Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies - Excalibur Yearbook (Los Angeles, CA)

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INSIDE SPORTS Senior Slammer — Senior Darwin Rartws is active in the sports scene. He is a member of the volleyball team, and here he displays his alertness in the game. Volleyball is a sport that requires skill and coordina- tion. Schedule March 8 Eagle Rock March 13 Gardena March 15 Sylmar March 20 Verdugo March 25 L.A.C.E.S. March 27 Roosevelt March 29 Jordan April 3 South Gate April 5 L.A.C.E.S. April 19 Bell April 24 Jefferson May 1 Bell May 3 Jefferson Am 1 gonna make it — Jake Keshishyan tries to hit the ball but misses it by an inch. This was during one of the practice games. The practice games were to strengthen the boys ' skills which they had learned during and after school practice. It took them weeks of practicing every day to prepare for both the practice and real games. .411 of the games took place during March. April, and May. C ' Boys ' Volleybal Sports

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Bang it. Slam it — Valeska Difrieri jumps to stop the ball from touching the ground. She hit it up and a team member hit the ball over the net. Team work is essential to the girl ' s volleyball team. Swush — Lea Jayasinghe serving during a practice game. During practice the girls strengthen their skills in volleyball and all their practice helped them to get to second place. Their ability to work as a team really helped them a lot. earn work helps make it to second place Many high school girls got interested in volleyball and decided to join the school ' s girls volleyball team. They all joined for different reasons but together they made it to second place in the magnet league. I joined the team because I like sports and practicing them keeps me physically and mentally healthy. I picked the volley- ball team because I used to play it a lot in P.E. My favorite part about being in the volleyball team is the opportunity to display my skills in the sport, Evelyn Cerritos, twelfth grader, said. This was the first year that a girls volley- ball team was put together. Mrs. Young was the coach of the girls volleyball team and in order to prepare the girls for compe- tition against other schools, she made them stay after school for practice. Most thought staying after school was fun also very hard work. During practice the girls strengthen their skills in serving, jumping, blocking, and thinking up strategy. This year they played in the magnet league, we hope next year the team will be able to play in the 3A league, Mrs. Young, volleyball coach, said. A few days after the team was formed the girls had to play their first game against L.A.C.E.S. Not having had much practice, the team was not prepared to compete. But the game had to be played. We were shocked because only a few days before we found out we were on the team and already we had a game. We all knew we weren ' t ready for the game but we worked as a team and tried our best. We lost, Lee Jayasinghe, twelfth grader, said. The whole team was sad about the de- feat, but there were many games after that of which the team won more than half of. Once we got our uniforms, which ori- ginally belonged to last year ' s softball team, we played more as a team. We were undefeatable and that took us to second place, Knieba Jones, tenth grader, said. Therefore the girls team was a success, thanks to all the practice they had and their ability to work as a team. By Heidi Lazo What advice would you give to someone who ' s planning to join the girl ' s volley- ball team for next vear? Carlene Rowe — Probably what I would say would be you have to be will- ing to work with people as a team. You have to work hard at practice so you can have good results. Girls volleyball team — Members are: Coach Ann Young, Debru Pelroy, Evelyn Cerritos, Carlene Rowe, Knieba Jones, Leslie Tioseco, Michele Morrison, Coach Cynthia Jackson. Girls Volleyball Sports 51

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Catch me if you can — Juan Linares, tenth grader, shows his great volleyball skills by dumping the ball over the net and making a point for his team. For some after practicing so much, the moves come natu- rally. Up Down — Cinchai Chuvichien jumps up to help his team by hitting the ball over the net and slamming it onto the floor. Jumping is one of the many skills the players practiced every day during and after school. erfection by working hard and practice After three years of trying to get it to- gether, the boys volleyball team finally got to play in the 3A league. I have good feelings towards the boys volleyball team. This year ' s team has got lots of talent and great abilities. 1 feel that when its time for us to compete, we will be a top contender in our league. Eric Ngo. captain of the volleyball team said. The volleyball team was formed in .lanu- ary. At this time they had good potential as a team but lacked experience. Ngo said. The boys had to work hard during the end of March for their practice games. I think that with all the practice we ' ve had. we will be ready for not only the prac- tice games, but for the real competition too, Tom Lungin, eleventh grader, said. When the students decided to try out and join the team they knew they were in for hard physical work. Work that would not only test their ability to play the game, but their ability to move fast, think fast, take pain, and learn to endure. Probably the hardest part of being on the volleyball team is the painful practice. But when I joined the team pain was some- thing I had to expect in order to be a good player, said Juan Linares, tenth grader. The team has 20 members and with the help of Ann Young, their coach, and the help of Scott Sperber, the assistant coach, they all worked hard to prepare. I think that with hard work and perse- verance, we are more than ready for 3A, Keivan Stassun, eleventh grade, said. In order to prepare the students have to practice during and after school. ■ ' The things the students practice after school are bumping drills, jump block drills, setting drills, dives, digs and rolls, offense, serving and strategy. After weeks of all this practice they also have practice games to prepare them to compete in the 3 A league, Ann Young, the head coach, said. By Heidi Lazo From all the volley- ball skills that you learned during prac- tice which did you find the hardest, and why? Eiic Goidun — I think the most diffi- cult drill was the dig and roll. This move consisted of diving for the ball in unrea- chable places and rolling backwards, while bruising my shoulder in numerous places. Boys volleyball team — Members are: Bottom row: Michael Prince. Cinchai Chuvichien. Eric Ngo. Timo- thy Hernandez. Jake Keshishyan. Darwin Ramos. Top row.- Coach Ann Young. Joseph .Antonio. Chris Miramontes. Eric Gordon. Ritesh Kumar. Juan Lin- ares. Tom Lungin. Boys ' Volleyball Sports 53