February 13, 2007

SPORTS

Mike Annab (center, in USA Rugby shirt) of Santa Teresa, coach of the South Bay Exiles Rugby Club, is a former San Jose State University rugby captain (1997) who has been leading the charge on behalf of youth rugby in South San Jose since forming the Valley Christian High School Rugby Club five years ago.

He still is the director of technology at Valley Christian, but now the club has been renamed as the Exiles to include rugby aspirants from other area high schools. The players in the photo, left to right, are Chris Hamm, Boris Taratutin, Daniel DeVilliers, Daniel Young, Scott Cody, Coach Annab, Alex Nihinu, Matt Narlesky, Joe Reuther, Christopher Beach and Karl Schmahl.

This year, the Exiles have players from Santa Teresa High and Pioneer High in the program. Rugby, said Mike, is “the greatest sport on earth. The combination of the skills and the camaraderie is better than any other sport I am aware of.”

The Exiles are well into their season, but still have a full slate of games and tournaments remaining, including Feb. 17 versus Peninsula Green at Valley Christian and March 3 versus Silicon Valley at Cubberley Field in Palo Alto. Annab is open to accepting new players, no experience necessary. For more information, e-mail Mike at rugbymike@sbcglobal.net or call (408) 639-5068.

–By Karl Laucher

REACH Youth Scholarship nomination forms available online from San Jose Sports Authority

Nomination forms for the San Jose Sports Authority’s 2006 REACH Youth Scholarship Program, sponsored by Bridge Bank, which has provided college funds to 50 high school students over the past 10 years, are now available for downloading from the Sports Authority’s Web site at www.sjsa.org.

Last year, 31 Santa Clara County high school seniors were nominated, and six who overcame adversity through participation in sports were awarded scholarships through the REACH program, an acronym for Recognizing Excellence, Adversity, Courage and Hard Work. Scholarships are awarded based on an essay competition in which nominees explain how sports helped them overcome adversity.

The nominees and scholarship winners for 2006 will be honored at the REACH Awards Breakfast, chaired by former San Francisco 49er Ronnie Lott, on Thursday, May 3, 2007.

Only Santa Clara County high schools may nominate students for the award, with a maximum of five nominees per school. Nominees must then complete an essay and student information form.

Nominees must:

- Be high school seniors,
- Maintain a 2.5 GPA,
- Participate in at least one sanctioned high school athletic activity,
- Demonstrate community involvement,
- Show the ability to overcome adversity or obstacles to reach his or her goals.

Each nominee is required to write an essay of one to three pages based on his or her experiences. The essay should focus on the obstacles they have overcome and how sports have helped them achieve their goals. Essays will be judged on content.

Nominations must be postmarked by Friday, March 31.

Visit the San Jose Sports Authority Web site at www.sjsa.org for more information.

Sports Brief

South ValleyPop Warner is holding sign-ups for youth football and cheer. Participants must be between 5 and 15 years of age as of Aug. 31. Sign-ups are from 12-3 p.m. at Round Table Pizza at 5440 Thornwood Ave. on the following Saturdays; Feb. 17, Mar. 3, Mar. 17 and Mar. 31. For more informations, visit www.stpopwarner.org or call Bill Vines at (408) 808-1473.