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The Red Zone refused to relent. Energizing its home gym in Solana Beach, California, Santa Fe Christians student section jumped and shimmied and yelled Bounce! Bounce! Bounce! before each Long Beach Poly serve in the first round of the state Open Division playoffs last month.SFCs 6-foot-2 senior outside hitter, Lexi Sun, the nations top recruit who recently signed with Texas, logged a forceful kill in the second set that landed into the Zone. Her classmates clawed to get a fingertip on the ball, fighting for position the way fans at a concert vie for a pop stars tossed hairband.Sun, the 2016 ALL-USA Player of the Year, kept her cool as Poly fought back, 24-22. Sun smiled, patted a teammate on the back and, in a blink, threw down two monster kills with ease.Its like she floats and then a cannon goes off, said Brad Sandusky, SFCs sports information coordinator, shaking his head at the scorers table.Behind Suns 25 kills and three blocks, SFC defeated Long Beach Poly 25-21, 26-24, 25-22. Sun, who has attended the school since kindergarten, looked back at the net. She has spent hours here perfecting her swing.Things arent just going to be given to you, Sun said. You have to truly work day in and day out for the things you want. You cant take days off. You cant take plays off.Grabbing the micTwo hours before the Poly match, Sun helped take down the basketball hoops from the boys practice and began dribbling a volleyball.Can you dunk? a boy asked.I havent really tried, Sun said.With a jump touch of 10 feet, 9 inches, she probably could. Her father, Conrad, played basketball for Sacramento State and for the Taiwanese national team. Her mother, Beth, was a competitive swimmer. Her brother, Marcus, played basketball for Wheaton College, and her sister, Natalie, was an NAIA All-American soccer player at Azusa Pacific.Sun, an Under Armour High School First Team All-American, was awarded the 2016 Best Spiker Award for the U.S. Junior National Team. Shes also a four-time all-tournament team honoree at the USA Junior National Championship Tournament.She can do things that very few people in the world her age can do, said Ozhan Bahrambeygui, her coach at Coast Volleyball Club. Shes explosive. She has an attacking range that very few people have. She has an elastic arm, she picks great lines of attack and shes a super-dynamic blocker.She might even be a coach.Before a league match against rival The Bishops School (La Jolla, California), Sun walked to the front of the locker room after coach Amanda Miles finished her pregame speech. Sun, hardly ever seen without a smile, grew serious. She paced back and forth in front of her teammates.When shes talking, senior Sami Shields said, everyone listens.Suns energy radiates. She relishes debates. She jumps and waves and shouts friends names when she sees them across the football field. Shes the first to break out on the dance floor at homecoming. She sings shortly after waking up at 6 every morning.Her pregame speech for Bishops started off slow. All right, guys, its game day, Sun said, raising her voice as each second passed. We can DO THIS, she said. We dont have ANYTHING to lose. Sun finally exploded. THIS IS OUR GAME!!!!SFC pulled off the upset for the first time. Everyone was asking, Wow. Where did that come from? I havent seen you play that kind of volleyball in a while, Miles said. It might have been the pregame speech.Sun asks Miles to stay after practice every day for extra serve receive. Even when Miles implemented more into practice one day, Sun still asked to stay later: Just 10 more minutes, Coach, she said. Just 10 more minutes.She wants to challenge herself, Miles said. Its her way of saying, Im not going to take the easy way out. Nothings givenEleven-year-old Sun cried, screamed and kicked in the car ride to her first-ever volleyball practice.She had been a soccer player, a forward, on a team that had won back-to-back State Cup championships. Her parents suggested she try volleyball, as she had sprouted to 5-10. If she didnt like it, she could quit.Sun hated it. Her mind understood the coachs directions, but her body couldnt translate them into movements. She huffed after every mistake, bursting into tears when her parents picked her up.Once Sun made friends, she began to have fun with the sport. Then she began to like it. Then she began to love it. Then she began to need it. The game came easy -- she was tall, she jumped high -- and she received her first college letter in sixth grade.Then, she faced women more experienced and, in some ways, more talented than her. Just a freshman, she was the youngest on the USA U-23 national team that competed at the world championships in Mexicali, Mexico. She hardly left the bench. It was a humbling experience, Sun said.When she came back from that, Conrad said, I think her experience was, In order for me to get to the next level, I need to work really hard. I want to own this. I want to do this for myself. She continued to be challenged, becoming the leading scorer on the U-18 national team that won silver in Peru in summer 2015, her junior year. Coach Jim Stone, who would make the team redo plays until they were immaculate, challenged Sun to limit her hitting errors, something she struggled with.I would always get away with making those little errors and people would just say, Oh shes young, she still has to grow, she still has time, Sun said. I think that made me realize, OK. Nows the time. There cant be any more excuses. I need to find a way to get better. Sun, who helped USAs U-20 national team earn silver at a tournament in Florida last summer, practiced religiously. She received hundreds of Division I letters, which didnt stop even after she verbally committed to Texas in April 2015. As the nations most sought-after recruit, she was constantly told how great she was.Her parents werent having it. They rarely talked about volleyball, not wanting Sun to get caught in the hype and lose her drive. It was, Get your homework done. Lets get dinner. Were going to church. Regular stuff, Beth said. Were still like that.Sun, who also considered Stanford, USC, UCLA, Washington, Penn State, Nebraska and Minnesota, said she felt a connection with Texas beyond volleyball. After staying for seven hours on her first visit, and getting to know the coaches, players and even former Longhorns, Sun felt Texas was the best fit. Texas, which already features some of the best outside hitters in the nation in sophomore Micaya White, junior Ebony Nwanebu and senior Paulina Prieto Cerame, plays Stanford Saturday (9 p.m. ET, ESPN2/WatchESPN) for the national championship.Aiming to play at the U-20 world championships in Mexico this summer, Sun already is preparing for the challenge of college ball.You always have to work for something worth having, she said.Just 10 more minutes.Boston Red Sox Store . Sgt. Eric ONeal says most of the arrests at Monday nights game were for public drunkenness, though one person was taken into custody on suspicion of trying to steal a seat from the stadium. Josh Taylor Red Sox Jersey . But the quarterback hopes to stay involved in football after officially calling it quits Tuesday. "Id love to look at those opportunities as they arise," Pierce said in an interview from his Winnipeg eatery. https://www.cheapredsox.com/711z-nomar-garciaparra-jersey-red-sox.html . John Lucas, signed as a mentor for rookie Trey Burke, showed he can score if required, scoring 12 points of his 16 points in the second quarter as Utah built an 18-point lead. Clay Buchholz Red Sox Jersey . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. Luis Tiant Red Sox Jersey . "It was nerve-wracking, but we pulled through," said Collaros, who threw four touchdown passes to lead the Toronto Argonauts (8-4) to a 33-27 win over the Calgary Stampeders (9-3) in front of 28,781 fans at McMahon Stadium.My colleague Scott Burnside has handed over the Power Rankings duties to me for the month of November. After consulting with my dog, Lulu LeBrun (shes a 4-year-old Australian shepherd and she knows her hockey), Ive come up with this weeks rankings.1. (Last week: 7)?Washington Capitals, 8-2-1I was chatting with a GM from another team last week when, unsolicited, he brought up the Caps. They are just so good again. Deep, talent everywhere. Going to be tough to beat, he said. Well, yeah, I mean, we always say that. But is this finally the year? Perhaps.2. (8) New York Rangers, 10-3-0Its funny -- back in August, when Jimmy Vesey picked the Blueshirts in his personal sweepstakes, I thought, Why them? Theyre in transition mode, youre not going to win there anytime soon. Well, given the way the Rangers have exploded out of the gate, I need to rethink that. Theyre so much fun to watch, and they lead the NHL with 4.23 goals per game.3. (4)?Pittsburgh Penguins, 8-2-2Welcome back, Sid! Rust? Ha. How about eight goals and two assists in six games since returning from a concussion.?Sidney Crosby?is just seven points off the NHL scoring lead despite having played half the number of games most players have. Yeah, I think he has it in him to reel in another scoring title this season.4. (13)?Chicago Blackhawks, 9-3-1Since starting the season 0-2-0, the Hawks have gone 9-1-1, including six consecutive wins. Hold off, perhaps, on those window-closing narratives.?Jonathan Toews and company have other plans. Hats off to GM Stan Bowman for continually working his roster magic under massive cap constraints.5. (12)?Tampa Bay Lightning, 7-4-1My preseason pick to win the Stanley Cup has a big test on Monday night at Florida against the rival Panthers. We need to see these two Florida teams face off in a playoff series next spring, please!6. (1) Montreal Canadiens, 10-1-1OK, I know this is a little harsh, given their league-leading record. But I had to make the 10-0 pasting that Montreal suffered against the?Columbus Blue Jackets?on Friday night count for something! The Habs had a nice bounce-back win the following night at home over a rested?Philadelphia Flyers?team. You know Carey Price and Shea Weber were going to make sure that happened.7. (6) St. Louis Blues, 7-4-2Four assists in two weekend victories by pending unrestricted free-agent blue-liner Kevin Shattenkirk. A juicy matchup awaits Wednesday night at home against the rival Blackhawks.8. (2) Edmonton Oilers, 9-3-1The Oilers snapped a three-game slide (0-2-1) on their recent road trip with weekend wins against the Islanders and Red Wings. How much fun will Tuesdays game at Pittsburgh be, as Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby face off?9. (15) Columbus Blue Jackets, 5-3-2It was a night for the ages on Friday, with that monumental barrage of goals over the league-leading Canadiens. As I tweeted that night, it was as if Columbus took out 16 years of misery as a franchise on the Habs that night. Heres hoping the Blue Jackets make the playoffs this season. Their fans deserve it!10. (5) San Jose Sharks, 6-6-0The Sharks suffered three consecutive losses, including a 5-0 drubbing at home Saturday night in another Stanley Cup final rematch with Pittsburgh. They now embark on a six-game road trek to Washington, Florida, Tampa Bay, Carolina, St. Louis and Arizona.11. (3)?Minnesota Wild, 6-4-1Im not exactly sure why Burnside had these guys third in the Rankings last week. The Wild suffered losses to Buffalo and Colorado over the past week. And while I think the Wild have the goods to be a playoff team, they are going to have more weeks like that.12. (10) Ottawa Senators, 7-4-0Things that make you go hmmm: Despite having the NHLs most offensively gifted defenseman in Erik Karlsson (love having him on my fantasy team this season), the Sens are just 23rd on the power play. They were 26th last season.13. (24) Anaheim Ducks, 6-5-2The Ducks have won three of fouur, and you get the sense that they will start to resemble the team we know they can be soon.ddddddddddddAnaheim starts a three-game road trip on Wednesday at Columbus, followed by stops in Carolina and Nashville.14. (9) New Jersey Devils, 5-3-3The Devils bounced back after losses to both Florida teams with a 4-1 decision over Carolina despite being outshot 34-21.15. (17) Los Angeles Kings, 6-6-0Maybe the Kings dont need goaltending help after all. Veteran Peter Budaj has answered the bell of late, including backstopping the Kings to wins over Pittsburgh and Calgary in their last two games. The Kings open a five-game road trip in Toronto on Tuesday night.16. (16)?Florida Panthers, 5-6-1After opening the season 2-0-1, the Cats have dropped six of nine games. The massive overhaul on the blue-line -- in combination with key injuries -- has had an impact.17. (22) Boston Bruins, 6-5-0The Bruins have the 29th-ranked power play. A year ago, they started the opening month with the hottest power play in the league.18. (18) Buffalo Sabres, 5-4-2Dont look now, but the Sabres have won four of their past five games and deserved to beat the Leafs in their lone defeat. Robin Lehner has been terrific in goal.19. (29) Toronto Maple Leafs, 5-4-3The Leafs underlying stats suggested their slow start wasnt really reflective of their overall play -- and now theyre getting wins to back that up. The NHLs youngest team is riding consecutive victories, with visiting Los Angeles next up on the docket Tuesday night.20. (23) Philadelphia Flyers, 6-6-1The Flyers must have hated watching the Habs get pasted 10-0 in Columbus. The Flyers just knew the Canadiens would rebound. Sure enough, Montreal prevailed over Philly 5-4 in a fun game the next night.21. (11)?Detroit Red Wings, 6-6-1A six-game win streak was followed by a five-game (0-4-1) winless streak. The Wings will be on that playoff bubble all season.22. (21) Dallas Stars, 4-5-3Injuries have certainly influenced the early season for the Stars, who will no doubt bounce back. But the home-and-home, weekend sweep at the hands of Chicago hurt.23. (28) Nashville Predators, 3-5-3Still waiting for the team I picked to win the Central Division before the season to wake up. Shootout losses to Arizona and Carolina didnt impress anyone.24. (19) Winnipeg Jets, 5-7-1Jacob Trouba?kept losing money while the Jets just kept losing games. Saner minds prevailed on Monday when Trouba signed a two-year, $6 million deal to return to Winnipegs fold. The Jets need him, and he needs to play.25. (14) Colorado Avalanche, 5-6-0Its time to ride Calvin Pickard (1.50 goals-against average, .946 save percentage) for a while over Semyon Varlamov (3.67 GAA, .881 SP). Varlamov has two more years, at $5.9 million per on his deal after this season. I would shop him if I were Colorado. Pickard looks legit.26. (25)?New York Islanders, 4-6-2The Isles have dropped five of their past six games. Somethings got to give on Monday night when they host the struggling Canucks.27. (20) Calgary Flames, 5-8-1Man, I was convinced the Flames would bounce back and make the playoffs this season. Its early, but boy have they been inconsistent, especially defensively. Calgary is sitting 28th with 3.57 goals against per game.28. (27) Carolina Hurricanes, 3-5-3The Hurricanes have but one power-play goal in their last six games, and have gone 1 for 16 during that stretch.29. (30)?Arizona Coyotes, 4-7-0The Coyotes have been outshot in six consecutive games, although before Sundays loss at Anaheim they had pulled off wins over San Jose and Nashville.30. (26) Vancouver Canucks, 4-6-2The Canucks have gone eight games without a win (0-6-2) since starting the season 4-0. At least they scored three goals on Saturday night in Toronto after being shut out four of the five previous games. ' ' '