Plenty Of Basketball To Go Around.....

If I hadn't have flipped to ESPN 2 during a timeout of the Suns-Mavericks game last night, I never would have known that the WNBA started its season already.

I also wouldn't have known that Chicago has an expansion franchise named the Sky. They played the L.A. Sparks last night and lost by 11.

Basketball is my favorite sport to play and watch. I like to watch basketball at all levels (college,pro,high school,etc.)

However, I'm not the biggest fan of the WNBA, or of women's basketball in general.

Not because I'm a sexist pig, but women's basketball isn't as exciting as the men's game is, to me at least.

There are too many low scoring games; not because of good defense, but because some of those women just can't shoot!! The final score of the Sparks-Sky game was 64-55....that's a third quarter score in an NBA game, or even a halftime score if the Suns are playing! I don't think I've ever seen a WNBA game where a team reached 100.

This season marks the 10th year anniversary of the WNBA. I was visiting the official site for the league and was looking at some interesting facts over its history. I noticed how many teams had come and gone over it's years. Some moved to other cities (like the Orlando Miracle moving to Conneticuit and becoming the Sun,etc.).

With the NBA season wrapping up, I'll be paying more attention to the women over the summer. While there may be some good games and be exciting in its own right, nothing beats the NBA.

Go Pistons and Mavs!!

Spring Semester Sports Wrap-Up

Being that the Spring Semester has ended, it's time to do a quick recap on some of the grand and not-so-grand events during the semester for the Cerritos sports teams.

Highlights;

- The women's track and field team winning the state title;

After coming within two points of doing so in 2005, the women went for the gold this time around, Led by the heptathlete trio of Jacqueline Taylor,Tatyanna Ricks and Katie Black, the team earned its second state title in school history. Taylor is considered to be one of the best heptathletes in school history. There's no doubt in that.

- Maltessa Neely;

She was hands-down the standout player for the women's basketball team this year. In her freshman season she averaged 16.8 points and 10.8 rebounds, categories in which she led the team. She also had an 80% free-throw percentage and was second on the team in assists with 2.0.

There were several games where she was the only player who scored in double figures. Her stats also earned her a spot on the All-South Coast Conference South Division 1st team. If she comes back next season, hopefully she can lead the Falcons further into the playoffs

- Paul Tse and Hanna Anzai reaching state finals in swimming;

The lone representatives from the teams of their respective genders earned All-American honors and competed in three events each. Anzai won a medal for placing sixth in the 100-yard freestyle.

Out of the three events that each athlete competed in, they reached the championship round in two of them. With each competition, they improved on their times. That shows determination and to go out and give each competition your best, win or lose. If only every athlete, professional and amateur, had that attitude...

Disapointments;

- Brian Tollette allegedly leaving the men's basketball team before their second-round playoff loss to Ventura College;

Though the circumstances behind Tollette's departure are unknown, it still had a negative effect on the team as they entered into the game. I'm very sure it was hard for the team to try and focus on the game when they had off-the-court issues to deal with.

It is worth noting that in Cerritos first round game against Bakersfield College, Tollette had arguably his best game of the season, scoring 13 points and getting 17 rebounds, a season-high for him. Maybe he knew that it would be his last game, so he went out and gave his best performance. No one really knows but the man himself.

The basketball team, which only had one sophmore on the team last semester, looks very promising for next year. If they all return, the team can make a serious run for the divisional title and maybe even the state title.

- The baseball team failing to make the playoffs for the second year in a row;

What made this season so dissapointing was the fact that the team performed much better than last year.Though they finished with a winning record (27-17 overall, 16-8 in league) and came very close to gaining a playoff spot, the team's inconsistency throughout the season caught up with them.

- The women's basketball team losing both games to its hated rival Long Beach City College;

Anytime a team loses to its rival once in a season it's always a big deal. Doing so for the first time in 19 years makes it a bigger deal. But losing to that same team twice in a season adds insult to the injury.

After years of blowing out Long Beach, the tides turned somehow.The women's team lost at home on Feb. 15, 54-42 and 51-40 on Jan. 25 at Long Beach's gym. That would tell you that the games were not as close as they should have been.

Maybe next season will start another 19-year winning streak for the Lady Falcons.

Champ Dethroned

Last week, I posted news about Justin Gatlin breaking the 100m world record. It seems that after review, the judges made a timing error. At the time of the event, the judges said the time was ran in 9.76secs. But after some reviews, they said that the actual time was 9.766, which would round up the time to 9.77. That means, that he still shares the record with Asafa Powell of Jamaica, who broke the record in an event last year.

The two record-holders may meet up at an event in England next month. Some sources are saying that because of the weather conditions in the town of the event, that they should wait until another event to see who'll break the record first. But both of the runner's agents deny the rumours, so we'll see what happens. I know I'll be paying attention!

In less controversial news, congrats to the Cerritos women's track & field team, who won their second straight Southern Cal. Championship last weekend. Sherrelle Dilworth and Yasmin Webb earned first place finishes in their respective competiions. Dilworth ran the 100m in 11.91 while Webb finished the 400-meter in a time of 1:01.56. For the men's team Joshua Muwwakkil took first place in the long jump and earned second place honors in the triple jump.

Both teams will send members to the State Championships at Bakersfield College on tommorow and Saturday. Good luck to all of them, and let's hope that they earn some high rankings!

True Colors

Does any college have official school colors anymore?

Cerritos' colors are supposedly blue and white. But depending upon the team, the shade of blue on the uniform ranges from navy blue to royal blue to powder blue. Some teams' uniforms have traces of gold or yellow.

Most of the teams uniforms are navy blue and white (football, baseball, softball, women's basketball, both tennis teams, among others.).

But then there's the men's basketball team, whose uniforms are powder blue and yellow. The soccer teams of both genders are royal blue and white. The track & field teams uniforms are navy blue and gold.

What's with the incohesiveness with the school colors? Can we pick a color scheme and stick with it?!!

Granted, this is not just happening with Cerritos' sports teams.

Even at UCLA, the supposed school colors are powder blue and yellow. Most of their sports teams wear the color scheme, but then why does the football teams' visiting uniforms have navy blue and gold on them?

But at USC, the colors are "cardinal" and yellow. Now they have it together over there! All of the teams' uniforms fit within the color scheme. Now if only we could get Cerritos to follow the same format.....

I guess some schools are a little more lenient when it comes to establishing official school colors, and others are more restrictive. Maybe it's just a blue thing; notice both UCLA's and Cerritos' school colors have shades of blue and shades of yellow, or maybe it's a public vs. private school thing. Who knows?

The bottom line is, if a school is going to have official colors, then every team should be wearing the same colors. Otherwise, let the teams wear whatever colors they feel like!

The Human Cheetah

If any of you remember watching the 2004 Summer Olympics, then I'm sure you heard the name Justin Gatlin mentioned frequently. The track and field star gained popularity then by winning a gold medal in the 100 meter race with a time of 9.85.

That was his best personal time until today, when he broke not only his personal record but the world record earning him the title as "The World's Fastest Human".

At the Qatar Grand Prix (Qatar is a Middle Eastern country located by Saudi Arabia, in case you didn't know.I didn't know before I looked it up!), he ran the 100m in a time 9.76. The previous record was a time of 97.7, held by Asafa Powell of Jamaica.

Now Gatlin's next goal is to break his own record! "If I continue to stay focussed on my work I can do 9.72, 9.73. But now I can say I am the fastest man on earth," he said in an interview on Yahoo.com.

A 9.72!!! Do you know how fast that is? If any regular track star ran the 100 m in 10.00 flat, that would be a personal accomplisment in itself.

In the competition Gatlin ran in, the second place runner Nigeria's Olusoji Fasuba set an African record with a time of 9.84 (Yay for Africa!! Those are my people!!!)
Shawn Crawford (10.08), the Olympic 200 metres champion, was third in the race. So Gatlin was smokin'. I know he can break the record.

I wonder if any of the runners on the track and field teams at C.C. can compete with Gatlin. Today starts the Southern California Regional Championships, which will be held at Mt. San Antonio College throughout the weekend. The men's team has 11 competitors while the women's team is sending 15 competitors.

I'm pretty confident that our athletes will place among the top. Some noteworthy athletes to look out for include Jacqueline Taylor,Meryl Follosco, and Sherrelle Dilworth for the women's team. For the men's team look out for Joshua Muwwakkil, Lyndon Wyse, and Deangelo Mingo.

Who knows, the competition might prove that Cerritos has its own futue Justin Gatlin(s) in the midst!

Dodger Blue, Falcon Blues

Tonight, I went to my first professional baseball game and I'm pretty sure it won't be my last. I went to Dodger Stadium with fellow staff members to watch the Dodgers play the Astros (from Houston, in case you're not a baseball fan). The Dodgers won 9-6, in a game in which the Astros should have never scored. For a better game summary compete with quotes from players, click the link......
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Staying on the topic of baseball, the team from Cerritos failed to make the playoffs for the second year in a row. Their loss to Orange Coast College by a score of 4-3 on Tuesday, eliminated them from playoff contention.

Even if the team had advanced, they would have been seeded #17 out of 18 spots. More than likely they would have been eliminated in the first round, unless they pulled off a miracle game.

Also, another staff member suggested that I write about my views on Barry Bonds. I'll do so in a future blog. When, I don't know, but be sure to look out for it.

The Story Behind The Blog Name

It's partly inspired by an incedent that happened between the Sports Editor and the baseball coach. The Sports Editor was covering a baseball game and wanted to go inside the dugout, to hear the baseball team's gameplan and hear them cheer on their fellow players, I guess. She had done this with the softball team and their coaches had no problem with it. However, when she asked the baseball coach if she could sit in with the baseball team, the coach gave her this stone-cold look as if to say "What kind of question is that?".

I also thought about the sporting events I've covered and how there are no press boxes at any of the stadiums. Whenever I've had to cover a sports story, I would just find a spot in the bleachers, place my notepad on my lap and take notes there. Some of those bleachers can be uncomfortable after sitting in them for anywhere from an hour to three.

I considered this blog my press box, where I post thoughts about athletics in my own time and be comfortable. I just thought I'd let you all know, in case you were inquiring.

Introduction

I've decided to write a sports blog for the student paper at my school. I'll be posting about sporting events in the professional world, and also athletics at Cerritos College. As of now, I can't think of a topic to write about, but I'm sure I will shortly. When I do, it'll be posted. If anyone has suggestions on what my first topic should be, let me know. All suggestions are greatly appreicated.