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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, June 29, 2007

Vercruyssen repeats as trampoline champ

 •  With racket in hand, she's 7 going on 17

Advertiser Staff

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Nani Vercruyssen

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Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Mitchell Garcia

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Roosevelt High School student Nani Vercruyssen defended her title in the double mini-trampoline at the United States Trampoline and Tumbling Championships Saturday in Memphis, Tenn.

Vercruyssen was first in the women's junior elite division with 135.40 points, 14 better than runner-up Sarah Gandy of Texas. Vercruyssen, who will be a sophomore in the fall, was second in the trampoline with 90.40 points. Dakota Earnest of Texas was first with 91.00.

Matt Moniz, a freshman at Leeward Community College, was fourth in the men's senior elite double mini-trampoline with 141.20 points. Kalon Ludvigson of Texas was first with 146.30.

Spencer Dupio, a junior-to-be at Roosevelt, fractured the fifth metatarsal in his right foot during warmups and wasn't able to compete. Spencer Madanay and Kelsen Onigama were fourth in the boys junior synchronized trampoline. In the junior trampoline, Onigama, who will be in the seventh grade at Kalakaua Middle School, was 13th and Madanay was 14th. Madanay, who will be a freshman at Punahou, was 12th in the junior double mini-trampoline.

All athletes compete for Hawai'i Academy. Other athletes from Hawai'i Academy competing in the Trampoline and Tumbling Junior Olympic National Championships, which began Sunday, are Mia Vercruyssen, Irina Jang, Alena Eaton, Kristie Kawazoe, Linnet Eaton, Joy Ogasawara, Josh Smith, Marques Bottorf, Grace Mattes, Riley Chun, Annika Northrop, Anuhea Keene, Kylie Northrop, Dorothy Sanidad, and Celeste Choi.

BASEBALL

HAWAI'I DUO TRIUMPHS

Hawai'i's Mitchell Garcia and Damon Puskarich won their respective age divisions of the Pepsi MLB "Pitch, Hit & Run" regional championship Sunday at PETCO Park in San Diego.

Each participant competed in three events: hitting, pitching and running.

Garcia, 10, won the 9- to 10-year-old division. Puskarich, 13, won the 13- to 14-year-old division.

This was the second time Garcia, a sixth grader-to-be at St. Joseph School in Waipahu, has won the competition, winning the 7-8 age division in 2005.

Competitiors needed to throw 45 feet away from a strike-zone banner. They had six chances to throw their best pitches into the banner. In the hitting event, contestants had three chances to hit a ball off a tee as far and straight as they possibly could. Finally, each competitor needed to run a total of 160 feet along the back walls of PETCO Park's outfield.

The all-around champions will have their scores nationally ranked to determine the top performers advancing to the national finals, July 10, in San Francisco.