Page 24 - Mid Valley Times 7-25-19 E-edition

SHAVER
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sen, owner of Los Ange- les-based HARDCORE- SPORT, with helping pull everything together. The event is promoted through USA Water Polo.
Andersen provided shirts for all participants. “We got sizes for all 800 athletes,” Anderson said, as she worked the the vendor booth set up under a canopy on the beach. “I create a whole new brand identity (for the Shaver Lake Open)
each year.”
Andersen started her
sportswear company about eight years ago. She manufactures all her products domestically and said HARDCORE- SPORT focuses on quality and specialty products. “Always pushing the lim- its,” she said. The prints are bold and the designs feature input from ath- letes. About three quar- ters of her business is special order.
“We’re a high qual- ity product, and we work hard to make it so,” she said. “It’s not easy to do this, but it’s worth it.”
Nearby, Lauren Blanchard blew up a fair- ly large flotation device in the shape of a mythi- cal dragon, and she did it quickly without any mechanical aid. Her ef- fort impressed some at the HARDCORESPORT camp.
Blanchard apparently just lived up to her repu- tation. “She’s a beast,” An- dersen said.
Blanchard responded to some of the discussion. “I’m only cool because of who I hang out with,” she said.
Andersen and Blanchard are best friends. They were room- mates at University of California Irvine where both played water polo. Blanchard still plays competitively. She said she travels to South Ko- rea on Aug. 3 to partici- pate in the FINA Masters World Championships in Gwangju. The theme of the tournament this year is Dive into Peace.
Andersen said she does multiple tourna- ments a year, but she singled out the Shaver Lake Open. “This is one of the biggest,” she said.
Mike Nemeth / Mid Valley Times
Alex Elizondo, in white cap, seeks to take the ball from an opposing player at the Shaver Lake open recently. Elizondo played for one of the Sanger teams in the competition. The event drew 48 water polo teams and about 800 athletes.
Thursday, July 25, 2019
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Mid Valley TiMes
And she said the commu- nity is “very supportive of our made in California” brand.
Of course, most of Andersen’s other tourna-
ments are held around swimming pools. This is the only one which re- quired “schlepping” a bunch of gear and inven- tory through a forest,
down a hillside and onto the beach. In all, she said preparation for the event took about two months.
Kasey Stoebig, an as- sistant coach for Mount Whitney High in Visalia, said her philosophy at the event was “let everyone play and let everyone get experience.” She said ma- ny of her athletes are new this year and have never seen Shaver Lake. Her team attended last year, its first.
“This tournament is a lot of fun,” Stoebig said. “It gives them a lot of good experience.”
Stoebig said she’s look- ing forward to the season for her Pioneers. “This year has already been better than last,” she said. “So I’m really excited. We only lost one senior last year.”
And she tried a ze- ro-gravity chair on the beach. She gave it a good review.
Alex Elizondo, who played on Sanger’s 16 and under team, said this is her second year at the open. She had just completed a game. “We started off a little slow,” she said. “But we came together, started working
together and started scor- ing more.”
She added, “The water is cold.”
Teammate Jillian Hoover said she’s been coming to the tourna- ment for three years. “This place has a lot of memories,” she said. “It’s just fun to hang out with your friends. And I like meeting new peo- ple.”
She said the tourna- ment isn’t so strict that winning is everything. “It’s, like, for fun,” she said.
And Sanger player Ashley Schletewitz said she likewise enjoyed the event. “It’s a really good experience be- cause you get to bond (with teammates),” she said. “You’re all stay- ing together at the same campsite.”
Jewels Rios, who played goalie on the Sanger U16 team, said it’s her first year. “It’s pretty cool,” she said. “Just make sure to wear sunscreen.”
The reporter can be contacted by email at nemethfeatures@gmail. com or at (559) 875-2511.
Free Home Buyers Seminar
Looking for a New Home?
Where: Sanger Library When: Saturday, July 27th Time: 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Seating is limited so please R.S.V.P by texting your information to 559-360-5179 or calling 559-875-7521. Snacks and Beverages provided.
Bilingual lenders and Agents will be available.
Dan Cheney & Associates, Inc.
Topics Discussed
• Bene ts of home ownership
• Understanding the home buying process
• Current market trends
• Down Payment Assistance • Loan Programs
• New TIN options
Sistema De Apartado
Don’s Shoes
Dinuba 591 -2010
Lay-Away For Back To School
Girls needed for TCSO's
traveling basketball team
Contributed
Girls, ages 12-16, are invited to try out for TCSO*s first traveling basketball team this Fri- day evening at Pixley Middle School. Deputy Kendra Snowden will be their coach.
“I’m going to keep the girls focused on basket- ball and off the streets,” she said. “Basketball was my way out”.
Deputy Snowden played basketball for El Diamante High School. After graduation, she played college basket- ball at Sacramento City College in California and Park University in Mis- souri.
She said she had to maintain good grades to play basketball and that helped her earn her col-
Photo contributed
lege degree, which led to her career in law enforce- ment.
Who: Tulare County girls, ages 12-16
What: Tryouts for TC- SO traveling team
When: 6-8 p.m., Friday, July 26, 2019
Where: Pixley Middle School, 1520 E. Court Ave., Pixley
Cost: Free
Info: Corporal Monse Meza at (559) 804-7284.
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