Capistrano Valley High School - El Gato Yearbook (Mission Viejo, CA)

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► LEADER OF THE PACK - Concentrating ▼ STRIVING TO GET AHEAD - Along with on her stride, Senior Traci Skeen is no match ▼ HOW MUCH FARTHER? — Junior Alicia other athletes, Sophomore Lara Custis runs for the rest. Though injured part of the sea- Hunner expresses the agony of cross country with girls from San Clemente and Mission son, Skeen led the others as a dedicated team running. Viejo. captain. CROSS COUNTRY CROSS COUNTR 172 Girls Cross Country

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GOLF — Top row: Coac Douglas, Dave Kellenberi row: Scott Valley, Ryan I Sleinnede, leff Coltara, Kevir om Masaki, Matt Lloyd, Jamon f Graham Lynch, Joe Traficante A WARMING UP — JV golfers Tom Masaki and Matt Lloyd practice golfing form and technique. JV and Varsity players practiced on an average of ttiree hours a day, four days a week. ▼ BIRDIE BOUND - Varsity golfer )oe Trafi- cante concentrates intently while putting. ave you ever felt like you ' re not up to par? We accept • that in life, but golfers always want to be up to par, not only physically but also mentally. Varsity Coach Bill Steinriede said, I stress mental discipline most be- cause it ' s important not to let one bad shot ruin your game. With a strong mental attitude, the Varsity team aimed to be stronger and more competitive, overcoming their youth and inexperience. The ]V team also worked to play more in- telligently, said JV Coach Harlan Peet. Keeping mental discipline was sometimes difficult though. Varsity golfer Bryan Thomas said, Golfing can really make you mad when your game goes wrong. It ' s important not to lose your temper. A golfer ' s mind can sometimes work to their advantage though. Shawn Douglas said, It feels good when I hit a good shot or a long putt. I just have a certain feeling inside when it ' s right. GOLF GOLF GOLF GOLF GOLF GC

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RuMMm ttiM MV m fifOi Ut mtgae rhe thrill of victory and the ag- ony of the feet. The girls ' cross country team exper- ienced both en route to a sometimes disappointing yet always hopeful season. Even though their league re- cords don ' t reflect the amount of hard work and dedication, the girls had outstanding times and top fin- ishes at invitationals. The varsity fin- ished at 1-4 and the junior varsity at 3-2. Coach Ken Sayles summed up the team ' s difficulties when he said, We had lots of young runners- almost all freshmen and sophomores. We also had lots of injuries which made it very frustrating for us all. Stress fractures, pulled muscles, and shin splints- they all come with the territory of cross country. Emo- tional and physical pain makes run- ning sometimes almost unbearable, but dedicated runners know that the hard work, pain, conditioning, and long hours pay off in the end. When I ' m running, I don ' t think about pain or stopping. I think about my form and keep looking ahead be- cause this helps me mentally. Run- ning actually relaxes me, said senior Traci Skeen. Like Skeen, many other runners also focus more on highlights rather than lowlights. Probably the biggest highlight for the team was defeating Mission Viejo, seeing as they hadn ' t for a while. The varsity team defeat- ed Mission Viejo 26 to 31, and the junior varsity came up with a 21-34 victory. Michelle Skinner could be one of the best in the league next year along with Jill Hedlund and Anissa Brindley, said Coach Sayles. Brind- ley and Hedlund won the coaches ' awards while Skinner was Most In- spirational. Traci Skeen was awarded MVP. CROSS C0UN1 Girls ' Cross Country 173