SportsForce College Bound Senior Feature: Alex Pardieu – Boys Lacrosse
Alex Pardieu is a senior midfielder for La Costa Canyon High School and NC StarzElite Lacrosse. Alex is currently deciding between his top two colleges. Alex’s coach, Dallas Hartley descibes him as having “a strong work ethic, an infectious good attitude, and he wants to get better…very coachable.” SportsForce caught up with Alex to find out what his recruiting process was like and to ask him a few questions about his lacrosse career and more.
Why do you love playing lacrosse and when did you begin playing?
I love the power I feel as I step on the field. I love the way I can creatively show my athleticism while competing against someone who wants to win almost as much as I do. I started in 5th grade.
What other sports did you play in high school?
I played football for four years.
How would you describe your playing style?
I push transition whenever I can. I take pride in challenging my opponents and backing it up with my play. I always look for the open man who may have a better shot, but I will go for the unassisted goal too.
What colleges have been recruiting you and how has the recruiting process been?
A few D I schools, but mostly D III and D II schools and MCLA schools on both coasts. The recruiting process was fun, but making a final decision is hard.
What has helped you get exposure to colleges and how did you decide on what trips to take?
My parents have always supported me by sending me everywhere from Sonoma to Maryland. I tried to get exposure by playing in front of coaches at recruitment camps. I went to camps that were recommended by families that had already gone through the process themselves.
What college recruiting trips have you taken and how were they?
This fall I went to Florida State and Arizona State. I had a good time seeing how drastically different each place was from my home in Encinitas, while still trying to envision how life would be if I were to choose that school. The football games were probably the highlight. I live for college football!
What schools are you seriously considering and why?
I am choosing between FSU and ASU. I love the big school atmosphere; the way it’s so different from home and the fact that both schools are excellent teams in their league.
What type of college experience are you looking for (athletically, academically, socially)?
I am looking forward to taking my game all the way to the top in college. This was the year I was going to show everyone my real potential, but with my injury I’ll just have to show what I am all about at the next level. Academically, I’m looking forward to gaining the tools that will help me be a successful man. Lastly, I’m not too worried about the social aspect of college. Both schools I am choosing from are fun schools.
How has your family helped in the college selection and recruiting process?
Mom, Dad and brother James have done more than I could have ever asked. They gave me advice and let me travel to the schools to see what they are all about, but they have also given me the power to make the final decision on which school.
What is your intended college major?
I am planning on studying some form of business. Lately, I’ve been interested in Entrepreneurship.
What is your long term career ambition?
I still do not know what I want to be when I grow up. A job with few hours and high pay would be ideal.
What are your goals for lacrosse over the next few years?
I have very ambitious goals and I always have. A four year contributor is first and from there I plan to be an All-American.
What do you do to prepare to be a successful lacrosse player (training, practice, film review, etc.)?
I’m a hard worker and can say that truthfully. I tend to spend a lot of my time in the weight room, but I make sure my stick skills and shot are always in tune. I’m not a big fan of watching games on TV or from the stands, but I am on the field with my club team either playing or watching throughout the off season, depending on whether I’m in football season or not.
What hobbies or interest do you have outside of sports?
With my knee injury, I’ve been trying to keep myself busy and active. I go to physical therapy and the gym with my buddies sometimes for 4-5 hours a day and try and make every practice to support my team.
What advice would you give to an upcoming lacrosse player looking to play college lacrosse?
Get exposure any way you can. Not to try to sell Sports Force too much, but my top two schools first learned about me via my highlight video.
Female Student Athlete of the Week: Sydney Witt
Sport: Water Polo Class: 2011 School: Vista High School Vista, CA
The Vista Girls Water Polo are once again the reigning Division I CIF San Diego Section Champions, with the help of Sydney Witt. The stand out junior helped propel the team towards another towards the finals and another championship title as she scored 7 goals in a playoff match against Fallbrook which launched them to the finals against Carlsbad for the third year in a row. The Panthers went on to defeat Carlsbad 10-6. Witt has been a member of the varsity team since their first championship win in 2008.
To view Sydney’s complete SportsForce profile click here – http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/switt
Highlight Video and Scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com
Eat to Win: Nutrition for the Student Athletes Part III
Let’s get your game on! How you fuel and train your body should depend on your game, what you play and how you want to play it. In my last article we talked about the three different energy systems used in athletic performance: the phosphagen system, the anaerobic system, and the aerobic system. Today, we’ll talk about the energy systems used for short term energy use and how to optimize your fuel consumption for your energy needs.
A swimmer dives off the starting block; a batter hits the ball; a tennis player serves up the ace. These are all examples of energy expenditures in the phosphagen and anaerobic systems. An athlete’s body can access either of these systems for quick burst, intense activities.
The body uses the phosphagen system when you need quick power. Think explosive when you think of the fuel stored in our muscles called creatine phosphate. CP helps to create ATP very rapidly and thus burns it very rapidly as well. Foods that contain creatine include meats, poultry, and fish. The occasional protein bar or creatine shake won’t hurt you, but these simply can’t provide the nutritional support, the big bang, that a slab of real grilled salmon provides. When this energy becomes exhausted the anaerobic system then becomes active to provide support for more high intensity, short burst activities.
The term anaerobic refers to processes that do not require oxygen. The anaerobic energy system relies on glucose as it’s major source of ATP. Glucose is simply a form of sugar easily used by the body. Carbohydrates are the major source of glucose and are stored in the form of glycogen within our muscles and liver. This system is called into action when an athlete first begins activity and will continue to provide energy until oxygen is available to help meet the body’s demands for activity over three minutes in duration. When a football player catches the ball in the end zone and runs at lightning speed for the return, the athlete is using up glucose. High quality carbohydrates are crucial for an athlete, male or female of any age or weight. You can’t simply power down a powdered sugar donut for this fuel – the donut is burned up or turned to fat entirely too soon to improve performance. Instead, eat smaller portions of quality carbs more often, like whole grain pasta, brown rice, or whole wheat bread. If an athlete chooses the powdered sugar donut as their fuel of choice, glycogen stores will be low resulting in low production of ATP and lower energy levels which have a negative impact on athletic performance. During elevated levels of activity, the body will start to accumulate lactic acid at a rate that exceeds the liver’s ability to eliminate it if the athlete cuts the carbs too far back. So, if you get an intense side ache during practice, it is a reminder that powdered sugar donuts are poor fuel for the anaerobic system.
So, what’s your game? Do you need power? Do you need quick, short bursts of intense speed? Do you need to keep going and going and going? Can anybody play? Probably. But, if you want to play better, perform better, then think of food as fuel for your amazing energy systems. In part 4 of Eating to Win, we’ll talk about the role of our aerobic energy system!
Spotlight Sports: Competing for College – The Competitive Edge
Spotlight Sports shared this article with SportsForce. The article can be found in the February/March edition of the magazine.
By Elizabeth Marks, Instructor at Revolution Prep
From UCLA’s infamous “Undie Run” to “Floatopia” at UCSB the decision to go to college is considered a no-brainer. Moving away from home, meeting new people, pursuing your dream career, and experiencing all that college has to offer, culminates to create the experience that so many parents and college graduates fondly refer to as “the best four years of their lives.”
Unfortunately, college admission has become exponentially more competitive in recent years. And now with the economy in a state of disarray, budget cuts mean fewer classes, fewer professors, and ultimately, fewer enrollment opportunities.
So how can you compete? How can you compete against students with four-point-whatever GPAs who are the heads of every club and the captains of every varsity team? Simple. Ace your standardized tests.
Okay, easier said than done. But rest assured, it can be done. And while scores of people believe you can’t study for your SATs, I challenge you to try, and we’ll see who signs that college acceptance letter in the end.
Of course GPA and extracurricular activities are important. Roughly 50 percent of the admissions decision is based on GPA, and another 25 percent is based on after-school involvement – and rightfully so. The average student spends 8,000 hours over four years developing his or her GPA, and typically another 1,000 hours on sports, student counsel, volunteering, etc. However, in the 3-4 hours it takes to finish the SAT or any other standardized test, the entire remaining 25 percent of the admissions decision is determined.
So it’s obvious where you get the most bang for your buck. Standardized tests are the easiest way to drastically impact your application in a relatively short amount of time.
But conquering these tests doesn’t happen over night. It’s like running a marathon. You wouldn’t expect to wake up tomorrow and run 26.2 miles, so how can you expect to wake up and ace the SATs? The more you prepare and practice ahead of time, the more successful you will be.
Standardized tests are not a measure of your intelligence. They measure how prepared you are to take them, and that’s it. The majority of standardized tests are more deceptive than they are difficult; so don’t be fooled. Taking AP Calculus as a sophomore by no means guarantees a competitive SAT math score. Know the test you are taking. Be prepared for the types of questions it will ask you to solve, take practice exams to build up stamina for those Saturday, 8 a.m. four-hour tests, and study the specific material being tested.
There are a variety of ways to prepare for these exams. For highly studious, self-disciplined students, studying from a book is a very cost-effective way to prepare. If the mere thought of the SAT puts you to sleep, consider taking a course with a friend. Or if you play sports and hold down a part-time job, there’s always private tutoring.
So whether you study from a book, take a class, or hire a private tutor, proper test preparation is essential to being a competitive college applicant. Each test is different and requires time and thorough preparation to surmount. But your test scores are your competitive edge. Preparing for six weeks pales in comparison to the four years of reward. So reach for your dream school. Take the time to improve your scores and get that much closer to making your dream college become a reality.
Spotlight Sports is a bi-monthly magazine is dedicated to covering high school student athletes in the North County and parts of San Diego. Features a unique style and format whereby each school has a full page dedicated every issue. Each issue also includes a pro athlete interview, training tips, preparation for college info, and much more. You can also download the subscription form: Download
Male Student Athlete of the Week: Joshua Joseph
Sport: Wrestling Weight: 132 Class: 2011 School: Morse High School San Diego, CA
Morse High School junior, Joshua Joseph, has dominated all of his opponents this season on his way to a 25-1 overall record. This past weekend, Joshua finished out the near perfect season by dominating his opponent, Billy Reyes of LaCosta Canyon, to earn the 2010 San Diego D-2 Section Title for his respective weight class.
To view Joshua’s complete SportsForce profile click here – http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/jjoseph
Wrestling Videos on Flowrestling
Scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com
SportsForce Pre-Season Baseball Prospect Combine Recap
SportsForce held its pre-season Baseball Prospect Video Combine two weeks ago at Westview High School in San Diego. The combine was a success with great weather and some great workouts. The combine was aimed at players specifically looking to play at the next level and was an ideal opportunity for for unsigned seniors or potential MLB draft selections, top juniors looking to get nationwide college exposure and for elite sophomores that want to get on the college recruiting map early.
Fourteen players from several different high schools and club teams from the area attended the combine. The schools represented at the event were: Torrey Pines, TriCity Christian, Westview, Mission Hills, Scripps Ranch, Hoover SouthWest High School (El Centro, CA), and Great Oak (Temecula, CA). A few players had very strong workouts on the day. Southwests High School junior pitcher, Gerardo Cortez, Jr. had a great day with his fastball averaging 84-86mph.
The following players also had impressive workouts at the SportsForce combine:
Jon Putnam – C -Mission Hills High School-2011
Corey Suzukawa – OF – Mission Hills High School-2010
Zack Zehner – OF – Torrey Pines High School-2012
Conner Wilson- 1B- Scripps Ranch High School-2011
Santiago Covarrubias – LF – Hoover High School-2010
Sports Force will be holding another baseball prospect combine this June. See below for a highlight video of the combine or visit the SportsForce baseball page.
past Sunday, at West View High School in San Diego. The combine was a sucess with great weather and some great workouts.
619 Sports: Hoke Hauls In Pirates’ Bounty
Headlined by a quintet of players from the two-time state champion Oceanside Pirates, Brady Hoke announced a class of 27 recruits yesterday on National Signing Day. The largest Aztecs recruiting class since 2005 is the latest sign of Hoke’s attempt to cleanse the program of its losing ways.
“All programs have a blueprint of what they want to be,” said Hoke at a Montezuma Mesa press conference (video below), “The biggest thing for us is to recruit guys who have character. We want to recruit guys who come from winning programs.”
In that case, reaching out to John Carroll and Oceanside High is a natural start. The six-time defending CIF champions and two-time state champs are coming off a 13-0 season. The late addition of speedy cornerback/slotback Jerry Whittaker (who decommited from Arizona) to a group that already included linebacker Rene Siluano, cornerback King Holder, linebacker Jake Fely, and defensive lineman Kenneth Galea’i gives Hoke his first clear win in local recruiting.
Yes, the biggest fish in what might have been the best year for prep talent in San Diego history still left the pond. There are no obvious superstars like Tony Jefferson, Ricky Seale or Thomas Molesi in Hoke’s class. But you’ve got to start somewhere, and the class of 2010 for SDSU reflects months of hard work reconnecting with local prep coaches who had backed away in the Craft/Long era.
–See more San Diego Prep News at 619Sports.net
NY Times Blogs: Sports Pay Dividends for Girls
In 1972, Title IX, the LAW that opened college sports to women in an unprecedented way was passed. Though the act is now more than 30 years old, it still has not lost the controversy that followed it from day one. Controversy over its effectiveness, and it’s possible negative impacts on many sports, specifically men’s teams. Today, the New York Times, highlighting two studies on the effects of Title IX, is documenting that the law as well as sports in general has an amazing and ongoing impact on the lives of those females who participate in sport at the high school and college levels.
Read on for the entire article:
Almost four decades after the federal education law called Title IX opened the door for girls to participate in high school and college athletics, a crucial question has remained unanswered: Do sports make a long-term difference in a woman’s life?
A large body of research shows that sports are associated with all sorts of benefits, like lower teenage pregnancy rates, better grades and higher self-esteem. But until now, no one has determined whether those improvements are a direct result of athletic participation. It may be that the type of girl who is attracted to sports already has the social, personal and physical qualities — like ambition, strength and supportive parents — that will help her succeed in life.
Now, separate studies from two economists offer some answers, providing the strongest evidence yet that team sports can result in lifelong improvements to educational, work and health prospects. At a time when the first lady, Michelle Obama, has begun a nationwide campaign to improve schoolchildren’s health, the lessons from Title IX show that school-based fitness efforts can have lasting effects.
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 required schools and colleges receiving federal money to provide the same opportunities for girls as they did for boys. Relatively few students, male or female, participate in intercollegiate sports. But the effects in high school were remarkable. Just six years after the enactment of Title IX, the percentage of girls playing team sports had jumped sixfold, to 25 percent from about 4 percent.
Most research on Title IX has looked at national trends in girls’ sports. Betsey Stevenson, an economist at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, has taken it a step further, focusing on state-by-state variations.
“I looked to see what it means to add sports to girls’ lives,” she said. “How does it change things for them?”
States with large boys’ sports programs had to make bigger changes to achieve parity than states with smaller programs. Looking at the state-by-state statistics allowed Dr. Stevenson to narrow her focus, comparing differences in sports participation with differences in women’s educational and work achievement.
So her study untangles the effects of sports participation from other confounding factors — school size, climate, social and personal differences among athletes — and comes far closer to determining a cause and effect relationship between high school sports participation and achievement later in life.
Using a complex analysis, Dr. Stevenson showed that increasing girls’ sports participation had a direct effect on women’s education and employment. She found that the changes set in motion by Title IX explained about 20 percent of the increase in women’s education and about 40 percent of the rise in employment for 25-to-34-year-old women.
“It’s not just that the people who are going to do well in life play sports, but that sports help people do better in life,” she said, adding, “While I only show this for girls, it’s reasonable to believe it’s true for boys as well.”
Another question is whether Title IX has made a difference in women’s long-term health. In a carefully conducted study, Robert Kaestner, an economics professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, compared rates of obesity and physical activity of women who had been in high school in the 1970s — as Title IX was taking effect — with similar women from earlier years. Controlling the results for other influences, like age and changing diets, Dr. Kaestner was able to tease out the effects Title IX had on women’s health.
He found that the increase in girls’ athletic participation caused by Title IX was associated with a 7 percent lower risk of obesity 20 to 25 years later, when women were in their late 30s and early 40s. His article was published this month in the journal Evaluation Review.
Dr. Kaestner notes that while a 7 percent decline in obesity is modest, no other public health program can claim similar success. And other studies have shown that even a small drop in weight can lower risk for diabetes and other health problems.
There is still room for improvement. Today about 1 in 3 high school girls play sports, compared with about half of all boys. And participation varies widely by state, according to Dr. Stevenson’s research. Southern states like Alabama, Louisiana and Tennessee still have big gender gaps, while Northern states like Maine, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Vermont are closer to parity.
“While we have more girls than ever before, we still have far more boys playing sports than girls,” said Nicole M. LaVoi, associate director of the Tucker Center for Research on Girls and Women in Sport at the University of Minnesota. “The research clearly states that when anybody, boys and girls, are physically active, they can reap developmental and health benefits. But we haven’t reached equality yet.”
Signing Day: Seale Of Approval For Stanford
The San Diego Section’s all-time rushing leader will be heading to the Bay Area to play football. Escondido’s Ricky Seale signed his letter of intent to attend Stanford University in the fall, and to play for coach Jim Harbaugh on the football team. Seale’s signing, which took place today at the Escondido High School Learning Center, capped months of speculation as to where Seale would land.
“Thank God, it’s finally all over,” said Seale after putting ink to paper.
Seale was one of four Escondido athletes signing letters of intent on Wednesday, a banner day for the North County school. Tim Zier signed a baseball scholarship with SDSU, while Joe Morton signed to play basketball at Wyoming, and Mala Lemay accepted a softball scholarship from Hawaii.
How close did the Aztecs come to landing Seale?
“It was a 50-50 deal all the way,” said Seale, “but Stanford was always my first choice.”
After the jump, watch video of Seale and Tim Zier answering questions on Signing Day:
Seale didn’t know for sure if he would be admitted into Stanford until late last night, when Harbaugh called his house.
“I was just, Oh My God,” said Seale, “I was actually surprised I got in, but I’ve been working so hard for it so I was really happy it all worked out.”
Seale was receiving pressure from inside his own school and to the west as well. Over at Oceanside, the five Pirates who are coming as a group to play under Brady Hoke were reaching out to Zier, asking him to help recruit Seale to SDSU. Meanwhile, the Pirates were trying to keep mammoth defensive tackle Thomas Molesi in town as well; Molesi said he came “this close” to switching, but instead honored his commitment to Oregon State.
Watch Ricky Seale and Tim Zier answer questions from 619 Sports and the assembled media in Escondido:
Seale finished his prep career with 6,694 yards, averaging 7.9 yards per carry. He will compete for playing time in the Cardinal backfield with another San Diego prep phenom, the former section rushing leader (and state player of the year) Tyler Gaffney.
Zier, meanwhile, is excited to begin a baseball career under Tony Gwynn at San Diego State, but admitted that “football is always in the back of my mind.” Zier teamed with Seale to form a lethal combination the past two years in the Cougars’ backfield.
–Story and video courtesy 619Sports.net
–View Ricky’s full SportsForce profile: http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/rseale
619Sports.net: Brandon Johnson, Old Young Man
Brandon Johnson came back from a major achilles injury to play a 5th year with the Toreros. In the process he has become USD’s all-time leading scorer, but a 9-18 season has put a sour edge to what should be a season of celebration. Brandon joined 619 Sports after USD practice at Jenny Craig Pavilion to reflect on his career and the challenges he has faced:
–Story and video courtesy 619Sports.net
