The Press Enterprise
Winning a CIF championship is a rarely reached goal of young athletes. If they win, and I think they will, it will be the third CIF title in Hemet High girls sports in two school years.
In the fall of 2010, the Hemet High volleyball team won the first girls CIF championship in the history of the school, which dates to the 1890s. The championship squad included players who immediately pulled off their volleyball shoes and laced up soccer cleats for another season of competition. They kicked their way to the semifinals of the CIF playoffs, but lost one game short of the title match.
This school year, the Hemet High volleyball team seemed to be in a rebuilding mode after only four players returned from the CIF championship squad. The team suffered a blow when emerging star hitter Baylee Christian was lost for the season with a severe knee injury she suffered in her first match. Christian, who also plays soccer, is recovering well following surgery.
With new players stepping mightily to the challenge, and working cohesively as a team, they repeated as CIF volleyball champions. Eight players from the school’s volleyball program made the quick switch to the soccer roster. They kept winning.
Tuesday, during halftime of Coach Craig Dwinnell’s soccer team’s narrow 2-1 semifinal victory over an aggressive South Pasadena High team, I asked assistant volleyball coach Mark Self if the soccer and volleyball teams win because unusually gifted athletes arrived at Hemet High.
Self is a veteran physical education instructor at Valle Vista Elementary school. He has seen classes of Hemet High athletes for a long time. He watched the match intently because his daughter, Tristan Self, a highly regarded setter on the volleyball team, is a key player on the soccer squad.
He said there always are good athletes at the school. What makes these girls different is attitude.
“This is an unusual group,” he said. “They are very, very coachable.
“There are a lot of kids who won’t do what you tell them. They do what we ask them in volleyball, soccer. They are a nice group of kids. Their parents are very supportive. They get them to practice.”
They also are great athletes. Their speed was evident in the first half when they scored two goals. Their toughness was on display in the second half when the South Pasadena side, facing elimination, played rough and launched a barrage of shots on the Hemet goal.
Hemet players leapt to their feet after collisions and kept playing hard. South Pasadena scored, narrowing Hemet’s lead to one goal. The final 22 minutes of the match seemed like two hours. Hemet, playing strong defense, prevailed.
Senior star Rosie Robinson was relieved, but not surprised. She is accustomed to winning. The swift forward also was a gifted back-row defensive standout on the two CIF champion volleyball teams.
If they win, Robinson will not have just three crowns. She also was crowned homecoming queen last fall.
She thinks the soccer team has what it takes to win a soccer title. One key, she said, is that talented younger players are willing to take direction from the team’s veterans and coaches.
“The girls who got pulled up to varsity did so well. They are so coachable,” she said. “If we tell them to fix something, they will do what it takes to fix it.”
I sure hope they are rewarded with another title. They deserve it.
Reach Bob Pratte at 951-763-3452, [email protected] or 3400 Wentworth Drive, Hemet CA 92545. And follow Bob on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PE.BobPratte and Twitter: @bpratte
Bob Pratte