ConVal and Conant got an unexpected boost this season from a pair of international athletes here on foreign exchange
Franka Clauss was an avid tennis player back in her hometown of Wesel, Germany. After setting up an exchange with Conant through the Rotary Youth Exchange Program, she searched online for stories about the Orioles’ tennis team, and was delighted with what she saw — trips to the finals in back-to-back years and a rising star in Shannon Bennett.
“That was exciting,” said Clauss, taking a quick break between her singles and doubles matches. Clauss headed for Jaffrey with every intention of making the team.
“I was looking forward to joining — I brought my tennis racket and everything,” Clauss said.
Clauss turned out to be a perfect for the Conant tennis team, jumping right into the No. 2 singles spot and the No. 1 doubles, which she plays with her partner and host, Bennett.
Clauss only lost twice the entire season as Conant went 12-1, ending up second in Division III. She’s an integral part of a team that hopes to make the championship game for the third straight year — and maybe win it.
“Franka has been a positive addition to our team,” said head coach Jody Baker. She is enthusiastic about tennis — always willing to work hard and improve.”
Clauss said that living in Rindge was a change from back home in Wesel (pop. 61,000).
“It’s different — it’s really different,” Clauss said. “It was difficult at the beginning to get used to the small town. You couldn’t do that much. But now that I’ve made some friends, we can actually do something.”
The playoffs are now underway, and the end of school looms, which means Clauss will soon return to Germany. Until then, she’ll try to stretch out the days.
“I’m not homesick at all,” Clauss said. “I really like it.”
There’s no bigger sport in Japan than baseball, and like many children in his hometown of Ueda, Nagano, Daisuke Kuriki grew up playing it. Of course, he watched plenty of Ichiro growing up — “he’s fast, so fast,” Kuriki said — and now, Kuriki gets to show off his own speed, playing center for the playoff bound ConVal baseball team.
Kuriki hopes that the Cougars can win a championship game this season, and he’ll do all he can to help out.
“I can’t hit,” the humble young man joked; while he might not be raking this year, his patience at the plate has paid dividends. Kuriki drew a bases-loaded walk against Merrimack Valley earlier this season to win the game.
“Daisuke’s the hero!” said teammate Anthony Brothers with a grin, as he helped out with a little translation. “He’s just a really nice guy.”
Kuriki has enjoyed his time stateside, living with Jimmy Stewart and his family, throwing down on some marathon NBA 2K sessions.
Kuriki found plenty to like in America. For instance, he loves the block class schedule at ConVal; back home, he said, students take one class a day for the whole day. School aside, Kuriki’s developed a newfound sweet tooth. You can’t get Skittles back in Japan he said, “so sweet.”
While his play style may be reminiscent of Ichiro, Kuriki’s ultimate favorite player is none other than Boston’s own David Ortiz.
“Big Papi — he’s a beast,” Kuriki said.
If Kuriki is to fulfill his dream of winning the title with ConVal, a timely, David Ortiz-like clutch hit in the playoffs would go a long way.