Famous Faces From Orange County: Misty May-Treanor

Although it may seem that Orange County lacks an emergence of athletic stars, one woman can change that image: Misty May-Treanor. Although she was born in Los Angeles, her parents moved to Costa Mesa after her eighth grade year and enrolled her at Newport Harbor High School. Her mother Barbara May, a nationally ranked tennis player, and her father Robert May, a member of the 1968 U.S. Men's National Volleyball team, were big influences in her athletic endeavors. At Newport Harbor, she helped her varsity women's indoor volleyball team to two state championships in 1992 and 1994. After high school she majored in kinesiology and physical education at Long Beach State University where she was the captain of the women's volleyball team, the first women's NCAA volleyball team to go undefeated in 1998.

Sydney, Australia was her first Olympic games in 200 where she partnered with Holly McPeak and placed fifth overall. This was the last time in a long time that May-Treanor experienced defeat as after she teamed up with Keri Walsh-Jennings the following year, nobody seemed to be able to beat them. The unstoppable duo rode an 89-game winning streak into the 2004 Olympics in Athens and swept through to the finals where they ultimately topped Brazil. Also during that year, May-Treanor married baseball player Matt Treanor who (at the time) played for the Florida Marlins, and later on for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Again in 2008 the two won Gold, this time against China, and broke their own record of winning 19 straight tournaments and 112 straight matches. The two parted ways and in 2010 May-Treanor teamed up with Nicole Branagh, but it just wasn't the same for May-Treanor who ended up pairing with Walsh-Jennings again in 2011. 2012 marked the London Olympics and also the 3rd straight Gold that the two would win together for the last time, beating fellow Americans out for the top honors.

Here's a list of May-Treanor's professional accomplishments:

AVP Best Defensive Player 2006, 2007 AVP Best Defensive Player (Defender) 2008 AVP Best Offensive Player 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 AVP Crocs Cup Champion 2006 (Kerry Walsh Jennings), 2007 (Kerry Walsh Jennings), 2008 (Kerry Walsh Jennings) AVP Most Valuable Player 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 AVP Team of the Year 2003 (Kerry Walsh Jennings), 2004 (Kerry Walsh Jennings), 2005 (Kerry Walsh Jennings), 2006 (Kerry Walsh Jennings), 2007 (Kerry Walsh Jennings), 2008 (Kerry Walsh Jennings) BVA Rookie of the Year 2000 FIVB Best Defensive Player 2007, 2008, 2011 FIVB Best Offensive Player 2005, 2007, 2008 FIVB Best Setter 2005 FIVB Most Inspirational 2012 FIVB Most Outstanding 2005, 2008 FIVB Sportsperson 2007, 2008, 2010 FIVB Tour Champion 2002 (Kerry Walsh Jennings)

Famous Face From Orange County: Phil Hughes

Another Orange County boy has made it to the big leagues. Just 10 years ago this 17-year old kid was walking from Pre-Calculus to English 4 at Foothill High School in Santa Ana. in December of last year he signed a $24 million contract over three years with the Minnesota Twins. He was born in Mission Viejo, 20 miles south of the High School that made him what he is today, an All-Star major league starting pitcher. Hughes had a 12-0 record with a 0.78 ERA his junior year and a 9-1 record with a 0.69 ERA his senior year while throwing one perfect game in that year.

Hughes planned on attending Santa Clara University after his senior year of high school but was drafted in the first round by the New York Yankees and earned a signing bonus of $1 million dollars as an 18-year old. In 2006, Hughes got his first start with Double-A Trenton and in November was labeled arguably the best pitching prospect in the nation and in 2007 became the second youngest player in the MLB, replacing Roger Clemens on the Yankee roster. He struggled in his rookie year but found his stride in '08-10 becoming a staple in the Yankee starting rotation and winning a World Series Ring in '09 despite his 16.20 ERA in the series as a reliever. In 2010, Hughes won all 5 of his first decisions of the year, leading to an All-Star selection that year. Plagues by injuries such as shoulder inflammation and a bulging disc in his back, Hughes was forced on the DL to start the 2011 season and hasn't been the same since. Although he just signed a big contract with the Twins, Hughes has the 3rd highest ERA of any pitcher in Yankee history who has thrown at least 500 innings. Regardless of his up and down career in the bigs, we love this local kid and support him 100%. Go Twins! 

PITCHING FEATURES:

91-95 MPH 4-Seam Fastball

87-90 MPH 2-Seam Fastball

73-77 MPH Spike Curveball

Mid-80's Vulcan Change-up (Vs. left-handed hitters)

Low-80's Slider (Vs. right-handed hitters)