SPORTS SATURDAY B1 | Saturday, March 17, 2012 | The Union | Section B Anthony Barstow, sports writer, (530) 477-4232, [email protected] Syracuse vs. Kansas St. | 9 a.m., TV: CBS Sacramento surprises Boston | B2 Stanford women set for tourney | B3 49ers enter Manning sweepstakes | B4 SPORTS BRIEFS Local ■ Senior softball season approaching The 2012 Gold Country Senior Softball Association season will begin on April 9, and signups and new player workouts will run from 9 a.m. to noon each Saturday in March at Western Gateway Park in Penn Valley. Players must be 50 years old or older to play, and fees are $140 for the weeknight league, $120 for the Saturday league or $240 for both. Weeknight games start at 5:30 p.m. and take place Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, while Saturday games begin at 9 a.m. The season runs through September. For information, visit www.GCSSASoftball.org. — The Union staff National ■ Greg Biffle wins pole at Bristol Motor Speedway BRISTOL, Tenn. — Greg Biffle knows he won’t be perfect all season. He’ll take what he can get right now. The Sprint Cup points leader continued his strong start to the season Friday by winning the pole at Bristol Motor Speedway. “I know this isn’t going to last all season, but I’m enjoying the hell out of it right now,” Biffle said. He turned a lap of 125.215 mph in his Roush Fenway Racing Ford to take the top qualifying spot for Sunday’s race. Biffle has opened the sea- son with three third-place finishes, and has not qualified lower than ninth. “I gotta pinch myself. I think I’m dreaming,” he said. “I’m having a great time, the time of my life.” ■ Phillies release pitcher Dontrelle Willis BRADENTON, Fla. — The Philadelphia Phillies have released left-handed pitcher Dontrelle Willis. The team announced the move Friday on Twitter. The 30-year-old Willis signed a deal with the Phillies this offsea- son and was competing for a bullpen spot this spring. A two-time All Star with the Florida Marlins, Willis has pitched for four teams in nine seasons, all of them as a starter. The Phillies signed him to a nonguar- anteed contract in December, and according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, he will receive $139,000 in severance pay. — Associated Press Sponsored by: SUBURBAN PROPANE 12575 CHARLES DRIVE, GRASS VALLEY (530) 273-6113 www.suburbanpropane.com PLAYER WEEK PLAYER WEEK OF THE OF THE SUBMITTED TO THE UNION This week saw the first pre- season test for the new Formula Renault 3.5 car at Paul Ricard Circuit in southern France. American driver Alexander Rossi began what he hopes is his championship charge on Tuesday when he took to the track with his new team, Arden Caterham Motorsport, for the maiden outing in World Series by Renault. Rossi, who was recently announced as official test driver for the Caterham F1 team, completed the two-day test feel- ing comfortable with his No. 25 car’s reliability and handling. However, technical and new car teething issues on the second day hindered the power- ful performance for which he was striving. “Our initial shakedown test this week in Paul Ricard with the new car and team, Arden Caterham, was productive in many ways but also had it’s up and downs,” said Rossi. “On day one, we were near the top of the time sheets most of the day, as I had a lot of confidence with the team and getting the most out of the car.” The first day provided dry conditions for the rookie team, Preseason starter Rossi has ‘ups and downs’ on initial run BY STEVE REED AP Sports Writer GREENSBORO, N.C. — The Lehigh Mountain Hawks said they weren’t afraid of mighty Duke. Maybe no one believed them at the time, but the Patriot League champions proved they were serious. C.J. McCollum scored 30 points and Lehigh upset Duke 75-70 to become the second No. 15 seed to beat a No. 2 during a wild Friday in the NCAA tournament. “It means a lot as a team, a family and as the Patriot League in general,” McCollum said. “We wanted to come out here and protect this team and this family, get the win and we did that tonight.” Lehigh forward John Adams said it was a matter of believing in each other. The Mountain Hawks are the sixth 15 seed overall to pull off the trick. Norfolk State edged Missouri 86-84 in the West Regional earlier in the day, and No. 13 seed Ohio knocked off Michigan to add to the madness. Lehigh stuns Duke on day of upsets ■ PREP VOLLEYBALL ■ LOCAL ROUNDUP ■ NCAA BASKETBALL THE UNION STAFF Nevada Union’s diving team took on Granite Bay earlier this week, and Miners junior Adam Seifert took first place in the varsity boys competition. Zack Manes placed third, and Lloyd Tom finished in fourth in the varsity compe- tition. On the girls side, freshman Mikaela Lujan, competing in her first high school meet, came away with third place in the girls varsity meet. Also placing for the NU girls were Brandi Chambers in fourth and Jessica Alberts in fifth. Jenny Jones and Kristin Burgess finished in first and second, respectively, in the junior varsity girls competition. Coaches may submit game reports by email at [email protected] or by phone at (530) 477-4232. Deadline for submissions is 10 p.m. Monday through Friday and 5 p.m. Sunday. NU’s Seifert wins diving competition WALTER FORD Sports Writer O ff to a 4-0 start in non- league play and yet to drop a set, the Nevada Union boys volleyball team is brimming with confidence and gunning for a Sac-Joaquin Section title in 2012. “I want to win sections, and I think we have the talent to do it,” team captain Bobby Curtis said. “We all have the drive to win sec- tions this year.” It’s a lofty goal for a team that finished fourth in the Sierra Foothill League and out of postseason play last season, but a goal that head coach Marco Salcedo considers obtainable. In his eighth year with the NU program, Salcedo said that the march toward the Miners’ first sec- tion title begins with defense. “I want to be one of the best defensive teams out there,” he said. “That’s what wins championships. Other teams have guys like us that can hit. I want to beat them with our defense.” Salcedo may have the size and experience to be the best defensive team in the league this season. The Miners lost only one sen- ior from last year and return nine varsity players from the 2011 squad. Their experience and size at the net has NU believing it will grab its first league title since 2009 and first ever section title. “We all grew as players,” Curtis said. “We grew physically and men- tally, and we all learned how to play our game.” ‘The drive to win’ Nevada Union boys volleyball team has eyes on the prize ■ GYMNASTICS SUBMITTED TO THE UNION The Gold Country Gymnastics boys team recently hosted the 2012 Foothills Classic, which included levels 5 through 10. Jeffery Wagnecht tied for third place on pommel with a score of 13.7 and placed fourth on rings with a 13.9 in the Level 5 competition. He finished with an all-around score of 81.7. Chance Bacon placed fifth on parallel bars with a 13.4 and had a 14.1 on vault to finish with an all around of 73.6. Competing at Level 6, Rhett Miller tied for first on high bar with 15 and took second on pommel and parallel bars with 14.7 and 13.7, respectively. Miller tied for second for floor with 14.7 and scored 14.1 on rings and 14.7 on vault. He finished in second place all around with a score of 86.9. Joshua Hartman took first on rings with a 14.2, third for pommel with a 13.3 and third on parallel bars with a 12.3. Hartman finished with an all around of 79. Nathan Arthur took fourth place with a 14.0 on rings and tied for fourth on high bar with 14.3 to finish with an all around of 78.4. Jacob Pardini earned a fourth-place tie for parallel bars with an 11.8, scored a 13.6 on vault and finished with a 72.8 all around. At Level 8, Nathan Hunt finished in first on vault with a 12.6, first on parallel bars with a 12.7 and second on floor with a 12.9 to finish the day with a 71.8 all around. Joshua Cooley took first on floor with a 13.4, second on vault with a 12.2 and scored a 60.5 all around. Jeremy Hunt competed at Level 9, scor- ing 13.0 on parallel bars, 12.9 on floor and 12.8 on vault to take first place all around with 73.2. Closing things out for the squad, in the Level 10 competition, Steven Whittlesey scored 13.8 on floor, 12.9 on high bar, 12.9 on parallel bars for first place with an all- Gold Country holds 2012 Foothills Classic ■ MOTOR SPORTS Submitted photo Alexander Rossi sits in his car before a preseason World Series test earlier in the week at Paul Ricard Circuit in southern France. Photo for The Union by John Hart Bear River’s Jed Lyon, left, and Tim Wong go up for a block during a volleyball match against Nevada Union Wednesday in Ali Gym. Photo for The Union by John Hart Bobby Curtis Nevada Union volleyball In two games this week, Bobby Curtis led the Miners in kills, with 12 in a match against Jesuit on Tuesday and 10 against Bear River on Wednesday. Curtis added two aces against Jesuit, and Nevada Union won both games. AP photo From left, Lehigh’s Gabe Knutson, B.J. Bailey, Jordan Hamilton, Holden Greiner, John Adams and Justin Maneri celebrate after winning an NCAA tournament sec- ond-round game against Duke Friday in Greensboro, N.C. No. 15 seeded Lehigh beat No. 2 seeded Duke, 75-70. ■ Check out all the action from Friday’s wild NCAA Tournament games, Page B2. INSIDE See ROSSI B2 See VOLLEYBALL B2 See GYMNASTICS B2
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SPORTS SATURDAYB1 | Saturday, March 17, 2012 | The Union | Section B Anthony Barstow, sports writer, (530) 477-4232, [email protected]
Syracuse vs. Kansas St. | 9 a.m., TV: CBS Sacramento surprises Boston | B2 Stanford women set for tourney | B3 49ers enter Manning sweepstakes|B4
SPORTS BRIEFS
Local
■ Senior softballseason approaching
The 2012 Gold Country SeniorSoftball Association season willbegin on April 9, and signupsand new player workouts willrun from 9 a.m. to noon eachSaturday in March at WesternGateway Park in Penn Valley.
Players must be 50 years old orolder to play, and fees are$140 for the weeknight league,$120 for the Saturday leagueor $240 for both.
Weeknight games start at 5:30p.m. and take place Monday,Tuesday and Thursday, whileSaturday games begin at 9a.m. The season runs throughSeptember.
For information, visitwww.GCSSASoftball.org.
— The Union staff
National
■ Greg Biffle wins pole at Bristol Motor Speedway
BRISTOL, Tenn. — Greg Biffleknows he won’t be perfect allseason.
He’ll take what he can get rightnow.
The Sprint Cup points leadercontinued his strong start to theseason Friday by winning thepole at Bristol Motor Speedway.
“I know this isn’t going to lastall season, but I’m enjoying thehell out of it right now,” Bifflesaid.
He turned a lap of 125.215mph in his Roush FenwayRacing Ford to take the topqualifying spot for Sunday’srace. Biffle has opened the sea-son with three third-placefinishes, and has not qualifiedlower than ninth.
“I gotta pinch myself. I think I’mdreaming,” he said. “I’m havinga great time, the time of mylife.”
■ Phillies release pitcher Dontrelle Willis
BRADENTON, Fla. — ThePhiladelphia Phillies havereleased left-handed pitcherDontrelle Willis.
The team announced the moveFriday on Twitter.
The 30-year-old Willis signed adeal with the Phillies this offsea-son and was competing for abullpen spot this spring.
A two-time All Star with theFlorida Marlins, Willis has pitchedfor four teams in nine seasons,all of them as a starter. ThePhillies signed him to a nonguar-anteed contract in December,and according to the PhiladelphiaInquirer, he will receive $139,000in severance pay.
— Associated Press
Sponsored by:SUBURBAN PROPANE
12575 CHARLES DRIVE, GRASS VALLEY (530) 273-6113
www.suburbanpropane.com
PLAYER WEEKPLAYER WEEKOF THEOF THE
SUBMITTED TO THE UNION
This week saw the first pre-season test for the new FormulaRenault 3.5 car at Paul RicardCircuit in southern France.
American driver AlexanderRossi began what he hopes is hischampionship charge onTuesday when he took to thetrack with his new team, ArdenCaterham Motorsport, for themaiden outing in World Series
by Renault.Rossi, who was recently
announced as official test driverfor the Caterham F1 team,completed the two-day test feel-ing comfortable with his No. 25car’s reliability and handling.
However, technical andnew car teething issues on thesecond day hindered the power-ful performance for which hewas striving.
“Our initial shakedown test
this week in Paul Ricard withthe new car and team, ArdenCaterham, was productive inmany ways but also had it’s upand downs,” said Rossi. “On dayone, we were near the top of thetime sheets most of the day, as Ihad a lot of confidence with theteam and getting the most outof the car.”
The first day provided dryconditions for the rookie team,
Preseason starterRossi has ‘ups and downs’ on initial run
BY STEVE REED
AP Sports Writer
GREENSBORO, N.C. — TheLehigh Mountain Hawks said theyweren’t afraid of mighty Duke.
Maybe no one believed them at thetime, but the Patriot League championsproved they were serious.
C.J. McCollum scored 30 pointsand Lehigh upset Duke 75-70 tobecome the second No. 15 seed to beata No. 2 during a wild Friday in theNCAA tournament.
“It means a lot as a team, a familyand as the Patriot League in general,”
McCollum said. “We wanted to comeout here and protect this team and thisfamily, get the win and we did thattonight.”
Lehigh forward John Adams said itwas a matter of believing in each other.
The Mountain Hawks are the sixth15 seed overall to pull off the trick.Norfolk State edged Missouri 86-84 inthe West Regional earlier in the day, andNo. 13 seed Ohio knocked offMichigan to add to the madness.
Lehigh stuns Duke on day of upsets
■ PREP VOLLEYBALL■ LOCAL ROUNDUP
■ NCAA BASKETBALL
THE UNION STAFF
Nevada Union’s diving team took onGranite Bay earlier this week, and Minersjunior Adam Seifert took first place in thevarsity boys competition.
Zack Manes placed third, and LloydTom finished in fourth in the varsity compe-tition.
On the girls side, freshman MikaelaLujan, competing in her first high schoolmeet, came away with third place in the girlsvarsity meet.
Also placing for the NU girls wereBrandi Chambers in fourth and JessicaAlberts in fifth.
Jenny Jones and Kristin Burgess finishedin first and second, respectively, in the juniorvarsity girls competition.Coaches may submit game reports by email [email protected] or by phone at (530) 477-4232.Deadline for submissions is 10 p.m. Monday throughFriday and 5 p.m. Sunday.
NU’s Seifertwins divingcompetition
WALTER FORD
Sports Writer
Off to a 4-0 start in non-league play and yet to dropa set, the Nevada Union
boys volleyball team is brimmingwith confidence and gunning for aSac-Joaquin Section title in 2012.
“I want to win sections, and Ithink we have the talent to do it,”team captain Bobby Curtis said.“We all have the drive to win sec-tions this year.”
It’s a lofty goal for a team that
finished fourth in the Sierra FoothillLeague and out of postseason playlast season, but a goal that headcoach Marco Salcedo considersobtainable.
In his eighth year with the NUprogram, Salcedo said that themarch toward the Miners’ first sec-tion title begins with defense.
“I want to be one of the bestdefensive teams out there,” he said.“That’s what wins championships.Other teams have guys like us thatcan hit. I want to beat them with ourdefense.”
Salcedo may have the size andexperience to be the best defensiveteam in the league this season.
The Miners lost only one sen-ior from last year and return ninevarsity players from the 2011 squad.Their experience and size at the nethas NU believing it will grab its firstleague title since 2009 and first eversection title.
“We all grew as players,” Curtissaid. “We grew physically and men-tally, and we all learned how to playour game.”
‘The drive to win’Nevada Union boys volleyball team has eyes on the prize
■ GYMNASTICS
SUBMITTED TO THE UNION
The Gold Country Gymnastics boysteam recently hosted the 2012 FoothillsClassic, which included levels 5 through 10.
Jeffery Wagnecht tied for third place onpommel with a score of 13.7 and placedfourth on rings with a 13.9 in the Level 5competition. He finished with an all-aroundscore of 81.7. Chance Bacon placed fifth onparallel bars with a 13.4 and had a 14.1 onvault to finish with an all around of 73.6.
Competing at Level 6, Rhett Miller tiedfor first on high bar with 15 and took secondon pommel and parallel bars with 14.7 and13.7, respectively. Miller tied for second forfloor with 14.7 and scored 14.1 on rings and14.7 on vault. He finished in second place allaround with a score of 86.9.
Joshua Hartman took first on rings witha 14.2, third for pommel with a 13.3 andthird on parallel bars with a 12.3. Hartmanfinished with an all around of 79.
Nathan Arthur took fourth place with a14.0 on rings and tied for fourth on high barwith 14.3 to finish with an all around of 78.4.Jacob Pardini earned a fourth-place tie forparallel bars with an 11.8, scored a 13.6 onvault and finished with a 72.8 all around.
At Level 8, Nathan Hunt finished infirst on vault with a 12.6, first on parallel barswith a 12.7 and second on floor with a 12.9to finish the day with a 71.8 all around.Joshua Cooley took first on floor with a 13.4,second on vault with a 12.2 and scored a 60.5all around.
Jeremy Hunt competed at Level 9, scor-ing 13.0 on parallel bars, 12.9 on floor and12.8 on vault to take first place all aroundwith 73.2.
Closing things out for the squad, in theLevel 10 competition, Steven Whittleseyscored 13.8 on floor, 12.9 on high bar, 12.9on parallel bars for first place with an all-
Gold Countryholds 2012Foothills Classic
■ MOTOR SPORTS
Submitted photo
Alexander Rossi sits in his car before a preseason World Series testearlier in the week at Paul Ricard Circuit in southern France.
Photo for The Union by John Hart
Bear River’s Jed Lyon, left, and Tim Wong go up for a block during a volleyball match against Nevada Union Wednesdayin Ali Gym.
Photo for The Union by John Hart
Bobby CurtisNevada Union volleyballIn two games this week, BobbyCurtis led the Miners in kills, with12 in a match against Jesuit onTuesday and 10 against Bear Riveron Wednesday. Curtis added twoaces against Jesuit, and NevadaUnion won both games.
AP photo
From left, Lehigh’s Gabe Knutson, B.J. Bailey, Jordan Hamilton, Holden Greiner,John Adams and Justin Maneri celebrate after winning an NCAA tournament sec-ond-round game against Duke Friday in Greensboro, N.C. No. 15 seeded Lehighbeat No. 2 seeded Duke, 75-70.
■ Check out all the action fromFriday’s wild NCAA Tournamentgames, Page B2.
INSIDE
See ROSSI B2
See VOLLEYBALL B2
See GYMNASTICS B2
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