cal sports quarterly summer 2012 issue

SUMMER 2012 1

DEPARTMENTSLETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS ................................. 2

SIDELINE REPORT .............................................................................. 4

FOOTBALL GALA .............................................................................. 16

SEASON REVIEWS ........................................................................... 18

ATHLETIC DEVELOPMENT ............................................................... 22

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? ................................................................ 24

ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT .............................................................. 34

Dedication Conquers All 28From the moment she stepped foot on the Cal campus, Kara Kohler already had her sights set on something bigger. The East Bay native came to Berkeley from Clayton Valley High School seek-ing success on the international and Olympic lev-els. And just two years after taking up rowing, the 20-year-old Kohler has earned that opportunity.

Have a Little Faith 30As someone who has had no problem cutting through the water at high speeds, NCAA champi-on Caitlin Leverenz has relied on her faith to stay afloat throughout her illustrious swimming career. To help her confront trials and obstacles along her journey, Leverenz turned to a higher power to draw the strength and wisdom she has needed.

No Time for Rest 10Summers are typically a time of rest and relaxation for a college student, unless of course you are Betsy Hassett. The Cal soccer senior has spent her last three “offseasons” in Chile, South Korea, Germa-ny, New Zealand and Australia. You can add Great Britain to the list this summer as she will be com-peting for her native New Zealand in the Olympic Games.

Read to Soar 14In 2009, Ryan Young set a school record in the javelin with a throw of 250 feet, 10 inches. A year later, he could barely throw a stick of gum across a room. Yet despite his recent predicament, major elbow surgery followed by months of rehab and training have returned the Cal graduate to the elite list of throwers.

Team at Lacrosse Road 22Young and full of promise, Cal lacrosse continues to solidify itself not just as a team that excels on the field and in the classroom, but also as a program committed to financial sustainability. Golden Bear lacrosse bounced back from the brink of elimina-tion in 2010-11 thanks to dedicated student-ath-letes, a talented new coach and passionate members of the Cal community.

Octolympian 8Just about every kid dreams of standing on a podium, the National Anthem playing in the background as an Olym-pic medal is being draped around the neck. Every kid, that is, except California men’s crew coach Mike Teti. Yet af-ter a change of heart in college, Teti will be taking part in his eighth Olympiad when he coaches the U.S. men’s eight this summer in London.

CONTENTS

ON THE COVER

SPORTSQUARTERLY

FEATURES

Summer 2012

2 cal SpoRtS qUaRtERly

Dear Friend of Cal Athletics:

One of the more fortunate aspects of being a part of Cal Athletics is the ability to celebrate national championships seemingly every year. In fact, since men’s water polo captured its first NCAA title in the fall of 1973, we have seen at least

one Golden Bear team or individual reach the pinnacle of collegiate athletic success 39 years in a row.

Achievements in the pool this past March added to the run when our men’s and women’s swimming & diving programs repeated as NCAA champions. Together, they combined for an additional 13 individual or relay titles, and we will commemorate their accomplishments, along with gymnast Glen Ishino’s NCAA pommel horse crown, during our annual National Championship Week that will culminate with a halftime ceremony during the Sept. 29 Arizona State football game.

As we all realize, these accomplishments do not come without tremendous sacrifice, dedication and hard work, from the student-athletes themselves, to the coaches, athletic trainers, academic advisors and the countless other support staff that make their successes possible.

The list of people who impact the lives of our student-athletes is almost endless. At Cal, we strive to be the best at everything we do, and it is that desire to excel that drives us every single day.

This summer, much of our attention will shift to the international stage with the start of the Olympic Games in London on July 27, and once again, we will have a host of Cal coaches, student-athletes and alumni showing the world what it means to be a Golden Bear. Two of our current head coaches – Teri McKeever (women’s swimming) and Mike Teti (men’s rowing) – will be leading their respective U.S. teams, and they will be joined by dozens of others representing Cal and their home countries in a wide variety of venues.

Four years ago in Beijing, 46 Golden Bears participated or coached at the Olympians and together, they brought home 17 medals – a school record and a total that would put Cal 16th in the final medal count had we been our own country. Although we certainly can’t make any predictions for this year, I fully expect that we will be well-represented once again when the final tally is made. I invite you to follow our coverage of the Games online at Cal-Bears.com/Olympics for regular recaps, videos and blog entries about the Bears in London.

The opportunity to compete at a very high level is one of the factors that enables Cal to attract the most talented student-athletes in the world. Golden Bears stand alongside the best in the nation both on the field of play and in the class-room, and the dual devotion to academics and athletics means they have the chance to shine in Berkeley and beyond.

Very soon, the world will get another chance to see and hear from Golden Bears at the Olympic Games where they will undoubtedly showcase the excellence of the University and its students-athletes. It’s an event that comes around once every four years, but it’s one where people around the globe will learn what we experience every day. I hope you will join me in following our Bears in the Olympics and experiencing the pride that comes from their accomplishments

Go Bears!

Sandy BarbourDirector of Athletics

Issue 40 - Summer 2012

ATHLETIC ADMINISTRATION

DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS:Sandy Barbour

DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS/ CHIEF OF STAFF:

Teresa Kuehn Gould

DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS/COO:Solly Fulp

SENIOR ASSOCIATE AD/INTERCOLLEGIATE SERVICES:Foti Mellis

HIGH PERFORMANCE DIRECTOR:Keith Power

CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICER:Darcy Heppenstall

ASSOICATE AD/BUSINESS:Laura Hazlett

ASSOCIATE AD/BUSINESS & REVENUE DEVELOPMENT:

Matt Terwilliger

ASSOCIATE AD/HUMAN RESOURCES & FINANCIAL SERVICES:

Dawn Howard

EDITORIAL STAFF349 Haas Pavilion

Berkeley, CA 94720

EDITOR:Herb Benenson

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS:Scott Ball, Dean Caparaz, Doug Drabik, Melissa

Dudek, Anton Malko, Kyle McRae, Tim Miguel, Anna Oleson-Wheeler, Jeremy Wu

DESIGN:Evan Kerr

PHOTOGRAPHY:John Todd (GoldenBearSports.com), Michael Pimentel, Michael Burns, Richard Ersted, Don Feria, John Dunbar,

Evan Kerr, Kelley Cox, Mollie McClure, Tim Binning, Mike Wondolowski, and Patrick Merrill among others

ATHLETIC DEVELOPMENT OFFICE195 Haas Pavilion

Berkeley, CA 94720 (510) 642-2427

[email protected]

ATHLETIC TICKET OFFICE(800) GO BEARS

For daily updates on Cal Athletics, including schedules, press releases and player profiles, visit the depart-

ment’s official website at CalBears.com.

ON THE COVERMen’s crew coach Mike Teti has been a part of the

U.S. Olympic team, either as a rower or coach, since the 1984 Games in Los Angeles. Photo by Don Feria

(GoldenBearSports.com).

LETTER from Director of Athletics sAnDy BArBour

General Manager: Damon Dukakis

(510) 643-4825 [email protected]

The Cal Sports Quarterly is published four times per year by the University of California Athletic Department.

Now, every Sunday in The San Francisco Examiner

Cal Popular Choice for New Pac-12 Networks

Gold Standard Season-Ticket Holder Profile: Fred Ponce

With more than 35 appearances on the Pac-12 Networks this fall, the Golden Bears will receive more television exposure

than ever before.Three of Cal’s first four football games –

Nevada, Southern Utah and USC – will air on the new venture, with five other fall sports also receiving live coverage. Field Hockey will be the first Golden Bear team to ap-pear on the Pac-12 Networks when Cal hosts Maryland on Aug. 24. The squad will be tele-vised an additional three times in the fall.

In addition, volleyball (9 matches), men’s soccer (8), women’s soccer (10), men’s water polo (2). Schedules for other sports will be released as they become available.

The Pac-12 Networks launch Aug. 15 and will consist of one national and six regional networks devoted solely to the Pac-12.

In addition to the hundreds of live televised Pac-12 sporting events, Pac-12 Networks subscribers will have access to their carrier’s TV Ev-erywhere platform, providing access to all Pac-12 Networks programming on any device through their broad-band service.

Fans can find out if they will receive Pac-12 Networks by clicking on the channel finder button on the upper right side of CalBears.com or contact-ing their cable or satellite provider.


One of the goals of Cal’s new Gold Standard is to build a relationship with every Golden Bear fan to help ensure a high level of individual customer service as part of the department’s

pledge to create an outstanding gameday experience. Fred Ponce, a season-ticket holder for 30 years, reveals what he enjoys most about football weekends at Memorial Stadium.

• Wheredoyousit?We just renewed in Section EE – very close to where we were

sitting before the renovation.

• WhatareyourfavoriteCalfootballmemories? ▪ “The Play” is on the top of the list, having graduated in 1981 ▪ The triple overtime win against USC in 2003 ▪ Jeff Tedford’s very first play as head coach against Baylor

• Whatareyourgamedaytraditions?We’ve been tailgating for a number of years now right next to

Dwinelle Hall. We have about 20 to 25 people every weekend. The menu tries to have some tie to the opposing team. For example, Duck sausage when it’s Oregon, or Southwest cuisine when it’s the Arizona schools. We even had Gator once – when we played Louisiana Tech a few years ago.

• WhyareyouexcitedtogetbacktorenovatedMemorialStadium?

After years of tree sitters, the High Performance Center con-struction, the temporary move to AT&T – it will be great to get back. The slogan “Welcome Home” really fits because it feels that way. We can’t wait to see how they’ve preserved the character of the stadium while getting the modern upgrades installed. It’s al-ways fascinating to see how the “old” is transformed into “vin-tage.” It’s a design challenge and I’m sure it will be terrific!

SUMMER 2012 5

Football Single-Game Ticket on Sale DatesWednesday, July 25 .................Home & Away TicketsESP Participants and season-ticket holders who are donors at the

$10K level and above^Thursday, June 26 ....................Home & Away TicketsSeason-ticket holders at the $1,200 level and above^Friday, July 27 ...........................Home & Away TicketsAll season-ticket holders and donors at the $5,000 level and

above who are not season-ticket holders^Friday, July 27 at 2 p.m. .......................Home Tickets*.Football Gameday e-newsletter subscribers, social media, CAA

member presaleWednesday, Aug. 1...............................Home Tickets*.General public

valued leadership to raise funds necessary for the reinstatement of the Golden Bear baseball program in 2011

Formal induction ceremonies are scheduled for Friday, Nov. 9, at the annual Hall of Fame banquet at the Greek Orthodox Church Conference Center in Oakland. The new inductees will also be honored at halftime of Cal’s Nov. 10 football game vs. Oregon at Memorial Stadium.

For complete profile information and to view a slide show of the new Hall of Fame members, look for the General Releases link under the Sports tab at CalBears.com.

Olympians, All-Americans Highlight 2012 Hall of Fame Class

Some of the most accomplished student-athletes in Cal Athletics history are set

to join the Cal Athletic Hall of Fame with the introduction of the Class of 2012. Among the many awards and honors accumulated by the new group of inductees are Olympic Games participation, All-American and All-Pac-10 certificates, and conference and university-wide citations for excellence.

Haley Cope (swimming) – the 2000 Pac-10 Swimmer of the Year and silver medalist in the 400 medley relay at the 2004 Olympics

Jocelyn Forest (softball) – the Most Out-standing Player of the 2002 Women’s College World Series when she led Cal to the champion-ship

Mike Harrison (baseball) – an All-Amer-ican catcher in 1990 who hit 40 home runs and drove in 156 runs during his career

Bruce Kennedy (track & field) – a member of three Olym-pic teams and the 1973 NCAA runner-up in the javelin

Lamond Murray (basketball) – a second-team All-American and two-time All-Pac-10 basketball forward who scored a then-school-record 1,688 career points from 1992-94

Anne Walker (golf) – an All-Pac-10 performer who helped lift Cal women’s golf onto the national stage and received the 2002 Pac-10 Medal as Cal’s top senior female student-athlete

Stu Gordon – former Cal catcher receives the Hall of Fame Service Award for his longtime commitment to Cal Athletics and

Donors, Season-Ticket Holders Receive Early Access to Football Single-Game Seats

One of the benefits of being a donor or football season-ticket holder is the ability to purchase single-game tickets for home

and away games ahead of the general public. Starting in late July, ESP participants, 2012 football season-ticket holders and donors at the $5,000 level and above receive priority according to the schedule listed to the right.

This perk for loyal Golden Bear supporters provides the op-portunity to secure the best available seats for friends and fam-ily before the Memorial Stadium ticket inventory is opened to the general public.

For details, visit CalBears.com/tickets, call (800) GO BEARS (462-3277), send an email to [email protected] or tweet at #CalGoldStandard.

2012 Hall of Fame inductees (clock-wise from upper left): Haley Cope, Jocelyn Forest, Mike Harrison, Anne Walker, Stu Gordon, Lamond Murray, Bruce Kennedy

^Total annual contribution to Athletics during July 1, 2011 – April 30, 2012. For questions please contact the Athletic Development Office at (510) 642-2427.

*Excludes Cal at Ohio State tickets

All on-sale times at 9 a.m. unless otherwise noted

Tickets based upon availability


Cal’s annual Academic Honors Luncheon celebrated major Golden Bear achievements in academics, athletics and

community service over the past year with the usual slate of awards and scholarship announcements.

But in giving the student-athlete address, Shelley Harper, a senior women’s swimmer, offered a different perspective, instead implor-ing her cohorts to think small to get the most out of life at Cal.

“If you look for the little moments in your life,” Harper said at the May 3 event, “I guarantee you will get everything that you can out of the amazing opportunity you have being a student-athlete at the No. 1 public university.”

A co-captain on Cal’s NCAA championship team in 2012, Harper was recognized twice at the luncheon, first with a Pac-12 Post-graduate Scholarship and then as co-winner, with track & field’s Linda Oseso, of the Walter A. Haas Jr. Community Service Award.

The list of attendees included student-athletes who have a cu-mulative GPA of 3.25 or higher, or have earned conference, re-gional or national academic honors, or have served the community as leaders or mentors. The event was co-sponsored by the Big C Society and the Athletic Study Center and included comments from Director of Athletics Sandy Barbour, Chancellor Robert Birgeneau and Big C Society president Burl Toler.

2011-12 women’s golf team receives Big C Most Improved Team Award.

Bears Set Record with 6 Conference Titles in 2011-12

Cal Honors the Best of the Best at Academic Honors LuncheonGolden Bear Team Award

Team with highest cumulative GPAVolleyball

Big C Most Improved Team AwardTeam with most improved team GPA

Women’s Golf

Tom Hansen Pac-12 Conference MedalOutstanding senior male and female student-athlete

Male - Jorge Gutierrez (Men’s Basketball)Female - Valerie Arioto (Softball)

Neufeld Scholar-Athlete AwardsGraduating male and female student-athletes with highest GPA

Male - Andreas Santucci (men’s diving)Female - Jessica Kreck (field hockey)

Pac-12 Post-Graduate ScholarshipsJana Juricova (women’s tennis)

Giorgio Tavecchio (football)Shelley Harper (women’s swimming)Maxime Chevee (men’s /track & field)

Oscar Geballe Postgraduate ScholarshipsMaxime Chevee (men’s track & field)Linda Oseso (women’s track & field)

Kristina Lofman (women’s crew)

Jake Gimbel Prize and Anna Espenschade AwardExemplifying the Golden Bear spirit

Gimbel Prize – Giorgio Tavecchio (football)Espenschade Award – Jana Juricova (women’s tennis)

Joseph McDonnell Kavanagh AwardStudent-athlete with most improved academic performance

Marvin Jones (football)

Walter A. Haas Jr. Community Service AwardShelley Harper (women’s swimming)Linda Oseso (women’s track & field)

When Cal’s women’s crew swept all four races to secure the Pac-12 championship on May 13, the Golden Bears won

their sixth conference title of 2011-12 – the highest total in one academic year in school history.

Field hockey picked up the first crown with a 1-0 victory over Stanford in the NorPac tournament in November, while in Febru-ary, women’s swimming & diving added to the total. Golf was

up next, and April 29 proved to be a special day as the men’s and women’s teams posted Pac-12 wins in their respective tourna-ments.

Softball locked up title number five with a series win over Arizona State May 11 before women’s crew capped the year two days later.

Cal teams won four conference crowns eight times previously, including in 2010-11, making the six this year the Bears’ most ever.

SIDELINE REPORT

Utility Engineers for Memorial Stadium

Member of the Memorial Stadium and SAHPC Design Team bellecci.com


“My goal was never to go to the Olympics or win an Olympic medal,” said the 1992 Olympic bronze medalist. “I liked rowing. It was fun. Boat House Row where we trained in Philadelphia was this historic part of Philadelphia. There were also all of these char-acters down there. You had all of these old guys with all of these stories about their world travels.”

Teti, who was more focused on football and basketball in high school and was still playing hoops during his college years at St. John’s, was lured by the tales from those characters he met after starting his rowing training at the Vesper Boat Club in Philly. The denizens of the club were members of the 1964 U.S. Olympic 8+ boat that pulled a stunning upset to win gold in Tokyo.

“The furthest I had been was the Jersey Shore,” Teti recalled. “I had never been on a plane in my life. And then [after making the U.S. National Team] I am flying to Germany. I’m rowing and I’m in East Berlin, behind the Iron Curtain. Say that to kids today, they don’t even know what I’m talking about.”

Since that initial visit to Germany, Teti toured much of the world through globe. He was a competitor in both the 1988 Seoul Olym-pics and the 1992 Games in Barcelona before moving to the shore as a coach for the U.S. teams in 1996 (Atlanta), 2000 (Sydney), 2004 (Athens), 2008 (Beijing) and the upcoming Olympics in London.

Just about every kid dreams of standing on a podium, the National Anthem playing in the background as an Olympic medal is being

draped around the neck. Every kid, that is, except California men’s crew coach Mike Teti.

OctolympianCal Men’s Crew Coach Mike Teti is Heading to his Eighth Olympic Games

Teti’s first taste of the Olympics came in 1984 when he was an alternate for the U.S. squad in Los Angeles.

“As a U.S. athlete in LA, it was ridiculous,” Teti said. “You were like a movie star. You were invited to parties with actual movie stars. We were treated royally.”

Teti rubbed elbows with everyone from Carl Lewis to members of the Go-Go’s and event attended a party at actor Robert Mit-chum’s estate.

Despite practicing and training in Los Angeles, Teti did not ac-tually compete in an Olympic race until Seoul in 1988, when he won the bronze as a member of the men’s eight, in what one would guess was the highlight of his rowing career.

“I was disappointed initially,” he confessed.The U.S. team had won the gold medal the previous year at the

World Championships. Eight of the nine guys were the same in the 1988 Olympic boat. Expectations were high.

“The Germans were favored to win and they were leading it,” Teti said. “Then right about 1,000 meters, we went into the lead. And the second part of our race was the better part of our race, so I was think-ing ‘Oh my God, we’re going to win again.’ Then we took a couple of bad strokes. It happened twice, and they came back through us. We were just a little disjointed at the end. The Russians just nipped us at the line by 2/100ths or something like that.”

The disappointment didn’t last, however. “When I got to the medal stand, I remember looking up at the

grandstand,” Teti said. “There were a couple of guys on the team who didn’t medal that I knew. I felt really fortunate. This was an Olympic medal. Nearly 100 percent of the people in the world will never have one of these.”

In 1996, Teti made the transition to the coaching side. The U.S.

Mike Teti

By Melissa Dudek

SUMMER 2012 9

team, which hadn’t won Olympic gold in the eight since his Philly boat house mentors accomplished it back in 1964, began making strides with Teti at the helm, building towards that ultimate goal. The 2004 Games looked like the U.S.’s best chance to end the drought.

“I had three eights win gold medals at the World Championships plus our U-23’s won gold medals,” Teti said. “When we assembled that [Olympic] boat, it was faster than any boat we had ever had – which made me nervous because I knew how good they were. This boat was a whole other level.”

But he didn’t want the rest of the world to know.“You only have that element of surprise once,” he chuckled.The U.S. team skipped the World Championships, wanting to keep

the speed of its boat a closely-held secret. As a result, the Americans were unseeded in the Olympics and randomly drew the toughest op-ponent, world-champion Canada, in the qualifying heat.

During the heat, Teti was riding alongside the course in a van with the other coaches, including Canadian head coach Mike Spracklen.

“You could cut the tension with a knife,” Teti said. “Canada was leading and Italy was in second and we were in third. [Halfway through] we went through Italy, but Canada was about three-quar-ters of a length ahead. We started moving a little bit. Then it was half a length. Then three seats and then two seats.”

And then the van stopped. With about 100 meters to go, the ve-hicle just came to an unexplained standstill.

“I jumped out of the van,” Teti said. “I was looking. I heard the finish beep. Beep-beep. Really quick, one right after the another. I thought we lost. I couldn’t really see the angle. I had this water bottle and I just slammed it on the ground. And then I heard this clicking noise. I realized I was standing right under the scoreboard. It’s blank. I heard this click, click, click, click. I looked up, and the

first thing it had was ‘One, USA. 5:19.85. World record.’ I thought we lost and then we won. It’s like you found $20 bucks in an old pair of jeans.”

On the day of the final, the van managed to make it the entire length of the course, with Teti having the perfect vantage point to see his American team win the elusive gold medal. After watch-ing the historical and monumental victory, Teti had held his own personal celebration.

“I jumped out of the van, turned around, grabbed my wife, went to where she was staying and went to sleep for the first time since 1998,” Teti recalled with a smile. “Slept for about 12 hours.”

“As an athlete and as a coach, whenever we won, I just felt con-tent,” Teti added. “It’s just a tremendous sense of accomplishment. I never went to the party when we won. You can kind of feel con-tent for about a week, and then you’re right back at it.”

These days, Teti’s bronze medal and the two golds won by his

wife, Kay Worthington – a member of Canada’s four and eight boats in 1992 – as well as the Olympic torch he carried on two legs of the Torch Relay through Philadelphia leading up to the 1996 Atlanta Games, bounce between show-and-tell sessions for his nieces, nephews and the neighborhood kids. He alternates wearing one of the seven Olympic rings he has amassed, changing them out whenever one of them gets too beaten up.

There is one piece of bling, though, that he holds in especial-ly high esteem. It is something he wears, appropriately enough, on the finger next to his wedding ring. It is a simple gold ring with a “C” on the face. Easy to overlook at first glance, it be-comes clear why he treasures this piece of jewelry upon closer inspection

“This is passed down to all the head coaches of Cal,” Teti said.The nieces and nephews aren’t allowed to borrow that ring for

show-and-tell.

“When I got to the medal stand, I remember looking up at the grandstand. I felt really fortunate. This was an Olympic medal. Near-ly 100 percent of the people in the world will never have one of these.”

– Mike Teti

10 cal SpoRtS qUaRtERlyContinued on page 13

Betsy Hassett Helps Elevate New Zealand Soccer on the

International Stage

No Time for Rest

By Doug Drabik

10 Cal sPorts quarterly

Summers are typically a time of rest and relaxation for a college student, unless you are Betsy Hassett.

The senior on the California women’s soc-cer team has spent her last three summers in Chile, South Korea, Germany, New Zealand and Australia. Last summer, Hassett traveled around the world leading up to an extended stay in Germany where she was a starter for her home country of New Zealand at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Hassett continues to accumulate frequent flyer miles, touring much of the country with her Cal squad and the globe with her New Zealand team. Her final destination this summer will be London and the 2012 Olympic Games.

“It has been so much fun,” Hassett said of her journey. “I am so motivated right now for the Olympics. This has been my dream and my goal since I was so young, and I can’t believe I am about to live out my dream.”

This past fall, the midfielder played in all 22 matches with 18 starts for Cal, guiding the Golden Bears to their most vic-tories in four years (12) and the second round of the NCAA Championship. Hassett, who recorded three assists during the sea-son, was a second-team All-Pac-12 selection and more importantly a National Soccer Coaches Association Scholar All-American.

“We are very proud of Betsy and all that she has accomplished,” said Cal women’s soccer coach Neil McGuire. “She is a commit-ted student-athlete who works very hard to perform at a high level on the field and in the classroom.”

Hassett has meticulously budgeted her extremely busy schedule of academic coursework requirements and collegiate and inter-national competition, resulting in a 3.47 cumulative grade-point average. The social welfare major earned a spot on the Pac-12 All-Academic squad for the second consecutive year last season.

“It is quite difficult to balance everything, but my professors here at Cal have been very good with helping me organize every-thing and allowing me to take exams on the road,” Hassett said. “I have been away for half of the spring semester. It has been a fun and busy journey.”

Betsy Hassett

SUMMER 2012 13

With her junior year at Cal now complete, Hassett flew back to New Zealand to spend time with her family and the national team. The New Zealand squad, called the Football Ferns, will face China twice in New Zealand and travel to Australia for a pair of matches before heading to Switzerland to continue training prior to arriving in London for the Olympics.

Hassett and her New Zealand teammates won’t have much time to enjoy their time in London before getting underway with competition. The Football Ferns will open the games of the XXX Olympiad as the very first event of the 16-day celebration of ath-letic competition.

Two days prior to the opening ceremonies on July 25, New Zea-land will open group play against Great Britain at Millennium Sta-dium in Cardiff, Wales. The Football Ferns will then face Brazil and Cameroon before the medal rounds begin.

“It is crazy,” Hassett said. “It hadn’t really hit me yet until the draw was pulled. I can’t believe how fast it will be here.”

While this summer will mark Hassett’s first appearance in the Olympics, the Auckland native is no stranger to the exciting, high-pressure environment that surrounds international soccer.

Hassett first picked up a soccer ball at the age of four, following in her brother’s footsteps in taking up the game at a young age. She enjoyed success in the sport early on, which eventually led to a spot on the Under-20 New Zealand National Team. Hassett spent 2008 at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Chile and 2010 at the same event in Germany.

She made her debut with the Senior National Team on June 16, 2008, in a match against Argentina in South Korea.

“My first touch on the ball, I got wasted by this player when going for a free ball,” Hassett said. “That was my first real taste of action. I entered in the second half, and I will always remember the crazy environment and the crowd at the stadium.”

Hassett also vividly remembers the outcome and the reward she and her teammates received for their strong play against a tough Argentina squad.

“We beat them 1-0, it was really exciting,” Hassett explained. “After the match, the coaches took us all out to get a McFlurry.”

Hassett wanted to challenge herself against some of the top soc-cer players in the world, so she sent a DVD of several highlights of her playing in New Zealand to several universities on the West Coast of the United States because it was closest to her native land.

McGuire called and eventually offered Hassett a scholarship to come to Berkeley. The midfielder arrived in the summer prior to her freshman year of school in 2009. However, a severe leg injury limited her training during her first year.

“I wasn’t fit and ready to play yet,” Hassett said. “I started do-ing rehab in the summer while I adapted to the environment. I had problems with the leg the whole season.”

Three seasons later, she has developed into one of the top play-ers in the Pac-12 Conference and will be looked upon as a leader for the Golden Bears her senior year this fall.

“It has been an awesome experience and a great three years,” Hassett said. “It has gone by so fast though. I have my best friends here.”

Now training overseas with her New Zealand team, Hassett re-calls all the great moments, including last year’s World Cup. She started all three matches for the Football Ferns and, at 21 years old, has more than 25 international matches under her belt.

“It was so much fun to play for my country in front of thousands of people,” Hassett said. “We stayed in the same hotel as the other teams, so we were following the USA around. I saw Alex [Mor-gan] a lot of the time.”

Hassett and Morgan, now a star for the U.S. team, played to-gether for two seasons at Cal in 2009 and 2010. Recently, the two Bears faced off as New Zealand and USA met in an exhibition match in Texas this past spring.

The Football Ferns took a one-goal lead into the late stages of the match, but Morgan scored a pair of goals in the final minutes to give the United States the win playing in front of 20,667 fans.

With training now mostly complete, Hassett and her New Zea-land teammates are looking forward to getting the Olympic com-petition underway in late July.

“We are really close and have heaps of fun together,” said a smiling Hassett. “We bring the best out of each other. It is so fun just to hang out together. We will be together for a whole month before we head to London and I can’t wait. I am look-ing forward to the whole experience and sharing it all with my teammates.”

Hassett and her fellow Football Ferns will be very busy dur-ing the opening of the 2012 Olympic Games with matches in pool play days apart in late July and early August. She will also share another special moment during her first couple games in London. Her birthday is Aug. 4.

When asked how she was planning to celebrate the occasion, Hassett quickly replied, “we should be hopefully heading to the quarterfinals by then.”

Betsy Hassett and New Zealand will face Great Britain on July 25 in Cardiff, Wales, as the first event of the 2012 Olympic Games.


Ready to SoaRBack Among the Javelin Elite, Ryan Young Aims for Olympic Spot

By HeRB BenenSon

In 2009, Ryan Young set a school record in the javelin with a throw of 250 feet, 10 inches. A year later, he could barely throw a stick of gum across a room.

Yet despite his recent predicament, a future spot on a U.S. Olympic team is a clear and attainable goal. Major elbow surgery followed by months of rehab and training have returned the Cal graduate to the elite list of javelin throwers.

In the spring of 2010, Young seemed primed for an outstanding senior sea-son. He was a year removed from his record effort and was regularly exceeding 260 feet in practice. With the Pac-10 Championships slated for Cal’s Edwards Stadium in May, he fully expected to capture a league title on his home track.

But one fateful throw brought his dreams to an abrupt halt.Perhaps the most technical of all track & field events,

success in the javelin doesn’t rely on just one throwing motion; there are many different methods and it’s up to each individual to select the best personal style. However, one rule fits all – keep the elbow high. On a practice day in March, Young, unfortunately, let his elbow slip.

“My elbow had been bugging me for a little while but not during throwing, more during lifting and training,” Young said. “It would be super sore when I’d wake up in the mornings. I knew there was something not right. It

didn’t bother me throwing and it wasn’t sore after throwing, so I thought I’d just train through. Throwing the javelin, you have to. You can’t stop every time you get dinged up.”

This time, Young knew it was serious. He took about a month off to let his elbow calm down and slowly began to return to practice, starting with some short throws and building up to longer ones.

“As soon as we got confident to throw one more, I felt it pop again,” Young recalled. “Right away, I knew my season was done.”

Not wanting to miss out on the Pac-10 meet entirely, Young shifted his ener-gies to the discus and finished 14th in the conference with a best of 153-2. The winning mark in the javelin was 253-4, which would have been well within reach had Young remained healthy.

“It was hard to sit there and watch other people throw on my home track my senior year,” Young said. “Up to that point, I thought I could win the Pac-10 title. That’s what I wanted. I felt like that was my year, and then this happened. I didn’t get the opportunity.”

Instead, Young soon underwent Tommy John surgery, a procedure more common for baseball pitchers. By August, he was visiting the Haas Pavilion training room twice a day and putting in additional time in the weight room. Eventually, he added sessions to build explosiveness in his legs at a strength gym in San Ramon that counts several of the top weightlifters in the country among its members.

By the following spring, Young believed he was ready to compete again and circled Cal’s annual Brutus Hamilton Invitational as his debut meet. All he did


Ryan Young

SUMMER 2012 15

Ryan Young caption...

was break the meet record with a throw of 247-2, just a little over a meter off his PR, and suddenly, he knew he was back.

“I hadn’t thrown that far in training yet, but it didn’t surprise me because I knew what I was capable of throwing,” Young said. “To come out and have my first throw be that far, I was a little surprised because it was from a short approach, it was early in the year and I was coming off surgery. I had no idea what to expect in a meet. I was ecstatic with it.”

Young continued to improve and by late June found himself at the USA Championships in Eugene, Ore. At the meet, he uncorked a throw of 254-8 on his fifth attempt. The result put him in fourth place at the end of the competition, less than two feet behind the winner. Before he left Hayward Field, Young had secured a contract offer from Nike, which allowed him to continue training and travel to several competi-tive meets in Europe.

Young began his overseas tour in Sweden before embarking on a 30-hour train ride through Berlin to a competition in Amsterdam. Still suffering the effects of the trip, Young struggled on his first couple of throws at the meet. But on his third attempt, he recorded a mark of 262-1, which surpassed the Olympic “B” standard.

“I can’t complain from where I was,” Young said. “I had a great season coming back from injury. It made me appreciate the pro-cess of training. I have a much better understanding of how train-ing works and how success and failures ultimately lead to where I want to go, which is to make the Olympic team.”

Tony Sandoval, Cal’s director of track & field, believes Young also benefited from working as a volunteer coach with some of the Bears’ young throwers, giving him a different perspective and an even greater appreciation of the technicality of the event.

Even as a recent college graduate, Young is, well, young in the javelin. Last year’s USA champion, Mike Hazle, was 32 when he claimed the crown, and it is common to see javelin throwers remain competitive into their late 30s or early 40s.

“In the grand scheme of things, he’s a neophyte,” Sandoval said. “The javelin is an old man’s event because it’s so technical. I see a career for him 8-10 years down the road. He’s going to get better. There isn’t a javelin thrower that hasn’t had some type of shoulder or elbow injury along the way. It’s kind of a rite of passage.”

Young also understands how much more he has to learn in the sport, especially in the refinement of his technique. All the elements necessary to excel at the javelin – footwork, tempo, strength, reaction time, film work – take time to master. Young estimates he can spend a solid 8-10 hours per day training to per-fect his throws, with the ultimate objective to represent the United

States at the Olympic Games.“To make the team would mean a lot,” Young said. “It’s hard to put

it in terms other than that. All the hard work, all the pain, all the time spent in the training room. The last seven years that I’ve been down here at Cal have been devoted to the javelin. I expect a lot out of myself,

whether other people expect me to be on the team or not. People know that I have to the potential to throw really far. I know I can do it.”

Regrettably, Young did not have his best day of throwing at the 2012 Olympic Trials in late June, finishing 19th in the field with a best mark of

229-9 on a rain-filled afternoon. But at the age of 25, he likely has several more opportunities of ahead of him to earn a place on the U.S. team.That’s a far cry from just trying to throw a simple stick of gum across

a room.

“I expect a lot out of myself, whether

other people expect me to be on the team or not.

people know that I have to the

potentIal to throw really far. I know

I can do It.”

– ryan young

SUMMER 2012 15


per Bowl XLV title and was named the game’s MVP. He earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors at Cal in 2004 after leading the Bears to a 10-2 record.

“I’m very touched to be accepting this award on behalf of my current teammates here [in Green Bay], but also the ones I was able to spend time with at Cal,” Rodgers

said. “Some of the fondest memories of my playing career came during my two years at Cal.”

Tedford has posted a career record of 79-48 in 10 seasons at Cal. The two-time Pac-10 Coach of the Year has also produced academically with 103 con-ference All-Academic honorees in 10 seasons, ranking second among Pac-12 teams.

“While this award really recognizes wins, it’s so much more than that,” Ted-ford said. “It’s the day-to-day gratifica-tion that we get from raising these kids – what they do athletically, academically, socially, spiritually.”

“It was a very special evening to cel-ebrate what we have accomplished in recent years and where the Cal foot-ball team is headed with this amazing athletics facility,” Director of Athlet-ics Sandy Barbour said inside the new Simpson Center. “It was a wonderful day and a great event to pause and cele-brate Jeff’s leadership and our fabulous football alumni. We are so fortunate to engage with such wonderful supporters of Cal football and UC Berkeley as a whole. The interest and commitment from our community is so clearly evi-dent for our football program. Cal foot-ball is an integral part of the pursuit of excellence of this campus, both athleti-cally and academically.”

Jeff Tedford, shown with Chancellor Robert Birgeneau, was honored for winning more games than any football coach in Cal history.

Alex Mack receives his Cal Football Excellence Award from head coach Jeff Tedford.

Mack and Rodgers became the first two recipients of the Cal Football Excellence Award, presented to a Cal football player that through his life’s work in the profes-sion of football and/or as a leader in his community makes a positive difference in the lives of others, and demonstrates the integrity, character and courage that represents Cal football.

Tedford was recognized for being the winningest coach in Cal football history.

Mack was a member of the Sporting News All-Decade team as the best center in college football in the first 10 years of this century. In 2008, he earned the National Football Foundation’s Draddy Trophy (renamed William V. Campbell Trophy) given to college football’s top scholar-athlete. He has played three seasons with the Cleveland Browns and was a Pro Bowler following the 2010 campaign.

“Cal football did a really good job of preparing me,” Mack said. “It was an honor to win the award, especially to win it along with Aaron Rodgers. He is one the most well-known Cal affiliates today and to be in the same company is a big honor.”

Rodgers was a first-round pick of the Green Bay Packers in the 2005 NFL Draft and is coming off a 2011 season in which he was named the Associated Press’ Male Athlete of the Year, as well as the AP’s NFL Most Valuable Play-er and a first-team All-Pro. Rodgers previously led the Packers to the Su-

Former Cal football players Alex Mack and Aaron Rodgers were honored along with head coach Jeff Tedford at the inaugural Cal Football Gala held April 21 at the Simpson Center for Student-Athlete High Per-formance to celebrate the completion of Tedford’s 10th season at Cal.

Among the attendees at the Cal Football Gala were (from left): Mike Gibson, Brian De La Puente, Mychal Kendricks, Jeff Tedford, Alex Mack, Mitchell Schwartz, Cameron Jordan and Mike Mohamed.

Mack, Rodgers, Tedford Honored at Cal Football Gala

12.ALA.209_8.5x11_CalSportsQrtly_paths.indd 1 4/25/12 1:40 PM


BASEBALL Record: 29-25Pac-12 Finish: 12-18/8thCal baseball was not able to repeat the success of its remarkable 2011 College World Series season, but the Bears still had some outstanding individual accomplish-ments. Junior second baseman Tony Renda earned first-team all-conference honors for the third year in a row and was selected a third-team All-American by Col-legiate Baseball. Senior right-hander Matt Flemer and junior infielder Mitch Delfino were tabbed Pac-12 honor-able mention. Flemer was Cal’s top starter win seven wins, while Delfino led Cal with a .355 average. Senior right-hander Joey Donofrio also had a fine season, go-ing 6-1 with a 1.88 ERA. The Bears finished the 2012 season on a high note, winning two-of-three at Bay Area rival Stanford, including a 5-4, 18-inning marathon.

MEN’S BASKETBALLRecord: 24-10Pac-12 Finish: 13-5/T2ndNCAA Finish: First RoundSenior guard Jorge Gutierrez earned Pac-12 Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year honors, becoming the first player in conference history to claim both awards in the same season. He was joined on the league first team by sophomore guard Allen Crabbe, who paced the Bears in both scoring (15.2 ppg) and rebounding (5.7 rpg). Senior forward Harper Kamp earned second-team All-Pac-12 notice and became just the 18th player in school history to record 1,000 points and 500 rebounds. Kamp was also honored at the Pac-12’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men’s basketball. Cal earned its fifth consecutive postseason berth and gained a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the third time in four years under head coach Mike Montgomery.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALLRecord: 25-10Pac-12 Finish: 13-5/2ndNCAA Finish: Second RoundLindsay Gottlieb became the first women’s basketball coach to win 20 games in her first season at Cal, guid-ing the Bears to 25 victories, a second-place finish in the Pac-12 and a spot in the Pac-12 Tournament final. Cal defeated Iowa, 84-74, in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament before falling to top-seeded Notre Dame. Junior guard Layshia Clarendon, Cal’s most recent addition to the 1,000 career-point club, was a WBCA All-West Region honoree and a first-team All-Pac-12 selection, after pacing the team with 12.8 ppg. A pair of Pac-12 All-Freshmen honorees, Brittany Boyd and Reshanda Gray, added a youthful spark to a squad that had zero seniors on the roster. Redshirt sophomore forward Gennifer Brandon returned after sitting out the 2010-11 season with a stress fracture in her shin to set Cal’s single-season rebounding record (346).

MEN’S CREWPac-12 Finish: 2ndIRA Finish: 4thWith a young squad that included a number of fresh-men and sophomores in its top boat, the Cal varsity eight placed fourth at the IRA Championships. Cal battled highly ranked Harvard in the season opener at the San Diego Crew Classic and later enjoyed a sweep over Stanford in the Big Row. Leading the way was Cal’s lone senior on the varsity eight, Chris Yeager, who was named to the All-Pac-12 team, along with junior Camer-on Klotz and sophomore Ivan Ostojic. During the spring season, head coach Mike Teti worked simultaneously with the Cal rowers and the U.S. men’s eight, which qualified for the Olympics in May with former Golden Bear Zach Vlahos aboard as the coxswain.

WOMEN’S CREWPac-12 Finish: 1stNCAA Finish: 3rdCal won its fifth straight Pac-12 championship in 2012, sweeping all four races for the first time ever, before tak-ing third at the NCAA regatta for the second year in a row. The freshman eight boat enjoyed an undefeated campaign through the conference meet, and the varsity four did not lose a race until the grand final at the NCAA Championships. Head coach Dave O’Neill garnered Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors for the third straight season, and senior co-captain Elise Etem won the Pac-12 Athlete of the Year award. Etem and Paparangi Hipango were tabbed first-team All-Americans, while co-captain Kristina Lofman was the first recipient of Cal’s Jill Costello Award.

MEN’S CROSS COUNTRYPac-12 Finish: 5thNCAA Finish: RegionalsWith a young team that had to replace its top three runners from a year before, Cal nearly returned to the NCAA Championships, just missing out on its fourth in-vitation in the past five years. Led by Collin Jarvis’ 11th-place showing, the Bears finished fifth at the Pac-12 Championships, defeating a pair of top-25 teams along the way. At the NCAA regional meet, Cal also took fifth with wins over ranked opponents UCLA and Oregon. In the end, the Bears were one of the last squads left out of the 31-team NCAA field. Jarvis, who was 12th at re-gionals and was named second-team All-Pac-12, and Maxime Chevee (25th) both claimed all-region honors.

WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRYPac-12 Finish: 7thNCAA Finish: 18thCal completed one of the most successful seasons in school history in the fall, capped by an 18th-place show-ing at the NCAA Championships – the Bears’ best perfor-mance since the team was ninth 23 years ago. Deborah Maier matched the highest by a Cal individual at the NCAA meet when she took 11th, while Chelsea Reilly joined her on the All-America squad with her 24th-place result. The Bears were fifth at NCAA regionals, as Maier earned runner-up honors for the second year in a row. During the regular season, Cal won the opening USF Invitational and tied for first-place honors at the Roy Griak Invitational in Minnesota that featured a national-caliber field.

FIELD HOCKEYRecord: 16-4NorPac Finish: Tournament ChampionNCAA Finish: Play-in GameCal returned to the national rankings for the first time in three years and reached as high as No. 11, the highest-ever mark for the program. The Bears upended No. 6 Stanford in the NorPac championship game to earn the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. In its first postseason game in five years, Cal ultimately lost to Richmond, 2-0, in the play-in contest. Sophomore Andrea Earle scored 16 goals, earning third-team All-American honors, as well as being named both the Nor-Pac West Offensive Player of the Year and the NorPac West Co-Player of the Year. Freshman Lara Kruggel scored eight goals with seven assists, earning the Mag-gie Whitehead Rookie of the Year Award, an honor given to the top freshman in the conference.

FOOTBALLRecord: 7-6Pac-12 Finish: 4-5/4th North DivisionPostseason: Holiday BowlCal earned an invitation to a bowl game for the eighth time in the last nine seasons, securing a berth in the Bridge-point Education Holiday Bowl with a late regular-season surge that including a 3-1 record in November. Cal lost a hard-fought 21-10 decision to Texas in San Diego, but it did not dim the bright light for the future. A trio of key skill position players returns next season in quarterback Zach Maynard (231-of-405, 2990 yards, 17 TD), tailback Isi Sofele (1,322 rushing yards, 10 TD) and wide receiver Keenan Allen (98 catches, 1,343 receiving yards, 6 TD). On the defensive side, the Bears led the Pac-12 in total defense (332.9 ypg) for the second consecutive cam-paign, with linebacker Mychal Kendricks (107 tackles) earning Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year honors. Jeff Tedford became Cal’s all-time winningest coach and en-ters the 2012 season with 79 victories.


SPORTS REVIEWS

Tony Renda Jorge Gutierrez Layshia Clarendon

Chris Yeager Elise Etem Maxime Chevee Chelsea Reilly Andrea Earle

2011-2012

SUMMER 2012 19

MEN’S GOLFPac-12 Finish: 1stNCAA Finish: T3rdCal wrapped up a 2011-12 season of firsts by reaching the semifinals at the NCAA Championship. Along the way, the Bears won their first NCAA match-play event, defeating San Diego State in the quarterfinals, captured their first NCAA Regional and Pac-12 titles, posted a school-record six wins and had top-five finishes in all 14 events for the first time in school history. All of this success earned Steve Desimone Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors for the second time in his career. Cal had balance throughout the lineup with the trio of third-team All-American Max Homa, Brandon Hagy and Michael Kim sharing team MVP honors. Each was also selected second-team All-Pac-12.

WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS Record: 4-11Pac-12 Finish: 8thCal improved its average score by nearly a full point from the previous year to 192.605 in 2012. The Bears posted their highest score since 2007 with a mark of 194.724 against Stanford inside Haas Pavilion in February. Two gymnasts competed at the NCAA Regional, including a two-time NCAA qualifier in all-arounder Madisyn O’Brien. Joining her at the regional was beam specialist Nicolette Lew. In the classroom, eight gymnasts earned Pac-12 All-Academic honors, With a challenging schedule that included top-25 oppo-nents in each of its final seven competitions, Cal’s young squad, which included just two seniors, gained valuable experience that will serve well for a promising future in Berkeley.

WOMEN’S GOLFPac-12 Finish: 1stNCAA Finish: RegionalSenior Joanne Lee converted a six-foot uphill putt on the 18th hole, followed by a par putt from senior Daniela Holmqvist to seal the Pac-12 Tournament title for the Bears, the second conference championship in school history. Cal earned its 13th consecutive NCAA Regional bid, but failed to advance to the NCAA Championships after finishing ninth. Lee, Holmqvist, and fellow senior Emily Childs each were individual medalists in tourna-ments this season and all three were named to the All-Pac-12 second team. Lee ended her career with the lowest scoring average in the history of the program (73.43), and Childs won four career tournaments – most ever for a Golden Bear.

MEN’S GYMNASTICS Record: 11-10MPSF Finish: 3rdNCAA Finish: 4thCal surpassed all expectations by finishing fourth at the NCAA Championships, besting rival Stanford and Michi-gan at the national meet. In the team finals, Glen Ishino placed fourth in the all-around and Dennis Mannhart took fifth. Ishino capped off his senior year with an NCAA individual championship on pommel horse. Ishino netted All-America honors on both pommel and high bar, while Steven Lacombe was an All-American on rings and vault and Dennis Mannhart on parallel bars and high bar. Matthew del Junco, Donothan Bailey, Ja-cob Jizrawi, Daniel Culpepper, Dennis Mannhart and Michael del Junco all earned placement on the MPSF All-Academic squad.

LACROSSERecord: 8-8MPSF Finish: 4-3/4thIn her first season as head coach, Ginger Miles sparked a resurgence in Cal lacrosse. Led by MPSF Player of the Year Megan Takacs – the junior attacker set the school record for most goals (53) and shots (106) in a season – Cal scored the program’s most goals (201) since the 2005 campaign. Junior attacker Melissa Humphrey recorded the second-highest number of as-sists in school history (37) and led the Bears with 61 total points. Takacs, who had 60 points on the year, senior midfielder Emily Abbood and senior defender Tori Harrison earned All-MPSF first-team honors, while Humphrey garnered a spot on the second team. Har-rison anchored a defense that allowed just 174 goals, Cal’s lowest total since 2007.

RUGBY Record: 20-3CRC 7s Finish: Bronze MedalAfter seeing eight alumni travel to the 2011 Rugby World Cup with Team USA, the Rugby Bears won their sixth straight “World Cup” series vs. British Columbia, sev-enth consecutive UCLA Tournament and 16th straight Scum Axe over Stanford during a 15-2 season in the 15-man game. Six players placed among All-America selections, with junior lock Brendan Daly joining three-time honorees Danny Barrett and Seamus Kelly on the first team to become the 126th full All-American in team history. Six players were recognized as Scholar Athletes. Cal went 5-1 and won the bronze medal match at the CRC 7s on national television and junior Brad Harrington and sophomore Paul Bosco were named to the all-tournament team. In June, Kelly was named to the U.S. National Team’s travel squad for summer test matches, while freshmen Nicklas Boyer and Eakalafi Okusi joined the U.S. U-20s playing for the Junior World Rugby Trophy.

SUMMER 2011 19

MEN’S SOCCERRecord: 3-9-5Pac-12 Finish: 0-7-3/6thCal went through a rebuilding phase in 2011 after pro-ducing one of the best seasons in the program’s history in 2010. The fall roster did not feature any seniors, with three juniors earning All-Pac-12 notice. Defender Steve Birnbaum garnered first-team status, midfielder Tony Salciccia earned a spot on the second team and forward John Fitzpatrick was an honorable mention choice. The freshmen also stood out, with Seth Casiple, a midfielder, earning the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year award after finishing the regular season ranked fourth in total assists (6) and fourth in assists per game (0.35) in the league. Christian Dean and Casiple both spent time training with the U.S. Under-20 National Team.

WOMEN’S SOCCERRecord: 12-6-4Pac-12 Finish: 5-4-2/6thNCAA Finish: Second RoundCal won 12 matches – its most since 2007 – and ad-vanced to the second round of the NCAA Champion-ship. The Bears, who climbed as high as No. 11 in the national rankings during the year, knocked off Santa Clara on the road in the opening round of NCAAs and nearly advanced to the third round of the tournament, falling to No. 16 Boston College in penalty kicks. Despite missing half the season with a leg injury, senior forward Katie Benz led Cal’s offense with 10 goals and three as-sists. Four Bears earned All-Pac-12 honors – Danielle Brunache, Betsy Hassett, Lauren Battung and Kaitlyn Fitzpatrick – and a record 13 individuals were named to the Pac-12 All-Academic team, with Hassett also gaining NSCAA Scholar All-American recognition.

SOFTBALLRecord: 58-7Pac-12 Finish: 21-3/1stNCAA Finish: T3rdIn many ways, Cal posted the best season in program history, setting school records for overall (58) and con-ference (21) wins on its way to the Pac-12 title. Cal end-ed the year in the semifinals of the Women’s College World Series. Ranked No. 1 in the country for 13 weeks, Cal earned the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and claimed both the regional and super regional titles in Berkeley. Valerie Arioto was tabbed the Pac-12 Player of the Year, Jolene Henderson repeated as the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year and Diana Ninemire was voted Pac-12 Coach of the Year. Arioto and Henderson were also named first-team All-Americans, with outfielder Jamia Reid on the second team.

Glen Ishino

Megan Takacs

Mychal Kendricks Max Homa

Seamus Kelly Seth Casiple

Joanne Lee

Danielle Brunache

Alexandra Leggitt

Valerie Arioto

20 cal SpoRtS qUaRtERly20 cal SpoRtS qUaRtERly

WOMEN’S TENNIS Record: 20-7Pac-12 Finish: 8-2/3rdNCAA Finish: T5thThe Bears earned their fourth 20-win season under head coach Amanda Augustus and advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals for the first time since a pair of trips to the title match in 2008 and 2009. Cal had a stretch through which it won 11 straight matches from March 3 through April 17. Freshman Zsofi Susanyi, a first-team All-Pac-12 choice, paced all players with a 41-8 record and advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA singles tournament. Behind her, senior Jana Juricova had 30 wins, while sophomore Anett Schutting and ju-nior Annie Goransson both eclipsed the 30-win mark. In doubles play, Susanyi and Juricova teamed up to post a 21-4 mark and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA championship. Juricova was named the Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year for women’s tennis.

MEN’S SWIMMING & DIVINGPac-12 Finish: 2ndNCAA Finish: ChampionCal entered the NCAA meet ranked sixth in the coun-try, but the Bears didn’t let those expectations get in the way of earning the program’s second consecutive na-tional championship. The result gave head coach David Durden NCAA Coach of the Meet honors for the third year in a row. Bolstered by titles in the 200 free and 400 medley relays; and NCAA crowns from junior Tom Shields, sophomore Marcin Tarczynski and freshman Will Hamilton, Cal topped second place Texas by more than 40 points. Shields was named the NCAA Swimmer of the Meet after winning national championships in the 100 fly and the 100 back. Tarczynski captured the 200 IM, while Hamilton prevailed in the 200 fly.

WOMEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING Pac-12 Finish: 1stNCAA Finish: ChampionLed by NCAA Coach of the Meet Teri McKeever and Swimmer of the Meet Caitlin Leverenz, Cal captured its second straight – and third in four years – team title at the NCAA Championships. En route, Leverenz won her first individual NCAA titles (200 breast and 200 IM) and swam on the Bears’ winning 200 and 400 medley relays. Leverenz also received the Honda Sports Award as the top women’s swimmer in the nation. Senior Liv Jensen won the second 50-free crown of her career, while soph-omore Cindy Tran repeated as the 100 back champ, and senior Sara Isakovic won her first individual title with a triumph in the 100 fly. Cal also won the inaugural Pac-12 team championship.

MEN’S TENNIS Record: 14-12Pac-12 Finish: 4-3/4thNCAA Finish: T9thCal advanced to the round of 16 at the NCAA Championships after opening-round wins over Texas-San Antonio and Texas Tech in Berkeley. The Bears, who were ranked 13th in the final ITA team poll, were led by sophomore Ben McLachlan, a Pac-12 All-Con-ference second-team selection who compiled a team-best 26-12 singles record. Senior Nick Andrews earned 15 wins in his final season, while freshman Gregory Bayane provided a boost by nabbing 12 wins in singles play. In doubles, McLachlan and senior Carlos Cueto won the Northwest Regional championship and led all Cal pairs with a 25-10 mark. Andrews and junior Christoffer Konigsfeldt earned 22 wins as a tandem and a trip to the NCAA doubles championship.

MEN’S TRACK & FIELD Pac-12 Finish: 10thNCAA Finish: T66thRedshirt-freshman Harrison Steed earned first-team All-America honors after placing eighth in the high jump at the NCAA Championships when he cleared 7-2.50 to move into ninth on Cal’s all-time performer chart. He was joined on the All-America list by second-team member and fellow high jumper Brian Carmichael, along with three honorable mention selections – Scott Esparza (hammer), Taylor Kientzel (long jump) and Chad Jones (triple jump). At the Pac-12 meet, Collin Jarvis cap-tured the league crown in the 3000-meter steeplechase in a PR 8:48.05, while Hammed Suleman (long jump) and Derek White (discus) were conference runners-up.

WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD Pac-12 Finish: 10thNCAA Finish: T40thJunior Deborah Maier completed one of the most ac-complished seasons for a distance runner in Cal history in 2012, finishing among the top three in three different NCAA Championships races. During the indoor season, she was the national runner-up in the both the 3000 and 5000 meters, while she took third in the 10,000 meters during the outdoor campaign. Her 10K time of 32:12.47 during the regular season was Pac-12 record and made her the third-fastest collegian ever. Senior Chelsea Reil-ly set indoor records in both the mile and 3000 meters and placed ninth in the 5000 at the NCAA outdoor meet. As a team, the Bears placed 15th at the NCAA indoor meet and tied for 40th at the outdoor championships.

VOLLEYBALL Record: 26-7Pac-12 Finish: 16-6/3rdNCAA Finish: First RoundAfter a flawless nonconference slate and an impres-sive 16-6 record in the Pac-12 to finish third, the Bears earned their 15th consecutive trip to the NCAA Tourna-ment. Over the course of the season, Cal spent four weeks ranked at No. 1 and was rated in the top 10 for the entirety of the year. Senior Tarah Murrey was named a second-team All-American and the Pac-12 Vol-leyball Scholar-Athlete of the Year. The Bears secured eight Pac-12 Player-of-the-Week notices, bringing Cal’s all-time total to 36. With Murrey paving the way with placement on the All-Pac-12 team, six other student-athletes earned the conference postseason honors. Kat Brown, Shannon Hawari, Correy Johnson and Robin Rostratter were all lauded as honorable mentions, while Christina Higgins made the all-freshman team.

MEN’S WATER POLORecord: 22-4MPSF Finish: 7-1/2ndHead coach Kirk Everist’s Bears finished the 2011 campaign 22-4 overall with all four losses by just one goal, including 7-6 in overtime to UCLA in the MPSF Tournament semifinals. Senior attacker Ivan Rackov – the 2010 National Player of the Year and again a fi-nalist for the Peter J. Cutino Award after capturing the honor last year – finished the campaign with 70 goals and an MPSF-leading 2.8 goals per game in 25 match-es. Rackov earned first-team All-America honors and finished his Cal career with 235 goals, second on the school’s all-time scoring list. The Bears return three All-Americans from the ’11 squad for the 2012 campaign – senior goalie Justin Parsons (second team), junior at-tacker Collin Smith (honorable mention) and sophomore attacker Aleksa Saponjic (honorable mention).

WOMEN’S WATER POLO Record: 18-9MPSF Finish: 4-3/4thAfter finishing as the NCAA runner-up last year, Cal just missed out on a return to the national tournament this season. Junior left-hander Breda Vosters was named first-team All-MPSF after leading the Bears in scoring for the second year in a row with 49 goals in 25 matches. Junior Dana Ochsner, who scored the winning goal in a 13-12 overtime win over Arizona State in the MPSF Tournament opening round, took home second-team honors. Senior Elizabeth McLaren was tabbed All-MPSF honorable mention and freshman Tiera Schro-eder was a member of the All-MPSF Newcomer squad. Next spring, the Bears will welcome back Emily Csikos to the squad after she spent all of 2012 playing for the Canadian National Team.

Tom Shields

Deborah Maier

Cindy Tran

Tarah Murrey OskiBreda Vosters

Collin JarvisJana JuricovaNick Andrews

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Young and full of promise, California lacrosse continues to solidify itself not just as a team that excels on the field and in the class-room, but also as a program committed to financial sustainability.

gives back to support and leverage the future of Cal Lacrosse.”

Bushnell and her peers are among the highest per-centage of Cal alumni who give back to their sport,

and also the youngest. Inaugurated as a varsity program in 1999, women’s lacrosse is

the youngest varsity sport at the University. On Sept. 28, 2010, it became a highly endangered program when it was included among the five teams slated for elimination.

Less than four months later, on Feb. 11, 2011, lacrosse was rein-stated. Amid the jubilation was urgency to ramp up a much more aggressive outreach program to the program’s alumni and the community at large. “Everyone needs to look back and ask, ‘How would my life have changed if I didn’t go to Cal to play lacrosse?’” said Cristen Andrews, who graduated in 2008 and remains tied for second all-time in program history with 72 games played.

A member of the 2008 MPSF All-Tournament team and three-time conference All-Academic honoree who worked after gradua-

tion for Cal’s sales & marketing department and Olympic operations, and then IMG Media, Andrews and fellow alumni have stressed the need to make every class responsible for itself with the goal of 100 percent participation.

Parent participation is a priority, too.“When you give to a program, you become

invested in it and your interest is infectious,” said Rick Harrison, whose daughter Tori graduated this spring. Tori Harrison was a three-sport athlete from Austin, Texas, who attended lacrosse camps at Virginia, Denver and Cal in the summer after her sophomore year of high school.

“She liked all three but just fell in love with Cal,” Rick Harrison said. “Parents of players like me appreciate the totality of the experi-ence their daughters have received.”

When they learned that the program was slated to be cut, Harrison and her roommate

Golden Bears lacrosse bounced back from the brink of elimination out of Intercollegiate Athletics in 2010-11 to rise again in 2012 thanks to dedicated student-athletes, a talented new coach and passionate members of the Cal community, which included peer teams in the department, current parents, faculty and young alumni who have en-sured that Cal lacrosse will remain a vital part of the IA family.

“It’s our due diligence to give back to help support and provide the same experience to the future Cal lacrosse Bears that we had,” said Meghan Bushnell, who graduated in 2007 as a three-time MPSF All-Academic honoree.

“It takes a village to reach success,” added Bushnell, currently working at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco as an Assistant AD for External Relations & Student-Athlete Develop-ment. “It’s vital that anyone who has been a part of the family

Team at Lacrosse Roads

“The turnaround

in spirit has been terrific.”

– Prof. Emeritus Edwin Epstein, on the 2012

season under new head coach Ginger Miles

By Anton Malko

SUMMER 2012 23

came up with the slogan, “You Can’t Put a Price on Dreams.” After her mother, Teresa, printed the words on T-shirts, her father said, “People wanted to buy them from all over the country. It was a groundswell of support and heartwarming to see people not even associated directly with the programs supportive of bring-ing them back.”

A sizable amount of financial support also came from Cal rugby, which sought to unite lacrosse and women’s gymnastics with its own retention in order to ensure that Cal’s Title IX compliance remained intact.

Andrews credited rugby’s role in ensuring lacrosse’s preservation in IA. “We need to emulate rugby,” she said. “They have a tradition of giv-ing back, of winning and doing it with honor. The networking, professional development, the lifelong friendships – being connected – that’s what we’re after.”

The lacrosse team enjoyed much success in its first 12 years in Intercollegiate Ath-letics. Head coaches Jill Mal-ko and Theresa Sherry both received Coach of the Year honors, in 2004 and 2008, re-spectively, from the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.

When new head coach Gin-ger Miles arrived to guide the program in 2011-12, the for-mer player from Virginia and coach at Claremont Colleges met with the team and together, she said, they set three goals for the upcoming season: “con-sistency, no regrets and win-ning the conference.”

Cal hadn’t won its conference since 2004. “We knew that was an aggressive goal, but we also knew that was something we were entirely capable of,” Miles said.

In their first preseason game, senior leader Tara Arolla went down with a year-ending injury. But the Bears didn’t fold up their tent. Arolla took on the role of a fourth coach, joining Miles and assistants Allison Comito and Emma Wallace on the sideline.

Megan Takacs, the nation’s leading scorer, also went down later in the spring, but the Bears never gave up. Cal ended the season at 8-8, with three of its losses decided by a single goal, and finished fourth in the MPSF.

Their achievements were impressive: three Bears placed on the All-MPSF first team, including Player of the Year Takacs, who missed Cal’s last three games. In addition to one All-MPSF second-team selection, lacrosse had 12 MPSF All-Academic honorees.

Malko, who led the Bears to their 2004 MPSF title, said she was “exceptionally impressed. I think they were the surprise team of the conference this year.”

Malko added that Miles is a perfect match for the team at this

juncture in its history and also “the right fit academically – she gets the Berkeley piece and how important that is as opposed to the Cal Athletics piece.”

Among those also impressed with lacrosse’s resurgence was Professor Emeritus Edwin Epstein, a 1966 alumnus who became the team’s academic liaison in 2003, when then-sophomore Erin Hafkenschiel asked him to take on the role.

In 2010, Epstein received a jersey signed by the entire team af-ter announcing plans to yield to a new liaison at the end of the year. But when the sport was put in jeopardy, the now 75-year-old

grandfather pledged to stay with the team through trou-bled times. Today he looks back with pride at the team’s perseverance.

“They have overcome a lot of adversity, from the linger-ing effect of uncertainty to their 11th-hour rescue,” Ep-stein said. “The turnaround in spirit has been terrific.”

Epstein, who continues to serve as the Chair of the Faculty Advisory Committee to the Athletic Study Center, said he will remain “a very loyal fan” of Cal lacrosse. “I admire the energy, strength, guts and agility they need to compete,” he said.

While the team will miss Professor Epstein and its four graduated seniors, Cal lacrosse will return more than 20 student-athletes and welcome a strong incoming class of seven women, among whom is high school All-American Nicole Beck from Pennsylvania and honorable mention All-America Molly Coates from Greenwood, Colo. Brynn Gasparino, sister

of rising junior Paige Gasparino from Darien, Conn., is another indication that blue and gold bloodlines are indeed running thick in this program.

Returning players are thrilled for the future, too. “We have a lot to look forward to,” said Haley Olson, a junior

attacker. “We have a really strong team. Everyone worked so hard last year, and we really value being on the field. Being able to go out and play every day is such a privilege.”

Teresa Li, a junior in the midfield, agreed: “Our coaches have been phenomenal, and our teammates are our best friends. I just can’t wait to have two more years here playing with them. We’ve put so much into our sport, we’re just so excited.”

While today’s players and the team’s young alumni base forge ahead with plans for success on the field and sustainability in their fi-nancial foundation, Bear Backers are another vital avenue of support.

To give to Cal lacrosse, visit calbears.com/givetolacrosse, call Brian Raney at (510) 643-0888 or email [email protected]

The 2012 team showed great energy and resilience.

Parents Teresa and Rick Harrison flank daughter Tori (with flowers) and her teammate Melissa Humphrey at Senior Day.


AOf course, there is men’s swimmer Matt Biondi, who won 10 medals during the 1988 and 1992 Olympics, and women’s swimmer Natalie Coughlin, who won 11 medals at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, among many other greats.

But women’s water polo standout Petri is about to compete in her fourth Olympic Games and has stood on the medal podium during all three of her prior Olympic experiences.

No other Golden Bear athlete has competed in four Olympics, and Petri has not only been successful on the world stage, she has also been a trail-blazer in the sport of women’s water polo. The Orinda, Calif., native was one of the youngest players on the USA National Team when the Americans won a silver medal in the inaugural Olympics for women’s water polo in Sydney in 2000. Four years later in Athens, she helped Team USA to a bronze medal, and at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the Americans captured another silver.

Now Petri is the veteran of USA Olympic team and is traveling to London with another former Cal standout, Elsie Windes, in a quest for the gold medal.

“I am ecstatic to be able to share my international experience with some-one who had a similar collegiate experience as I did,” Petri said. “While Elsie and I never played at Cal together, we still have so much pride in our school and our experiences as a student-athlete. With so many current members of the national team from Stanford, it is nice to have some Blue and Gold support next to me. Elsie has been my weightlifting partner and always swims right next to me in workouts. I rely on her when I am struggling and know that a fellow Bear has my back.”

Petri and Windes earned their way to London when Team USA captured the gold medal at the Pan American Games in October of 2011 with an epic, come-from-behind 27-26 victory over a Canadian squad that featured another Cal standout, Emily Csikos.

Petri lettered at Cal from 1997-99 and returned to finish her degree and eligibility in 2001 after competing in the 2000 Olympics. Windes, originally from Portland, Ore., made her first Olympic appearance in 2008 after a stellar career for the Bears, earning All-America honors from 2005-07.

Through her years with Team USA, Petri has had the pleasure of competing in the Olympics with three different Bears – Courtney Johnson and Ericka Lorenz in 2000, Lorenz in 2004, and Windes in 2008 – and even a former coach, Maureen O’Toole-Purcell.

A case could be made that Heather Petri is the greatest Cal Olympian of all time.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Olympian Times4Water Polo Standout Heather Petri to Compete in Her Fourth Olympiad in London

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SUMMER 2012 27

breaking step for women’s water polo. After her freshman year of high school, she began playing on the boy’s team at Miramonte. By the time Petri was a senior, she had helped formed a girl’s team at her school and was coached by another Cal Olympian, Peter Asch (who won a silver medal in water polo at the 1972

Olympics). Petri ended up playing for Asch at Cal in 1998-99 and 2001.

“My experience at Cal gave me the foundation I needed to be able to improve enough to make it at an international level,” Petri said. “My freshman year at Cal pushed me beyond all limits. I think that mentality gave me the ability to push harder

and dream bigger. Peter (Asch) came to Cal to help coach the year Mo left to do more full-time training for the Olympics in 1999. I am sure Peter’s Olympic experience helped him understand Mo’s drive to make the first-ever Olympic team for women, and both of their aspirations to push to be the best undoubtedly emanated on all of us they were coaching. I never dreamed that my Olympic opportunity may come as early as 2000, but with all of Peter and Mo’s examples, I knew with enough hard work and drive I could make it happen. I knew one day I could possibly be an Olympian.”

Sure enough, Petri has not only gone on to be a four-time Cal Olympian, but an inspiration to future generations of women water polo players as well.

O’Toole-Purcell coached Petri during the 1997 and 1998 college seasons before returning to pool and becoming a key member of the 2000 Olympic Team at age 39. Petri is now the oldest member of the U.S. women’s water polo squad at age 34.

“Playing at the 2000 Olympics with Heather was awesome, and we were also teammates with Courtney Johnson,” O’Toole-Purcell said. “It was really amazing. At first, it felt kind of weird being on the National Team with two players I had coached, but then it became great fun. We were definitely all on the same page from our experi-ences at Cal.

“When Heather first played for me at Cal, I felt she had all the tools needed to be on the National Team,” O’Toole-Purcell added. “She was big, strong and a fast swimmer. She was ex-tremely coachable, and I knew it was just up to her to put in the time and effort to be successful and she has definitely done that. She is now a seasoned veteran like I was. Heather was always a defense-first type player and a strong counter-attacker. She is a strong, tough kid who is not going to back down to anybody. Heather wears people down and that has been a part of her success, plus she has always been a great teammate.”

Petri was part of the genesis of the Cal women’s water polo program, arriving on the Berkeley campus from Mi-ramonte High School when women’s water polo was in its second year a varsity sport in 1997. She helped the Bears to two national runner-up finishes and a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament title in 1999.

“Maureen came into my life at the perfect time,” Petri explained. “Her years of experience and enthusiasm for playing water polo was just what a kid, with only two high school seasons (about six months total) under her belt, needed. Mo seemed to see something in me as a player that I did not. She saw this kid with very raw water polo skills and was excited to show me what I needed to do to improve. The one thing that I will never forget was the day my freshman year when she told me to sign up for the upcoming Na-tional Team tryout camp. My first thought was this lady is crazy. But she simply told me you will never get better unless you ‘play up.’ I needed experience and the best way to do that is to throw myself into the deep end with the sharks.

“Playing with Mo four years later was easy,” Petri continued. “We had built respect and friendship over the years as coach and player and that translated easily into teammates on the National Team. She still pushed me as hard as ever and I enjoyed the new shared experiences in the pool and out.”

Even before Petri arrived to Cal, she had been part of a ground-

Over the course of her career, Heather Petri has starred for Cal (left) and the U.S. National Team (below). Petri and fellow Golden Bear Elise Windes (above left) are teaming together at the Olympics for the second time this summer.


Although Kohler, the 2010 Pac-10 New-comer of the Year, does not have age or ex-perience on her side (the average age of a female Olympic rower is 28), it is her drive and unending commitment that has gotten her to this point. Only two days after winning a gold medal at the 2010 Under-23 World Championships in Belarus, Kohler was back in Oakland at the Cal boathouse learning how

to scull. One objective achieved, another to tackle.In an attempt to reach her Olympic goal sooner than later, Kohler

took a year off from school to train with national-caliber rowers. Despite the difference in age and ex-perience between her and her U.S. teammates, Kohler knew the knowl-edge and understanding she gained away from Cal would only benefit her rowing career later.

“Coming in, I expected my greatest disadvantage would be my lack of ex-perience in small boats,” Kohler said. “Yet I believe this has turned into a huge advantage for my future in the sport. This quadrennial has undoubt-edly seen the strongest, most compet-itive group of U.S. women rowers yet. Knowing that I am gaining this experience from the top sweep group in the world is quite rewarding because in nearly one year, I have been able to gain a ton of ground.”

Cal head coach Dave O’Neill had a feeling special things were in store for Kohler when she first arrived in Berkeley as a fresh-man in the summer of 2009. O’Neill was overseas in Poland when

Kohler and the rest of the new Bears arrived for their first train-ing session. After getting the report from his assistant coaches, he turned to current U.S. Olympic head coach Tom Terhaar and U.S. assistant coach and former Cal rower Laurel Korholz and told them to remember the name Kara Kohler.

Just three years later, the rowing world is becoming familiar with this rising superstar.

Kohler, who had never rowed before enrolling at Cal, achieved a tremendous amount of athletic success prior to college. As a swim-mer in high school, she was named the Clayton Valley HS MVP in 2008 and 2009 and was nominated for Athlete of Year as a senior.

“When we recruited Kara, we could tell that she was a serious athlete,” O’Neill said. “She had been a very successful swimmer. It seemed like she was very serious about it and wanted to become as good at rowing as she could be. It certainly seems like Kara is going to follow through with what she said she wanted to do. She’s had a quick rise and it’s all credit to her. She’s worked really hard and she’s super motivated.”

O’Neill said he knew Kohler had her sights set on reaching the high-est echelon of the sport, including the

Olympics, when she first came to Cal. Therefore, it seemed like spending a year off from school and away from her Cal team was a risk worth taking.

“I have gained so much experience this year that I can hardly wait to bring all of it back to Cal,” Kohler said. “It is going to be fun to help raise the new talent, just like many of my teammates here have done for me. I’ll go from being the young, fresh talent

From the moment she stepped foot on the Cal campus, Kara Kohler al-ready had her sights set on something bigger.

The East Bay native came to Berkeley from Clayton Valley High School seeking success on the international and Olympic levels. And just two years after tak-ing up rowing, the 20-year-old Kohler has earned one of the ultimate rewards in the sport – a position on the U.S. Olympic team that will compete in London this summer.

Kara Kohler

“She’s young, but she’s not immature. She’s got a good head on her shoulders. Hope-fully, the lessons she’s learned with our team have helped her prepare for what she’s going through now.”

– Head Coach Dave O’Neill

SUMMER 2012 29

best, especially in the lead-up year when the level of competition is at its peak.”

Considering how much she has achieved so quickly, the road to victory has not been as easy as it would appear for Kohler. She has often had phone conversations and traded text messages with O’Neill to help keep her spirits up at challenging times.

“We tell our team, ‘Don’t let the lows get too low and don’t let the highs get too high,’ and she’s had to learn that through this,” O’Neill said. “She’s had to keep a steady head and do the best that she can. I’m sure this first winter on the East Coast was a bit of a shock for her, but every challenge that we’ve thrown at her she has met. She’s young, but she’s not immature. She’s got a good head on her shoulders. Hopefully, the lessons she’s learned with our team have helped her prepare for what she’s going through now.”

The good news for Kohler arrived on June 22 with the an-nouncement of the final lineups for the Olympics by US Rowing. There, listed next to veterans Adrienne Martelli, Megan Kalmoe and Natalie Dell for the women’s quadruple sculls was the name of a relative newcomer: Kara Kohler.

Another goal reached with others certainly on the way.

Dedication Conquers All

Rowing Newcomer Kara Kohler Earns Olympic Spot in London

to the seasoned veteran. I’m looking forward to the shift and ready to make the most of my second half [of my collegiate career] with the Bears.”

O’Neill has had others return from a year away for international training in the past, most notably former Golden Bear Iva Obra-dovic, who brought back her Olympic experience after she com-peted in the 2008 Games for her native Serbia. In fact, it was Obradovic’s leadership that helped motivate Kohler to go after her own Olympic dreams. Kohler said getting to know Obradovic during her freshman year had a lot to do with inspiring her to go above and beyond.

Even with her valuable relationship with Obra-dovic, Kohler has still had to learn firsthand the sense of urgency that comes with trying to make an Olympic team.

“Most Olympic hopefuls have had their sights on London at least since the last Olympics in Beijing,” Kohler said. “For me, training for the Olympics didn’t become a part of the plan until 2010. Coming onto the team a year out from the Games, I figured was plenty of time to work my way into the top of the group because I had man-aged to work my way up the rankings quickly at Cal. I soon real-ized that it can take years longer to work your way to the top of the

Kara Kohler, who still has two years of eligibility left at Cal, will represent the United States in the quadruple sculls at the Olympics this summer.

By Tim Miguel


Have a Little

FAITHSwimming Star Caitlin Leverenz

Draws Strength from Her Spirituality


By Jeremy Wu

Caitlin Leverenz

Continued on page 33

Leverenz’s Olympic dreams date back to 2000, when as a nine-year-old sitting in her Tucson, Ariz., home she had her eyes glued to the television as the drama of the Sydney Games unfolded. These were the Olympics of Lenny Krayzelburg, Janet Evans, Jenny Thompson, Brooke Bennett and Kaitlin Sandeno.

Since she began swimming at the age of seven, the words “take your marks” had al-ways struck a familiar chord of excitement, but this time, it was different. When the an-nouncer boomed the phrase on TV, she knew from that moment that she wanted to swim at the pinnacle of her sport.

“I remember thinking that one day, someone could be watching me,” recalled

Leverenz, who will be a senior for the Bears in 2012-13. “And the idea that I could have an American flag in front of my lane was just incredible.”

As someone who has had no problem cutting through the water at high speeds, Caitlin Leverenz has relied on her faith to stay afloat throughout her illustrious swimming career. To help her confront trials and obstacles along her journey, Leverenz turned to a higher power to draw the strength and wisdom she has needed.

The attention span of a nine-year-old is fickle, but Leverenz is wired differently. From that day on, she dedicated her life to train-ing as a swimmer.

With numerous awards and accolades and a resume replete with Pac-12 Swimmer of the Year, NCAA champion and All-America honors, Leverenz is as close to realizing her dream as she has ever been.

Even with all her success, Leverenz knows just how fragile any-thing in life can be, something she discovered just before the start of her senior year of high school when her age-group coach unex-pectedly disappeared from her daily routine.

For Leverenz, a lifetime of work and the relationship she built with her coach over a 10-year span became a source of energy. At the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials with her support system by her side, Leverenz finished fractions of seconds behind some of the fastest swimmers in the world. She earned fourth place twice and had one third-place finish, good results but just shy of earning a berth on the Olympic team.

Months later, so much of what she knew about her world walked out the door when her coach moved away without a word to her.

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SUMMER 2012 33

freshman season despite being named the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year. She has since become a household name among the na-tion’s elite swimmers. Chosen the 2012 Pac-12 Swimmer of the Year, her performance in the pool has helped the Bears claim the past two NCAA team championships, and she was tabbed Swim-mer of the Meet during the 2012 title run.

With the 2012 Olympic trials set for the end of June, Leverenz has a much better perspective and a clearer picture of what her goals are at this point in her career.

Leverenz acknowledges the taboo associated with talking about earning a spot on the Olympic team, but she is quick to offer up the caveat that she believes nothing in life is ever guaranteed. No matter the outcome, she has already proven to herself and to the swimming community that she is indeed here for business.

“I’m really excited and I’m in a really good place going into trials, both emotionally and mentally,” said Leverenz. “I think I’m much steadier and that I can handle whatever happens. If not mak-ing an Olympic team is the worst thing that ever happens in my life, then I think I have a pretty great life.”

As the world prepares for the 2012 Summer Olympics and even as she ploughs through her daily swim routine, Leverenz is busy preparing her heart for what’s ahead. As Cal’s newly elected cap-tain for the 2013 season, she relishes the opportunity to provide a positive influence on her teammates and uphold a standard of excellence set forth by McKeever.

“When people talk about me, I want them to say that I’m a per-son who cares,” said Leverenz, “a person who is honest, and a per-son who is accepting of everyone no matter what their background or faith, someone who is genuine.”

Though her senior year at Sahuaro High School was rough, Leverenz continued to swim. This time, she had a new perspec-tive and was able to take a step back and look at all aspects of her life. Having had someone who helped shape her leave so suddenly plagued her with the question, “What in life is really here to stay?”

“During my senior year, I got to know God and Jesus and developed a relationship with them because it was what I wanted,” said Leverenz. “I know my faith will wax and wane as naturally as anything, but God is never going away and He is unchanging. The strength that I get from that can help me through anything.”

Though she had grown up with religion in her home and had always felt that God was in her life, Leverenz had never made the conscious choice to trust God on her own until her senior year.

Upon her arrival at Cal, Leverenz made it a point to continue to grow and cultivate the relationship she had with God and joined Athletes in Action, the nation-wide sports ministry. Now through the support of her teammates, coaches and other student-athletes, Leverenz has grown a new confidence in herself to accomplish great things in the pool.

“I look back today,” Leverenz said of the 2008 Olympic Trials, “and I know that God had a plan for me and that it wasn’t right for me to make an Olympic team back then because I wasn’t swim-ming for Him. I was swimming for my parents and the people who had expected me to do this, for my coach and my own expectations of myself and my own pride.”

Being as open as she is about her faith hasn’t been without its own set of challenges, but one thing Leverenz appreciates about her surroundings is that people respect and understand that her beliefs mean a lot to her.

“I don’t think it’s my job to thrust my faith upon my team and convert everyone,” Leverenz said. “I love that Berkeley has so many different faiths. It has been challenging when people point-edly ask questions, but I love learning what others believe and this is the perfect place to do that. I think it has all really confirmed my own faith more than anything else. I love and respect that people believe in different things, but I will still hold fast to what I believe always.”

While her faith remains at the center of her life, Leverenz has drawn strength and inspiration from people she feels God has sur-rounded her with. Her head coach at Cal, Teri McKeever, has been one of those major figures during her journey.

“When I got here, Teri asked me if I still wanted to be an Olym-pian,” Leverenz said. “When I said yes, she let me know that she wouldn’t be afraid to tell me when I needed to improve or to do better. I loved and respected that so much. She has been such a huge impact on me both personally and in the pool.”

Though by her own standards, Leverenz experienced a subpar

Continued from page 30

“When people talk about me, I want them to say that I’m a person who cares, a person who is honest, and a person who is accepting of everyone no matter what their background or faith, someone who is genuine.”

– Caitlin Leverenz


From the moment he stepped on campus three days before his collegiate debut against Michigan State in 2008, Giorgio Tavecchio began making memories in Berkeley.

and extra points (112), and fifth in scor-ing (256).

Tavecchio also excelled in the classroom and community service.

As a senior, he was a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, often referred to as the “Academic Heisman,” which also made him a candidate for a National Foot-ball Foundation’s Scholar-Athlete Award. He added Academic All-District 8 honors and was named second-team Pac-12 All-Academic for the third consecutive year. In addition, he earned the team’s Schlessinger Coaches Award for outstanding athletic abili-ty, academic success and community service.

All of his achievements both on and off the field didn’t come without their share of trials and tribulations, in particular what Tavecchio called a defining moment late in his junior season.

“I felt devastated,” Tavecchio said when remembering a false start penalty and sub-sequent missed field goal attempt in the fourth quarter a 15-13 loss to top-ranked Oregon. “That was the main turning point of my athletic career here at Cal … I re-examined everything in my life, and after that point I was a changed kicker and a changed person.”

He finished his collegiate playing career on a high note as a senior by be-coming the first Cal player to pace the Pac-12 in field goal percentage (20-23, 87.0%) and the first since Doug Brien in

A Career Full of MemoriesBy Kyle McRae

ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

Giorgio Tavecchio

It actually started earlier that year, at 4:01 p.m. on May 28 to be precise.

“I still remember the exact date and time,” Tavecchio recalled. “I got this phone call from an unknown number. I had no idea who it was.”

Good thing for Tavecchio that he took the call. On the other end of the phone was former Cal special teams coordinator Pete Alamar.

“That totally changed my life,” Tavecchio said.

Alamar told Tavecchio that the Golden Bears had a walk-on spot available and that he could join the Bears at the beginning of

the upcoming fall semester following the team’s training camp in August.

Tavecchio was excited, but when he ac-tually arrived, little did he know what was coming next.

“I remember coach Alamar sat me down after my second practice and said we’re go-ing to run you with the ones this Saturday,” Tavecchio said, meaning he would be on the first team. “I remember the hairs on the back of my neck just standing straight up. I couldn’t believe I was even at Cal and then to have my coach tell me I was going to be playing in my first game after having been here three days.”

Four years, an upgrade to scholarship status and many remarkable moments later, Tavecchio ranks third on Cal’s all-time lists for both field goals (48)

Giorgio Tavecchio finished his Cal career as the school’s fifth all-time leader scorer with 256 points.

1991 to lead the conference in field goals made per game (1.54).

Before graduating with a bachelor’s de-gree in political economy in May, Tavec-chio also made quite the showing at the school’s Academic Honors Luncheon where he received a Pac-12 Postgraduate Scholarship, the Jake Gimbel Prize recog-nizing a graduating male student-athlete for successful integration of academic and ath-letic pursuits, and a Golden Bear Achieve-ment Award for having the highest cumula-tive GPA on the football team at 3.728.

SUMMER 2012 35


titles and All-Pac-10 honors. The 2009 Pac-10 Newcomer of the Year, Lofman also earned a spot on the 2011 Pac-10 All-Academic second team and collected Pac-10 All-Academic honorable men-tion in 2010 and ’12.

Things weren’t as smooth in the water in 2012. After competing on Cal’s top boat for three seasons, Lofman moved to the second varsity eight this year. She has also dealt with injury.

“This past spring, she dealt with some setbacks,” Cal coach Dave O’Neill said. “As a captain, she was a fantastic leader, but her role

as a rower changed a bit this year. Some people could look at it as a demotion, but she looked at it as a chance to work harder. She had a fantastic positive attitude.”

The Norwegian parlayed her time with the second varsity eight into Pac-12 titles – with her boat and the team – and wins against Stanford and Washington. In overcoming various obstacles this year, Lofman became the first re-cipient of the Jill Costello Scholar Award.

“I am so honored to receive the Jill Costello award,” Lofman said. “I want to set a good example as a leader and inspire others to do their very best while enjoying the journey, just like Jill did.”

With her rowing plans after Cal still up in the air, at least one thing is certain: Lofman will continue her academic journey next year in Berkeley.

Kristina Lofman and the second varsity eight took third at the NCAA regatta this year.

Kristina Lofman’s time at the University of California has allowed her to enjoy the environment in her studies and her sport.

An environmental and earth sciences ma-jor, the forces that drive climate change fasci-nated her at an early age. The product of Oslo, Norway, loved the mountains and fjords of her native land. And, as a future member of the Cal women’s crew, she was particularly fond of oceans. Lofman has always lived close to the water, even when her fam-ily moved to New Zealand, the United Arab

Emirates and Dubai. The differences in climates and landscapes of Norway and Dubai, as well as the similarities of her home country and New Zealand, made her appreciate “the world we live in, how it changes,” she noted.

Lofman’s subsequent success at Cal garnered academic acco-lades for the rower, who earned an Oscar Geballe Postgraduate Scholarship and the Jill Costello Scholar Award in her senior year. The prestigious Geballe scholarship includes a $5,000 stipend, while the Costello award goes to the student-athlete who best rep-resents the spirit of the late Cal coxswain by displaying courage, perseverance and a positive out-look when faced with adversity.

Lofman, whose dream is to work in research in Antarctica, will make use of the Geballe award when she moves on to the Environmental Science masters program at Cal.

“I was really happy to earn the Geballe scholarship,” Lofman said. “I’ve always felt a lot of sup-port from the athletic department, and the fact that they think a lot of me as a student and not just as an athlete says a lot to me.”

Lofman earned the Costello honor in large part due to her com-mitment to women’s crew. Lof-man has contributed throughout her career to the nationally promi-nent Cal program, collecting a third-place finish and a pair of fourth-place finishes with the var-sity eight at NCAAs, All-America status, two Pac-10 varsity eight

Kristina Lofman Recognized for Her Commitment to Crew and SchoolBy Dean Caparaz ’90

Kristina Lofman

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