Hey everyone! This is my column that’s running in the Akron Beacon Journal Friday, but it’s posted on Ohio.com now, as you can see. Thanks to everyone who submitted votes for their favorite high school nicknames. If there are other crazy nicknames from out of state, post them so we can all get some laughs. Thanks again!

The high school girls tennis season continues this week with district competition.

The Division I district tournament at Oberlin College features two singles players and one doubles unit from the area. Firestone’s Christine Coffman and Jackson’s Trisha Conlan are top seeds in singles, and Revere’s Natalie Robson and Brittany Miller are a top doubles tandem.

The Oberlin district will be played on Thursday and Saturday.

The Division II district tournament at Weis Park in Canton features a singles player and two doubles groups from the area. Canton South’s Morgan Murray is a top seed in singles. Walsh Jesuit’s Nancy Joyce and Cristin Reed and Canton Central Catholic’s Lauren Coggins and Hannah Lindesmith are top doubles units.

The Canton district will be played on Wednesday and Saturday.

The eighth anniversary of the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001 were in evidence Friday night prior to the Hudson at Jackson football game.

A haunting reminder of those attending events days and weeks after 9-11 was a policeman at the entrance of Robert Fife Stadium checking bags and other such items.

A moment of silence, a color guard and Jackson players holding flags over their heads running onto the field showed the class of school officials and the proper reverence for the occasion.

Jackson High School released a list of candidates for their head football and volleyball coach positions. Interviews are being conducted this week and next for both positions. Five administrators will handle the interview process.

The football list includes a lot of viable candidates including two assistants from last year’s staff — Kacy Carter and Jon Mazur – and former Jackson graduate and Timken head coach Jeff Morris. Check it the list below.

Michael Sweitzer has the most experience out of the volleyball candidates. He coached the University of Akron for 16 seasons. That list is below football.

FOOTBALL CANDIDATES

Keith Turner
– Offensive Coordinator at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Pt. (2006-2008)
– Head coach Vermillion Community College

John Iannucci
– Head coach Cherry Hill, New Jersey (2004-2008)
– Offensive Coordinator William Patterson University. New Jersey (1993-1997)

Mark Campo
– Head coach, Lorain Admiral King (2004-2008)
– Assistant coach, Lorain Admiral King (1990-2003)
– Assistant coach, Gilmour Academy (1988-1989)

Mark Beiter
– Assistant coach, East Canton (1991-2001,2008)
– Assistant coach, McKinley (2007)
– Assistant coach, St. Thomas (2005-2006)
– Assistant coach, Mt. Vernon high School (2002-2005)

Doug Haas
– Head coach, Triway (2006-2008)
– Head coach, Rittman (2003-2005)
– Assistant Coach, College of Wooster (1995-2003)

Kacy Carter
– Assistant coach, Jackson (2007-2008)
– Assistant coach, East Canton (2004-2006)
– Mount Union Student Assistant coach (2001)

Jon Mazur
– Assistant coach, Jackson (2007-2008)
– Head coach, Akron Springfield (2004-2006)

Beau Balderson
– Offensive coordinator, Avon (2008)
– Head coach, Parma (2006-2007)
– Head coach, Ravenna Southeast (2004-2005)
– Offensive coordinator, Ravenna Southeast (2001-2003)
– Assistant coach, Indian Valley (2000)
– Played at Mount Union (1996-1999)

Matthew Furino
– Head coach, Field (1996-2007)
– Offensive coordinator, Field (1991-1995)

Robert Karovic
– Co-Defensive Coordinator, GlenOak (2008)
– Defensive Coordinator, McKinley (2005-2007)
– Head coach, Waterloo (1998-2004)
– Defensive Coordinator, GlenOak (1995-1997)
– Special teams coordinator, Hiram College (1992-1994)

Jeff Morris
– Assistant Coach, McKinley (2008)
– Head coach, Timken (2006-2007)
– Assistant coach, Hilliard Darby (2003-2005)
– Assistant coach, Dublin Coffman (2000-2002)

VOLLEYBALL CANDIDATES:

Kristen Jones
– Assistant coach, Shawnee State University (2004-2005)

Christina Toth
– Head coach, Ravenna (2001-2007)

Denise Waggoner
– Junior Varsity coach, GlenOak (2008)
– Head coach, Assistant coach; Hudson (1998-2007)

Jeff Poland
– JV and assistant coach, Tuslaw (2004-2008)

Tricia Johnson
– Head coach, Hoban (2008)
– Head coach, Massillon (2006-2007)
– Freshman coach, Canton Central Catholic (2004-2005)
– Head coach, Northwood (2003)

Michael Sweitzer
– Head coach, The University of Akron (1991-2007)
– Grad Assistant, University of Akron (1989-1990)

Jeff Walck
– Assistant coach, Walsh Jesuit (2008)
– Head coach, Tallmadge (1989-2002)
– JV, coach, Our lady of the Elms (1987-1988)

A week after high school football put its latest season to bed, perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the offseason has been announced.

Thom McDaniels, the highly regarded area coach who led Canton Mckinley to a 1997 Division I State championship, has submitted his resignation as the head football coach at Jackson High School, according to a press release issued by the high school.

The unexpected resignation comes after McDaniel’s second season at the helm of the Polar Bears.

Jackson Athletic Director Terry Peterson said it is McDaniels decision to leave and cited the coach’s personal reasons for the decision. He called the two-year relationship between McDaniels and the school “very successful” and a positive experience for the players.

McDaniels has been tremendously successful during his 26 years as a head coach. His 206-74 record — at Canton McKinley, Warren Harding and Jackson — speaks for itself. Yet, McDaniels showed only moderate success at Jackson, posting a 9-11 record during his two seasons at the helm.

By Michael Beaven
Special to the Beacon Journal

The high school girls soccer season has begun with several area teams feeling that they are legitimate state contenders.

Archbishop Hoban and Walsh Jesuit return several key players from last season’s teams, which advanced to state semifinal matches. Jackson and Medina annually field strong teams. Brunswick Cloverleaf, Copley, Green, Hudson, Kent Roosevelt, Ravenna, Revere and Stow are all capable of making deep runs in the state tournament.

‘‘It just seems like that type of year,’’ said Frank Gagliardi, now in his 12th year coaching Jackson. ‘‘It doesn’t seem like there is any team where you say, ‘That team will win state.’ There definitely is a lot of teams that will be in the fight for a state title.’’

Veteran Walsh Jesuit coach Dino McIntyre said the Cleveland and Akron areas boast ‘‘a lot of teams that can go all the way,’’ mentioning Akron-area teams plus Strongsville, Shaker Heights Hathaway Brown, North Royalton and Brecksville.

Kent Roosevelt outlook
One team off to a flying start is Kent Roosevelt, which is 3-0 and has outscored Stow, Tallmadge and Coventry 16-4.

The Rough Riders, 7-8-2 last season, have eight returning starters. Senior tri-captains Katie Mitchell, Jessica Giulitto and Brianna Serafin are the foundation of the team along with senior forward Jennifer DeLuke.

‘‘We have four seniors who are contributing very well and showing good leadership,’’ coach Steve Mitchell said.

Katie Mitchell, the coach’s daughter, scored 10 goals in 2007. She and Giulitto, a defender, are entering their fourth years as starters. Serafin, a midfielder, sophomore midfielder Michaela Kline and junior goal keeper Abby Bradford are other key players.

‘‘Our depth is impressive,’’ Steve Mitchell said. ‘‘I can make any number of substitutions and not weaken the lineup, which is a great luxury.’’

Stow outlook
Stow returns 10 starters and 15 letterwinners from last season’s team, which went 8-5-4 and was second to Brunswick in the NOC River Division.

‘‘I tell my players to take it game by game and hopefully toward the end of the season we are in the running for the league championship, and from there anything can happen,’’ Stow coach Chris Tipton said. ‘‘I have high hopes for the team.’’

Sophomore forward Vickie Havas led the Bulldogs with nine goals last year. Senior sweeper Leah Poiner and junior stopper Ellie Swanger will pace the defense along with senior goalkeeper Sarah Conkle. Junior midfielder Kyrsten Kamlowsky also returns.

The Stow boys team won the Division I state title in 2006, an accomplishment that many of the girls witnessed.

‘‘We talk about that in a sense of that’s what we want to do,’’ Tipton said. ‘‘A lot of the
girls were there and saw it. I was there, I felt it and I saw it. I think it will take a lot of grunt work. Realistically, it will be tough, but this is the best team I have had here.’’

Championship caliber – Walsh Jesuit & Archbishop Hoban
McIntyre, entering his 16th season as Walsh’s coach, knows what it feels like to win championships. He led Walsh to state titles in 2000, 2001, 2004 and 2006. The 2000 and 2006 teams were recognized as national champions.

The Warriors, a 2007 Division I state semifinalist with a 13-4-5 record, will be led by
senior defenders Jaime Townsend and Jordan Finch, senior midfielders Alexis Garcia
and Kendra Simmons, sophomore forward Kelsey Smigel and sophomore midfielder/forward Elizabeth Bollinger.

Smigel paced Walsh with 15 goals last season. “She’s a pure goal scorer,‘‘ McIntyre said. ‘‘She knows the game technically and has all the tools.”

Townsend (Lehigh), Garcia (Dayton) and Finch (Miami, Ohio) are Division I recruits. McIntyre said Garica is training to overcome her third torn ACL in the past four years.

Juniors Juliana Libertin and Jessacca Gironda are among seven returning starters for
Hoban. The Knights compiled a 15-4-1 record and made their second consecutive appearance in the Division II state semifinals last season.

‘‘We want to win one more game and get in that final,’’ said Benny Pietrangelo, entering his third season as Hoban’s coach. ‘‘On paper, we look pretty strong, but the games have to be played. People are impressed with our talent, but you have to play the games on the field and win.’’

Libertin, a forward, received Beacon Journal Player of the Year honor last fall. She scored four goals Saturday in a 6-0 win at Chippewa. As a sophomore, Libertin scored 35 goals and had 20 assists, and she totaled 15 goals and 11 assists as a freshman.

‘‘When Jules is on, opponents can’t stop her,’’ said Pietrangelo, who also coached the Hoban boys soccer team for 17 years. ‘‘She never gets tired because she runs track and is a swimmer, too. She is a very special athlete. Her endurance is amazing.’’

Gironda, a midfielder/goal keeper, scored 16 goals last season. Senior defender Alex
Niehaus, sophomore defender Gabby Corwin, sophomore forward Margaret Woods and
senior goal keeper Francesca Gironda also return for Hoban.

Jackson & Medina outlook
Jackson returns 11 letterwinners from last year’s team, which posted a 17-2-1 record ` 7-0 in winning the Federal League.

The Polar Bears will be led by senior midfielders Rachel Dennis, a Kent State recruit, and
Melissa Hagan, a Northern Iowa recruit. Junior midfielders Maggie Rusnak and Lauren
Jokovich also return with junior sweeper Emily Sanders.

‘‘With the tradition of the past and the stage the previous girls have set, hopefully the
winning habits will still be strong within the program,’’ Gagliardi said.

Jackson is hoping to get some revenge against Walsh this season; the Warriors ousted the
Polar Bears the past three years in the state tournament.

‘‘We have never beaten Walsh in my 12 years as coach,’’ Gagliardi said. ‘‘That is a mental and a physical goal that we have as a team.’’

Medina will be paced by junior forward Becca Candler, an Indiana University recruit,
Sarah Flanders and Jillian Graff. The Bees should still be a strong team despite the absence of current Ohio State player Paige Maxwell, who was a four-year starter at Medina.

Suburban League balanced
Tina Salem is excited about what her Copley team can do in her 11th season. Senior
midfielders Kristen Mattei (Toledo recruit) and Kirsten Schulte (Case Western Reserve) lead the team.

The Indians also will rely on senior sweeper Liz Moyer, senior defender Julie Berk,
junior midfielder/forward Nikki Matttei and junior midfielder Maddi Buckham.

‘‘I think girls soccer has finally caught up with the boys,’’ Salem said. ‘‘You have a
lot more girls playing the sport. Northeast Ohio is just incredible for girls soccer. We
have a reputation for having strong soccer.’’

Copley and Revere are expected to be the top Suburban League teams, but Cloverleaf and Green should be in the mix for the league crown.

Junior forward Emily White will guide Revere after leading the Minutemen in scoring the previous two seasons. She enters 2008 with 22 career goals.

Revere coach Jeff Stoerkel said sophomores Tara Littman and Katie Kimberly will be key midfielders with freshman Amy Feher and sophomore Kristen Popa is the goalkeeper.

Cloverleaf compiled a 11-4-2 overall record and a 5-1-1 league mark last season to place second to Copley in the Suburban League. Colts coach Val Baughman said eight starters and 11 total letterwinners return from last season.

Sophomore forward Katie Roberts and junior midfielders Rachel Gokey, Hanna Cavalier and Megan Jackson lead Cloverleaf’s offense.

Juniors Melissa Zeigler and Shannon Kilkenny and sophomore Katie Koloka form the nucleus off Cloverleaf’s defense in front of junior goal keeper Karly Beuck.

“We have a really strong junior class,” Baughman said.

Green is led by seniors Desiree Aber and Kelsey Ahbe.

Cloverleaf defeated Green 4-0 Wednesday to improve to 2-0 overall and 1-0 in the Suburban League this season.

Other promising teams and players
North Canton Hoover went 14-4-2 last season and Sarah Maj and Kathleen Ray are among eight returning letter winners.

Perry has seven starters and 10 total lettermen back from 2007. Junior goal keeper Megan
McMaster, sophomore forward Michelle Genetin and junior forward Ally Smith all return.

The Vikings and Panthers will try to dethrone the Jackson Polar Bears from the top spot in the Federal League.

Firestone senior forward Christine Black and Western Reserve Academy senior midfielder Anne Song are two other players that are entering their fourth varsity seasons.

Black netted the lone goal in Firestone’s 1-0 victory over St. Vincent-St. Mary earlier this
season.

Song, who also has a four-goal game this season, netted 18 goals at WRA as a forward last season enters 2008 with 37 career goals.

When it comes to track, it’s always about who ran the fastest, jumped the highest or threw the shot or the discus the farthest. But sometimes there are stories, GREAT, INSPRATIONAL STORIES, that don’t have to do with who won.

For instance, I remember watching the local news in the fall, I think it was, and there was an amazing story about a young lady (she may have been from the Youngstown area), who was competing in the state high school cross country meet and was almost near the finish line. Then came a gruesome sight. She broke her leg on the course and fell to the ground.

But this young lady had the courage and fortitude to crawl and limp her way to the finish line, despite being in obvious pain.

It was a story of incredible self-will. This young lady needed medical help, but she didn’t want it. She was withering with pain but she wanted to finish that race, and if you watched the video, you couldn’t help but get a little emotional, knowing she was in a world of pain. But watching her will her way to that finish line, regardless of the pain she was experiencing, was breathtaking and moving.

The yound lady gave a great television interview a few days later and it was great to see she was doing well and was in good spirts. I think she even joked that all she was thinking about, when she went down, was that she wasn’t going to be able to dance at her sister’s wedding later that night.

I witnessed another incredible story, but it didn’t involve injury. A few years ago I was covering a regional track meet at Ravenna and the Copley girls were favored in this particular relay event. As the race began, Copley was right there, as expected. But during one of the exchanges, the baton was dropped and the team was out of the race.

The young lady who dropped the baton was devasted. I mean, I had never seen an athlete more distraught. What I found out later was that the young lady was only a sophomore and there were two seniors on that relay team. The sophomore felt she had blown it for the seniors because it was their last chance to make it to state.

She was on the infield of the track, as the race was still going, slumped over an emotional ball.

She just shuddered and shook as she cried.

Then, former Copley standout Carrie Dyer, who was a senior and on that relay team, ran to the young runner to comfort her.

Then the rest of the realy team followed.

To me, that was one of the most inspirational stories I had ever witnessed.

The sophomore was heartbroken. But she was heartbroken because she cared about her teammates and wanted to perform at her best so that it would help the seniors.

It didn’t happen. But when it didn’t happen, the seniors weren’t mad, bitter or upset. They showed support for their younger teammate because they loved her. And in the end, winning didn’t matter.

So, with that, I’m asking readers to post any inspirational stories you witnessed, in track or any other sport, that didn’t involve someone winning.

A story where someone overcame odds to get where they are. Or a story about teammates helping one another.

Those are the most compelling stories.

The Canton Timken boys basketball team will play Toledo Whtimer tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Rhodes Arena in a Division I regional championship game at the University of Akron.

The winner of tonight’s game advances to Columbus for the state final four at Value City Arena on the campus of Ohio State University.

Timken, 24-0 this season, is seeking its first appearance in the state final four since 1960.

Timken and Whitmer have had to wait to play this game, orginally scheduled for Saturday, due to the heavy snowfall that recently hit Northeast Ohio.

Timken has defeated Massillon Washington, Jackson, Perry and Firestone so far in the tournament.

Senior guards Johnie Davis and Christian Alston and junior forward Chaz Moore led the Trojans past the Falcons this past Thursday.

If Timken wins the regional title it will mark the fifth consecutive season the Canton district winner will qualify for the state final four. GlenOak advanced to state in 2007 and Canton McKinley advanced to state in 2004, 2005 and 2006. McKinley won state titles in 2005 and 2006.

Hilliard Davidson held on to defeat Jackson 2-1 in a Division I state final Friday at Columbus Crew Stadium.

Jackson cut Hilliard Davidson’s lead to 2-1 in the 52nd minute when junior midfielder Evan McCreary scored off an assist from junior midfielder Dustin Kiaski.

There is 24:00 left in the second half. Hilliard Davidson still leads 2-1.

Stay tuend for updates.