Former alum, Marc “Bubba” Digesti, played first base for the 1999 N. Nevada Zone-Champion Huskies. He is now the strength coach for the US Disabled Ski team. He currently lives in San Deigo. Below lists a story about a recent DVD he helped produce about his U.S. Ski Team.

Published: US Ski Team
Date: May 21, 2007
Story: Disabled Alpine Filming Fundamentals DVD

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (May 21) – The U.S. Disabled Alpine Team took full advantage of excellent late-season conditions in Colorado to mix up on snow fundamental work at Arapaho Basin with physical testing at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. But, the best part was they caught it all on tape.

Carl Burnett lays down a fundamental turn at Arapaho Basin (credit: Kurt Smitz/USSA)

With a projected debut of December, the Team is producing a set of DVDs to assist grassroots programs in developing young skiers. The first will be based on alpine fundamentals complete with drills and documents outlining how to properly facilitate and apply the drills. The second will be a highlight film of disabled alpine skiing at the highest level, featuring footage of U.S. Ski Team members and other top world skiers in competition. Both will be available through U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association Coaches Resource Center.

“It’s similar to the able-bodied Alpine Ski Fundamentals DVD that already exists,” said Head Coach Ray Watkins, “but this will bring together all the important skills for disabled athletes. It’s critical that every U.S. program have access to the information that we have. In terms of developing solid skiers for the national team, we feel that our programs need to be an open book.”

The film, designed as an educational piece for disabled coaches, will feature both action video and still shots with narration from the U.S. coaching staff including Watkins, Ben Roberts, Kurt Smitz, Marc Digesti and Ian Garner.

“The camp went really well. Everyone was really focused and working to dial their fundamentals,” said Roberts. “Collecting video and still images for our education project was a big priority for the staff and we are ahead of the game. Kurt’s montage shots and Ian’s follow camera video came out really well. I’m really happy with where the team’s skiing is heading as we start the ’07/’08 season.”

“I feel fundamentals have played the largest part in my success,” said Chris Devlin-Young (sit-ski; Campton, NH), a four-time Paralympic medalist and 16-year Team veteran. “Having the opportunity to spend time at the beginning of the season to work on fundamentals is the beginning of the path that will take me back to the top of the podium.”

Also on snow for the project were Brad Washburn (sit-ski; Highlands Ranch, CO), Carl Burnett (sit-ski; Cape Elizabeth, ME), Elitsa Storey (standup; Sun Valley, ID), Gerald Hayden (sit-ski; Fresno, CA), George Sansonetis (standup; Fraser, CO), Laurie Stephens (sit-ski; Wenham, MA), Monte Meier (standup; Park City, UT), and Roger Lee (sit-ski; Wildomar, CA). World Cup overall winner Stephani Victor (sit-ski; Park City, UT) and Joe Tompkins (sit-ski; Juneau, AK) are currently rehabbing injuries.

Following six days at Arapaho Basin with perfect spring training conditions, the team packed up for the OTC in Colorado Springs for two days of physical testing. According to Watkins, it was a grueling couple of days, yet full of positives as the Team refuels for another season.

“I think the athletes are always surprised at how difficult these physical testing camps really are, but the data we get allows them to track their progress throughout the season and from one season to the next. It’s one of the most important things we do as a team and the staff at the OTC is always incredible,” added Watkins.

The Team will be back on-snow in July for a two-week camp at Oregon’s Mt. Hood.

Lakowske, Canham Top Pac-10 All-Academic Picks
Posted: 6/01/2007
Oregon State Sports Information

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon State catcher Mitch Canham and outfielder Joey Lakowske were on the first team when the Pacific-10 All-Academic Baseball Team was announced Thursday. Beaver pitcher Joe Paterson was named to the second team and OSU pitcher Jake McCormick and outfielders Scott Santschi and John Wallace earned honorable mention.

To be eligible for selection to Pacific-10 All-Academic teams, a student-athlete must have a minimum 3.0 overall grade-point average and be either a starter or significant contributor.

For Canham (Lake Stevens, Wash./Lake Stevens HS), a junior majoring in Business Administration, it was his third time as a first-team selection. For McCormick (Marysville, Calif./Erindale HS, Australia), a senior majoring in Sociology, it was his third time earning honorable mention.

For Lakowske, Paterson, Santschi and Wallace, it was their first time being named to the squad.

Lakowske (Corvallis, Ore./Crescent Valley HS) is a redshirt freshman majoring in Business Administration. Paterson (McMinnville, Ore./McMinnville HS, Linfield Coll.) is a junior majoring in General Agriculture. Santschi (Vancouver, Wash./Skyview HS, CC of Spokane) is a senior majoring in Business. Wallace (Reno, Nev./Reno HS) is a sophomore majoring in Business.

Sorry for the grammar, typing fast, been out of the office awhile and sifting through emails. The world record class brown bear in the Anchorage airport is 10”2 and I believe a 29 inch wide skull, a couple rub spots and estimated at 1500 lbs.

I just got an email from my friend in Kodiak, see his comment below. (mind you, this was not guided, never have gone that route)
“Congrats, what a pig of a bear. A world renowned bear guide out of Kodiak went down to look at the hide and was raving about your bear and called it a trophy of a lifetime. Congrats again…”

The preliminary tape was 10”2 and that was before it was fleshed out. After fleshing out, it usually gains 2 to 3 inches. Unfortunately the skull was just under 28 inches which hits just below the B&C all time record books radar. Almost got my second B&C entry! It will score for 2007 though if I enter it. Claw to Claw across the top was 10”01, and the front pad was 9.5 inches across, not a single rub spot.
The best part of the trip was the plane ride back home, sitting in between the hosts and crew of three hunting television shows that are on a national network and have many DVD’s in retail locations, catalogs, etc.
A guided Kodiak brown bear hunt averages $20 thousand. For locals they have the draw tag system or option to pay a guide, people try to draw for a life time, I got it on the third year.

I had dropped all my gear off several hours before my flight home and was in Kodiak a few days celebrating with friends. I was in my work clothes for the flight while the rest of the airport looked like a hunting catalog had thrown up in the terminal with all the people in their camo gear. I had a good time listening to each of the hosts tell me about their show and how they come up every year and stay from around April 1st through the end of the season May 17th. That this was always the big show that everyone tuned into each year. One explained how they got a 9”6 the previous year and how big of a bear that was, that it took 9 shots.

Another explained how this year they wounded a bear and it then bedded down in the Alders and was then spotted two days later feeding and then two weeks later breeding with a sow. The strength and mass of these bears is astounding. We measured the forearm when we were dressing mine out, it is bigger than my thigh. I’m 6”5 , my thigh isn’t that small. It took three of us over six hours to dress out the bear.

Alders mind you are very dangerous scrub brush that cover Alaska, usually about 7 feet high with very low visibility, seven times out of ten you hear a bear coming through the Alders at you before you see them. (sounds literally like a steam roller barreling through, Crash! Crash! Crash!) You can see alders in the photo.

Then one camera man further explains how they were within 93 yards, very scary that close, makes for good television. Honestly they were very nice, very genuine guys, not arrogant at all as one would expect. You could tell they were very skilled sportsmen and wildlife conservationists. Then one asked what I did in Kodiak… I got to explain. No I was hunting too, I live across the water. Very sheepishly, almost like come on I am too quite and too modest. They all responded, “ohh great, that is good that the local guys get to have the experience too” , “ did you have any luck?” I nodded yes, and they asked if I had pictures…I pulled out my little zip lock bag with a digital still shot camera and my digital video recorder about a 10nth the size of the $30 thousand dollar carry on camera equipment the crew had. I handed the camera to the guys of the one with me on the boat. No one said a word. They passed it around, one of the host’s of a show leaned forward and looked at me and then passed it to another guy.

How big is that? So far it is 10”2 for sure but it hasn’t been fleshed yet. How far away were you when you shot it a camera guy asked. “Well my buddy and I don’t like to shoot any further than 50 yards, so I would say about 30 yards.” And they started choking, laughing, and roaring They couldn’t believe it. They were so jacked up and loving it. 2 shots at 50 yards on Mothers day.

Right now it will either take a tour around the state at some retail locations or head to the west coast somewhere. It was too big for us to move and take the traditional photo’s. It was also late and about to get dark, there were others bears circling us as well.
Overall it was a good time, had some great stalks, watched one boar go after an elk, watched another boar attack some cubs to get the sow into heat, got into some fun sea’s in the Shelikof straits, waves sunk the skiff one day as we got to shore on Afognak island, almost lost our gill net to some whales as we were setting it to try and catch the islands first red salmon for the season, watched three bears at 50 yards on three different days, and had an 8 or 9 foot sow charge through the alders about 45 minutes before I took the bruin in the photo.
I apologize, but as many of you have heard me say, words don’t do an ounce of justice…those of you who hunt and especially those who have ever looked into the eye’s of a brown bear before know what I mean.

Take care everyone. I’ll let you know where the bear ends up. It will be about two years before the taxidermist is done. And for the PETA members out there, the effective hunting game management in Kodiak has directly resulted in the consistent annual sustainable increase in the brown bear population as well as overall size increase for healthy cubs. Believe the science not your feelings.

JOE SANTORO
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Posted: 10/8/2006

Stew Colton remembers the little nickname the Reno Huskies coaching staff had for shortstop Steve Mays.

“When he was at Reno High we used to call him a cage rat,” said Colton, a former Huskies assistant coach and now the Nevada Wolf Pack’s first base coach. “He had a key to our indoor facility at Reno and you could find him in there almost every day of the year, working at his game, swinging a bat.”

The Huskies’ cage rat is now a Pack rat.

That work ethic took Mays from Reno High in 2004 to Mesa (Ariz.) Community College for two years and now to the Wolf Pack, where he hopes to see plenty of playing time next season as an infielder.

“He’s already one of the hardest working kids we have,” Wolf Pack infielders coach Jay Uhlman said.

And that was after just one week of fall practices. The 5-foot-11, 175-pound Mays, though, knows that hard work is the only way to earn playing time for head coach Gary Powers’ Wolf Pack in the 2007 season.

“We have a lot of great players on this team, especially in the infield,” said Mays, who was born and raised in Reno. “I just have to work as hard as I can. There’s a lot of great competition.”

Mays, a junior, is trying to be as versatile as he can for the Wolf Pack, taking ground balls at second, short and third this fall. Mainly a shortstop for Reno High, Mays hit .452 his senior year with 65 RBIs and 51 runs scored, helping the Huskies win the Class 4A state title. He drove in four runs in the 12-2 title game victory over Cimarron-Memorial.

“I just want to play where they need me,” Mays said. “It doesn’t matter to me. Wherever they want me to contribute is good with me. I just want to get on the field whichever way I can.”

Powers said Mays is in the mix at all three spots. Juniors David Ciarlo (second and short) and Matt Bowman (second and third) are the most experienced players back at second, short and third. For the most part, though, Mays’ three positions are filled with a lot of new faces, leaving the competition wide open.

“All of those jobs are wide open as far as I’m concerned,” Powers said.

Mays, Powers said, fills an important role at all three positions.

“He’s kind of filling a utility infielder role for us now at second, short and third,” Powers said. “He really gives us a lot of depth at all those positions. His versatility gives him a lot of opportunities to earn playing time. If he gets beat out at one spot, he can also compete at another spot. That’s a good thing for him and for us.”

Mays was part of one of the best high school baseball teams in recent Northern Nevada memory in 2004 with the Huskies. That team featured standout pitchers like Jeff Schoenbachler and Chris Rickey, first baseman John Wallace, third baseman Jake Johnson, catcher Ryan Simpson and outfielder Drew Johnson.

Rickey and Johnson later played for the Wolf Pack and Wallace started for Oregon State last year as the Beavers won the College World Series. Schoenbachler is currently in professional baseball in the Minnesota Twins organization.

It was Mays, though, that was named the Sierra League’s Co-Player of the Year in 2004 along with Douglas’ Luke Rippee.

“Steve was a quiet leader,” said Colton, who played at Mesa and Nevada in the early 1970s. “He was one of the key guys on that team. He’s just a good kid with a great makeup who loves the game.”

“He’s one of those guys that you might not notice on a daily basis,” Powers said. “But he’s the kind of guy who contributes every single day and does his job. Those are the kinds of guys who are ultimately successful because they are solid players and they keep working hard to become better.”

Uhlman got a chance to see a lot of Mays in 2004.

“I really liked him out of high school,” said Uhlman, a former Wolf Pack shortstop a decade ago. “We didn’t sign him at the time because we were a little overloaded in the middle of the infield. But we knew that Steve could play. He has very good athleticism and he has a real solid approach to the game.”

Mays played short as a freshman at Mesa and second as a sophomore.

“It was nice to see him go down to Arizona for two years and develop as a player,” Uhlman said. “He was able to get valuable experience down there for two years and we’re very fortunate he decided to come back to town and play with us.”

Mays said he was also recruited out of high school by Oregon State and Santa Clara.

“They told me that I probably wouldn’t get to play a lot my first two years,” Mays said this week. “So I thought the best thing for me was to go to a place where I could get on the field and play. And it all worked out for the best.

“I wanted to stay here coming out of high school but it just didn’t work out. And it was good for me in a lot of ways to get out of town for a while. Going to Mesa worked out great for me. I learned a lot and got a lot of playing time. I was able to get over 200 at-bats in both of my years there and I was able to develop as a player much quicker.”

Mays is right where he wanted to be all along.

“I just think that this is a real good fit for me,” Mays said. “I have a lot of people here who support me. I liked getting away for a couple years and see a different area. But it’s nice to be home again.”

Having Colton around is an added bonus, Mays said.

“When I heard he was coaching here, I was thrilled,” Mays said. “I loved him at Reno High. It’s just nice having him around again.”

“I know he’s going to be able to help this ballclub,” Colton said.

CHAD HARTLEY
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Posted: 6/30/2006
Picture: Oregon State

John Wallace had been on championship teams during his high school career, so the notion that it takes a team effort to win a title was not lost on the Reno High graduate.

Playing in the championship game of the College World Series for Oregon State on Monday night, Wallace was poised for the most important at-bat of his career.

A moment later, the freshman outfielder and designated hitter found himself on the bench, watching teammate Ryan Gipson’s pinch-hit ground ball to second base. North Carolina’s Bryan Steed fielded the ball but threw wide to first base, allowing Bill Rowe to score from second. That proved to be the winning run in the Beavers’ improbable run to the CWS title.

“I was a little disappointed that I got pinch-hit for because everybody wants to be the hero,” the left-handed hitting Wallace said. “But it was the obvious move, bringing a senior right-handed bat up against their big lefty (Andrew Miller). I can’t complain because he had some magic left in his bat and we won the national championship.”

In the College World Series, Wallace collected eight hits and scored five runs while driving in another run. In the championship game, he scored the Beavers’ second run of the game.

“I was very pleased with how I did personally,” Wallace said. “I had a lot of fun playing on the biggest stage in college baseball and did my part to help us win a championship. It was the dream of a lifetime.”

Wallace described the experience of winning the national championship as “incredible” and “surreal” and said it was a similar feeling to winning state football and baseball titles during his junior year at Reno High.

“Those were incredible experiences in high school and I think they actually prepared me for this kind of thing,” Wallace said. “Playing in those big games, those playoff-pressure games, those are huge games. I learned from that. I learned how to play championship ball. There are a lot of guys on this team who won championships in high school. I think that showed through.”

Before the CWS, Wallace said he felt confident in his team’s chances if only because the Beavers had been there before.

Last year, Oregon State lost two games and went home. This year, the tournament started in a similar fashion as Oregon State fell to Miami in its opening game.

But the Beavers won four straight, including back-to-back wins over Rice to reach the championship series. After losing the opener of the three-game title series to North Carolina, Oregon State won two in a row and became the first team in history to lose two games in the CWS and capture the title.

“Nobody gave up,” said Wallace, who batted .326 for the Beavers this season. “Everyone knew we could still do it. This team was hungry for it. This team had been there before and knew we could pull it out.”

Wallace said he was struck by ceremonies for the team held in Portland and Corvallis, Ore., upon the Beavers’ return and the team members’ celebrity status in the campus town now.

“Everywhere you go, whatever store you walk into, people recognize you and congratulate you,” he said. “It’s been amazing. It hasn’t really sunk in yet.”

Wallace said he is returning to Reno this weekend but only for a couple days. Then he leaves to play summer ball in Hawaii.

CHAD HARTLEY
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Posted: 6/17/2006

John Wallace is ready to help his Oregon State teammates take care of unfinished business.

Last year at this time, Wallace was taking part in graduation ceremonies at Reno High School, and Oregon State was just happy to be at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Neb., for the first time. The Beavers quickly lost two games and went home.

Now, Oregon State is back in Omaha with a new focus, and Wallace played a part in the Beavers’ 44-14 season and return trip to the College World Series. Oregon State will take on Miami (41-22) today at 4 p.m.

“The guys who were on the team last year, they are ready to go,” Wallace said Friday in a telephone interview. “They want to stay longer. I want to help this team go as far as we can. But at the same time, I am trying to take everything in. Getting to Omaha, this is a dream for me.”

Wallace got thrown into the fire as a freshman this year when Beavers star center fielder Tyler Graham went down with an injury. He played in 40 of the Beavers’ 58 games and is third in hitting at .337. He scored 22 runs, drove in 17 and stole four bases this season.

“I didn’t know what to expect this year but I got a chance to start when Tyler got hurt and I did a pretty good job with that opportunity,” Wallace said. “Making the adjustment to this level is tough because the game is faster and the competition is better. But it is still the same game. I’m pretty happy with my first year.”

Now, Wallace and Oregon State will see how long that year will last. Today against the Hurricanes, the left-handed hitting Wallace isn’t expecting to start because Miami is starting a left-hander on the mound. But he could get a pinch-hitting opportunity and expects to start as the team’s designated hitter later in the tournament.

With Graham back in the lineup for the Beavers, Wallace has seen a lot of time at DH, which has been a positive and a negative.

“Being a freshman and making the adjustment to this level, it has been nice because I only have to focus on one thing during a game,” he said. “But it can hurt you, too. If you are having a bad day at the plate, you don’t have the chance to go out there and make up for it on defense. You just spend all your time in the dugout stewing about your last at-bat.”

Wallace said he’s been fielding congratulatory calls from old high school teammates and friends all week. Reno High coach Pete Savage called Friday morning to wish him good luck.

“All of those calls have been great,” Wallace said. “Coach Savage, he just told me to stay focused and enjoy myself.”

Wallace admitted that the experience has been “overwhelming” so far. The Beavers hosted an NCAA Regional and Super Regional before going to Omaha this week.

“(Thursday night), they had opening ceremonies at the ballpark and we are out there on the field with 20,000 people screaming in the stands and it was just the opening ceremonies,” he said. “That was just awesome. I can’t really describe the feeling. This is just the thrill of a lifetime.”

He said his parents, grandparents, an aunt and uncle and some family friends made the trip to Omaha.

“I have a lot of support here, and the guys on the team who were here last year, they have told me what to expect,” Wallace said. “This experience, this is why I came here.

“I think we have really good chance. We have great pitching and we play solid defense. If our bats get fired up like they did during Regionals, I think we have a good shot.”

DRILLERS ARE CHAMPS!
TulsaDrillers.com
Posted: 6/18/2006

June 18, 2006 – The Tulsa Drillers are the first-half champions of the Texas League’s North Division. A dramatic winner-take-all game with the Springfield Cardinals Sunday afternoon turned anti-climatic when the Drillers scored five times in the top of the third inning. After the big inning, Tulsa starting pitcher Marc Kaiser turned in a brilliant performance, retiring 21 straight hitters at one point, as the Drillers won the first-half finale 8-1.

The win allowed the Drillers to finish one game in front of the Cardinals in the standings. Tulsa finished with a record of 41-29, while Springfield finished at 39-29.

After losing the resumption of Saturday night’s game earlier in the afternoon, the Drillers took an early lead in Sunday’s regularly scheduled contest. Ian Stewart lined the first pitch of the second inning over the wall in right field to give Tulsa a 1-0 lead. After the homer, Chris Iannetta singled and Joe Gaetti doubled. A groundout by Jordan Czarniecki plated Iannetta to make it 2-0.

The Cardinals got a run back in the bottom of the second when Terry Evans led off with his sixth homer of year to cut the lead in half.

Springfield then provided Tulsa plenty of help in the pivotal third, as all five runs that scored were unearned . Troy Tulowitzki led off with a fly ball that left fielder Nick Stavinoha dropped for a three base error. A passed ball by catcher Gabe Johnson allowed Tulowitzki to come home with the Drillers third run. After Seth Smith popped out, Joe Koshanksy was hit by a pitch. Ian Stewart singled and Iannetta was hit by another pitch to load the bases. Joe Gaetti then hit a pop up just behind first base that the Cardinals failed to catch. Koshansky scored to make it 4-1, but Iannetta was forced at second base on the play. Czarniecki followed, and with runners at first and third, he hit a drive down the left field line that cleared the wall just inside the foul pole for his 8th home run of the year. The homer increased Tulsa’s lead to 7-1.

From there, Kaiser dominated. From the third through the eighth inning, the Cardinals did not have a single base runner. Mike McCoy finally broke the streak of 21 straight outs with a one-out single in the ninth. Kaiser quickly ended any comeback hopes when he got pinch-hitter Cody Haerther to ground into a game-ending double play.

The performance by Kaiser improved his record to 6-5 and lowered his ERA to 4.03. It was only the second 9-inning, complete game for a Tulsa hurler this season. Ubaldo Jimenez pitched a 9-inning shutout earlier this month.

Stewart, Iannetta, Gaetti and Czarniecki all had two hits each to lead a 10-hit Tulsa attack. Czarniecki finished with four runs batted in.

The first-half title guarantees the Drillers a spot in the first round of the Texas League playoffs in September. Tulsa will play the North Division’s second-hlaf winner in a best-of-five series with games one and two at Drillers Stadium.

The Drillers will now enjoy three off days as the Texas League takes its All-Star break. The All-Star Game will be played Tuesday night in Little Rock with eight Tulsa players participating.

Tulsa will begin the second-half of the season Thursday night at Drillers Stadium against the Midland RockHounds. It will be the beginning of a 7-game homestand for the Drillers. Steven Register will be the starting pitcher in Thursday’s opener with first pitch scheduled for 7:05PM.

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STEVE SNEDDON
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
(Click link above for full article)
Posted: 5/10/2006
Picture: SCOTT SADY

At Reno High Tuesday, the Huskies took a 10-0 win over Reed to move into a winners’ bracket game on their home field against Galena at 6 p.m. today. The Grizzlies advanced with a 9-4 come-from-behind victory over Douglas. Reed and Douglas will play in a losers’ bracket game at Reno at 3 p.m. today.

…

RENO 10, REED 0 at Reno: Huskies’ pitching star Garrett Luippold silenced the Raiders and Pete Savage pitched the fifth inning as they combined for a two hitter in the game that ended on the 10-run rule.

Luippold, who threw less than 50 pitches in his four innings, threw first pitch strikes to all 14 batters he faced. A two-run homer by Jon Dankworth over the left field scoreboard got the Huskies rolling with a 3-0 lead in the second round.

“We swung the bats well,” said Huskies’ coach Pete Savage, the reliever’s father. “We played good defense. The kids had a good approach. Getting the runs early was nice.

“I think anytime you get Luippold an early lead in the game, he’s tough to come back on.”

The Huskies, the Sierra League regular season champion, ran their overall record to 28-6 and the Raiders, who finished fourth in the High Desert dropped to 15-19.