’t hang myself.”

But that intensity is a big part of the reason Hirschman has won 454 games at Monte Vista (to just 184 losses). “As a player, I knew I had to play hard,” he says. “I worked my butt off in practice because I knew if I wanted to play, I had to run through walls.

“I try to instill that in my players” And clearly, he’s been successful.

Over the years, the Mustangs have been known as a wellcoached, hard-working team that always competes. They’ve won seven East Bay Athletic League titles under Hirschman and advanced to NorCals seven times. But aside from that, there has always been one major obstacle to postseason success. “We’ve always run into Berkeley,” says Hirschman.

One year, they were 27-3, and all three losses were to the Yellowjackets.

In 2009, Monte Vista finally caught a break, and Berkeley

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was eliminated by Deer Valley-Antioch — opening the door for the Mustangs and the girl Hirschman believes is the best player ever to come out of Northern California: Niveen Rasheed.

“I’m partial,” he admits, “but you give me the No. 1 pick of any kid, and I’ll take Niveen. I’ll take her over Jayne Appel (who’s now in the WNBA).”

Behind Rasheed, who averaged 20.8 points, nine rebounds, 5.5 steals, 5.2 assists and 2.7 blocks per game, Monte Vista beat Deer Valley to win the NCS title, and then knocked off Kennedy-Sacramento to take the NorCal crown.

“One girl carried Monte Vista to the state championship game,” Hirschman said.

Rasheed, now a senior star at Princeton, holds the school record in career steals, rebounds, assists and points with over 1,700. She is also the only Monte Vista athlete to have a number retired.

But Hirschman isn’t closing in on 500 wins because he’s had star players. “Soccer’s No. 1 at Monte Vista,” he says, “and it always has been. One hundred and twenty-five girls tried out for soccer this year. We don’t get that many, but luckily, we’ve gotten the right ones.”

In the past, some of those right ones were Division-I players Betty Ann Boeving (Oregon), Kelly Copeland (Davidson), Holly Richards (Cal Poly) and Valy Helu (Army), but they are the only Division-I players Hirschman has had. Otherwise, he’s taken good high school athletes and molded them into part of a program that has had only two losing seasons in his 23 years, and now is riding an 18-year streak during which

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the fewest number of Monte Vista wins has been 17.

“We’ve had the same philosophies,” Hirschman says, “but we put in what’s best for that team. We vary from season to season and we might vary from game to game.

“The girls have gotten mad at me because we’ve put in so much stuff. Our playbook is really thick, but we build through the year.

We add things as the season goes along — sometimes what we run in February, we didn’t run in December; and what we ran in December, we might not run now.”

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Whatever the Mustangs were running on Jan. 8 worked very well, as they snapped Carondelet’s 53-game EBAL winning streak, 63-60. The Cougars, in fact, have lost only twice in league play since they joined the EBAL in 2009 – and both times were to Monte Vista.

Which brings up a question: Would Hirschman rather beat, say, Berkeley and win the NCS Division I title for the second time, or knock off Carondelet in Concord Feb. 1 in the rematch and take the EBAL? Not surprisingly, there’s a pause. “I would

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love to walk off the floor beating Carondelet one more time,” Hirschman finally says. “That was one of our goals at the start of the year.”

Being able to reach that goal will come from this year’s team’s remarkable depth.

“You never know who’s going to score,” he says. “It’s hard to game-plan for us.”

In the end, though, the Xs and Os aren’t the reason why Monte Vista is one of Northern California’s strongest programs.

Hirschman says over and over that he’s been lucky to have the kind of players he’s had, but he also admits that success “is supposed to go in cycles” – and it never seems there’s a down cycle in Danville.

“Our kids believe they can win,” says Hirschman, “and that’s a great thing.”

It would be even greater, it’s fair to say, to not only beat Carondelet but also to get back to the NorCal title game.

“If you played the Division I tournament four or five times, you could have four different winners,” he says of a field that includes Heritage and Berkeley, among others.

But given Hirschman’s track record, don’t bet against Monte Vista. “We have a great opportunity,” says Hirschman, and the Mustangs are in position to take full advantage. ✪

Monte Vista’s guard play has been very strong this season thanks in part to the efforts of 5-foot-7 junior Rachel Tagle.

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Records through Jan. 27 (source: MaxPreps.com) 1. (1) Bishop O’Dowd-Oakland 15-3 2. (2) St Mary’s-Stockton 20-1 3. (4) Miramonte-Orinda 17-1 4. (5) Archbishop Mitty-San Jose 15-5 5. (6) Salesian-Richmond 19-4 6. (7) Carondelet-Concord 16-3 7. (3) St. Mary’s-Berkeley 17-4 8. (8) Sacramento 17-4 9. (14) Heritage-Brentwood 14-4 10. (10) Oak Ridge-El Dorardo Hills 18-3 11. (12) Kennedy-Sacramento 18-3 12. (5) St. Ignatius-SF 12-3 13. (15) Sacred Heart Cathedral-SF 15-4 14. (18) Oakland Tech 15-3 15. (11) Brookside Christian-Stockton 18-4 16. (9) McNair-Stockton 20-2 17. (17) Eastside Coll. Prep-E. Palo Alto 14-5 18. (19) Monte Vista-Danville 17-3 19. (16) Lynbrook-San Jose 16-3 20. (20) Enterprise-Redding 20-1

DROPPED OUT

None

SHOOTOUT FALLOUT

Injuries and illness are clearly factors in who wins and loses, but in the end, the scoreboard doesn’t lie – so fluravaged McNair and injury-riddled Mitty both drop after short-handed losses at the Campolindo Shootout. Oak Ridge had no such obvious excuse in its 55-36 loss to Heritage, which vaulted the Patriots into the top ten. After Heritage and Oak Ridge, though, it’s hard to separate the next group of teams. With most of the major intersectional showcases concluded, it may take until postseason to sort it all out

BIGGEST MOVER

McNair dropped seven spots after losing to Oakland Tech, while Heritage jumped five after soundly defeating Oak Ridge.

TEAMS STILL RANKED FROM PRESEASON TOP 20: 15 KNOCKING ON THE DOOR

Wilcox-Santa Clara (17-2), Campolindo-Moraga (16-3), Bradshaw Christian-Sacramento (19-2), Burlingame (16-2), Alameda (14-5), Pinewood-Los Altos Hills (144), St. Francis-Mountain View (16-4), Soquel (18-2), McClymonds-Oakland (16-3), Lowell-S.F (17-5), Nevada Union-Grass Valley (16-4), Vanden-Fairfield (18-3).

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Former SJ Earthquake star’s young soccer club enjoys big January It’s already been a memorable 2013 for the West Coast Soccer Club of Tracy.

On Jan. 4 club founder and director Troy Dayak, a former standout player for the San Jose Earthquakes, was tabbed by his former professional team to oversee its Regional Development School programs at the new turf fields at Robertson Park in Livermore.

The Earthquakes’ RDS programs are designed to bring professional experience and guidance to youth soccer players throughout Northern California. They include the U5-U11 Development Program for boys and girls, as well as the U14 Pre-Academy program.

Dayak was selected to head these programs due to his playing history, of course, but also through the track record that the West Coast Soccer Club has established in just its first two years.

The club’s teams have already won numerous tournament championships, eight league titles, and a national championship. Multiple West Coast Soccer players currently play on the state Olympic Development and Player Development Programs. Several West Coast players are also currently on the Regional id2 and U.S. National training squads.

Which brings us to the second piece of good news that the WCSC has received this new year. The club announced earlier this month that U15 player Megan Amick, who plays for Granada High in Livermore, was recently selected to participate in the 2013 U.S. Youth Soccer National Development Camp. The camp runs from Jan. 29- Feb. 3 in Phoenix.

“This is a huge accomplishment for Megan because she was not sure if she wanted to continue playing soccer just a few years ago,” Dayak said. “Megan’s effort is a true testament to how hard work and dedication can help you accomplish your goals. Megan has made the National Team pool for her age group and is now considered as one of the best players in the country, which reflects well on Megan’s hard work and West Coast Soccer’s player development.”

Amick isn’t the only player who’s star is quickly rising. Sydni Lunt, another U15 standout, recently returned home from the U.S. Club Soccer’s National Identification id2 program in Casa

Megan Amick, left

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Grande, Ariz. The id2 program provides an opportunity for for the country’s elite youth soccer players to be identified and developed. The camp included a total of 56 girls born in 1998 and 1999, representing 19 different states.

“I was so excited to be selected for the second straight year to the id2 National training program,” Lunt said in a press release. “My training at West Coast Soccer has helped me compete at the highest level and can’t wait to get back to playing with my WCS Wild teammates” Two of West Coast’s U13 standouts were also singled out as Sydney Schultz was named to the the state’s Player Development Pool and goalkeeper Claire Abele made the ODP State team.

“Claire has a tremendous amount of potential and is rapidly becoming one of the best goal keepers in the age group” West Coast Soccer Club goalkeeper coach David Mahabali said.

West Coast U11 boys soccer players Dougie Wynne, Mateo Crivello and Zachary Rittman were all recently invited to the U14 Earthquakes Pre-Academy team.

Advertiser Index ❒❒ All Out Baseball & Softball In Season.........................11 ❒❒ All- Star Academy......................................................32 ❒❒ Antioch’s Great Family Entertainment Centers............37 ❒❒ Army National Guard Recruiter.....................................5 ❒❒ Bay Area Festivals Inc.................................................25 ❒❒ Big O Tires Northern California/ Nevada.......................2

QUARTER MIDGET RACING

❒❒ C Y C Soccer................................................................19

The Tri-Valley Quarter Midget Association is currently seeking donations and sponsorship partners for its 2013 racing season, as well as for the 2013 Quarter Midgets Association Western Grand Nationals which Tri-Valley is hosting this year from June 29-July 6. The week-long event will bring drivers from across the country and Canada to compete for a national title.

Many sponsorship packages are available for the event, including a title sponsor package.

Anyone interested should contact Fran Kennealy at tvqma@aol.com The Tri-Valley QMA is a non-profit organization that is run and staffed by family volunteers, and provides for drivers aged 5-17.

❒❒ Cal Stars Boys Basketball............................................32 ❒❒ Cal Stars Girls Basketball............................................33 ❒❒ Cascade Sports Camps................................................34 ❒❒ Championship Athletic Fundraising...........................36 ❒❒ Cheergyms.Com.........................................................35 ❒❒ Children’s Hospital And Research Center.....................29 ❒❒ Club Sport..................................................................30

CLAYTON VALLEY LITTLE LEAGUE

❒❒ Community Youth Center...........................................35 ❒❒ Core Volleyball Club....................................................33

If you missed your opportunity tryout for a CVLL team, there’s still time. Make-up baseball tryouts for majors, minor A, minor B and farm A leagues will take place at Clayton Valley Charter High in Concord on Feb. 2. The first round of CVLL softball tryouts for ages 8-12 will also be held at the high school on Feb. 2. Make-up softball tryouts for this group will happen on Feb. 10, also at Clayton Valley Charter. ✪ — SportStars

❒❒ Diablo Rock Gym........................................................37 ❒❒ Diablo Trophies & Awards...........................................37 ❒❒ E J Sports Elite Baseball Services................................34 ❒❒ East Bay Bulldogs Basketball......................................33 ❒❒ East Bay Panthers Basketball......................................34 ❒❒ East Bay Sports Academy...........................................18 ❒❒ Excellence In Sport Performance................................28 ❒❒ Fit 2 The Core..............................................................27 ❒❒ Heritage Soccer Club....................................................3 ❒❒ Home Team Sports Photography................................38 ❒❒ Image Imprint............................................................19 ❒❒ Jump Highway...........................................................32 ❒❒ Kali Ball Training........................................................32 ❒❒ Mike Allen Sports L L C...............................................13 ❒❒ Mountain Mike’s Pizza..................................................7 ❒❒ Muir Orthopedic Specialists........................................27 ❒❒ National Scouting Report...........................................33 ❒❒ Passthaball.................................................................35 ❒❒ Pro Hammer Bat.........................................................34 ❒❒ Rocco’s Pizza...............................................................37 ❒❒ Rockin Jump...............................................................40 ❒❒ Sky High Sports..........................................................37 ❒❒ Sport Clips..................................................................19 ❒❒ State Farm Jimmy Harrington Agent..........................38 ❒❒ Stevens Creek Toyota..................................................23 ❒❒ The First Tee Of Contra Costa.......................................35 ❒❒ Tpc / The Pitching Center............................................38 ❒❒ Trucks Training...........................................................28 ❒❒ Velocity Sports Performance......................................37 ❒❒ Velocity Sports Baseball.............................................34 ❒❒ Walnut Creek Soccer Club...........................................39

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