Faces in the Crowd

Steve Ross

ARDMORE, OKLA. > Golf

Ross, 42, a science teacher and golf coach at Ardmore High, led the Tigers to their third straight Class 5A state championship, a 41-stroke win over Midwest City's Carl Albert. He has coached Ardmore to eight state titles and two runner-up finishes in his 16 years as head coach. Ross, an Ardmore alum, was on the school's state championship team in '84.

Amber Kaufman

SAN JOSE > Track and Field

Kaufman, a senior at Hawaii, won the high jump at the Western Athletic Conference championships for the third consecutive year (6'0"). She has also won back-to-back WAC indoor high jump titles. Off the track Kaufman was all-conference as a middle hitter on the volleyball team in 2008 and '09, and helped lead the Rainbow Wahine to the '09 Final Four.

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Jake Thompson

ROCKWALL, TEXAS > Baseball

Jake, a sophomore pitcher at Rockwall-Heath High, is 2--0 with 23 strikeouts and six hits allowed through three rounds of the state Class 4A playoffs. He also has two postseason home runs for the Hawks, the nation's top-ranked team. This season Jake is 9--0 overall, with 93 strikeouts and a 0.74 ERA, and has thrown a no-hitter.

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Mel Melkonian

WORCESTER, MASS. > Softball

Melkonian, a freshman infielder at Clark University, led the Cougars in runs scored (39) and stolen bases (7) and was named the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference rookie of the year. She earned the same honor after field hockey season when as a forward she led the team in points (45) and the league in goals (1.19) and points (2.81) per game.

Mark Jackson

TAYLOR, TEXAS > Track and Field

Mark, a senior at Taylor High, won the triple jump (49'8¾") for the second straight year and the long jump (23'5¾") and was second in the high jump (6'6") at the state Class 3A championships. His outdoor personal best of 51'5¾" in the triple jump, set at the Class 3A Region III finals, is the top mark in the country this year.

Diva Desai

RALEIGH > Team Handball

Desai, a junior centerback at North Carolina, led all scorers with eight goals to help UNC's Carolina squad beat West Point's Army Black team 15--12 in the final of the women's collegiate national championship. She was the tournament's top scorer, with 17 goals in four matches. Last November she was selected to play on the Junior National Team at a tournament in Poland.

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