ROLLER HOCKEY IS A HIT WITH AREA'S YOUNGSTERS.Byline: Eric Sondheimer Daily News Deputy Sports Editor Noun 1. sports editor - the newspaper editor responsible for sports news newspaper editor - the editor of a newspaper Forget ice hockey ice hockey: see hockey, ice. ice hockey Game played on an ice rink by two teams of six players on skates. The object is to drive a puck (a small, hard rubber disk) into the opponents' goal with a hockey stick, thus scoring one point. . Forget surfing. Forget skateboarding skateboarding Form of recreation, popular among youths, in which a person rides standing balanced on a small board mounted on wheels. The skateboard first appeared in the early 1960s on paved areas along California beaches as a makeshift diversion for surfers when the ocean . Forget snowboarding. The trendiest, hottest sport capturing the attention of local youth is roller hockey roller hockey n. Hockey played on a hard surface in which two opposing teams of roller skaters, using curved sticks, try to drive a ball into the opponents' goal. . It's so popular in the 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 that the recently opened RollerDome in 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. started a high school league, in which teams from Westlake, Thousand Oaks, Agoura, Oak Park and Newbury Park compete for the Conejo Valley Cup championship. In suburban neighborhoods, parking lots and outside basketball and tennis courts have been commandeered by roller hockey players and turned into makeshift rinks. More than 500 players, from youths to adults, play in the RollerDome's in-house leagues. The $650,000 facility opened last May in a residential neighborhood. "Since we don't have the ice hockey facilities, roller hockey is the next best thing," said RollerDome sports director Chris De Luca. On Friday nights at the RollerDome, teen-agers slap around pucks and do battle wearing complete roller hockey gear: in-line skates, shin guards, elbow pads, gloves and helmets with face guards. Five players from each team are on the wooden floor during each match, which consists of three 15-minute periods running time. Players spend $250 and more for equipment and $150 for league fees. At a recent game, Westlake players wore sparkling jerseys with their blue and white school colors, and Thousand Oaks players donned uniforms with their green and white school colors. Late in the game, there was a brief shoving match between players, showing that the Westlake-Thousand Oaks rivalry exists even in roller hockey. (All are club teams put together by students interested in the sport.) "These are your (in-line) hockey jocks," Westlake senior goalie Adam Ross Adam Ross is a fictional character on the television series . He is portrayed by A.J. Buckley. Biography Adam Ross is a lab tech for the New York City Crime Lab. said. "There's no high school ice hockey (in California), and this is the closest to it. One day, hopefully, it will be a CIF (1) (Common Intermediate Format) A standard video format used in videoconferencing. CIF formats are defined by their resolution, and standards both above and below the original resolution have been established. The original CIF is also known as Full CIF (FCIF). (sport)." Several players who compete in high school sports also play the game. Oak Park sophomore basketball player Greg Jones Greg Jones may refer to:
"I like being busy. I don't like wasting my time," Jones said. "It's fun, it's fast. You have to have good skating ability, soft hands and know how to handle a stick." High school coaches don't seem worried that they might lose potential athletes to roller hockey, but Westlake football coach Jim Benkert might want to scout the Westlake roller hockey team. Among the players is 6-foot-3 sophomore Doug Beasley, who looks like he could be a receiver. "I play so much hockey I don't have time to play high school sports," Beasley said. "The problem with high school sports is you have to practice every day during the week." There were more than 50 spectators watching last week's semifinal competition at the RollerDome. Westlake and Oak Park won to advance to Friday night's 7 p.m. final. CAPTION(S): PHOTO Photo (color) Westlake's Frankie Gentile (2) collides with Thousand Oaks' Joe Espinosa during a game at RollerDome. Gene Blevins / Special to the Daily News |
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