By Brandon HENSLEY

Rosemont Middle School is in the midst of another great sports year. Its basketball teams won the district championship, its flag football team won the district championship, and its girls’ volleyball team … well, you guessed it.

About that volleyball team: It may not have been his first order of business as new principal, but soon after Scott Anderle took over the position at Rosemont this year, he realized the volleyball court needed some upgrades when the team was playing its home games in the gym.

Anderle, who replaced Cynthia Livingston last summer as principal, observed the gym floor and the nets. He said the sports program was growing, and the quality of the net and court was inferior.

“[Our gym] had a portable volleyball net. It’s one of these where you roll it in and tie it to the walls. There no real line for it,” Anderle said, adding the netting was flimsy. “It was like the net used in a PE class.”

Aside from that, the setup for viewing matches wasn’t ideal. Some of the bleachers couldn’t be pulled out, meaning chairs had to be set up on the sidelines. Viewing the action courtside isn’t as great as it seems when a higher vantage point allows fans and parents to see more of the action.

“It was just a really poor setup,” Anderle said.

He said the coaches wanted institutional netting, which is what Crescenta Valley High School has, with fiberglass poles. The school set out to fundraise last year, but realized it might not be able to attain the $5,400 needed for upgrades. Anderle said the biggest problem was getting the brass plates into the gym floor.

Rosemont raised $2,400, and then wrote to the Mary Pinola/CV Chamber of Commerce Education Fund, which provides grants for educational purposes and projects in the CV area. Pinola granted the school enough to reach its goal.

To complete the upgrades, the entire gym floor had to be resurfaced, which meant club basketball teams that played games there couldn’t compete for a week. It didn’t affect the Rosemont boys’ and girls’ basketball teams; they were able to play on the floor starting in the fall when the floor was done.

Volleyball, of course, was able to play with the new nets.

“I think they have more pride in the program,” Anderle said of the students. “Our court looks so good.”

Anderle is a sports fanatic. He played football at Occidental College, and coached football at Glendale High School from 1995 to 1999, and track at the school from 1995 to 2000. This year, as head of Rosemont, he attended all basketball games, and played in the staff vs. students basketball game. He also supported the cross-country team during its practices, and saw some of the flag football games, just as Livingston was visible at almost all Spartan sporting events.

“Rosemont has always been considered a very good middle school. I think we’ve continued that reputation,” he said. “We’ve done well.”

  Brandon Hensley