Surf’s up for Malibu local Frankie Seely · 2014. 6. 19. · B14 The Malibu Times June 19, 2014...
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B14 The Malibu Times June 19, 2014 Surf’s up for Malibu local Frankie Seely Frankie Seely, 17, claims wins at two recent surfing events. By McKenzie Jackson Special to The Malibu Times M alibu surfer Frankie Seely is riding high on a wave of suc- cess. The 17-year-old Malibu High School student has claimed victory at two consecutive surfing competitions, and now she’s gearing up for a national surfing event later this month. Seely, a specialist on the 8-foot longboard and 5-to-7-foot shortboard, won the Girls Longboard U18 divi- sion of the Western Surfing Association on May 11 at Church Beach in San Onofre, Calif. Next, she won the Explorer Women’s Division title at the Nationals Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) State Championship on May 18 in Huntington Beach. Seely also participated in Surfing America’s USA Championships at Church Beach June 13-18, finishing fourth in the womens under-18 division. During the three-day NSSA event at the Huntington Beach Pier, Seely finished with a score of 11.10 on 4-to- 6-feet waves. That was good enough to best second-place finisher Steffi Kerson of Thousand Oak’s 10.40 at the ama- teur surfing competition. In a recent phone interview, Seely said her last two wins were unlike any others. “All that hard work paid off,” she said. “I had a great coach backing me up [Mike Lamm], and I just tried to do my best. There are a lot of great competitors that I have been going against throughout the season, and they are very seasoned; it was pretty great to be able to win over those girls because they are tough competi- tion.” Her NSSA win, which came at an event that featured around 400 surfers from across California, washed in a year after Malibu surfer Frankie Harrer won the same event. Seely said she did not perform well at the event last year and was unpre- pared. “This year I was relaxed, had a healthy diet and a really great coach,” she said. Frankie said before any surfing tournament she always thinks posi- tively. “Be calm, be collected and just enjoy surfing,” she said. “The times I would get nervous my legs would get heavy because of all the tension, but lately I have been getting over it.” The release of tension and the help of her coach, Mike Lamm, a champion surfer and coach, has allowed her to have successful outings on her board. She credited Lamm with providing great guidance. “He has won these championships before,” she said. “His coaching has helped tremendously.” Frankie’s success on the water comes at a good time. The 2014 NSSA National Championships are June 26 to July 3 in Huntington Beach. The championship event will feature some of the top amateur surfers from across the United States. Frankie said she is looking for- ward to the national championships because the waters off the coast of the Huntington Beach feature one of her favorite waves in California. Frankie, who describes surfing as her “life” and “love,” has dreams of catching waves beyond the California coastlines and even America’s beach- es. “I hope to one day travel the world, surfing my favorite waves,” she said. “I really want to go to Fiji or Tahiti and surf.” Soccer squad wins nearby tournament By McKenzie Jackson Special to The Malibu Times A team of young Malibu foot- ballers was crowned champion at an area soccer tournament ear- lier this month. The 12-member Malibu boys 12-and-under team won first place in the 2014 Patriot Cup Tournament at Conejo Creek South Soccer Fields in Thousand Oaks on June 1. The U12 squad, coached by John Franco, defeated Thousand Oaks 2-0 in order to secure the U12 cham- pionship of the Area Youth Soccer Organization event. Ten-year-old Colin Murphy, a forward, and Diego Franco, 11, a mid-fielder, each scored a goal during the contest. Franco, a youth soccer coach for six years, said he and assistant coach Jon Krawczyk are very proud of their youth team. “They played together as a team, never gave up, and had a lot of fun in the process,” he said. “They passed well and stepped up when it mattered. They say, ‘Defense wins Championships,’ and we allowed only one goal in the tournament.” En route to the Patriot League title game the Malibu U12 team defeated three teams. The victories included a 1-0 win over Saugus, a 4-0 victory over Ventura, and a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Woodland Hills. The team played in the Patriot League’s Pool E. Overall, 24 teams competed in six different pools in the boys U12 division during the tourna- ment, which began on May 31. Leading up to the two-day tourna- ment in Thousand Oaks, the Malibu team, which is made up of nine 11-year-olds and three 10-year-olds, came in fourth place in a local all-star tournament of 12 teams, and made it to the championship game in last month’s Strawberry Cup tournament in Camarillo. The Malibu boys won three contests before bowing out in the championship game to Carpentaria by a score of 2-1. Along with Colin and Diego, other members of the Malibu U12 team included Adidan Gunasekera, Alex Sudmann, Alex Roesler, Evan Geft, Hudson Kory, Jak Krawczyk, Maika Apana-Bates, Marcus Mortel, Nick Reinhold and Sammy Mankoff. Franco said his team was excited after winning the championship. “These tournaments are hard to win, especially with a team that has no 12-year-olds on the roster,” he said. “The difference between an 11-year- old player and a 12 year-old player can be huge, but these boys played with heart and determination and were not going to be denied.” Franco added most of the U12 teams in the tournament were com- prised of second year or 12-year-old players. He described the being the Patriot League champions as “special.” “This team was together last year in the U10 division, but the team has not had the same roster this year as some [players] have been recruited to play on other teams and some have had club commitments to honor,” he said. “We were able to get the boys together for one last tournament and it was sweet for everyone to share this victory together, parents as well as kids.” Dick Dornan / TMT Frankie Seely Sports Photo courtesy of John Franco Malibu Boys U12- Patriot Cup champions: Back row, from left: Coach John Franco, Diego Franco, Alex Sudmann, Nick Reinhold, Alex Roesler, Coach Jon Krawczyk, Maika Apana-Bates; center row, from left: Hudson Kory, Colin Murphy, Aidan Gunasekera, Evan Geft; front row, from left: Sammy Mankoff, Jak Krawczyk. Not pictured: Marcus Mortel Strong finish Photo courtesy Pepperdine Athletics Communications The Waves baseball team finishes the season, which was their best in 22 years. T he Pepperdine baseball team finished the year 43-18 and fell one win short of the College World Series. The Waves won the San Luis Obispo Regional, but lost to TCU in their first-ever appearance in the Super Regional. The 43 wins are the seventh most in program his- tory. Congratulations to the WCC Champions on a phenomenal season — their best in 22 years. Reds win championship Dick Dornan / TMT Reds: 2014 Malibu Little League majors champions B1-4,7,8,14 6-12-14.indd 14 6/17/14 7:45 PM
Transcript of Surf’s up for Malibu local Frankie Seely · 2014. 6. 19. · B14 The Malibu Times June 19, 2014...
B14 The Malibu Times June 19, 2014
Surf’s up for Malibu local Frankie SeelyFrankie Seely, 17, claims wins at two recent surfing events.
By McKenzie JacksonSpecial to The Malibu Times
Malibu surfer Frankie Seely is riding high on a wave of suc-cess.
The 17-year-old Malibu High School student has claimed victory at two consecutive surfing competitions, and now she’s gearing up for a national surfing event later this month.
Seely, a specialist on the 8-foot longboard and 5-to-7-foot shortboard, won the Girls Longboard U18 divi-sion of the Western Surfing Association on May 11 at Church Beach in San Onofre, Calif. Next, she won the Explorer Women’s Division title at the Nationals Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) State Championship on May 18 in Huntington Beach. Seely also participated in Surfing America’s USA Championships at Church Beach June 13-18, finishing fourth in the womens under-18 division.
During the three-day NSSA event at the Huntington Beach Pier, Seely finished with a score of 11.10 on 4-to-6-feet waves. That was good enough to best second-place finisher Steffi Kerson of Thousand Oak’s 10.40 at the ama-teur surfing competition.
In a recent phone interview, Seely said her last two wins were unlike any others.
“All that hard work paid off,” she said. “I had a great coach backing me up [Mike Lamm], and I just tried to do my best. There are a lot of great competitors that I have been going against throughout the season, and they are very seasoned; it was pretty
great to be able to win over those girls because they are tough competi-tion.”
Her NSSA win, which came at an event that featured around 400 surfers from across California, washed in a year after Malibu surfer Frankie Harrer won
the same event. Seely said she did not perform well
at the event last year and was unpre-pared.
“This year I was relaxed, had a healthy diet and a really great coach,” she said.
Frankie said before any surfing tournament she always thinks posi-tively.
“Be calm, be collected and just enjoy surfing,” she said. “The times I would get nervous my legs would get heavy because of all the tension, but lately I have been getting over it.”
The release of tension and the help of her coach, Mike Lamm, a champion surfer and coach, has allowed her to have successful outings on her board.
She credited Lamm with providing great guidance.
“He has won these championships before,” she said. “His coaching has helped tremendously.”
Frankie’s success on the water comes at a good time. The 2014 NSSA National Championships are June 26 to July 3 in Huntington Beach. The championship event will feature some of the top amateur surfers from across the United States.
Frankie said she is looking for-ward to the national championships because the waters off the coast of the Huntington Beach feature one of her favorite waves in California.
Frankie, who describes surfing as her “life” and “love,” has dreams of catching waves beyond the California coastlines and even America’s beach-es.
“I hope to one day travel the world, surfing my favorite waves,” she said. “I really want to go to Fiji or Tahiti and surf.”
Soccer squad wins nearby tournament
By McKenzie JacksonSpecial to The Malibu Times
A team of young Malibu foot-ballers was crowned champion at an area soccer tournament ear-
lier this month. The 12-member Malibu boys
12-and-under team won first place in the 2014 Patriot Cup Tournament at Conejo Creek South Soccer Fields in Thousand Oaks on June 1.
The U12 squad, coached by John Franco, defeated Thousand Oaks 2-0 in order to secure the U12 cham-pionship of the Area Youth Soccer Organization event. Ten-year-old Colin Murphy, a forward, and Diego Franco, 11, a mid-fielder, each scored a goal during the contest.
Franco, a youth soccer coach for six years, said he and assistant coach Jon Krawczyk are very proud of their youth team.
“They played together as a team, never gave up, and had a lot of fun in the process,” he said. “They passed well and stepped up when it mattered. They say, ‘Defense wins Championships,’ and we allowed only one goal in the tournament.”
En route to the Patriot League title game the Malibu U12 team defeated three teams. The victories included a 1-0 win over Saugus, a 4-0 victory over Ventura, and a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Woodland Hills.
The team played in the Patriot League’s Pool E. Overall, 24 teams competed in six different pools in the boys U12 division during the tourna-ment, which began on May 31.
Leading up to the two-day tourna-ment in Thousand Oaks, the Malibu
team, which is made up of nine 11-year-olds and three 10-year-olds, came in fourth place in a local all-star tournament of 12 teams, and made it to the championship game in last month’s Strawberry Cup tournament in Camarillo. The Malibu boys won three contests before bowing out in the championship game to Carpentaria by a score of 2-1.
Along with Colin and Diego, other members of the Malibu U12 team included Adidan Gunasekera, Alex Sudmann, Alex Roesler, Evan Geft, Hudson Kory, Jak Krawczyk, Maika Apana-Bates, Marcus Mortel, Nick Reinhold and Sammy Mankoff.
Franco said his team was excited after winning the championship.
“These tournaments are hard to win, especially with a team that has no 12-year-olds on the roster,” he said. “The difference between an 11-year-old player and a 12 year-old player can be huge, but these boys played with heart and determination and were not going to be denied.”
Franco added most of the U12 teams in the tournament were com-prised of second year or 12-year-old players.
He described the being the Patriot League champions as “special.”
“This team was together last year in the U10 division, but the team has not had the same roster this year as some [players] have been recruited to play on other teams and some have had club commitments to honor,” he said. “We were able to get the boys together for one last tournament and it was sweet for everyone to share this victory together, parents as well as kids.”
Dick Dornan / TMTFrankie Seely
S p o r t s
Photo courtesy of John FrancoMalibu Boys U12- Patriot Cup champions: Back row, from left: Coach John Franco, Diego Franco, Alex Sudmann, Nick Reinhold, Alex Roesler, Coach Jon Krawczyk, Maika Apana-Bates; center row, from left: Hudson Kory, Colin Murphy, Aidan Gunasekera, Evan Geft; front row, from left: Sammy Mankoff, Jak Krawczyk. Not pictured: Marcus Mortel
Strong finish
Photo courtesy Pepperdine Athletics CommunicationsThe Waves baseball team finishes the season, which was their best in 22 years.
The Pepperdine baseball team finished the year 43-18 and fell
one win short of the College World Series. The Waves won the San Luis
Obispo Regional, but lost to TCU in their first-ever appearance in the Super Regional. The 43 wins are the seventh most in program his-
tory. Congratulations to the WCC Champions on a phenomenal season — their best in 22 years.
Reds win championship
Dick Dornan / TMTReds: 2014 Malibu Little League majors champions
B1-4,7,8,14 6-12-14.indd 14 6/17/14 7:45 PM
