MANAGING TO WIN COACHES SHOW CONEJO VALLEY HOW TO DO IT.Byline: Gerry Gittelson Staff WriterWILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - A group of home run hitters and strikeout pitchers have provided a big lift for World Series qualifier Conejo Valley The Conejo Valley is a region spanning both Southeastern Ventura County and Northwest Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States. It was discovered in 1542 by Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, and eventually became part of the Rancho El Conejo land grant by Little League. But most agree a key reason for the 11- and 12-year-olds' success is the sturdy leadership provided by manager Tom Ginther and assistants Rick Brower and Frank Leon. The threesome previously coached eight members of the team two years ago when Conejo Valley won the Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, title in the 10-and-under division. The coaches hope the good times keep rolling in the Little League World Series, which begins Friday against Rhode Island Rhode Island, island, United States Rhode Island, island, 15 mi (24 km) long and 5 mi (8 km) wide, S R.I., at the entrance to Narragansett Bay. It is the largest island in the state, with steep cliffs and excellent beaches. in the first round of round-robin competition. ``We couldn't win without these coaches. They've taught all of us so many things,'' catcher John Lister John Lister is the name of:
``I remember when we were losing by two runs to Nevada in the Western Regionals, Coach Ginther took us aside and told us if we keep hitting and play good defense, we'd come back and win. I believed him, and that's exactly what happened.'' Ginther set some strict rules in the beginning, such as never arriving late and always tucking in your shirt. But none of the coaches are particularly hard-nosed, preferring a fun, easygoing eas·y·go·ing also eas·y-go·ing adj. 1. a. Living without undue worry or concern; calm. b. Lax or negligent; careless. c. style. It has worked. Fundamentally sound Conejo Valley is 17-0 and has given up just one unearned run all season. ``Tom Ginther knows what to do all the time, and Frank Leon and Rick Brower are more like the motivators, kind of the same type,'' Conejo Valley's Adam Justiano said. ``I think they've got everyone on the team doing their jobs really well.'' Ginther, a grocery manager, has the most baseball experience. He played at Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. High, Moorpark College Moorpark College is a California-state funded community college located on a 134 acre (542,000 m²) property reclining on a hill in Moorpark, a town in Ventura County, California. and Cal Lutheran in the 1970s before a brief stint in the Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are a professional baseball team based in Detroit, Michigan. The Tigers are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Tigers have played in Comerica Park. organization. Brower, who works in construction, played at Newbury Park High and has participated in various large-scale softball tournaments. Leon, a mortgage broker, has a recreation-level background. Ginther has a batting cage Noun 1. batting cage - a movable screen placed behind home base to catch balls during batting practice cage baseball equipment - equipment used in playing baseball in his backyard, and the team practices hitting twice a day. The strategy has helped Conejo Valley total 23 home runs with a team batting average batting average n. Baseball A measure of a batter's performance obtained by dividing the total of base hits by the number of times at bat, not including walks. Noun 1. near .400. ``We definitely do a lot of hitting, and that's helped us cut down on strikeouts quite a bit,'' Ginther said. ``We also pitch to the kids and throw them a lot of curveballs because curves are hard to hit when you're in little league. ``Plus, my basic philosophy is to instill in·still v. To pour in drop by drop. in  stil·la tion n. some discipline with no obscene language or anything like that. And I insist every player must be polite to his teammates.'' Gerry Gittelson, (661) 257-5218 gerry.gittelson(at)dailynews.com CONEJO VALLEY LITTLE LEAGUE James Brady HT/WT: 5-0, 105 BATS/THROWS: Right/Right CAREER GOAL: Baseball player HERO: Dad HOBBIES: Poker & other sports FAV FAV Favorite FAV Favorable FAV Fruits And Vegetables (growers, farmers) FAV Fast Attack Vehicle FAV Fuerza Aérea Venezolana (Venezuelan Air Force) FAV Final Acute Value ATHLETE: Derek Jeter  Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled until (UTC) due to vandalism. FAV FOOD: Spaghetti FAV TV SHOW: SportsCenter FAV MOVIE: Happy Gilmore FAV BAND/SINGER: D12 Jordan Brower HT/WT: 5-5, 115 BATS/THROWS: Both/Right CAREER GOAL: Pro athlete HERO: Dad HOBBIES: Sports and PS2 FAV ATHLETE: Chipper Jones FAV FOOD: Dad's tacos FAV TV SHOW: Baseball Tonight FAV MOVIE: Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star & White Chicks FAV BAND/SINGER: Usher Hayden Cronenbold HT/WT: 5-1, 90 BATS/THROWS: Right/Right CAREER GOAL: Pro baseball player HERO: Parents HOBBIES: Soccer FAV ATHLETE: Alex Rodriguez FAV FOOD: Burgers FAV TV SHOW: Boiling Points FAV MOVIE: Happy Gilmore FAV BAND/SINGER: 50 Cent Derrick Francis HT/WT: 5-3, 115 BATS/THROWS: Left/Right CAREER GOAL: Win Little League World Series HERO: Dad HOBBIES: Ping pong & trading pins FAV ATHLETE: Sammy Sosa FAV FOOD: Steak sandwich FAV TV SHOW: PTI PTI - Portable Tool Interface FAV MOVIE: White Chicks FAV BAND/SINGER: 50 Cent Tim Ginther HT/WT: 4-11, 90 BATS/THROWS: Both/Right CAREER GOAL: Pro baseball player HERO: Sad HOBBIES: Playing baseball FAV ATHLETE: Ken Griffey, Jr. FAV FOOD: Ribs FAV TV SHOW: Family Guy FAV MOVIE: Sandlot sand·lot n. A vacant lot used especially by children for unorganized sports and games. adj. Of, relating to, or played in a sandlot: sandlot baseball. FAV BAND/SINGER: Newfound Glory Adam Justiano HT/WT: 5-7, 110 BATS/THROWS: Right/Right CAREER GOAL: Businessman HERO: Mom & Dad HOBBIES: Baseball & collecting baseball cards FAV ATHLETE: Alex Rodriguez FAV FOOD: Sushi FAV TV SHOW: Sports Center FAV MOVIE: The Godfather FAV BAND/SINGER: Led Zeppelin Tyler Karp HT/WT: 5-6, 110 BATS/THROWS: Right/Right CAREER GOAL: Pro baseball player HERO: Dad HOBBIES: Video games FAV ATHLETE: Eric Gagne FAV FOOD: Corn dogs FAV TV SHOW: Sports Center FAV MOVIE: Sandlot FAV BAND/SINGER: None Danny Leon HT/WT: 5-7, 125 BATS/THROWS: Right/Right CAREER GOAL: Baseball player HERO: Dad HOBBIES: Guitar & basketball FAV ATHLETE: Sammy Sosa FAV FOOD: BBQ BBQ barbecue chicken, pizza FAV TV SHOW: Family Guy FAV MOVIE: *61 FAV BAND/SINGER: No Use For A Name No Use for a Name (sometimes abbreviated NUFAN) is a punk rock band from San Jose, California, United States, formed in 1987 by Tony Sly, Steve Papoutsis, Rory Koff, and Chris Dodge. John Lister HT/WT: 5-10, 145 BATS/THROWS: Right/Right CAREER GOAL: Pro athlete HERO: Walter Payton HOBBIES: Pin trading FAV ATHLETE: Mike Lieberthal FAV FOOD: Pasta FAV TV SHOW: SportsCenter FAV MOVIE: Waterboy FAV BAND/SINGER: AC/DC AC/DC adj. Slang Having a bisexual orientation. [From the likening of a bisexual person to an appliance that works on either alternating or direct current. Sean McIntyre HT/WT: 5-6, 115 BATS/THROWS: Left/left CAREER GOAL: Pro baseball player HERO: Henry Aaron HOBBIES: Baseball FAV ATHLETE: Darin Ersted FAV FOOD: Ribs FAV TV SHOW: Sports Center FAV MOVIE: White Chicks FAV BAND/SINGER: G-Unit Evan Ocello HT/WT: 5-0, 85 BATS/THROWS: Right/Right CAREER GOAL: Pro baseball player HERO: Mom & Dad HOBBIES: Collecting cards, PS2 & sports FAV ATHLETE: Barry Bonds FAV FOOD: Soup FAV TV SHOW: Baseball Tonight FAV MOVIE: None FAV BAND/SINGER: None Cody Thomson HT/WT: 5-9, 150 BATS/THROWS: Right/Right CAREER GOAL: Be the best I can be HERO: Grandpa Tom HOBBIES: Baseball cards & swimming FAV ATHLETE: Albert Pujols FAV FOOD: Steak FAV TV SHOW: Sports Center FAV MOVIE: Airplane FAV BAND/SINGER: Van Halen CAPTION(S): 15 photos, 2 boxes Photo: (1) LEON (2) BROWER (3) JAMES BRADY (4) TIM GINTHER (5) JOHN LISTER (6) JORDAN BROWER (7) ADAM JUSTIANO (8) SEAN MCINTYRE (9) HAYDEN CRONEBOLD (10) TYLER KARP (11) EVAN OCELLO (12) DERRICK FRANCIS (13) DANNY LEON (14) CODY THOMSON (15) -Tom Ginther Conejo Valley Little League manager Box: (1) CONEJO VALLEY TEAM PROFILES (see text) (2) SCHEDULE |
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