By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 29, 2008
Last order of business before graduation and dismissal for the summer (is it almost here already?) -- naming the Stars and Stripes male and female Athletes of the Spring Quarter and for the 2007-08 school year.
Who stands out in your eyes? Remember, this is for the entire quarter and school year, not just during Far East tournaments, although performance in the "state championships" weighs heavily in the decision.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 27, 2008
Musings and mutterings fromYongsan Garrison'sDragon Hill Lodge as we turn ourattention to the Super Bowl of Pacific interservice softball, the Pacificwide Open Tournament at Lombardo Field FourPlex:
-- Time was when the International Guzzlers made news when they beat ONE post-level team in the Pac-wide. For three straight years at 3 a.m. on old Field 7, they did just that.Now, the question is, can they be stopped? The "Band of Brothers," five of them with a combined 29 All-Army selections, made it five straight championships and six in eight years, beating Okinawa's American Legion 15-5 in a one-game championship.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 27, 2008
And here it is. We've arrived at the last Top Ten for the soccer season.
Here we go:
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 27, 2008
After the subject was debated for several days in this space, I decided to close comments to the post regarding last Friday's Seoul American-Kadena match. While the majority of comments stayed on topic, several went over the top, and it began to become a repeat of the discourse we witnessed last May after the Kadena-Kinnick match. Please, let's move on and put it behind us.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 23, 2008
It was certainly not the way either team nor tournament organizers had hoped the Girls Class AA Tournament third-place match would end.
The match was called off and Kadena awarded a 1-0 victory with 16:40 left after referee Mike Chase sent off Seoul American assistant coach Steve Kennedy after his second caution for "dissent" with 21:40 left.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 23, 2008
As we wrap up the 11th edition of Far East High School Soccer Tournament championship week, a boys champion team returns to the throne after a six-year absence, a girls team crowns itself for the first time, and a sad, controversial end to what began as a tight, thrilling third-place Girls Class AA match.
-- Fallbrook High in San Diego would be quite proud of the Sadler brothers, senior Colton and junior Cody, who teamed for the winning goal in the third overtime period, the first "golden goal" in Boys Class AA Tournament history. That gave Kubasaki its first championship since edging Yokota 2-1 at home in 2002. Fallbrook's loss was clearly Kubasaki's gain.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 22, 2008
Dragon daily double, first time Kubasaki’s boys and girls teams have reached the Class AA Soccer Tournament championship matches since 2004. And only the second time in school history; they each won the 2002 titles, while losing the 2004 finals each to Kadena.
Thursday’s American School In Japan-Seoul American girls semifinals painfully teaches thee one certain truth – practice your penalty kicks. Three were called in Thursday’s matchup. Seoul made one and missed one. Morgan Bridgman of ASIJ hit the clincher. Final score, 3-2 ASIJ.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 21, 2008
-- No more do DODDS schools reign at the top of the Class A heap. That, thanks to Jonathan Kim, David Kim, Yusuke Kakinuma and Yongsan International-Seoul, which exits the 2007-08 school year with a 19-win boys soccer team; and sweeper Mary Shaw, striker Lauren Cleope and Faith Academy. Faith went unbeatenand blanked defending champion Daegu American 4-0 in Wednesday's girls final; YIS-Seoul shut out Nagoya International in the boys title match.
-- That's two titles in two tries for Faith in the Class A tournament; the Lady V's beat Pusan American in the 2004 tournament.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 20, 2008
Emphasis here: Girls Class AA Tournament organizers did precisely the right thing, spot on, in cancelling Tuesday's round-robin play and seeding the playoffs the way they did.
Better that than to send the teams and players splishing and splashing through the rain and goo, where hamstrings and ankles should never roam.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 19, 2008
Gad, can anybody out there recall an uglier day weatherwise to greet Far East soccer tournaments in any year?
Deluges on Okinawa and at Iwakuni gave new meaning to the term "pool play." Especially Iwakuni's Penny Lake Field, which literally became a lake by the time the day was done.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 17, 2008
A little late, but what the hey; the tournaments haven't begun as of this writing. Did the season go by that quickly?
OK, here we are with a sampling of boys storylines for the upcoming Far East tournament championship week:
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 15, 2008
With the Far East girls soccer tournaments just days away, what do you feel are the storylines that have the best chance of coming true? A sampling follows; feel free to chime in with your own. A boys sampling to follow Friday:
-- Seoul American's girls finally rise to the topof the Class AA Tournament heap behind striking power of Sarah Eades, Erica Anglade and Angye Law, midfielders Katie and Jessica Bolander and goalkeeper Liz Gleaves.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 12, 2008
Per MajorYellowCard's request:
I'll begin the week at Niiza Park in Tokyo's western suburbs on Saturday for the Kanto Plain invitational track and field meet.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 11, 2008
By request, here they are, the long-awaited Far East High School Soccer Tournament round-robin pools:
Boys Class AA
May 19-23, Lower and Upper Field, Kadena High School, Kadena Air Base, Okinawa
Pool A
Kadena varsity, Kubasaki JV, Yokota, Guam High, Nile C. Kinnick, Seoul American
Pool B
Kubasaki varsity, Kadena JV, Christian Academy In Japan, Robert D. Edgren, Zama American, Hong Kong International
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 11, 2008
The last big track and field event of the Pacific season, the Kanto Plain Association of Secondary Schools Invitational, is drawing nigh.
Who will win the following matchups Saturday at Niiza Park in Tokyo's western suburbs, based on Pacific's best times/distances and expected attendance at Saturday's meet:
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 11, 2008
Not much movement in the boys Top Ten, plenty ofleapfrogging on the girls' side as we approach Sunday's kickoff in the Far East Class A Soccer Tournaments at Iwakuni; Class AA tournaments begin next Monday.
Here we go:
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 4, 2008
Can it really be possible that Far East will be here in less than two weeks at this writing (6 p.m. Japan time; whistle blows on first Class A matches at 5 p.m. May 18)?
Here we go:
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 3, 2008
Five years after shot clocks, 35 seconds for boys, 30 for girls, were mandated at all Far East basketball tournaments by DODDS-Pacific's Far East Activities Council, they've been removed starting with next February's Class AA and Class A tournaments.
Therationale for eliminating the shot clock is three-fold: 1) saving the cost of paying a shot-clock operator, 2) DODDS is now an affiliate member with National Federation of State High School Associations, which recommends but does not mandate a shot clock; in fact, only seven state federations use one, and 3) DODDS-Europe does not use a shot clock.
By Dave Ornauer
Published: May 3, 2008
Time was when a player or group of players ventured back into their billeting after the 10 p.m. curfew during a Far East sports tournament, it was up to the coach to mete out discipline.
Nowadays, student-athletes, parents and coach sit down even before the season begins and sign a standard Code of Conduct that must be obeyed to the letter.
