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Show Thursday, April 12, 2007 Page 8 OREM TIMES ( ) V -,l i ' r ') I' O H T S , PEOPLE AND OUTDOOR FUN First toy mamert m eye-opeoneir for Yoy og One weekend with the racquet was enough for Orem star to find his calling Russ Lyman Sonici inn s j - li - s'inl mol ol t h !! h i's trying In I iijj mil v.h.il linn gills I hi i )i i iii High's A I Young il milv look our ten IMS I f ll II M.IMH-lll V'T1 "i " . 1 1 1 1 w.is 'J i-;ir . old i -til ' i i-d I he 1 1 1 1 -1 iii'iunl. mi I i-niils Assn-i Assn-i l.il inn's Sll'iw lull I mil lia- iiii-iiI in S.ih I . i k ( il v Alli-r ili 1 . 1 1 1 1 1 j. . tin ' 1 ;ind Ni -i si i lis mi Ins w.iv In 1)1 mglllg hniur III"- 111 I"- iii 'In- liisl tennis ten-nis tnui ii.ini' lil 11"- had ever iil i t " 'i Young ligurril hill, hi-ll, nl pull I:! l.il I li.il kind ul shnwcd Die thai I mild U'i siiitH'wIicrc in this . j i t I in -aid "I've had a lot nl sin i i -s so I ai and liiH-llll It ki i )S going." Sa 1 1 1 l; In- has had a lot ol an i i-ss is iiill nig it niildlv tin tin- ili-l'-mling I A stall-( stall-( lianiHiiii in 'o I singles In addit ion In mull Ipli- stale ' haiililniishiis die also w nil in n I dniililes as a 1 n slim. in i. Young v as also ! anki-d Nn I in i he i i-gn m Inl his ;igr gi imp h t he I S I A I he nil ei nn unit am region II" ludes Nevada. ( nl nl ,nli . V inning New 1e.l- i n, Mnlil ana and Idaho Alter aging out ol his .igc group. Young's l .inking di npped to No .'. in I he region Young s smiles i liampion-ship liampion-ship last eai eame in a great mail h against I imp n.-vv's Jason Ja-son Johnson, who m i cut Iv plays loi I'.YI I h- was one ol my liesl I I lends and w e pi art iced log el hei a win le lot II was a gieal match," Young said. "I Irs a gi (sit kid and great player, hut I just played my lies! and ame out on lop." Don't be taken in by these types of hearing aid offers. Our Promise: Utah's Best Hearing Value! Rebecca Johnson, DryCreek F.iimlv l'liii lit i' Ceatf!ea Family "JCC.AO'tA Nurse Practitioner OO'Ha 14 I 3300 N. Running Creek Most insurance Plans Accepted Peace W2Q Let Us Insure Your Health and Life Insurance 7K V t a Now tliru t.l"lil.llli1Mlrli''l!l'ilMilhltliil All of the success on the court has led to Young signing sign-ing a letter of intent to join Johnson at BYU next year. "It's always been a goal of mine to play tennis at a Division Divi-sion I school," Young said. " I hey were the first to offer me and I jumped on it to get the pressure off my back. It's a big relief to know where I'm going and I'm pretty excited." ex-cited." Although Young realized early on that he could do great things on the tennis court, that doesn't mean that he hasn't worked hard to achieve the success he's enjoyed. In addition to the hard work, his success has also come alter significant sacrifices. sacri-fices. "I used to play a lot of soccer soc-cer and baseball until I was lilt was a crucial point in my life to decide what sport I was going to do and follow up wit h it." Young said. "I think it's worked out really well." A.J. isn't the only member of his family who has made sacrifices. His father, Craig Young, who doubles as ( (rein's tennis coach, and the rest of his family have also gone through a great deal. ( i aig, who works in Salt l ake, has often commuted to and from Salt Like for work, then had to return to Salt Lake with A J. for some coaching or practice time up north. "Although there are some quality local players, in order to be around a lot of good players, you have to spend some time outside of Utah County," Craig said. "The only real sacrifice is financially, finan-cially, but the real benefit is the amount of time we can spend together and the time www.coygarie.com Ge Paid tfp'j'ay " the Dnn Cranes Dozers loaders VA Approved Backhoes Excavators 3 V rl J c JKIU iicctt RN, MSN Now Accepting New Patients 1 'c-t way of Mind with I If ;u --r I f 3M1IM0EEB A M O 1 .il April 21st! A.J. Young of Orem returns the hall during a match in 2005. Young has won one state singles title a favorite to repeat as the 4A champion. The senior has already signed a letter-of-intent to play that he can spend doing constructive con-structive things. The benefits far outweigh that small sacrifice." sac-rifice." In addition to the constant trips to Salt Lake, the family has also financed trips to several sev-eral national events. Not only has his family funded his tennis career, but A.J.'s father and brothers broth-ers have also played a major role in his progression as a player. "He had two older brothers broth-ers who started at the same time as he did and I think it was a big benefit to A.J. to watch them play and hear the talk about the game," Craig said. "He understood a lot about the game before he T'Wolves Neil K. Warner lAHYHfHAlD What more could Nash Fowler do? He pitched a complete-game two-hitter at Spanish Fork. He walked just two batters. He struck out four and gave up just one unearned run. But those who think Fowler had done all he could do don't know Fowler very well. The senior pitcheroutfielder always seems to make something some-thing happen. wm fulfill uiiliiiHM-' 9w a'ffi- van : ia . . . it . , . I - r3 DEIVALT STEEL CUTTER 14" Multi-Cut Saw f .lite iv c factor J Burr-Fran Puts i Easy Mitre Cutting METALmart Call 181 South 1200 East Lehl OO-OOJZ WAMTEP WATER, WELL RIGHTS & IRRIGATION. Call Ross at 642-0119 really even started playing." A.J.'s relationship with his brothers was highlighted by winning the 5A state championship cham-pionship in No. 1 doubles as a freshman with his brother Colby as his partner. A.J. also feels he has benefited ben-efited from having his dad as his coach. "It's really relaxing, he knows exactly how to coach me and what and how to tell me. He gets the point across exactly how it needs to get across," A.J. said. "It's a lot easier than having another person be my coach." When coach Young was asked about his son's strengths, he responded: "A.J.'s biggest strengths are edge Dons In the top of the seventh, Fowler reached first base, stole second and scored the winning run as Timpanogos opened Region Re-gion 4 play with a 2-1 win over Spanish Fork. "It feels good to start off with a win. All around, I thought we played good and I had some good defense behind me," Fowler said. "I wanted to get a hit, but I'll take it anyway I can to get on base." With the game tied at 1-1, Fowler was hoping to lead off the seventh inning with a hit. Instead, he was hit by a pitch, then stole second. Jordan Cooper Coo-per then tried to bunt Fowler over to third, but his bunt down the third-base line was so good that he beat it out. Robbie Carter, who was the only player on either team with two hits, did his job by hitting the ball to the right side of the infield. in-field. He fisted a ground ball that Spanish Fork second basemen Tyler Hanks dove and knocked down, but Fowler scored and both runners were safe. Spanish Fork starter Adam Duke, a freshman, battled back to get out of the inning without further damage, but Fowler retired the Dons in order in the bottom of the seventh. He fanned Gentry Mitchell, got John Wessel to hit w Carbide Blade 14" -70 Tooth Blade Included (Save $30.00) than 3hncno X 14" - 70 Tooth ( ' ) Carbide Blade $129.95 Todcyl Expires 3307 or befor that he's left handed, so the ball's spinning in the opposite direction of what kids are used to. He's also always had great mental ability and composure on the court. He's intense but never really gets angry." When asked about possible weaknesses, both father and son chose not to respond, citing that they didn't want opponents to find out about them. And so far, it appears not many have. A.J. returns this year as the favorite to win the 4A title in No. 1 singles and is one of the top tennis players in the state. Although most of the competition he faces fails to provide much of ASHLEY FRANSCELLNorth County Timpanogos' Grant Jimenez, right takes off pom second base as Spanish Fork's Rhett Neilsen protects third on Tuesday. a come-backer and finished off the Dons by getting Michael Hayes to fly out to center field. "A cold day like this makes it a pitcher's-type day. Both pitchers threw really well," said Timpanogos coach Kim Nelson. "Last year we lost so many of these kind of games, so this is big. It's one game, but it's big for us because it gives us a little more of the idea that we belong with the best teams." Spanish Fork had a chance for a big inning in the second when Brock Duke led off with a single and Jason Binks reached base on an error. The Dons tried to move the runners METAL BUILDING El bamnorr 801-367-4437 435-623-4606 Licensed l!M Spring Ahead to the Habitat for Humanitv Restore! OUTLET PRICES on P ' Mom It llcori Rullrllnn Matorlalc( ( Cabinets, countertops, lighting, . doors, windows. & much more! v Stop hibernating and spruce up your home for Spring! ? Habitat for Humanity- JJI9 South 1680 West, Orem PnQtrO 801344 6S27www.hfhuc.org IIiJL1i)I (Call for directions and hours) FILENorth County and one title in doubles and is tennis at BYU. a challenge, A.J. still finds a way to challenge himself. "My objective every match is to play the best that I can," he said. "That will give me the best opportunity to win all the matches I can, no matter mat-ter the competition." A.J.'s attitude of doing the best he can applies outside of tennis as well. Although the sport is a big part of his life, Young still finds the time to be a successful student and to serve his peers as a tutor at Orem High School. He also finds a way to befriend the younger kids he meets. "He really is a good kid," said his father. And a really good tennis player. into scoring position with a bunt from Rhett Nielsen, but Fowler made an athletic play on Nielsen's bunt and fired to third to get the lead runner. Fowler then struck out Mitchell, but walked Wessel to load the bases. Hayes reached base on an error to get the Dons on the board. Timpanogos came back to tie the game in the fourth when Christian Stewart led off the fourth inning with a walk. Stewart went to second on a ground out from Rhett Nelson and scored when Grant See T'WOLVES, Page 9 CT0RS Insured f ! |