October 31, 2006 - Volume 15, No. 44

a Winkler Company publication

Also featuring photos from our monthly supplement...

'Runnymeade' - The Talbott Home

Jills cross country headed to state; Jacks finish 12th overall at regional

By H.W. Sizek

On Saturday, the Oakwood High School Cross Country Team traveled to Troy to participate in the OHSAA Southwest Regional Tournament. On a course modified to account for high water from the Miami River, teams from sixteen high schools battled strong winds in an attempt to qualify for the State tournament.

For the first time in Oakwood Cross Country history, the Jills qualified for the State Cross Country Championships. In fourth place, just six points behind Dayton Carroll, the Jills were led by Julia Sizek and Dani Reese who finished sixth and seventh respectively. Elizabeth Connelly finished eighteenth overall. Liz Whalen (70th) and Natalie Denka (88th) rounded out the scoring for Jills. Kara Hamilton and Shannon Hallinan were the other runners for Oakwood.

State Qualifying Girls Cross Country team, left to right: Liz Whalen, Dani Reese, Kara Hamilton, Shannon Hallinan, Elizabeth Connelly, Natalie Denka and Julia Sizek.

The Jacks ran earlier in the Boys Division II race and finished twelfth. Jon Taylor led the Jacks finishing thirtieth. Peter Hix and Gabe Svobodny finished fifty-eighth and sixty-eighth respectively. Chris Wolcott (112th) and Marc Skill (115th) were the final scorers for the Oakwood runners. Jason Hewer and Scott Slivken were the other two runners for the Jacks.

Next Saturday, Coach Bryan Ammer, Coach Holly DeHaven and the Oakwood Cross Country Girls travel to Scioto Downs in Columbus to compete in the Division II Ohio State Cross Country Championships. Race time is 2 p.m. Go Jills!

Junior High Jills make field hockey history with 8-2-0 season

SWBL Champion 2006 Oakwood Jr. High field hockey team.

The Oakwood Junior High field hockey team topped off their undefeated regular season by winning the league championship 6-0 over Van Buren Middle School. Finishing the season plus a playoff win with eight wins, two ties and no losses, they outscored their competition 35 to 4.

This is the Jills’ first championship since 1998 and their only undefeated season in recorded history.

The tournament began two weeks before under ideal Fall conditions as Oakwood shut out Summit Country Day (4-0). Many rainy days later, the final game was played amongst snow flurries and a wind chill factor in the 30’s.

The Jills dominated play in the first half, both defensively by minimizing Van Burens penetration into Oakwood territory, and offensively by having numerous shots on the opponent’s goal. Neither team was able to score as the half ended in a 0-0 tie.

The second half started out slowly but then the Oakwood Field Hockey machinebegan to execute with both power and precision. The Jills speed and constant pressure took their toll as seventh grade forward Hanna French began the scoring several minutes in. She would complete the half with a coveted “hat trick” of three goals and end the season as the teams second leading scorer. The teams leading scorer for the year was her sister eighth grade forward Sara French who scored two goals on the day. Eighth grade forward Ali Taylor supplied one goal but more importantly, supplied consistent ball handling and speed which kept Van Buren on the defensive.

The prettiest play of the game was the Jills fifth goal...a beautiful pass by eighth grader Hayley Bassnet across the Van Buren goalie to the left side of the goal where Sara French was waiting to slap in the first of her scores. Eighth grade goalkeeper Amy Beck and her fellow defensive players: eighth graders Carly Browing and Andrea Denka and seventh grader Nicole Maher continued their stinginess allowing just three shots on Oakwood’s goal.

The game was won in the midfield by the play of eightth graders Amy Thie and Anna McGovern and seventh graders Sarah Zabarnick and Mary Oda. Their aggressive play fed the ball to the sticks of the forward players all game and kept most of the play in front of the Jills defense. The season results for the Oakwood team was a direct result of the work that the girls put in from two-a-day practices before the season till the last whistle of the championship game.

An emotional Coach Mitch Miller reminisced at the Fall Sports Recognition Night how before the season he outlined three goals for the year: 1) Learn the fundamentals of field hockey and team play, 2) Develop some passion and love for the game, and 3) Have fun. Winning is a nice byproduct of achieving these goals.

top of page