Castro, 38, Setting Up for Shot at Olympics in Beach Volleyball

Gail Castro has joked about playing in the Atlanta Olympics, but at age 38 she figured her chances in a grueling sport such as beach volleyball were not as good as someone younger.

But after two days of competing in the U.S. Olympic beach volleyball trials in Baltimore, Castro, a graduate of Crescenta Valley High and Valley College, is in the final four today.

That’s two victories away from being an Olympian.

“I never expected to get this far,” Castro said. “I figured I’ll go to Baltimore and stay a couple of days and maybe longer if I make it.”

Castro and partner Deb Richardson reached the final four by upsetting Liz Masakayan and Angela Rock, 16-14, Wednesday afternoon.

“I was more nervous and jittery after the match, when I realized what we had done,” Castro said. “We’re just out here to play and have a good time.”

Castro has won three pro beach tournament titles and reached the final of 18 others in her 10-year career.

An Olympic appearance would be a great finale.

“It would be totally exciting,” Castro said. “I would have done everything in life I’ve ever wanted to do.”

Another longshot: Dennie Knoop, a resident of Topanga Canyon, also reached the final four in Baltimore.

Knoop, 40, and partner Elaine Roque, 36, have never won a tournament together and Knoop is the only player in the final four who did not play college volleyball.

Knoop and Roque will meet Janice Harrer and Gayle Stammer today. Castro-Richardson will play Barbra Fontana and Linda Hanley, and the winners will meet in the afternoon. The losers are off till Saturday in the double-elimination tournament, which concludes Sunday.

Waterworld: After doing virtually no other sports but swimming since she was 4 years old, Heather Strong is preparing to play in the fall on Pierce College’s first women’s water polo team.

And she’s loving it.

Strong, an All-American swimmer for the Brahmas and a former standout at Louisville High, is learning to play water polo with members of the Pierce men’s team.

“It’s a lot more fun than swimming,” Strong said. “All you look at when you are swimming is the bottom of the pool. [Water polo] is a contact sport and a team sport, and I’ve never done a team sport before.”

Strong sees a long road ahead for the Pierce women’s team.

“We are all new and none of us have any experience,” she said. “The coaches have a lot of challenges ahead of them.”

Quotebook

“In your face!”

--Pro beach volleyball player Gail Castro’s message to the reporters and players who wrote her off because at age 38 they considered her too old.

“Just another reason why I’m not going to miss the men in blue.”

-- Retiring Granada Hills High baseball Coach Darryl Stroh, after disputing an umpire’s call in the Highlanders’ loss to El Camino Real in a City Section 4-A Division quarterfinal.

Stats

Cal State Northridge’s streak of producing NCAA Division I track and field All-Americans ended last week in the national championships in Eugene, Ore., when Beth Burton placed 19th in the women’s shotput.

Before that, a Matador athlete had earned All-American honors each year since the school moved to Division I in the fall of 1990.

Darcy Arreola won the women’s 1,500 meters for Northridge in the 1991 NCAA championships and Garrett Noel placed eighth in the men’s javelin in ’92 and ninth in ’93.

Kristin Dunn followed Noel with third- and sixth-place finishes in the women’s javelin in 1994 and ’95.

The top eight finishers in each event with U.S. citizenship are recognized as All-Americans.

Things to Do

The Ventura County boys’ and girls’ high school all-star basketball games will be played today at Ventura High. The girls will tip off at 6:30 p.m. and the boys at 8.

The Ventura County all-stars will play volleyball matches tonight at Moorpark College. The girls’ match will begin at 7 and the boys’ at 8.

Contributing: Fernando Dominguez, Irene Garcia, Michael Lazarus, John Ortega.