Image provided by: West Linn High School; West Linn, OR
About The amplifier. (West Linn, Oregon) 1921-current | View Entire Issue (March 1, 2008)
2008 5 Spring sports start season-long struggle for superiority flhj/es, spring is her«: ornamental cherrg trees burst with blossoms, crocuses and daffodils poke out o f th e jro u n d and spring sports teams^gather momentum for the upcoming season, Varsity Boys’ Tennis: I ever triple jumped in a It's very intense, but while Girls' Varsity high jumpers a course with a friend is Collin Bundy, meet, I was competing with this is my main focus, my could make five feet." great." senior How did you get involved with your sport? "I realized baseball wasn't fun y/EST L l i f f f anymore, im a m so 1 joined a tennis club and learned to play throughout the summer a year and a half ago." Who, as of this date, was your favorite teammate? "Brett Wright. He's very dedicated to improving and fulfilling his potential." What's your best memory of the sport? "Making the Varsity team last year after just having a summer to learn the game." What do you like the most about it? "Whether you win or lose depends on you alone. You don't have any teammates to pick you up if you're not performing well, you have to do it yourself." What was your best performance? "Coming back after losing the first set badly to beat a good Clackamas player at the end of last year." What was your funniest moment in the sport? "Listening to Tony Bonaduce on the bus ride to the Jesuit tournament last year. He's a funny kid." Do you have any superstitions or traditions? "Brett and I will wear a wristband at each of our matches this year, rain or shine, because over the summer we discovered they make us play better." Varsity Boys’ Track: Nico Matthews, junior Yf How did you v get involved ' k in track? "In seventh grad e, my P.E. teacher saw me running and thought I would be good at the 800 meters, but it didn't turn out that way and I became a sprinter and a jumper." What was the best team you have ever been a part of? "My freshman year we had Sam Oltman, Zach Glatt and Anthony Rue, who dominated. We also had a really good girls team along with an amazing jumping coach." What is your best memory from track? "The first time i> 'íÁ no previous triple jump experience and still won the meet." What do you like the most about track? "I like the fact that it is a team sport and an individual sport at the same time. You can support your teammates and be supported, but ultimately your performance depends on you and no one else." favorite event is probably team penning. You're given three rounds with two other teammates to cut out three identified cows from a herd and chase them into a pen in under a minute and a half." Girls’ Tennis: Alexandra Smith, senior Equestrian Team: Courtney Moore, senior What's your best memory from the sport? "My horse Bob is a little psychotic so it's hard to pinpoint one absurd moment from the other. But m y best memories are just spending time with Bob and , the team at our meets." ; What's your best •Jr m' a** I s—r -a r \ achievement? "Surviving Bob." What was your funniest moment? "I've been thrown more times than I can count. The funniest moment came from our most recent meet. I was driving a pony, which is kind of like a chariot race but you're performing a pattern. The pony started bucking, then kicked my head which made me fly back and loose the reins, and bolted. There was nothing I could do but hold on while she tore around the ring, almost slammed into a gate, just about ran over my teammate Hillary Obye, and kept running. I had to eventually dive out of the cart head first, hit the ground and kept bouncing while the pony kept running. It was nuts." What about the sport do you like the most? "It's different from other sports: Your performance isn't just based on you. It's not like swinging a golf club or kicking a soccer ball—in other sports your instruments do exactly What they're told. In equestrian, your instrument (your horse) has a mind of its own and doesn't always do just as it's told. I like the unpredictability of it and the reliance on trust." What is your best event? "I focus mostly on Dressage, which emphasizes the horse's natural ability, movement, and willingness while the rider appears effortless. How did you get involved with your sport? How long ago was it? "I first started playing when I was ten years old. I got involved because all my friends played tennis so I took lessons. Now I take individual lessons as well as a class with all my friends." What was the best team you've ever been on? "Definitely the school team just because the team has a sense of team bonding. It's fun playing with people you don't normally talk to at school." Who, as of today, is your favorite teammate? "Kellie Kawasaki because she's my double's partner and we buy matching outfits." What about the sport do you like the most? "The people I play with, the outfits, and it's a great way to stay in shape." What was your best achievement? "Hard work payed off freshman year when Kellie and I made it to State. It was exciting because no one thought we would." Do you have any superstitions or traditions? "Kellie and I have to have blue Underarmour sweat bands and we have to match. We always play better when our colors match and we have matching headbands, socks and whatnot." Varsity Girls’ Track: Samantha DeMars, senior How did you get involved in track? "I started track in middle school because my sister did it, and just continued into high school." What was the best track team you've ever been on? "My freshman year was really good, almost all of the Who, as of date, is your favorite teammate? "Natalie Pittenger (senior), because she is awesome at everything she does." What do you like the most about track? "How social it is. You can have fun while working hard." What was your best performance in track? "When I got 5'2" in the high jump and almost went to State and when I jumped 16' 1" in the long jump and almost qualified for State." Does the team have any traditions or superstitions? "Every year we have a banana eating competition between the different classes, and the whole team meets before practice." Girls’ Golf: Elizabeth Enderle, sophomore How did you get involved in golf? "As a child, I didn't enjoy it. In eighth grade, I started to improve and enjoy it. My dad helped me get started." Who, as of this date, is your favorite teammate? "All the girls are friends, and we've all bonded. Who doesn't when they practice together every day? We've gone to bowling nights with the coaches so that we could spend time together and do something other than golf." What is your best memory from the sport? "Everyone is just so fun! You get to make friends with people that you don't normally hang out with and that aren't even in your age group." What do you enjoy most about golf? "You get the opportunity to be out in the sun all the time. I'm always tan. It’s a sport people don't expect others to enjoy. All of the girls like it, and being able to walk through What is your funniest moment in the sport? "A girl on our team, Josie Sells, always has a funny thing to say. Even when you're in a bad mood or just made a big mistake, she easily puts a smile on your face." Varsity Baseball: Reed Nicholson, senior How did you get involved with your sport? "I liked baseball when I was little. That, and a lot of my friends wanted to play. I started playing ball when I was five or six." What was the best team you're ever been on? "Either the team I'm on now (this year's team), the Senior Federal team when I was 14/ or the 12 year old All Star team that went to the Little League World Series. The 12 year old team finished third place in the United States pool, and fifth place in the World pool." Who, as of this date, was your favorite teammate? "It's pretty much always been the same core group of guys that I've played with. Joe Offer, Kyle Kraus, Spencer Flores, Max Cathcart, Calvin Spearing, Justin Monahan and Justin Williams (all seniors). We're all pretty good friends and I'd say we're all pretty good teammates." What was your best performance? "My sophomore year, I pitched against Central Catholic in the playoffs. It was the first playoff game that I ever pitched in. I was just a little sophomore, there was a lot at stake. I pitched the whole game, but what made it great was it being my first playoff game." Spring sports________________j continued on page 5 wm m Hinton takes State Ski title in Slalom; places second in combined events David Hinton, junior, took first in the Slalom event at the Al pine Ski State Tournament held Mar. 6-7 with a combined time of 1:28.01 for his two runs. Along with his first place win, his third place finish in the Giant Slalom with a combined time of 2:22.59 for his two runs was strong enough for second place in the combined events. Hinton is looking ahead to a chance at earning next year's State Utle. "My future skiing goals are basically to try and win state again and hopefully earn a college scholarship," Hinton said.
