LOCAL NOTES : U.S. Olympic Softball Team Goes to Work

The U.S. Olympic softball team, which was selected Monday, is training this week in preparation for the U.S. Olympic Cup that begins Friday in San Diego.

During the event, the U.S. team will face three of the top teams in the world: No. 2 Australia, No. 5 Canada and, on Friday, No. 7 New Zealand.

Irvine’s Jennifer Brundage, a former player at UCLA, was one of 15 players named to the team at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista.

Former Pacifica pitcher Amanda Freed, who will be a sophomore at UCLA this fall, was named one of five alternates.

Shirley Topley of Anaheim was named an assistant coach.

Brundage, 26, was a Olympic team alternate in 1996. The 2000 team is comprised of eight former Olympians, and three who were alternates in 1996.

Brundage led Irvine High to a Southern Section title in her senior year, 1991, and won NCAA titles with UCLA in 1992 and 1995. The Bruins finished second in 1993. She won the 1995 Honda Award as the nation’s outstanding college player, leading the nation and setting a Pacific 10 Conference record for highest season batting average (.518). She also hit 14 home runs.

Brundage was a first-team ASA All-American in 1997.

OBITUARY

Vernie Ford, a former girls’ athletic director at Fullerton High, died last week. Ford was athletic director for 33 years and was instrumental in establishing the Fullerton girls’ soccer program and a booster club for girls’ athletics at Fullerton.

A memorial service was held Sunday.