Serving up 10 juicy tidbits about preps

I know this is usually a question-and-answer column, but I'm going to depart from that format to dish up a few juicy leftovers. Here are 10 things you may not know about high-school sports.

1) Some of the hardest kids for coaches to cut from teams are children of faculty or staff members at the school. A lot of these marginal kids survive final cuts for that reason.

2) Many schools don't like to play freshmen on varsity teams in any sport. The concern is that by the time these players are seniors, they can develop a know-it-all, been-there-done-that attitude that can poison a team.

3) When a school from this area qualifies for a state basketball tournament to be played in Tacoma, many students are more interested in what time their team plays who they're playing. That's because they want to get out of school.

4) Parents of star players have just as much anxiety as parents of regular players.

"When your kid isn't playing well, everybody starts looking at you," the mother of one girls basketball star told me.

5) One of the underappreciated skills in all of coaching is the ability of a baseball coach to hit fungo popups for a catcher during infield practice.

6) Girls basketball and soccer have become almost exclusively upper-middle class and middle-class sports at Class 4A and 3A schools in the Puget Sound area. That's because of the nearly year-round competition on club teams is expensive and many girls can't afford it. Club and select-team competition produces the best players because of the good coaching and level of competition in practices and games.

7) National recruiting services will circulate information about a high-school prospect to college coaches for fees that can top $2,000 for the "full package," which includes a brochure, video and personal web site. The recruiting services try to match athletes with colleges.

8) Studies across the nation have shown that high-school athlete have better grades, few absences and a better graduation rate than non-athletes. Teenage girls who participate in sports have lower pregnancy rates.

9) Small towns produce some surprisingly good girl basketball players because they play a lot of pick-up basketball with boys.

10) Even though the swimming pool is surrounded by more than 100 athletes and coaches who could make a rescue if one were ever required, lifeguards have to be on duty during races and warmups at state swim meets. Reason: insurance purposes. The biggest risk is of a diver's head accidentally hitting the board.

Q: Do you think high-school students and their parents realize that full scholarships in most college sports are rare and that most athletes get only partial scholarships?

A: No. I think most kids and parents think a scholarship means a full ride, which it does in basketball and football. Here is how many scholarships each Division I school divides: Men — baseball, 11.78, track 11.69 (includes cross-country athletes); golf, 4.5; soccer 9.9; swimming 9.9; tennis 4.5. Women — track, 18 (includes cross-country); golf, 6; rowing, 20 (rowing isn't a men's NCAA sport); soccer, 12; swimming, 14; gymnastics, 12; tennis, 8; volleyball, 12.

Did you notice that women get more scholarships than men in all sports where both sexes have teams? Reason? Title IX. It's an effort to make up the gap caused by football, which has 85 scholarships.

Q: When did Washington change from yards to meters in track?

A: The switch occurred for the 1980 season.

Q: Which weather has been worse for spring sports — this year or last year? They both seem awful.

A: It's close, but I think last year was worse even though the rainfall amount is higher this year. Last year, the Seattle Christian fastpitch team had its first seven games west of the Cascades rained out and two makeup attempts rained out. One day when it looked like a game would be played, the umpire didn't show up. Last year, Roosevelt and Woodinville played a fastpitch game in snow, and balls that got through the infield turned into snowballs.

Q: How does the tiebreaker in high-school tennis work? I'm interested because I want to use it when I play my friends.

A: OK, let's say Player B serves and wins the game to knot the set at 6-6. The tie-breaker now begins and could end as soon as one player scores seven points and has at least a two-point lead with that seventh point.

Here's the serving rotation for the tie-breaker: Player A serves from the right-side court; Player B then serves points 2 and 3 (left, right); A serves points 4 and 5 (left, right); B serves point 6 (left). Players change ends. B retains serve and serves from right. A serves points 8 and 9 (left, right); B serves 10, 11 (left, right); A serves 12 (left).

If points reach 6-all, players change ends and continue as before. A serves point 13 (right); B serves points 14 and 15 (left, right). The set ends when one player gets a two-point lead.

If a non-tennis player has bothered to read this, they also might enjoy the Yakima telephone book.

Have a question about high-school sports? Craig Smith will find the answer every Tuesday in The Times. Ask your question in one of the following ways: voice mail (206-464-8279), snail mail (Craig Smith, Seattle Times Sports, P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111), or e-mail csmith@seattletimes.com