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June 1, 2006

SPORTS

Leland’s McKenzie, Barnett fall short on state meet bids

McKenzie finishes fifth in high jump; early fall for Barnett
sees freshman finish ninth in 3200-meter run

By Diego Abeloos
Sports Editor

Leland’s two lone representatives at the CCS Track and Field Finals, Dana McKenzie and Stephanie Barnett, fell short on their bids to advance to the CIF State Meet on May 26, despite solid efforts from both athletes.

A crowd of runners for the girls’ 3200-meter run, including Leland’s Stephanie Barnett (second from the left) takes off during the CCS Track and Field Finals, held May 26 at San Jose City College. Photos by Jeff Frazee

McKenzie, a junior, came into her event, the girls’ high jump, having to match her personal best of 5 feet, 4 inches, to gain an automatic bid to the state meet. She managed a jump of 5 feet, 2 inches at the CCS Preliminaries the week prior to advance to the finals.

After easily clearing 5 feet as the start-off point for the finals event, McKenzie managed to clear 5 feet, 2 inches on her second try to stay with the pack. But with the bar raised to 5 feet, 4 inches, McKenzie could not clear the bar in her three tries, missing an automatic qualification to the state meet, to be held June 2 and 3 in Norwalk, Calif., and finishing fifth among competitors.

The finish for McKenzie was reminiscent of last season, when she fell short of qualifying for the state meet after not being able to clear 5 feet, 4 inches.

Barnett finished ninth in the 3200-meter run with a time of 11:23.49 after taking a fall during the first lap of the event, a result of a tightly formed pack of runners. Barnett said one of the runners unintentionally stepped on the back of her feet, causing the spill.

“She’s cleared 5 feet, 4 inches legitimately this year, where she hadn’t last year,” said Leland Co-Head Coach Jerry Rose of McKenzie, who cleared the elusive mark of 5 feet and 4 inches at the Santa Teresa League Finals earlier this season. “It would’ve been the first time at the CCS Finals last year, but she’s done it before, so she knew what she had to do. She did a great job, but it just wasn’t her day.”

Rose said the atmosphere, namely the pressure of competing at the CCS Finals is a tough aspect to deal with for any high school athlete.

“Knowing that she just has to clear 5 feet, 4 inches to make it to state, that’s a big barrier right there,” said Rose of the mental strain of competing at the CCS Finals. “All of a sudden, it’s even bigger. … You’ve got to be on. You’re fighting yourself all the time. But she’ll be there, she’ll make it to state. It just won’t be this year.”

Likewise, Barnett had some barriers to clear during her performance in the 3200-meter run at the finals, namely bouncing back from an early spill during the run to finish in the top ten.

Barnett, who came in the finals sporting a CCS Preliminaries time of 11 minutes and 26.71 seconds, took a painful fall in the first lap of the event, as a result of the group of runners forming a tight pack in the early portion of the race.

“Girls kept stepping on the back of my feet and I fell,” said Barnett, who had a plethora of scratches on her knees and elbows from the fall. “But I got back up and my goal was just not to get last place. I did that.”

Leland Co-Head Coach Rudy Montenegro said he was proud of Barnett’s performance, especially when considering her early spill in the race.

“She came into the race dialed in, and she had a goal of putting her best effort forth,” said Montenegro. “ … She bounced back and got back in the race quickly. I was just hoping for her that she had enough to finish strong because I knew that spill had taken its toll, somewhere along the race.”

Leland high jumper Dana McKenzie, a junior, finished fifth at the CCS Track and Field Finals with a jump of 5 feet, 2 inches, missing an automatic qualification for the CIF State Meet by 2 inches.

Barnett recovered from the early fall and managed to gain ground in the final few laps of the race, finishing ninth (out of 12) with a time of 11 minutes and 23.49 seconds. Still, Barnett said she had mixed feelings about her performance in the event.

“I thought I was going to do a lot better than I did,” said Barnett, who will be joined next year on the team by younger sister Claudia, an eighth grade runner at Bret Harte.

“Because some of the girls were in the mile run (1600-meter run), and I came in fresh, I actually had a pretty good chance of getting in the top three and making it to state. … I’m proud that I made it this far and I thought that anything I did tonight, like making it to state, is all going to be extra for my records. I’m confident that I’ll make it next year.”

Sports Briefs

Central Valley Edge class 3, U18 girls’ team seeks players
Central Valley Edge class 3, U18 girls’ soccer team is looking for players (born after 7/31/88) for the upcoming fall season. Please contact Coach Ary Afsari at afsari@comcast.net or by phone (408) 507-7008 for more detailed information.

Sports officials needed for high school sports
FERMAR Corporation, which contracts with high schools in Santa Clara County, is recruiting officials for high school athletics. Officials are needed for fall season sports such as football, volleyball and field hockey.

Men and women are encouraged to apply. No experience is necessary, as FERMAR will provide training through classes, clinics and tests. All training materials are provided.

Officials are paid $32-$61 per game, depending on the sport and level of competition. Additional opportunities to officiate youth and adult sports are also available.

Interested parties are encouraged to call FERMAR at (408) 567-1700.

Almaden Valley’s All-Star cheer team, Cheer Divas, hosting cheerleading sign-ups
The Cheer Divas program has a few spots available for the 2006-2007 season. Practices are held at Almaden Valley Gymnastics. For more information call 408-370-DIVA or visit www.CheerDivas.com.

Central Valley Outlaws class I U13 Premier boys host team tryouts
The Central Valley Outlaws class I U13 Premier boys’ team invites boys born between 8/1/92 and 7/31/93 to tryouts for the upcoming season. For more information, contact Richard Johnson at 439-9645.

Leland Junior Spirit Camp signups
The Leland Spirit Squad is hosting its annual Junior Spirit Camp June 19-23 from 9 a.m. to noon each day. The early bird camp fee is $100 with an increase to $125 on June 1. The camp will offer cheers, dances and games for children entering K-8 in the fall of 2006. All campers will be invited to perform at a Leland High School football game. Please contact lelandjsc@gmailcom or Angelica Niklowitz at (408) 268-5549.

Almaden United U15 boys’ class 3 soccer team looking for players
Almaden United, a class 3 U14/U15 boys’ soccer team, needs players for the spring and fall. Date of birth should be between 8/1/91 and 7/31/92. Call Coach Joe Escobedo at (408) 972-8906 or Manager Patty O'Malley (408) 927-5978 for more information.

Almaden United U12 girls’ soccer team seeks players
The Almaden United, a girls’ under 12, strong class 3 team applying for class 1 in the fall season, is looking for players for the spring and fall '06 seasons. Date of birth should be between Aug. 1, 1994 and July 31, 1996. Contact Jeff Pine at pine@apple.com or (408) 391-7542 for more information.

DeAnza Force 92G Black needs players
DeAnza Force 92G Black is looking for highly skilled players for the NorCal premier spring league and fall season. If interested please contact head coach David Blutrich by emailing davidblue7@aol.com

Cheer coaches needed for South Valley Pop Warner
Cheer coaches are needed for South Valley Pop Warner. If you're interested in joining a team of outstanding coaches, please call Tiana Zarate at (408) 464-3285 or Teresa Smith at (408) 603-8280, or go to http://www.stpopwarner.org/

2-1 CCS loss spells the end for Leigh softball season

Rough defensive fifth inning costs Longhorns two runs

By Diego Abeloos
Sports Editor

The Leigh softball team saw its playoff hopes dashed with a 2-1 loss to Notre Dame-Belmont in the semifinals of the CCS Playoffs on May 24 at San Jose’s PAL Stadium.

Leigh's Jessica Freedman bunts the ball during a season-ending 2-1 loss to Notre Dame-Belmont on May 24. Photos by Jeff Frazee

The Longhorns, 2006 Mt. Hamilton Division Champions, could not avoid a rough fifth inning in which their defense faltered with a pair of errors that allowed two runs to cross home plate for the Tigers.

Longhorns ace pitcher Jackie Hill picked up the tough loss, despite tossing seven strong innings in which the right-hander allowed just two unearned runs.

Needless to say, the loss was a disappointing one for Leigh Head Coach Clovis Mirassou.

“I don’t mind when we get beat, but when we beat ourselves, I’m just really disappointed,” Mirassou said. “The kids, in that one inning, they just let up. We have a better defensive team than that.”

Leading 1-0 after a first-inning run, the Longhorns went into the top of the fifth inning with Hill on cruise control. That quickly changed when Notre Dame’s Ali Palermo reached base on a dropped throw at first base after hitting a grounder to shortstop. After a sacrifice bunt moved Palermo to second, the Tigers’ Kelly McDonald stepped up and swung and missed on a third strike, with the ball hitting the dirt and slightly glancing off catcher Whitney Terry, allowing McDonald to reach first base and moving Palermo to third.

Leigh third baseman Tria Downer throws out a runner at first base during a 2-1 loss to Notre Dame-Belmont in the CCS semifinals on May 24.

Notre Dame’s Caitlin Lavezzo then stepped up to the plate and promptly dropped down a bunt down the third baseline, but third baseman Tria Downer’s throw to Terry at home plate was dropped with Palermo charging in hard and scoring, tying the game 1-1.

Tigers’ pinch hitter Steffanie Guillermo then stepped up and placed another bunt down, which rolled past Leigh’s bull-rushing infielders for a single, scoring McDonald from third for a 2-1 lead.

Mirassou said he felt bad for Hill, whose pitching effort was thwarted by the rough inning.

“She’s the best pitcher around,” Mirassou said of Hill. “It’s a shame to let her down like that. She pitched her heart out. …She never even let down, even with the errors behind her. She was the one picking the team up and she never got down on anybody.”

Meanwhile, Leigh’s offense had trouble against Notre Dame starting pitcher Emma Holden following the top of the fifth.

Holden managed to retire six straight Longhorn batters, striking out three during that stretch, before finding trouble in the bottom of the seventh. Leigh’s leadoff batter in the inning, Shelby Ford, reached base on a solid single to right field, before a sacrifice bunt from Kayla Pisano ended up with runners on first and second after a throw to second to nab Ford was dropped.

A pair of Leigh players consol each other after their CCS semifinals

From that point on however, Holden settled down and struck out the next two Leigh batters before inducing a routine groundout out of pinch hitter Kat Pisano to end the game.

“We just couldn’t score,” Mirassou said. “Our bats went quiet after the first inning. I thought we were really going to start doing some scoring, but after that, we just couldn’t put it in play.”

Mirassou said he was proud of his team’s overall effort this season, despite the loss. He added that saying goodbye to the seniors, especially ace pitcher Hill, was a tough chore.

“I’m going to miss all my seniors,” Mirassou said. “Jackie, I’ve watched her since she was a seventh grader … so I had to wait two years to get her. She’s been a godsend.”

California Sports Center to host gymnastics,
dance and cheer open house

California Sports Center will be hosting an open house event from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 3, at seven locations throughout the South Bay.

California Sports Center offers youth sports training for children and adults in gymnastics, dance, cheerleading, and aquatics programs in eight different locations throughout the Santa Clara Valley. CSC services over 2,000 children and over 500 adults on a weekly basis and has over 100 competitive Junior Olympic participants.

Instructors and coaches will be on hand at the open house to assist in clinics and demos for gymnastics, dance and cheerleading; prizes will also be raffled off through out the day. In addition, CSC’s competitive boys’ and girls’ teams will be doing demonstrations at each site. The event is free to the public and all ages are welcome to come out and spend an afternoon at California Sports Center.

In South San Jose the California Sports Center is located at 100 Great Oaks Blvd. and focuses on gymnastics and cheerleading.

Bricks are the business at Almaden Little League

League seeks sponsors for commemorative bricks
to help offset new batting cage costs

By Diego Abeloos
Sports Editor

Almaden Little League is not only in the business of baseball, it’s also in the business of selling bricks.

Members of the Almaden Little League’s Board of Directors recently oversaw the arduous task of constructing a batting cage at the league’s Majors Field at Country School in Almaden, and now, the league is asking for the public’s help.

Almaden Little League is selling commemorative bricks such as this one to individual and corporate sponsors to offset the costs of a new batting cage at the Majors Field at Country School. The bricks will be paved along the perimeter of the new cage, located along left field at the baseball park. Photo courtesy Kevin Jones

In order to help offset the costs of the new cage, Almaden Little League is selling commemorative bricks to the public and corporations. The bricks cost $125 each for individual sponsors and $350 each for corporate sponsors, and will be paved along the perimeter of the batting cage for the Little League faithful to enjoy for years to come.

“Most people are putting their kid’s names and the year they played Little League (on the bricks), but some are listing their whole families,” said Kevin Jones, vice president of Almaden Little League. “ … We are trying to sell as many as we can to pay for the cage construction.”

Jones, who has served in a variety of capacities for Almaden Little League since 1995, said the idea for a new cage was introduced by the league’s safety officer, Scott McLaughlin, as a necessity in helping to alleviate overcrowding at the Majors Field.

Jones also credited Genny and Steve Huhn, calling the batting cage project their “brainchild.” The cage itself is installed parallel along the left field line of the field and was constructed during March and April.

Jones said the project was also the result of a cohesive unit that make up the Little League board. Jones added that Debbie and Mark Osborn’s Herculean efforts in assisting with the batting cage project, not to mention in helping to keep Almaden Little League running smoothly for the past several years, have been a boon to the organization as a whole. Debbie Osborn currently serves as the league’s president and has been a league board member since 1995.

“The people who are involved in this Little League in Almaden are simply awesome,” said Jones, who also credited league Treasurer Gary Gemoll for his help, as well as player agent Patty Lewis. “Past and current board members have always given of their time selflessly. In my tenure, it has been the best group of people that I have ever worked with. Many of the people no longer have kids in the league and they still give of their time.”

For more information about the commemorative bricks or to order one, please go to www.almadenll.org.

SPORTS BRIEFS

Almaden United U15 boys’ class 3 soccer team looking for players
Almaden United, a class 3 U14/U15 boys’ soccer team, needs players for the spring and fall. Date of birth should be between 8/1/91 and 7/31/92. Call Coach Joe Escobedo at (408) 972-8906 or Manager Patty O'Malley (408) 927-5978 for more information.

True colors

Almaden Swim and Racquet Club star Kathy Barnes
represents USA in Maureen Connelly Cup

By Justin Petersen
Staff Writer

Leland and the United States of America learned a lot from Kathy Barnes’ approach to tennis this spring.

Barnes abandoned her training partners at the Almaden Swim and Racquet Club and an assistant coaching post tutoring Leland High’s Mount Hamilton Division championship boys’ tennis team in April to represent the Ladies’ 5.0 National Tournament Team at the Maureen Connelly Cup in Durban, South Africa.

Almaden Swim and Racquet patron Kathy Barnes was asked to represent the UNited States Tennis Association at the Maureen Connelly Cup in Durban, SOuth Africa this past April. Barnes helped lead the USA to a secnd place finish behind Australia.

After completing the United States Tennis Association’s tournament season this year recognized as the No. 1 singles player in the nation, Barnes was one of four players selected nationally to participate in the acclaimed Connelly Cup, which pits top players creeping past pro years, but still wielding the racquet with precision against others in the same stage from around the world.

The United States finished second behind Australia this year, with Barnes holding the No. 1 singles post.

“The USTA gives you opportunities to play on different teams according to ability,” said 55-year-old Barnes. “With all of the countries, the competition was unbelievable and the culture was mind blowing. You really appreciate what we have. The area we played in was the part of the country that went through apartheid. I felt like we were in America without Civil Rights.”

School ties
Between tournaments, Barnes has accepted numerous coaching calls throughout her 30-plus years stalking the courts. She has tutored Pioneer High, the Jewish Community Center, and private clubs such as Courtside in Los Gatos, Almaden Swim and Racquet; however, her most recent stint involved an evolving technique at Leland High School.

“Kathy was very instrumental in my coming to Leland to coach at all,” said Leland Head Coach Brett Hersmeier. “One of the things that we wanted to do was find a situation for her to work out of and do some instructional coaching. Kathy has been teaching tennis for a while and clearly has a very good eye for what a person needs to improve their stroke.”

While Barnes’ contributions came sporadically, because of the frenzied training schedule leading up to the Cup, area coaches witnessed Leland’s tennis team thrive this season. The Chargers swept team and individual titles in Blossom Valley Athletic League and A-league MHAL play this season.

“It’s difficult for somebody like her who trains a lot,” said Hersmeier. “She needs to hit a lot, so being a head coach is kind of difficult with her playing so many tournaments. But her being there to work, back up on drills and strategy is very helpful. Kathy works with young kids and older kids equally as well.”

Hersmeier guessed Barnes success is partly personality and partly talent.

“The thing about Kathy is that she knows what she wants to do when she is on the court,” he said. “In some sense, she is very pleasant, but she is also very driven. In order to get that high up and represent the U.S. at the Maureen Connelly Cup, it takes confidence about game and accomplishing the preliminary work to become that confident. It won’t work with false confidence.”

Barnes learned she would compete in South Africa while coaching at Leland.

“I had been invited to tournaments in the past, but had never pursued it,” said Barnes. “Then the USTA sent me a letter to say I was considered this year. A friend pointed out that I hadn’t played that much in relation to others and that I should try.”

The tournaments Barnes chose to attend happened to be qualifying tournaments, and she said that she happened to qualify by beating the people she needed to beat.

“I really didn’t know about the cup,” said Barnes. “It was quite a privilege. All of the expenses were paid.”

Beyond the ball
Barnes said the Connelly Cup competition was stiff, but that she gained the most in observing social practice in a foreign country.

“I assumed that I would see black people running the country, because they lived there first, yet it was white people that came in and established technology and the people who worked for them were from there.”

Barnes described a scenario where her African-American husband addressed a group of men in the streets after the couple received attention for mixed-race marriage. She called it the most memorable moment of the tournament and trip.

“He was telling them that in the United States it is a crime to treat people unfairly,” said Barnes. “They couldn’t believe it. They were just fascinated to speak to him. He was this black person who was almost a celebrity to them because they saw us together and thought that we were a mixed couple. Tennis is a vehicle for physical fitness and socialization. It’s been a great job for me teaching wise. And now it’s great being able to play across the country and internationally. There has been such a wide horizon of opportunities.”

On the court in Durban, Barnes displayed her staple consistency and determination, while climbing to the championship singles match. She said her competitiveness stems from childhood strife with four brothers and that it was evident representing the United States in April.

“I didn’t begin playing tennis until I turned 20,” said Barnes. “I was brought up with a bat and ball in my hands. I remember that my father coached baseball, but I wasn’t allowed to play. I would still suit up and go to the games though.”

Tennis found Barnes while she was attending San Jose City College. She was 20 years old, hitting against the board at the SJCC courts, attempting to string 100 consecutive balls above the line on the wall, when the school’s coach approached her.

“She saw me working hard and asked me if I would be interested in trying out for the team,” said Barnes. “I just kept playing all this time.”

Barnes’ talent took her to San Jose State University next, and finally found its way into the USTA organization.

Tennis also served as a way for Barnes to spend time with her family. All three of her children played at Almaden Swim and Racquet; however, her daughter Kim took it the furthest, accepting a scholarship to San Francisco State University and Cal State Los Angeles, after SFSU dropped the program recently.

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