But there were other less-heralded events in the Los Gatos sports realm in 2003 that are deserving of mention as the year winds to a close.

Lampe a champion

Los Gatos High School junior Katie Lampe won the 1-meter diving event at the CCS finals last spring with an All-American qualifying mark of 441.1. Lampe, who competes year round for the Stanford Diving Club, also placed ninth on the 1-meter board and 10th on the 3-meter board in the girls 16­18 age group at the Speedo Junior Olympic Winter National Championships in Pasadena.

Coler All-American

Former Los Gatos High School volleyball sensation Alyson Coler won an honorable mention on the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division I All-America women's volleyball team.

The senior outside hitter is the first player in University of New Hampshire history to claim such an honor. She led the Wildcats to their second consecutive America East championship with a 12-2 record and to a berth in the NCAA tournament. The Cats finished 23-12 overall after losing to No. 1-ranked USC in the tournament.

Coler, of Monte Sereno, recorded a team-high 554 kills and added 386 digs in her senior season. She won a second consecutive America East Conference Player of the Year award, the first player in conference history to accomplish such a feat. She was also the Most Outstanding Player in the conference tournament.

Coler leaves New Hampshire as the school's all-time leader in kills (1,814), attack attempts (4,726) and digs (1,231). She also holds school single-season records for kills (564) and attack attempts (1,508), and the school records for kills in a single match (38 on Oct. 8, 2002 at Northeastern).

Lepold ranks high

Joshua Lepold of Los Gatos is ranked among the top fencers in the nation after a solid showing in men's foil at the Junior World Cup fencing championships held in Louisville, Ky.

Lepold, 16, placed 15th in the under-20 age division at the event that included fencers from as far away as Hong Kong and Austria. The Los Gatos High School junior in now ranked among the top under-20 fencers internationally and he's ranked seventh in the nation among under-17 men's foil fencers.

Dazzlin' Gatos girls

Angel Clark and Lindsay Dickerson of Los Gatos were members of the North Valley Dazzle under-13 girls Class 1 soccer team that won a league title and a district cup championship in the fall season.

The Dazzle posted a 9-0-1 record to take the girls under-14 Division 2 Abronzino league championship, then took the under-13 girls District 2 Cup title. The team also won tournament crowns in San Luis Obispo, at the San Francisco Golden Gate Invitational and in Lodi, and finished second in two other tournaments. The Dazzle posted a 31-3-4 season record.

Clark, an eighth grader at Fisher Middle School, is a midfielder for the Dazzle, and Dickerson, a seventh grader at St. Mary's, is a goalkeeper.

Shyba a top athlete

Kelsey Shyba was named the Athlete of the Year at Loma Prieta Elementary School in 2003. The award, presented by PE instructor Eileen Moore, is given annually to the student rated the all-around best athlete at the school.

Shyba won the Presidential Physical Fitness Award Seal that honors students who demonstrate an outstanding level of fitness by scoring above the 85th percentile on five fitness tests, including curl-ups, the shuttle run, the endurance run, pull-ups and the flexibility stretch.

She also competes in the NJB basketball program, fast-pitch softball and recreational soccer and water polo.

Rollin in star tourney

Alex Rollin, a 2003 Los Gatos High School graduate, was invited to play in the USA Baseball Tournament of Stars last summer. Rollin, a star pitcher for the Wildcats who is now on a baseball scholarship at UC Berkeley, was one of 144 players in the nation invited to participate in the tournament.

Zeiss on NorCal team

Herb Zeiss, a member at the Courtside Tennis Club in Los Gatos, was selected by the NorCal USTA to play for its Northern California Seniors Intersectional team at the national championship in Jackson, Miss.

Zeiss, 55, earned the place on the senior team (players ages 50 and over) by posting a 26-5 record over the last two seasons in adult 4.0 competition.

Courtside member Rick Knauf called the selection of Zeiss to the NorCal team "a distinguished honor for Northern California," adding that, "Herb is known for playing with a big heart and will always figure out a way to win."

Reed wins titles

Christine Reed capped a super seventh grade track season at Fisher Middle School by winning three events at the county track and field finals.

Reed finished first in the 100-meter dash and the 200-meter dash, and she teamed with Angela Santoro, Allison Arnstein and Katie Michell for a win in the 4x100 relay. Reed was also fourth in the 70 hurdles.

Reed is also a competitive rope jumper, and competes with teammate Sarah Medalen.

Graff runs to title

Tyler Graff, the son of Kevin Lynott of Los Gatos, romped to the CCAA cross country individual title this past fall as a competitor for Cal State Chico. Graff, a Chico graduate students, set a new course record with his 24:21.8 and was named the conference Runner of the Year.

Earlier in the year, Graff won titles at both the UC Davis Aggie Invitational and the Willamette Invitational in Salem, Ore., and he placed in the top 15 at the Stanford Invitational.

Smythe all-league

Andrew Smythe of Los Gatos, a senior wide receiver and defensive end on the St. Francis High School football, earned a place on the all-league second team after an exceptional fall season for the Lancers. Smythe is a graduate of St. Mary's School in Los Gatos.

Christine Reed won three events at the county track and field finals for Fisher Middle School.

Herb Zeiss of Courtside was selected to play for the Northern California Seniors Intersectional tennis team.