AZSPORTSNETWORK

Good morning sports fans!

Is it just me or are you still on a high from all of the exciting AZ HS prep state championships this last week!

Valley Christian girls set national record: Kudos go out to the VC coaching staff! Saturday night was celebration time for Chandler’s Valley Christian track and field program. Dan Kuiper, head coach for both the boys and girls teams, watched the girls’ squad set a national record, while the boys surprised many — coach Kuiper included — with their own state title. This was 14 and counting for this tremendous track and field program. The big thing is the girls have rarely been challenged at times. Once again congratulations and how does 15 sound girls!! For results of the 2A VC results go to 2A state track and field results

Joy Christian: Just in case you are not familiar with this school they have quietly become an AIA program and next year they should be ready for all varsity sports. After looking at the 1A track results this is a heads up on the next top school out of the metro who looks like sooner rather than later may start to make its mark at the 1A level.

Track results an indicator: One of the things I like to do is look at the track results to see how some of the teams are doing athletically. I feel that teams that start having success in track will ultimately have success in other programs. You can look at Temp Prep as one of those programs as they now jump up to the 2A level which will be hard at first but look for them to continue to have success as they get use to competing at 2A.

West Wind Prep Football: This year the WWP coach got a new football coach. In the past we have not seen a lot of success based on wins and losses but I saw something in the track results that may be an indication that they may be getting better athletes in that may be able to help in football. In the 4x100 relay they placed very high and as you know this takes 4 fast athletes at the 2A level. For this team to place high in this event shows me they may be on their way to possibly being more successful in football than they have in the past. It may not happen this year but how long before the success of the boys basketball team rubs off and starts attracting more athletes to the football field. In the past in track I did not see hardly any WWP athletes running with success in the sprints so this may be something to look for in the nest few years.

St. Augustine Track and Field: If some of you have not heard about St. Augustine it is time to start keeping track of this school. Not only did their softball and baseball teams show a lot of success at the state playoffs this year but the track teams have quietly become a nice little program in their own right. Actually before softball or any other sports had success the track program at St. Augustine has been very successful over the years. In both the boys and girls they both placed 3rd. I am doing a write-up on this program which will be in another blog so I will not post results of individual teams here but what a great job this weekend for St. Augustine track and field and their coach Al Buhl and the rest of his staff!

Valley Union Softball: Congratulations to the VU softball team this year. They had the chance to fold against Joe City in the championship game down 4-0 early on but these girls showed guts and fought back to take the lead and nearly knocked off the defending state champions. It was a great game and VU showed why you play the games no matter how good the other team is you are facing.

Cody Rosengarten Tombstone: Cody gets his triple crown in track and field over the weekend! What a runner! He takes 1st in the 800, 1,600, and a thrilling victory in the 3,200-meter run. Here is the thing: He is only a junior!!!! Way to go Cody!

Linda Lamb-Coach of the Year Finalist: Coach Lamb from Benson is one of the finalist for Coach of the Year Award given away by the AIA. I can go on and on about what she means to this school but the nomination speaks for itself. We came to know Coach Lamb because of her hard work and dedication helping with the Susan G. Komen Race For the Cure for Breast Cancer. If I knew nothing else of her outstanding record as a teacher and coach this would have been enough for me to throw my vote her way. No matter if she wins the final award or not congratulations to not only an outstanding coach but also an outstanding human being! Great job coach!!!

Cochran,(Joe City) vs Brink,(St. Augustine) Round 1: Just in case you have been on another planet these 2 young ladies are 2 of the top pitchers in any classification in AZ softball! With both hitting 60mph or above with their fastball they are dominating 1A softball and with both of them being Sophomores, we will see them for 2 more years. The first round goes to Cochran as she won their 1st matchup in a great semi-final game at state but Brink displayed her pitching prowess as well by keeping her team in the game until the very end! Oh yeah-they can both hit the ball! So I am one softball fan who will be looking for RD2 and hopefully they will have this matchup in the state final instead of a semi-final game! Note: I hope both teams stay away from each other until the playoffs

Patagonia Football: With their coach heading over to Pima to join Coach Nugent as he rebuilds his team, Patagonia will be looking for a new HC. They had a lot of success but their do it all RB Soto is heading to PCC with his coach. Not all is bleak for this team as they have a lot coming back and if the right coach comes in they can be a contender again in the South 1A Division.

Camp Verde Softball: Yeah I know I mentioned them before but they deserve all the publicity they can get after shocking the softball 2A world with their upset win over Willcox! I mean not only do they defeat them but to knock off the #1 ranked San manuel team the day before and come back hungrier than ever is quite a feat! Great job Coach Debbie Miller and all her staff! man I love stories like this!!!!!

Whats in a Name: I love this topic. Here is one: James Bond Robinson Paradise Valley High School Student of the Year Boy Finalist Do I need to say more The things parents do while in the throws of Labor Pain is beyond me! I love this name but can you imagine what this poor kid goes through not only in school but when he has to submit his name! I love it!! hey I would have loved this name for many obvious reasons.

Matt Archuleta, Ray HS: Matt quietly went down to the 2A state track meet and became the new Boys 2A Discus State Champion with a throw of 145-01. Congratulations Matt. He also took another medal, 4th place, in the shot put with a throw of 45-04. In my opinion Matt was one of the top 2A athletes in 2A that not many knew about but should have as he has had a nice HS career while at Ray HS. Once again great job Matt!