Torrie Albini has only one gear - full speed ahead.

No matter if she was playing field hockey or basketball or running track, the former San Pasqual High standout would go over, under, around - and many times - through opponents.

And while that served her well at times, it has taken until her senior year in college to fully harness that energy and turn it into a positive.

"I played at 100 miles an hour in high school, and I'm still that way," said Albini, who is in her senior field hockey season at Ohio University. "But I'm a better player now because I've been able to give my undivided attention to one sport."

And she's healthy.

As a freshman in 2004, she struggled through the season with compartment syndrome, a malady in the muscles in her legs were too large for the compartment that contained them.

The result was numbness. The remedy was surgery that left two 3-inch scars on both legs.

The surgery and a change of coaches helped turn a one-goal freshman season into a 14-goal sophomore campaign.

She added 14 goals last season and has nine through 12 games this season.

With seven games to play, she has a chance to finish second in season and career goals at Ohio.

"We got a new coach (Neil Macmillan) before my sophomore year, and I credit him with taking my natural ability and aggressive nature and turning them into positives," Albini said. "I always knew I was capable of having some success, and he took my natural vision and taught me the techniques to make and receive passes.

"He taught me a variety of different hits.

"I built on that my sophomore and junior seasons. And this is my best season yet."

Albini had plenty of success in high school, leading San Pasqual to league titles in 2000, 2002 and 2003 while finishing with 81 career goals.

But she played for three coaches in four years in high school and didn't decide to make field hockey her sport in college until Thanksgiving weekend of her senior year.

"I really had high expectations coming in here as a freshman," Albini said.

"But I battled injuries that freshman year.

"I was hurting that season, but it helped me learn the flow and speed of the college game.

"It helped me establish the level of the competition."

And now, with only a handful of games remaining in her college career, Albini is turning her attention to post-college days.

"When this season is over, I'm hanging up my cleats and stick," Albini said.

"And I'm done with sports.

"I've lived in the Midwest for four years, and I want to go home.

"My parents (Vincent and Deanna) are in law enforcement, and I think I'd like to pursue that as a career, too."

Field hockey

• Carlyn Spangler (Valley Center) returns as a starter for her sophomore season at Mansfield University in Pennsylvania after a freshman season in which she was named to the NCAA Division II all-rookie team and was a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference scholar athlete of the year.

• Senior forward Kathryn Elenz-Martin (La Costa Canyon) has six goals and a pair of assists for a No. 5-ranked Michigan State team that is off to a 10-2 start.

• Liz Braasch (San Dieguito Academy) has stepped in as the starting goalie as a freshman at California. She has 16 saves in seven starts and a 1.09 goals-against average. Freshman defender Megan Psyllos (Torrey Pines) and senior defender Halley Crosthwaite (San Pasqual) are also key players for the Golden Bears.

• Sophomores Alex Zeringue (Fallbrook) and Heather Wiley (Torrey Pines) are key players at Michigan.

Baseball

• UCLA junior left-handed pitcher Tim Murphy (Rancho Buena Vista) was ranked as the No. 18 college prospect for the 2008 major league draft, putting him squarely in the first round.

• Right-hander Brian Wilson (Rancho Bernardo), the 2005 CIF San Diego Section player of the year, has transferred from Loyola Marymount to Cal State Fullerton.

• Danny Putnam (Rancho Bernardo) walked twice and scored two runs as the Sacramento River Cats, the top farm club of the Oakland A's, beat Richmond to win the Triple-A championship game.

Football

• Kicker Derek Belch (Torrey Pines) is a perfect 10-for-10 on extra points and has connected on 6-of-7 field goal attempts for Stanford. Belch booted field goals of 52 and 50 yards against San Jose State. His only field goal miss this season was from 47 yards against UCLA.

• Sophomore quarterback Sean Canfield is the starter at Oregon State and has completed 97-of-163 attempts for 1,041 yards, six touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Freshman Darrell Catchings (Escondido) is a starting receiver for the Beavers. He has 12 catches for 135 yards and a score.

• After sitting out the first three weeks of the season after a mass was removed from the inside of his leg, Fresno State linebacker Robert Schenck (Mission Hills) has been cleared to play.

• Well-traveled quarterback Derek Shaw (Oceanside), who was suspended by Fresno City College coach Tony Caviglia before the start of the season, is back playing. Shaw is now alternating quarters with Bryant Moniz for the unbeaten Rams, who are ranked No. 2 in Northern California.

Women's volleyball

• Junior outside hitter Taylor Groess (La Costa Canyon) had 21 kills for Saint Mary's in a win over Cal State Bakersfield.

• San Francisco senior Kristin Hasselberg (Carlsbad) had a match-high 21 kills against Cal State Bakersfield, giving her 1,356 career kills, third on the school's all-time list.

Men's water polo

• Mike Mulvey (Carlsbad), a junior attacker at Navy, leads the Midshipmen with 28 goals and eight assists, giving him 96 career goals and 50 assists. No. 13-ranked Navy (10-5) boasts wins over No. 3 Pacific, No. 14 St. Francis (N.Y.), No. 17 Santa Clara and No. 17 Air Force. Its five losses are to No. 2 California, No. 4 Stanford, No. 5 UC Irvine by 13-12, Pacific and St. Francis.

• UC Irvine senior Coulson Lantz (Carlsbad) has six goals and seven assists for an Anteaters team that won the Loyola Marymount Invitational.

• Peter Gresham (Torre Pines) and goalie Mark Stemler (Poway) are playing key roles on a UC San Diego men's that is ranked No. 14 in the nation.

Men's soccer

• Goalie Morgan Cathey (La Costa Canyon), who concluded a successful four-year career at Azusa Pacific, signed a professional contract with AJAX Cape Town. He's the first American to play in the South African Premier League.

• Sonoma State forward Nathan Medina (Mt. Carmel) was named the California Collegiate Athletic Association player of the week, after helping the Seawolves to a pair of conference victories over San Francisco State and Cal State Monterey Bay. Medina scored two goals against San Francisco State in a 3-2 victory and scored the final goal in a 2-0 win over Monterey Bay.

• Senior Steve Kaufman (La Costa Canyon) is a starting midfielder at UC Riverside.

• Ryan Anderson (La Costa Canyon), a freshman, and sophomore Mario Fernandez (Rancho Bernardo) are key contributors to a Cal Poly team that opened the season 5-1.

Titans connection

The Cal State Fullerton women's soccer team boasts four players from North County, and all are making major contributions to a 5-3-1 team.

Senior Brianna Buffington (Mt. Carmel) is a starting forward and has a pair of goals. Casey Schostag (Valley Center) is a starting midfielder and has a pair of assists. Leslie Munoz (Fallbrook), a junior midfielder, has played in all nine games, starting four.

Jenae Gibbens (Mt. Carmel), a junior defender, has started all nine games and has two goals and two assists. She was named Big West Conference player of the week and was named to the Soccer Buzz team of the week after anchoring a Titans defense that was sensational in wins over Oklahoma and No. 14-ranked California.

Women's soccer

• Harvard sophomore goalie Lauren Mann (La Costa Canyon) was named the Ivy League player of the week after recording 12 saves without allowing a goal in wins over Boston University and Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Last year's Ivy League rookie of the year had made a crucial save late in the game to save the match against Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

• Amanda Rupp (La Costa Canyon), a junior forward at Pepperdine, was named to the all-tournament team at the WCC/ACC Challenge.

• Lizzy Karoly (San Pasqual) has started all nine games and has a goal and an assist as a sophomore at Texas Christian. Katie Taylor (Mission Hills), a freshman, has made one start for the Horned Frogs.

• Leigh Ann Robinson (Mt. Carmel) and Vanessa Vella (La Costa Canyon) of the University of San Diego were named to the all-tournament team at the WCC/ACC Challenge. Robinson, a senior midfielder, had the assist on the game-winning goal against No. 19 Wake Forest. Vella, a senior defender, anchored a defense that held No. 22 Duke to a scoreless tie. USD also recently played to a 0-0 tie with No. 6 UCLA with Robinson hitting the crossbar on a shot in overtime. Natalie Vinti (La Costa Canyon) is a starting defender for the Toreros.

• Carrie Dew (La Costa Canyon) is a starting defender at Notre Dame. Sophomore Kelsey Lysander (Rancho Bernardo) has made one start in goal for the Irish.

• Kelly McCann (La Costa Canyon) is a starting defender a 5-2-2 Duke team that allowed just two goals in the season's first five games. McCann, who has started all nine games, had a pair of assists in a 6-0 win over Elon.

• Chelsey Campbell (Rancho Bernardo) is a starting midfielder on a UC San Diego team that is ranked No. 1 in the nation among NCAA Division II teams.

• Alexandria Seydel (Westview) is a starting defender on an Iowa team that has opened the season 5-1-3. She has a goal and two assists, and played a key role in Friday's Big Ten win over Michigan State.

• Whitney Sisler (La Costa Canyon) is a starter as a freshman at Cal Poly.

• Colleen Lopez (Rancho Buena Vista) is a part-time starter as a freshman at UC Irvine, while freshman Kellie Murphy (Torrey Pines) is a key reserve.

• Anna Farlow (La Costa Canyon) is a team captain, has started all eight games and is second on the team with three goals and an assist at Doane College in Crete, Neb.

Around campus

• Lucy McGovern (Cathedral Catholic) of Loyola (Chicago) shot a 79-77 - 156 to tie for 21st in the Brickyard Invitational in Indianapolis. The sophomore has now been the Ramblers top finisher in eight consecutive matches dating back to last fall.

• Cross country runner Jake LeVieux (La Costa Canyon) was named UC San Diego's male athlete of the week after finishing first on the team at the UC Irvine Invitational.

- John Maffei's Alumni Report appears every other Monday through the college season. He can be reached at (760) 740-3547, by fax at (760) 740-5045 or at jmaffei@nctimes.com. Readers are urged to submit information on former North County prep athletes. Comment at sports.nctimes.com.