- Slug: Sports-The Sweet Spot. Runtime 10:47.
- Downloadable audio here. (Note: Some web browsers may not support media download)
[Music bed under]
HOST INTRO: This is the Sweet Spot where we take a closer look at the week’s biggest sports stories in Arizona. I’m Alex Chenevey, and welcome back to the show, for our second episode of the season!
[Music fade in/under]
HOST: On today’s show we listen in on the Phoenix Mercury’s end of season interviews, Liberty high school football growing higher at the national level, how COVID-19 has affected the sports cards industry, and the process a boxer takes to recover after a fight.
[Music fade in/under]
Exit interviews with stars Taurasi, Griner bring some rare good news for Mercury
HOST: The Phoenix Mercury’s season is over, which means the team was available for end of season interviews. A time to reflect on what happened last season, and what they look forward to for the future. Benjamin Yates has more on the news of superstars, Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner.
[Nat sound – scoreboard buzzer]
YATES: It was a disappointing end to the Phoenix Mercury’s season, as they struggled with injuries and midseason roster adjustments. This would reflect in the Mercury’s 9 and 29 season record. But this was not the headline for the event: The question on everyone’s minds, is Diana Taurasi staying? As the 10-time all-star, and three-time champion, is in the late stages of her career, and could be considering retirement. Taurasi, answered the question with…
<< DIANA TAURASI: Oh yeah, I got another year on my contract, I’m definitely going to fulfill that.>>
YATES: First-year head coach Nikki Blue reacted to the news of the former MVP’s official return.
<< NIKKI BLUE: Alright! Amazing! Thank goodness, the GOAT is back…. You know, never have to question Diana’s off-season and her training. She has this incredible work ethic. I’m actually excited to see what is to come for this next year, especially her. I mean, is this a retirement year? I don’t know. We’ll see it.>>
YATES: Brittney Griner was also faced with a decision, as her contract was set to expire by the end of this season. As a free agent, Griner gets to choose to stay in the Valley or test the market elsewhere.
<< BRITTNEY GRINER: Nah. come on, now. Phoenix is home, this is where I’ve been. Me and my wife literally just got a place. Nah, this is it.>>
YATES: For the Sweet Spot, I’m Benjamin Yates.
[Music fade in/under]
Liberty Lions come iuto 2023 season with national ranking and high expectations to match
HOST: With the new high school ranking coming out on MaxPreps, the Liberty Lions are now ranked 18th in the nation. With that comes expectations, as the Lions hope to build around that success as they head into the 2023 season with a different goal in mind. Brandon Tran has more from Peoria.
[Nat sound: Whistle, player clapping]
TRAN: Like the music blasting across their practice field, the Liberty Lions are a high-energy team in search of a state championship… After the Lions won the 2019 state championship in 5A, the school moved Colin Thomas from offensive coordinator to head coach in 2020. Under Thomas, the program went from six wins in 2020 to nine wins in 2021 and then … 11 wins last season. That made them the one seed in open division. Even with the wins increasing every year under Thomas, the team still fell short in the open division semifinals. Coach Thomas believes the team is ready for more.
<< COLIN THOMAS: “We had a great offseason and worked really hard, and now when kids get their opportunity to play that did not play a ton last year, they keep gaining more experience. So lots of guys in new roles and hopefully each week they continue to grow and get better.” >>
TRAN: With the players put into new roles, they hope to build off the success from last season and get back to the open division playoff. The Lions return the 2022 Gatorade player of the year, quarterback Navi Bruzon, as he hopes to take the next step in his final year at Liberty.
<< NAVI BRUZON: “Last year I had the opportunity to be the full-time starter, so you know I learned a lot from last season obviously and taking that it over into this year. Just going week in and week out and just play to my best of my abilities and help my team win.” >>
TRAN: But Liberty’s success this season isn’t just about its offense. Linebacker Zane Tallman, a senior on this year’s squad…
<< ZANE TALLMAN: “We have kids all around defense flying around the ball, making plays every down. So just making those plays and you know we’re going to have the matchup energy all around that coach Thomas talks about.” >>
TRAN: With Liberty now 3-0 following the 56-nothing win over Queen Creek, the team looks to improve and build on that momentum. The Lions have two tough road games coming up including one against nationally ranked Centennial from Corona, California. From Cronkite Sports in Peoria, I’m Brandon Tran reporting.
[Music fade in/under]
Trading cards still riding wave that began with COVID-19 boom in interest
HOST: Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic started, the sports card industry has taken off to new heights. New card shops located here in the Valley have been making connections within their communities, and are taking advantage of the interest in cards going up and up. I went to a few card shops around Phoenix and talked to a few people about how sports cards have been growing, and what the future looks like for the hobby.
CHENEVEY: Many industries have grown since the COVID-19 pandemic began, one of these things is sports cards. The sports card industry has been growing exponentially over the past few years and has been evolving ever since the pandemic started. Whether it comes to soaring prices for vintage cards, or the booming popularity of breaking, sports cards have been connecting people with their favorite teams and players recently more than ever. If you take a look at the most expensive sports cards sold, all of the top 28 have been bought since 2020.
CHENEVEY: Despite values going down on some cards due to the hyperinflation of them during the first few months of COVID, the values are now back at an affordable price for most collectors. But that doesn’t mean that the hobby is going to stop flourishing any time soon. With all this growth in the industry, there have been many shops here in the Valley trying to take advantage of the sports card boom. Brandon Dixon, the owner of Rip Valley, a sports card shop located in downtown Phoenix, has seen the growth firsthand and thinks that the hobby is going to continue growing at a great pace but with some uncertainty of what the future might hold for the industry.
<<BRANDON DIXON: “I just feel like it’s going to continue to explode, I don’t think we’ll ever see the wild, wild West of COVID, you know, with the inflated prices and everything that was going on there, but when the market corrected itself, it was definitely in a better spot coming out of COVID than it was before in terms of values and singles prices and things like that. I think that everybody is excited about the hobby, but there’s a gigantic question mark on what that looks like.” >>
CHENEVEY: One of the things that has catapulted the hobby to new heights is “breaking.” Breaking is where a person or a shop has a high-value product with several packs in it and can sell the product in a variety of ways, with the most common one being the “pick your team,” in which a collector can buy a specific team and get the players from that team. For example, let’s say I buy into a Topps baseball break that is valued at $800 and I buy the Arizona Diamondbacks at $50. I get all of the Diamondbacks players that are in those packs. It gives collectors a chance at high end items without having to splurge big money to get all the teams in the packs. Breaking can also happen anywhere, whether it be in-person or virtually. Ed Shilgevorkyan (shill-guh-VORK-ee-yen), owner of Desert Breakers Sports Cards located in Scottsdale, saw the opportunity to open up a shop in an area he grew up in, after starting his own breaking business through social media.
<< EDWARD SHILGEVORKYAN: “I started doing breaks as well, that’s why my name is Desert Breakers. like I started an Instagram, and you know, there would be nobody besides my friends and family in the lives, but I just kept pushing advertisements, posting every day, and I had it where I have a bunch of different boxes. >>
CHENEVEY: Shilgevorkyan also says another factor has played into his success.
<< SHILGEVORKYAN: I realized that like there’s no card shop in Scottsdale, like, ‘Why is there not a shop in Scottsdale?’ I feel like it would do really well. So you know I kind of was just saving up money with breaks and stuff, and then I like saw the opportunity and I saw the space.”>>
CHENEVEY: Card shops located in the Phoenix area like RIP Valley and Desert Breakers will look to continue to thrive t’s safe to say that whether you’re an avid collector or someone who is just getting into collecting, sports cards are here to stay. For Cronkite News, I’m Alex Chenevey.
[Music fade in/under]
After the bell: Boxers, trainers talk about the importance of post-fight recoery
HOST: A typical boxing round lasts for 3 minutes. During that painful time, everyone is focused on what’s happening inside that ring. What most people don’t focus on is what happens before and after a fighter steps foot in said ring. Cronkite Sports’ Austin Hepola takes a deeper look at what the process of post-fight recovery in the sport of boxing is really like.
AUSTIN HEPOLA: Cuts, sprains, bruises, broken bones…All can transpire from your standard boxing match. Fighters put their bodies on the line year-round for the entertainment of the people.
[Nat sound: Boxer hitting the punching bag]
HEPOLA: What most people don’t see is what goes on after the final bell rings, as the battered individuals return to their locker room… In the sport of boxing, post-fight recovery is something that fighters take very seriously. To the casual spectator, it’s an element of the sport that doesn’t get much attention. For the fighters, such as Soraya Hernandez-Solis, the recovery process after a fight is just as important as their performance in the ring.
<< SORAYA HERNANDEZ-SOLIS: It’s really important because boxing is not really like any other sport where like… you have a team to support you; you lose together, you win together. In boxing, you’re all alone.>>
HEPOLA: A boxer may be alone once they step between those ropes, but it is crucial that they surround themselves with the right crew of coaches and trainers. Located in downtown Phoenix, Central Boxing Gym looks at post-fight recovery as a top priority for their fighters.
<< MICHAEL McCAIN: We genuinely care about our fighters, about their recovery, about their nutrition, about their training.
HEPOLA: This is Michael McCain, a managing partner of Central Boxing Gym.
<< McCAIN: And so what we try to provide is those ancillary things that they may need in terms of recovery. Be it from, what they’re consuming to just sitting down and talking. Sometimes they just need someone to listen to or someone to look at things from a different avenue. >>
HEPOLA: There are various methods of recovery that boxing competitors or coaches can use, but this gym makes it clear that they want their fighters to remain active, according to longtime coach Abel Bernal.
<< ABEL BERNAL: The day after we come back from a tournament, I want them in the gym. Just to be in the gym, talking, go over a few things; not necessarily to work out. So I give them two days. >>
HEPOLA: Post-fight recovery doesn’t mean that the fighters go home and sleep it off. While rest is very important, some other post-recovery techniques are icing, massaging, hydrating and even getting back in the gym as soon as possible to keep the blood flowing. In most cases, the fighters have to grit through a lot of pain during this stage.
[Nats: Boxers hitting the speed bag]
HEPOLA: The process of post-fight recovery can be a grueling one, depending on the types of injuries a competitor sustains. The next time you find yourself tuning in to a pair of prizefighters duking it out, keep that process in mind. From Cronkite Sports in Phoenix, I’m Austin Hepola reporting.
[Music fade in/under]
HOST: And this was the Sweet Spot. This show was produced by Benjamin Yates. Special thanks to Austin, Ben, and Brandon for their contributions to this week’s show. I’m your host Alex Chenevey. Until next time! Thanks for stopping by the Sweet Spot!
[Music fade in/under]