The Tampa Tribune from Tampa, Florida • 47

Upper Tampa Bay-7 THE TAMPA TRIBUNE Sunday, June 4, 1995 TRIBUNE BASEBALLSOFTBALL PLAYERS OF THE YEAR Diaz' domination crosses class lines 1 Sports i a I Mr Associated Press photo Michelle Akers, right, beats U.S. teammate Tisha Venturini to the play during recent practices for the Women's World Cup in Sweden. The U.S. begins its title defense Tuesday against China. Women's World Cup gaining U.S.

exposure By JOEY KNIGHT Tribune Staff Writer LAKELAND When Santa Fe Catholic pitcher Zach Diaz is mentioned in discussions of the area's best prep players, some detractors hastily place an asterisk beside his name. Their reasoning usually no, make that always goes something like this: "Aw, he plays for a dinky ol' Class 2 A school, so he probably got most of those stats against little podunk teams." It's at that moment when Crimson Hawks coach John Carpenter makes a most compelling argument in favor of his left-handed ace he simply opens his scorebook. The detractors' case becomes flimsier with every turn of the page. Against 3A Tallahassee Florida High, ranked in the state poll most of the year: Diaz pitches 5 innings, allows four hits, strikes out four, walks none. Hawks win, 4-1.

Against 4A Bartow, a state tournament qualifier: seven innings pitched, five hits, seven strikeouts, no walks. Hawks win, 2-1. Against 4A Haines City: Diaz and right-hander Dustion Osbourn combine for five-inning two-hitter. Hawks win, 11-0. And here's the clincher: Against 2A Miami Westminster, ranked 12th in the nation by USA Today: seven innings pitched, five hits, eight strikeouts, two walks (one intentional).

Hawks win, 3-1, clinching 2A state title. Diaz called his own pitches. Less than 24 hours before, he pitched three relief innings in a 5-4 victory against Gainesville Oak Hall in the semifinals. Such performances highlighted a season in which Diaz finished 13-1 with three saves and a 0.89 ERA. In 87 innings, he fanned 118 and walked only 16.

His success, many say, was a result of his uncanny ability to consistently hit spots with his breaking pitches. But if those numbers and stellar outings still aren't enough to sway the doubters, so be it Even if some critics weren't impressed, colleges were. Diaz, a 6-foot, 180-pound left-hander, signed with Florida State earlier this year, choosing the Seminoles over several other Division I programs. "What I want to know is, why in the world would Division I schools go after a guy if he couldn't do the job?" said Carpenter, who schedules only five 2A opponents in the regular season. "This kid will get people out at any level." His hitting also knows no levels.

Diaz pounced on opposing pitchers, regardless if they were from Lakeland (6A) or Lakeland Christian (2A). He batted .443 with 21 RBIs, 39 runs and 23 stolen bases in 24 attempts. He finished his three-year career with a .426 average and 63 RBIs to complement a school-record 35 victories, 339 strikeouts and 55 walks in 252 innings. In a 10-day span as a junior, he recorded pitching victories against Auburndale (5A), Kathleen (5A), Lake Gibson (6A) and Lakeland. Whether such figures and feats are enough to convince the skeptics matters little to Diaz.

Thanks to the numbers he posted in the classroom where there are no detractors he would have been college-bound had he never thrown a pitch. Diaz carries a 4.52 weighted GPA (on a 4.0 scale) and scored a 1,310 on the Scholastic Assessment Test. "The pitcher you see is the hitter you see is the person you see," Carpenter said. "He's just an extraordinary young man." Pitcher Zach Diaz went 35-8 with a 1.19 ERA in his prep career at Lakeland Santa Fe Catholic. Comment Name, school Soccer Bill Ward Yr.

Pos. Ir. Sr. IF Sr. IF Sr.

IF Sr. OF Sr. OF Sr. OF Sr. DH Sr.

Ut Sr. Sr. Sr. Jr. Sr.

Joe Buccheri, Crystal River Billy Gasparino, Jesuit Brian Haught, Jesuit Matt Tumulty, Gibbs Kenny James, Sebring Chris Manser, Hillsborough Michael Valdes, Bloomingdale Todd Fehrenbach, Citrus Zach Diaz, Santa Fe Catholic Sean Woods, Bartow Bronson Arroyo, Hernando Wes Crawford, Winter Haven Greg Howell, Brandon B.J. Leach, Osceola 3 strikeouts in 96 at-bats Played in 3 state tournaments Has signed with Florida .968 fielding percentage Hit 37-for-39 in steals Signed with Miami Saladino Tournament MVP 3 HRs in a row in playoffs Won both state tourney games .440, 6 home runs, 50 RBIs 10-3, 131 strikeouts, 0.44 ERA FSU signee; 11-1, 114 Ks 12- four playoff wins, 1 save 13- 16 Ks in a playoff game Led an inexperienced pitching Catholic. When the United States won the first Women's World Cup in 1991, it was probably one of the best kept secrets in sports. Maybe it had. something to do with COACH OF THE YEAR Greg Parris, Brandon staff to a 27-4 record and the Class 6A final.

PLAYER OF THE YEAR Zach Diaz, Santa Fe WOMEN'S WORLD CUP (all times EOT) GROUP A Tuesday Germany vs. Japan, 8 a.m.; Brazil vs. Sweden, noon. Wednesday Sweden vs. Germany, 1 p.m.; Brazil vs.

Japan, 1 p.m. Friday Sweden vs. Japan, 1 p.m.; Brazil vs. Germany, 1 p.m. I GROUP Tuesday Norway vs.

Nigeria, 1 p.m.; England vs. Canada, 1 p.m. Wednesday Norway vs. England, 1 p.m.; Nigeria vs. Canada, 1 p.m.

Saturday Norway vs. Canada, 10 a.m.; Nigeria vs. England, 10 a.m. GROUP Tuesday USA vs. China P.R., 1 p.m.; Denmark vs.

Australia, 1 p.m. Thursday USA vs. Denmark, 1 p.m.; China P.R. vs. Australia, 1 p.m.

Saturday USA vs. Australia, 10 a.m.; China P.R. vs. Denmark, 10 a.m. QUARTERFINALS June 13; SEMIFINALS June 15; THIRD PLACE June 17; CHAMPIONSHIP June 1 8.

HONORABLE MENTION Bartow Sean Sobczak; Berkeley Prep Mike Uzdavines; Brandon Jason Dewey; Chamberlain David Strawser; Clearwater Andrew Beattie. Otis Dixon; Countryside Matt Hanson; Dunedin Jeff Driggers; Gaither Chris Walther; Gibbs Matt King: Hernando Jason Branch. Danny Frazier, Bert Snow: Jefferson Jason Sparks; Jesuit Jetf Jackson: Lake Gibson Kris Parrish, Scott Kirby: River Ridge T.J. Tucker: Santa Fe Scott Wiggs. Matt E.

Diaz; Seminole Kurt Bultmann. Jacob Ruotsinoja; South Sumter Clinton Hart; Springstead Greg Long; Winter Haven Chris Miller, Kyle Sheldon. Rivals Paterson, Triner share successes 'Sly'-' llr a i 1991 championship team and joined Akers' Swedish club Tyreso last season. Akers also spent the 1990 and '92 seasons with Tyreso. In 1992, she scored 43 goals and was the leading goal scorer male or female in Sweden's professional leagues.

Britain's World Soccer magazine calls her the world's greatest female soccer player, After playing China and Denmark in Galve, Sweden, the United States closes out its Group schedule Saturday against Australia in Helsingborg for the last Group game Saturday against Australia. The top two teams in each of the three groups plus the two third-place teams with the best records advance to the quarterfinals. Quarterfinals start June 13, semifinals are two days later and the championship match is June 18. So that means if the U.S. women succeed in defending the title, they will have to play six games in just 12 days.

In winning the men's World Cup last summer, Brazil played seven games in a month. "We're fitter than we've ever been and we are more experienced," said Akers, one of nine veterans returning from the team that won in China. "We can do it." V. the fact the tournament was held in China, not exactly a media hub. Or maybe it had something to do with two things that are virtual poison to the vast majority in the American sports media women's sports and soccer.

Put those two items together and watch how fast a sports editor can roll his eyes and yawn. But things have changed a bit in the last four years. Women's sports are starting to get a little more coverage and with the help of last summer's men's World Cup, sports editors are begrudgingly beginning to realize that people really do follow the sport in this country. As tournament festivities open Monday in Sweden, we can actually look forward to seeing their matches on television (albeit tape delayed a few hours) and some results in newspapers. The United States women begin defense of their title Tuesday against China and that match will be aired the same day at 4 p.m.

on ESPN2. Their next match, against Denmark, airs on Thursday at 4 p.m. on "The Deuce." In fact, ESPN has promised to show all three of the U.S. women's team first-round matches, and their quarterfinal, semifinal and final matches if the Americans get that far. It should make for some interesting viewing.

This second women's World Cup, which includes 12 nations, will be a bit different from last summer's male version, which had 24 countries participating. One difference: the introduction of female referees and lineswomen during the two-week championship. Twelve men and 12 women will officiate. Soccer's governing body, FIFA, is also experimenting with timeouts for the first time in a major competition. Each team will be allowed a two-minute timeout during each half.

A timeout may be requested whenever the ball is out of play but not before set pieces such as free kicks. Despite the changes, the United States is favored to retain the title it won in China, where it defeated Norway, 2-1, in the final. U.S. coach Tony DiCicco brought 26 players into camp in Sanford last February and, apart from a few friendlies and tournaments, they've been training on a full-time basis. "I think this team is better and more professional than the one we had in 1991," says star U.S.

forward Michelle that goes for all participating teams since women's soccer standard is much higher today than four years ago." It's something of a homecoming for Akers and teammates Mary Harvey, Julie Foudy and Kris-tine Lilly, who were also on the By WALTER LEE DOZIER Tribune Staff Writer TAMPA Bloomingdale softball coach Mike Clamon calls it the end of an era. He doesn't expect to see two pitchers with the talent of East Bay's Monica Triner and Bloomingdale's Missy Paterson again. "Softball in this area can now return to normal," Clamon said. "I don't know if we'll ever see two pitchers dominate the game the way they did. "They are exceptional softball players.

They're awesome." This year's statistics bear Clamon out. Paterson had 272 strikeouts in 130 innings for an average of 2.1 strikeouts an inning, with a 0.17 ERA. She hit .430 with a team-leading 22 runs scored, 34 hits and a .565 on-base percentage. Triner had 213 strikeouts in 150 innings. She also led her team in hitting, batting .442 with nine doubles, three triples, four home runs and 38 RBIs.

Despite a fierce competitive drive that has fueled an intense on-field rivalry, Triner and Paterson also are best of friends. When they're not competing against one another, they attend each other's games to offer support. And because they're nearly inseparable, Triner and Paterson, both seniors, share rare Co-Players of the Year honors. "We are good friends and we have fun together," said Triner, who was named Florida's Softball Player of the Year on Thursday. "When we're not playing softball, we talk about it all the time." On the field, Triner and Paterson are all business.

"She wants to beat me every time," said Paterson, who signed with Coker College of Hartville, S.C., ranked seventh in NAIA. "Physically, Monica's very intimidating. She can play anywhere because she's so strong. I wish I had her size." Paterson started pitching in 10th grade; Triner in ninth. They have combined for 97 victories, 1,253 strikeouts in 829 innings, 27 no-hitters and 30 one-hitters.

Paterson finishes with a 43-7 record and only 16 earned runs. Triner, who will attend the University of South Florida, is 54-18, allowing only three earned runs this year for a 0.09 ERA. "This is a real honor for Monica and Missy. With the stats they've accumulated it's well-deserved," East Bay coach Michelle Lamont said. "Missy is a fantastic player and very tough to beat Monica is a down-to-earth person that is a true example of hard work." "Monica is one those athletes that only comes around a very few times," said Plant City coach Jim Mabry, who coached Triner through her junior year at East Bay.

Tribune file photos Comment Name, school Pitchers Missy Paterson of Bloomingdale, left, and Monica Triner of Gibsonton East Bay combined for 97 victories, 1,253 strikeouts in 829 innings, 27 no-hitters and 30 one-hitters in their prep careers. Yr. Pos. s7 Sr. IF Jr.

IF So. IF Sr. OF Jr. OF Sr. OF Sr.

DH So. Ut Sr. Sr. Sr. Sr.

Sr. Sarah Diaz, Land O' Lakes Stacey Jernigan, Auburndale Andi Michaels, Chamberlain Tonya Minick, Lake Wales Sabrina Kight, Pasco Mary Walford, Land O' Lakes Lindy Williams, Berkeley Aimee Boulet, Tampa Prep Desiree Croteau, Lnd O' Lakes Krista Francisco, Armwood Julianne Coleman, Bartow Monica Triner, East Bay Missy Paterson, Bloomingdale Only 3 errors in four seasons Went .407 with 33 hits .375, 22 RBI; strong defense .450, 10 triples, 38 RBIs Hit .476 for the Pirates 61 of 63 stolen bases, 40 runs good speed, can pitch Hit strong, versatile 1.83 ERA, 107 Ks, .404 .455 average; solid defense 20 wins0.82 ERA tops in Polk 213 Ks, 0.09 ERA; 5 no-hitters 272 Ks, 0.17 ERA 8 no-hitters County record for wins (26) Krista Allen, Largo Land O' Lakes. Guided Gators COACH OF THE YEAR Jerry English, Million pound men: Dutch international Buud Gullit who refused to play for Holland during last summer's World Cup tournament, is apparently leaving the Italian League and heading to Chelsea landed the 32-year-dld sweeper. The south London club is poised to sign Gullit for a reported deal worth 3 million, or about $4.8 million for two years. If he signs for one season, the deal is reportedly worth $2.5 to GulliL After hearing the big news about Chelsea, the joke in south London was that Italian World Cup star Roberto Bagglo was headed to Queens Park Rangers.

Truth is, Bag-gio may be put up for sale by his club, Juventus of Turin, but QPR can hardly afford his asking price. The Agnelli family, which controls Fiat and owns the team, wants Baggio to take a 50 percent pay cut from $2.5 million. to Class 4A state semifinal finish. CO-PLAYERS OF THE YEAR Monica Triner, East Bay; Missy Paterson, Bloomingdale. HONORABLE MENTION Armwood Jessica Augerto; Auburndale Stacey Jernigan, Cindy Snoddy: Bartow MoHy Murphy; Berkeley Prep Julia James; Bloomingdale Rachel Peterson; Citrus Jeanenne Posta; Clearwater KeM Lightner, Monique Marier; Countryside Janeen Sobush.

Christen Campbell; Dunedin Amy Sobieraj, Heather Treadway; Gaither Shonda Davis, Gina Krueger; Hemes City Dinah Anglin; Hernando Casey Bates, Lisa Pkxiano; Hudson Tara Ford; Jenkins Dana Martin; Lake Wales Danielle Valente. Valerie Welknan; Land O' Lakes Heather Stnngfellow. Desiree Crouteau. Lynn Ross; Largo Leslie Allen, Renee King, Leslie Burdette; Lecarrto Michelle Rowe: Northside Christy Glass; Plant Maite Aramayo: Plant City Meredith Seales: Seminole Sara Donnelly, Stacey Hood, Ashley Rayt; Seminole Presbyterian Melissa Tapia; Winter Haven Heather DuH, April Elston, Stacey Ricks, Kelly Vamadore..