Cool Customers: High school hockey players take sacrifices in stride
No way would Brandon Parsons conform. Forget for a moment that the precocious Parsons, just a kid at the time, couldn’t grasp the concept of conformity. But still, he remained steadfastly defiant: He had observed his schoolmates and his neighbors engage in the same pre- and post-school ritual: ice hockey, and he wanted no part of it.
But why not? The sport was his country’s national pastime. Parsons is from Delta, British Columbia in Canada, where, quite frankly, hockey is holy.
“When I was younger, when all my friends started playing, I didn’t want to play,” he said. “But when I was seven or eight, I figured out I wanted to try it, and so I’ve played it ever since.”
His aversion to hockey died quickly, and now, 10 years later, Parsons, a Memphis resident and Germantown high school senior, stands in the bowels of the DeSoto Civic Center on a Friday evening discussing his fondness for hockey as he awaits the initial face-off against Collierville High School.
“In my opinion, it’s the best sport there is,” he said. “The physicality, the speed, it’s a good team sport.”
And while hockey hasn’t exactly boomed in the Memphis and Mid-South area, there are several other kids — some from the area and some transplanted from Canada and the Northeast and other outposts known for their hockey prowess — who share Parsons’ affection for the game.
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Owl defensive line big on heart
It doesn’t resemble a typical defensive line. In terms of size – but probably not speed – it’s more the Fun Bunch than the Hogs. But size doesn’t always equate to effectiveness. Take Buck Towner, for example.
Towner, a defense lineman for Memphis University School, stands at 5-foot-10 and weighs 180 pounds. His diminutive dimensions, as far as defensive linemen go, prompted linebacker John Stokes—the 6-5, 225-pound antithesis to his undersized linemates — to say Towner “does a lot with a little.”
Case in point: He started 12 games and recorded 41.5 tackles and 2 sacks last season.
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At MUS, don’t say three-peat, for now
Bobby Alston checks his watch. Only 45 minutes until the players trudge into the unrelenting heat for a late afternoon practice.
He returns to the keyboard, pecking away slowly before shifting his attention from the monitor to an assistant coach who has filled the entrance of his office door. As he turns in his chair to face his visitor, the Memphis University School head football coach has situated himself in a figurative – although almost assuredly unintentional – position.
His back now faces several shelves of mementos from seasons past, including the football celebrating last season’s D2-AAA state championship, a 31-27 win against Christian Brothers High School.
It was the school’s second consecutive title, and it’s a victory Alston wants to leave behind him. … continue reading part 1 | part 2
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Back to basics: CBHS coach Locastro rethinks philosophy, and now Wave on win streak
Christian Brothers High School coach Kevin Locastro slumped out of Nick Coutrass Stadium on the grounds of Father Ryan High School in Nashville on an uncharacteristically cool September evening.
His Purple Wave, an admittedly flawed 2-0 coming into the game, had just been humbled 37-14. Locastro was disappointed with his team’s effort, lack of focus and general inefficiency.
Still, the loss hardly surprised him. Despite a resounding victory the previous week against Carver, he could sense that his team was foundering.
“I didn’t feel very good after the Carver game and that was the game leading into the Father Ryan game,” Locastro said. “And looking back to it now, I think it was a prelude of where we were as a football team.”
Locastro had to recapture his team’s attention He decided a return to basic, fundamental football would reinvigorate his players and reverse their fortunes.
“Sometimes, I think as coaches, we tend to think that more is better. The more you have in a game plan, the better your football team is going to be,” he said. “But it
boils down to execution.”… continue reading
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Setting up the spike: All pieces must come together fast for kill shot
Highlights glorify the emphatic, the exciting, the hair-raising moments of sporting events in bite-sized portions.
Audiences feast on an overdose of mammoth home runs, sensational dunks, bone-jarring hits. And in volleyball, spectators dig the spike.
“The hitter gets all the glory,” said Briarcrest Christian coach Clare Boggess. “Putting the ball down fast and hard is what everyone wants to see.”
“That’s the one,” said Germantown coach Barbara Whitaker, “that scores points for you. If a hitter’s good enough, she can put the ball down wherever she is.”
But the big hit is always the conclusion. As is true with other sports, the lead-up to the fantastic strike is never accentuated, the thankless work not featured as prominently.
“Without a pass and a set, you can’t have a hit,” said Houston senior Brittany Trapani. “They’re pretty important. They’re the ones the set the play.”
Trapani’s success is contingent on her team’s initial pass and subsequent set. As obvious as it sounds, a hitter is useless if she doesn’t get the ball. … continue reading
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