Quick hits: Far East tournament predictions
Published: November 4, 2012
Matthew C. Perry’s tennis team survived a major scare aboard All-Nippon Airways Flight 977 out of Hiroshima on Sunday. On approach to Naha International Airport in driving rain and howling crosswinds on Sunday afternoon, the plane suddenly pitched and nosed down, coming within 300 feet of crashing, coach Mark Lange said. The pilot somehow pulled up and aborted the landing and eventually flew back to Kagoshima in southeastern Kyushu, where it was raining no less hard. Lange pulled his team off the plane, and they plan to resume their journey to Okinawa and the Far East tournament at Kadena on Monday morning, ANA Flight 475 from Kagoshima to Naha.
Now, for the predictions:
Far East Girls Division II volleyball: Daegu High proved it’s more than ready for a run at its third title in four years, after Saturday’s Korean-American Interscholastic Activities Conference Five-Cities Division tournament title win over Seoul American. Just one thing, though. Daegu only captured one specialty award, Lari Robertson with the MVP honors. Why not Sarah Wright for best setter? Or Kaitlyn Nott for best server? Daegu won the tournament. They deserved more than one top award.
Far East Girls Division I volleyball: It says here that American School In Japan will carry its second straight title back to Tokyo, and Liz Thornton will repeat her MVP honors.
Far East tennis: Aforementioned Matthew C. Perry will take boys D-II team honors and Zama American girls D-II, while ASIJ, back in the tournament after a nine-year absence, should take boys D-I team honors and Kadena the girls D-I. Your individual singles winners … ASIJ’s Kentaro Ishihara and Guam High’s Chloe Gadsden, who’ll win her second straight.
Far East cross country: Look for St. Mary’s International’s boys and Kadena’s girls to win D-I team honors, while a newcomer, Okinawa Christian International, will seize boys D-II honors and St. Maur International the girls D-II team title. Your individual winners … Kubasaki’s Erik Armes will win his second 3.1-miler in a row, while the girls race winner could end up being Nile C. Kinnick’s Carydaliz Fontanez, Kadena’s Ana Hernandez or Kubasaki’s Allie Reichenberg or Jessica Freedman.
