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Arrival of Japanese
By ROBERT AVERY
ravery@hcnonline.com
From announcements of a retirement to rebounds in the playoffs, from the pool to a change in the pool of District 22-5A teams, the opening three months of 2008, had an unusually high amount of noteworthy sports news.
And nothing was more unusual than seeing a large contingent of Japanese Little Leaguers taking batting practice at Gary and Spiller fields March 26 and 27.
A baseball cultural exchange, youngsters from Hadano, Japan, Pasadena’s sister city, played a pair of contests with all-stars from International, Pan American and Deepwater Little League. The local kids were overwhelmed by their Far East counterparts, losing the two contests by scores of 16-0 and 13-0. Game 1 resulted in a perfect game for the five-inning contest and Game 2 resulted in a one-hitter, the lone hit coming off the bat of Jared Hoesel with a bunt base hit.
But long before the first pitch was thrown, everyone connected with this extraordinary event knew the real winners would be the children, who were shown a distant part of the world they otherwise would never have experienced. Further enhancing the enriching week were postgame excursions to nearby restaurants for some down time and autograph signing.
But the Japan-Pasadena baseball meeting wasn’t the first rare event for the opening three months of 2008. How often does a PISD football player find his name and face on a national advertisement proclaiming that individual as a Player of the Year?
Memorial High School running back Bo Snelson was one of 50 high school players from across the United States who were named the Old Spice Player of the Year, an award that has gone to past Heisman Trophy award winners and NFL draft picks. Snelson, who had just come off a stellar junior year in which he helped the Mavericks reach the third round of the state playoffs, would see his face in an Old Spice full-page ad, honoring the 50, in a Feb. 7th edition of USA Today.
The year also meant it was also time for the UIL to shake up the districts around the state with its biennial district realignment and reclassification. So on Feb. 1, a large gathering of nervous athletic directors and football coaches received the UIL’s plans for the next two school years. For District 22-5A, longtime district member North Shore was shipped out and Pearland, for just the third time in 16 years, joined the Pasadena schools.
The winter months also saw Dobie High School’s Scott Talton capture his 500th career victory; the number he would finish with when he retired at the close of the season after a 44-33 state playoff defeat to Kingwood.
Deer Park used a memorable triple overtime 78-73 victory over rival La Porte to create a four-way tie for first place in January. It was part of a nine-game winning streak that helped create a state playoff berth.
The McDonald’s Texas Invitational folks were taking a bow in the early days of March when the state championship tournament featured not one, not two but three of its teams in the form of Dickinson, DeSoto and Cy-Fair.
The San Jacinto College men’s basketball team snapped No. 17 Paris Junior College’s 32-game home winning streak with an 80-73 decision. Those same two teams met in the semifinals of the postseason tournament and this time Paris prevailed 84-71. The referees dominated the contest, calling enough penalties to give the two teams 88 free-throw shots. Paris won by a 38-20 advantage from the line. When the game ended, San Jac’s roster was covered with players who had either fouled out or had four fouls.
In swimming, Pasadena’s Jonathan Abner broke an 11-year-old record as did Memorial’s Kevin Strait during the City Meet. The Lady Mavs won the girls division 114-110 and Dobie coasted to the boys 104-61.
The school district honored longtime Sam Rayburn coach Joan Propp by renaming the female high points champion at the Brown Relays to the Joan Propp High Points Award.
Pasadena High School head football coach Wes Bryant announced he was retiring, bringing the curtain down on 42 years of football instruction.
Houston Westside High School captured its third straight PISD Baseball Tournament with a 4-0 win over Pasadena Memorial.
As a prelude to the arrival of the Japanese squad, the fifth annual Beat the Heat Baseball Tournament was held in which Cody Corbell of Pan American and Chris Rosser of International were named MVPs.
Devin Cruz tied a Super Swish Free-Throw record by sinking 14-of-15 attempts in the 11-and-12-year-old division. He missed his first attempt and then hit 14 straight to collect the trophy in the 8th annual event.
The opening three months of the year ended on a somber note when Daniel Vanderbrink, a regular sight at the scorer’s table in a high school basketball gymnasium, died on March 21 at the age of 52. Despite being confined to a wheelchair most of his life, Daniel was a dedicated worker for the local athletic teams. During tournaments, it was not uncommon for Daniel to work an entire day’s worth of games, asking only for a soda or a bite to eat from the hospitality room in return.
From announcements of a retirement to rebounds in the playoffs, from the pool to a change in the pool of District 22-5A teams, the opening three months of 2008, had an unusually high amount of noteworthy sports news.
And nothing was more unusual than seeing a large contingent of Japanese Little Leaguers taking batting practice at Gary and Spiller fields March 26 and 27.
A baseball cultural exchange, youngsters from Hadano, Japan, Pasadena’s sister city, played a pair of contests with all-stars from International, Pan American and Deepwater Little League. The local kids were overwhelmed by their Far East counterparts, losing the two contests by scores of 16-0 and 13-0. Game 1 resulted in a perfect game for the five-inning contest and Game 2 resulted in a one-hitter, the lone hit coming off the bat of Jared Hoesel with a bunt base hit.
But long before the first pitch was thrown, everyone connected with this extraordinary event knew the real winners would be the children, who were shown a distant part of the world they otherwise would never have experienced. Further enhancing the enriching week were postgame excursions to nearby restaurants for some down time and autograph signing.
But the Japan-Pasadena baseball meeting wasn’t the first rare event for the opening three months of 2008. How often does a PISD football player find his name and face on a national advertisement proclaiming that individual as a Player of the Year?
Memorial High School running back Bo Snelson was one of 50 high school players from across the United States who were named the Old Spice Player of the Year, an award that has gone to past Heisman Trophy award winners and NFL draft picks. Snelson, who had just come off a stellar junior year in which he helped the Mavericks reach the third round of the state playoffs, would see his face in an Old Spice full-page ad, honoring the 50, in a Feb. 7th edition of USA Today.
The year also meant it was also time for the UIL to shake up the districts around the state with its biennial district realignment and reclassification. So on Feb. 1, a large gathering of nervous athletic directors and football coaches received the UIL’s plans for the next two school years. For District 22-5A, longtime district member North Shore was shipped out and Pearland, for just the third time in 16 years, joined the Pasadena schools.
The winter months also saw Dobie High School’s Scott Talton capture his 500th career victory; the number he would finish with when he retired at the close of the season after a 44-33 state playoff defeat to Kingwood.
Deer Park used a memorable triple overtime 78-73 victory over rival La Porte to create a four-way tie for first place in January. It was part of a nine-game winning streak that helped create a state playoff berth.
The McDonald’s Texas Invitational folks were taking a bow in the early days of March when the state championship tournament featured not one, not two but three of its teams in the form of Dickinson, DeSoto and Cy-Fair.
The San Jacinto College men’s basketball team snapped No. 17 Paris Junior College’s 32-game home winning streak with an 80-73 decision. Those same two teams met in the semifinals of the postseason tournament and this time Paris prevailed 84-71. The referees dominated the contest, calling enough penalties to give the two teams 88 free-throw shots. Paris won by a 38-20 advantage from the line. When the game ended, San Jac’s roster was covered with players who had either fouled out or had four fouls.
In swimming, Pasadena’s Jonathan Abner broke an 11-year-old record as did Memorial’s Kevin Strait during the City Meet. The Lady Mavs won the girls division 114-110 and Dobie coasted to the boys 104-61.
The school district honored longtime Sam Rayburn coach Joan Propp by renaming the female high points champion at the Brown Relays to the Joan Propp High Points Award.
Pasadena High School head football coach Wes Bryant announced he was retiring, bringing the curtain down on 42 years of football instruction.
Houston Westside High School captured its third straight PISD Baseball Tournament with a 4-0 win over Pasadena Memorial.
As a prelude to the arrival of the Japanese squad, the fifth annual Beat the Heat Baseball Tournament was held in which Cody Corbell of Pan American and Chris Rosser of International were named MVPs.
Devin Cruz tied a Super Swish Free-Throw record by sinking 14-of-15 attempts in the 11-and-12-year-old division. He missed his first attempt and then hit 14 straight to collect the trophy in the 8th annual event.
The opening three months of the year ended on a somber note when Daniel Vanderbrink, a regular sight at the scorer’s table in a high school basketball gymnasium, died on March 21 at the age of 52. Despite being confined to a wheelchair most of his life, Daniel was a dedicated worker for the local athletic teams. During tournaments, it was not uncommon for Daniel to work an entire day’s worth of games, asking only for a soda or a bite to eat from the hospitality room in return.
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