Pitcher of the Year: Brittany File, Carmel
Coach of the Year: Jim Pingree, Santa Catalina
Sportsmanship: Carissa Sanchez, Soledad
First team
Annie Aldrete, Santa Catalina
Marissa Bruno, Santa Catalina
Vanessa Furman, Santa Catalina
Rene Kausin, Santa Catalina
Fatima Larios, Santa Catalina
Chase LeeHong, Santa Catalina
Brenda Melano, Santa Catalina
Tatumn Satow, Santa Catalina
Amber Clark, Carmel
Brittany File, Carmel
Abby Burnell, Pacific Grove
Reeve Grobecker, Pacific Grove
Jensen Main, Stevenson
Dominique Seva'aetasi, Stevenson
Natalie Basaldua, Gonzales
Lauren Davis, King City
Second team
Lani Augustine, Stevenson
Dani Marangoni-Simonsen, Stevenson
Nikki Marangoni-Simonsen, Stevenson
Olivia Russell, Stevenson
Victoria Harris, Pacific Grove
Christina Lucido, Pacific Grove
Vanessa Villarreal, Pacific Grove
Brianna Harris, Pacific Grove
Cierra Pieroni, Pacific Grove
Alexandra Franklin, Carmel
Maddi Randozzo, Carmel
Angie Savoldi, Carmel
Jessie Donlon, Santa Catalina
Lauren Garcia, Santa Catalina
Aly Lombardi, Gonzales
Marley Morlett, Gonzales
Margie Perez, Gonzales
Alexys Gonzales, Soledad
Destiny Ramirez, Soledad
Carissa Sanchez, Soledad
Anyssa Santoyo, Soledad
Briana Solis, Soledad
Lauren Domingos, King City
Emily Espino, King City
Larissa Perez, King City
49 comments:
Wow! That's awesome that we here in Carmel get 2 players represented on the 1st team after finishing 2nd in the MTAL and making it to the 2nd round of CCS. We've had to read about our team being Brittany File and nobody else all year. Brittany deserves every award she's ever gotten, but we've got girls like Angie Savoldi and Nicole Caoili who are now Juniors and have been on varsity for 3 years. Girls like this were treated unfairly last year due to favoritism towards Coach's underclass children and looking at this list, now that same theme has spread to other schools. Really? I'm sorry, but it's hard to accept that freshman or sophomore children of coach's need to make 1st Team when they don't have deserving years. Especially when there are seniors and juniors who clearly do deserve the award. Are there any stats to back these selections? What is the criteria? Congrats to Catalina on 8 selections and coach of the year though. We really respect that they do have a very talented team, but 8 including 2 freshman? As talented as this team is, they did not dominate. Look at how many close games they played. Apparently, they are so much more talented than everybody else in the league, that they don't even need a coach. I guess the fact that they didn't blow everybody out by 10 runs a game means the other coaches in the league did an unbelievable job preparing for them. Congrats though...for now on, when you arrive in Carmel we will roll out a red carpet and throw rose petals in the air as you make your way down to the field.
I hear you truth. Unfortunately, 1st team all league has devolved from who deserves it to who's travel team they belong to. PG deserved more 1st team all league players as well. Let's hope that coaches in the future years put the player's achievements before their own agendas.
I’m left scratching my head over Carmel’s selection (but not of the highly deserving Brittany File). The other selection is a great kid, but hardly deserving of first team all league. Consider her defense: led the team with errors, more than twice as many as any other player. Consider her batting: eighth on the team in average; sixth on the team in slugging percentage; tied for ninth on the team in batting average with runners in scoring position. In fact, she was below the team batting average, and barely at the team slugging percentage average. How does this girl make first team all league? How does another girl, who led Carmel in batting average (404) and slugging percentage (574), and had one of the best gloves on the team not make first team all league? Because the coaches are playing favorites, like they have all season. Pathetic.
The program has gotten so bad that Carmel would not have been able to field a team for the playoffs were it not for freshmen. 5 of the 13 girls who suited up for the playoffs were freshmen. Most of the sophomores, juniors and seniors had long since abandoned this sinking ship.
Hey lets just pick the best players in their respected positions and just have 9 players, if that was the case then it would be the starting 8 players from Catalina and Brit File. No one can honestly say their position players are better than what is at Catalina this year. However for you PG fans next year is your year to prove me wrong, with just about your whole team coming back.There will be no excuses,I expect a league title from that team and then maybe we can expect 8 players from PG.
Please don't confuse "truth teller" from the truth. The facts are that the current coaching staff in Carmel inherited an absolute mess and was still able to win more games and get further in the playoffs then last year's staff with less talent. They did an excellent job. In fact, considering the winning record and the crazy parents Mike had to deal with, he should have got coach of the year. It is true that many high quality players didn't play this year and it's sad because Carmel wins CCS if they did. However, the reason they didn't come out is due to the horrific job last year's staff did. Things are improving now. Let's move forward and put the focus on the kids and away from parent's agendas.
Please save the Carmel debate for another forum. I don't agree that Catalina's 8 players are the 8 best starters in the league, but I do agree with the concept. There is no pattern to this team. I only see one deserving pitcher and there are no averages and positions listed. Pick 2 kids from each position and 3 or 4 pitchers based on their statistics for the year as opposed to who's kid they are and what travel team they play for. Then you will have a true "all - league" team.
Nice spin, Truth, but still false. How can you blame last year's coach for the fact that one-third of the Carmel varsity players left the team during the season this year? Five players who started the season on varsity were no longer with the softball program come playoffs. That is a sign of a program in reverse.
Look. I hate to admit it, but the PG guy is right. This isn't a forum for Carmel softball, so this is the last I have to say about it. Those 5 girls didn't all quit. Some were let go and some quit. The team's chemistry got better every time one left and they performed very well in the playoffs because of that. And hey, you're entitled to your opinion like anybody else, but don't rip on the kid that made 1st Team All - League for Carmel. She made it because she deserved it and she didn't have a parent involved. It's not about her. It's about the process and the other kids on Carmel and other teams that deserved to make it, but didn't.
That's right, these are all good kids and the discussion has nothing to do with their character. The issue is coaching bias where selections are made based on things other than performance. That is what the criticisms are about, from various sources.
When it comes to Carmel, I have simply stated some facts, which are pretty hard to refute. We are all entitled to our own opinions, but not our own facts. Here are the facts as I have laid out:
Fact 1: One girl from Carmel made first team all league in spite of leading the team in errors and having quite average batting statistics. She wasn't chosen based on performance. Why not? This is a terribly unfair position for the coaches to put her in. She's a good kid who does not deserve to be put in such an awkward position by her coaches.
Fact 2: the girl from Carmel who led the team in batting average and slugging percentage, and was very good defensively did not make first team all league. Why not? Obviously, this decision was not based on merit.
Fact 3: Carmel would not have been able to field a team for playoffs without freshmen (5 of 13), because so many girls left at some point this season and others did not want to play for these coaches from the beginning. Why are so many sophomores, juniors and seniors fleeing from this program if it is so healthy? Because it is not.
These are simple facts. You may interpret them as you want, but you cannot ignore them.
Ha. All I can say as a PG fan is the kid from Carmel you keep bringing up was the toughest out on the team when we played her. However, stats is obviously not what qualifies you to make 1st team all-league in the case of the MTAL. The Carmel coaching staff is not the issue here and I'm sure that if they had their way, more girls than 2 would have made the team. Carmel made it to the final 8 in CCS and won more games than they did a year ago, so if the coaching staff is that bad, they must have a lot of great players to pull that off!!!!!!
Alright "Truth Teller" let's expose your "facts" as you have laid them out.
Your "Fact" 1: One girl from Carmel made first team all league in spite of leading the team in errors and having quite average batting statistics. She wasn't chosen based on performance. Why not? This is a terribly unfair position for the coaches to put her in. She's a good kid who does not deserve to be put in such an awkward position by her coaches.
- Let's break down your "facts".
1. The player who you are referring to did not lead the team in errors during LEAGUE. You DO KNOW that the "MTAL All-League" is ONLY based on MTAL statistics, don't you? Apparently you don't, smart guy. There goes your first "fact"… good try though.
2. How do you know she wasn't chosen based on performance? Your critique is invalid, just like your math skills.
Your "Fact" 2: the girl from Carmel who led the team in batting average and slugging percentage, and was very good defensively did not make first team all league. Why not? Obviously, this decision was not based on merit.
Time to break down your "facts" again…
1. Are you looking at LEAGUE statistics? No you're not. Again, since this is based on MTAL statistics, let's put some factual numbers in there, shall we? The player from Carmel who led the team in batting average for LEAGUE play, only batted 8 times and had 3 hits…compared to other players, including the player who you are criticizing, who batted over 30 times with the second highest slugging percentage on the team, which, was second only to the player with 8 at bats. And the player with 8 at bats was not very good defensively. So again, if we are looking at LEAGUE stats, you are again, factually incorrect.
Your "Fact" 3: Carmel would not have been able to field a team for playoffs without freshmen (5 of 13), because so many girls left at some point this season and others did not want to play for these coaches from the beginning. Why are so many sophomores, juniors and seniors fleeing from this program if it is so healthy? Because it is not.
Three freshman had been on the team since the beginning of the season. Due to a player injury, a freshman (#4) tried out for the open position and made the varsity team. The final freshman (#5) was brought up for playoffs. So, what exactly is your point? That there were 5 freshman players who were better than other players on JV? Carmel took 12 players to the CCS playoffs, not 13.
12 - 9 = 3
That means they had THREE extra players on the bench. Your math skills are getting worse.
"These are simple facts. You may interpret them as you want, but you cannot ignore them."
The best part of your "simple facts" is that they are invalid. Just like your argument. If you're going to talk about statistics, first make sure you are using the ones which apply. Second, your feeble attempts to warp information in hopes of supporting your argument is downright pathetic.
Looks like you're 0-3 on your facts. You just batted .000.
Truth Teller, you are delusional. Truth has it right. The most unfortunate thing about this season for the Carmel girls was that the only complaining parent crossed boundaries with coaches and robbed them of their time after games and weekends with their families by having to deal with the crazy parent. This crazy parent, then, essentially, hurt the team, overall. It’s such a shame… when you hurt the coaches, you inevitably hurt the team. I hope parents who get over involved with their child’s participation on the team will go away… they are only hurting the girls, especially their own.
Actually, that's false. Carmel was 19-9 during the season last year, and 15-10 this year (losing both years to Half Moon Bay in CCS). Plus, they had the county's best pitcher pitch every inning but two for the entire league schedule this year. So last year was better than this year, and next year will continue to go in reverse as Brit will no longer be able to cover for all those girls who have fled the program.
Stick to the facts, please.
Fact Check time!
Carmel was 19-9 in 2012 which is a .474 average,
Carmel was 15-10 in 2013, which is a .666 average. Carmel played more games in 2012 and had a better record in 2013 with less games. Check!
Carmel lost in the first round of CCS in 2012 to Half Moon Bay. In 2013, they lost to Half Moon Bay in the second round. Check.
"stick to the facts, please" - Yes, please!
“Fact Checker” needs to check her facts a bit more closely. She wants to limit discussion to just MTAL statistics. Okay, let’s do that. As to fact number 1, it does not change the picture very much. Instead of leading the team in errors, this first team all league player now comes in… second place for most errors on the team in league games alone. Oops.
As to fact #2, the girl who led the team in batting average and slugging percentage had 47 at bats in league games, not 8. She was the only girl who batted over 400 on the team (all in league games), and had a slugging percentage 45 points higher than anyone else on the team, and 159 points higher than any fellow starting player (again, all in league games). And yet she was passed over by the coaches for first team all league. That’s oops #2 “fact checker.”
As to fact #3, you just made my case stronger. 5 out of 12 girls, or nearly half the team, were freshmen. Since my point was that the Carmel varsity could not have even fielded a team this year in playoffs without freshmen, you’ve underlined my point. Thank you. Oh, and that’s oops #3 for you.
Three strikes and you are out. The way these coaches are going, there won’t be anyone left playing for Carmel next year because everyone will have fled the sinking ship. Particularly when they have coaches who can’t even count, it seems, but are oh so defensive….
"Fact checker" keeps proving my point about coaching incompetence. In this case, she argues that 19-9 is a 474 winning percentage. Excuse me? Do fourth grade math properly please: a 19-9 record is a 679 winning percentage (as opposed to 600 this year). Wow.
Truth Teller. You obviously didn't see any of the games in 2012. The girls were miserable and just gave up at the end. They lost to a weak RLS team in league. They didn't lose to any weak teams in league this year and made it to the 2nd round in CCS. They lost in the 1st round last year. You're obviously a bitter parent of a kid that left the program, but here's a statement that is absolutely true. Carmel softball was fine long before you were around and will be stronger now that you are gone. Good luck to you and good riddance!
And you're missing the whole point. Trust me. The girl from Carmel that you keep pointing out is hardly the least qualified on this team. In 2012 2 coach's daughters from Carmel made all league as opposed to a Senior and team captain who clearly deserved it ahead of them. That's the point of this forum.
I agree that the point of this discussion is the bias that coaches have sometimes shown in selecting all league. That is my point in this case as well. As for the Carmel program as a whole, you are still ignoring the big picture point that so many girls have fled the program this year that the varsity could not suit up for CCS without freshmen. It is unhealthy and going in reverse. And yes, I saw many games last year and this year. Given the rec league that feeds into Carmel, CHS has the most softball talent of any team in the area, including Catalina. And yet Carmel was down to 7 (I thought 8) varsity players who are not freshmen. By my estimate, there are about 75 girls who attend CHS in grades 10-12 who played in the Majors level of rec league (and most played for multiple years). Where are they? Why have they all deserted the program THIS year? It is because the program is in steep decline under a coaching staff that doesn't know what it is doing and plays favorites among the girls.
You're accomplishing nothing here. Why don't you get your many followers together and take up your beef with Carmel's athletic director and the administration. I'm sure they will buy right into your warped logic and get rid of the coaching staff, which nobody bet you wants to see happen.
My neice plays King City softball. when they played Carmel, Carmels coach yelled bye bye every time a King City girl struck out. what kind of person does that? Carmels rich. U dont have to be mean too.
This happened when Carmel and Soledad played as well, Gonzalez had a base hit in the 5-6 hole that was fielded clean and Gonzalez beat out, but for some reason Britt was given a no-hitter. Brittany pitched great that day, no need to inflate her stats.
Come on...really? Regardless of whether King City or Soledad got a hit, Brit earned "Pitcher of the Year" honors and anybody who disputes that is crazier than Truth Teller. If Carmel "cooked the books" than why do they only have 2 players on 1st team all-league? What was their motive? This team finished 2nd in the MTAL and in the top 8 in CCS. If anything, they should have more girls on team.
Come on? Nobody is taking anything from Brittany, but their coaching integrity is in question and not coming from the south county. It's coming among your own team. Nobody said she didn't deserve "Pitcher of the Year" but that's two no-hitters that are viewed differently than your coaches. Also for the record, coaches don't vote for their own all-league players, other coaches vote, so if you are not getting the amount of players you would like, that means other coaches are not voting for your players for some reason. Santa Catalina is a good team, but are they 8 all-leaguers good? Maybe it's the way your players are playing the game that is leaving a bad impression on other coaches and maybe that's why they didn't vote for your players...
If you read the blogs, the only Carmel person that is questioning the coaching staff's integrity is an insane, parent of a player who quit. He has no support from anybody in the community and I'm sure if you knew the situation, you wouldn't support this person either. However, all I can say for King City and Soledad as a Carmel parent is I am truly sorry if you felt slighted or disrespected in any of the games against us. Neither I or anybody I know has any problem with you folks. In fact I think both of your teams play very hard and deserve a lot of respect.
Coming from someone who played before all this drama broke out. There is only one main problem here, all of you. Glen "truth teller" Robinson stop complaining. Carmel parents let your kids play ball, your taking the fun away! When I was a kid there wasn't such thing as mommy and daddy stepping in, it was, " you should work harder if you want it so bad!" All I need to leave you with is this... What the hell are you teaching these children? After high school, which is soon, these kids are going to run into bosses, professors, or people they just don't agree with, so what have you taught them to do? Sometimes life just works that way, not everything is handed to us, this is something our future adults should know!
I concur that Brit File is the best pitcher in the county this year, and certainly should be in the mix for county POY honors. More important, she is a straight-A student and a class act. Let's all just stipulate that all the girls on this list works hard, plays hard and is deserving of our respect.
All of that is true and none of it is relevant to the theme of this thread, which has to do with coaching. In the case of Carmel, the issue, at base, is integrity. The integrity comes up again and again. It comes up with the promotion of taunting and bad sportsmanship by the coaches ("BUH BYE" taunt of every opposing player who strikes out -- and the celebration of this 'tag line' by this coach in many other places). THe integrity issue comes up with agenda-driven scorekeeping, which is obviously seen by other teams in MTAL. The integrity issue comes up with all league selections, as pointed out above. The integrity issue comes up with the unprofessional treatment of some of the players.
It is the lack of integrity that helps explain why so many girls have fled the program this year, and why the varsity could not field a team by the end of the year without freshmen.
It is such an important issue in my view that I am signing with my real name.
Robinson those are great points. As far as Soledad or KC feeling disrespected, I am not from there so I wouldn't know. All-league players are representatives of your program and if coaches have problems with your program they probably won't vote for your players. Carmel had at least 3 players that should have been all-league in my opinion. RLS should've had a couple more players recognized also.
Glenn, on behalf of 99% of the Carmel Softball community, I have to thank you for all these moronic posts. We've all known about your insanity for years, but you're so crazy that your never ending string of pointless emails are hard to describe to people. Now you and your multiple personalities that you've created on here have accomplished nothing other than to expose yourself and unfortunately the rest of us in Carmel as idiots. Listen people, this clown got fired from doing the book at Carmel High School, because he doesn't know how to keep stats, which anybody involved in the rec league already knew for years. He's not necessarily dishonest, he just has the softball IQ of a telephone pole. Glenn, thank you for all your concern. If you really want to help this program, you will go away and we will celebrate your departure. Buh Bye!!!!
Once again, those handful of folks who have made Carmel softball so toxic have no regard for actual facts. For the record, I have never kept official book for Carmel varsity, Carmel JV or Carmel rec. In fact, I have never kept official book for any team, ever. I do enjoy keeping my own private scoring, which is a fun way to watch a game.
But let's not let facts get in the way of a good story!
Glenn sounds like the typical parent who thinks their daughter has more talent than she actually does and deserves to play just because she's on the team. A good coach knows talent and will play his best players - based not only on talent but also those that have a positive attitude and healthy sportsmanship! Disgruntled parents are toxic to team sports and serve no purpose! To attack the integrity of players and the coaching staff is both immature and unfortunate.
This has been an interesting education for all non-Carmel folks to understand why Carmel softball has been so toxic for so many years (long before the Robinsons were at CHS softball!). I have raised a number of factual issues that go to the integrity of the program -- such as poor sportsmanship by the coaches (e.g., 'buh bye' taunt). Not one of my comments had anything to do with my own daughter, who saw through her commitment to finish the regular season before needing to study for an AP test the day after the first CCS game.
The response by a handful of Carmel people was to engage in personal character attacks against me, as opposed to engaging the factual issues that were raised. That, in a nutshell, perfectly describes why Carmel softball has developed a very wide reputation of being dysfunctional and mean spirited.
I encourage those folks who think character assassination is an acceptable example to set for their daughters to begin engaging in the serious issues that go way beyond one person or one year at Carmel. The program cannot be righted until there is a broader recognition that there are series problems at issue.
Glenn, you do such a good job of assassinating your own character that we don't even need to go there. You're a perfect example of what a parent of a high school athlete should not be. You have no power to dictate playing time for your daughter or anybody else. We have coaches that have 10,000 times more knowledge of the game than you do who's job it is to make that decision. An athlete earns a spot by working hard, being supportive of the team and it's goals and respecting the coaching staff and his/her teammates. You're arrogance is such that you think you can dictate how everybody should react to your insane rants. Unfortunately for you, to be a dictator you have to either have a large group of people fear you or respect you. People here don't fear you and they don't respect you. Carmel softball was founded by wonderful people who gave and continue to give thousands of hours of free time to make the best rec league in the county that fuels a program that has consistently won a lot of games and help create successful young women. Do what you will Glenn. You have no power to change a thing.
While I find it ironic that a PG parent pretends to speak for Carmel softball, the response simply reaffirms my point: where is the concern over taunting by coaches? In his venom, has he even considered the implication of this for the integrity of the game? for the character-building of the players entrusted to this coach? The fact that this issue is raised by both those inside Carmel, and by folks from other MTAL teams shows it is a real problem. Simply ignoring it, as Moron and a few of his friends, have done, shows the depth of the problem.
Also, the very coach responsible for taunting other teams has also posted on this thread under a pseudonym. Did anyone notice any remorse for her behavior, any hint of recognition that this is inappropriate? Of course not. In fact, she celebrates her "buh bye" taunting all over the internet. And she does it with the same handful of Carmel folks who are on this thread who presented her with a "buh bye" shirt that she promotes often. Is there no shame?
The same story goes for the other factual issues raised in this thread, including 'cooking the books' statistically -- something also noticed by other high schools. Any hint of outrage by this little gang? Any questioning that this might not be appropriate behavior? Not a peep, of course. They are so consumed by venom at anyone who does not heed their 'party line' that they cannot see straight. Or in this case, they cannot even acknowledge the mere possibility of some serious problems.
That tells me that the program will not heal anytime soon, and this same discussion will go on in the future, but with different names attached.
Wow, careful Glenn. I'm not from PG and I'm not a "he." If you keep dropping names, you might be hearing from attorneys or the people themselves, Either way I don't envy you. The ironic thing is that the PG parent I believe you are referring to, along with many (much more than a handful) of people who dealt with you in the rec league warned me not to post on here, because it would just fuel a never ending string of pointless posts. I guess I did it for no other reason than I'm a bored housewife and had nothing better to do. I'm now embarrassed to be a part of this, but it's too late. I apologize to all of the girls and parents that have the misfortune of reading this. Parental involvement has gotten so over the top it's crazy. These coaches spend hours and hours down there for almost no pay and have to deal with parents who are trying to live through their daughters. It's very sad and it doesn't help these girls. Like the former player said, this time will be over soon and the real world will be here. Let these girls learn the life lessons that sports have to offer. The other ironic thing is you, Glenn, keep attacking people and then claim that your are being attacked when people don't put up with it. Shame on you. It's not fair to the coaches or the kids, including your daughter. Your daughter is a good player and a good kid. let her earn her own way. You're not a coach, teacher, administrator or anybody who has any power over Carmel's program. You're just a parent like the rest of us, so please try to be part of the solution instead of part of the problem.
There is a reasonably simple solution to this perceived problem: If the Robinson's beleive Carmel's program is so toxic, they are free to transfer to Stevenson, Santa Catalina or Notre Dame's softball program. I'm sure the coaching staffs and parents there would be THRILLED to have them critique, complain and meddle in their programs. Carmel gains relief from overzealous parental interference and can spend their time focusing on the girls, which is what it's all about. And these discussions will not carry into the future with different names once "Truth Teller" is gone. Everyone wins.
Despite my requests, a small handful of people (or maybe one person with several pseudonyms?) keeps ignoring my requests to engage in a discussion of the merits of the issues and insist on engaging in character assassination instead. It is a classic case of shooting the messenger.
I am not sure why Moron brings up my own coaching in rec ball, but certainly she/he knows I coached for many years (12 to be exact, including 4 as manager). I never once taunted an opposing player, nor would I allow my players to engage in bad sportsmanship. Carmel High coaches do – does this bother you? It bothers me.
I did not keep my own book nor engage in agenda-driven scorekeeping. In fact, I used “the best score keeper in the county” according to Mike Odello – something he got right. And my three daughters combined made all stars two years in those 12 years, so not exactly playing favorites among the players. Carmel high coaches have cooked the books (and this can be proved, not speculated) and made an all league selection that makes no sense, while ignoring a very deserving girl – does this bother you? It bothers me.
So yes, I’ve coached softball for years, as well as coaching basketball for awhile. So I’m not some armchair quarterback who is spitting venom from the cheap seats, like some folks on this board. I’ve also been active in my community in many ways, including serving on many boards of directors. So yes, I’ve always been ‘part of the solution’. But a big part of finding solutions is to first acknowledge there are problems. Until some folks get their heads out of the sand and recognize, e.g., taunting the other team is not acceptable, then things won’t change. So be part of the solution by recognizing the patient is ill.
The issues I have detailed have nothing to do with my daughter, so please (again) deal with the actual facts/issues that have been laid out, not those in your imagination. A CHS coach taunting players from other teams who strike out does not involve my daughter. Claiming no-hitters that don't exist (and many, many other statistical lies) does not involve my daughter.
And no one has yet tried to argue a plausible reason why so many girls have left the program this year such that the varsity could not field a team without using freshmen by the end of the year. That is not a healthy sign of any high school activity. The obvious reason -- the program is in bad shape and going backwards -- seems to get ignored, with one person blaming a coach from last year for all the girls leaving this year. Really? Boy, that's logical.
Anyway, in the absence of folks who want to discuss actual issues instead of personal attacks, I'm only repeating my pleas to deal with reality instead of shooting the messenger. Denial is more than just a river in Egypt.
The “truth is” that the problems at CHS Softball have been brewing for only a few years. This all began a couple years back when the coaches decided not to return due to some conflicts with Administration. During the hiring process, a man of tremendous integrity, who is honest, hardworking, inspirational , and who ran CHS Softball successfully for many years was not rehired. This past coach, as well as the coaches that worked with him, had a positive influence in the lives of many CHS softball girls and, to this day, are looked up to. They not only taught the game of softball, more importantly, they taught the girls respect, teamwork, and unity. It’s Only been a few short years since the program was thriving and the girls and coaches were one big family. If you want to look at stats, these are the years to look at! Ask anyone who played under the auspices of these men and I am confident that they will say nothing but great things. Yet, the administration chose not to rehire the very man that headed this program for so many successful years. Instead they hired someone who was not asked to return the very year he started. So, who is to blame here? It’s starts at the top and this is where you need to go with any complaints you have. You begin with the School Board, the Superintendant, the Principal, and the Athletic Director, as they are the ones making these asinine decisions!
I am deeply saddened by what has happened with the Carmel High School Softball. Unfortunately, until the Administration changes and backs whoever is coaching, nothing good will happen. You all need to stop the drama and start putting effort into opening the eyes of the Administration and the people making the hiring decisions. And for your Mr. Robinson, “Do you always insist in getting in the last word?” Seems that way to me and I don’t even know you.
Nodrama. Thank you. That is very well put and absolutely the truth. Back to the original point of this discussion, The Gabilan Division did a wonderful job in picking their 1st team all-leaguers. The MTAL coaches and whoever runs the meeting should take notice.
Glen Robinson...get a grip. Your one of the BIG problems at Carmel. It's time for you to move on just like it was time for last years coach to move on. Last year was a disaster for many girls on the team and absolutely inexcusable about stats being changed for the benefit of the coaches daughter. So what do you a Think of that??? Shocked??? Well it happened and it continues to happen so all you softball parents beware.. honesty and integrity is NOT at every school. Very sad and sicking but most of all heartbreaking for a lot of deserving hard working girls. Now to all of you hardworking honest coaches.... you are deeply valued and appreciated.
Wow, this ridiculousness made it all the way into the Carmel Pine Cone. Unfortunately, the article isn't quite The Truth. It's wonderful that Mr. Robinson is so concerned about the kids in our community, however when The Truth is revealed, you may find that our girl's well being is not his main concern. Mr. Robinson has been using partial truths in a weak attempt to get a coaching staff ousted, so The Truth must be told. The only agenda here is to educate the precious few of you who even care. The Truth encourages you check this out for yourself.
1) Glenn keeps pointing out that 5 kids left the program and many others didn't come out at all. This is true. However, he neglects to inform everybody that the girls who didn't come out equate softball with drama due to the unfortunate decision to not hire the most deserving coaching staff a year ago. He also neglects to inform you that of the 5 girls who left the team, only 1 of them was a starter. She was asked to leave the team due to attitude issues. The other girls quit due to lack of playing time. Each departure improved the team's chemistry. Carmel's JV team was by far the best team in the MTAL and there were plenty of players to replace them.
2) Mr. Robinson seems to have a real problem with 1 of Carmel's All-League selections. He also is really upset that another player didn't make it. Why doesn't he push the point that Carmel deserved to have more than 2 players make the team instead of continually pointing out who did? Is it because he's unhappy that the All - Leaguer is the starting 1st baseman and Mr. Robinson thinks somebody else should be? Mr. Robinson keeps accusing Carmel of using "agenda driven score keeping." What is the agenda? The Truth is Carmel got 2 girls on the team and neither of them needed votes. If Carmel was "cooking the books" wouldn't they have used inflated stats to get more girls on the team? Or is Mr. Robinson accusing them of misusing stats to put the wrong person at 1st base? The Truth is that the girl who made 1st team all league has long been one of the best athletes in Carmel and any capable coach would be happy to have her play that position. According to Mr. Robinson, he has never kept an official book, but apparently he or "the best score keeper in the county" is expert enough to dictate to the coaching staff who should be starting. The Truth is that "the best score keeper in the county" was banned from keeping score at Carmel High School when he/she was putting erroneous stats into maxpreps and tried to lock the coaching staff out! The Truth also is that Mr. Robinson's teams in the rec league consistently had batting averages that were 100 to 200 points higher than everybody else's teams. The Truth maybe that he is a far superior hitting coach than everybody else, but if you care to ask anybody who coached or was on the Carmel rec board over the last ten years, you will be shocked to find that Mr. Robinson constantly peppered the board with emails about how the league should be run and "cooked his own books." However, The Truth could be that "the best score keeper in the county" simply didn't know what he/she was doing.
3) The Truth agrees that players shouldn't be taunted and saying "buh bye" when an opposing player strikes out is not good sportsmanship. However, only 1 of the 3 coaches did this. Why not just ask the 1 who did to stop? The Truth is she's a very talented young coach that offers a lot to the program. Maybe she got excited over the success of her pitcher. Why replace a whole staff who had so much success when the easy fix is refraining from making the comment.
4) The Pine Cone mentions an email they got from Mr. Robinson suggesting the Athletic Director take over the program for a year, while a 3rd party panel look into the problems. The Truth is if that is what the community wants, than it's not a bad idea. However, if that's what Mr. Robinson alone wants, who cares? Why is his suggestion of any importance whatsoever. He's simply a wannabe politician without any support.
5) Mr. Robinson is actively trying to assasinate the character of Carmel's coaching staff and then whines when people point fingers at him. That sounds like most wannabe bullies.
6) In conclusion, I ask any of you who care to ask yourself a simple question: Does Mr. Robinson want to replace the coaching staff because he cares about the girls of this community? or does Mr. Robinson want to replace the coaching staff for selfish reason?
The only agenda here is that The Truth be told, because, as Sophocles said, "The Truth is always the strongest arguement." and as Michael Levy said, "You can bend it and twist it. You can misuse it and abuse it, but even God cannot change the Truth."
Again, for the few of you who care, please check The Truth out for yourself and if after you do, you support what Mr. Robinson is trying to accomplish, than that is your right. Because this is the U. S. of A. and you can support whatever and whoever you'd like and you also have the right to stand up to tyrants, dictators and corrupt politicians. Sorry about being over dramatic, but this whole thing has become that much of a joke, so why not layer it on?
(1 of 2) “Truth” rightfully advises his readers (both of them) to dismiss his long, fictional post as “a joke,” “over dramatic,” and “layering it on.” Sound advice. And such venom! A rattlesnake would be envious. Seems his rage has been building for years; perhaps time for anger management counseling? And “Truth” still insists on hurling his personal attacks behind a veil of anonymity. Clearly he does not have the courage of his convictions. Such a coward.
Hidden deep inside his long rant, “Truth” acknowledges the truth of my assertions. First, he notes that a coach taunting “buh bye” at opposing players who strike out is bad sportsmanship. Correct, but the fix turned out to be not so easy. Parents and opponents complained, but guess what? Ms. Ferrante bragged on social media near the end of the season how she continued to taunt “buh bye” after every strike out. Moreover, she celebrates this taunt all over the place, from wearing a shirt with this taunt emblazoned across it, to featuring it on-line. In fact, she just took it down last week from her twitter page as this blog heated up – trying to hide something? Clearly, this is not a coach that has internalized the lesson that taunting other players and then celebrating it is not good sportsmanship. This is the same coach that berated her team after a loss at PG for being overly friendly with players from the opposing team immediately following the game. Really? Is this what we aim for at Carmel, to compete in the sewer?
Second, “Truth” acknowledges that ‘cooking the books’ would be wrong, but misunderstands my point. Numbers were not consistently inflated for all players across the board but were either consistently inflated or deflated for a small handful of players, depending on whether Ms. Ferrante favored them or not. I will not go into those details in public, but the head coach was made aware of this pattern as early as March 30, and several times since then. The administration also now has those details. That is agenda-driven scorekeeping.
I suspect MTAL Fan is correct when he suggests that the small number of all league selections for Carmel was in part based on Carmel softball’s reputation for a program in chaos. The question remains: why was Carmel’s best hitter (both AVG and SLG) passed over for first team all league, while another girl who led the team in errors and had only average batting statistics made first team all league? All league is supposed to be based on actual performance, not other criteria like past reputation or place of employment for a coach. Listen, I’ve coached virtually every player on the varsity squad and think they are all terrific kids, but that is not the point here.
(2 of 2) Fourth, “Truth” continues to blame last year’s coach for this year’s problems. Not so logical. Of the five varsity players who left during the season, two were full time starters and one a part time starter. All five will tell you that the program was just no fun under the current coaching staff, as will several other players who stayed with it and likely will not be back next year. So the school that has the most softball talent in the area (because of the rec league) will continue to draw from a shrinking pool of girls as everyone else flees to healthier extra-curricular activities.
Carmel’s softball problems certainly pre-date me as this is the first year my daughter played varsity, so simply attacking me for speaking out (and having the integrity to use my real name doing so) might make you feel better but it is completely illogical. The fact that Carmel’s program has earned this reputation around the league also tells us that these problems run very deep. Four or five years ago one or more of Carmel softball coaches was nearly fired for yelling profanities in the face of a player during a game and then lying about it to school officials (read the CHS report – it is a public document). Two years later the head coach was fired for cause. Then last year’s coach lasted one year without being renewed (mostly because of pressure put on administrators by the same handful of families that passionately objected to his being hired in the first place – two more public documents from CHS on this episode). And now we have this year’s disaster, with the program taking two giant steps backwards, not forward. Girls vote with their feet, and the verdict is in.
When the Pine Cone contacted me I provided a solution, a way forward to correcting this mess. “Truth” seems to like the proposed solution, even through clenched teeth. So let us all encourage CHS to move forward in such a way to as to restore health and vitality to a very troubled program.
And to all of you (both of you?), I give you greetings from OKC and the WCWS. I’ve used up most of my lunch hour writing this, so back to work now.
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