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Granite Hills’ Dawson living dream for some as Gulls stick boy

By Phillip Brents

SAN DIEGO, May 5, 2002 --  It might seem the job of a lifetime to a youth hockey player – a behind the scenes assignment working for the San Diego Gulls professional hockey club. For Granite Hills High School junior Derek Dawson, it’s no dream.

Dawson has worked as a stick boy for the Gulls for the past four seasons. His duties include collecting and arranging players’ sticks, retrieving game worn jerseys for laundry, filling water bottles, folding towels as well as performing minor on-ice repair duties and running minor errands. He has traveled with the team on various road trips, including trips to Bakersfield, Fresno, Long Beach and even Tacoma, Wash.

While the duties may seem menial, the job does carry its built-in benefits. Dawson has received sticks, other souvenirs, and even a game worn practice jersey from players. It’s a treasure trove that most die-hard fans would envy.

"It’s kind of like family. The players are like brothers to me," Dawson said.

While Dawson works West Coast Hockey League games at the San Diego Sports Arena, he maintains an even closer link to the sport as a member of his school’s roller hockey team. Granite Hills finished runner-up to Rancho Bernardo in this year’s San Diego County High School Roller Hockey Conference championship game. The Broncos relegated Granite Hills to the second place finish with a 7-6 overtime victory March 1 at the Escondido Sports Center.

Dawson played defense on a team known for its offense. "We beat teams 12-1 during the season. We relied on our offense the whole season. It’s disappointing to go that far into the playoffs and lose in overtime," he said.

Dawson hoped his stick boy job with the Gulls would have lasted a little while longer – preferably into the Taylor Cup Finals. However, after earning a split with the Fresno Falcons in the opening two games of the Southern Division Finals at the Sports Arena, April 26-27, the Gulls fell to the Falcons twice in Fresno this past week to suffer elimination from this year's playoffs. It marked only the third time in the Gulls' seven-year history that they have failed to advance to the WCHL's championship playoff series. San Diego has made it to the league's semifinals, however, every year of the club's existence.

Fresno, which finished third in the WCHL's Southern Division regular season standings behind both the Gulls and Long Beach Ice Dogs will meet the Northern Division champion Idaho Steelheads in the best-of-seven Taylor Cup Finals that begin May 10.

WCHL Southern Division Finals Scoreboard

April 26: Fresno 3, Gulls 2 (in San Diego)

April 27: Gulls 4, Fresno 3/OT (in San Diego)

May 2: Fresno 4, Gulls 3/OT (in Fresno)

May 4: Fresno 4, Gulls 2 (in Fresno)

(Fresno wins best-of-five series 3-1)