Sports Shorts
COACHING CORNER . . . Palo Alto Knights Youth Football is seeking experienced head and assistant football coaches for the 2011 season. Contact: Mike Piha 269-6100 or mike@ in2change.com. . . . Sacred Heart Prep is seeking an assistant crosscountry coach. All candidates please contact AD Frank Rodriguez at frodriguez@shschools.org or 473.4031.
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Incoming Stanford freshman David Nolan shocked the swimming world when he set three individual national prep records and swam on two record-breaking relays all in the same meet in March. Nolan will be among a talented field for the 2011 ConocoPhillips National Championships that start Tuesday at Stanford.
A new U.S. swim star is surfacing
Stanford freshman David Nolan heads into national championships after setting five national prep records by Keith Peters avid Nolan went from a fat kid to a fast kid — from chubby to champion — and from nowhere to somewhere as one of the fastest high school swimmers ever. The Stanford-bound Nolan, who is a lock to be named the boys’ na-
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tional high school swimmer of the year by Swimming World Magazine, set the swimming world on its ear with three individual national public school records and two national relay marks this past season. In doing so, Nolan accomplished something even Olympic stars like Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte
never did. “I don’t think anybody’s ever done what he has in a high school season, so that’s why all the hoopla,� said Skip Kenney, the Stanford men’s swim coach who won the recruiting battle for Nolan. “He’s maybe the most successful swimmer — based on his high school events — that
there’s ever been.� During his senior year at Hershey High (Pa.), Nolan broke national records in the 100-yard free (42.34 relay leg), 100-yard back (45.49), 200 IM (1:41.39) and anchored the 200 medley relay (1:30.27) and 200 free (continued on page 31)
BANK OF THE WEST CLASSIC
Former No. 1s making successful comebacks Sharapova, Serena Williams are battling to regain the elite stature they once enjoyed on the WTA Tour by Rick Eymer o matter what happens the rest of the summer, one thing is certain: Serena Williams is on her way back. The former world No. 1 made that clear with a swift, resounding victory over Anastasia Rodionova earlier in the week at the $721,000 Bank of the West Classic. Maria Sharapova, also a former No. 1 player, is a year into her comeback from right shoulder surgery and she’s on the verge of reclaiming her place on top of the tennis world. Sharapova entered the week ranked fifth, and reaching Friday night’s quarterfinals won’t hurt a bit. Williams is still in her infancy as far as recovering from a serious right foot injury that kept her off the court for nearly a year. She was favored to beat Maria Kirilenko late Thursday afternoon, which would mean a highly-anticipated date in
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the quarters with Sharapova at 8 p.m. Williams, who turns 30 in September, is playing just her third tournament since winning last year’s Wimbledon singles championship. It’s her first tournament on American soil since the 2009 U.S. Open, in which she reached the semifinals before losing to Kim Clijsters. Williams needed only 47 minutes to dispose of Rodionova, 6-0, 6-0, in her first-round match at Stanford’s Taube Family Tennis Center. “I felt good,� Williams said. “I want to be more consistent and I think I did that by not going for too much and not doing too much.� She recorded six service aces, did not have a double fault and won all 17 of her first-serve points in front of a full house. (continued on page 29)
Harjanto Sumali
OF LOCAL NOTE . . . Palo Alto native Evan Cranston, a recent Castilleja graduate, will continue her water polo career at Brown University next spring. Cranston, a goalie, was one of five recruits announced this week . . . Stanford graduate Michael Taylor was a triple short of hitting for the cycle as he collected five RBI as host Sacramento topped Reno, 10-1, on Monday night at Raley Field in Triple-A baseball . . . Former Stanford football wide receiver Doug Baldwin signed with the Seattle Seahawks on Monday.
Libby Nolan
ON THE PITCH . . . The nationally No. 1-ranked Palo Alto 93 Blue has some work to do if the local 18U boys’ soccer team has any plans of playing for the championship of the US Youth Soccer National Championship Series on Sunday in Phoenix, Ariz. Palo Alto opened play in the four-team, roundrobin tournament with a 2-1 loss to defending champion and national No. 2 Alpharetta Rush (Ga.) on Wednesday, despite a last-minute first half goal and a sustained attack in the second half. Alpharetta Rush scored its first goal at 11:10 on a short corner play and scored its second at 29:50 on a steal and a breakaway. At the 46:00 mark, Palo Alto was awarded a free kick from 30 yards out and Riley Hanley scored on a direct kick that beat the keeper cleanly, shortly before the first half ended. To start the second half, Palo Alto shifted to a 4-5-1 to slow down the speedy Georgians and mount an attack up the middle. The tactic worked as Palo Alto carried the run of play and had five good scoring chances, but could not score again. The top two teams from the round-robin stage will advance to Sunday morning’s title match. The Palo Alto 93 Blue has played together since 2002. This is their first trip to nationals. Palo Alto had to win the Northern California State Championship and the Far West Regional Championship. The roster includes Trevor Assaf (Crystal Springs), Cameron McElfresh (Gunn), Andrew Wohl (Gunn), Mackenzie Kelley (Mountain View), Sam Hayward (Gunn), Mark Raftrey (Palo Alto), Zach Hummel (Palo Alto), Miguel Vazquez (Half Moon Bay), Yotam Kasznik (Gunn), Daniel Tirosh (Gunn), Juan Gamez (Mission, SF), Grahame Fitz (Summit Prep), Ian Leung (St. Francis), Evan Coutre (St. Francis), Jose Mendoza (UNLV), A.J. Beloff (Carlmont), Ricky Minno (Palo Alto), Fernando Salazar (Foothill College) and Hanley.
Second-seeded Maria Sharapova advanced to Friday night’s quarterfinals at the Bank of the West with a three-set victory on Wednesday night. *>Â?ÂœĂŠ Â?ĂŒÂœĂŠ7iiÂŽÂ?ÞÊUĂŠ Ă•Â?ÞÊә]ÊÓ䣣ÊU Page 27