The Explorer » Sports

SF Giants: more than a sophomore slump?

adviser — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 17:50:04 +0000

Let me just start off by saying if you personally know me, or have at least seen me walking around school, you would know that I absolutely love the San Francisco Giants. 2010 was a significant year in my life. It was the year I turned 16, the year my baby brother was born, and the year the Giants won the World Series.

The 2010 MLB season, both regular and postseason, was extremely good to the Giants. Though their division-rival San Diego Padres threatened their first place lead, the Giants pulled through and defended their place. Led by a phenomenal five-man pitching rotation comprised of Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez, Madison Bumgarner, and Barry Zito, the Giants dominated the National League and took it by storm. Other young guns, including Buster Posey and Freddy Sanchez, helped the Giants maintain a solid winning record. All in all, the entire team blew the rest of the league away and made it to the postseason on the fateful day of October 3, 2010.

With the Giants successfully advancing through each level of the postseason, the edged closer to victory. They ruled over the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS, pummeled the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLCS, and continued onto the World Series facing off against the Texas Rangers. Triumphantly, San Francisco beat Texas in a 4-1 series and resulted with a World Series win, the first in 56 years.

Fresh off of an amazing season and World Series win, high goals were set for the Giants. “I expected them to sign some key players and make another deep run in the playoffs as contenders,” senior Daniel Aguirre said. During the 2010 offseason, the Giants acquired shortstop Miguel Tejada, a veteran player who previously played for teams like the Baltimore Orioles and Oakland Athletics.

A strong start in the beginning of the 2011 season meant great things for the Giants. They were playing like champions and had a specific ambition in mind: to reach the postseason again and go for a World Series repeat. Everything was going well for San Francisco until May 26, when Buster Posey, starting catcher and reigning NL Rookie of the Year, was horribly injured during a play at home plate and resulted with a season-ending injury. From then on, the Giants were seemingly cursed with DL-ridden players dropping from the team like flies.

Falling behind the Arizona Diamondbacks in the NL West rankings, the Giants drifted further away from their postseason aspirations. A hefty 7.5-deficit from first place could and probably will be the death of the Giants’ World Series-repeat dreams. “Looking at our current situation, we aren’t going to pull through and finish strong,” senior Aaron Acosta said.

So what does this say about the Giants? Are they just undergoing a sophomore slump or is there more behind this madness? I believe the latter. As a faithful fan, I still have hope for my team, but as a realist, there is very little chance that they will overcome the odds. There is no such thing as a “one-year wonder” in baseball; there will be many future opportunities for San Francisco to advance to the postseason. Although hope was almost entirely lost by the San Francisco fanbase, confidence and optimism are not dead. The possibility of the Giants having an end-of-the-season winning surge is quite real. Baseball is the type of sport where anything can happen. Miraculous comebacks are not too farfetched.

Rookie of the month: Savannah Brand

adviser — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 17:48:16 +0000

After large turnout at the volleyball camp and tryouts, Moreau opted to turn their volleyball program into three levels, adding a freshman team for the 2011-2012 season.
Savannah Brand had played one year of club volleyball prior to her freshman debut. She had no idea what to expect during her first practice.
“At tryouts I was nervous like everybody else.” Brand said. “ a lot of other players told me that I should make varsity … [but] I was shocked when I found out that I actually made it.”
With a determination to better herself and her team, a berth as one of ten other players, of which three were freshman, only motivated Brand to work harder.
“That’s what I like about her,” Kassidy Herbert 12’ said, “she’s a really hard worker and always brings the right attitude to practice.”
Brand’s attitude has turned heads at the varsity level. Her constant stride to better herself has left an impression upon her teammates.
“She is a humble person” Asha Smith 12’ said, “she’s always looking to be better even after we praise her for a good hit or a good block. She always asks the coaches how she could improve.”
Though Brand felt “a ton of pressure” because of making varsity, her decided disposition to give all her effort has caused her teammates to believe that she’ll get playing time on the court all throughout her high school career.
“Savannah is very talented and determined and just beginning a bright future in volleyball,” Smith said, “[she is] confident and willing to step out of her comfort zone to better herself as a player.”
Brand’s studious work extends farther than the volleyball courts, as she takes her academics just as serious.
“Since it is my first year in High School … I know that I have to work [just as] hard to keep my grades up,” Brand said.
Through pure determination Brand has learned and developed her gift with the sport.
“Being on varsity has proved to me that hard really does work does pay off.” Brand said.

Mariner coaches update

adviser — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 17:46:38 +0000

While the fall athletic season started on August 15, preparation for the season started way before the beginning of school. Moreau welcomed some new faces, and saw some familiar ones get promoted.
Girls’ Volleyball saw former JV coaches Amy Schlein and Joe Tui move up to spearhead the Varsity squad, as coaches Lindsay Mietz and Jackie Fuller left to pursue other opportunities.
Head coach Andrew Cotter and Varsity football brought in coaches Daniel Green and Chad Sullivan, who previously coached at Albany and Arroyo, respectively.
As the defensive back and wide receiver coach, Sullivan won’t be calling the shots from the sideline, but he’s made an immediate impression on the players.
“He knows what he’s talking about,” senior defensive back Jeremy Imlach said. “We’ve learned a lot more technique and a broader range of skills than before.” Sullivan, entering his 16th year as a football coach, admits to being humbled by his new position.
“I’m still figuring it out,” Sullivan said. “The players have been very responsive to me, sort of like sponges, just soaking up what I have to say.”
Green, the offensive and defensive line coach, joins Sullivan in Moreau’s open-arms welcome. “I’m just here to add to what’s already been built in this program. I had been around the team, having coached Albany in the past, and I liked the dynamics and the way the team played,” Green said.
The Mariners are excited for the new season, opening against some well-known sides, namely Campolindo and Dublin. They look to some key seniors—Chris Baca, Adam Sagapolu, James Mendoza, Matt Wong, and Imlach, to name a few—for their leadership and drive to excellence.
Volleyball didn’t bring in anyone new, but they’re surely putting some tenured coaches to the test. Coach Schlein and Tui were given the opportunity this year to jump the gap between the JV and Varsity levels.
Schlein and the Mariners,
much like the football team, look to their seniors for leadership. “We just need the seniors to do what they do best,” Schelin said.
Unlike Green and Sullivan, Schlein won’t have to adjust to the team she’s been put in charge of.
“Most of us had coach Amy when we were on JV,” said senior middle Kassidy Hebert. “Having new coaches doesn’t really change all that much with the team.”
Mariner volleyball has opened the season with some great showings in victories over Mission San Jose and St. Joseph’s.
Both Mariner squads plan to employ new rotations and formations against their scheduled opponents, and both aspire toward NCS births.