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

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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

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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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T WATCH THAT SERVE! — Junior Becky Lin- hart prepares to boot the ball across the net tc the other team. Becky perfected her servei with many hours of practice with the team. Ladfj £f)Lkm N B itk k CIF iris Varsity volleyball did f exceptionally well, Coach John Gipe said. The girls exceeded my expectations and I am pleased with this season. Gipe had good reason to bestow such praise. The team made it to the quarter-finals in the CIF playoffs, ranking tenth in the state and finish- ing with a record of 12-6 overall. We just missed beating Santa Bar- bara in the quarter-finals, but the team battled tough and never gave up, Coach Gipe said. The girls did not reach their goal of winning CIF, and even though Varsity lost in the Orange County tournament, Coach Gipe was still happy with the girls ' efforts. We did as well as we could. It was a learning process as we grew and improved. The varsity playoffs at Newport Harbor were a high-point of the sea- son where the girls played an in- tense, nonstop three-hour match. We had our backs against the wall because we were in a must-win situ- ation. The team battled through ad- versity and showed a lot of charac- ter, Coach Gipe said. Junior Megan Combs was voted second team all-league. Joinini Combs on the all-county team was senior Shelley Zierhut. Lainie Spenc c and Kathleen Sotter received honor- able mentions. VARSITY VOLLEYBALL — Top row: Lainie Spence, Shelley Zierhut, Megan Combs, Nicole Lemerise, Coach Gipe. Middle row: Christina Grady, Kathleen Sotter, Becky Linhart, Christi Karsten. Front row: Stefanie Johnson, Noelle Lloyd, Sarah Too- ARSITY VOLLEYBALL VARSITY V 174 Girls Varsity Volleyball