Claremont finds biggest advantage in running sports

As the 2011 cross-country season is ready to begin for the Claremont High School, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Pomona-Pitzer, one thing is for certain. Claremont athletes know how to run.

Last season, the CHS boys cross-country team placed 3rd in the state, the Webb boys competed in the state championships and both C-M-S and Pomona-Pitzer sent runners to the NCAA championships. Running isn't just what many Claremont athletes do, it is also what they excel at.

It's interesting because each community has its niche. Claremont excels in sports that require endurance such as cross-country, soccer, swimming and track. The city is not where you would find a collection of bulk and mass among athletes. Perhaps that could be attributed to the health consciousness of the Claremont and the city environment.

Heading east to Upland and Rancho Cucamonga, you'll find football programs that are broadcasted on television. Heading further east to Etiwanda, Fontana and Corona, you'll find a region of highly competitive basketball teams. It is interesting how each area has a sport that they excel at above others.

Claremont certainly can excel in football, basketball, baseball and the other sports. Last year's CHS football team made the CIF playoffs, Pomona-Pitzer continued adding wins to its strong baseball program, and C-M-S has fielded a strong lacrosse program over the past few seasons. But running has been consistent during my 5 years at the COURIER.

It'll be September in just 2 days. And that means that we'll be seeing a lot of running Claremont and perhaps some more accolades to talk about by December. What do you think?

CMS partners with Campus Team Store for team apparel

The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps athletic department has joined forces with Campus Team Store to create an online store featuring a wide range of athletic apparel and accessories.

The department made the announcement earlier this month as shoppers will have access to more than 1200 customizable products with hundreds of design options. Proceeds from each sale will go to the department.

Both CMS and Campus Team Store worked together to create the available designs at the team stores. CMS currently has a separate Stags and Athenas site based on the preference of Stags or Athenas. Pomona College also has a store to support the Sagehens.

"We have a winning tradition and wanted to partner with someone that could give our fans the best apparel options for every sport we offer," said Mike Sutton, director of CMS Athletics.

My personal favorite from what I've seen so far:

Pitching perfection

Former Claremont High School graduate and current Cleveland Indians minor league pitcher Justin Germano became the first Columbus Clipper player in team history to throw a perfect game last night against the Syracuse Chiefs.

The hurler threw 95 pitches (69 strikes) en route to leading his team to a 3-0 shutout on Wednesday and is now just the 5th player to record a perfect game in International League history. Germano racked up 7 strikeouts in the contest with the last one ending the game when the Chiefs' Corey Brown watched the final pitch zoom by.

Germano made his major league debut with the San Diego Padres in 2004 and started 23 games for the team in 2007. Earlier this season, the 28-year-old made 9 appearances for the Indians before being sent to the Triple-A level Columbus Clippers in mid-May. He has since lowered his earned run average (ERA) from 5.68 when he played for the Indians to an impressive 2.42 ERA to date with the Clippers.

Congratulations to Germano for his historic performance and check below for a pair of videos showing the final out of last night's game and also the team celebration.

Claremont 14U Faspitch takes on fundraising challenge

After qualifying for the America Softball Association Fastpitch Western National Tournament nearly 2 weeks ago, the Claremont 14-and-Under All-Star team is faced with another challenge before the August event.

The team is holding a series of fundraisers to cover the cost of attending the tournament in Spokane, Washington from August 1-7. The next fundraiser is a yard sale that will take place this Saturday at 1532 Lafayette Road in Claremont from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

It was the support of the Claremont community that allowed the 10U, 12U and 14U teams to participate in last year's Western Nationals. The 14U is inviting the community to participate in Saturday's yard sale and also will accept donated items to sale.

For more information on the upcoming event, contact team representative Wendy McCord at (909) 938-0536.

Wolfpack wins consolation prize in passing tourney

(Photo courtesy of Claremont HS Football)

The Claremont Wolfpack football team defeated Summit High School (Fontana) on Saturday to win the consolation award of the 17th Annual Claremont Varsity Passing Tournament.

Hosted by Claremont, the passing tournament is a 7-on-7 competition during the summer that allows more than 20 teams to test their pass offense and defense against other schools from the Inland Empire, Los Angeles area and Orange County. Etiwanda won the tournament this year by defeating Villa Park in the championship game.

After winning the tournament in 2009, Claremont improved from a 2-8 record in 2008 to a 5-5 record that fall. The Pack went 7-3 in 2010 and reached the playoffs for the first time in several years.

Claremont will open the 2011 season at home against Ontario on September 5th at 7:30 p.m.

Claremont pitchers drafted by Mariners

The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and Pomona-Pitzer athletic departments had reason to celebrate as Stags pitcher Alex Sunderland (pictured top) and Sagehens hurler David Colvin (pictured bottom) were both drafted by Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners during the 2011 MLB First Year Player draft earlier this month.

Colvin was selected in the 27th round and became the 5th Pomona-Pitzer player to be drafted by an MLB team since 2003. His record as a Sagehen was 35-7 and he was named First Team All-SCIAC, Pomona-Pitzer's Most Valuable Athlete and Second Team All-West Region during his collegiate stint. He will report to the Pulaski Martines of the Appalachian League.

Sunderland was the 1143rd player selected in the draft's 38th round. His career record with the stags with 20-7 with a 3.94 ERA in 233 innings. Sunderland's 1.000 fielding percentage during the 2011 season led to his selection to the ABCA/Rawlings West Region Gold Glove Team while his 9-1 record in 2010 led to First Team All-SCIAC and Third Team ABCA/Rawlings All-West honors.

Congratulations to both players as their hard work has paid off.

Lim smashes way to Division III title

(photo courtesy of C-M-S Athletics)

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's tennis sophomore Kristin Lim has made history for the Athenas tennis program.

The sophomore from Honolulu captured the NCAA Division III women's singles title by defeating University of Chicago's Kendra Higgins in the finals, 6-1, 6-3 at Pomona-Pitzer's Pauley Tennis Complex last weekend. Lim's road to the finals included defeating Carleton College's Kathryn Schmidt (6-4, 6-2), Emory University's Jordan Wylie (6-2, 6-3), Middlebury College's Victoria Aiello (6-3, 6-1) and Tufts University's Julia Browne (6-1, 6-3). The C-M-S player did not lose a set in her 5 postseason matches.

Lim completes an impressive season that saw her earn 34 victories and lose only 3 times. She was also successful in doubles with partner Crystal Lim this season as the duo tallied 31 victories before losing to Division III champions Jordan Brewer-Gabby Devlin in the semifinals.

Congratulations to Lim on her memorable season.