Page 9 - Sanger Herald 4-12-18 E-edition

SangerSports
SANGER HERALD * PAGE 1B * THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2018
Sanger cheer team makes history
By Mike Nemeth
Sanger Herald
Disaster loomed large at Clovis High in mid January. The Sanger High cheer team had to deliver its routine in competition and just learned that two key players — a tumbler and center — couldn’t make the
event due to illness.
“We had to fix it minutes
before performing,” said senior Julian Johnson, a member of the squad. “We had to fix our team right then and there.”
And these Apaches did, continuing to achieve unparalleled success the rest of the season.
That level of talent, and ability to perform under pressure despite unforeseen challenges, culminated this season for the competition squad in Anaheim at the USA Spirit Nationals in late February. There, the team placed third in the state in its division. The event is considered the pinnacle in California and the ultimate goal of most teams.
And this year was different. The season marked the first year the California Interscholastic Federation classified competition cheer as a sport. The change had been inked into the rule books in October 2015 when Gov. Jerry Brown signed a measure introduced by Assembly member Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, allowing the sport to join the likes of football, basketball and others.
Roger Blake, CIF executive director, said at the time he looked forward to working with the California Department of Education to develop policies and standards allowing student athletes to enjoy greater opportunities
Submitted photo
said, adding that sometimes the task of critiquing fell to them. “The others trust our experience.”
Getting really good, of course, means doing routines again and again until they’re flawless or as near as possible. Any athlete will say nothing about that is easy.
And ultimate success requires playing for the team, said a couple Apache coaches last week.
Natalia Yurchenko, a gymnastics coach in Chicago and former world champion, said on her website that passion also has a lot to do with performance. And she offered this advice: “Keep your ears and eyes wide open. Be a good listener and respond by showing that you can make every correction the first time.
“Try not to act like someone else, just be you. Do everything in the gym with passion, show your personality, and don’t be shy.”
Frame of mind is important, Garza said. “If you don’t have a positive attitude at practice, it’s wasted,” she said.
Johnson said doing their best took time and commitment. “We literally go all year long,” she said.
That dedication paid dividends at the Anaheim Convention Center on Feb. 24. Sanger was one of 16 teams in its division that advanced to nationals. The Apaches continued to the final four and placed third in the final round.
“It was exciting,” Xiong said. “I was happy to know we were making history. Sanger’s never been to day two.”
Johnson said the level of competition was high.
“It was intimidating,” Xiong said.
Although they didn’t often get to see the other teams’ final routines in competition, they did see competitors practice. “You look at the team practicing, and you go, ‘Holy (moly), they’re really good,’” Johnson said. “That’s when your nerves really hit.”
Routines only last 2:30 minutes, “but in the moment it’s really long,” she said. “You have to hit (each move) perfectly.”
Xiong said a combination of factors helped her teammates win. “They had more confidence in themselves,” she said. “They trusted their team. They took all the critiques.”
Garza said, “This team faced a lot of difficulties we hadn’t seen the year before. We had to work to come together and be friends.”
That Clovis North competition proved to be the turning point. “It was one of our best performances,” she said.
“That’s when we knew our potential,” Johnson said.
Johnson said she plans to attend Clovis Community College and Fresno State, majoring in science. She hopes to continue to cheer.
Xiong said she plans to major in nursing at Fresno State. Her ultimate job would be at Valley Children’s Hospital, she said.
Garza said she plans to enroll in Fresno City College’s honors program and pursue studies in communication disorders and a career as a speech pathologist.
The reporter can be contacted by email at sangerheraldsports@gmail. com or by phone at the Herald at (559) 875-2511.
The cheer team placed third in its division in Anaheim earlier this year.
to display their athletic talents.
“One of the major goals in this process will be to develop guidelines for competitive cheer programs that our member schools can implement, meet the standards and be compliant with Title IX as defined by the United States Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights,” he said in remarks posted on the federation’s website.
The first CIF sanctioned season ended for the Apache cheerleaders, a group that consists of varsity, junior varsity and freshman teams as well as the competition team. This past week, the team conducted tryouts for the upcoming year.
Yet, last season will be remembered.
“They had a fantastic year,” said Vivian Carrillo, parent of two cheer team members. “They seemed to be able to pull it together and do a great job. I think it was good coaching. They hadn’t been there before. Not even close.”
Johnson and teammates
Chianne Garza and Holli Xiong took some time last week to discuss the season and their future plans. Garza and Xiong also are seniors.
Garza said the first indication her team was destined for bigger things came at the USA Regional Competition at Clovis North on Nov. 11 last year. “That’s where we got second place, and that was the first step,” she said.
“It was like a big stress reliever,” Johnson said, explaining that the performance qualified the team for enhanced position in future competition.
Xiong said a lot of their success had to do with team chemistry. “Everyone actually cheers for each other,” she said.
Garza said that all of them on the competition team held out for a higher standard. “We were performing well,” she said. “But we could do better.”
The trio agreed that a lot of their success had to do with a five- and sometimes six-day-a-week practice schedule that rivals any other CIF sanctioned
sport. Practice involved conditioning, working on routines and what Johnson referred to as “fixing.”
“Fixing stuff we got wrong,” she said.
Cheer competition is judged on multiple factors. And, based on a show cheer judges’ score sheet lifted from the USA Spirit Competition website, points for performed routines are based on categories that include composition/choreography, technique/execution, dance, showmanship, school representation, crowd appeal, practicality, incorporation of skills, use of props, technique/ execution, stunts, pyramids, building creativity, tumbling and jumps.
“Literally everything,” Johnson said, adding energy and even “pointed toes” belong on the list.
“They tell us what we need help with in general, and we figure it out,” Garza said. “It’s a lot of judging each other and critiquing each other, which is hard when you’re teenage girls.
“We’re the oldest and most experienced,” she
Softball team unleashes offense at season home debut
ByMikeNemeth
Sanger Herald
Ashley Mata, Stephanie Herring and Vanessa Hernandez share years of playing sports.
And it’s on the softball field where the trio of teammates will finish out their high school careers. Not that it bothers Mata a bit.
“Softball is the best sport out there,” she said. “I’m happy to be out here.”
Mata, Herring and Hernandez were all smiles after the first game April 4 of the double-header with Liberty High of Madera that marked their seasonal return to the Apache softball field. The game was the first in a flurry of contests to make up for delays brought on by recent foul weather. Mata nailed a couple singles and each of them added to their stats.
Prior to meeting up with the Hawks, Sanger’s softball players had participated in a series of tournaments that kept them away from home. But being back in Sanger proved exactly the tonic the team needed. The Apaches sharpened their bats, winning both games against the Hawks, 9-2 and
Mike Nemeth / Sanger Herald
Vanessa Hernandez throws to Vanessa Leon on first base to get the out against Liberty on April 4 in Sanger.
Catcher Katelyn Estep went up next. The sophomore unleashed a swing that would have sent the ball over the fence had it connected. But Shevenell got the strike. That only hardened Estep’s resolve, and she slammed a double off one of Shevenell’s next throws.
Stafford ran home. The Apaches’ lead increased to 6-2.
Shevenell must have been a little shaken because one of her next pitches hit Mata, forcing a walk. Senior first baseman Vanessa Leon, next up, then got a hit. But it was caught.
That left Mata on first and Alyssa Montejano on second. Montejano, a sophomore, subbed in to run for Estep.
Janessa Montejano, a sophomore, entered the batting lineup and promptly cracked a single deep into center field.
Then junior Danessa Castro singled, and Alyssa Montejano ran home. The score bumped up to 7-2.
Freshman Sophia Mares walked on the next play with loaded bases and Mata crossed home. The score increased again to 8-2.
Herring’s single on the next play sent Jenessa
home but also resulted in Liberty getting its second out.
And when Hernandez returned to home plate and got a hit, the Hawks threw her out. But by that time, the score was up to 9-2.
Or something like that. That was one busy inning.
Pennington praised the efforts of Janessa Montejano after the game. “It’s really happening when they step up (off the bench),” she said.
Estep, responding to a question about that first swing in the sixth, said she hasn’t homered recently. “But it’s a possibility,” she said. And about the team she added, “This is a great group. We really meshed well together.”
Estep said that didn’t happen right away. “As long as we keep progressing, we’ll have a good season,” she said.
Stafford stood with Mata, Hernandez and Herring briefly after the first Liberty game. Mata was trying to quickly scarf a couple pieces of pizza in the 15-minute break. And after her three teammates went their separate ways, Stafford said they play an influential role on the team.
“They’re very energetic
and fun to be around,” she said. “When they do something, it brings the whole team (along with them).” Mata, Herring and Hernandez also played basketball together.
But Stafford was pragmatic about her softball team and the impact of any individual players. She said she had a positive outlook for the season but that it would take everybody on the team coming together to achieve the kind of success she considered possible.
Then her Apaches won the second game that night. And they didn’t even look like they broke a sweat the next night against Hoover. Stafford got hit with a pitch — somebody said it was the second time — from the Patriots’ slinger and didn’t even flinch.
And Hernandez hit a home run.
Alas, the Redwood Rangers of Visalia won the April 6 game 4-3, ending the Apaches’ streak.
The reporter can be contacted by email at sangerheraldsports@gmail. com or by phone at the Herald at (559) 875-2511.
8-4. The next night, April 5, the team played Hoover at home and turned up the offense and defense, dismantling the Patriots 13-0.
Mata predicted good tidings for the team. “We’re going to be pretty solid,” she said. “I think we’ll make it far this year.”
Coach Erica Pennington also gave the team high marks.
“We’re a little behind because of the rain,” she said. “And we have four games in three days. We’re playing catch up.”
Pennington said she
was proud of her team, especially in the sixth inning of the first game against Liberty. “That’s when they woke up,” she said.
Indeed.
Hernandez got it started. She strolled up to home plate as the first batter in the bottom of the inning. Sarah Shevenell pitched for the Hawks. The score at that point was 4-2.
Hernandez swung hard for a double. And then it was senior Brianah Stafford’s turn. She singled, and sent Hernandez home. The score ticked up to 5-2.