World Events Issue 119

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JULY 2016 VOL. 7 ISSUE 119 NORCAL EDITION

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July 2016

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JOIN OUR TEAM PHONE 925.566.8500 FAX 925.566.8507 EDITORIAL Editor@SportStarsOnline.com Editor Chace Bryson • Chace@SportStarsOnline.com Staff Writer Jim McCue • JimMcCue16@gmail.com Contributors Bill Kolb, Matt Smith, Clay Kallam, Dave Kiefer, Tim Rudd, Trevor Horn Copy Editor Bill Kruissink Photography Bob Larson, Jonathan Hawthorne, James K. Leash, Norbert von der Groeben, Phillip Walton, Doug Guler, Berry Evans, III Marketing/Events Ryan Arter CREATIVE DEPARTMENT Art@SportStarsOnline.com Production Manager Mike DeCicco • MikeD@SportStarsOnline.com PUBLISHER/PRESIDENT Mike Calamusa • Mike@SportStarsOnline.com

Jonesin’ In July

I

f you’re a die-hard high school sports fan, July can be a tough month.

In June, you can coast off the adrenaline of the section and state championships that wrap up at the beginning of the month. In August, you can start reading football season previews at the beginning of the month and be watching games by the end of it.

But July holds the waiting game.

We know. We get it. We’ve been there.

However, you, fine reader of SportStars, have a couple of things going for you. For one, you have us. We keep an eye out for the stories and events that should help tide you over for the next four weeks. Secondly, more than likely, you live in Northern California. And there’s an awful lot to do here, and some pretty amazing weather to do it in.

But if we were going to make a list of some of the things we plan on using to help us navigate July, it might look something like this. ›› Little League — Livermore remains the host of the Little League Intermediate 50/70 World Series and Sacramento’s American River College has become the host site for the Little League Senior Western Regionals All-Star Tournament. Both of these events are free, and feature some of America’s best young baseball talent.

And, for the most part, the competition is pure. Go watch a game and enjoy the hustle, fundamentals and

sportsmanship. You won’t be disappointed. ›› Swimming — There are plenty of competitive swim meets you could go watch. But we’re actually advocating submerging yourself. (Please, put the magazine down first.) Chalk this up to the spoils of NorCal, where if you don’t have a swimming pool, there’s undoubtedly a natural body of water within driving distance that can cool you off. ›› Hoops — Not 100 percent sold on jumping in some water? Cool off in an air-conditioned gym by watching some of the best boys and girls basketball players compete in their AAU tournaments and showcases. The next one of these events comes July 9-10 as the NorCal Summer Tip-Off comes to San Francisco City College. As many as 50 boys teams will participate in NorCal’s only NCAA-certified boys event of the summer. Games run up until 11 p.m. on Saturday night and until 5 p.m. on Sunday. ›› Google Team USA — Get pumped for Rio! The Summer Games take place in August and several Northern California natives will be going for gold. Find out who they are — you just may find that you witnessed part of their high school career — and get ready to follow the drama.

And by the time the Olympics are over, you’ll be opening the pages to our Football Preview. ✪

ADVERTISING Sales@SportStarsOnline.com, 925.566.8500 Account Executives Camps & Clinics: Ryan Arter • Camps@SportStarsOnline.com Alameda County: Berry Evans • Berry@foto-pros.com Central Valley, World Events: Anthony Grigsby • Area Director anthony.grigsby@worldeventssports.com Darin Wissner • JustAGameEvents@gmail.com READER RESOURCES/ADMINISTRATION Subscription, Calendar, Credit Services Info@SportStarsOnline.com DISTRIBUTION/DELIVERY Phillip Walton • Mags@SportStarsOnline.com INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY John Bonilla CFO Sharon Calamusa • Sharon@SportStarsOnline.com COMMUNITY SPORTSTARS™ MAGAZINE A division of Caliente! Communications, LLC 5356 Clayton Rd., Ste. 222 • Concord, CA 94521 • info@SportStarsOnline.com www.SportStarsOnline.com

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honorable mention

DE LA SALLE-CONCORD - GOLF - 2016 GRAD Building off the momentum he established during a phenomenal postseason for the Spartans this spring, McCarthy recently qualified for the PGA Web.com Tour’s Ellie Mae Classic at TPC Stonebrae taking place from July 28-31 in Hayward. McCarthy earned the entry by shooting a 4-underpar 67 at the 2016 Junior Tour Ellie Mae Classic Qualifier at TPC Stonebrae on June 26. He was the only qualifier from that day’s event. This is only the most recent standout performance by the Pepperdine-bound golfer. McCarthy closed out his De La Salle career with a 1-under 71 at the North Coast Section Tournament of Champions, a 3-under 69 to finish second at the CIF NorCal Tournament and an even-par 71 for an eighth-place finish at the CIF State Tournament. The Ellie Mae Classic at TPC Stonebrae carries a $600K purse with $108K going to the winner.

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Nicole Bates: The Ceres softball standout wrapped up her high school career by being named Cal-Hi Sports’ Ms. Softball. The state player of the year honors came on heels of a season in which the shortstop hit .571 on 60 hits, with 45 runs and 33 RBI for the SJS Div. III-champion Bulldogs.

Lilly Weyrauch: The 13-yearold Junior Level 3 standout for Velocity Cheer in Antioch was named an All-America at the National Cheer Association Camp held at her home club in Antioch from June 24-26.

Weyrauch was a Junior Level 2 national champion in the solo division a year ago.

Got Send your nominations to: Next? Editor@SportStarsOnline.com or tweet us using #SSOTW

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TOP 5 PROMISES TO LURE KEVIN DURANT

Andy Martin Jr. via ZUMA Wire

This 4th of July, former NBA MVP and one of the league’s top five players Kevin Durant celebrated his independence -- from coming in second. After a heated recruitment period in which all 30 teams in the Association*, as well as seven teams from Europe*, two teams from South America*, the US Postal cycling team*, and the Russian national track team* courted the versatile Durant, the stretch forward (who disputed claims that he would be a contender to win the Tour de France or the Olympic pole vault -- but we’re not so sure) agreed in principle to a two-year contract with the 73-win Golden State Warriors**, sparking a wave of disappointment, outrage, and hurt-feelings that might have caused Great Britain to leave the European Union***. The following is a list of the Top 5 recruitment pitches to KD from various team executives.

1. Every practice, and twice on game days, you get to sock Blake Griffin right in the nose — L.A. Clippers coach Glen ‘Cool Story, Doc’ Rivers.

2. Unlimited Voodoo Donuts and Stumptown Coffee, and the closest arena to the city to which you were drafted, and from which you were subsequently stolen. Not that the Pacific Northwest is still bitter about that at all**** — Portland Trailblazers coach Terry Stotts.

3. Every practice, and twice on game day, you get to slap Kevin Love right in the face — Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue. 4. Dude. South Beach. — Miami Heat general manager Pat Riley.

5. Dude. We’re gonna win. Like. A lot — Golden State Warriors general manager Bob Myers. *not really; **really; ***not really again; ****still not really — Bill “Two Outta Three Ain’t Bad” Kolb

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#

TRENDING

HASHTAG Having a little fun this issue, and trying something new. In lieu of listing some of our favorite tweets from the last week, we thought we’d post one of our own. We haven’t really gotten into the Twitter poll scene much, but we’re going to have some fun with them more often.

While working on this issue, we tried one out and got a decent response, and perhaps a surprising result. Check it out, and let us know if you agree or disagree: “Working on a July feature of @jakehaener10 has us wondering: Which NCS Div. I star’s team will have a better 2016?”

JAKE HAENER & MONTE VISTA — 61%

What’s hot in the world of stuff that’s hot The reunited Guns ’N Roses is out touring. Axl has showed up every night.

There have been no riots.

Everybody is getting along.

Rock and Roll is truly dead.

NAJEE HARRIS & ANTIOCH — 39% 264 votes over 24 hours.

Hillary Clinton avoided charges. Donald Trump did something stupid on Twitter. Wish I had a joke in here.

Kellog’s is opening a cereal cafe in New York City.

Hope the hipsters that eat there ironically will be able to keep the milk out of their beards.

39% 61%

So winning 73 games, blowing 3-1 lead in the Finals, signing Kevin Durant. No pressure next year, guys.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? JADEN CONWRIGHT It was two years ago this month that we visited Sonoma Raceway to spend a day interviewing 14-year-old Formula Car racing talent Jaden Conwright of Fremont. At the time, Conwright was a Newark Memorial High sophomore turning heads as the youngest driver in the Formula Car Challenge Series for Mazda FormulaSPEED2.0 cars. Conwright’s passion for formula car racing was evident, and his goals were wide in scope. And it was clear to many, he had talent. Two years later, he’s continued his climb and has entered the European scene. In January he signed with Vincenzo Sospiri Racing to compete in the Italian Formula 4 Series. He’s yielded no points in his first three races on the tour, but gets another chance on July 17 when the series comes to Mugallo Circuit — a 15-turn, 5.245 kilometer raceway in Tuscany.

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Turns out the BFG wasn’t a BFD after all.

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College Advice: Who Knows Best?

A lot people are giving me advice about where to go to college. I’d like to play soccer, but I don’t really know how good I am. Some people say I can play Division I, and one of my coaches said I might have a better college experience if I go Division III. But the schools I really want to go to are so good in soccer I probably couldn’t play there. So I’m really confused, and people keep talking to me and confusing me even more. Who should I listen to?

G.G., Berkeley

t’s sort of ironic you’re asking me for advice on which advice to take, but that’s really the crux of the issue, for you and almost everyone heading off to college: You want to make the best decision possible so you talk to as many people as possible, but after a while, it’s easy to fall into the paralysis-from-analysis trap — but then again, maybe the next person you talk to will give you the key to unlocking the best decision.

At some point, though, you have to draw a line in the sand and say to yourself “OK, I have to move from information-gathering to decisionmaking.”

That’s step one. Step two is to evaluate who’s giving you advice and why. Generally, your parents have certain goals for you, and obviously you should listen to them. But, as you assuredly have pointed out to them in the past, you are not them, and their goals aren’t necessarily yours.

Your club soccer coach makes his living from soccer, and the more players he sends on to Pac-12 schools, the better his club looks — and the more likely he is to make more money. So his assurance that you’ll do fine at UCLA is great, and may even be accurate, but there is an advantage for him even if you go to UCLA and quit playing after one year.

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He can still say he sent a player to the Pac-12.

Your soccer friends and their families are all wrapped up in the same complications, but there’s also an added level of competition. One girl and her dad are bragging about how she got a ride to Texas Tech, and a boy claims he got into a really good academic school because of the soccer coach.

All of this leads to the moment when you want to decide where to go to school, and at that moment, you are taking another step, a big one, towards adulthood. In the end, the only advice that matters is your own, and you have to filter out, as best you can, all those other voices.

How important is soccer? How important will soccer be two years from now? Four years from now? Twenty years from now? Will you look back if you wind up not playing in college and always wonder “What if …,” or will you feel that your time was better spent on preparing for a business career? Or is the fact that you can only play soccer at this level for a few more years and you’ll be working the rest of your life more important?

One of the reasons we enjoy sports is that there’s always a clear outcome (even a tie), but life is much more ambiguous. You can never really know what the best decision is or was, so you just have to do the best you can at the moment you decide, and then move on.

Of course, that’s just my advice, and maybe my voice is one you should filter out.

Or not. Good luck. ✪ Clay Kallam is an assistant athletic director and girls varsity basketball coach at Bentley High in Lafayette. To submit a question for Behind the Clipboard, email him at clayk@fullcourt.com

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Potent Pairs NorCal’s Most Dominant Teammate Duos

D

ynamic duos in sports can be a corny phrase, but when they are two players from the same team it can create all sorts of possibilities.

At the high school level, I was reminded of the greatest duo from any one high school team that I’ve ever covered in June when the WNBA announced its top 20 players from its first 20 seasons.

Believe it not, but both Lisa Leslie and Tina Thompson, two of the WNBA’s alltime best, were indeed once on the same team at Morningside High in Inglewood.

It was Morningside’s 1990 team that went 32-3 and won the CIF Division I state title over Berkeley in a game played at the Oakland Coliseum Arena (now Oracle Arena).

Thompson, in fact, once broke Leslie’s record as the all-time career scoring leader in the WNBA and they also were teammates on two U.S. Olympic teams that won gold medals.

What I remember most about those two being on the same team, however, was that Leslie

was the dominant player while Thompson, just a freshman at the time, was simply learning the ropes. After that state final and the press conference, Leslie also collapsed in a hallway at the arena, which concerned everybody because it wasn’t too many weeks after Hank Gathers had collapsed and died while playing at Loyola Marymount. Thank goodness, Lisa was just dehydrated.

Even those two, however, can’t be considered the greatest pair of athletes to ever be teammates at the same time on the same high school team. That label would have to go to the McClymonds-Oakland boys basketball team of 1952, which had one of the greatest baseball players of all-time, Frank Robinson, and one of the greatest basketball players of all-time, Bill Russell. At the time, Robinson actually was better than Russell in basketball because it wasn’t until Russell got to USF that he began to dominate.

With those dynamic duos in mind, here would be my top five from Northern California history:

1. Bill Russell & Frank Robinson (McClymonds-Oakland basketball)

4. Helen Wills & Helen Jacobs (Anna Head School-Berkeley tennis)

Robinson went on to a baseball career, of course, and is the only player ever to win MVP awards in both the American and National League. He’s also still in the top 10 all-time for career homers and was the first African American to be a manager. Russell is one of the most iconic figures in U.S. sports history due to winning 11 NBA titles in 13 years. We could have listed Robinson with two other McClymonds baseball teammates on this list — Vada Pinson and Curt Flood — but only went with the one listing from the one school.

We’re really reaching back into the 1920s and 1930s for these two, but why not? The two Helens were two years apart, grew up in the same neighborhood and had the same coach. Wills went on to win at Wimbledon eight times. One of the years she didn’t win at Wimbledon, in 1936, Jacobs won. Jacobs also won the U.S. Open title four times. Wills won the U.S. Open seven times. They weren’t sisters like Venus and Serena Williams, but they might as well have been. In 1979, the Anna Head School for girls was merged with Royce School and became Head-Royce of Oakland.

2. Mark & Dave Schultz (Palo Alto wrestling) Both Schultz brothers were Olympic gold medal winners and are legendary figures in the sport of wrestling. Dave Schultz was murdered in January of 1996 near his home in Pennsylvania.

3. Debbie Meyer & Sue Pederson (Rio Americano-Sac. swimming) Technically, they weren’t on the same high school team because in 1968 there wasn’t girls sports. But at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, the Rio Americano classmates both won gold medals — Meyer won three and Pederson won two — and they’re both in the International Swimming & Diving Hall of Fame.

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5. Joe Morgan & Rudy May (Castlemont-Oakland baseball) We tried to get a football combo in the top five, but it was too hard to beat these two. Morgan, a member of the MLB Hall of Fame for his years with the Cincinnati Reds and regarded as one of the greatest second baseman of all-time, played on the same prep team at Castlemont as May, who had an 18-year MLB pitching career and led the American League in ERA in 1980. ✪ Mark Tennis is the co-founder of Cal-Hi Sports, and publisher of CalHiSports.com. Contact him at markjtennis@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter, @CalHiSports.

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BASEBALL CALIFORNIA TOP 10

SOFTBALL CALIFORNIA TOP 10

Sheldon’s Jaciana Vasquez

All records are final 1. (1)

—

Buchanan-Clovis

All records are final 30-1

The Bears also were the final consensus No. 1 team in the nation.

2. (3)

▲

De La Salle-Concord

25-3

The Spartans dominated in the CIF North Coast Section Division I playoffs and also notched wins over CCS champ St. Francis plus Sac-Joaquin champ Elk Grove.

3. (5)

▲

Redondo Union-Redondo Beach

29-2

The L.A. Times also agreed in its final rankings and placed the CIF Southern Section Div. III champs at No. 1 in SoCal. 4. (16)

▲

Murrieta Mesa-Murrieta

27-7

This was the surprising CIF Southern Section Div. I champion.

Head coach Bryn Wade is building a powerhouse.

5. (8)

▲

St. Francis-Mountain View

24-8

The Lancers won their second straight CCS Open Div. crown and moved up when others lost.

6. (5)

▼

Harvard-Westlake-North Hollywood

25-9

The Wolverines secured this lofty finish in the rankings thanks to knocking off previous No. 2 JSerra in the CIFSS Div. I semifinals before losing in extra-innings to Murrieta Mesa in the finals.

7. (2)

▼

JSerra-San Juan Capistrano

27-7

Watch out for the Lions again next year behind State Junior of the Year Royce Lewis.

8. (9)

▲

El Camino Real-Woodland Hills

28-7

The two-time L.A. City Section champs have to be behind CIFSS Div. I finalist Harvard-Westlake due to a head-to-head loss.

9. (14)

▲

Serra-San Mateo

25-6-1

Season ended in a one-run loss to No. 5 St. Francis — a team it went 2-2 against during the season.

10. (4)

▼

Clovis North-Fresno

24-7-1

We had to give the Broncos some credit for being able to beat No. 1 Buchanan once in four tries.

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1. (5) ▲ Mission Viejo 27-4 With the previous top three teams all losing in the CIF Southern Section playoffs, the Diablos jumped to the top after winning the CIFSS Div. II title.

2. (7) ▲ Mater Dei-Santa Ana 27-7 An 8-2 win over previous No. 1 Orange Lutheran in the CIFSS Div. I final capped a magical ride for the Monarchs.

3. (4) ▲ Grand Terrace 28-1 Previous No. 1 Orange Lutheran could have been here, but Grand Terrace deserved to rise at least one spot for the season it had. We didn’t agree with MaxPreps’ final rankings that listed Grand Terrace No. 2 in the nation.

4. (1) ▼ Lutheran-Orange 30-4 The Lancers ended up going 2-2 in games this season against league rival Mater Dei. They also had a win over Mission Viejo.

5. (2) ▼ Los Alamitos 26-3 A loss to Orange Lutheran in the CIFSS Div. I semifinals — when the two teams were the No. 1 and No. 2 in the state — ended the season for the Griffins.

6. (8) ▲ Etiwanda 29-3 The Eagles lost in the second-round of the CIFSS Div. I playoffs, but the team they lost to (Mater Dei) ended up winning it all.

7. (12) ▲ Valley View-Moreno Valley 25-2 This team knocked off previous No. 3 La Habra in the CIFSS Div II semifinals before losing to Mission Viejo in the final.

8. (3) ▼ La Habra 29-2 Realistically, the Highlanders could have landed anywhere from fourth to eighth in the final rankings. These teams were that close.

9. (10) ▲ Sheldon-Sacramento 30-2 The Huskies ended up as the No. 1 team in Northern California due to previous No. 9 Amador Valley-Pleasanton losing in the NCS semifinals.

10. (6) ▼ Norco 26-6 Last year’s CIFSS Div. I champs went out in the semis this year after losing to Mater Dei.

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W

hat can you build with a 40-ton pileof-rock and a quarter-mile walkway through the desert? Answer: A wicked Radio-Controlled Rock Crawler Adventure Trail.

In the spring of 2016, Ocotillo Wells State Vehicular Recreation Area (SVRA) proudly unveiled its new RC rock crawler trail. This new park feature provides RC enthusiasts countless obstacles to maneuver while traveling along a trail that is engineered to test their skills while practicing the Tread Lightly principles of trail etiquette and responsible recreation practices.

While traversing the trail, operators encounter numerous obstacles including bridges, tunnels, canyons, the mountain of doom, a teeter-totter, and of course, plenty of rocks to challenge their patience and route planning. The new RC trail has something for everyone — easier routes for those still wet behind the ears, moderate routes for those with a little more confidence, and difficult to extreme routes for those highly skilled trail bosses.

As gnarly as the obstacles are along the trail, the RC vehicles found maneuvering them are just as legit as those found in the park’s “fullsized” 4x4 vehicle obstacle course. Today’s RC vehicles have evolved to be more authentic and functional than the first off-road RC vehicles that appeared in the late 1970s.

In fact, crawlers today are built with fully functional off-road suspension systems, rebuildable and exchangeable engines, operating LED lighting and winches, a wide selection of tires to choose from, as well as upgraded grille and body kits to aggrandize your ride. The wide-range of gearing options and add-on accessories allow today’s crawlers to not only conquer a wide-variety of terrain, but look awesome.

So, grab your rock crawler and head out to Ocotillo Wells SVRA to test your crawlin‘ skills along its new one-of-a-kind RC trail. See you there! ✪ — Copy and photo provided by Ocotillo Wells SVRA staff, California State Parks 14

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OCOTILLO WELLS STATE VEHICULAR RECREATION AREA 5172 Highway 78 Borrego Springs, CA 92004

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VOLLEYBALL NOTES

NATIONAL TREASURE Several Northern California Girls Volleyball Clubs Shine On Multiple National Stages

T

he girls volleyball competitive club season ended with multiple national championship events in 2015-2016.

At the USA Volleyball Junior Nationals from June 28-July 3, as many as four Northern California teams returned after Top-5 efforts. The Five Starz 15-1 Black squad (pictured below) out of Davis returned with the runner-up trophy from the 15 American Division. Five Starz 15-1 Black went 8-3 during their time in Indianapolis. They won their quarterfinal and semifinal matches in straight sets before falling 25-11, 25-20 to Revolution 15-1 National of Woodlands, Texas. That Revolution team went 11-0 and won 22 of its 24 sets.

Other clubs to shine in Indianapolis included Red Rock 14-1 (Redwood City), SF JRs. RoShamBo 14-1 (San Francisco), Encore Navy 16-1 (Redwood City) and Mountain View Volleyball Club (MVVC) 18 Red. Red Rock went 7-2 on the weekend to grab a tie for fifth place in the 14 National Division. SJ JRs 14-1 grabbed a fifth-place finish in the 14 USA Division.

Encore tied for a third-place finish in the 16 USA Divsion, and MVVC 18 Red went a blistering 8-1 en route to a fifth-place finish. MVVC was bounced from bracket play 25-21, 21-25, 15-12 by eventual runner-up Rockwood Thunder 18-Navy (St. Louis).

The Diablo Valley Volleyball Club 18-1 Black — which SportStars featured in its Digital Weekly as part of a Junior Nationals preview — wound up placing tied for 21st in the 18 American Division. DVVC went 4-5 during the weekend.

While many clubs were preparing to go to Indianapolis, Xceleration VB Club’s 18-Blue (Pleasant Hill) was already competing at a national event. The Xceleration team coached by Andy Schroeder and led by the Liberty-Brentwood duo of outside hitter Taylor Dixon and setter Kaitlynn Zdroik, were competing at the AAU National Championships in Orlando. The team — which also featured Monte Vista-Danville standout Ava Patterson, Head-Royce-Oakland’s Natasha Skov and St. Joseph Notre Dame-Alameda standout Emma Doud — finished 19th overall.

Xceleration began the tournament 6-2, but narrowly missed winning the crossover match that would’ve propelled the team into the championship bracket. The team was defeated by Northern Lights (Minnesota) in a three-set thriller. Northern Lights took the decisive set 15-12.

Dixon is headed to CSU San Marcos on scholarship; Zdroik chose San Jose State; Patterson will attend Bryant and Doud is set to go to Loyola Marymount. ✪ — SportStars Staff Taylor Dixon

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McDonald

Woodward

RISING STAR ABBY MARJAMA | ROCKLIN | VOLLEYBALL | SOPHOMORE In two seasons with the Thunder, Marjama has been to a pair of SJS Div. II finals and was part of the 2014 Div. II title team. The outside hitter pounded down 327 kills as a sophomore to give her 691 in her brief career. With the graduation of four-year outside hitter Maddie Haynes, Marjama will be counted on more by head coach Dave Muscarella and should seamlessly step into the spotlight.

Bates

COACH OF THE YEAR LARRY PRICE | ELK GROVE | BASKETBALL In his first year coaching the Thundering Herd after nearly a decade at Florin, Price guided the program to its first-ever CIF State Championship game in any sport. The state parole agent got the most out of a team that finished second in the Delta League and failed to even make the section Div. II final as the Herd made a historic underdog run from the NorCal No. 12 seed to near-state champions.

Honor Roll: Kim Evans, Sonora Volleyball; Victor Pitton, St. Francis Basketball; Mary Jo Truesdale, Sheldon Softball.

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Marjama

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Fiona O'Keeffe | Davis | Cross Country/Track and Field | Senior

EMILY BAPTISTA | HILMAR | VOLLEYBALL | SENIOR The Yellowjackets’ outside hitter led the SJS with 579 kills as a senior, and accumulated 2,490 kills in her four-year varsity career. Baptista led Hilmar to back-toback SJS Div. IV finals and will play at University of Pacific in the fall.

AARION MCDONALD | BROOKSIDE CHRISTIAN | BASKETBALL | SENIOR University of Washington-bound guard was a versatile star who averaged 22 points, 8.4 rebounds, 6.1 assists, and 6 steals per game as a senior. McDonald led Brookside Christian to the SJS Div. IV championship and a berth in NorCal Open Div. bracket.

JURNEE WOODWARD | VACAVILLE | TRACK AND FIELD | JUNIOR With still one more year of high school left, she was dominant in both hurdles events. Woodward claimed SJS Masters titles in both the 100- and 300-meter hurdles, and collected a CIF State Track and Field Championship in the 300 while finishing third in the 100.

NICOLE BATES | CERES | SOFTBALL | SENIOR The senior shortstop batted .571 for the season, but came up huge in helping the Bulldogs win the SJS Div. III title. The University of Washington-signee was 15for-24 (.625) with three doubles, three homers and seven RBI in the postseason.

ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

GIRLS HONORABLE MENTIONS

THE O'KEEFFE FILES THE STATS: Despite running with pain, she helped the Blue Devils to a Sac-Joaquin Section team title and a secondplace team finish in Div. I at the CIF State Cross Country Championships in the fall. O’Keeffe was a two-time Div. I state cross country champion and only missed out on a three-peat due to lingering tendinitis. In track and field, she repeated as Section Masters 3,200 champion and claimed her first CIF State Track and Field Championships individual title with an impressive victory in the 3,200-meter race.

SIGNATURE PERFORMANCE: A year after finishing second in the 3,200 at the state finals, O’Keeffe turned the tables on Great Oak’s Destiny Collins and won the event to add a track and field individual title to her two state cross country titles.

WHAT’S NEXT: One of the area’s top distance runners, she will continue her track and field career at Stanford University and hopes to compete internationally in the future.

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iona O’Keeffe’s desire to run may only be matched by her humility. The Davis High School graduate is among the most gifted and successful distance runners in Sac-Joaquin Section history, but, if she could, she might run just as far as she needed in order to avoid the spotlight.

The two-time state cross country champion and 2016 winner of the 3,200-meter race at the CIF State Track and Field Championships always had her Blue Devils’ team goals ahead of her personal goals. As a freshman, it was easy for O’Keeffe to blend in with her cross country teammates and quietly run to the front of the pack with little fanfare. But cross country and distance coach Bill Gregg quickly realized that he had a special individual who could lead the team to new heights.

“As her freshman year unfolded, I could see that the potential was real and that she could do some great things,” Gregg said.

In her first year of high school competition, O’Keeffe won her first of three consecutive SJS Division I individual titles, but was disappointed that Davis finished as the runner-up to St. Francis in the team standings. She would correct that with team section titles in 2013 and 2015, but the spotlight started to focus on the young runner after she finished sixth in the Division I race at the CIF Cross Country Championships as a freshman.

O’Keeffe followed up her debut season with state Division I individual titles in cross country in 2013 and 2014 to set up an opportunity to join a select few runners with at least three state cross country titles. Unfortunately, ongoing tendinitis and a tight calf slowed her in the postseason of her senior year, but she gutted out a 16th-place individual finish to pace a solid Blue Devils’ team effort that earned a second runner-up state finish for Davis during O’Keeffe’s four years.

Among her teammates during her final high school season was younger sister Olivia, a sophomore who finished 31st at state and shared the section team title. With athletic parents who ran competitively in college, it is perhaps no surprise that Fiona and Olivia have succeeded in cross country and track.

“I think that part of it is genetic,” Fiona said of her talent, “but probably what makes me good is how much I love it and the kind of coaching that I have gotten.”

Fiona will take her love for running a short distance away — for a Sunday O’Keeffe family run maybe — to Palo Alto where she will compete as a distance runner for the Stanford. With an eye on national and international events in her future, O’Keeffe is likely to focus on track and field events, such as the 3,200 meters and other distance events in college and beyond.

O’Keeffe was a three-time Section Masters champion in the 3,200 and two-time 1,600-meter winner. As a senior, she doubled in those events and finally added the exclamation point to her high school track career at the state meet in Clovis.

A year after being edged by Great Oak’s Destiny Collins in the 3,200-meter race at the CIF State Track and Field Championships, O’Keeffe outran her rival to claim a third state championship medal, and provided a convincing closing statement for her inclusion in the conversation of elite distance runners in recent California history.

She followed that up with her first statement as a high school graduate at the 2016 USA Track and Field (USATF) Junior Nationals held on the same track that hosts the California state high school meet. O’Keeffe shattered the meet record in the 5,000-meter race with a time of 15:56.84 that bested the Junior Nationals’ record by nearly 15 second and her personal best by more than half a minute.

As a top-two finisher at the USATF event, O’Keeffe qualified to race in the World Juniors meet to be held July 19-24 in Poland. The humble runner has yet to decide if she will make the trip, and will not likely seek much fanfare if she does choose to race against international competition.

In the absence of her commentary on her greatness, Gregg’s statement from the 2015 cross country season says enough.

“She could be one of the great young female American distance runners in the next 5-10 years.” ✪ — Jim McCue

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Jeffrey

Carlson

RISING STAR ELIAS KING | CHRISTIAN BROTHERS | BASKETBALL | SOPHOMORE The 6-foot-7 forward came into his own in his second season of varsity basketball by doubling his scoring and rebounding averages. King scored in double digits in 25 of 26 games, including a career-high 48 in a 95-88 win over VandenFairfield. He averaged a double-double of 25.2 points and 11.2 rebounds.

Manning

COACH OF THE YEAR DEREK SWAFFORD | SACRAMENTO | BASKETBALL The coach’s 17th season may have been his greatest as the Dragons went 30-2, won the Sac-Joaquin Section Div. II championship, and advanced to the NorCal semifinals of the ultra-competitive Open Division. Known for his discipline and emphasis on academics and community service, Swafford allowed his most experienced group of athletes ever to lead the way to unprecedented success.

Honor Roll: Casey Taylor, Del Oro football; Richard Midgley, Modesto Christian basketball; Todd Melton, Oak Ridge baseball.

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Ryan Robards | Elk Grove | Football/Baseball | Senior

JAKE JEFFREY | FOLSOM | FOOTBALL | SENIOR The Bulldogs’ QB accounted for more than 5,000 yards of offense (4,194 passing, 974 rushing) and 61 TDs (50 passing; 11 rushing) to lead Folsom to its fourth straight SJS title. Jeffrey will be a preferred walk-on at Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo.

SOLOMON YOUNG | SACRAMENTO | BASKETBALL | SENIOR The Iowa State-bound forward was a force on the inside and outside as he helped the Dragons to a 30-2 record, SJS Div. II championship and a NorCal Open Div. semifinal appearance. The four-year starter averaged 17.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game.

DYLAN CARLSON | ELK GROVE | BASEBALL | SENIOR The St. Louis Cardinals’ first-round pick (No. 33 overall) did it all in helping the Thundering Herd to a third SJS Div. I crown in his four years. Carlson batted .406 with nine HR and 40 RBI, and posted a 6-0 record with a 1.44 ERA and a save.

He pitched a pair of complete-game victories in the postseason, including a fourhitter in the title-winning game.

MATT MANNING | SHELDON | BASKETBALL/BASEBALL | SENIOR Selected ninth overall in the MLB Draft by the Detroit Tigers, Manning signed for an area-best $3.5 million. The 6-foot-6 pitcher was 2-1 with a 1.91 ERA and struck out 77 in 40.1 innings. He also batted .493. In the winter, he was a major contributor to the Huskies’ 23-5 basketball team that reached the NorCal Open Div. semifinals. Manning averaged 19.7 points and 6.4 rebounds.

ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

BOYS HONORABLE MENTIONS

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THE ROBARDS FILES THE STATS: Led the Sac-Joaquin Section and set school records for yards rushing (2,884) and rushing TDs in a season (43). He scored 50 total TDs and 324 total points, including field goals, PATs, and a 2-point conversion run. On the diamond, he batted .386 with four HR and 34 RBI to help the Thundering Herd win a second consecutive SJS Division I championship.

SIGNATURE PERFORMANCE: In a highly-anticipated Week 4 showdown at Grant, Robards announced his presence with authority, scoring five times in the first half to lead a surprising rout.

He rushed for a pair of scores, returned an interception for a TD, picked up a fumble and scored, and took a punt return for a TD all before the intermission.

WHAT’S NEXT: A four-year player for one of Northern California’s premiere programs, Robards accepted a scholarship to continue his baseball career at the University of Pacific in Stockton.

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yan Robards has long been an athlete in the truest sense of the word. From a young age, he excelled on the court, gridiron and diamond. He took his multiple talents to Elk Grove High School as a freshman in 2012 and made an impact for Thundering Herd programs for four years.

However, the 2015-16 academic and athletic year was by far Robards’ greatest on the playing fields. The senior capped his high school career with school records, a section championship and a college scholarship. His all-around efforts this year made him a model athlete and SportStars Magazine’s Sac-Joaquin Section Male Athlete of the Year.

“Ryan is a great athlete, but more importantly, he is a great person,” said Jeff Carlson, head baseball coach and assistant football coach at Elk Grove. “He is a great leader, plays hard, and leads by example on the field and is the same in the classroom. He is just a guy that everybody wants to be around.”

Being around Robards in 2015-16 meant being around a winner. In the Fall, Robards expected to be part of a running back by committee, but quickly assumed control as the backfield workhorse. Coach Chris Nixon and his assistants realized by Week 2 that they had something special on offense that would make the team better and would likely see their senior leader on the field for every snap.

Robards not only rushed for 2,884 yards and 43 touchdowns — both school records — but he also continued to be a force on defense and special teams. In the Herd’s 14 games, he scored a total of 50 touchdowns and 324 points.

Robards intercepted four passes and returned a pair of them for scores, returned a fumble for a touchdown, returned two punts to the end zone, and caught a pair of scoring passes.

As the team’s primary field goal kicker, he made 6 of 8 tries, including a career-long of 51 yards.

Robards was seemingly unstoppable despite being the primary focus of every defense he faced after a Week 4 scoring explosion against Delta League rival Grant-Sacramento.

In that game, he scored five of his six touchdowns before halftime to set the tone for an undefeated league title run. The Thundering Herd advanced to the SJS Division I final against Folsom and gave the Bulldogs all they could handle before finally ending their season one win short of their goal.

Before the calendar turned to 2016, Carlson had accomplished more in four months than many high school athletes accomplish in four years. And he was just getting started because football — while possibly his greatest love — is not his strongest sport. Baseball loomed in the spring and the three-year varsity letter winner shifted gears to prepare for Elk Grove’s defense of its section Div. I championship.

Again, Robards did not disappoint, and again he played a big role in the team’s success. The outfielder played in all 36 of the Herd’s games and batted .386 with four home runs and 34 RBI. Already signed to a baseball scholarship to the University of the Pacific, Robards showed no signs of slowing and led the team on and off the field during a magical season that saw the program win its third section title in four years and 10th overall.

“He had an incredible football season where we were a touchdown away from winning section and going on to NorCals, and he was an immeasurable part of the success of the baseball program,” Carlson said, “but he has always been first class.”

And now Elk Grove’s first-class, all-around athlete can add another accolade to his resume before heading south to Stockton where his focus will oddly be on just one sport. ✪ — Jim McCue

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Summer Sanders Swim Meet Completes Its 19th Year With Great Success The Roseville Aquatics Complex was literally swimming with hundreds of Olympic hopefuls from June 9-12 due to the Summer Sanders Long Course JR+Swim Meet.

This year the incredible four-day swimming event was dubbed, “The Last Chance U.S. Olympic Trials” because of it being an Olympic year and it was many swimmers’ final opportunity to achieve a qualifying time for the official trials which took place in Omaha, Neb., from June 26 to July 3.

For the 19th year in a row, California Capital Aquatics (CCA), Roseville’s year-round premier USA Swimming Olympic development swim team, hosted this exciting event which showcased talented swimmers from 57 different teams throughout the West Coast. CCA Board Advisor and Executive Director for Sierra Nevada Swimming, Denna Culpepper conveyed that this year proved to be a tremendous success on multiple levels.

“We had more than 800 swimmers each day and several records were broken,” Culpepper said. “I know we had 15

Junction City Silver Cup Nears Roseville Youth Soccer Club is ready to kick-off the competitive tournament season with the Junction City Silver Cup that will take place July 16-17 at numerous fields throughout Roseville. Now in its 17th year, this tournament showcases competitive boys and girls teams from Northern California and beyond. “This year we will hold our largest and hopefully most successful tournament on record,” Roseville Youth Soccer Club’s President, John Sommercamp said. “We plan to have 180 teams competing from ages 8 to 18.”

Every team is guaranteed at least three games and the competition is expected to be fierce. Both California Youth Soccer Association teams as well as U.S. Club teams will participate, and many age divisions have two brackets to accommodate the most competitive level of play. “RYSC has invested a great deal of energy to ensure this is a great event for the players, coaches and families,” Sommercamp said. “We are excited to be welcoming both our own club teams as well as teams traveling from out of state.”

Nine parks in Roseville will be utilized for this two-day tournament including Maidu, Kaseberg, Veteran’s Memorial and Wanish Park. There is no fee for parking or spectators; however there will be vendors at several of the parks with snacks and refreshments for purchase. Go to rosevillesoccer.com for more information, or to sign up to receive text messages on your phone with the final scores on your favorite teams. ✪ All copy and photos provided by Placer Valley Tourism

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Olympic Trials cuts total from nine swimmers as some made more than one cut. You could just feel the excitement in the air.”

Besides the Olympic magic that was unfolding, another highlight of the meet was that former Olympic swimmer and Roseville native, Summer Sanders, made an appearance. Not only did she lend encouragement to the swimmers, but she was also there to support the John Wayne Cancer Foundation in their “Block the Blaze” campaign that is designed to educate the public about skin cancer prevention. The foundation had a poolside booth throughout the meet.

“Since joining the CCA family four years ago and being involved in this event, I can say that at each and every one Summer Sanders has taken the time out of her busy schedule to drop by during one day of the meet to sign autographs, take pictures and talk to and encourage the swimmers,” CCA Meet Director Alex Oncago said. “It makes me feel proud to be part of this team and part of this wonderful sport; it is an honor to have one of Roseville‘s beloved come back and show support for her sport and her hometown.” ✪

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Akayla Jackson

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Erin Pondexter-McHan

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wo teams, both from the Bay Area. They both shoot more 3s than anyone. They both win championships — well, one of them has won only one while the other has won six.

Which is one reason Pinewood’s Doc Scheppler has this to say: “We don’t play like the Warriors — the Warriors play like us.

We’ve been playing like this for 20 years.”

And though “playing playing like this” didn’t win the Los Altos Hills school its seventh CIF State Championship this past winter, it did propel the 3-point shooting Panthers to the biggest upset of the season — and maybe several seasons — when they knocked off unbeaten and national-No. 1 St. Mary’s-Stockton 7269 in the NorCal Open Division semifinals last March. Pinewood hit 16 of 32 shots from behind the arc in that game, and overcame a 10-point third-quarter deficit. But as Scheppler and his players are quick to point out, Pinewood is much more than just a 3-point shooting machine.

“We want to dominate on all levels,” says senior Erin Pondexter-McHan, “not just shooting.”

And despite being undersized — both in height and school population (about 220) — the Panthers do just that.

“Everyone on our team can handle the ball,” says senior Mikaela Topper. “At all times, we have five players on the court who can handle the ball.”

Kelly Sopak, the coach of a notorious pressing team at Miramonte-Orinda, echoes that assessment. “We learned that we just can’t press Pinewood like we can other teams,” he says. “They excel in the open floor and the press seems to make their spacing even better. And there’s nothing a shooting team likes more than space and skip passes.“ Of course, Miramonte is another reason that Pinewood is like the Warriors — er, the Warriors are like Pinewood. After Golden State pulled off the miracle 3-1 comeback against Oklahoma City, they stumbled against the next opponent, and the same happened to Pinewood. After stunning St. Mary’s, there just

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“We don’t just shoot a lot of 3s, we shoot a lot of wide-open 3s.”

— Pinewood’s Doc Scheppler

wasn’t enough in the tank for the team to win its ninth NorCal title; Miramonte ended their season with a 73-40 thumping.

Note, however, that both of those games were in the Open Div., not where Pinewood would be if enrollment was the only criterion. The Panthers instead would have been in Div. V, and there’s no doubt they would have been heavy favorites to not only win the NorCal championship, but the state title as well.

Even so, look for Pinewood to be back in the Open next year — and Pondexter-McHan, for one, can’t wait. Only Chloe Eackles graduated from last year’s team, which generates this kind of optimism: “My personal goal is to get back to the state championship in the Open.”

And though Pinewood is much more than just a 3-point bomb squad, there’s no doubt that the long-range salvos are a big part of the team’s arsenal.

“This is the way a team that doesn’t have a lot of talent can compete against more talented teams,” says Scheppler – but he’s also quick to point out a key difference between just launching from beyond the arc and Pinewood’s offense.

“We don’t just shoot a lot of 3s,” he says, “we shoot a lot of wide-open 3s.”

And they make a lot, in great part due to Scheppler’s coaching.

“All All I did as a kid in my free hours was shoot in the driveway,” he says. Scheppler not only coaches Pinewood, he works extensively with individuals — most notably Jeremy Lin, now of the Brooklyn Nets. Lin graduated from Palo Alto and went to Harvard, but was struggling to find a place in the NBA when he started working with Scheppler. A revamped shot led to more confidence, and Lin burst onto the scene with the New York Knicks before also playing with Houston, the Los Angeles Lakers and Charlotte.

Scheppler works the same magic with his own players, but he’s not one to sugarcoat the situation. “He basically told me my shot was hideous,” says Topper.

“He completely changed it.”

“Doc completely fixed my shot,” says senior Akayla Hackson. “It was awful before.”

“When I came to Pinewood,” says Pondexter-McHan, “I wasn’t a shooter but it took one one-hour lesson to get the basics.”

Of course, the instruction never ends.

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“Every day in practice, he tweaks things,” says Topper – but that tweaking goes beyond shot mechanics.

“I’ve learned how to get better,” Scheppler says of his own coaching. “I want to be great, but if I want to be great, I have to get better.”

One adjustment he’s made over the years came when he realized opponents were just running Pinewood off the 3-point line and making his smaller players go to the basket.

“One thing I learned to do is to work really hard on finishes at the rim,” he says. “We’ve ’ve mastered the fl floater, oater,” in part because he’s spent a lot of time learning how to teach it.

And as Sopak noted, the Panthers handle pressure as well as anyone, and that too is something Scheppler has focused on.

“It’s about teaching kids to make basketball plays,” says Scheppler, “rather than teaching kids to run basketball plays.”

Still, though, Pinewood’s system is based on the ability to generate wide-open 3s, and then knock them down.

“We don’t step into the shot,” says Scheppler, “we hop. We catch the ball in the air, then hop. All we have to do is hop and release the ball within 0.5 seconds.”

Of course it’s a lot more complicated than that. All shooting starts with footwork, and that was the tweak for PondexterMcHan. “With some people, he wants to fix their arc and how they flick their wrist,” she says, “but I was very bad with my feet.

“At first, I thought it was awkward, but by next practice, I was so much quicker.”

“We all want to have the perfect shot,” says Hackson, but at the same time Scheppler and his players realize that shooting is like the weather – it comes and goes.

“You You can’t be a really good team with just shooters,” ad-

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mitted Pondexter-McHan, and like the team across the Bay, they’ve learned the hard way that you can’t rely on making 16 threes every time out. “We have to focus on the little things our team needs to do to win.”

Scheppler does just that in practice, working his players on handling traps, looking for offensive rebounds and understanding the game. The past results speak for themselves, but today’s Pinewood players want to create their own legacy.

“We’re only losing one player,” says Hackson, “and a lot of other teams lose more. We’re a year better and we’re maturing.”

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But Pinewood does have a big challenge not that far down the road, as Archbishop Mitty-San Jose brings back a lot of talent as well — but a hot night from beyond the arc can be the great equalizer, as St. Mary’s learned last year.

“I don’t mind having that reputation,” says Topper, “but we’re definitely more than that.”

“We’re all looking forward to this year so much,” she adds.

“Th Thee possibilities are endless, and there’s a lot of determination.”

And of course, there will be a lot of 3s as well. ✪

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Here Come Best In American River College Is Site of Little League Senior Western Regional; SportStars Part Of The Fun

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hen it comes to Little League Senior Baseball, the West will be won in Sacramento this July.

Beaver Field at American River College will be the host site for the Little League Senior Western Regional All-Star Tournament from July 19-27. Nine teams from seven states will slug it out for the opportunity to fly to Bangor, Maine, and compete in the Little League Seniors World Series from July 31-Aug. 6.

Senior League is played by boys and girls ages 13-16 on regulation diamonds featuring 90-feet base paths and a pitching

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The West

distance of 60-feet, 6-inches from home plate. For many Little Leaguers, it’s the next step up after the relatively new Intermediate Division that features 70-foot base paths, a 50-foot pitching distance and has it’s World Series hosted in Northern California (Livermore, to be exact).

Among the states expected to be represented at Beaver Field this July are Arizona, Hawaii, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and three teams from California. Northern California and Southern California will each have a representative in addition to a host team belonging to California District 5 — the host district for the event.

In fact, the host team is already known after the Citrus Heights Little League Senior Rebels punched their ticket by claiming the District 5 Championship in late June.

The Rebels roster is comprised of players from the following high schools: Del Campo-Fair Oaks, Mesa Verde-Citrus Heights, Casa Roble-Orangevale, Delta-Clarksburg, El CaminoSacramento, Foothill-Sacramento and Oakmont-Roseville. The team includes Jake Adkins, Nick Barnett, Steve Bowman, Tim Butler, Chayton Clarke, Jason Coasta, Michael Farley, Mark Geise, Jordan Jenkins, Thomas Moorehead, Max Mrizek, Colin Quisenberry and Robbie Wells.

As if having an elite Little League tournament — which is free to attend, by the way — taking place at a top-notch NorCal setting like Beaver Field wasn’t enough, SportStars is adding more to look forward to surrounding the event. On Saturday, July 23, SportStars is hosting it’s SportsJam event on ARC campus location adjacent to the baseball stadium.

The SportsJam will feature interactive opportunities in a variety of sports. The list of exhibits include a lacrosse skill station, baseball/softball challenge, rugby skills station, football and baseball combine, volleyball speed & agility, fitness/obstacle course, golf challenge and an allsports challenge. Each station and exhibit is open to aspiring athletes of all ages.

Among the partners helping to make the event happen are Sacramento Lacrosse, Fair Oaks Lacrosse, Baseball Mentoring Program, Rugby NorCal, National Scouting Report, Olympus Sports Coliseum, Cal Family Fitness, The First Tee of Greater Sacramento and the National Academy of Athletics. ✪ Follow us on Twitter & Instagram, and like us on Facebook!

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Redding Soccer Park Plans For A Busy Late Summer And Fall

O

nce the Northern California weather finally dips back into double digits, Redding Soccer Park will be the place to be this fall.

Competitive and recreational programs from throughout the western region, most specifically NorCal, Oregon and Nevada, will be sending teams to Redding for a pair of noteworthy tournaments on the Redding Soccer Park schedule.

The first one on the schedule is the Wonderland Tournament taking place on Sept. 24-25. The Wonderland Tournament is for competitive boys and girls programs in divisions U10-U12, and recreation programs from division U10-U19. There will be five teams per division with each team playing at least four matches.

One month later, Redding Soccer Park plays host to the SMASH Cup — a tournament geared toward raising breast health awareness and furthering the “Think Pink” movement of the Redding Community. The tournament features divisions for competitive U12-U19 teams and donates its proceeds to selected breast cancer charities, including NorCal Think Pink and The Love and Light Foundation.

Information on both of these tournaments, including how clubs can register their team, can be found Redding-

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SoccerPark.com/Tournaments.

The Redding Soccer Park is a jewel in the crown of sports attractions in Redding. The one-of-a-kind, “state-of-the-sport” 22-acre soccer facility boasts four all-weather synthetic turf NCAA regulation-sized lighted fields. The park is fully landscaped and features a half mile of concrete walkways, covered areas, misters and spectator seating, full concessions, clean restrooms and children play areas.

And if that’s not convincing enough, teams will be playing their tournament at a vacation destination. With mountains all around, miles of hiking and biking trails, a river running through it, and national parks nearby, Redding is an outdoor paradise for young and old alike. Cradled by Mount Shasta and Mount Lassen, Redding has 300-plus sunny

days per year. It‘s a great place to escape the chill of spring and the gray days of winter, too!

Want a list of possibilities? Time magazine called Redding the Unofficial Capital of Kayaking for its “weird obsession““ with all things paddling. With temperate weather, nearby lakes, and that river in the middle of town, it would be “weird” to not get out and enjoy it all! Let the good times flow with a visit to Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, a great place to kayak, sail, or just float on your back. So bring your team to Redding and enjoy the outdoors. ✪ — All copy and photos provided by Redding Soccer Park

Caldwell Park Triathalon Get active with the Caldwell Park Triathlon!

All participants receive a T-shirt and a gift bag, medals to the top three finishers in each division (ages 5-8, 9-12, 13-16 and 17-and-older). Separate divisions for boys & girls. August 13 at Redding Aquatic Center, 9 a.m. www.visitredding.com/ eventdetail/1628/caldwell-park-triathlon

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Redding Soccer Park HUNTER TROY CLEGG MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT: Sept. 24-25, Competitive U10, U11, U12 and Recreation U10-U19 soccer tournament. Five teams max per division, guarantee of four games. $425 per team. www.

ReddingSoccerPark.com CHALLENGER SOCCER CAMP: July 25-29. Soccer camps for all ages. www.ReddingSoccerPark.com CHALLENGER SPORTS TETRA BRAZIL CAMP: July 11-15. www.ReddingSoccerPark.com

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get mental: erika carlson

You Can Make Impression On College Coaches Without Filling Stat Sheets In today’s ultra-competitive, youth sport landscape, I.D. camps have become a big piece of the puzzle for those who seek to play at the collegiate level.

Many athletes are initially uncertain about how to perform in these camps: Do I focus on showing off my skills? What if the other players in the camp won’t pass me the ball?

Should I pass or try and score? How do I stand out?

Over the last three years, I’ve spent many evenings sitting with college soccer coaches on recruiting educational panels, (check out iSoccerPath. com for info).

We help families understand the recruiting process, and they are brought up to speed on Div. I, Div. II, Div. III, NAIA and even community college playing opportunities.

I always enjoy listening to coaches insights on players and it’s tremendously helpful for me to get a better understanding of what they are looking for in recruits. And, while the focus on these panels is soccer, the tips apply to all team sports. Ironically, I rarely hear coaches talk about talent. There are so many talented players out there today, coaches are looking for several other characteristics in their final list of recruits.

Pay attention, many of these may surprise you. ›› How team-oriented are you? — Sometimes it’s easy to get wrapped up in trying to show a coach everything you know. You’re being recruited to play as a member of a team; coaches want to see that you prioritize that. ›› How do you handle mistakes? — Mistakes happen. Coaches are VERY interested in how you handle them. Can you let go of mistakes and get back to work quickly? If so, this is a sign that you are mentally ready to move on to the next level. ›› How well do you communicate with teammates? — Good communication is an indicator that your focus is strong and you are likely to be a positive contributor to the team. ›› How adaptable are you to this new situation? — Coaches like adaptability. It’s a sign of maturity and a sign that you are ready for the big transition into college life. ›› Are you likeable? — If a coach is considering spending nearly everyday of the next four years with you, a good sense of humor, maturity and likability go a long way on the coach’s consideration list.

Think about some of these general themes as you get ready for camps. And good luck out there. ✪ Erika Carlson is a CEO and certified mental trainer at Mental Training, Inc. in Pleasanton.

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Fueling For Success nutrition: jill daniels Beat Fatigue By Developing A Mid-Practice Diet Many athletes tell me how they start their practice feeling great, but halfway through they feel tired and slow and like their legs are filled with lead. As hard as they work, they just aren’t able to push through this fatigue.

The fatigue is probably due to low carbohydrate stores which can affect performance. When we exercise, the body uses a fuel mix of carbohydrate and fat. Even the leanest person has plenty of fat on them to exercise for hours and hours and hours. However, the body carries limited stores of carbohydrates, so the goal is to maximize these carbohydrate (aka glycogen) stores.

Athletes who are working out for 90 minutes or longer, or for 60 minutes at an intense level, will benefit from fueling during their workout. Carbohydrate stores get depleted quickly, so the goal for taking in fuel during a workout is to extend the fuel resources and be able to maintain speed, endurance and agility.

Start taking in fuel within the first 30 minutes of exercise — don’t wait until you’re feeling tired or slow or hungry. Continue every 15-20 minutes after that. Take in 120-240 calories every hour from carbohydrates, which equals about 30-60 calories every 15 minutes. Here are some ideas of fuel you could use: 8 ounces of Gatorade (50 calories), ¼ Power Bar (45 calories), ½ banana (60 calories).

If you aren’t used to taking in calories during a workout, start at the lower end of the range and build up over a few weeks. Make sure to try out these guidelines during practices before you try them during a competition.

That way you can prevent an upset stomach during a big race or game. Summer workouts are a great time to experiment with fueling during your training.

Fueling during your workout will help energize your muscles and mind, allowing you to finish each workout strong and focused. The harder you are able to train, the better you’ll be able to perform during your season.

Have a great summer, and remember to have fun! ✪ Maximize your performance by seeking out personalized advice from Nutrition Coach Jill Daniels, MS, RD, CSSD, Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics. www.JillDanielsRD.com

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powered by trucks: anthony trucks

Defending The Bench I’ve recently heard talk that the bench press may be a bad exercise for the upper body joints. It was odd because I hadn’t really heard this in the past, but the more I ask around I found that people are actually avoiding the bench press a little more because of the negative effects they, or someone they know, has experienced.

The common negative points I hear are that it stretches the shoulder joint, adds uncommon stress to the acromioclavicular (AC) joint — where your clavicle meets your shoulder — and that it leaves people feeling achy pains in the elbows and shoulders overall.

So here’s my two cents on avoiding these things, so you can do what I think is one of the most cornerstone exercises without hurting yourself. ›› Warm up and stretch your shoulders and chest EVERY time you plan on getting under the bar.

Almost every person I talked with did zero prep before they lifted, or even after. Would you start a cold engine and put the pedal to the floor? No, so don’t do it to your body. ›› Slowly climb up in weights as you progress into your lift. This helps your body and nervous system slowly adapt and recruit more motor neurons to adequately lift the weight. ›› Use a full range of motion so that you don’t hurt yourself in the future by accidentally going too far in the range. ›› Don’t flare your elbows because it puts too much stress on the shoulder at the wrong angle.

That’s it. Apply this information and you should be good when it comes to safely bench pressing. ✪ Anthony Trucks is an IYCA-certified trainer who covers weight training for SportStars.

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Don’t Let Overhead Be Overkill overhead injuries: benjamin busfield As the Little League regional and international tournaments hit full swing, and several other young weekend-warrior baseball players hop from tournament to tournament, it’s a good time to think about overhead injury prevention.

Overhead injuries can occur in almost any sport or activity that features repetitive overhead use. The primary overhead athletes we think of are baseball and softball’s pitchers, catchers and shortstops, but football quarterbacks, tennis players and swimmers are all equally at risk.

In terms of baseball, many point to strict pitch counts as proactive prevention, but those counts are often only adhered to in games. And that’s only protecting pitchers. Catchers keep throwing overhand back to the mound even after a pitcher leaves the game due to pitch count.

The type of injuries that can develop from overuse include ligament strains, bone structure/growth plate injuries and tendon injuries such as tendinitis or labral tears. Furthermore, range of motion injuries can compound the problem if the athlete attempts to throw or swing through initial pain.

My first advice to my young patients is don’t play year-round.

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That’s a hard thing to tell an athlete and convince them to oblige. But my biggest argument is that very few athletes at high levels play year-round. Collegiate athletes have rest periods, and professional athletes, too. When the season ends, it ends. And they stop playing. They continue to cross-train and work on fragments of their skill sets, but they aren’t playing full-tilt competition.

If and when overhead athletes are in season, they need to pay attention to their shoulder. It’s common to experience muscular pain the day after throwing, but if it becomes prolonged pain that occurs while at rest, that ought to be a red flag.

If one is able to afford a positional or private coach who can help keep an eye on mechanics and overuse, that’s highly advisable. In addition, be sure to cross train and keep those muscle groups strong.

Many of these injuries are treatable, but the amount of playing time missed due to rehab can be significant.

Be smart. Pay attention to your body and give it time to rest now and again. ✪ Dr. Benjamin Busfield is an orthopedic surgeon who practices at Sutter Delta Medical Center and Alta Bates Summit Medical Center.

He is board certified in orthopedic and sports medicine.

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