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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Sports
Tuesday, August 7, 2001
Eagles start workouts shorter on players, experience
By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
The opening day of practice for the Pecos Eagles high school volleyball
teams was a little short of players on the underclassmen level, coach
Becky Granado said, adding that she is hoping the numbers will go up over
the next couple of days, with the start of the 2001 season exactly
one week away.
"We had 12 juniors and seniors, but only five sophomores and seven or
eight freshmen," Granado said Monday. "We had some girls who brought in their
physical forms this afternoon after practice was over, so we should have
some more show up. But we had some kids that moved and some others decided
they didn't want to play and went straight into cheerleading or band, because
they want to concentrate on one event."
"With the freshmen we had 20 kids sign up, and I don't know how many will
finally show up," she said. "Our numbers are down, but we'll work with what
we have and see what happens."
Pecos won the District 2-4A title last season and have made the Class
4A playoffs five years in a row. But the Eagles graduated over half of last
year's 27-9 team that lost to Canyon Randall in the area round of the 4A
playoffs. The Eagles get back seniors Christina Arenivas, Jessica Rodriguez,
Victoria Gomez and Michelle Saenz, while Granado said a fifth senior, Kathy
Maldonado, missed Monday's opening practice.
Saenz and junior Tiana Terry will be the Eagles' middle blockers and hitters
this season, but overall, the Eagles' coach said, "We'll be a typical Pecos
team without much height. But I think we'll be O.K. I think our No. 1 problem
right now is we're so out of shape, but that's nothing new. You would think
our girls would learn to stay in shape during the off-season, but they don't."
Arenivas was named to the All-District 2-4A team last year as outstanding
newcomer, playing at outside hitter and on the back line. Rodriguez was an
honorable mention selection as a setter in 2000, while Gomez and Maldonado
were back line players for the Eagles' last season.
Aside from Saenz, Terry and Arenivas, Granado said junior Mindi Harrison
is looking better on the front line. "She really improved on her jumping
from power lifting," Granado said, while senior Becca Wein is also a possibility
at outside hitter.
"Becca sat out last year, and she's working real hard right now. All the
others I have are just JV players," the Eagles' coach added.
"What I need is for someone to be the leader and not be afraid to step
up and take over," Granado said. Pecos' first tests will come this weekend,
when they play a pair of pre-season scrimmages. They'll host Balmorhea, Fort
Davis and Wink at 4 p.m. on Friday at the Pecos High School gym, then will
go to Monahans for a scrimmage Saturday morning at the PHS gym.
Regular season play for Pecos starts a week from today in Odessa, against
the Odessa High Bronchos and Alpine Bucks.
Equipment pick-up scheduled Aug. 17
Crockett Middle School seventh and eighth grade football players can pick
up their equipment next Thursday, Aug. 17, at the Crockett Middle School
locker room on the west side of the building.
Equipment pick-up will be from 6 to 8 p.m. that evening. Practice for
the seventh and eighth grade football teams will begin on the opening day
of school, Aug. 20, while the first games of the 2001 season for the seventh
and eighth grade `A' and `B' teams will be on Sept. 6 against Fort Stockton.
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
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Copyright 2000 by Pecos Enterprise
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