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Monday, June 16, 2008
A note from Raymond
As published on TexasSports.com
What’s up Longhorn fans,
It’s Raymond Harris and I wanted to check in with you from the NCAA Championships and give you an update on how things are going, but first, let me tell you a little bit about myself. I’m a junior high jumper from Nacogdoches, which is a small, small town, and I came to Texas because of the environment and a guy named Andra Manson. The environment was good and I got a chance to meet Andra, who is one of the best jumpers in the world, and I wanted to be just like him. I wanted to train with him and learn under the coaches.
I actually got into the high jump through basketball instead of track. I ran track but I didn’t do any jumps. I was playing basketball one day and the coach came over. I told him to watch me dunk and that is when he asked me if I ever thought about doing the high jump. It was right before my junior year. I started out jumping 6-9 and ended up winning state that year, so I thought I might have a future in this. And now, I’m at the NCAA Championships.
We got to Iowa on Sunday, checked into the hotel and got settled in for the week. But, on Monday, Donovan and I were laying down in our room and we got a text that said we had to go. We thought it was a joke, but we got like three or four more texts after that, so we figured it wasn’t a joke. Our first hotel was right by the river and with all the rain they’ve had, they thought the river might overflow and make it hard to cross to get to the stadium, so we switched hotels to one away from the river. It caught us a little off guard, but it is better since we don’t have to worry about a flood and now we can just focus on the meet.
I actually competed last night in the qualifiers and was lucky enough to make it to the finals, which are on Friday. I was a little nervous going into it. It is my first national meet, but I get a little nervous before every meet. I was pretty confident though. I was coming off a 2.22 jump (7-3.25) at regionals, so I felt pretty good. The experience was good. I got a little overconfident but I think I’ve matured a little bit and was able to bring it back and focus on getting over the bars, and now I’m in the finals.
There are some great competitors at this meet and it is going to be tough, but I think it will bring out the best in all of the guys. I can’t wait for tomorrow. It’s the finals of my first national meet, so I’m going to have a lot of fun with it.
Thanks for all the support of me and the rest of the team. I was told that some of the events will be on TV this weekend, so check it out, and hopefully, we’ll give you some good performances to watch.
Hook ‘Em, Raymond
Raymond placed 8th overall at the championship finals in Iowa with a jump of 7 1/4
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Alto pitcher drafted by Cubs
In an article by the Daily Progress, Tarlandus Mitchell signed a contract for the Chicago Cubs after deciding not to pursue his football career at Navarro College.
“I’ve done it, I signed and I am very happy,” Mitchell said. “I talked it over with my (Kimberly Mitchell) and the rest of the family. We all decided this was the best for me. to take the offer and not play football at Navarro.”
The senior pitcher had an 8-0 record as he led Alto to a 21-5 record and berth in the regional Class A playoffs. He had 115 strikeouts in 42 innings and threw a no-hitter in postseason play.
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Dempsey and U.S. score big in World Cup qual opener
United States’ Clint Dempsey is congratulated towards the end of the team’s World Cup qualifier soccer match against Barbados Sunday, June 15, 2008, in Carson, Calif. The U.S. won 8-0. (AP Photo/Ric Francis)
The U.S. defeated Barbados 8-0 in Sunday’s World Cup qualifying opener. The game started with Dempsey scoring in the first 53 seconds of play.
In a quote from an article by the Associated Press Clint states “We’re not going to say we’re going to go out and win the World Cup after playing Barbados.Nothing against them. They came out and tried hard, but we’re supposed to win these types of games decisively.”
Dempsey and Brian Ching scored two goals each. Landon Donovan, Michael Bradley and Eddie Johnson also each had one. The margin of victory was the highest in the 92-year-history of the U.S. team, and it was only the second time the Americans had as many as eight goals in a game.
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