By Rusty Bryan
Published: February 22, 2011
For those of you who won't be able to make this week's DODDS-Europe high school basketball tournaments in Mannheim, don't despair. We'll tell you how the games come out as soon as we find out, and tournament organizers have promised us real-time results.
First tip-off Wednesday is 8 a.m., so look for updates throughout the day then and during the following three days of the boys' and girls' Divisions I, II and III tournaments. Just click on "Sports" and then "Europe" at our website, stripes.com. Files under the "Europe Scoreboard" section will be updated as often as possible.
By Rusty Bryan
Published: February 18, 2011
You've no doubt heard on ESPN or read on the web about Iowa 112-pound sophomore Joel Northrup, who after a sterling 35-4 season, forfeited his opening match at the Hawkeye State tournament by refusing to take the mat against one of the first two girls to ever qualify for the tournament, Cedar Falls freshman Cassy Herkelman.
According to a report on CNN-Sports Illustrated's website, Northrup cited his religious beliefs for his refusal.
By Rusty Bryan
Published: February 18, 2011
As part of its Olympic Development program, U.S. Youth Soccer Europe will be staging its ninth annual Michael Brendel Tournament Saturday and Sunday at the Benjamin Franklin Village Sports Arena.
Under-11 co-ed teams, along with under-13 and under-15 boys teams will occupy the floor on Saturday for 50 eight-minute games for the younger two categories and 19 10-minute games for the older boys. Matches are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. and carry through to 10 p.m. The under-11 title game is set for 1 p.m., the under-13 boys are to play for their title at 5:30 p.m., and the under-15 boys are to settle their championship at 9:38 p.m.
By Rusty Bryan
Published: February 15, 2011
When the divisionally divided European basketball tournaments open next Wednesday in Mannheim, few teams will welcome the change more than the Division II schools of Regions I, II and III. They'll finally be getting a chance for a level playing field.
That's not the case during the regular season. The regional play concept — introduced in 2007 to reduce missed-school time and travel costs, and to enable athletes to perform before parents and friends by keeping them closer to home — means smaller schools routinely take on bigger, deeper teams, with a predictable degrading of their overall season records.
Going into Tuesday night's play, for example, the eight D-II schools in Regions I, II and III, had a combined overall record of 70-114 against all comers. The D-II boys in question were 41-53; the girls were 29-61.
AFNORTH's boys and girls are the success story of the eight. As the only D-II school in Region I, the boys are 9-3 and the girls 8-4 as of last weekend. But the regular-season schedules for the Lions and Lady Lions includes games against the region's three D-III schools, tiny Alconbury, Brussels and Menwith Hill.
Things are different in Regions II and III, where the seven remaining D-II schools of Germany are grouped against D-I powers such as Ramstein, Heidelberg, Kaiserslautern, Patch and Wiesbaden. Just two D-II boys teams, Bamberg and Hohenfels, and two D-II girls teams, Ansbach and Black Forest Academy, have been able to post winning records. Contrast that with the records of the six D-I schools in the two regions, where only the Vilseck boys have a losing record. All six D-I girls teams, on the other hand, are .500 or better.
The questions then become: Is it better for smaller schools to play better teams and thereby improve the quailty of their own skills? Or is it too discouraging to be so frequently outclassed by the big guys?
Conversely, does it degrade the skills of the bigger schools that frequently have to hold down the score against an outgunned opponent? Or can the use of substitutes improve team depth?
If you're a player, coach, parent or fan, let us know what you think. Are high school sports better or worse for the regional concept?
By Rusty Bryan
Published: February 9, 2011
Organizers have announced a public appearance in Wiesbaden by a touring group of Florida Marlins who are stopping in Germany on their way back to the States after a series of visits downrange.
Hall-of-Famer Andre Dawson, presently a special assistant to the team, and former Marlin star Jeff Conine will be among those expected from 11:45 to 1:15 p.m. Thursday at the dining facility on the Wiesbaden Army Airfield. Current Marlins Logan Morrison and John Buck also are expected, along with some team cheerleaders.
By Rusty Bryan
Published: February 7, 2011
This week's high school basketball schedule features some notable match-ups -- for example, the Sigonella boys at Naples with the Region IV title on the line, the unbeaten Aviano girls at Vicenza to settle that title, and a two-game clash between the Heidelberg and Patch girls, both unbeaten in Region III -- but a clash between Region II girls' co-leaders Kaiserslautern (10-0 overall, 6-0 in region) and Wiesbaden (10-0, 6-0) lifts the showdown-week curtain around 6:15 p.m. Tuesday at Kaiserslautern high school.
"My girls are ready to see where they stand in Division I," Kaiserslautern coach Corey Sullivan wrote in an e-mail Sunday, "and they know that playing the Wiesbaden girls will be a good measuring stick."
Quality players, from whom we can expect quality play, will be performing Tuesday night.
"What the fans will see is a very good Wiesbaden team," Sullivan continued, "...with great players who know how to win. LeAmber and LeAndra Thomas, Kelley Colbert and Taylor Dore have been playing together for quite a long time, and it shows."
Cariema Wood leads Sullivan's talented team, which includes Medina Gregory, Jada Perry, Karah Helm, Alana Dickerson and Jennifer Isaacs.
Wiesbaden coach Jim Campbell, who called the game "highly competitive" in an E-mail Monday, added that he's aware those opponents are more than a list of names.
By Rusty Bryan
Published: February 5, 2011
Five-tool Hall-of-Famer Andre Dawson, the "Hawk," is the biggest name of a contingent from the Florida Marlins who'll be stopping in Germany this week on their way home from the desert.
Dawson, who batted .279 with 2,774 hits, 438 home runs and 1,591 runs batted in his 20-year career with the Expos, Cubs, Red Sox and Marlins, is a special assistant to the Marlins' president. One of six players in baseball's 300 homers, 300 stolen bases club, Dawson and fellow Marlins special assistant Jeff Conine will be joined by active Marlins Wes Helms and Logan Morrison on a three-day stop in the Kaiserslautern military community and Wiesbaden.
The Germany portion of the tour begins at Landstuhl hospital on Tuesday morning, and the public is invited to meet-and-greet sessions with the Marlins' notables at the Ramstein base exchange sometime between 2 and 6 p.m. the same day — the exact time for the session hasn't been determined — and at various sites around Ramstein Air Base on Wednesday. Those stops and times also are still to be decided by Armed Forces Entertainment, but will include another session at the BX, probably in the afternoon.
Thursday, the group will be in Wiesbaden, but there are no public events scheduled there.
If you get a chance to go, how about letting us know how it was? Was it as thrilling as you thought it'd be? How long did you have to stand in line to get an autograph?
By Rusty Bryan
Published: February 1, 2011
A little less than three weeks ago at AFNORTH, Lakenheath junior 140-pounder Austin Morrow handed Vincent Alonso of Brussels his first defeat of the season, 8-2, in a much-anticipated match. Saturday at Brussels, Alonso returned the favor, edging Morrow 8-7 to lower the Lancer’s season record to 7-1.
Barring injury, the two European contenders figure to clash again at least once before season’s end, and many observers expect them to wrestle Feb. 19 at Wiesbaden in the European championship bout.
-
FEATURE STORY
U.S. naval commanders, ordered to move the bulk of their fleet to the Pacific theater, say it’s clear that China is building a “blue-water navy,” capable of sustained operations across oceans and able to project power far from the home country.
-
Not long ago, China was the darling of its less powerful Asian neighbors with its growing economic importance and a policy of non-interference in external affairs that contrasted with bellicose U.S. foreign policy after 9/11. But a recent series of incidents has raised individual and collective concerns from India on one side to Japan and the Philippines on the other.
-
GALLERY
Changing of the Guard takes place every hour or half hour - depending on the season - at Arlington National Cemetery in a precise ritual that draws many tourists.
Advertisement
Gregory Broome is an experienced and accomplished community sports journalist. Officially a native of Iowa, Broome grew up a Department of Defense dependent at sites all over the United States and Germany.
He finally settled in Florida, earning a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Central Florida.
Broome began his journalism career in in 2004 as a sports writer for the Ocala Star-Banner in Ocala, Fla., covering high school, college and community sports and earning recognition for his work from the Florida Press Club. In 2009 Broome was named the first sports information director at College of Central Florida, an NJCAA member school, where he launched the program's website and social media pages and revamped its promotional and game-day operations.
Broome joined Stars and Stripes in October of 2012.
Contact
broome.gregory@stripes.com
Twitter: @broomestripes
Phone: DSN 583-9301; Civ 0631-3615-9301
