Thursday, June 9, 2005 10:02 AM CDT
Dawson column: Former area standout to visit camp for volleyball
By RICK DAWSON, Sports Writer
Summer sports odds, ends Were you to select the greatest female athletes to come from the Journal Gazette/Times-Courier area in the past 25 years, you would be hard-pressed to exclude Laura Bush.
That's why Mattoon High School volleyball coach Susie Hutchinson was delighted to hear that the former Stewardson-Strasburg and University of Illinois volleyball standout, now Laura Farina and the head coach at Auburn University, plans to address participants at the Mattoon volleyball camp on Friday.
Hutchinson and Farina became acquainted when they each tried out for the Prairie State Games during the 1980s. Farina has since coached at Marquette from 1999 to ‘01 before moving to Auburn in March of 2002. She also served as an assistant at Michigan State from 1993 to 1998.
"We've been exchanging e-mails and I have not spoken to her specifically but she is planning on being here, talking to the girls briefly," Hutchinson said. "And then we're going to let the girls scrimmage and she's going to just watch and make observations."
Farina anchored Stew-Stras's 1986 Class A state championship team and then played for Illinois' NCAA Final Four teams in 1987 and 1988. She was named Illinois's Female Athlete of the Year in 1990.
Sweltering heat in a gym without air conditioning hasn't deterred 43 girls from attending this week's four-day Indiana State satellite camp at Mattoon Middle School. Sycamore coach Julie Krofcheck brought along Indiana State defensive specialist Meghan Pollard and University of Southern California middle blocker Katelyn Bishop, a Terre Haute South graduate, to aid with instruction.
Most of it was geared toward defense early in the week.
"This is the first time that we've been out here really to do this in this location," Krofcheck said. "And it's great. It's a little bit of a drive but it's an easy drive for us.
"The kids are fantastic. We've got enough numbers. There's close to 45 players here. So that definitely makes it worth our while."
The satellite camp, open to athletes outside of Mattoon as well, ends today. A similar one is taking place at West Vigo and Indiana State's own team camp is in late July.
More camps at Mattoon could be in the works.
"I hope they've enjoyed it well enough to where this is going to be an annual stop for us," Krofcheck said. "What I think we'll do in the future is more satellite camps. I think we as coaches will go to other locations because I think it's easier for me to come here than for all 45 of these kids to come to our place."
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Eastern Illinois men's basketball coach Mike Miller is giving a 15-minute presentation at the end of the morning session at today's Charleston boys' basketball camps.
Nearly 120 students in the first through eighth grades are participating, the biggest number to date. Last year, the total was 88.
The camp is the first one in Charleston that Miller will have attended since being named Eastern Illinois' head coach in April. He is scheduled to be at Charleston High School around 11:15 a.m.
"I told him you can come and say anything you want to," Charleston coach Trevor Doughty said. "If you want to introduce yourself to the kids, bring some brochures from your camps that would be fine."
Doughty has a slew of assistants helping this week, including Jim Wood, Scott Easterday, Randy Harpster, Rob Ulm, Nathan Homann, Erik Hall, Wade Hennig and Dane Church. Doughty's son Derik is also working at the camp, which concludes on Friday.
"It really helps having a good group of people around," Doughty said.
The Trojans are planning to field at least three teams at Eastern Illinois' team camp June 24-26, said Doughty.
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Members of the Charleston Booster Club are adding a new twist to the upcoming Trojan Golf Classic at Charleston Country Club.
In addition to a dinner that is new to the schedule, a number of items are to be auctioned off at the June 20 event.
According to Kim Gentry, one of the outing's organizers, among the available items are St. Louis Cardinals baseball tickets; a football autographed by members of the St. Louis Rams; autographed pictures of Chicago Cubs and Blackhawks players; Memphis Redbirds tickets; a week's use of a condo in Florida; jewelry; numerous business prizes, tickets to entertainment events and restaurant gift certificates; and a weekend getaway package that is to be offered during the golf outing.
For golf, use of a cart, and lunch alone, the cost is $65. For all three plus the dinner and auction, the cost is $80.
The auction takes place at 5:30 p.m. and the dinner at 6:30 p.m.
Proceeds from the event have been used to purchase new wrestling mats, uniforms and batting cages, among other things.
Rex Morgan is this year's special guest.
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Charleston's annual Red & Gold Barbecue has been scheduled for Sept. 3, the date of the Trojans' first football game.
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The search for a replacement for former Mattoon High School offensive coordinator Scott Gilkey is still on but should be completed soon, according to Green Wave football coach Gerald Temples. Gilkey, a native of Oklahoma, left to become the offensive coordinator at Bartlesville (Okla.) High School.
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After two days came and passed, no area high school or college players were selected for the 2005 Major League Baseball draft.
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