Sports at Lunch with Raiders-Chargers Rivalry
Breitbard Stars of the Month, July, 2006
- PROFESSIONALS
- Baseball and surfing
JOSH BARFIELD (Baseball, Padres) – The rookie second baseman was named the National League Rookie of the Month after he hit .400 (40 for 100) for July. He was leading all National Leaguers in hits for the month before his 40 hits finished second to the 45 by Chase Utley that was part of Utley’s 35-game hitting streak. Barfield also set a Padres rookie record for hits in a month. His month included scoring 16 runs, eight doubles, one triple, three home runs and 13 RBI. His on-base percentage was .435 and his slugging percentage .590. He had at least one hit in 21 of 26 games. One of his eight doubles came when he stretched a miss-played blooper into a two-bagger and scored the winning run of an 11-game on July 24 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. His overall average at the end of July was .296.
SCHUYLER McFERRAN (Surfing, Encinitas) – The sophomore at Point Loma Nazarene College won the Roxy ASP Women’s World Longboarding Championship in on July 8 in Biarritz, France. McFerren won all eight of her heats in the international surfing competition. She earned a $4,500 first-place check from the $30,000 purse.
ROB MACHADO (Surfing, Cardiff-by-the-Sea) – The surfing icon won his third career U.S. Open of Surfing title on July 30 in Huntington Beach with the highest two scores in the final. Machado, whose previous titles were in 1995 and 2001, earned $15,000 for the victory. His performance included his signature 360-degree spin at the end of his final ride.
ADAM MANDEL (Baseball, San Diego SurfDawgs) – The versatile infielder and outfielder finished July leading the Golden Baseball League in hitting with a .345 average (80-of-232). He also was named the GBL Player of the Week for the week of July 17-23 when he hit .471 (8-for-17). On July 21 he was 5-for-5 with two runs scored and two RBIs in a 6-2 win over Fullerton. That league win followed a 5-for-5 performance in the GBL All-Star game on July 18. He’s played first base, second base, all three outfield spots and designated-hitter this season.
CARLOS QUENTIN (Baseball, Arizona Diamondbacks/University High) – Quentin hit a two-run home run in his major league debut to help the Diamondbacks to a 5-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was called up on July 20 from Triple A Tucson, where he was hitting .289 with 9 home runs, 52 RBI in 85 games with the Sidewinders. Less than a week later, Quentin hit his third home run to lead off the bottom of the 11th inning in a 6-5 win over Philadelphia that kept the D-Backs 1 ½ games behind the Padres for first place in the National League West. The 6-foot-1, 225-pound right-handed hitting outfielder hit .320 for the month (.375 vs. right-handers) with four home runs and 11 RBIs. Quentin was a first-round draft pick in 2003 as an All-American out of Stanford.
BARRY ZITO (Baseball, Oakland A’s/University High) – The 2002 Cy Young Award winner was named to his third All-Star team in his seventh big-league season. He pitched one inning, allowing no hits and no runs. Zito finished the month with a record of 11-7 and a 3.61 ERA. He was the subject of trade rumors when he won his July 29 start two days before the trade deadline. When he was relived in the July 29 game, A’s fans demanded a curtain call for fear it would be his final appearance at McAfee Stadium (he wasn’t traded). He previously was named to the All-Star team in 2002 and 2003.
KRISTIE FOX (Softball, Arizona/Mt. Carmel High) – The Arizona junior shortstop followed up leading the Wildcats to the NCAA title by helping USA Softball bring home a gold medal from the World University Games played July 15-23 in Taiwan. Fox was the only San Diegan named to the U.S. team through a tryout process at the Olympic Training Center. She was a regular in the lineup and had an RBI double for a 2-1 lead in a 3-2 eight-inning win over Japan that advanced the Americans to the gold medal game. The U.S. beat Taiwan in the gold medal game, 4-3. In Fox’s college season, she was named a first-team All-American for the second straight season by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association. The All-Pac-10 pick finished the year hitting .386 while leading the Wildcats in home runs (15), RBIs (66), total bases (131) and slugging percentage (.665). Arizona beat Northwestern in the NCAA final to finish with a 54-11 record.
RACHEL BUEHLER (Soccer, Stanford/Torrey Pines High) – The Stanford senior was a starting defender who helped the USA Women’s Under-21 national team bring home a silver medal at the 16th annual Nordic Cup in Stavanger, Norway. Buehler’s defensive play was praised by USA coach Jillian Ellis following shutouts in the quarterfinals and semifinals before the U.S. fell to Germany in the final. Buehler, who played on the U.S. gold medal team at the 2005 Nordic Cup, was competing in her second Nordic Cup and has played in 34 international matches in her career. She also played for the U.S. team in the Under-19 World Championships. As a junior at Stanford she was a second-team All-Pac-10 pick.
RACHEL THROOP (Cycling, Cal State San Marcos/Valley Center High) – Throop won the USA. Mountain Biking National Championship in the 18-and-under cross country division on July 15 in Sonoma. The college freshman qualified as a member of the U.S. Cycling team for the World Championships in August in Rotorua, New Zealand. She is a veteran of junior national events, but this will be her first international competition.
TOM WHELAN (Over-the-Line, San Diego) – WThe Over-the-Line World Championships have become a San Diego institution with the 53rd annual tournament played over two weekends last month. Tom Whelan became the all-time leader in career tournament titles when his team, The Pennant, won the Cannever Division (50-and-over). It was Whelan’s 13th career victory, breaking a tie for 12. He has won four Cannever titles, two in Canardly (40 and over) and seven in Century (three players at least 30 and equally at 100 or more). Whelan played baseball at Crawford High, San Diego City College, San Diego State and four years in the Chicago Cubs organization. One of his teammates at Crawford was Dave Duncan, the St. Louis Cardinals pitching coach and former Major Leaguer.
ALEX SCATTAREGGIA, (Volleyball, Rancho Bernardo High) – The Seaside Volleyball Club setter, a senior in the fall, helped Seaside Black win the Boys 18 national championship at the 2006 USA Junior Olympics Boys Volleyball Championships July 5-12 in Minneapolis. Scattarreggia earned All-American honors as a member of the all-tournament team. Seaside defeated a club from Santa Clarita in the final 25-17, 23-25 and 15-11.
LaSHAWN JOHNSON (Basketball, Mount Miguel High) – The 5-foot-9 guard/forward, a senior in the fall, led the Matadors to the best finish among San Diego schools in the 3A Division of the 20th annual San Diego Classic July 20-23 at sites around San Diego. The 3A division was the elite division for an event that is the largest high school girls basketball tournament in the nation with 376 teams. Mount Miguel was the runner-up after winning its pool and six games overall before falling to Diamond Ranch in the 3A final. Johnson’s balanced game in scoring, rebounding and assists led the Matadors throughout the tournament. It was the first time Mount Miguel advanced to a San Diego Classic championship game.
PHILIP STABACK (Football, West Hills High) – Staback was named the South’s Most Valuable Player after leading his team to a 20-19 comeback win over the North in 16th annual Alex Spanos All-Star Football Classic on July 14 at Mesa College. The West Hills quarterback, who will continue his football career in the fall at Whittier College, scored two touchdowns in the final minute of the game. The first was on 1-yard run with 51 seconds to play that followed a 36-yard pass completion. After the South recovered an onside kick, he completed a 24-yard pass to the 4-yard line. He scored from the 4 with 17 seconds remaining when he scrambled to his left and extended the nose of the ball across the goal line just before he was pushed out of bounds. The All-Grossmont North League pick completed 6-of-9 passes for 100 yards.
SEQUOYAH STONECIPHER (Baseball, Mission Bay High) – The 6-foot-1, 185-pound right-handed hitting outfielder, a senior in the fall, was one of 38 high school juniors named to play Aflac All-American High School Classic played on Aug. 12 at San Diego State’s Tony Gwynn Stadium. Stonecipher was an All-CIF first-team pick at Mission Bay High last spring. He earned an invitation to the USA Junior National team tryouts for the World Junior Championships in September in Cuba.
