Page 9 - Sanger Herald 6-20-19 E-edition

SangerSports
SANGER HERALD * PAGE 1B * THURSDAY, JUNE 20, 2019
Mike Nemeth, editor
nemethfeatures@gmail.com
Firefighters hose down police in softball game
By Mike Nemeth
Sanger Herald
Sanger police Sgt. Jason Boust made a prediction the night before the inaugural Guns & Hoses Battle of the Badges Softball Game.
“We’ll smoke the firefighters tomorrow,” he said, after the City County All-Star Football Game on June 14 at Deran Koligian Stadium.
However, it was late — about 10:30 p.m. — and Boust had no way of knowing his rival, the Sanger firefighters, would field players like engineer Chris Waddle, who inadvertently completed a near full flip after his charge to first for a single.
“The call me the 270-
Mike Nemeth / Snager Herald
Sanger firefighters react after beating Sanger police 20-12.
obviously more familiar with his son, who played in that city county game, identified Jason as Jake.
The contest was all in good spirits, and all first responders appeared to have a good time entertaining a robust crowd of fans, family and friends from all walks in Sanger.
“It’s fun,” Waddle said. “That was a good time. We were talking before the game that we should do this again. This got bigger than we expected.”
The concept started small, proposed initially as an informal pick-up game. Then it got airtime on KSEE 24. People talked. A poster was made. The Sanger Herald ran the flier version of the poster on Facebook
that generated more than 60 reactions and was seen by about 3,000 people.
“We may ask for a rematch,” said Silver Rodriguez, Sanger police chief. “They won. They’re good.”
“As predicted,” said Greg Tarascou, Sanger fire chief. But the goal was friendly competition. And in that, both teams scored. “Every day these guys go out and protect the citizens of
Sanger,” Silver said.
And they face danger,
uncertainty and are dispatched to incidents that at any moment could turn south.
Silver said Waddle would feel that flip the next day.
Waddle said he was off step when he hit the base.
“It was a spring board,” he said. “To a controlled fall.”
Waddle said he’s not a softball player. “We’re always close with PD,” he said. “But I think we’re closer now.”
Officer Amanda Nelson said she’s played softball her entire life. “I loved playing,” she said. “I hoped we’d win. But I hope we do it again.”
And they may.
Cpl. Ramiro Garza said everybody did a good job. “We burned calories,” he said. “It’s good for us.”
Javier and Erika Elizondo, owners of Mi Linda Tierra Market, staffed a booth providing Mexican food, speaking of replacing those burned calories. And many did.
pound ballerina,” Waddle said after his team beat the cops 20-12 at the Sanger High junior varsity girls field June 15. Waddle had earned the distinction of Sanger’s Firefighter of the Year for 2018.
And Boust, who was three for three when the announcer identified him properly, said, “What did you expect me to say?” Early on, when he grounded out, or something like that, the announcer, who was
Sanger shows up at city county game
By Mike Nemeth
Sanger Herald
Jalen Cropper wore his jersey but not his other gear at the City County All-Star Football Game on June 14 at Deran Koligian Stadium.
Cropper represented Buchanan High, the Clovis school where he wrapped up his prep football career.
“Tedford didn’t want me to play,” he said, referring to Fresno State coach Jeff Tedford. Practice for the Bulldogs began this week, and Tedford wanted his freshman recruit in peak condition. The season will reunite Cropper and the other member of the self- professed Dynamic Duo, Sanger’s Arron Mosby, who Cropper said is expected to have a starting position this year.
Cropper didn’t appear to mind the lack of playing time. He urged on his fellow county teammates, who ultimately lost an extremely close game to their city rivals 15-13. And he had family, including new little brother, 3-month- old Cameron, supporting him.
But two of his Apache teammates — Cropper played for Sanger his first three years — participated in nearly every one of county’s offensive series. They wore their red helmets with the familiar arrowhead logo, emerging from the game drenched in sweat and only a little disappointed with the outcome.
Recent graduates Jake Boust and Isaac Salas played like their senior season hadn’t ended, making key plays and setting a Sanger standard of outhustling the rest of the field.
Mike Nemeth / Sanger Herald
Isaac Salas, No. 70, blocks during the City County All-Star Game at Central's Koligian Stadium. Jake Boust also played.
interested in getting ready for the game. “Pretty excited,” Boust said as he disappeared into the county locker room.
This was one of just a couple visits Boust had made to Koligian Stadium. He said he came to watch Central and Edison battle it out in the playoffs. The stadium is named for west- side farmer, World War II veteran who saw combat in the Philippines and Fresno County supervisor Deran Koligian.
The stadium was dedicated in 2006. Alexander Duarte, a facilities staffer for Central Unified, explained that the turf was replaced two years ago with an artificial product that uses sand for stability rather than the black pellets of the previous surface. He said the district plans to build a new high school right behind the stadium on Grantland Avenue. It will be near Harvest Elementary and Glacer Point Middle School and is scheduled to open in fall 2021, wrote Myles Barker of gvwire.com.
And Cropper talked a little about moving into an apartment on campus and what position it looks like he’ll be playing — receiver. About Mosby he said, “He’s finally getting his shot this year.” Mosby’s put on some muscle and is playing inside or outside linebacker.
Cropper also got some ink done. Everything on his arm had a reason and a story behind it. Two that stuck out were doves representing his grandfathers and another about family, the closer nuclear kind.
Expect Cropper to work hard making his mark. He has ambitions.
“I was only taken out of one series,” Salas said. “I knewwhatIhadtodo.I had to go 100 miles an hour. The main thing I took from this — I had to keep that passion, in all things.”
Salas and Boust team with fellow Apache Steven Gomez for the North/South Rotary All-Star Football Game at 7:30 p.m. June 22 at Veterans Stadium in Merced. Practice for the boys’ south team was this week at Liberty High in Madera Ranchos.
Salas indicated that until the Rotary game is over, the season hasn’t ended.
And he said that he intends to “keep my body strong” even as he heads to college at Fresno State, pursuing an undergraduate degree in civil engineering. And in one final comment Salas said of the city-county game, “We had our highs and lows. But you always
find a way to fight back through.”
The end of the game involved the county team moving the ball dramatically all the way down the field and into great scoring position. Evenly matched defenses prevented the scores being run up.
With about 3 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Milton Clements of Central caught a deep pass by teammate quarterback Trent Tompkins, also of Central. Clements was brought down about the 15 yard line. Then Colt Nelson of Madera ran it to the 5 yard line. However, city held county right there as an attempted field goal came up short on a botched kick.
The half had ended with a 7-7 tie. The tide shifted somewhat after a hiked ball sailed over the county
punter’s head and into the end zone for a city 2-point safety near the end of the third quarter. Then Angel Maldonado of Roosevelt ran in a touchdown for city. But the kicker missed the extra point.
County roared back with less than a minute having expired on the game clock. About 4:45 minutes left in the game, Tompkins passed to Preston Conti of Minarets in the end zone for the score.
“I feel like the better team lost,” said David Wilson, Kingsburg coach who took on coaching duties for county. Vince Branstetter of Roosevelt High coached city. “But I was extremely impressed with you guys. You guys could’ve just quit, and you didn’t.”
Earlier I’d been daydreaming of a scenario in which Tompkins passed
to Boust who would take it all the way downfield, utilizing the blocking skills of Salas and score. Of course I would have gotten the shots and topped my story with the scene.
Maybe next year with some different all stars.
Before the game, Boust said he’s got a busy summer with school, practice and weekends working as a lifeguard at Wild Water. He said he’s playing for Fresno City College in the fall and attending classes. His goal is to continue his schooling, pursuing a degree in kinesiology.
“I’m more a science and math kind of guy,” Boust said. “I prefer it to science and essays.”
And he said he enjoys memorizing stuff, like anatomy. Kinesiology is the study of the mechanics of body movement. But at that moment he was more
Seventh Evan 'Shoot' Medina Basketball Tournament brings 20 teams to Sanger
By Mike Nemeth
Sanger Herald
The seventh annual Evan “Shoot” Medina Memorial Basketball Tournament returns to Sanger on June 29.
The event features 20 teams, 10 girls and 10 boys. Play starts at 9 a.m. and championship games are scheduled for the top girls teams at 4 p.m. and the top boys teams at 4:30 p.m. Two courts will be set up in the Coach Dean Nicholson Gym
at Sanger High and another in the small gym.
“This year we’ve got a wide variety of teams from all over the Valley,” said organizer Al Medina. “We’re trying to make this the biggest one of all of them.”
It’s been about seven years since Evan Medina’s death on the outskirts of Sanger in a car accident. Medina said after Evan died Sept. 6, 2012, about 100 referees showed up to his funeral to pay
their respects. And the tournament has become a way to see each other, albeit briefly since everybody is officiating.
The younger Medina was an up-and-comer in the regional referee world when he died, as well as a former basketball player for Sanger’s Apaches.
This year, the tournament features something a little different for the referees. The event serves as a master class for young referees and a place where
established referees get a chance to learn the latest regulations. Medina, a longtime referee who says he’s still got several years officiating games, said there is a distinct need for people interested in putting on the black and white vertical striped shirts and getting on the court.
In the small gym this year, Medina said junior college and college referees will be performing their own training of the younger officials. Overall,
the event is expected to draw between 40 and 50 refs. The small gym will be run by veteran officiator Bob Kayajanian. “He’s the one who brought our association into the 21st century,” Medina said. “He’s the one who did it all.”
Medina referred to the San Joaquin Valley Officials Association, which has been working to provide enough referees to the surrounding school districts for all the games in the region. He
said the task has become additionally difficult as the association’s average age continues to climb. “All of us old guys are cutting back,” Medina said. “I’m only reffing three days a week.”
The trending decline in available and trained referees is statewide, he said. “Times are changing.”
The association continues to recruit, but because of need many young refs are thrown in to consequential games before they’re ready.