LJ FH 2, Del Norte 0 - DNHS Jamboree game 4 8/9

Photos by Ed Piper

Sydney Hersman works with the ball

just outside the penalty box on the left

side, with teammates Allison Hawthorne

(black shirt, background, standing up)

and Ella Cathalinat (next to her)

ready if the ball goes inside.

Senior captain/midfielder Allison Hawthorne

(black uniform) uses her stick in reverse

to move the ball toward the left (north),

where her goal is.

Seniors Savannah Putnam (left) and Allison

Hawthore (right), the new ASB president,

listen during Coach Amanda Combs Warford's

instructions to try a new scheme in the

Del Norte game.

Junior Talia Snider listens

in huddle.

Amanda and Tucker Warford walk off

the field at Del Norte after the wife-husband

faceoff in field hockey. Amanda's team won,

2-0. Tucker is head coach at DNHS and helps

his wife training her players with skills.

Both coach for Coastal Clash (non-school

field hockey program).

Returning soph Sydney Hersman

Soph goalie Adalee Branstetter

looks for paparazzi during

pregame meeting.

LJ sports: Repair of Edwards Stadium turf

Photos by Ed Piper

Workers from FieldTurf place patches in the

playing surface near the north end zone

in Edwards Stadium Fri., Aug. 8. The field

sustains heavy wear, with school-year-round

use by the football, lacrosse, and other teams.

Granules with plastic and other materials

sit piled near an open spot that will be

patched on the football field. Most patch

areas are near the goal lines at each end

of the field.

LJ FB: NFL free agent joins coaching staff

A veteran official from the referees' association

trains new refs on sideline positioning during

the Vikings' practice Thurs., Aug. 7. This is the

third year the officials have used LJHS as

a preseason training site. This ref was teaching

recruits how to move with the progress of

the offense--using a side-step to keep

facing the action.

(Photo by Ed Piper)

By Ed Piper

Patrick Nasiatka, a "3-way" kicker/punter from Ole Miss who is looking for sniffs from an NFL team as he lives near the LJHS campus, joined Head Coach Tyler Roach's coaching staff on the eve of the team's preseason scrimmage at Mt. Carmel Thurs., Aug. 14.

The solid-built, bearded athlete--"We're the two most handsome coaches out here," he and near-look-alike fellow new coach Nick Guerra joked--hails from Louisville, Colorado, where he played at Monarch High in his prep days. Louisville stands only 20 minutes outside Boulder, Colorado, the site of the University of Colorado. The Buffaloes are coached by Deion "Prime Time" Sanders, an NFL Hall-of-Famer.

Now the NFL free agent is "coming out here to do conditioning" and get ready for a potential call from a pro organization while he coaches up senior kicker Julian Zavala, who will be able to complete his high school career under the mentorship of a D1 veteran/NFL hopeful.

"I did all three areas in college," said Nasiatka, meaning kickoffs, punting, and field goals.

When asked if he knew his predecessor, Kevin Hurt, who moved to New Jersey this past year and who also kicked for Ole Miss, Nasiatka (pronounced "nuh-SHOCK-uh") said no, but, "They told me about him." The coincidence that the two coaches were from the D1 school without knowing of the other is remarkable, though Hurt (whose son Kyle pitches for the Dodgers but is recovering from Tommy John surgery) is quite a few years older.

The Vikings have welcomed another assistant into the ranks: Ben Gooding (no relation to actor Cuba Gooding, as he joked) will handle the offensive line and the run game.

*  *  *

Question to DC Randy Cowell: Are you going to show less (defensive schemes) at the preseason scrimmage at Mt. Carmel Thursday, Aug. 14, than normally?

Randy: "We're going to show what is installed." The Viking defense (and offense) is installing different schemes, or patterns, as practice continues. In other words, Randy is saying La Jolla is not going to intentionally hide some of its defensive ways, because season opponents may be scouting. The Viking defense is just going to go as far as it has been instructed so far.

*  *  *

Head Coach Tyler Roach has received another transfer to play as starting quarterback Hudson Smith's back-up and play on the novice team: Eian (pronounced "Ian") Romero, from Cathedral Catholic. The respectful Romero is a sophomore, and was wearing number 5 on his jersey Thursday, August 7 at practice.

Sophomore transfer Eian ("Ian") Romero (5) goes

through his paces at quarterback Thurs., Aug. 7,

along with starting QB Huddy Smith. Assistant

Jon Lemery (back to the camera) provides

distraction by waving the yellow sponge football

at him.

Shohei Ohtani's World Series ring replica - promotion 8/6

LJ FH: More photos 8/7 scrimmage

Photos by Ed Piper

Returning starter Talia Snider (facing camera)

grimaces as three players compete

for the ball at midfield.

LJ FH: Tryouts day 4 of 4 - 8/7

Photos by Ed Piper

Soph midfielder Sydney Hersman (L)

vies with the ball away from the goal.

Senior Ella Cathalinat (white jersey) moves

the ball ahead aggressively under pressure.

A stop by goalie Adalee Branstetter (77)

during varsity scrimmage at 9:48 a.m.

Starting varsity goalkeeper Adalee Branstetter (R),

a sophomore, and goalie Paulina Paredes,

a freshman.

JV "A" coach Addy Rodriguez (R), in her second

year coaching at LJHS, with Head Coach

Amanda Combs Warford.

LJ b w polo: Tryouts/morning conditioning 8/5

Photos by Ed Piper

Players warm up for scrimmaging at 8:38 a.m.

With the Coggan Pool remodeling and upgrade

completed last fall, head coach Tom Atwell

(left) can settle into tryouts, conditioning,

and practice without delays this season,

his 25th at LJHS.