Albuquerque Journal from Albuquerque, New Mexico • Page 21

SPORTS May 31, 2009 NCAA BASEBALL D3 OBITUARIES D6 PUZZLES D9 STANLEY CUP FINALS D10 THE SUNDAY JOURNAL Abq journal.com/sports Cubs foil Dodgers Ryan Dempster helps quiet front-running Los Angeles at Wrigley D7 PREP MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR MORGAN Curtis Beach, who set numerous state track and field records while at Albuquerque Academy, will be taking his skills to Duke University this fall. very so often the stork delivers a kid the likes of Curtis Beach. Wild. Hyper. Always on the go.

Every so often, that kid learns to channel that energy into something productive. Beach has, and why his name has become synonymous with success. think he slept those first four says his father, David. was the kind of kid walk up to complete strangers and introduce himself. If be at a restaurant constantly be out of his chair, going from table to table to talk to people.

He sit The proverbial pinball that he was, Curtis was more than a handful on the ranch in the East Mountain community of Stanley. Nothing they tried seemed to slow him down. His mother, Jeana, recalls taking him to their pediatrician when he was about 4 or 5. She asked if he needed meds to help calm him down. The doctor quickly ruled out attention deficit syndrome or any other kind of biochemical disorder.

doctor talked to him for a few minutes, then turned to me and said, need meds. He just needs to Jeana says. And so he did. With it came the building blocks for what has become perhaps the most celebrated high school track and field athlete the state has ever seen. accomplishments are staggering, so much so that he has invigorated a sport in search of its next superstar.

In four years at the Class 4A state track and field meet, the Albuquerque Academy senior and 2009 Albuquerque Journal Male Athlete of the Year won 17 individual championships and set half a dozen state records one of which he bettered himself with an even higher mark during this championships. the best ever says La Cueva girls track coach and multi-events coach, Jim Ciccarello. time I saw him in the hurdles I thought he could be world class. I still think seen a lot of great athletes, but the one thing they lack is what Curtis says Duke University Curtis each One Albuquerque Coach Calls This Future Duke University Competitor Best Ever Family: David, father; Jeana, mother; A.J., younger brother (underclassman at Sandia Prep) Hobbies: Aside from track? Not much. He enjoys reading or the occasional game of Halo, but admits skip most social events for a heavy workout.

Muscle Beach: Curtis is the latest family member to excel in sports. David and his three brothers all played college hoops (Ken played at Tulsa, Roman at Bradley, Ron at Alaska-Anchorage, David at Highlands). His aunt, Sandy Beach-Warfield, was an All-American in track at Arizona State. Did you Curtis was diagnosed to have asthma at 8 months. Says the javelin is his most challenging event.

His great uncle is three- term governor Bruce King. Is an avid Cleveland Browns fan. His home page is the 2012 Olympics Website. Is a three-time national champion in the pentathlon and holds the U.S. record in the high school decathlon.

Won 17 individual state championships with Academy and was the Class 4A high-point athlete four times. A RT See BEACH on PAGE D3 By Will Webber Journal Staff Writer Crown Eludes King, Cavs Howard, Magic Roll to East Title By Tom Witherss The Associated Press ORLANDO, Fla. Overlooked and begging for respect all season, the Orlando Magic can no longer be ignored. After 14 frustrating years, returned to the NBA finals. Dwight Howard dominated inside for 40 points, Rashard Lewis added 18 and the Magic, a team that can make 3-pointers drop from thin air, hit 12 in a 103-90 victory over LeB ron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals Saturday night.

Lewis said of Howard. totally dominated the game. He carried us on his back The Magic will be making their first finals appearance since 1995, one year before Shaquille bolted as a free agent for Los Angeles, leaving this Florida franchise in ruins. been a long, slow climb back, but Orlando has been rebuilt and will meet the Lakers on Thursday night at the Staples Center in Game 1. Disney World vs.

Disneyland. just think this team all year long has shown an incredible amount of Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. team just keeps fighting back. They deserve Oh, and memo to Nike executives: time to break out the Howard puppet. can go in summer storage.

For now, the only matchup between James and Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant will have to be limited to those cute TV commercials. With the most famous athlete, Tiger Woods who shares a Dec. 30 birthday with James sitting court side, Orlando made believers of all those who wondered if they were better than the Cavaliers, a team that won 66 games in the regular season, or the defending champion Boston Celtics. The Magic made both disappear in the postseason. James scored 25, but the league MVP had to do most of it alone, as Mo Williams lost his shooting touch and bench was badly outplayed by reserves.

Delonte West added 22 and Williams 17 for Cleveland, which went 0-5 in Orlando. During the closing minutes, James was mocked by crowd singing as Howard shot free throws. And after Superman muscled underneath for a thun See MAGIC on PAGE D5 APR Nearly Perfect ne point; one measly, itty-bitty point. all that separated the 200809 UNM basketball team from a perfect score in the Academic Progress Rate. For a program that has lived below the minimum standard of 925 since the APR was devised in 2005, an academic-progress slam dunk.

So, then, class; if you understand the APR, raise your hand. Mmm-hmm, what I thought. why recommending APR 101, an explanation of the system easily found on NCAA.org. Just google and there. By recommending it, not suggesting you toss that John Grisham novel been working on.

APR is basically textbook material, full of phrases like, in the desired confidence and mandated in the original middle English might be an easier read. Even so, APR 101 does clearly spell out the formula by which the Lobo basketball 200809 APR score of 979 as reported in Journal was calculated. Believe it or not, pretty simple. The Lobos had 12 scholarship players, one short of the maximum 13, during the just-completed academic year. Each could earn two APR points for each of two semesters by See APR on PAGE D2 RICK WRIGHT Of the Journal RICK WRIGHT Of the Journal Roddick Goes Deep In Paris American Wins In Straight Sets By Howard Fendrich AP Tennis Writer PARIS Rust-colored flecks of clay dotted Andy white attire, from the brim of his baseball cap, down the back of his shirt, to his ankle braces.

Never before nearly this comfortable at the only Grand Slam tournament played on the slowest surface, Roddick reached the French fourth round for the first time in his career by beating Marc Gicquel of France 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday. And the sixth-seeded Roddick is not satisfied, even though his performance so far is quite an upgrade for someone who won a match at Roland Garros since 2005. time you accomplish a goal, nice. But my tournament is not over. You know, like to keep the Amer See RODDICK on PAGE D5 French Open Today: Early rounds (same-day tape) TV: NBC, 1 p.m.

JOHN PRESS Dwight Howard scored 40 points as the Magic pounded Cleveland to advance to the NBA Finals. Thursday NBA Finals: Orlando at Los Angeles, Game 1 TV: ABC, 7 p.m..