More schools getting device to treat cardiac arrest

Dad Phil (left), Emilio (center) and Alberta Martinez

When 17-year-old Cienega sophomore football player Emilio Martinez collapsed in a weight training class Monday at the Vail high school, Deana Schneider wasn’t thinking about budget cuts.

The quick response of the 28-year-old athletic trainer, and a recently-purchased automated external defibrillator, saved the teen’s life when valves in his heart began to malfunction, causing him to faint and go into cardiac arrest.

“Without that (device) and without her there, the doctors said my son would have probably died,” said Phil Martinez. “. . . I can’t tell you how grateful my wife and I are that they were there and handling the situation the way they did.

“That AED? It’s already paid for itself. Every (school) better have one. Even if they never need it, they better have one.”

Martinez, a 5-foot-6, 160-pound running back, will undergo surgery Thursday at University Medical Center. Doctors on Wednesday diagnosed him with ventricular fibrillation.

Lifesaver not expensive

At the urging of Schneider, Cienega purchased the Cardiac Science Power Heart G3 device for $1,500 in July 2008.

Even as schools and districts across the country, including Cienega, shave budgets, assistant principal and head football coach Nemer Hassey said the school will buy two more defibrillators to place around campus before the 2009-10 school year begins.

“It’s a no-brainer,” Hassey said. “You do more fundraisers or find other areas to work around. But cutting back on stuff like this, things that are about safety, you can’t cut corners on that.”

Of the 26 Class 4A and 5A schools competing in southern Arizona, at least three – Flowing Wells, Canyon del Oro and Amphi – do not have defibrillators on campus.

Flowing Wells Athletic Director Pat Weber said in an e-mail Wednesday the school has “put in for several for the next school year.”

Some schools have multiple defibrillators, including Nogales High, which has six.

Sahuaro Athletic Director Sandy Novak said her school’s lone device was bought through the Sahuaro Cougar Foundation and personal donations.

Tucson High Assistant Principal Herman House said his school, with the largest enrollment in southern Arizona, has two of the devices – one purchased by the school, the other donated after the school hosted a community heart screening event two years ago.

“These are things you hope you never have to use,” Schneider said, “but why risk not having one ready to go if something does happen?”

Workout seemed routine

Martinez had just wrapped up his daily workout in his advanced weights class Monday afternoon.

Physical education teacher Jay Johnson, an assistant Cienega football coach, saw Martinez faint, hit his chin on a weight bench barbell as he collapsed and drop to the floor unconscious.

Johnson is trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, as are all of Cienega’s coaches. He began attending to Martinez as a student ran to get Schneider.

“When I got there, I immediately assessed the situation and knew right away we needed the AED,” Schneider said.

She has two degrees, has been CPR and first-aid certified since 2000 and has been Cienega’s athletic trainer for two school years.

“I’ve never actually had to use an AED or even do CPR before,” she said. “I’m trained for both, but never have actually been in a situation where I had to do it. It was sort of an out-of-body experience. I guess the training just took over and I was just doing what I knew to do to help him.”

Device a snap to use

The defibrillator Schneider used Monday is not hard to use.

The Power Heart G3 has voice commands that automatically play upon the device being opened. Once adhesive electrode pads are placed on the person being treated, the device monitors the heart rate and other vital signs and determines whether a shock is necessary.

Some devices automatically administer an electric shock. Others, like the one used on Martinez, require a person to push a button.

The defibrillator Schneider used also has internal memory capabilities.

“When we were done,” Schneider said, “I plugged this into my computer and it gave the paramedics and doctors a printout of everything that happened from the time I opened the AED to the time I closed it, including all his heart rates and any other info.”

Gridiron dreams end

Martinez, a seemingly healthy athlete in a family with no history of heart conditions, has been at University Medical Center since the collapse, frequently visited by friends and family members.

His football playing days are essentially over.

The American Heart Association says his condition essentially forces the heart to pump little or no blood when its lower chambers begin operating irregularly.

“The ventricles ‘flutter’ rather than beat,” according to the association’s Web site.

The electric shock from the defibrillator allowed Martinez to survive long enough for paramedics from the Rincon Valley Fire Department to arrive and take over before he was airlifted to UMC.

Martinez will undergo surgery Thursday to implant what is essentially a portable automated defibrillator in his chest, Phil Martinez said.

“It is designed to monitor when those lower chambers stop working right,” he said. “When they see that happening, it will automatically send out an electric shock.”

Phil Martinez said he and his wife – the parents of four, with Emilio the youngest – couldn’t help but think of what might have been.

“This just came out of nowhere” the father said. “Right now, we just can’t say how grateful we are to the school, to Deana and Jay, and to everyone that helped keep him alive.”

Cienega athletic director Deana Schneider used an AED defibrillator to revive a student who went down in the weight lifting room on Monday.

Emilio Martinez

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Automated external defibrillator

An automated external defibrillator is a portable device used to restore normal heart rhythm to patients in cardiac arrest.

An AED is applied outside the body. It automatically analyzes the patient’s heart rhythm and advises the rescuer whether or not a shock is needed to restore a normal heartbeat. If the patient’s heart resumes beating normally, the heart has been defibrillated.

An AED is used to treat cardiac arrest. It is a lifesaving device because cardiac arrest is a sudden condition that is fatal if not treated within a few minutes.

Heart attacks and other conditions can cause ventricular fibrillation. In ventricular fibrillation, the electrical signals in the lower part of the heart are uncoordinated and ineffective. Very little blood is pumped from the heart to the body or the lungs. If ventricular fibrillation is not treated, it will result in cardiac arrest.

Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration

How to operate it

• Regardless of which brand of AED is used, the only knowledge required to operate it is to press the “ON” button.

• Once the AED is turned on, it actually speaks to you in a computer-generated voice that guides you through the rest of the procedure.

• You will be prompted to place a set of adhesive electrode pads on the victim’s bare chest and, if necessary, to plug in the pads’ connector to the AED.

• The AED will then begin to automatically analyze the person’s ECG rhythm to determine if a shock is required. It is critical that no contact be made with the person while the machine is analyzing the ECG. If the person is touched or disturbed, the ECG may not be accurate.

• If the machine determines that a shock is indicated, it will automatically charge itself and tell you when to press the button that will deliver the shock.

• Once the shock is delivered you will be prompted to resume CPR.

Source: eMedicineHealth

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Southern Arizona isn’t the only place the talents of Sahuarita senior left fielder Leo Sierra are getting noticed.

The 6-foot-5, 230-pound slugger decided this week to turn down a partial scholarship offer from New Mexico State University, despite the lure of being tutored by hitting coach Gary Ward, a College Baseball Hall of Famer after becoming one of the sports winningest coaches at Oklahoma State.

Instead, Sierra said he is holding firm with his commitment to accept a full scholarship to play next year at Eastern Arizona.

“I told (NMSU assistant coach Chase) Tidwell just (Tuesday) night that I couldn’t pass up the full scholarship opportunity,” Sierra said. “He said he understood, and said this wasn’t a one-time offer. If after one season or two seasons I want to go there, he said I’m still welcome.”

Eastern Arizona also has signed Tucson High pitcher Alan Garcia.

Sierra said learning from Gary Ward at NMSU, and his son Rocky Ward, the team’s head coach, was tempting.

“I talked to him for awhile,” Sierra said. “With Gary, you just know by talking with him, he knows his stuff. Its unbelievable to think about all he has done in the game.”

Sierra has also received interest of late from Oklahoma State and took a recruiting visit to Lubbock Christian University, ranked No. 1 in the nation in the NAIA Top 25 poll.

Things are going well for Sierra and his Mustangs. Sahuarita is off to a 12-3 start in games that count toward the Class 4A Division II Power Rankings, placing the team No. 2 in the state heading into Thursday’s Gila Region showdown at Douglas.

Nobody is catching No. 1 seed Cottonwood Mingus, but solidifying that No. 2 spot will be key in avoiding Mingus in the single-elimination state tournament for as long as possible.

Sierra is hitting .426 this season and, although he says he is disappointed with just four home runs on the year, he has been pitched around frequently.

Headed to Russia

The Tucson-based Club Dinamo 16-Elite volleyball team has been invited to participate in the Victor Filipchenko Memorial Volleyball Tournament in Moscow, Russia, May 7-12.

The team is comprised of area girls volleyball players who also play each fall for their respective high school teams.

According to an e-mail from Club Dinamo coach Chris Gonzalez

, a former University of Arizona assistant coach, “The tournament is dedicated to the Soviet Union’s 65th anniversary of their victory in World War II. (I told my kids to bring their history books to compare with the other nation’s players!)”

Club Dinamo is the only team from the United States participating.

In addition to Gonzalez and assistant coach Dan Bithell

(Pima Community College), there will be 10 area girls taking the trip: Alexis Ammerman

(Tucson High), Madeline Bushman (Sabino), Kristen Byers (Flowing Wells), Michaela Christiaansen (Ironwood Ridge), Catherine Coyle (Salpointe), Morgan Eaton (Ironwood Ridge), Meghan Finley (Sahuarita), Danielle Gies (Salpointe), Taylor Lane (Amphi) and Jessica Van Zjill (Green Fields).

McCollum joins Bobcats

Former Sahuaro football coach Chuck McCollum

will be joining the Cienega coaching staff this fall.

Cienega head coach Nemer Hassey

said McCollom will join assistant Jay Johnson

in coaching the offensive line.

“We’ve always been able to throw with the best of them,” Hassey said. “We’re really going to get committed to balance this year and with those guys all helping coach the line, we’re going to be able to run from now on.”

McCollum replaced Hassey at Sahuaro in 2001 when Hassey took over at Cienega. His stepping down at Sahuaro after the 2008 season was one of nine coaching changes among the 25 Class 4A and 5A schools scheduled to compete in southern Arizona regions next year.

Cienega went 9-3 in 2008, including a 5-0 record in the 4A Kino Region. The Bobcats lost in the 4A-I state quarterfinals.

Fall ball tryouts on May 23

The Chicago White Sox fall scout team tryouts are around the corner.

Former Sahuarita head coach Bryan Huie, who is a part-time scout for the White Sox and has run the team’s fall scout team for several years, will oversee the May 23 tryouts at Sahuarita High School.

The tryouts, open to any baseball player who will be in high school for the 2009-10 season, start at 7:30 a.m., have a $25 tryout fee and will last the better part of the day.

Several players who have played on Huie’s teams in recent years have gone on to either play collegiately or be drafted by Major League Baseball teams, including Manny Barreda (Sahuarita, New York Yankees), Chapo Delgado (Sahuarita, St. Louis Cardinals) and Travis Jones (Sabino, Kansas City Royals).

The team plays Arizona junior college teams each Saturday for 10 consecutive weeks starting in August and running through October.

(ggrammer@tucsoncitizen.com)

(ggrammer@tucsoncitizen.com)

Huie can be reached for more information at 850-1579.

Have some news or notes for the Prep Notebook? E-mail ggrammer@tucsoncitizen.com

The Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., came calling for Texas Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler after the Canyon del Oro High graduate went crazy at the plate Wednesday night.

Kinsler had six hits in six plate appearances and hit for the cycle (homer, triple, double and single in same game), becoming the first player to hit for the cycle while recording six hits in a nine-inning game in just under 119 years.

From Tom Singer’s article on MLB.com:

“According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the previous player to turn the trick was William Farmer Weaver, on Aug. 12, 1890, for Louisville against Syracuse in the American Association, at that time considered the second major league to the National League.”

On Thursday, the Hall of Fame was seeking game-worn items – jersey, glove, shoes, batting gloves; whatever Kinsler is OK with giving away – to put on display to honor his historic achievement, which came in a 19-6 win over Baltimore.

Go to www.tucsoncitizen.com/blog for more postings.

Former Sunnyside wrestler Thom Ortiz has been dismissed after eight seasons as the Arizona State University wrestling coach.

Ortiz, who was an All-American wrestler for the Sun Devils, posted a 79-60-1 coaching record at ASU. His teams produced 17 All-Americans, including fellow Sunnyside graduate Eric Larkin, who was an assistant coach this past season after earning All-American honors in both college and while at Sunnyside.

“A lot of Sunnyside kids have gone through that program and Thom has done a great job there,” said Sunnyside coach Bobby DeBerry, whose sone Kyle, has three years remaining as an ASU wrestler.

“Right now, I’m hoping everything turns out best for all involved. I know Thom will be coaching again. I talked to him (Wednesday) and he’s most concerned right now about the kids and making sure they stick together and get their educations.”

In May 2008, ASU announced it would be cutting the wrestling program. Ten days later, the school reversed that decision when boosters of the program came up with enough money to fully endow the program. Ortiz played a large roll in organizing the fundraising effort.

“I want to thank Thom Ortiz for his eight years of service and dedication to the Sun Devil program,” ASU Senior Associate Athletic Director Don Bocchi said on the school’s Web site said. “It is never easy to see one of your own leave, but we believe our program can return to the top of the national standings, as well as the Pac-10 Conference, and that begins immediately as we start our search for Thom’s replacement.”

Coronado

Anthony Coronado is ready for a second go-round as the Marana High School head football coach.

After being the head coach for the Tigers from 1999-2002 and spending the past three seasons as the team’s defensive coordinator, the 37-year-old Coronado on Wednesday informed his team he will be taking over the program, replacing six-year coach Willie Dudley.

“I stepped down in 2002 because I had a young family and it was the best thing to do at that time,” said Coronado, who has taught social studies at Marana High for 12 years and posted a 13-28 record in his first stint as head coach. “Now, I’m confident my family is a little older and it’s again the right situation to take this on. . . . And I think we can be pretty good.”

Marana Athletic Director Joe Hajek confirmed the hire Wednesday night.

Coronado anticipates Marana, which went 4-6 last year and 2-2 in the Class 4A Sonoran Region, will use more of an option attack on offense this fall, although not exclusively.

“Offensively, as I told the kids (Wednesday), we’re never going to be a team that’s bigger than everybody else,” Coronado said. “We have to get faster. . . . and we’ll have some tricks up our sleeves that are going to keep other team’s honest.”

On defense, Coronado plans to continue using the 3-5 scheme instituted by Dudley, who stepped down in November after a 23-39 record in six seasons, including a pair of 4A Division I state playoff appearances.

Coronado’s hiring leaves two head football coaching positions still vacant among the 25 Class 5A and 4A schools competing next fall in southern Arizona.

Since the end of the 2008 season, nine schools have made coaching changes. The two still looking for coaches – Catalina Foothills and Douglas – both learned of their vacancies only since the start of April.

At Foothills, former coach Matt Johnson left last week to take the Ironwood Ridge job, a move formalized Tuesday when the Amphitheater School District board approved his hiring.

Foothills Athletic Director Jody Brase has begun a search for Johnson’s replacement.

At Douglas, the Bulldogs hired Trevor Highfield to replace former coach John Necas, but Highfield stepped down before coaching a single game and Douglas Athletic Director Randy Walker is again conducting a search for the team’s new coach.

The seven southern Arizona schools with new head coaches since the 2008 season are Canyon del Oro, Flowing Wells, Ironwood Ridge, Marana, Pueblo, Rincon/University and Sahuaro.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

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H.S. FOOTBALL COACHING CHANGES

Nine southern Arizona 4A/5A high schools have had coaching changes since last season ended.

Canyon del Oro

Out: Pat Nugent (head coach at Pima Community College)

In: Dusty Peace

Catalina Foothills

Out: Matt Johnson (head coach at Ironwood Ridge)

In: TBD

Douglas

Out: John Necas (resigned)

In: Trevor Highfield

Out: Highfield (resigned)

In: TBD

Flowing Wells

Out: Mario Pina (resigned)

In: Mark Brunenkant

Ironwood Ridge

Out: Gary Minor (resigned)

In: Matt Johnson

Marana

Out: Willie Dudley (resigned)

In: Anthony Coronado

Pueblo

Out: Scott McKee (head coach at Sahuaro)

In: Michael Chadwick

Rincon/University

Out: Pat Ryden (defensive coordinator at Pima CC)

In: Nate Gahn

Sahuaro

Out: Chuck McCollom (resigned)

In: Scott McKee

Former Catalina Foothills football coach Matt Johnson is expected to be named the new coach at Ironwood Ridge on Tuesday.

Matt Johnson turned in one of southern Arizona’s most impressive high school football coaching performances in 2008, returning Catalina Foothills to the playoffs in his first year with the program.

His Foothills experience will be a short-lived one, however, as he is expected to be named the football coach at Ironwood Ridge on Tuesday at the Amphitheater school board meeting.

Johnson, 35, and Ironwood Ridge Athletic Director Will Kreamer declined comment on the matter until after Tuesday’s board meeting, but Johnson this week met with Foothills Athletic Director Jody Brase and his former Foothills players to tell them of his decision.

“Our community is thankful for the short time that he was here,” Brase said in an e-mail. “He brought so many great things to our program. The kids and parents are sad, upset and hate to see him leave.”

Johnson will replace former Ironwood Ridge coach Gary Minor, who retired after leading the Nighthawks to a 10-3 record and the Class 5A Division II semifinals in 2008. Minor is the only coach Ironwood Ridge has had, leaving the program with a 54-26 record in seven years.

Foothills went 6-5 in 2008 and qualified for the state tournament for the fourth time in the school’s 14-year history. All five Foothills losses last year came to playoff teams.

Johnson, who played for and coached under Amphi’s Vern Friedli, also coached at Rincon/University from 2003-06, leading the Rangers to the playoffs in 2005 and 2006, two of the school’s four playoff appearances since opening in 1963.

Brase said Foothills has begun its search for a new coach.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

The sports world is by no means immune to the dire economic straits facing Tucson and the rest of the country.

At least a dozen people directly involved in varsity athletics were among the 605 employees put on notice Tuesday by the Tucson Unified School District that they could be laid off for the coming school year.

While TUSD does not require employment in the district to coach, Tuesday’s news could change the look of several area teams next year.

“Coaching stipends aren’t what these people are making a living off of,” said Tucson High Athletic Director Gary Lewis, who was not given a pink slip. “But if by chance a coach is on that list and has to go find employment elsewhere, that new job might not allow them to remain as coach.”

The most recognizable name on the list, but certainly no more or less important than any other, is Santa Rita football coach Jeff Scurran, who was a guidance counselor the past two seasons at the East Side high school.

“For right now, I just need to wait and see,” Scurran said Wednesday from the airport, where he was about to leave for a trip to Germany. “Just wait and see and take care of the players. We need to make sure they aren’t hurt by all this.”

Scurran, who in two years at Santa Rita has turned an 0-10 team into one that went 23-4 and got to the Class 4A Division II championship in December, said he is hopeful many employees will be asked back.

In 2008, TUSD issued just 40 such notices, but all were eventually called back to work.

Among those with varsity sports ties that appeared on the list of possible TUSD layoffs:

• Katie Angel, Cholla girls cross country coach

• Pete Farjado, Sahuaro boys basketball coach

• Selina Heald, Palo Verde softball coach

• Ian Kidd, Rincon/University girls soccer coach

• Steven Korzan, Santa Rita girls tennis coach

• Kate Knochel, Catalina girls cross country coach

• Larry McKee, Palo Verde (administration)

• Joni Pabst, Sahuaro (administration)

• Paul Reed, Tucson High girls basketball coach

• Jeff Scurran, Santa Rita football coach

• Jayne Song-Gin, Rincon (administration)

• Michael Wylie, Pueblo boys soccer coach

Football coaching carousel

The high school football coaching carousel continues to spin.

Trevor Highfield, hired in February to replace John Necas as the Douglas High football coach, “has resigned his position because of extenuating circumstances,” according to Douglas Athletic Director Randy Walker.

The again-vacant coaching position is being advertised on the Arizona Interscholastic Association’s Web site.

With the recent hire of Michael Chadwick at Pueblo, that means there are still three big-school football coaching openings in southern Arizona – Marana, Ironwood Ridge and Douglas.

Ironwood Ridge has finished interviews and hopes to have a hire approved with in a couple weeks. Marana will first try to sort through budget and staffing issues before focusing on its hire.

Coaching changes for 4A and 5A schools in southern Arizona since the 2008 season ended:

Canyon del Oro: Out – Pat Nugent (now head coach at Pima Community College); In – Dusty Peace

Douglas: Out – John Necas (resigned); In – Trevor Highfield; Out – Trevor Highfield (resigned); In – TBD.

Ironwood Ridge: Out – Gary Minor (resigned); In – TBD

Marana: Out – Willie Dudley (resigned); In – TBD

Pueblo: Out – Scott McKee (now head coach at Sahuaro); In – Michael Chadwick

Rincon/University: Out – Pat Ryden (now defensive coordinator at Pima CC); In – Nate Gahn

Sahuaro: Out – Chuck McCollom (resigned); In – Scott McKee

College commitments

Sahuaro softball star Hanna Parrish has signed a national letter of intent to play collegiately at Drexel University Philadelphia.

Her scholarship will cover 96 percent of her expenses, a rarity for softball players.

Parrish, a four-year varsity letter winner whose .516 batting average leads the Cougars, also has a 3.5 grade point average and has performed in Advanced Drama courses at the school for three years.

Palo Verde girls basketball star Amber Cordova, fresh off making the Tucson Citizen’s First-Team All-Southern Arizona girls basketball team, has decided to join the rejuvenated Pima Community College women’s team.

She has already signed signed to play next year at Pima, according to Palo Verde head coach Eric Brock.

Daniel Boice honored

Desert Christian junior guard Daniel Boice has been awarded a $5,000 Qwest Leadership Challenge scholarship for his volunteer work in the community.

He was one of two Arizona students honored before the April 1 Phoenix Suns/Houston Rockets NBA game in Phoenix and met with Suns guard Leandro Barbosa after the game.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

Pueblo High School has hired former Yuma High coach Michael Chadwick to run its football program.

Chadwick replaces Scott McKee, who stepped down in March after five seasons to take the same position at Sahuaro.

Chadwick, who coached in Washington prior to coaching Yuma High to a 2-8 record in 2007, said in a video on Pueblo’s Web site that he hopes to “build a family” at Pueblo.

Chadwick met with players and their families Tuesday.

He said he hopes to move to Tucson by May 1 in time for the team’s spring drills, which begin May 4.

Pueblo was 2-9 in 2008.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

While the country watched coach after coach turn down the University of Arizona men’s basketball job, potential future players and notable past players chimed in Friday on two men who would gladly take over the storied Wildcats program.

Former Wildcats Bennett Davison and Jason Terry both stumped publicly Friday to hire ex-UA player and assistant Josh Pastner, an assistant for John Calipari at Kentucky.

Pastner, Davison and Terry were members of UA’s 1997 national championship team.

At least two of the nation’s top unsigned basketball recruits said Friday they are keeping a close eye on where Reggie Theus will go.

Theus, a former NBA star and former coach of the Sacramento Kings and New Mexico State, quickly built a reputation as one of college basketball’s top recruiters at NMSU and under Rick Pitino at Louisville.

UA Athletic Director Jim Livengood has not commented publicly on whether Pastner, Theus – or anyone else for that matter – is a serious candidate for the job.

Mobile (Ala.) LeFlore High coach Otis Hugley, the coach of Demarcus Cousins, Rivals.com‘s No. 2-ranked recruit, said the 6-foot-9 power forward and McDonald’s All-American will “very strongly consider playing for any school Reggie Theus gets hired to coach.”

Cousins backed out this week of an oral commitment he had at Memphis when Calipari took the Kentucky job.

Cousins and his mother are expected to try to make their decision on his college over the weekend, according to Hugley.

A second recruit, 6-7 swing man Victor Rudd (ranked No. 107 by Rivals.com), who played this past season at Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep, gave an even stronger endorsement of Theus through his AAU coach and guardian.

“I can tell you Victor, with 100 percent certainty, will be going to Arizona if Reggie is there,” said Bill Hankins from his home in Los Angeles, adding Rudd is also considering Arizona State and Marquette.

“He likes the state of Arizona and to me, it’s a no-brainer (Theus should be hired). Reggie is a guy who played and coached in the NBA. That’s what these kids want, but they (UA) better act quick because a lot of kids have to make decisions.”

Theus, 51, contacted Friday by telephone, said he was interested in the Arizona job.

While at NMSU, Theus landed a national top 15 player in Herb Pope of Aliquipa, Pa., who transferred to Seton Hall after Theus left to coach the Kings.

He also recruited the Western Athletic Conference’s leading scorer this past season – sophomore Jahmar Young of Baltimore.

At Louisville, he landed this year’s senior backcourt tandem of Terrence Williams and Andre McGee.

Pastner, 31, said he was taken aback by comments from Terry and Davison about their desire for the university to hire him as head coach.

“It’s awfully humbling,” Pastner said. “It puts goose bumps on you. Those are awfully nice things for those guys to say and to have the confidence of guys like that, it means a lot to me.”

Pastner, building a strong recruiting reputation of his own, has never wavered from his love for the UA program and the 12 years he spent in Tucson, as a player and assistant coach under Lute Olson and Kevin O’Neill.

“Basically we need to keep it in the family (by) bringing in Josh as the head coach,” Terry said in an e-mail to Citizen sportswriter Steve Rivera. “It would breathe life back into a program that has lost its edge.”

Pastner said he is confident Livengood and UA President Dr. Robert Shelton will hire a great coach.

“I hope Mr. Livengood gets this one right,” Terry said. “It’s time for new blood and the entire Tucson community will be behind coach Pastner. It would be just how Lute wanted it.”

Terps like leadership skills of Santa Rita’s star point guard

Santa Rita's Terrell Stoglin drives past the Tucson Heat's Nick Johnson during a basketball camp last summer.

Santa Rita High School junior point guard Terrell Stoglin has led his team to three straight state championship games.

The Atlantic Coast Conference is a far cry from Arizona’s 4A Division II high school classification, but it is those winning ways that convinced Maryland Terrapins coach Gary Williams that Stoglin has the leadership ability to succeed in one of college basketball’s most competitive leagues.

“That’s all that they kept ringing in my ear, ‘We won the 2002 national championship and we’re hoping you’re the guy to take us back to the Final Four,’ ” said Stoglin, who gave Williams and Maryland an oral commitment for the class of 2010 on Wednesday night.

Maryland has been recruiting Stoglin since his sophomore season, but got an up-close and personal look at him when the Eagles played in a prestigious preseason tournament in Washington, D.C., to start the 2008-09 season.

Stoglin said it is no accident he picked a school that will have a vacancy at point guard when he is a freshman.

“Their guards graduate next year and I want to play as a freshman,” Stoglin said. “They said they see me as having every opportunity to start as a freshman.”

A lifelong University of Arizona fan, Stoglin admitted he’s curious to see who the next coach in Tucson will be. He said there “is always a possibility” he could change his commitment to UA before he signs a letter of intent. But he said he is very much committed to playing for Maryland at this point, picking the Terrapins over offers from Texas A&M, San Diego, Georgia Tech and others.

Stoglin, who averaged 27.8 points per game this past season, has been his best when going against the best competition in national tournaments.

As a sophomore, he scored 35 points in a San Diego tournament while being guarded by current USC freshman star DeMar DeRozan.

This past winter, he scored 30 while being guarded by Abdul Gaddy, a former University of Arizona recruit who started in this week’s McDonald’s high school All-American game and will play at Washington next year.

“They told me they liked that I was a floor general, they liked my leadership,” said Stoglin, who is relied on heavily at Santa Rita to be a scorer, leading many to overlook his passing skills. “I think a lot of people here in Tucson forget I’m a pass-first guy. That’s all I played – point guard – last summer on my AAU teams and that’s what Maryland said they liked.”

And while Stoglin, a two time Tucson Citizen player of the year, is one of the state’s best passers, he’s not exactly inept in the scoring department.

Heading into his senior season, he is 953 points from the state record of 3,002 set by former Phoenix Shadow Mountain High and UA star Mike Bibby. If he plays 30 games next year, he would need to average 31.8 points per game to set the mark.

Santa Rita coach Jim Ferguson said Stoglin could have averaged at least that much this past season if he wanted to, or if the Eagles weren’t benching starters in the fourth quarter of several blowout victories.

Stoglin said the decision to commit to a school on the other side of the country was a tough one, but one he, his coaches and parents were comfortable with.

He said the biggest advisers in the process were his parents, Joe and Rose Stoglin, Ferguson and AAU coach Brian Peabody, who is also the Ironwood Ridge boys basketball coach.

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CHASING BIBBY

With a year left, Santa Rita’s Terrell Stoglin is within striking distance of the Arizona career scoring record.

All classes record

> 3,002 – Mike Bibby (1992-96, Phoenix Shadow Mountain)

Class 4A record

> 2,535 – Chuck Overton (1988-92, Cholla)

Terrell Stoglin

> 2,049* (2006-present, Santa Rita)

* Through junior year. Stoglin will need to average 31.8 points through 30 games for state record, 16.2 points for Class 4A record.

Santa Rita junior Terrell Stoglin told Maryland coach Gary Williams on Wednesday night that he will play for the Terrapins in college.

Santa Rita junior point guard Terrell Stoglin has led his team to three straight state championship games.

The Atlantic Coast Conference is a far cry from Arizona’s 4A Division II high school classification, but it is those winning ways that convinced Maryland Terrapins coach Gary Williams that Stoglin has the leadership ability to succeed in one of college basketball’s most competitive leagues.

“That’s all that they kept ringing in my ear, ‘We won the 2002 National Championship and we’re hoping you’re the guy to take us back to the Final Four,’ ” said Stoglin, who gave Williams and Maryland a verbal commitment for the Class of 2010 on Wednesday night.

Maryland has been recruiting Stoglin since his sophomore season, but got an up-close and personal look at him when the Eagles played in a prestigious preseason tournament in Washington, D.C., to start the 2008-09 season. Stoglin said it is no accident he picked a school that will have a vacancy at point guard when he is a freshman.

“Their guards graduate next year and I want to play as a freshman,” Stoglin said. “They said they see me as having every opportunity to start as a freshman.”

A lifelong University of Arizona fan, Stoglin admitted he’s curious to see who the next coach in Tucson will be. He said there “is always a possibility” he could change his commitment to UA before he signs a letter of intent, but said he very much committed to play for Maryland at this point, picking the Terrapins over offers from the likes of Texas A&M, San Diego, Georgia Tech and many others.

Stoglin, who averaged 27.8 points per game this past season, has been his best when going against the best competition in national tournaments. As a sophomore, he scored 35 points in a San Diego tournament while being guarded by current USC freshman star DeMar DeRozan. This past winter, he scored 30 while being guarded by Abdul Gaddy, a former University of Arizona recruit who started in this week’s McDonald’s high school All-American game and will play at Washington next year.

“They told me they liked that I was a floor general, they liked my leadership,” said Stoglin, who is relied on heavily at Santa Rita to be a scorer, leading many to overlook his passing skills. “… I think a lot of people here in Tucson forget I’m a pass-first guy. That’s all I played – point guard – last summer on my AAU teams and that’s what Maryland said they liked.”

And while Stoglin, a two time Tucson Citizen Player of the Year, is one of the state’s best passers, he’s not exactly inept in the scoring department. Heading into his senior season, he is 953 points from the state’s all time scoring record of 3,002 set by former Phoenix Shadow Mountain High and UA star Mike Bibby. If he plays 30 games next year, he would need to average 31.8 points per game to set the mark.

Santa Rita coach Jim Ferguson said he could have averaged at least that much this past season if he wanted to, or if the Eagles weren’t benching starters in the fourth quarter of several blowout victories.

Stoglin said the decision to commit to a school on the other side of the country was a tough one, but one he, his coaches and parents were comfortable with. He said the biggest advisers in the process were his parents, Joe and Rose Stoglin, Ferguson and AAU coach Brian Peabody, who is also the Ironwood Ridge boys basketball coach.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

Santa Rita junior Terrell Stoglin told Maryland coach Gary Williams on Wednesday night that he will play for the Terrapins in college.

———

CHASING BIBBY

With a year left, Santa Rita’s Terrell Stoglin is within striking distance of the Arizona career scoring record.

All classes record

> 3,002 – Mike Bibby (1992-96, Phoenix Shadow Mountain)

Class 4A record

> 2,535 – Chuck Overton (1988-92, Cholla)

Terrell Stoglin

> 2,049* (2006-present, Santa Rita)

* Through junior year. Stoglin will need to average 31.8 points through 30 games for state record, 16.2 points for Class 4A record.

Titans leader also mentored UA star Elliott as freshman coach at Cholla

Gin

University of Arizona and San Antonio Spurs basketball fans might want to take a moment to tip their cap to David Gin, who has decided to hang up his coach’s whistle after 36 years.

Long before spending the past 19 years as head varsity coach at Palo Verde High School, the 58-year-old Gin was a middle school, freshman and junior varsity coach for various Tucson Unified School District schools.

Included in his pre-Palo Verde stops was a stint as the freshman coach at Cholla High School, where he mentored a young Sean Elliott.

“I taught him a left-handed layup,” Gin said. “I figure he probably owes me a few thousand dollars at least for that.”

While Gin, a 1969 graduate of Tucson High, had been mulling over a possible retirement all season, he made his decision official two weeks ago to Palo Verde Athletic Director Peggy Baker.

“I’ve been doing it for 36 years now and it takes so much energy,” Gin said. “I think I need to spend a little more time with my family for awhile.”

Gin finishes his Palo Verde career with a 275-270 record after taking over in 1990 for longtime coach Lou Hopkins. He took the team to its only state championship game in 2000, a Class 4A title game loss to coach Dick McConnell’s Sahuaro squad.

Palo Verde was 15-12 this winter with the school’s 12th playoff appearance in the past 13 years. Palo Verde lost in the first round of the Class 4A Division II playoffs to Phoenix Cortez.

Gin, the father of two grown children, said a big factor in his decision to step down this year was the birth this past year of his first grandson, Gavin.

“I ran into (former Rincon/University volleyball coach) Juanita Kingston recently and she said, ‘Do it – you’ll love it,’ ” Gin said of retirement.

Kingston stepped down last year from Rincon’s boys and girls volleyball teams to spend more time with her grandchildren.

“She said I won’t regret it,” Gin said. “I’m looking forward to getting to do a little more of that.”

Gin starting coaching in 1973 at Pistor Middle School. He has seen the game grow into a year-round endeavor that makes it difficult to spend much time with family.

Palo Verde’s posting for the head coaching job closed Friday. Gin said he hopes junior varsity assistant Chris Klassen, a former player, will be given the opportunity to be his successor.

“I think after a few years of rebuilding the program – the cupboard was real empty when I took over – we were real competitive every year,” Gin said. “But I think what I’m most proud of was the two Boyd Baker sportsmanship awards we got. We tried to instill in the kids a sense that its not all about winning.”

Pastner

Josh Pastner has grown fond of March 31.

When the date showed up on the calendar in 1997, the University of Arizona walk-on guard watched as his team took down perennial power Kentucky for college basketball’s national championship.

When it rolled around Tuesday, Pastner, an assistant coach for the past season at Memphis after eight seasons at UA, learned he will follow head coach John Calipari to help rebuild Kentucky into a national power.

“I’m just very fortunate, very blessed,” Pastner said in a telephone interview from Memphis on Tuesday night. “(Calipari) is the boss man and I’m following him there. It’s exciting because that is probably the most storied program in college basketball.”

Calipari, who hired Pastner after the 2007-08 season from UA, will receive an eight-year, $31.65 million deal plus incentives at Kentucky, the university said, making him the highest-paid coach in college basketball. The school also will pay Memphis a $200,000 buyout.

For Pastner, who hopes to be a head coach one day, the news adds to a dream scenario of assistant coaching opportunities.

“I was so fortunate to be at Arizona, one of the great schools of all time,” said Pastner. “I was able to learn so much from Lute Olson, one of the great coaches of all time. Last year, I worked under Kevin O’Neill, who was able to work under Jeff Van Gundy, and then this year at Memphis, I was able to work with Cal (Calipari). The guy is the best coach in the game, period. NBA, college, anywhere, he is the best in the game.”

The 50-year-old Calipari had been rumored to be at or near the top of Arizona’s coaching wish list since Olson stepped down Oct. 24 after 25 years of building the program.

Calipari has a 445-140 record in 17 seasons, including a 137-14 mark over the past four years.

Pastner said he wouldn’t speak for Calipari about the UA coaching situation, but said Olson’s permanent successor will be a lucky man.

“I think any coach would be attracted to that job,” Pastner said. “No doubt UA is going to get a great coach. You’re always pulling for your alma mater and I was very blessed to be there for 12 years. I still call it home.”

Outgoing UA coach Russ Pennell, who served this past season as interim coach, said Tuesday that his coaching future and that of UA’s next coach would depend largely on how soon the Kentucky/Calipari deal was finalized.

“I think a lot of guys in coaching right now are waiting to see how everything trickles down (from Kentucky),” Pennell said. “Everyone is sitting there watching the Kentucky thing and seeing what happens from there.”

Pennell warned that Arizona basketball will have some rebuilding to do over the next several years, primarily in the recruiting circles, where Calipari has excelled for years.

“If they could have got John Calipari,” Pennell joked, “they probably could have got two good ones (players), but that’s another story.”

The Kentucky job opened up last week when the school fired Billy Gillispie after two disappointing seasons.

Hoping to make a big splash after Gillispie’s tenure, Kentucky reportedly went deep into its pockets to land one of the nation’s most high-profile coaches.

Calipari’s deal would eclipse the $3.5 million average salary of Florida’s Billy Donovan and dwarf those of Calipari’s predecessors Rick Pitino, Tubby Smith and Gillispie.

Pastner avoided the monetary details of his move to Kentucky.

“I don’t ever worry about the money thing because I don’t let money control me,” Pastner said. “Live in the moment and live in the day. . . . Money comes and goes.”

Pitino, the coach at rival Louisville, never made more than $2 million a season during his successful eight-year run at Kentucky.

Smith’s compensation neared $2.1 million at the end of his decade with the program and Gillispie received a base salary of $2.3 million, with $750,000 available in incentives.

Calipari already was one of the highest-paid coaches in the country, signing an extension with Memphis last year that paid him $2.35 million annually.

Memphis had promised to match whatever Kentucky offered, but the Wildcats have one thing Memphis doesn’t: the opportunity to coach in a top-flight conference at college basketball’s winningest program.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

Calipari

Cienega High School softball coach Eric Tatham remembers the postgame talk he had with his team after a 2-1 loss at Canyon del Oro in 2008.

“It was such a good game and what I remember,” Tatham recalls, “is sitting in a circle in the CDO outfield after that game and telling the team, ‘We’re really close.’ ”

At least for Monday evening, Cienega put “close” in the rearview mirror, upsetting nationally ranked and previously unbeaten CDO 1-0.

“The biggest thing about this victory is now they can believe we can beat anybody,” Tatham said.

“It’s one thing to be close. It’s another to get it done like we were able to do today. . . This was just such an exciting game and I’m so happy for them.”

CDO is 14-1; Cienega 10-6.

Like the 2008 game, Cienega junior pitcher Alexa Cash did all she could to try to match the star power of CDO counterpart Kenzie Fowler.

Cash struck out 11 hitters, allowing five hits and one extra base hit, a double to CDO sophomore Mattie Fowler.

The University of Arizona-bound Kenzie Fowler struck out 16 hitters, allowing four hits.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, Cienega outfielder Morghan Doughty, who has committed to play collegiately at Colorado State, reached base on a single, stole second and later was driven in from third on a single by fellow junior Ashley Brawley.

CDO and Cienega were the only two Tucson-area teams in the ESPN Rise Fab 50 Preseason national rankings, but after six losses (five to California teams and one to Douglas), Cienega was dropped from the polls.

CDO has maintained its spot at No. 2 all season.

Baseball

At Tanque Verde, senior pitcher Josh King struck out 12 and allowed eight hits and just two walks over seven innings, but it wasn’t enough in a 5-3 loss to visiting Valley Union.

Tanque Verde, ranked the No. 1 Class 1A team in the state in this week’s Arizona Baseball Coaches Association poll, committed three errors and wasn’t able to take advantage of having runners on first and third with no outs in the sixth.

The loss was Tanque Verde’s first in 1A South Region play, dropping the team to 14-4 overall and 6-1 in league action.

Empire 14, Florence 4 (5 innings): At Empire, the Ravens bats were hot early, scoring eight runs in the first inning.

Senior Scotty Watson hit a grand slam in the opening frame, setting the tone for a 14-hit performance for an Empire offense that finished with two doubles, three triples and one home run.

Junior Josh Elder picked up the win on the mound and helped at the plate with a double and a triple.

Boys volleyball

Fresh off his all-tournament team selection over the weekend at the Phoenix Brophy volleyball tournament, Salpointe Catholic all-state setter Pat Tunnell had 31 assists Monday, leading the Lancers to a sweep of Sunnyside 3-0 (25-10, 25-21, 25-17).

Tunnell also had three aces while teammate Mikey Smith had 13 kills in the win.

Salpointe took fourth in the Brophy tournament, one of the more prestigious of the season.

For more on high school sports, check out the Grammer School sports blog.

Ex-Sahuaro basketball coach Dick McConnell (center) with former players Brian Peabody (left) and Jim Ferguson . Peabody (Ironwood Ridge) and Ferguson (Santa Rita) are the Tucson Citizen's co-coaches of the year.

Ironwood Ridge High boys basketball coach Brian Peabody and Santa Rita’s Jim Ferguson each led their respective teams to within seconds of state championships this season – Peabody in Class 5A Division II, Ferguson in 4A-II.

The two have elevated themselves to elite status in the Arizona coaching ranks and were named Tucson Citizen Co-Coaches of the Year for the past season.

Even with their success – each has won state titles and has coached in several more – they have to combine their career records to match that of their mentor, the coach each once played for at Sahuaro High, Dick McConnell.

“It will never be matched, what he did,” said Ferguson of McConnell’s success at Sahuaro, where he accumulated the majority of his state-record 714 wins. “Maybe Brian (Peabody) can get close, he’s young enough. Maybe his son, Rick (McConnell) up at (Mesa) Dobson might make a run, but it’s going to be tough to match what he accomplished right here.”

Ferguson and Peabody, who joined their coach Monday in Sahuaro’s McConnell Gymnasium, are two of many McConnell pupils coaching around Arizona.

“I’d say 99.9 percent of what I do is directly because I learned it from him” Peabody said. “He’s the greatest mentor any coach could have. We still eat dinner two or three times a week and every time we’re out, there’s someone that comes up to him and thanks him for something he did for them. . . . He’s touched more lives than you could even imagine.”