Nado Natterings
A weekly column by David Axelson

Nado Natterings
by David Axelson, Chief Executive Officer
The Islander Sports Foundation

10 Jan 2007 Issue #1

When we last met in this space, we were reviewing the athletic accomplishments of 2006, so we have some catching up to do for the New Year. Let’s start with some CHS roundball coverage.

The Boys Basketball Team won their Christmas tournament held just after the holiday itself, handily defeating Lutheran 67-39, they then ran by Julian by the score of 63-24 and then they took the measure of Sweetwater 49-27.

Dec. 29^th Coronado hosted San Ysidro and made short work of the Cougars by the score of 68-39. Senior Chas Marks was in the offensive flow of the game, netting 26 points to compliment his five rebound nicely. Matt Oakley added 18 points and five rebounds, while Liam Cronan had 14 points and five assists. Junior guard Matt Fowler played a nice floor game, dishing out six assists and snaring two steals. Geoff Worley scored only two points, but was the team defensive catalyst with seven steals and three defensive rebounds to go with four assists.

The Islanders outscored San Ysidro 35-21 in the second half to win going away.

Coronado’s next hardwood outing was Jan. 3 when the Islanders went on the road and lost to Mar Vista 52-34. Down by only one point at halftime, a protracted stretch of poor shooting did Coronado in. No Islanders scored in double figures.

Friday, Jan. 5 was supposed to the date that Imperial played in Coronado, but unusually high winds kept the Tigers from driving in the mountains. The game was played the following night and Coronado prevailed 53-37.

“In the first half we played efficiently,” said Head Coach Sandy Dillon, who earned his 299^th basketball coaching victory over the weekend. “Except that we were 1-10 at the foul line. It was nice to have JJ Pontes back (broken ankle). He had eight points and that was a real plus. He banged in there and did some good things. We also got good minutes from Drew Zeller and decent minutes from Benson Lorden. Matt Oakley had a solid game.”

Marks was Coronado’s leading scorer with 19 points. The Islanders had a 28-12 lead at halftime. “Imperial is well coached,” said Dillon. “They ran the diamond press different than I have ever seen it. We made some long passes and scored 10 real easy points. That was the difference in the ball game.”

This week the Islanders play at Sweetwater Wednesday evening, with the JV playing at 5:30 and the Varsity at 7:00. Friday night, Coronado kicks off their Central League season with a Girls/Boys Varsity Doubleheader against Christian. The Girls play at 6 pm and the Boys play at 7:30 pm. “The gym will be rocking and rolling Friday night,” Dillon added.

Girls Basketball Hosts Christian Friday Night

Playing in an alternate basketball universe of mostly road games while the Boys Varsity hosted their holiday tournament, the Girls Basketball Team emerged from their challenging non-conference schedule with a record of 8-9.

Paced by 20 points from Bria Phillips and nine more from Tiffany Depfer, Coronado motored past Crawford 46-39 in their final game of the Aztec Holiday Tournament. That result is important because the Islanders and the Colts will see each other twice more in Central League play.

“The last game of the Aztec Tournament was the closest we have come to 32 minutes of focused, intense effort this year,” said Head Coach Toler Goodwin. “We have to play with focused energy every game to be successful. When we’ve done that (this season), we’ve played pretty well.”

After the Crawford game, Coronado defeated Southwest High School 36-22 behind 10 points each from Depfer and Phillips. Arrielle Luna added seven points to the winning effort. The Islanders concluded their week with a 42-27 loss to La Jolla. Kelsey Branch and Depfer led the way with seven points each.

“We did a nice job defensively against Southwest,” said Goodwin. “But we didn’t finish many of the scoring opportunities we created from our defense. We need to continue to improve on that area. Tiffany had a pretty good week and overall she has been playing pretty consistently. She has cut down on her turnovers from earlier in the year and has done a good job of handling the ball and getting the ball to people to help them be successful offensively.” Goodwin also complimented sophomore Melissa Humphrey for her defensive efforts.

“We have four days of practice this week before league starts Friday,” Goodwin added. “One of our team goals this year is to win the Central League and host a home playoff game. Christian graduated six of their Top Eight players from last year, but they are improving from the beginning of the year.”

The CHS vs. Christian Girls varsity game tips off at 6 pm Friday evening.

Boys Soccer Stands at 13-2-1

The CHS Boys Soccer Team is off to another strong start this season, adding two more games last week to the plus side of the ledger. The first was a 2-1 victory over Valhalla, a win fueled in part by goals from Nick Hamilton and Jake Vita. The other contest was a 2-0 win over Mission Bay Friday night on goals from Hamilton and Charlie Wood.

The victories can be traced in part to hard work put in over Christmas break by the team, according to Head Coach Brian Hiatt-Aleu. “We worked really hard during the Christmas break to get ready for Valhalla. We worked to get our fitness up and to place a couple of different systems in. The Valhalla game was really, really tough. They are usually a powerhouse and it gave us incentive to work hard over the break. The game had a playoff atmosphere.”

Typically the Islander Boys Soccer Team has been driven by a star player or two and a number of role players. This year is different as the squad is unusually deep in talent, according to Hiatt-Aleu. “Against Valhalla, Nick got hurt. Nick and Matt Ganyard have both been hurt lately. But our guys off the bench did well. They were really huge. The whole team stepped up in both games. At one point Friday night, I only had one senior on the field for about 45 minutes straight. I got a good look at the future. All 18 players got to play. Everybody did what they had to do for us to have success.”

Helping anchor the defense is goalie Jeffery Bucklew, who provides a running commentary during the game to his teammates, at full volume. “Jeff made a save on a free kick at the beginning of the Valhalla game,” said Hiatt-Aleu. “That was a huge save. It helped him relax and play well the rest of the week. That’s what we need from him back there. Jeff’s like the guys (goalies) on TV, they’re yelling and screaming and directing traffic. He’s our last pair of eyes on defense. He is letting everybody know what’s going on.”

This week the Islanders play at Hoover Wednesday and at Madison Friday. Hiatt-Aleu sees any of four teams including Coronado, Hoover, Clairemont and Crawford as the eventual Central League champion. “Four of us have a shot of winning it this year. It looks like the strongest league we have had in a while. This year there are three or four teams who are pretty even.”

Girls Soccer Faces Cathedral Catholic Friday

The CHS Girls Soccer Team had a tough week, losing to Christian 3-2 Wednesday, despite goals from Colleen Burns and Mackenzie Coutts. That game was followed by a 2-1 loss to OLP, with the Coronado goal scored on a scramble in front of the OLP goalie.

Head Coach Kiko Medina said, “We started slow and finished strong in both games. But we gave up some silly goals, which hurt us. We have four days of training and preparation before we play at Cathedral Catholic on Friday.”

Honors and Awards

Recently a pair of Islanders were honored by “The San Diego Union-Tribune” as outstanding student-athletes. Eric Clapper was named captain of the Boys Water Polo All-Academic Team, which is only appropriate because the senior has a 4.32 grade point average. Clapper is also an Eagle Scout and earned a 2,150 score on the SAT exam.

Named to the First Team All-Defensive Football Team was senior lineman Ben Thorne, with a nifty 3.63 GPA. Thorne was the Central League Defensive Player of the Year and Islander Team MVP.

Congratulations to both for their accomplishments on and off the field (or pool) of play.

Coronado Middle School Spring Sports Registration on the Horizon

Wednesday, Feb. 7, at 6:30 pm, registration for the CMS spring sports season will be held at Granzier Hall. Spring sports offerings include Co-ed Track, Boys Lacrosse, Co-ed Tennis, Girls Basketball, plus Boys and Girls Water Polo. The registration fee is $90 per child, per sport.

Although there is a fee associated with participation in the athletic program, ISF/CMS Sports has never denied a child the ability to compete at the middle school level for financial reasons. Scholarships are granted to families who request them. It is our goal to have as many kids participate in sports as possible.

Although technically not part of the administration of the Coronado Unified School District, ISF/CMS sports requires that each student-athlete must be eligible both academically and with their citizenship grades to participate in games against other schools. Student-athletes must also adhere to the school’s Pelican Way Code of Conduct.

IN addition, students must have a current physical exam, administered by a doctor, to be eligible to participate in sports offered by ISF/CMS. All pertinent ISF/CMS athletic forms may be downloaded from www.IslanderSportsFoundation.com.

ISF/CMS Sports require that all student-athletes participate in every game. In the event that a student-athlete is new to a given sport, they may opt to lay on one of the lower level teams in order to learn the skills and techniques associated with that sport.

If you have questions, please consult the ISF website listed above, or call 435-1343 for additional information.

Golf Clinic Information

CHS Head Girls Golf Coach Hanna Raine Cohan is one of the instructors at the coming Golf and Life Coaching Clinic that will be held January 20 from 10 am to 3 pm at the Salt Creek Golf Course. The registration fee is $49 per golfer.

The clinic includes coaching by LPGA players and instructors, putting and driving, life coaching, and Big Fun. (Ed. Note – The ‘Big Fun’ portion alone should be worth $49.) For more information and to register, please contact Cohan at 619-990-8755. Fore!

Lacrosse Clinics Coming Up

One of the building blocks of the successful Coronado Lacrosse program is the Coronado Boys Lacrosse Clinic, which is held annually in Coronado. The clinic will be held on five consecutive Saturday mornings at the CHS and CMS fields from Jan. 27 to Feb. 24. Clinic times are from 9-11 am.

The clinics are designed for boys in third through eighth grades. For new players, the clinics present an excellent opportunity to learn skills and game strategy. The fee is $100 per player, with checks made payable to Coronado Schools Lacrosse.

Included in the fee are a U.S. Lacrosse Association membership, a Coronado lacrosse sticker, and a player mouth guard. Players are required to provide a stick and shoulder pads. Helmets, gloves and arm pads are available to be loaned on a first come – first served basis. A deposit for the loaned equipment is required.

Clinic registration dates are Jan. 13 and Jan. 20 from 9-11 am and Jan. 27 from 8-9 am. Registration will be held at the Sixth Street entrance to the CHS football field. Questions may be directed to Megan Stanley at 435-1649 or megandyno@sbcglobal.net or to Sue Runyon at 435-7364 and suerunyon@sbcglobal.net.

Home Run Derby Event Benefits CHS Baseball Program

Attempting to prove the adage that it’s never too early for baseball, the CHS Islander Baseball Team is hosting the Greater San Diego Home Run Derby Sunday, Feb. 11 at Islander Field at Bayside Park (immediately behind Silver Strand Elementary School). The event will run from 10 am to 3 pm.

The event offers fun (Big Fun would be better - see golf clinic note above), food, music, prizes and raffles aplenty. All proceeds will benefit the Islander Baseball program. Entry fees are $15 for high school-aged athletes, with all other age categories $25 each. High school teams are $25 each. Baseball shoes and helmets are required for participants.

There are four divisions including High School (ages 14-19), the Open Division (18-39), Silver Sluggers (40-80) and Golden Sluggers (60-99). There is also a 3-man team challenge event and a special 3-man coaches’ team challenge. This is designed to be a family event, so bring the kids. The newly and constantly improved Islander baseball field is worth the trip alone.

For more information, please contact event organizer Bruce Johnson at 619-851-1600. To pre-register, contact Bruce at CoronadoIslanders@gmail.com.