Swings and misses for softball

GO THE DISTANCE - Christian Lopez (11) and Javier Ubaldo (11) take a few laps in Wednesday’s practice. PHOTO/ASHLEY LEE

By HANS LISTAFF WRITER

Weakened by their recent losses against San Dimas HS and Covina HS, Wilson softball struggles to get their rhythm back as they continue to lose in league.

On April 9, Wilson suffered a setback as the Northview Vikings soared past the Wildcats, losing 2-6 at home.

Anticipating the game, captain Breanna Bustillos (12) recognized the competition’s skill but spoke with confidence as she shared her expectations for the team.

“Although Northview is a great team, I think we will do okay. They have good hitters but our pitchers will work hard to beat them. Northview

April 12, 2013 11Sports

Wildcats right on ‘track’ to successBy JANAE YIPSTAFF WRITER

The track team is sprinting to the finish line with several wins beneath their cleats.

By MARIANNA KWANSTAFF WRITER

The badminton team served up consistent wins and leads the season with a record of 7-1.

“We all work hard to win because we know where our priorities stand. Even though there is a time for fun, badminton is serious business,” said captain Jeffrey Chen (12).

Badminton continues to work on different areas of technique during practice to finish the season strong.

The team practices include intense conditioning to increase the team’s stamina and strength. The team also focuses on the basics of badminton, such as serving, returning serves and smashing. They also work on specific drills targeted to improve their weaknesses observed in past games and practices.

“One of the techniques the team needs to improve on is controlling the birdie. Although it is difficult, it is crucial to the game of badminton,” said Chen.

will be a good competition for us,” said Bustillos.

In spite of Bustillos’ high hopes for the game, the Vikings led in the game right off the bat. The Wildcats’ efforts to retaliate were repelled by the Vikings as they extended their lead over Wilson.

“Northview is a strong team. They have good hitters and a good pitcher. We made a few errors during the game and Northview was able to get some good hits. The team played hard but needed more energy in their play,” said head coach Lindsay Schatzman.

Despite the loss against Northview, Schatzman recognizes the skills that the team has this year, along with the potential in the upcoming years.

Badminton ‘clears’ league competition

GLOVIN’ IT UP - Briana Ramos (12) positions herself to catch the ball. PHOTO/ANGELA CHOW

Last Saturday, selected individuals from the track team participated in the West Covina Invitational against fourteen other schools. More than ten Wilson athletes placed in the top three to medal for their respective events.

Long jump captain Cynthia Chong (12) placed first in long jump and reflected proudly on her accomplishment.

“I was really proud of myself because it has been my goal to win first for a while. It’s definitely a great way to end my senior year,” said Chong.

Head coach Willie Allen admitted that the team had to overcome several obstacles in order to succeed this season.

“We knew that this year, we would be hurting in speed because many of our fast seniors graduated. However, our individuals are doing extremely well and just keep getting better,” said Allen.

Pole vault captain Julia Reyes (12) accredits the team success to their ambitious strong bond and determination.

“Our team has been working really hard at practice and has even stayed after practice for more instruction. We have become really united, and we often help each other by cheering on one another during the events,” said Reyes.

Correlating with Reyes’ words, long jumper Sylvia Kwon (10) plans to consult the older athletes on the team in order to improve.

“I want to get thirteen feet for high jump. Because I’m at twelve feet right now, I need to work hard in practice and learn from experienced members,” said Kwon.

In order to qualify for California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), athletes must win first, second or third

in the league finals meet. However, regardless of league rankings, long distance coach Mark Fessenden hopes that all athletes can walk off the field feeling accomplished.

“By the end of the season, I hope that all the athletes reach their time goal and place in league. It’d also be great to get as many league champions as possible,” said Fessenden.

The team competed away against San Dimas HS yesterday.

“We will continue to put pressure on the opposing team and use a lot of counter attacks. Hopefully, we will be able to evolve as a team and learn to connect consecutive passes more often,” said Hwang.

Nonetheless, the players feel as if they are in a good position during this part of the season and plan to improve from where they are at.

“One of our biggest obstacles to overcome is our lack of concentration, and that is where we are going to start. We need to focus as a team and put in some hard work,” said captain Antonio Hernandez (12).

The boys have been conforming practice time to prepare for matches against their main rivals.

“Our biggest opponent would definitely be Pomona HS, we’ll have to continue of concentration and touch during practices to take them down,” said Josaf Sandoval (12).

The team is not worried though because they believe they have the most important factor.

“I think our team has a good chance of taking it all because we have the best team chemistry, and that will lead us to victory,” said Leyva.

The boys played a league game away against Covina HS yesterday.

“The team is kind of young but the players are very skilled. They still have a lot of time to improve their game and get better as players. There is an even balance between the team and they are well-rounded, meaning that they can all hit and serve well,” said Schatzman.

From learning throughout the season, captain Marlene Burgos (12) notes improvements that the team can make.

“All the girls have talent but they don’t put it together sometimes. We can work on communication and working together during games. We did well in pre-season, but if we correct these flaws, we can be a better and stronger team,” said Burgos.

The Wildcats plan to carry on batting as they assemble for their fifth league game away against Baldwin Park HS today.

On Tuesday, the Wildcats won in an away game against Baldwin Park HS.

“We’ve played Baldwin Park before, so we knew what we needed to do in order to win. One of our strengths as a team is creating our own strategies against our opponents,” said captain Ainsley Vuong (12).

On Thursday, the team faced Nogales HS in an away game. Following Nogales and the many consistent wins for the past season, they

were still nervous to face their biggest competitor, Diamond Bar HS.“The team is very nervous because Diamond Bar was the only school we

ever lost to, and we’re working even harder in practice to improve upon our technique. Hopefully, we will be prepared in time for next week’s game,” said Joey Sun (11).

The team also has high goals and expectations for the rest of the season.“We need to push ourselves for the rest of the season to improve on our

weaknesses and refine our strengths, because we don’t just want to make it to the second or third round of CIF [California Interscholastic Federation]. We want to win the whole thing,” said Vuong.

The team’s next game will be an away match at Diamond Bar HS next Thursday.