Jarvis JargOnline 2005: Sports
Bulldog Baseball Expectations Set on High
Judge Concepcion
Beat It, Bettman!
Sathyan Arulvarathan
Sports in Brief
Batter Up!
Bulldog Baseball Expectations Set on High
Judge Concepcion
The Jarvis Baseball Team is hoping to repeat last season’s success, but this year they hope to raise the bar even higher. After their early playoff exit last year in the first round, they remain poised to come back and better that performance. This year, they mean business.
The Bulldogs return with its core group from last season and a few fresh faces stepping in. “I expect big things this year. We have enough talent to go far,” states Alex Irving, who is going to be joining the team this coming spring.
Many of the Jarvis players feel that they should’ve done better last season, and know what it will take to improve on last year’s record. “I expect our team to first and foremost be competitive in each game and to never go down without a fight. Other than that, I expect us to first make the playoffs and then to move on from last year’s pre-mature defeat in the first round,” declared a confident Kris Oak, who started many of Jarvis’s games on the mound. “Our team is very capable of taking the division when we’re at the top of our game and staying error-free.”
Coach Barry Ross shares a similar view. “We have to pick up where we left off last year, skills and attitude-wise, continue to improve. If we do that, there is no reason why we can’t beat any team in the loop. The ultimate goal: winning the championship. There were a lot of things we worked on doing right last year. However, due to the shortness of the season, we didn’t quite have some of those things down pat. This year, I’d like to see the team build on what they did right, work on some new things we didn’t and couldn’t do last year.”
Many of the players are already focusing on this upcoming season. They all know that if they want to achieve their goal of attaining a championship for the school they’ll need as much time as they can get to focus and better their game.
When asked what his expectations were for this upcoming season, Oak replied, “My goals for the team are simple: making the playoffs and going on from there. I think winning games isn’t a question for us. We know what we’re capable of and know we’re a playoff contender. The season will sort of be like a warm up for us because I believe in our team and we know, with the right direction from Coach Ross, we will be doing big things.”
Oak also discussed the strengths and weaknesses of the team. “We had a pretty solid infield, and our team chemistry was great, so we could definitely work with all that this year. But we lacked a solid outfield, as well as fundamentals. Our hitting wasn’t too bad, but it’s something we’ll definitely need to work on.” He also commented on the focus and commitment of the team last year. “In order for us to get far, we’ll need to be more committed to the team. Some players took days off from practices. We can’t do that. And sometimes we weren’t focused enough; we joked around too much. We underestimated a lot of teams, and I think that got to us at times.”
Coach Ross is someone who expects the most out of his players, but still understands the importance of having fun. He also knows how to work with each player’s strengths and weaknesses, often helping to improve the latter. But this won’t have any effect on the team chemistry at all, since last season the players learned about each other and established a bond. This certainly will not change.
Coach Ross is optimistic. “I thought the guys last year were great, and I’d love to finish the job we started last year, that is, developing into the top team, and winning it all.”
So, with most of last year’s Bulldogs returning, plus a few new promising players, Jarvis’s sights are set right on the prize, especially Oak’s: “It’s not out of the picture, but its not going to be a breeze even getting to the championship game. I think we do have a good chance and we’re going to have our minds set on it, so hopefully we can pull it off and give Jarvis and ourselves something to be proud of!” And teams to look out for? “I heard Humberside has a pretty solid squad, good pitching. But other than them, every other team is beatable.”
Barry concurs. “I certainly hope most of last year’s team had a good enough time that they want to come back. I’m expecting most to return, and winning the championship this year is definitely a strong possibility….That’s not right. Not just a possibility, we are going to win.” Apparently, that’s how the rest of the team feels, too. Look for the Jarvis Bulldog baseball team’s season to be big this year. Very big.
BEAT IT, BETTMAN!
Sathyan Arulvarathan
Jarvis fans are on the edge of their seats - one minute left on the clock, tensions mount, you can feel your heart racing - Toronto scores! The next morning the school is clustered with people wearing Leaf jerseys, your friends regale you with a play-by-play of the game. Oh wait, that was last season.
By now, many of us die-hard hockey fans realize there will not be a season this year. Well, at least those who have been keeping up with the news. The lockout was enforced as a "safety precaution", according to Gary Bettman, the Commissioner of the NHL.
It all started with the expiration of the 1995 collective bargaining agreement. Team owners complained that soaring player salaries were losing them revenue, claiming that in the 2002-03 season alone they lost $273 million among them. They proposed several measures to the players' union to achieve 'cost certainty' (revenue gains), but the union declined, fearing that they all contained some form of a salary cap.
According to ESPN, Gary Bettman said that this proposal was made by the owners, and that he only enforced it. He further elaborated by saying that cost- certainty measures were necessary in preserving the league. When September 16th rolled around, and no agreement had been reached, the owners instigated a lockout.
After months of negotiations, the Players' Association (NHLPA) was preparing to go as low as a salary cap of $49 million per team, as opposed to the NHL's proposed $42.5 million. Evidently, the fury of last minute re-negotiations failed and so confirmed the cancellation of the season.
As a result, the camaraderie, passion, and competitiveness that many of us found in the NHL has been decimated, leaving us, the loyal hockey fans, with a void. Some say the cancellation was the fault of the owners.
Grade 10 student, Mannu Chowdhury, says, "The players are making an attempt to compromise, whereas the owners are unwilling to budge."
Sharhiar Salehuddin agrees. "The owners are losing money, they should have agreed on a compromise a long time ago. It's common sense. They will be more affected than the players."
Fortunately for the European league, our loss is their gain, as the lockout has proven to be beneficial for their league. Many of their hometown heroes have returned because of this dilemma. According to ESPN, the European NHL players seem happy to be back and to be near their friends and family.
At Jarvis, many of us have found ways of coping with this change, like Mannu who states that he watched other sports like the NFL and NBA. Others cope by watching minor league hockey, or by participating in, and or cheering on local hockey games and tournaments.
Negotiations continue, and Commissioner Gary Bettman is optimistic of a season next year. Now it's important that both sides keep communicating, and see that even though this season is lost, there's a future that needs to be built.
Besides, there's always next season.
Sports in Brief
With the winter season coming to an end, here’s a look at how Jarvis teams measured up.
The Varsity Boys’ Hockey Team finished their regular season in seventh place with a record of 2 - 6 - 2. They went on to play second-place Danforth in a quarter finals match, and took the game into overtime in the best-played game of the year. Danforth ended the game with a goal, however, and went on to win in the finals against Western Tech.
In the Pool
After an excellent regular season, the Swim Team went on to finish 7th overall in the city finals. Eleven swimmers from the team of twenty qualified for OFSAA, and went on to race with the best in the province at the Etobicoke Olympia.
Congratulations to Ran Ran (17th), Roman Shapurko (4th), and Jessica Jung (12th) for their top placements.
On the Court
Both Junior and Senior Basketball Teams made it to the playoffs. After finishing the season 5 and 4, the Junior Boys lost in the quarters to Central Commerce. The team looks to improve next year with key players moving up from Bantam, especially Cleon Wong and Charlie Lindsay. For the Seniors it was an impressive regular season record of 6 and 2. They beat Central Commerce in the quarter finals, and lost in a close game to the Eastern Commerce Saints in the semi-finals (who went on to win in the finals against Oakwood). They also had tournament success this season winning at Runnymede and making it to the finals at their own Jarvis Invitational.
In Girls’ Volleyball, the Seniors finished 2 and 4, while the Juniors finished 5 and 3, making it to the quarter finals. Both teams saw tremendous progress in teamwork and positioning, and hope to improve their standings for next season.
With the Toronto South Region Finals coming up in April, the Archery Team hopes to improve their 2nd (for the Boys’) and 7th (for the Girls’) place finish. Sights are set high on Nicholas Klups, Wendy
Zhou and Lily Tarba, who have all finished first in their two competitions this season against Central Tech and Humberside.
Likewise, the Jarvis Cheerleading Team is gearing up for the competition at Wonderland on May 14th, which will host over 100 teams from southern Ontario. The team has been busy performing at all basketball home games, and in their first competition placed 4th in their division.
The JHL concluded on March 11th in a much anticipated showdown between the two top undefeated teams, Original Six and Dynasty. The game was close at times, with Coty Zacharia (Dynasty) and Mr.
Veilleux (Original Six) both scoring 5 goals, but in the end it was Dynasty who took the game 10 to 5.
On the Stage
Competing for their third year in the Canadian Improv Games, the Jarvis Improv Team finished with a bronze in their zone playoff. The team then went on to compete at the Jane Mallet Theatre in the Toronto Regionals, but did not make it into the top five spots.
Coming up in the spring season:
Boys’ Baseball
Girls’ Softball
Ultimate Frisbee
Synchronized Swimming
Girls’ Soccer
Badminton
Track and Field
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