THE UNION SPORTS FEBRUARY 2012
21
Varsity Boys’ Soccer ‘not on the same page’; upper division increases competition level BY BENJAMIN GARDNER
Varsity Boys’ Soccer struggled to win games this year, which shows in their 0-7-3 record, according to Goalkeeper Piyush Kumar. Despite having talented players, injuries and grades prevented some key players from participating, Kumar said. MHS lost to Gunn High School by a score of 0-1 on Wednesday, Feb. 8, Team Captain Daniel Shak said. Gunn caught MHS off-guard with a goal within the first 15 minutes of the game, Shak said. “Our team played well together and moved the ball around well,” Shak said. “After the first few minutes, everyone actually held together, but we still couldn’t score.” A major challenge for the team
this year was the increase in competition level after they moved up to the De Anza division, Kumar said. Many players graduated last year, leaving the team with a young roster, according to Kumar. “We got bumped up to De Anza this year and we had a young team going in,” Kumar said. “We lost about 10 players from last year. We knew going in that we had a decent starting lineup, but if anything happened like injuries we didn’t have much depth to fill in the spots.” Players contributed to the team’s struggles by playing with techniques they had been using in their club teams , according to Team Captain Daniel Nguyen. This self-centered mind set of the club players did little for the team, Nguyen said.
“All of us are not on the same page when we play,” Nguyen said. “That’s the hard thing about high school: we only play with each other for a few months, and we’re all used to the styles from our club teams.” Taking the season more seriously and working harder in practice could have helped the team this year, Kumar said. Looking forward, however, the majority of the team will be back for next season, and they will be facing much easier competition, Kumar said “This year is a learning curve; next year we’ll get dropped to El Camino,” Kumar said. “We’re losing about five seniors from this year, but the defense and midfield is set. They should win El Camino and make CCS next year.”
HALL OF FAME
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Senior Chen-Hao Liao prepares to hit the shuttlecock during lunch on Feb. 7 in the gym. The �ve-week tournament concludes on March 1.
Katie Blackburn Junior Varsity Wrestling
CCS Girls 126 lbs, 4th place State Qualifier C���� T���//THE UNION
Despite high risks, severe sports injuries low BY NATHAN NG
Despite an athlete’s prevalence in his or her sport, the risk of getting injured during practices and competitions remains a constant reminder of the dangers of high school sports. In 3.55 million athlete exposures, there were 1378 severe injuries reported. Football had the highest at 0.69 severe injuries per 1000 athletic exposures, followed by wrestling (0.52), girls’ basketball (0.34), and girls’ soccer (0.33), according to The American Journal of Sports Medicine. In the journal article, the most common areas of injury were the main joints: knees (29.0%), ankles (12.3%), and shoulders (10.9%). In addition, the article discovered that the most common injuries were fractures (36.0%), complete ligament sprains (15.3%), and incomplete ligament sprains (14.3%). Not surprisingly, football’s unusually high rate of severe injuries
stems from the tackles and blocks that are characteristic of the sport. However, proper technique in tackling, such as tackling without the head, has been proven to significantly lower the risk of injury. In the realm of wrestling, most of the injuries include strains, sprains, and bruises, noticeably less severe than those from football. Facilitating such high rates of injury is the common practice of maintaining a targeted weight through improper and excessive diets. To reduce the rate of injury in wrestlers, coaches focus on encouraging players to lose at most 1.5 percent of their body weight each week. For high school baseball and softball, players who were most prone to injury were pitchers, reported ABC News. A major factor in the injury rates among baseball and softball pitchers is the frequency of their pitching. Softball requires pitchers to throw underhand, unlike baseball’s overhand pitching. ABC News also mentioned that the
difference in throwing mechanics has allowed softball players to pitch multiple games in a day; however, in baseball, pitchers are recommended to take days off after pitching to allow the body to recover. The most common sites of injury in soccer were the knee (38.9%), ankle (16.0%), and head (11.2%), according to The American Journal of Sports Medicine. A majority of the soccer injuries occurred during soccer activities such as ball handling (15.4%), general play (15.0%), defending (13.6%), and chasing after a loose ball (12.6%). To avoid injury, the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons recommends proper warm ups before playing. Despite the dangers of many high school sports, the risk of severe injuries remains scarce. With the implementation of safe procedures such as correct technique and joint-strengthening exercises, athletes will be able to thrive in their sport without the burden of being injured.
Intramural badminton starts; 24 players compete for t-shirt BY THANH TRAN
The intramural badminton tournament began on Jan. 24, Committee Head Cindy Ta said. The purpose of the tournament is to give students an opportunity to play badminton during lunch, according to Ta. Students who signed up for the tournament will play in a roundrobin format with a partner and are guaranteed at least three games before elimination, according to Ta. The tournament is five weeks long, with the finals scheduled to take place on March 1, Ta said. “Twenty-four people were signed up,” Ta said. “[There is an] Intramurals Champion T-shirt.” Senior Eric Chang is participating in the tournament for the first time, he said. He is dissatisfied with the amount of time given to play the rounds, Chang said. “There’s not enough competition, and rotation system is a bit slow,” Chang said. “[I joined] to win the prize, to win the T-shirt.” Sophomore Timothy Hsu is playing in the tournament for the second time, Hsu said. He made the finals of his pool last year, according to Hsu.
FEATURED ATHLETE What position do you play? Mid-�eld How long have you been playing soccer? How did you get started? I’ve been playing since I was �ve. My neighbor asked me to join her team, and that’s when I started playing soccer.
Varsity Boys’ Basketball hits ‘plateau’; team surprised by two losses in a row BY BRIAN KHAU
Although the Varsity Boys’ Basketball Team has suffered recent tough losses to the Mountain View Spartans and the Gunn Titans, the Trojans continue what they know how to do best: play their game. MHS boys’ basketball team ranks sixth out of seven schools in the De Anza League as of Feb. 9. The Trojans’ home game versus Mountain View on Feb. 3 was very close, with the Spartans inching out the Trojans by a mere point. The Trojans’ resilient performance against Mountain View, who is currently second in the De Anza league, resulted in a final score of 71-72, according to Basketball Coach Clarence Wrencher.
“It was what we call a ‘barnburner’ back East. Something so intense that it feels like a barn is burning next to you,” Wrencher said. “That was one the best basketball games, with four overtimes, multiple lead changes, and big shots by both teams.” In contrast, the away game versus Gunn was a disappointing loss, with the Trojans losing by eight points, 44-52. Senior Gary “Buddy” Ames, a small forward, said the loss was unexpected. “The problem was that we underestimated them,” Ames said. “They were at the bottom of the league, so we took them lightly.” Gunn High School was ranked at the bottom of the De Anza League at the time of the game, according
to Ames. Ames said that the Trojans were unprepared to lose, despite having many chances to win. “Many of our basketball games this season were really close,’’ Ames said. “The games we lost were by single-digit margins.” The basketball team did move up a league this year, which could explain the inconsistency this year as compared to previous years, Ames said. When asked if Wrencher had any advice he would give to his basketball players, it’s to “keep playing with heart; you’ll never go wrong.” As of the time of publication, scores from Milpitas High’s home game versus Cupertino on Friday, Feb. 10, were too late for print.
“[I joined] because I wanted to see if I could improve compared to last year,” Hsu said. “[I hope to make] the finals of my pool again because everyone has been improving, and it will be harder.” Sophomore Nikki Ngo joined because she wanted more practice before the badminton season began, she said. The tournament has room for improvement, according to Ngo. “I think if people knew you had a second chance, it would be more of a tournament,” Ngo said. “If the announcements put more information out there for people to know, it could be better.” Senior Kevin Tu won the tournament last year with Peter Yam, Tu said. This year he is partnered with Senior Chen-Hao Liao, according to Tu. “We’re going to lose next week most likely because of [Sophomore] Roberto [Zeng],” Tu said. “He was in nationals.” Sophomore Vincent Wang is a returning participant from last year, according to Wang. He made it to finals last year, Wang said. “[I hope to] get past Peter and Eric,” Wang said. “Probably [can] not.”
Did you play with any teams outside of school? I used to, in a club team called the Bay Area Cyberrays. How do you train for soccer? I go to practice everyday; off season, I run and play soccer with my friends.
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Julie Joseph Senior Varsity Soccer
What is your favorite color? Teal.
Who is your favorite soccer player and soccer team? Why? Messi because he is really good. Real Madrid because they’re a really talented team. What do you do in your free time? I like to hang out with my friends. Do you have any advice for other soccer players? Work hard; go to practice everyday.