Several Orange County Athletes to Compete in Pan Am Games
Volleyball player Misty May, swimmers Aaron Peirsol and Kaitlin Sandeno and diver Erica Sorgi and her coach, Hongping Li, are among the many Orange County athletes in Winnipeg, Canada, for the Pan American Games, which begin today and continue through Aug. 8.
May, a graduate of Newport Harbor High, was named college volleyball player of the year for the second time this spring after leading Long Beach State to a 36-0 season. She was also winner of the 1998-99 Honda Broderick Cup, awarded to the nation’s outstanding female collegiate athlete.
Last March, Peirsol, who will be a junior at Newport Harbor this fall, finished third in the 200-meter backstroke in at the national swimming championships at East Meadow, N.Y. With a time of 1 minute 59.88 seconds, he became the youngest American, at 15, to break two minutes in the event.
Kaitlin, who will be a junior at El Toro High, won the women’s 1,500 freestyle at the Janet Evans Invitational last week in a meet record 16:28.52. She also won the women’s 800 freestyle at the same meet.
Sorgi, who will be a senior at Capistrano Valley, won her fourth national championship in the women’s three-meter springboard final in April at the U.S. Spring National Diving Championships in Orlando, Fla. She trains with the Mission Viejo Nadadores, whose divers are coached by Li.
Among other athletes with county connections expected to compete in the Pan Am Games:
Jeanette Antolin (Marina HS/Cal State Fullerton), gymnastics; Gavin Arroyo (Villa Park HS), men’s water polo; Johnny Bairos (Anaheim), cycling; Ryan Bailey (UC Irvine), men’s water polo; Terry Bankey (Yorba Linda), women’s shooting; Lily Chen (Orange), women’s badminton; Julie Brandt-Glass (Cypress), speed roller skating; Todd Brehe (Newport Beach), judo; Jennifer Brundage (Irvine HS), women’s softball; Carrie Butler (Dana Point), sailing; Dan Califf (Orange HS), men’s soccer; Denise Curry (Aliso Viejo/Cal State Fullerton), assistant women’s basketball coach; Akira Fukuda (Huntington Beach), karate; Gabe Gardner (San Clemente HS), men’s volleyball;
Tennelle Grijalva (Orange), women’s bowling; Dan Hackett (Irvine HS), men’s water polo; Lori Harrigan (Magnolia HS), softball; Cara Heads (Newport Harbor HS), women’s weightlifting; Chris Oeding (Corona del Mar HS), men’s water polo; Bernice Orwig (Savannah HS/Cypress College), women’s water polo; Joe Pastorello (Katella HS), boxing; Jeremy Pope (Golden West College), men’s water polo; Staciana Stitts (Irvine Novaquatics), women’s swimming; Boyd Sutton (Huntington Beach), roller hockey; Julie Swail (Valencia HS), women’s water polo; Jim Terrell (Santa Ana Heights), canoe/kayak; John Vargas (Corona del Mar HS), men’s water polo coach; Steve West (Huntington Beach), men’s swimming; Scott Williams (Orange), men’s field hockey.