OLYMPIC Notebook

The 1996 Olympics may best be remembered for the exploits of the U.S. women’s gymnastics team, Carl Lewis and several world-record setting performances, but the hometown athletes certainly gave the Valley region plenty of reasons to cheer.

Dot Richardson’s game-winning home run against China gave the U.S. softball team the gold medal and put the Sherman Oaks resident/orthopedic surgeon in the national spotlight. But the “Shortstop with a Surgeon’s Hands,” as one headline called her, didn’t do it alone. Taft High grad Sheila Cornell, who put the U.S. into the medal round with a two-run blast, and Kim Maher of Ventura were also instrumental in the team’s success.

The big surprise, however, was archer Justin Huish, a 21-year-old self-proclaimed California Kid sporting a ponytail and mirror glasses. The Simi Valley resident won an individual and a team gold medals and gave his sport a shot in the arm with his brash fist-pumping, play-to-the-crowd antics.

“It was just like someone hooked me up to a plug in the wall, it was electrifying,” Huish said after winning his individual gold medal.

There were several other medal-winning performances, including a repeat gold in the 100 meters by Gail Devers of Van Nuys, a silver for hurdler Mark Crear of Valencia, and bronzes for baseball players Jeff Weaver of Simi Valley and Jim Parque of La Crescenta.

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A roundup of the Valley-area and Ventura County athletes that represented the United States in this year’s Olympics.

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Athlete Sport Connection Finished Larry Amar Field hockey Camarillo 12th Nick Butcher Field hockey Simi Valley 12th Gail Castro B. Volleyball La Crescenta 2nd rd David Collins Rowing Thousand Oaks Bronze Sheila Cornell Softball Taft High Gold Rich Corso Water polo Van Nuys* 7th Mark Crear Track Valencia Silver Bob Ctvrtlik Volleyball Pepperdine Eliminated Gail Devers Track Mission Hills Gold, 4th Denny Fercho Handball Camarillo 9th Amy Fuller Rowing Westlake Village 4th Johnny Gray Track Agoura Hills 7th Sharon Hanson Track Ventura 9th Joe Harper Canoe Ventura Semifinals Victoria Herazo Track Castaic Disqualified Justin Huish Archery Simi Valley 2 Gold Regina Jacobs Track Campbell High Finals J. Joyner-Kersee Track Canoga Park Bronze Kim Maher Softball Ventura Gold Ben Maruquin F. hockey Ventura 12th John O’Neill F. hockey Newbury Park 12th Jim Parque Baseball La Crescenta Bronze Kristine Quance Swimming Northridge no advance Dot Richardson Softball Sherman Oaks Gold Tom Sorensen Volleyball Pepperdine Eliminated Dave Stephens Track CSUN no advance Jeff Stork Volleyball Topanga Cyn*** Eliminated Tom Vano F. hockey Simi Valley 12th Fernando Vargas Boxing Oxnard 2nd rd Jeff Weaver Baseball Simi Valley Bronze Jeff Williams Track San Fernando 5th Scott Williams F. hockey Thousand Oaks 12th

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* Harvard-Westlake High coach

** Granada Hills High

*** Taft High and Pepperdine