|
August 6, 2004/Av 19 5763, Vol. 55, No. 46
Team spirit
JENNIFER GOLDBERG
|
 The Phoenix team holds up their banner after a pre-Maccabi Games pep rally at the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center. The Maccabi Games were held Aug. 1-6 in Austin, Texas. Photo by Jennifer Goldberg |
Twenty-six local teens ages 13-16 made up this year's squad; the athletes competed Aug. 1-6 against more than 1,000 Jewish teens from around the country.
Paul Frishman, associate executive director of the JCC, was the rally's emcee. He whipped the crowd (mostly Shemesh day campers and counselors and Maccabi team parents) into a frenzy of applause and cheers while campers held up signs wishing the team good luck. The crowd also danced to Hebrew-language music.
Dee Scott, the Phoenix team's swim coach and administrative assistant, says that the team is doubly excited to attend this year's event. "We didn't get to go last year, because our school system starts earlier than other school systems," she explains.
Team Phoenix comprises baseball players Zachary Barness, Jay Cantor, Michael Kaminsky, Ilan LaBelle, Brendan Munzer, Adam Paikowsky, Jared Schwartz, Aaron Silver, Michael Sokol, Ian Strauss and Evan White; basketball players Coleman Geringer, Zach Greenberg, Matt Kriegsfeld, Sean Lieb, Danny Maman, David Reinfeld, Daniel Ruben, Chad Rubin and Joshua Weisman; swimmers Daniel Ference and Lauren Freedman; competitive tennis players Joshua Bochner, Daniel Efune and Joshua Steinberg; and recreational tennis player Zachary Laven.
Phoenix was only allowed to bring 26 delegates because the JCC is a relatively new facility; therefore, they were unable to send participants in Maccabi events such as soccer, volleyball, dance, softball, and track and field. Scott notes that in 2006, when Phoenix will host the Maccabi Games, they plan on bringing a delegation of more than 100 teens.
At the games, competitions will be balanced with opening and closing ceremonies, fun nighttime activities and a volunteer program called Days of Caring and Sharing, in which teams will go out and serve the community.
"It's a really neat thing to give back to the community and show the Jewish community spirit," Scott says. "The Maccabi Games help the youth understand what they can do and who they are as a Jewish person."
Still, the Maccabi Games are an athletic competition, and Scott expects the team to bring home some medals. "We've been practicing really hard, and we're bringing it on," Scott says. "Our mantra is 'Feel Our Heat,' and we're going to show what Team Phoenix can do."
Look for the results of the Maccabi Games in the Aug. 20 issue of Jewish News.