3rd and 4th Grade Next Games

3rd grade tournament game on Friday night, 8 p.m. at Mission Dolores.
4th grade plays again, 2 p.m. at Kezar on Saturday.

Sunday practice schedules are below on this website.

Have a safe New Year's Eve!

Sunday NDV Practice Schedule

3rd Grade 11:30 - 1 p.m.
5th/6th Grade 12:15 - 2 p.m.
6th Grade 1:45 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
8th Grade 3:15 p.m. - 5 p.m.
4th Grade 4:45 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
7th Grade 6:15 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Please don't miss it. Spread the word to your teammates.

4th Grade Tournament Results

The 4th grade lost the first round of their tournament game 11-9. It was a very close game, but the little mistakes hurt them. They did not rebound very well and gave up some easy shots.

This is a very good team, that just needs a little extra boost in their step and it should get them over the hump.

They play next Saturday, 2 p.m. @ Kezar.

4th Grade Flame Tournament Tomorrow Night

The 4th grade will play in the Flame Tournament, which begins tomorrow night, 5 p.m. at Kezar.

Kezar is located on 755 Stanyan Street.

Article Below
If you haven't read the Asian American article, please do so below.

Deal or No Deal
Deal or No Deal tonight on NBC, starting at 9 p.m. Kobe Bryant will be on.

Practice Tomorrow for 3rd and 4th Grade!!!

Practice tomorrow at NDV for 3rd and 4th grade. Please spread the word if you happen to read this.

3rd Grade - 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.
4th Grade - 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Asian Americans remain rare in men's college basketball

I am going to leave this up for 2 days. Spread the word and definitely read it. It takes some time, but absolutely worth reading -- especially since you are probably AZN.
Courtesy: San Francisco Chronicle
By Bryan Chu, Special to The Chronicle

Jeremy Lin has seen it and heard it.

Too short. Too skinny. Picked last. Asian.

Those tags stick to Lin wherever he goes, even as the starting point guard for Harvard's basketball team.

"It's a sport for white and black people," Lin said. "You don't get respect for being an Asian American basketball player in the U.S."

Although the game is brimming in popularity among Asian American youth - there are Asian leagues, club teams like the San Jose Ninjas and San Jose Zebras, and packed courts outside schools, churches and temples - Lin practically is alone.

Of 4,814 Division I men's basketball players in 2006-07, there were 19 Asian Americans (including Pacific Islanders and ethnically mixed), according to the most recent NCAA Student-Athlete Race and Ethnicity Report. That's 0.4 percent.

Players, coaches and sociologists cite stereotypes and cultural factors as reasons that percentage might not rise very much in the foreseeable future. At the same time, there are players and coaches making inroads to mainstream, high-profile basketball, and there's a feeling of pioneer spirit among them.

"Especially now that there are lots of Asian Americans growing up and playing, I have to try to hold my own in college," Lin said. "It's definitely motivational and it gives me a chip on my shoulder."

Lin, who leads the Crimson (4-4) in points, steals and assists and is second in rebounds, is one of the best Asian American basketball players to come from the Bay Area.

After Palo Alto High won the Division II state title in 2006, Lin's senior season, he was named first-team All-State and Northern California Division II Player of the Year. He was The Chronicle's Metro Player of the Year. Considering those honors and his senior stats - 15.1 points, 7.1 assists, 6.2 rebounds and five steals - Lin thought he'd get at least a few Division I scholarship offers.

He got none.

"I'm not saying top-5 state automatically gets you offers," Lin said, "but I do think (my ethnicity) did affect the way coaches recruited me. I think if I were a different race, I would've been treated differently."

At Harvard, the 6-foot-3 junior has faced harsh conditions on the road.

"I hear everything: 'Go back to China. Orchestra is on the other side of campus. Open up your eyes,' " Lin said. "They're yelling at me before, during and after. I'm an easy target because I'm Asian. Sometimes it makes me uncomfortable, but it's part of the game."

Kelvin Kim, who transferred from UCLA and now is the starting point guard for UC San Diego, sees it in his everyday encounters with classmates.

"No one expects me to be a basketball player," said Kim, who is from Lake Forest (Orange County).

Kirk Kim went to Salesian High in Richmond and walked on at Cal in the late '90s. He said, "Automatically, playing - especially in the inner city - you get no respect being Asian."
Thin coaching ranks

Coaches face similar hurdles.

Seattle Pacific's Jeff Hironaka is considered the only current Asian American Division II head coach. He has 28 years of coaching experience and an 121-59 record in six-plus seasons as the Falcons' head coach. As an assistant, he helped them to at least a share of six conference championships and a national semifinal appearance in 2000.

Hironaka has interviewed in vain for Division I jobs.

"I was told they needed to hire an African American, and another school said they needed to hire a Caucasian," Hironaka said. "I'm not one or the other, so then I'm out.

"I understand assistant coaches you have to recruit - most (players) are Caucasian - so they ask, 'What can you help us do? Recruit Asians?' "

Hironaka continued: "You don't want to call it discrimination, but it's a discrimination kind of scenario. Sometimes you have to accept the reality of it. It's a tough barrier to crack."

Rex Walters, now in his first season as head coach at USF, is considered the only Asian American Division I men's basketball head coach. On his staff is assistant coach Danny Yoshikawa, a Japanese American who was conference player of the year at UC Davis in 1996.

"We've slowly, steadily grown," said Yoshikawa of Asian Americans breaking into the game. "I would've never seen two (Asian Americans) at USF. I just think that those kinds of things just take place over time.

"It's more getting to the point where people are going to hire guys - maybe it's because they're getting over the stigmas - because they are doing a good job."

One case in point is the Miami Heat's Erik Spoelstra. Spoelstra, who played at the University of Portland, this year became the first Filipino American head coach in the NBA.

Though Lin and Kelvin Kim are starting in college, getting to the NBA is a longshot for almost everyone. Given the tiny pool of Asian Americans in the college game, the chance of a player making it to the top is small indeed.

Walters was a rare exception.

A standout at Kansas, Walters, who is hapa (his mother, Yoko, is Japanese and his father, Monte, is Caucasian), was taken 16th in the 1993 NBA draft, one of the first Asian Americans to make it to the pros. He spent eight seasons in the league.
Walters not optimistic

Now, from his point of view as a recruiter, Walters thinks youth trends are reducing the crop of potential Asian American players.

"I wanted to be a basketball player and I invested all my time into that," Walters said. "It's a totally different thinking now. You see kids spending time playing PlayStation 3 and that's time lost in the gym.

"When I was growing up, there were lots of good Asian American basketball players. I haven't seen those same types (while recruiting)."

Some other recent examples of Asian Americans in basketball: Blake Wallace is a junior forward at USF; Bobby Nash, a swingman at Hawaii last season, signed with the Shiga Lakestars of Basketball Japan; and Derrick Low, the former Washington State guard, signed with the Sydney Spirit in Australia's National Basketball League.

Wallace and Nash are both 6-6, two examples that contradict stature stereotypes. And one prominent coach sees the mixing of all races as a factor in the future of Asian American players.

"Society has come to be interracial marriages, and because of that, you're seeing (Asian Americans) that are bigger and stronger," said Darren Matsubara, basketball consultant for adidas basketball and coach for the EBO/2K Sports AAU team. "There are going to be more players coming up now."

However, the number of Asian Americans on prominent teams remains disproportionately low.

In the NCAA's eight-year ethnic-background survey, the smallest total of Asian Americans in Division I men's basketball was 10 (2003-04) and the largest was 27 (2005-06).
Family priorities

"I do think it's startling," said Jere Takahashi, a sociologist in Asian American Studies at Cal. "At the same time, I found talking to student-athletes ... (that) families don't emphasize sports; they put emphasis on academics.

"Whether coming from an immigrant family or a family of three or four generations, (schoolwork) becomes the interest of parents."

Professor Henry Yu, who taught Asian American studies at UCLA for 14 years and is now at the University of British Columbia, said people often categorize Asians as being too short as the reason why there aren't more players in the game. That's not the case.

Yu offers two factors why the odds are against Asian Americans.

The first is Asian American families putting pressure on young males to earn a paycheck, which is very difficult to do as an athlete.

"There's a reason why the Asian athletes are coming from overseas," Yu said. "If you're growing up in North America, there are family values and pressures to become a good husband. There's a sense of family ideology, and dreaming to be a professional athlete is not a good idea. It's frowned upon."

The second factor is the difficulty for Asian Americans to break into established sports networks like into the AAU web, college programs and the coaching scene.

"Those networks are very strong and often are racial," Yu said. "That's why it's so hard for blacks to get into coaching.

"That force has slowed down African Americans and Latinos up until 30 years ago. Hispanic players are now the largest minority playing baseball. It took a lot for the dam to break, but I don't see it breaking for Asian Americans."

Matsubara, who played at Cal State Northridge, says players are fighting themselves.

"It really starts with the mind," Matsubara said. "Most Asian basketball players are defeated before they start. There's the stereotype that Asians don't play ball. Then you have people in the community being negative toward you ... so then you begin to think, 'Why pursue this?'

"In Asian basketball, if an individual can understand and accept going outside the box, then you'll start to see more players."

Yet Matsubara said in the 15 years he has been scouting players that it seems Asian Americans "have been discouraged and given up."

Lin and Kelvin Kim are in the position of being role models.

"(People) come up to me and let me know how much they look up to me and they ask me for advice," Kim said. "It makes me feel motivated that they're looking up to me, and the fact that I can be, like, that light to them basketball-wise, it motivates me to want to do that and be as successful as possible.

"I've had people from Korea hit me up on Facebook who were trying to play basketball, and people from Canada."

When it comes to role models, Lin and Kelvin Kim do look up to the NBA players from China, the Rockets' Yao Ming and the Nets' Yi Jianlian. Lin and Kim each wants to leave his own mark.

"I'm on my own mission, and there aren't many people who can relate to me," Lin said. "(My parents) try to tell me to plan ahead and they tell me basketball isn't going to feed you for the rest of your life.

"But I feel like I have something to prove to everyone out there. In a sense, I'm trying to represent Asian Americans on the basketball court and I'm trying to be the best player and reach my potential."
By the numbers

Number of Asian Americans in NCAA men's college basketball, according to the NCAA:
Year DI DII DIII
1999-00 15 17 45
2000-01 12 18 54
2001-02 11 19 48
2002-03 11 20 54
2003-04 10 27 53
2004-05 20 31 46
2005-06 27 27 61
2006-07 19 35 38

Meanwhile:

From 1999 to 2007, the number of Asian American Division I women's basketball players has gone up in six years. In 2005-06, there were 76, the most ever recorded.

Bryan Chu, a former Chronicle staff writer, is on staff at the San Antonio Express-News. E-mail comments on this article to letterstogreen@sfchronicle.com.

3 Stars of the Weekend

Dateline: Work

Merry Christmas everyone and I now bring you the 3 stars of the weekend.

Star #3 - ***
Brandon

Brandon has made two crucial lay-ups in the 4th quarter of the last two 7th grade games and instrumental on defense, helping his team to start the season 3-0.


Star #2 - **
Tommy

Tommy hit the game-winning free throw with less than 30 seconds left in the game, helping the 7th grade win.


Star #1 - *
Nicholas

Nicholas is averaging a little bit over 10 points this season, leading the 8th graders to a undefeated start. He is doing it from behind the 3-point arc, hitting several 3-pointers this season.

Hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas. See you tomorrow with Asian Americans in College Basketball.

Christmas Eve Update

Sorry for the lack of updates this week. I have been on vacation and am back at full strength.

I was going to announce there would be no updates, but I wanted to keep the suspense and make people come back every day wondering why the blog hasn't been updated. How many people do you think actually read this? If you view this regularly, thank you and I will give you $5 the next time I see you. Just tell me you visit the blog every day.

Here's some stuff we still need to do. Since I wasn't on Sunday, it was a birthday that I missed. This person's birthday was celebrated on Sunday and had this to say to me on AIM since I didn't give him a shout-out.

b0nds r0id BUDDY: you didnt even give me a birthday shout out on the blog.



So happy birthday to Ronstance...he is now 34. He spent his birthday at a Star Wars convention.


Christmas Day Basketball
It is an NBA finals rematch between the Lakers and Celtics on Christmas. There are actually 5 NBA games scheduled tomorrow so check them out if you are in front of a TV.

The Celtics come to Oakland Friday night and beat the Warriors, who are now 8-22.

Why the Warriors are terrible...
Why are the Warriors such a bad team this year?

a.) There is no Baron Davis.
b.) Monta Ellis is injured.
c.) Most importantly, they just don't have the talent.

Stephen Jackson is a good NBA player. He is not an all-star. Stephen Jackson on a good team, is the 3rd or 4th best player -- not the best. To count on him to be the best and lead a team is too much.

Kelenna Azebuke (did I even spell his name right?) is not a starter on a good NBA team. He is a great talent off the bench. Instead, he starts. Rookie Anthony Randolph and 2nd year forward Brandan Wright -- nice young talent -- also not a starter on a good NBA team.

The Warriors are simply outmatched and do not have enough good players yet...Be ready for a long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long season.

Still want to go to a game?

Coming up on the blog...
Christmas Day - 3 Stars of the Weekend
Friday - Asian Americans in Basketball Article (as promised)

Weekend Round-Up

6th grade wins again by just 1

Another game, another one point victory for the 6th grade. A shot rattled out in the last five seconds of the game, and once again, the 6th grade escapes with a one point win, 15-14. They had a huge run to increase their lead to 15-8 midway through the 4th quarter and gave up 6 unanswered points.

Yet again, they found a way, despite turnovers and missed lay-ups, to win. They are now 2-1 on the season.

8th grade improves to 3-0
The 8th grade won 34-27 Friday night to improve to 3-0 on the season. This team still has a lot more potential, even though they have yet to lose a game. They are collectively, one of the best outside shooting teams in recent memory. Some of their shots were not falling early on, which explains why this game was not more lopsided, because clearly they were the better team.

A quick 3rd quarter run, from fast breaks, gave them a good cushion and they hung on to a 7 point victory.

7th grade comes back to win 3rd straight
As well as they played last Saturday, the 7th grade played even better today. Down as many as 9 points in the second half, the 7th graders rallied back for a one point victory, 41-40. The game was tied with less than 30 seconds left, and Tommy made a free throw to untie it.

They almost gave the ball away when an inbounds pass went wrong. But in the end, they prevailed to move to 3-0 in the season.

Briefly: 3rd grade lost this morning and are now 0-3.

Weekend Preview

The 8th grade plays in less than an hour, and we'll have results here at latest tomorrow morning. Here is what is happening on Saturday.

3rd Grade – 11 a.m. @ St. Thomas More
4th Grade – 11 a.m. @ Mission Dolores
6th Grade – 2 p.m. @ St. Monica
7th Grade – 12 p.m. @ West Portal

6th Grade Wins Another Close One

If you have high blood pressure, it's best you stay away from the 6th grade basketball games.

The 6th graders overcame a 7 point deficit in the second half and came back to win 25-23 for their first regular season win. (They won two games in the CYO tournament)

Early on, the other team was just hitting tough shots and the 6th grade was way too perimeter, shooting from the outside all the time.

Soon they started getting some fast break points, and easy offensive rebounds, resulting in points.

It was another tense last two minutes, with turnovers and unorthodox shots, but some how some way, this team hangs on to win games like this. They play next Saturday.

Player of the Week: Derek

The first Player of the Week of this basketball season goes to Derek. In two games, he has averaged 19 points.

Derek's game has evolved from just getting to the rim and scoring. Last season, he was able to go through defenses single handedly putting up shot after shot by the basket. This year, he is much more rounded, passing the ball as well, setting up teammates for easy lay-ups. His court vision has improved and that has made him an even better player.

Part of his growth is also from playing other sports like baseball and soccer. Remaining active throughout the year and instead of just a few months for basketball has proved very helpful for him, and it shows.

His team is 2-0 and they look have as good of a season as they did the year before.

Practices Tomorrow

All practices tomorrow will be from 1 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. at Cameron House.

That includes, 4th grade, 5th/6th and 7th grade.

Practice Still On/Uniforms

Practice as of 2:55 p.m. is still on for tonight. Be cautious of certain wet spots and dress warm.

Volleyball and soccer uniforms. Please bring them back tomorrow or Thursday if you haven't already. Happy Tuesday!

Rain Rain Go Away...Practice Information if it rains

This week's practices may be impacted due to the wet courts at Cameron House.

If any practices are canceled, we will share some courts this week if we are able to practice.

Players will be notified if practice is off by the time they leave school. If there is no announcement, practice is still on.

If practice is changed between the end of school and the start of practice, the information will be posted on the blog. In addition, coaches will contact all players.

3 Stars of the Weekend

And now the 3 stars of the weekend as we take a look and recognize three individuals who had strong performances this weekend.

*** 3rd Star - Nicholas

Nicholas had 12 points in a blow-out victory including another 3-pointer.

** 2nd Star - Calson
Calson scored 8 points in back-to-back games, including 8 Friday night in the team's 10-8 victory. He grabbed rebounds and made plays when his team needed.

* 1st Star - Derek

Derek put together back-to-back double digit scoring performances. Saturday may have been one of his best games ever in CYO, going up against a talented team and scoring 20 points. He was rebounding, made his lay-ups and play great defense. His passing has also improved this season.

4th Grade Wins Their First/ Practices Tomorrow

A 8-0 third quarter catapulted the 4th grade to their first victory of the season.

In the first half, they had plenty of good looks and opened shots but could not hit them. They were either short or just rolling off the rim. The law of averages took over and the shots began to go in and their defense started to tighten up.

The 8 point 3rd quarter extended their halftime lead of 4-3, and they win running away 14-3. They are now 1-1.

For the other scores this weekend, scroll down and see. It was a good weekend for our teams.

Practices Tomorrow

Final NDV practice of the year 2008 -- where did the time go? Make sure you are there on time and ready to go. A very important week of practice before next weekend's games before the break.

3rd Grade - 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
6th Grade – 12:15 p.m. – 2 p.m.
5th/6th Grade - 1:45 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
8th Grade - 3:15 p.m. – 5 p.m.
4th Grade – 4:45 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
7th Grade – 6:15 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Coming Tomorrow...The 3 Stars of the Weekend

7th Grade Wins Back-To-Back, 3rd and 5th/6th Grade Fall

The 7th grade had a hard fought victory and made plays at the end to pull out a 35-31 victory. They were down as much as 6 in the second half, and took over in the second half. A lay-up at the end and their ability to break the press definitely aided them to victory. They are now 2-0.

The 5th/6th grade fell today 28-12. Coming off a victory Friday night, they could've been a little tired. The competition today was much more fierce, but nonetheless they are still 1-1 after week 2 of play.

The 3rd grade lost their second game 16-8. They played with only five players the entire game and fatigue eventually set in. They are now 0-2.

Bbl with the 4th grade results later today.

St. Mary's Sweeps Friday Night...Saturday Preview

It was a winning night for St. Mary's as they won all three games on the schedule.

The 5th/6th Grade played the game of the night and pulled out an exciting 10-8 win. It was a low scoring contest as both teams had trouble scoring. But the 5th/6th graders took a 10-6 lead in the middle of the 4th and hung on for the victory. It's a quick turnaround for them as they play again at Town, tomorrow morning at 10 a.m.

The 8th grade once again won in convincing fashion, this time by a score of 33-15. This marks their best start ever and they clearly have good momentum to start off the season.

The 7th grade jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the 1st quarter and it was over for the other team. The final was 37-22. They too will have a quick turnaround as they play tomorrow morning, 10 a.m. at St. John.

TOMORROW'S GAMES
3rd Grade – 10 a.m. @ Mission Dolores
4th Grade – 2 p.m. @ Mission Dolores
5th/6th Grade – 10 a.m. @ Town
7th Grade – 10 a.m. @ St. John

Friday Games and Happy Birthday to...

Lot of action going on Friday night...

The 5th/6th and 7th grade make their debuts and the 8th grade will look for another strong game following their blow-out win last Saturday.

5th/6th Grade – 7:15 @ Holy Name
7th Grade – 6 p.m. @ St. Emydius
8th Grade – 7 p.m. @ Mission Dolores

Holy Name and St. Emydius are not too far apart, so if you can get to both games...I'll give you a dollar...

Also, we wish a Happy Birthday to this guy. Who is this guy? Do you know?

Jason Richardson Traded/Return Uniforms Please

Right on cue, Jason Richardson was traded earlier today to the Phoenix Suns.

Also, I have probably gotten back only a handful of uniforms. If you haven't yet, return them as soon as possible. If you haven't washed them, wash them then return it. I will be there Thursday and Friday to collect...

So be human...please be human and return the uniforms.

Jason Richardson

One of my favorite Warriors over the past decade is Jason Richardson. He plays for the Bobcats now, but there's something about J-Rich that I admire. Here's a 6-minute video of some of his greatest hits.

3 Stars of the Weekend

The 3 Stars of the Weekend will be a feature at the end of each weekend's set of games to congratulate and honor 3 St. Mary's players who made contributions to their respective teams. It is taken from hockey, so without further ado...

3rd Star - Garrick ***
Garrick scored the only points for his team and put in the first ever points for our youngest team.

2nd Star - Nicholas **
Nicholas scored 8 points in the blowout victory.

1st Star - Elton *
Elton put up a game-high and so far a St. Mary's season high of 18 points, outscoring the opposition by himself in the 36-17 victory.

DRESS WARM FOR PRACTICE
It's awfully cold out so maybe wear sweatpants and a sweatshirt instead of a t-shirt and shorts. Don't get sick...

Saturday Results -- 8th Grade Win Big

The 8th grade was the lone St. Mary's team Saturday to come out with a victory. They dominated the entire game and won it running away 36-17. This was a great bounce back game after not playing to their potential at the end of the CYO tournament. The 8th graders were resilient and came out ready to play and the efforts reflected in the final score. A wonderful job by the class of 2009.

The 3rd grade lost 8-2 in their first game ever, scoring in the last minute to avoid a shut out. They had numerous chances to score, many wide open lay-ups, but they just didn't roll in today. With more experience, this team will be on the right track soon.

The 4th grade got good efforts from all their players today, as six different players scored. They ended up falling 22-14.

The 6th grade had a game to forget, and were just over powered. The team they played probably shouldn't even be in their division, and this time we truly mean it. They didn't play their best, but they really didn't have a chance against a stack team like that.

REMINDER - NO PRACTICE SUNDAY AT NDV!!!

Weekend Preview

Tomorrow the regular season starts with the 3rd graders at 11 a.m. followed by the 4th graders at 12 p.m.

Both of these games will be at Mission Dolores so be there to watch both games back-to-back.

The 6th grade game was moved to 12 p.m. at Holy Name, and the 8th grade will have their game at Good Shepherd starting at 2 p.m.

Good luck to all the teams! Check back tomorrow night for results and recaps.

8th Grade Practice on Sunday
8th grade will practice 10 a.m. Sunday at North Beach.

BREAKING NEWS: 6th Grade Game Changed

Exclusive breaking news...

The 6th grade game has been changed to 12 p.m. @ Holy Name on Saturday.

Also, the 5th/6th Grade team will practice tomorrow at North Beach, from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

Play some defense!

Today's video will teach you to play some defense. Defense is very important. Everyone loves to score, but scoring (edit: by Ronstance) 2 points is just as big as stopping 2 points.

Schedules Are Out!

Boys basketball schedules are out finally. Sorry for not getting it up earlier. I was too busy watching the Sharks destroy their former coach in San Jose.

Here are THIS weekend's games:

3rd Grade - This Saturday, December 6, 11 a.m. @ Mission Dolores
4th Grade - This Saturday, December 6, 12 p.m. @ Mission Dolores
6th Grade - This Saturday, December 6, 11 a.m. @ Holy Name
8th Grade - This Saturday, December 6, 2 p.m. @ Good Shepherd

The 5th/6th grade team and 7th grade teams begin their season next week.

7th Grade - Friday, December 12, 6 p.m. @ St. Emydius
5th/6th Grade - Friday, December 12, 7:15 p.m. @ Holy Name

Full schedules will be passed out tomorrow at school.

Schedules Are Still....NOT OUT!

As of 4:02 p.m. on Tuesday, schedules are still not out. My suggestion is to anticipate playing Friday or Saturday. I will have them here on the blog as soon as they become available.

Quote of the day.../Pictures!

The 49ers won yesterday 10-3 in Buffalo. A good solid performance by an underachieving team. As I read through the newspaper today, this one quote stuck out and is something everyone should try to live by as they play. It's from linebacker Takeo Spikes of the 49ers.

"As a player, if you don't like to be challenged ... I mean, you're no good."

Picture from the tournament on Saturday

Schedules Will Be Out Tomorrow!

Schedules for the boys basketball season will be out tomorrow. You should receive a hard copy at latest by Wednesday. The first games, which are this weekend will be posted here as soon as they become available so keep checking back.

Practices resume to normal this week for Cameron House. Friday is half-day, so some teams may want to practice in the afternoon.

There is NO NDV Practice next Sunday, December 7th.

7th Grade Takes 4th Place in Tournament

7th Graders took 4th place today in their tournament. They lost 24-18 in the winner's bracket.

6th Grade Takes 3rd Place/BREAKING NEWS: New Practice Times for Sunday

The 6th grade took home the 3rd place trophy at the CYO tournament Saturday morning. After a brutal loss yesterday, the 6th graders bounced back and won 17-16.

They were trailing by 4, but made shots when they needed to and got stops when they needed to. In an almost repeat performance from the first game, they held on at the end just to squeak by for the win.

They played a solid game and got scoring contributions all-around.

8th Grade Forces OT

The 8th grade came back from 10 down in the 4th quarter to force over-time on some clutch 3-pointers and free throws. But in the OT, they just ran out of gas and lost the consolation championship.

NEW PRACTICES TIMES FOR TOMORROW

Practices have been slightly altered for tomorrow. Here is the schedule:

8th Grade - 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
3rd Grade- 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
6th Grade - 1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
5th/6th Grade - 3:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
4th- Grade - 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Have a good weekend!

8th Grade Runs Away With Game--Blows Out The Other Team

The 8th grade boys blew out their opponent today 35-17. It took them a while to get started and they actually were trailing after one quarter.

But gravity took its course and the 8th graders began to pull away. They made a lot of good fast break decisions, quick passes and outlets helped them get easy baskets.

They also made three 3-pointers in the game. With the win, they advance to the consolation championship, tomorrow at St. Emydius. Game starts at 2 p.m.

6th Grade Drops 2nd Round Game
The 6th grade lost their game and will compete for 3rd place, tomorrow at CYO Serramonte starting at 11 a.m.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. Hope everybody have a fantastic day and night.

The tournaments continue tomorrow as the 8th grade plays at 10 a.m. at St. Emydius. So after you wake up at 3 a.m. to go Black Friday shopping, stop by the 8th grade game.

Later on in the afternoon at 4 p.m., the 6th Grade will continue their tourney at CYO Serramonte. That's right by the shopping malls!

LINCOLN MAKES HISTORY

The Lincoln Mustangs, for the 4th straight year, are San Francisco city champions for football. 36-14 they beat up on Washington.

For more on this historic game, visit the game write-up by clicking
here.

And a happy belated birthday to...

7th Grade Loses in 2nd Round

The 7th grade lost their 2nd round game 30-20 tonight. They played hard and with effort, even though I and everyone says that about every game it seems.

This time, they really did. You could tell they wanted to win. But the execution tonight was not as crisp as hoped. The defense yielded a lot of easy baskets, and the charity stripe, also known as the free-throw line was not very gracious.

They will be up against stiff competition this year as they ascend the ranks of CYO. Their next game will be Sunday, 4 p.m. @ St. Emydius.

No Practices Today

No practices today due to the rain.

7th Grade plays at 8 p.m. at Mission Dolores if you want to come watch. Please do...

6th Grade Escapes with Victory in Tournament Game

6th grade was up 20-11 with about 2:30 left in the game, but the lead quickly disappeared and the lead was cut down 20-18. It was a wild scramble at the finish, with the other team, shooting multiple shots, including wide open lay-ups. They just could not convert and the 6th grade built a wide enough lead to just barely win their first game of the tournament 20-18.

They play next in the winner's bracket, 4 p.m. on Friday at CYO Serramonte.

7th Grade Tournament Continues Tomorrow Night

After their walk-off victory, the 7th grade will play their next game at 8 p.m. tomorrow night from Mission Dolores.

Early Tournament Results/Rain-Out Information

Brandon was fouled with no time left in over-time and had to make two free-throws in order to force a second OT. His first shot hit off the backboard and in, a bank shot for a free-throw. He still needed one more.

And in dramatic fashion, he did the exact same thing and sent the game into a sudden death overtime period. The other team hit one free-throw, but they needed 2 to win.

Next time down, Tom took a beautiful, perfectly placed, lob pass from Elliot and put in the lay-up to give St. Mary's the victory in sudden death double overtime.

They will play next Wednesday, 8 p.m. at Mission Dolores.

8th Grade
The 8th grade lost their first tournament game and will play next on Friday, 10 a.m. @ St. Emydius.

6th Grade
The 6th graders start their tournament tomorrow night, 7 p.m. at CYO Serramonte.

RAIN-OUT INFORMATION

If practices are canceled, teams will be notified before they leave school for the day. If it was not announced, practices will continue. If you are unsure, please call the coaches to double check and visit the blog for the latest.

This Week Tournament Schedule

7th and 8th Grade tip off tomorrow night.

6th Grade (All Games at CYO Serramonte)
Game #1 –Tuesday, November 25 @ 7 p.m.
Game #2 – Friday, November 28 (Between 1-4)
Game #3 – Saturday, November 29 (Between 9-12)

Address: 699 Serramonte Del Ray Blvd, Daly City

7th Grade (Games at St. Emydius & Mission Dolores)
Game #1 –Monday, November 24 @ 8 p.m.
Game #2 – Wednesday, November 26 (Between 5–8)
Game #3 – Sat/Sun, Nov 29/30 (Between 4-6 on either night)

Game 1 and 2 held at Mission Dolores
Game 3 held at St. Emydius

Address: St. Emydius – 255 Jules Ave
Mission Dolores (16th and Church)

8th Grade (All Games at St. Emydius)
Game #1 –Monday, November 24 @ 8 p.m.
Game #2 – Friday, November 28 (Between 9–12)
Game #3 – Saturday, November 29 (Between 1-4)

NOTE: The times of games 2 and 3 of each tournament will be determined following the conclusion of the previous game, and will be constantly updated on the blog.

The worst sequence in the history of basketball

Watch this clip kiddies, and follow along underneath, where I can explain to you how terrible this is. A guy on the radio who went to Arizona in college, and played basketball, said he was embarrassed watching this.



ARIZONA IS SHOOTING FREE-THROWS

Arizona (White) is down 2 points and shooting the second shot of a 1-in-1. (1-in-1 is if he makes the first free throw shot, he gets a second shot) After making the first shot, he misses the second and his teammate gets the rebound. Arizona scores and ties the game.

On the inbound, Arizona (first awful decision) decides to foul. Why is he fouling when the game is tied? Just bad decision making and game awareness. He had no clue the game was tied. He thought his team was losing, which is why he fouled.

LUCKILY, UAB misses the free throw and Arizona gets the ball back. They call a timeout and then try for the win. Their shot misses and UAB gets the rebound.

The game is still tied, and UAB is going to try and launch a more than half-court shot to win the game. It will probably be overtime...right? NO! The Arizona player who was telling his teammate earlier, that he shouldn't fouled, did the same thing, except it was even worse.

UAB gets free-throws and the ball since it was an intentional foul. Another terrible decision and lack of concentration, focus, etc...

Hope you understand what happened...If not, I or your coach can explain it once again.

UAB wins by 1, Arizona loses.

Uniforms Tomorrow and more basketball videos

Something to look forward to in life...basketball uniforms! They will be distributed tomorrow. And now we learn to shoot a jump shot with Ray Allen...

Olivia Wins Her All-Star Game

PHOTO BY JOYCE TSO

From the newsletter that will hit newsstands tomorrow:

Olivia Chan played Wednesday night at the CYO Achievement Game and came out on the winning end as her team won both sets. In the second set, her team was trailing by 20-13, but they went on a tear and Olivia had a lot to do with it.

She was able to set the ball on several occasions for her teammates, who then spiked it. Olivia got in a spike or two herself as well during the game, and made our school very proud with her winning performance.

4th and 7th Grade Practices Off/ North Beach Practice

No practice this afternoon for 4th and 7th Grade!

North Beach Playground is located at Lombard and Mason. It is right next to the library.

Thursday Practices at North Beach

6th Grade - 1 p.m. - 3 p.m.
3rd Grade - 2 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Volleyball CYO All-Star Game Tomorrow

Come watch as Olivia plays in the CYO All-Star game tomorrow night at St. Emydius, located at 255 Jules in San Francisco. 5:30 start.

She will join 8th graders from all across the city in this end of season event.

Here's some pictures from the game on Saturday:

Half-Day Practices and Tournament Schedules

Half-Day Practices for This Week

3rd- Grade – Thursday @ North Beach 1:30 p.m.
4th Grade – Wednesday @ Helen Wills 1 p.m.
5th/6th Grade – Wednesday @ North Beach, 1 p.m.
6th Grade – Thursday @ North Beach 1:30 p.m.
7th Grade – Wednesday @ Helen Wills 1 p.m.
8th Grade – Tuesday @ Helen Wills, 12:30 p.m.

Tournament Schedules


5th/6th Grade - This Saturday, November 22 @ Epiphany 4 p.m.
6th Grade - Next Tuesday, November 25 @ CYO Serramonte 7 p.m.
7th Grade - Next Monday, November 24 @ Mission Dolores 8 p.m.
8th Grade - Next Monday, November 24 @ St. Emydius 8 p.m.

Note: 3rd and 4th Grade Tournaments will be held around the New Year's. More details to come in the next few days.

49ers Finally Win, Sharks Win, the Raiders Don't, and Happy Birthday

The 49ers and Sharks win today...good. Anybody interested in going to a Sharks game? Maybe we can go as a school.

The Raiders lose...bad.

Don't forget you have half-day practices this week! Please check here tomorrow where we will release the tournament information for grades that are participating. So stay tuned for the exclusive.

Sunday, November 16, we wish a Happy Birthday to one of my favorite players starting with the letter S, Susan...

All-Star Game Results/Sunday Practice and MORE!

Thanks for everyone, players, parents and fellow students who came and attended today's volleyball all-star game.

The winning team of Iris, Michelle, Sophia, Vivian, Tianna, Patricia, Tiffany, Melinda and Marissa, won 3 sets to 1.

25-15, 25-27, 25-19, 25-18.

A perfect way to end a wonderful season for the girls.

BOYS PRACTICE TIMES TOMORROW

8th Grade - 12:45 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
3rd Grade - 12:45 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
6th Grade - 2 p.m. - 4 p.m.
5th/6th – 3:15 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
4th - 5 p.m. - 7 p.m.
7th - 6 p.m. - 8 p.m.

30% OFF GAP, BANANA REPUBLIC AND OLD NAVY

This expires tomorrow. If you want a coupon that will give you 30% off Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy, please email me asap and I can forward you the coupon.

All-Star Game Tomorrow/Basketball Video

The All-Star Game is tomorrow, NDV @ 2:30. I hope to see a lot of people there. Standing room only I hope.

As promised, this is how you rebound. We will have a string of videos that will teach you how to rebound.

Newsletter Tomorrow and All-Star Game

The newsletter will be out tomorrow (Friday) instead of today.

Also, please everybody, come to the All-Star Game for Volleyball this Saturday. We will start at 2:30. It is at NDV. EVERYBODY COME!

If you show up and are on a basketball team, I'll tell your coach to take off some laps.

Half-Day Practices and Another Birthday

All teams will have at least one practice next week during the half-day. It should become available in the next day or so.

Today, we wish a Happy Birthday to our youngest girl soccer player:

Volleyball All-Star Game, Post 49ers Thoughts and Happy Birthday to...

The volleyball All-Star Game will be played Saturday at 2:30 from NDV. All players are required to show up!!! The entire school is required to show up for that matter...

Post 49ers

The explanation today for the terrible call on the last play of the game was the coaches thought the ball was placed at the 1 yard line, not the 2.5, which is why they looked like they were diving for a yard. Still irked!

Happy Birthday to...



That is Freddy, or as some people know him as F.B. (You figure out why if you don't know why he is called F.B.) He graduated 2 years ago and has helped out immensely with the sports program since. Happy Birthday Frederick!

Oh..the 49ers break your heart again

Did you watch the 49ers game? Good grief...

If you watch football or understand what I will be talking about, good for you. If not, sorry to waste your time.

Great effort, but here are a few things to ponder:

--They lost this game because they are not used to being in these types of situations. I equate it to soccer or volleyball this year, when you have a chance to score, of you are tied 20-20. These opportunities are not very often, so you get nervous when it happens. Well, the 49ers had the ball at the 1 yard line to win the game. When is the last time that happened?

--Why would you try to dive for a touchdown when you are 2.5 yards away from the end zone? If the ball is on the 1 yard line, then you dive.

--Penalties will kill you. Your own mistakes kill you. That's what killed the 49ers.

Ugggggh...so frustrating to watch.

That's all we blog for today. See you tomorrow.

Volleyball All-Star Game Saturday

As of right now, the volleyball all-star game will be played now on Saturday, November 15. The time will be made official on Tuesday, so please note that change.

Did you watch the Warriors game Friday night? One reason they lost...free-throws. You got to make your free throws--that goes for everyone. Hopefully it was a good day of practice for all the teams. Before you know it the season will be here so be prepared and ready to go!

Have a good day off from school Monday and 6th graders, enjoy Walden West!

3rd/4th Grade Final Game Results

The 3rd/4th graders played early this morning...

What we know for sure is that St. Mary's did not give up any goals. Daniel played a remarkable game at goalie.

However, in the 2nd quarter, there was a breakaway chance which resulted in this (see below)



There was a hole in the net and the ball went across the goal line and into the net through the hole. The referee ruled it no goal. Your thoughts?

The game in the score sheet will go down as a 0-0 tie.

Weekend Preview

Soccer wraps up tomorrow at West Sunset at 9 a.m. If you have nothing to do in the morning, come out and watch!!!

Basketball practice on Sunday at NDV. Check the newsletter for the official times.

Have a wonderful Weekend!

Birthday Shoutouts

Big birthdays today...

Mark Dea, who has assisted in coaching for several years, and...

Mr. Yu, Marissa and Tiff's father.

Happy Birthday to them!

THERE IS PRACTICE TODAY!!!

There is practice today at Cameron House. 7th and 5th/6th Grade teams from 6-7:30!

Half-Day Practices for Basketball and Final Soccer Practice Tomorrow

The following teams will have practice on Friday after school:

ALL PRACTICES WILL START AT 1 p.m. and go to 3 p.m.

4th Grade - Helen Wills
7th Grade - Helen Wills

Helen Wills is located on Broadway and Larkin, right outside the Broadway Tunnel.

5th/6th Grade - North Beach
6th Grade - North Beach


SOCCER

The final soccer practice will be tomorrow for the 3rd/4th grade team. It will end at
5:45, so people can make it to the mandatory meeting.

And for all students and parents. If you want to leave your kids at Cameron House tomorrow, there will be supervision between 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

They can play basketball for a while.

BREAKING NEWS: 3rd/4th Grade Game Saturday

The 3rd/4th Grade game has been rescheduled for 9 a.m. this Saturday at West Sunset.

November 3, 2008

Hey folks...

Not much to say but make sure your parents go out and vote tomorrow.

Practices this week will go on as scheduled unless noted here on the blog. Conditions may be wet at Cameron House.

Final soccer practice this Thursday for the 3rd/4th grade. Game has not been rescheduled as of right now.

And finally, we go to sleep tonight with a NEW WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Chris Jericho.

Cross Country and Happy Birthday to...

Thanks for everyone that made an effort to show up to Cross Country. It was a decent day, not the best, but good enough to get this event in. Official results will be available in the upcoming weeks.

The runners who showed up today:

3rd Grade - Raymond Lee and Fiona Tsui
4th Grade - Cynthia Leung, Isabella Mayfield, Brandon Tom, Brandon Khuu, Justin Guo, Daniel Lin, Branden Quock
5th Grade - Hartman Tsui
6th Grade - Jeremy Chuong, Justin Lee, Mark Cheung, Gavin Lin, Timothy Tsang, Miles Copeland, Robert Zhu, Gavin Chan, Marissa Yu, Erica Wong, Beverlyn Law, Serina Leung
7th Grade - Emily Tom, Melinda Leung, Derek Kwong, Elliot Wong, Brandon Lee, Kevin Lee, Gary Chan, Tom Cen, Kelvin Mai
8th Grade - Perry Phan, Nicholas Choi, Simon Zhang, Elton Dea, Kevin Chan, Gregory Huie, Jonathan Chew, Olivia Chan, Vivian Leung, Sophia Nguyen

Thanks for coming out. We had one of the strongest turnouts of any school today.

BASKETBALL PRACTICE RESUMES

Do not forget basketball practice this week and every week from here on out at Cameron House.

Tues - 3rd and 4th Grade
Wed - 6th and 8th Grade
Thu - 5th/6th and 7th Grade

A BELATED HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...

Go to Cross Country !

Cross Country is taking place...they have checked the tracks and it appears to be ok to go so go!!!!


Check the times below this post if you don't have them. Be there a half an hour before your race.

8th Grade Girls Win!!! Go Crazy Folks!!!

In one of the best moments since I've been a part of St. Mary's, the 8th grade girls won their final game this afternoon.

They never played before, and won a set in their 4th game ever. They won another set a few weeks back, only to fall a little short. But today, it all came together.

25-22, 10-25, 15-9. St. Mary's wins their first volleyball game in years and we have our 8th grade girls to thank.

Phenomenal effort and execution. More on this game later.

CROSS COUNTRY UPDATE

Cross Country is still on as of right now. Stay tuned to the blog for updates. Remember to be there half an hour before your start.

3rd - 12 p.m.
4th - 12:15 p.m.
5th - 12:30 p.m.
6th - 1:00 p.m.
7th - 1:30 p.m.
8th - 2:00 p.m.

Bring water and try to wear something St. Mary's.

Soccer Game Canceled This Morning

The 3rd/4th Grade soccer game, like the World Series, has been rained out for this morning and will be rescheduled.

Once again, NO GAME THIS MORNING!

Please check out the volleyball game later today at Mission Dolores, 4:45 p.m. start.

No update on Cross Country--proceed as usual.

Weekend Preview? What to do...

Hey kiddies...

Soccer game Saturday morning will be probably a game-time decision on whether or not we will play. If there is no announcement posted here on the blog (or you don't get a phone call), we are going to play.

9 a.m. @ West Sunset for the final soccer game of the season.

Volleyball will be unaffected as it is indoors. 4:45 p.m. start at Mission Dolores for the final 8th grade volleyball game ever for our girls.

Finally...Cross Country is still a go as of right now, rain or shine. If there are any developments, please call me or check the blog before you leave the house for an official announcement.

Have a safe Halloween!

Pictures from the San Jose Earthquakes Game

ALL PRACTICES CANCELED TODAY

All practices, basketball, soccer and volleyball have been canceled today due to rain.

As for Cross Country on Sunday. CYO plans to run the event, rain or shine. If the conditions are terrible, my guess is that CYO will reschedule the event.

Please check the blog for the latest update or call me on my cell.

See you Sunday and pray for sun.

And does anybody know if it's spelled canceled or cancelled?

Happy Birthdays and Sports News

We wish Happy Birthdays to...

Sally Li in 7th Grade



The Great Eunice Tom...mother of Emily and Brandon



SPORTS NEWS

You should have received a cross country notice with times and other information. Also the newsletter that will go out Thursday, so don't forget to look at that.

The Phillies are World Series Champions.

The Warriors have started their season.

And the Sharks play the Stanley Cup Champions, the Detroit Red Wings Thursday night.

My YouTube Video

Here's a story I did as a project in college...Check it out.

News and Notes for the Week Ahead

Practices for basketball start TOMORROW (TUESDAY) Here is the schedule:

Tuesday - 3rd and 4th Grade
Wednesday - 6th and 8th Grade
Thursday - 5th/6th Grade and 7th Grade

All practices at Cameron House, which is in the alley between Powell and Stockton, Clay and Sacramento.

Cross Country practice on Wednesday after school, 3:30 - 5 p.m. Show up any time between that period and run as long or short as you want. Look for Matt Chung, the volleyball and basketball coach.

Cross Country this Sunday at Golden Gate Park!

Below are the basketball coaches for this season.

Basketball Coaches

Below is a run down of basketball coaches for this season. Enjoy...

3rd Grade




4th Grade Coaches








5th/6th Grade Coaches




6th Grade





7th Grade




8th Grade

All Saturday Results & Happy Birthday to Elliot

It was a crazy day for St. Mary's sports, as all 4 teams, both volleyball and both soccer teams played, 2 of the teams in their final games of the season.

VOLLEYBALL

The 6th/7th grade played their best game of the season and had their highest point totals for the season. They lost in straight sets, 25-15 and 25-17. Serena Leung did a phenomenal job of serving today and it was an all around team effort for their best performance of the year. It was definitely a great way to end the season, and hopefully they can remember this game as the building block and turning point for their volleyball careers.

The 8th grade played one of the top teams in the division and just couldn't get much going. They lost in straight sets. They have one more game to go, next Saturday.

NOTE: Sunday practice this week will begin at 11 a.m.

SOCCER

Soccer is a game of inches...On two occasions, the 6th/7th grade had breakaways only to push the ball just shy of the net by a matter of inches. First, Jeremy Chuong did it and then later on Derek Kwong followed. Both of them could've been goals, but the balls were pushed just a bit wide. It was undoubtedly the best game played all season, and a game that should build confidence for the future.

The 3rd/4th Grade let ONE mistake hurt them today, as another missed kick led to an easy goal, and that was the difference. They had many scoring opportunities including a point blank shot by Brandon Khuu, who just couldn't get enough leg on the ball. They close out their season next Saturday morning.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ELLIOT WONG (7TH GRADE)

6th/7th Grade Volleyball Results

The 6th/7th grade lost their game tonight in volleyball in 2 sets. 25-12 and 25-14.

Same thing that has hurt them all year--the serving.

They finish the season tomorrow, 11:30 a.m. @ Mission Dolores.

GAMES TOMORROW
8th Grade Volleyball @ St. Vincent De Paul, 11:30

SOCCER GAMES

Both at West Sunset

6th/7th Grade - 1 p.m.
3rd/4th Grade - 3 p.m.

DON'T FORGET TO COME BY THE ATHLETICS SPORTS BOOTH AT FALL FESTIVAL. SEE YOU THERE!

6th/7th Grade Wins Scrimmage Soccer Game!

The 6th/7th Grade finally got on the board in a 2-1 win in their scrimmage game Thursday afternoon.

Justin Lee dribbled through the defense to tie the game at 1 and then Mark Cheung broke in and beat the goalie later to give St. Mary's the 2-1 lead.

Tommy Lin stopped a penalty kick earlier in the game to keep the score at 1-0.

Great effort by the boys and let's hope they take that momentum into their final game Saturday.

Meet the Coaches

What does my coach do? Well, here is your answer.

SOCCER COACHES



Jeffrey Hong is one of the head coaches for the 6th/7th grade soccer team. Jeffrey graduated from St. Mary’s in 2004 and attended Lincoln high school, where he played baseball, ran cross country and participated in dragonboat. He is currently studying at the Art Institute of San Francisco. His sister is Tianna, who is in the 7th grade.



Edward Lee graduated with Jeffrey, also from Lincoln, where he played baseball for 3 years. He currently works at Wells Fargo and is studying business at City College. Right now, he is planning to move to Irvine in the spring.

VOLLEYBALL COACHES



King Yu is a graduate of Lincoln high school, where he played volleyball for 3 years. King's specialty in volleyball was playing by the net where his height worked to his advantage. He is a specialist in spiking the ball and held many honors in his years in high school. One year, he was injured and did not play in the championship game. What happened? His team lost. He is currently studying engineering at City College.



Heather Chen is another graduate of Lincoln high school. She played intense volleyball at the CYO level, before she became manager of the Lincoln volleyball team. Currently, Heather is studying business at City College and works primarily as a personal assistant. She is also a waitress at a sushi restaurant.

Matthew Chung is a graduate of Lincoln High School in San Francisco, where he ran cross country and was the captain of the dragonboat team. He also wrote on the school newspaper where he met Bryan. Matthew currently attends San Francisco State and aspires to work in the music recording industry.

Volleyball and Soccer Pictures

Some pictures from the soccer and volleyball season...

Courtesy: The Great Eunice Tom

Black Monday

Mike Nolan, now the ex-49ers head coach, was fired earlier tonight.

It was also a somewhat black Monday for myself, and I can explain if you ask me in person...

Soccer Results/This Week's Games and Practices

The 6th/7th Grade lost 4-0 today, but played what was one of, if not their best game of the year. They had several scoring chances including a free kick in the opponent's penalty box.

But as always, a few mistakes can lead to goals by the other team. They were toe to toe with their opponent, which is a playoff team.

They have improved dramatically from the beginning of the season and will look to finish their final two games on a high note.

On Tuesday, the 3rd/4th grade play at Crocker Amazon and the 6th/7th grade will do so on Thursday. Crocker Amazong is located at the corner of Geneva and Moscow.

Game time is at 5:30, be there at 5 p.m. the latest.

There will be NO practices at this time for the 3rd/4th grade this week. The 6th/7th grade will practice on Tuesday.

3rd/4th Grade Score Another Goal

Sooner or later, this bunch was going to break out. The 3rd/4th Grade are coming together and played their best game by far this season.

Trailing 2-0 in the 3rd quarter, Justin Guo, passed a perfect ball forward for Brandon Khuu who raced in on the goalie and beat him, to cut the lead in half.

There were a few chances in the 4th, but the 3rd/4th graders couldn't get the game-tying goal and end up losing 2-1.

But the defense played a lot better today and players are getting more aggressive. Aaron Pham played a spectacular game today, clearing many balls and making good decisions. 3 more games left to go for this up and coming team.

The 6th/7th Grade were not so fortunate and dropped their game 4-0.

VOLLEYBALL PRACTICE SUNDAY

6th/7th Grade - 1 p.m.
8th Grade - 2:30 p.m.

8th grade Girls Win Another Set!!!

For whatever reason, the 8th grade girls have gotten off to slow starts all season. The first set seems to be the biggest problem. It could be the game jitters or not having enough warm up time. In all their games, the second set has been their best. They just need to carry that over to when they begin the games.

That was from the newsletter this week and it looks like they got the message.

The first set was spectacular and it resulted in another set win, (25-19). The team they were playing was no slouch. This wasn't a set the girls won because the other team played terrible. It's just they played better.

But a few little mistakes in the second and third prevented them from getting a win. A few missed balls here and there were the difference. They lost the second set 25-14, and the final set 15-10.

Regardless, everyone should go out and see an 8th grade volleyball game before the season is over. They have improved so much in such a short period of time. Another fine job by the 8th grade.

NOTES: Patricia, Sally and Tom were in attendance at the 8th grade game.

6th/7th Grade
The 6th/7th grade girls lost in two sets tonight to the undefeated first place team in the division.

Volleyball Friday

Volleyball tonight for both teams.

6th/7th Grade @ St. Emydius - 5:45 p.m.
255 Jules Ave

8th Grade @ Epiphany - 6:45 p.m.
827 Vienna Street

Soccer Practice Tomorrow

Soccer practice tomorrow will be right after school, and will end at 5 p.m.

Soccer Practice Off Tomorrow, Moved to Friday

Soccer practice will be moved to Friday, instead of Thursday.

News and Notes--Tidbits that need to be done...

Here are a bunch of little things that are just reminders if you haven't already done so...

--Basketball for boys, sign-up sheets are due by this Friday.

--Cross Country is Nov. 2nd

--Earthquakes tickets are also due THIS FRIDAY. $20/ticket...if paying by check, write it to Bryan Cheung.

--Basketball assistant coaches, if you are interested, there may be a spot available for you. Let me know as soon as possible.

--We will have a Fall Festival booth, where you can order sweatshirts and t-shirts, or additional ones.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

4th grader Justin Guo...Happy Birthday to him.

That is all I believe for now. Happy Tuesday everybody!

Practices This Week, Basketball and Happy Birthday to...

8th Grade will not practice this Tuesday for volleyball. They will resume Thursday.

3rd/4th grade soccer will practice on Tuesdays from now on going forward.

BASKETBALL

Please turn in the boys basketball forms as soon as possible so we can get a count for how many are in each grade.



And we wish basketball coach James Chiu a Happy Birthday!

6th/7th Grade Soccer Results

Same result for the 6th/7th graders, although their coaches said they played a little better today. 3-0 was the final.

Late update today...WHY YOU ASK? I was covering the 49ers game...

Go check out this video, a little snippet of what I did.

http://cbs5.com/video/?id=40424@kpix.dayport.com

GOOOOOOOOOOOAL!!!

Brandon Khuu, 4th grade, scored the first goal of the season for either soccer team. It came off of a throw-in and was probably an offsides.

The referee didn't call it or let it go and Brandon raced down the sideline and put the ball in the back of the net.

That gave the 3rd/4th grade a 1-0 lead. But two HUGE mistakes led to 2 unanswered goals and the team lost 2-1.

Nonetheless, a very well played game and a goal.

6th/7th Grade

6th/7th Grade were shut out 3-0, but at least on the scoreboard, it was their most competitive game.

They also play tomorrow on a Sunday, 1 p.m. @ West Sunset!!!

VOLLEYBALL

Both volleyball teams lost in 2 sets today. Serving still a major issue for the 6th/7th graders, while the 8th grade played the top team in the division and lost the second set by 6 points, 25-19.

Volleyball/Soccer Schedule This Weekend

VOLLEYBALL

6th/7th Grade @ CYO Serramonte 12 p.m.

8th Grade @ Herbert Center 2 p.m. (2222 Broadway)


SOCCER

6th/7th Grade @ Polo Fields 12 p.m.

3rd/4th Grade @ West Sunset 2 p.m.

SEE YOU THERE!

Birthday Shoutouts

Happy Birthday to 8th Grader Olivia Chan...

6th/7th Grade Volleyball Mid-Season Review

A few weeks before, I reached out to some of the 7th grade girls, and I heard a lot of different reasons why they didn't want to join volleyball. They were afraid, weren't good, just don't like it...etc.

One week after school started, the entire class joined. It has hard to believe, but it happened.

There season has gone better than expected, and I say that a lot, because I truly mean it. This is a very tight knit class that didn't participate in sports really until basketball last season. They won 2 games, including their first ever, which was a remarkable accomplishment.

At times, it may be a little frustrating watching them make the same mistakes, but I tell myself that this team, more than any other team, is inexperienced in playing sports. A lot of them are shy and still afraid when they step on the court.

That's the biggest challenge this team faces, more than any physical or volleyball game flaw they have. They can serve the ball over...they can return the ball...

But sometimes the confidence level is not there. There are several girls I have pulled aside and told them the same thing. Once they get passed that, they will be able to compete game in and game out.

Believe in yourself, have some faith, go out there, and make it happen.

The girls are really trying, so couple that with some motivation and self-confidence, this team can do some great things.

6th/7th Grade Mid-Season Soccer Review

Almost half way through the season, the 6th and 7th grade boys have probably played better than expected. Coaches Jeffrey Hong, Tianna's brother, and Edward Lee seem to be pretty satisfied with the results.

As with volleyball and baseball last year, we are playing years behind. Teams we play probably have played 4 or 5 times as many games as we have.

It's hard to say what the weakness of this team is, because they all play hard and enjoy what they are doing. Practices are always upbeat and the players always kick the ball around with such enthusiasm. You can tell by their body language and faces they really enjoy the sport, which is wonderful.

The only way to improve for them is to keep playing and practicing. The more repetitions they get, the better they will be.

These two classes, the 6th and 7th grade, have done something that no other class in the history of St. Mary's has ever done and that's play all three sports. Maybe someone can look this up and see if it is true. The participation from the boys and girl on this team is great, and we should all be very happy about that.

That goal will come...just a matter of when.