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The SAC Dons (12-4, 1-0 OEC) posted a pair of runs in each of the first three innings to quickly put Riverside (9-7, 0-1 OEC) in a hole.
In the first inning with two outs, freshman 1B Chris Miller singled to left field and went to second when the ball skipped past sophomore LF Bryce Holland for an error. Miller went to third on a wild pitch before sophomore C James Davis drew a walk. Up stepped sophomore RF Jake Eccles who promptly socked a 0-1 pitch down the left-field line for a two-run double and Santa Ana led, 2-0. Little did anyone realize that Eccles was just getting started on a seven-RBI day.
In the Santa Ana third inning, Davis singled to center and Eccles crushed a 1-1 pitch to straightaway left field for a two-run home run, his team-leading eighth round tripper of the season.
For good measure in the top of the ninth, Eccles capped the four-run uprising with a three-run home run to dead center field for his ninth circuit clout of the year.
Riverside got on the board in the bottom of the third. Sophomore SS Richie Jimenez drew a one-out walk before sophomore C Brett Hambright stroked a run-producing double to right-center field, scoring Jimenez. With two outs, pinch-hitter Landon McMath, who inherited a 0-2 count, took a pitch for ball one and then turned on a 1-2 pitch and laced a RBI-double down the left-field line, plating Hambright.
Santa Ana starter, sophomore LHP Nick Capito went the first six innings and allowed only two earned runs on six hits to improve to 3-0. Riverside starter, Kessler Reifel (0-1) went just 2-1/3 innings and allowed six runs (four earned) on five hits to get the loss.
Both teams return to OEC action on Saturday, Feb. 28, at noon when Riverside visits the Fullerton College Hornets and Santa Ana hosts the Cypress College Chargers.
San Bernardino Valley College men's basketball coach Quincy Brewer is going to get a chance to see exactly where his young team stands.
The Wolverines (8-2) open play in the 39th annual Wells Fargo Holiday Classic at Riverside Community College at 7 p.m. Wednesday against defending state champion Citrus (10-1).
The field includes 16 teams with four first-round games on tap Tuesday and four more on Wednesday.
The No. 9 Wolverines turned over their entire roster so one would think Brewer would be happy with his team's first 10 games. But that isn't exactly the case.
"I am disappointed with those two games because there are things we could have done better. We didn't execute," he said.
The event is a grind with some teams playing four games in as many days and others playing that many in five days. It is one reason Chaffey, which has traditionally played in the event, pulled out, opting instead for another three-game tournament.
Brewer has been using 11 players and thinks his team is good enough shape physically to handle the rigorous schedule.
"I worked them pretty hard in the preseason," he said. "It is probably more taxing mentally than physically."
Brewer is starting five newcomers - sophomore guard Warren Fuselier (16.9 ppg, 4.5 apg) and freshmen guards D'Shaun Holden (6.4 ppg, 3.8 rpg) and Alex Jacobs (7.5 ppg), freshman forward Aaron Edwards (13.4 ppg, 7.4 rpg) and freshman center Orlando Brazier (10.9 ppg, 3.9 ppg).
The Wolverines also have two players averaging double figures off the bench in Nathan Roth (10 ppg, 3.4 apg) and Maurice McGee (10.5 ppg).
Brewer has been particularly pleased with Jacobs, a San Gorgonio product who quit the team early in the fall, only to return a few days later. He was 8-for-14 from 3-point land earlier against Ventura.
No. 2 Citrus had a 31-game win streak that dates back to last season snapped when it lost to Reedley 72-68 on Nov. 29 at a tournament it hosted.
It's last previous loss came to Antelope Valley last year in the semifinal of the same tournament at Riverside.
The Owls also rely on their balance with sophomore guard Justin Johnson (13.7 ppg), freshman guard Jose Rivera (13.4 ppg), sophomore forward Troy Payne (10.8 ppg, 11.1 rpg), sophomore guard Steven Bennett (10.3 ppg, 3.9 apg) all in double figures.
SBVC and Citrus are two of the teams that carry lofty state rankings into the event. Riverside (10-3), which opens play tonight against College of the Desert, is No. 5.
Others are No. 9 Yuba and No. 19 Pasadena City College.
RCC is led by sophomore guard Robert Robinson (17.2 ppg, 6.5 rpg) and sophomore forward Charles Garcia (12.9 ppg, 7.2 rpg). Among the other key players are freshman guard Daniel Redmon (5.5 ppg, 4.7 apg) and freshman forward Kevin Bradshaw (5.6 ppg, 3.4 rpg), both out of Upland High School.
at Riverside CC
Tuesday's games
Fullerton (4-4) vs. East Los Angeles (4-6), 1 p.m.
Mt. San Jacinto (6-4) vs. Long Beach City (4-4), 3 p.m.
West Los Angeles (6-4) vs. Compton (1-9), 5 p.m.
Desert (5-4) vs. Riverside (10-3), 7 p.m.
Wednesday's games
Antelope Valley (6-6) vs. Pasadena (7-3), 1 p.m.
Yuba (6-1) vs. Palomar (4-4), 3 p.m.
Saddleback (4-5) vs. Imperial Valley (1-7), 5 p.m.
Citrus (10-1) vs. San Bernardino Valley (8-2), 7 p.m.
Staff Writer
RIVERSIDE - Last year the biggest problem for the Victor Valley
College football team was offense. That doesn't look to be the
problem this year.
Freshman quarterback O'Ryan Bradley threw for 236 yards and the
Rams amassed 441 yards total offense but fell to host Riverside
Community College Saturday at Wheelock Field in the 2008 debut for
both teams.
Victor Valley Coach Dave Hoover was not surprised with the numbers
since his team looked much the same in last week's scrimmage. While
they moved the ball successfully against a quality foe, they gave up
359 yards.
``We didn't play hard enough and we didn't play physical enough,''
Hoover said after addressing his team at midfield. ``It was the first
college game for a lot of these guys and I don't think they
understood the intensity you have to play it. I hope they know now.''
That doesn't mean the winning side was completely satisfied
either. Riverside's Bill Brown wasn't pleased with his defense or his
special teams as the Tigers missed four extra points.
``I wasn't happy that we gave up 51 points and we have to work on
our special teams,'' he said. ``We have some great athletes and we're
going to make some plays. If we can iron out a few things, we should
have a chance at winning the conference.''
Victor Valley stuck with RCC early. It spotted the host team a
7-0 lead with Redlands High graduate Coy Glass directing a 62-yard
drive on the team's first possession that ended with a 36-yard toss
to Travis Carter.
The Rams drew even on their ensuing possession, striking with the
big play as Bradley connected with Silverado product Deandre
Glasper on a 70-yard pass play with Glasper hauling in the pass at
the Tigers 30 and racing the rest of the way.
The Rams took a 10-7 lead on a 39-yard field goal by Andrew
Paredes but that lead was short lived as RCC retaliated soon after
with a drive of its own, this one ending with an 8-yard toss from
Glass to former high school teammate Corey Ham, giving the Tigers
back a 13-10 lead.
Victor Valley's second lead of the game came when O.C. Craig
returned a punt 36 yards for a touchdown to go up 17-13. But that
would be its last advantage. RCC scored twice more before the end of
the half, both times on scoring passes by Glass. His 4-yarder to
Winston Hutchinson gave the Tigers a 20-17 edge and was the fourth
lead change of the half.
A 29-yarder from Glass to Jacob Slouka with 2:45 left in the second
quarter made it 27-17 and the Rams were never within single digits
again.
O'Bradley spread the ball out to nine different receivers with his
favorite target being Glasper, who caught four passes for 74 yards.
He also rushed for 47 on 11 tries. The biggest weapon in the ground
game was Ryan Sampson who who only had four carries but managed
66yards.
``I am disappointed because I thought it was a winnable game,''
Hoover said. ``And it only gets tougher from here.''
Meanwhile Glass threw for 184 yards, evenly split among seven
receivers. He threw five touchdowns without an interception.
The Tigers rushed for 175 yards, 156 of that by Cedric Foster.
Next week the Rams will host Palomar at 1 p.m. while the Tigers
will head to the neighboring county to renew their rivalry with San
Bernardino Valley College at 6 p.m.
Victor Valley 10 7 7 7 - 31
Riverside 13 21 6 6 - 52
R - Travis Carter 36 pass from Coy Glass (Albert Jiminez kick)
VV - DeAndre Glasper 30 pass from O'Ryan Bradley (Andrew Paredes
kick)
VV - Parades 39 FG
R - Corey Ham 8 pass from Glass (kick failed)
VV - O.C. Craig 36 punt return (Paredes kick)
R - Winston Hutchenson 4 pass from Glass (Jiminez kick)
R - Jacob Slouka 29 pass from Glass (Jiminez kick)
R - Cedric Foster 7 run (Jiminez kick)
VV- Glasper 3 run (Paredes kick)
R- Foster 3 run (kick failed)
R - Hutchenson 9 pass from Glass (kick failed)
VV - Mel Carmichael 1 run (Paredes kick)
Dress rehearsals are over. The curtain on the new football season comes up for real Saturday with all area junior college teams in action.
The most notable game will take place in the neighboring county as Victor Valley travels to Riverside Community College's Wheelock Field for a 6 p.m. showdown for the first ever meeting between the schools.
Two other games that would have been Foothill Conference contests in the past are now just nonconference tuneups after a complete retooling of the playoff structure. Chaffey will host Mt. San Jacinto while San Bernardino Valley College travels to College of the Desert, both kick off at 6 p.m.
Riverside and Chaffey are both part of the tougher Central Conference of the National Division while SBVC and Victor Valley are both in the weaker Mountain Conference of the American Division.
The nonconference games loom large for SBVC and Victor Valley because just two of the eight playoff berths will come from the American Division so this gives them a chance to show they belong.
The team in the stronger conference need to win against what are considered lesser foes because of the competition they will see in conference later in the season. The National Division will have six teams in the playoffs, including a handful of wildcards.
But coaches are focusing on the task right in front of them.
"Every game is as important as the next," said Riverside coach Bill Brown, starting his seventh year. "We haven't talked about any other team but Victor Valley."
Riverside was 4-5 a year ago. Sophomore quarterback Coy Glass, a Redlands High School product, leads the offense after sharing duty there last season. Brown indicated he would probably use several running backs and receivers to see who emerges.
The Rams, coming off a 3-7 season, scrimmaged Antelope Valley and Pomona-Pitzer last week and coach Dave Hoover was pleased, especially with his offense. He went through four quarterbacks last year and the offense never did click.
"We churned out some big plays and that's something we were lacking last year. We couldn't move the ball to save our life," he said. "Defensively we're quite young so I'm not quite sure what we have there. But that's something most coaches are probably saying this time of year."
Riverside will be the first of three tough nonconference games for the Rams. Next up is Palomar, then juggernaut Mt. SAC. Hoover is hoping his team survives the tough nonconference grind.
"Health is my biggest concern, playing the teams we're playing to start out," he said. Do I think we can win all three? No. But we're going to compete and I think we can play with anyone in our conference. But one or two injuries and we become very average very fast."
Both SBVC coach Pat Meech and Chaffey coach Carl Beach said right now there is not much of a different feel to the season since they are playing familiar foes, although in a different situation.
"I don't think it's much different for us as coaches because we're still playing teams we know and have played in the past," Meech said. "You're getting player turnover every couple of years so there isn't much familiary with any opponent."
SATURDAY GAMES
MT. SAN JACINTO at CHAFFEY
Time: 6 p.m.
About MSJ: The Eagles are looking to erase the memory of a 1-8 season in which the lone win came over San Diego Mesa. Second-year coach Casey Mazzotta returns QB Colin Wigley and inherited a transfer from SBVC in RB DeShaun Smith. The offensive line they have to work should be much improved led by Jose Acuna and center Sol Sagaio. Top defenders are OLB Ezra Latu, DE Zack Van Deusen and MLB Cole Moseley.
About Chaffey: The Panthers defeated the Eagles 28-10 last season in what was then a conferfence game. It is now a non-conference showdown. Greg Sprowls will run the offense called by new coordinator Matt Bechtel. Leading rusher Jahmel Rover (knee) is out so the Panthers will rely on backfield-by-committee with Tyler Thompson, John Alejandro and Matt Chase sharing the workload. Top cover man Mike Fields (knee) is also out but the Panthers should create pressure up front which is where their experience should be a factor. The biggest question mark will be Chaffey's kicking teams.
VICTOR VALLEY at RIVERSIDE
Time: 6 p.m.
About Victor: Coach Dave Hoover is excited about the potential of his offense led by quarterbacks Elisah Filipili and O'Ryan Bradley, both of whom should see playing time. Bradley is a transfer from UNLV where he tried to walk on. Hoover likes also likes the progress of his offensive line which consists of Alex Mitchell, Beau Humphrey, Louis Morales, Ramon Sandoval and Andrew Gomez - all High Desrt natives. WR Jarrett Partman will be out this week. Eric Brinkley, who has moved from linebacker to safety, and Aaron Mosley key the defense.
About Riverside: Redlands product Coy Glass directs the Tigers offense. Coach Bill Brown will use a stable of running backs in the early going with Cedric Foster, Ben Irwin, Ivan Lopez and Tanner Paes among those seeing action. Travis Carter, Corey Ham (Redlands) and Tommy Curry will be the key receivers. T.J. Tuigamala is the most experienced lineman. Jamell Murry and Andrew Smith (Redlands) lead the defense.
SAN BERNARDINO VALLEY at DESERT
Time: 6 p.m.
About Valley: Sophomore QB Mike Stadler returns but he will be surrounded by mostly newcomers - the most notable being San Bernardino High School alumn Dewayne Booker. He will backed up Devan Libran. Thad Quist and Terrance Humes anchor the offensive line with Humes coming back from a knee injury that sidelined him most of last season. Leaders on defense are S James Hutchins and LB Cordelle Nugent.
About Desert: The Roadrunners were conference champion last year in what was the Foothill Conference. They defeated the Wolverines 27-14 in that run. QB Brent Rausch (Hawaii) has departed but Desert inherited its usual boatload of out-of-state transfers with almost 50 from outside California.
- Compiled by Michelle Gardner
San Bernardino Valley College football coach Pat Meech knows his school lacks the resources to compete weekly against the more traditional powers in Southern California. Now he doesn't have to do so.
The junior college season will kick off this week and the entire conference structure and playoff format has been reworked. The Foothill Conference no longer exists. Adios Mission Conference. Sayonara Western State Conference.
The sport will now be governed under the umbrella of the Southern California Football Association.
Teams are separated into two divisions - the National and American. The National is subdivided into three seven-team conferences (Northern, Central, Southern) while the American has two eight-team conferences (Mountain, Pacific).
The National Division, the power conference, includes perennial title contenders such as Mt. SAC, Bakersfield and former Foothill Conference juggernaut Grossmont. Chaffey, Riverside and Citrus are among the other entrants.
SBVC and Victor Valley factor into the weaker American Divsion. But Meech doesn't mind being lumped into the also-ran category.
"Am I afraid of those schools? No. I would like to play them," he said. "But it would be crazy to think we can go head-to-head with those teams week after week after week."
Veteran Chaffey coach Carl Beach, who was on the committee that developed the new alignment, isn't quite sure his team is ready to battle the big boys, citing resources and enrollment but admits past success is the reason his school has been put in with the stronger teams.
"It's more about what we have done in the past. I'm not so sure we belong there but we'll see," he said.
The alignments will be reviewed every two years with some teams moving up or down depending on competitive balance.
A similar format has been used in the Northern part of the state for several years and received a favorable review.
When it comes to picking a field for the playoffs, eight teams will be chosen. Each of the three National Division conference will be given two spots for a total of six teams.
The American Division would qualify the winner of each conference for the final two spots, provided those teams finish with winning records. If a conference winner is not above .500, a wild-card would be chosen based on state power ranking.
There will be three additional bowl games for teams not making the playoffs to be awarded based on state ranking.
The original plan called for four teams to make the playoffs with all of those coming from the power division. The lesser schools balked at that idea so the current format was a compromise.
Beach said the committee wanted to get the new system in place. This one primarily divided teams based on their competitive history.
When the alignment is addressed again in two years he said more emphasis will be placed on enrollment, particularly a school's ability to draw out-of-state athletes. Resources and facilities will also be issues.
"I think it's fair," Meech added. "It will be good for us to play teams more like us."
Teams in the American Division will have seven conference games, then fill out their schedule with three games against the National Division, giving them a chance to boost their power ranking and see if they are competitive against those teams.
SBVC's nonconference foes will be Riverside, College of the Desert and Saddleback. The Wolverines have played Riverside 68 times, the first coming in 1926 but haven't faced the Tigers since 2002.
Victor Valley's opponents will be Riverside, Palomar and Mt. SAC.
Rams coach Dave Hoover was alright with the division of the teams but isn't happy with his brutal nonconference schedule.
"Not only are we probably playing the three best teams, we're playing the three most physical teams," he said. "It was a nice idea having the big dogs play the big dogs. It all makes sense. But their nonconference games should be against the teams in their divison in the other conferences."
Chaffey and the other teams in the National Division have six conference games and four non-conference contests.
The Panthers will square off against Mt. San Jacinto, Southwestern, Antelope Valley and Grossmont - all significantly longer trips than treking 20 minutes to SBVC.
While SBVC is excited about renewing its rivalry with Riverside, it is mystified why Chaffey wasn't included on the non-conference schedule since rivalries were also supposed to be kept in tact. That also baffles Beach.
Coaches were allowed to submit a list of three teams they wanted to keep games with and both SBVC and Chaffey listed the other as their top choice.
"It doesn't make sense. We have to pass them by to go to all out other games," Beach said.
Hoover asked to keep Antelope Valley, Desert and Chaffey and got none of those.
NATIONAL DIVISION
Northern Conference: Allan Hancock, Bakersfield, College of the Canyons, Glendale, Moopark, Pasadena City, Ventura
Central Conference: Cerritos,Chaffey, Citrus, College of the Desert, El Camino, Mt. SAC, Riverside
Southern Conference: Fullerton, Grossmont, Long Beach City, Orange Coast, Palomar, Saddleback, Santa Ana
AMERICAN DIVISION
Mountain Conference: Compton, Golden West, L.A. Harbor, Mt. San Jacinto, San Bernardino Valley,San Diego Mesa, Southwestern, Victor Valley
Pacific Conference: Antelope Valley, East Los Angeles, L.A. Pierce, L.A. Southwest, L.A. Valley,Santa Barbara, Santa Monica, West Los Angeles
Dylan Nielson, who ran the lead-off on the state-champion 4x100 relay team and also competed in the high hurdles, signed a full scholarship with Utah State. Meanwhile, teammate Lance Gonzales, who competed in the decathlon, javelin and long jump, has decided to continue his education and athletic career at Cal State Northridge on a full scholarship.
Both of these young men were clutch performers this year," said McCarron. "They were big factors in the our state championship run, and I know will have an immediate impact at the conference and national level at their universities."
Gonzales, who finished second in the decathlon and third in the javelin and seventh in the long jump at the state meet, is making a run for the 2012 Olympic Team in London. He concluded his career at Riverside as the record-holder in the decathlon, a student of distinction and a holder of a 3.4 GPA.
"I'm going to Northridge to focus specifically on the decathlon and possibly a shot at making the 2012 Olympic Team," said Gonzales, who is majoring in Physical Education and plans to become a teacher and a coach.
Nielson, a graduate of Palm Desert High School, said "Utah is a place where I can get that business degree, continue to develop as a hurdler and possibly, too, make the 2012 Olympic Team."
Mississippi Braves right-hander Thomas Hanson didn't exactly get off to a good start in his outing Wednesday against the Birmingham Barons.
Hanson, a graduate of Redlands East Valley High School and Riverside Community College, issued two walks, hit a batter and threw a wild pitch in the first inning. But he regrouped quite nicely. In fact Hanson ended up throwing the first no-hitter in the history of the Double-A Southern League franchise, striking out a career-high 14 in a 6-0 victory.
"I felt really good in the bullpen warming up," he said. "I was pumped, maybe a little too pumped. I just tried to calm myself down and just attack the strike zone the way I normally do."
Hanson, 21, said it was his first no-hitter since Little League. He came close last year at Low-A Rome where he had a no-hitter broken up in the seventh.
A more casual approach this time helped.
"I tried not to think about it as much," he said. "It is hard not to think about it. last year I kept sitting there thinking `I hope they don't get a hit.' This time I just tried to focus on what I had to do to get guys out."
Hanson said Birmingham, an affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, had two hard hit balls, one coming on the last out of the game when Ricardo Nanita lined out to centerfielder Jordan Shafer.
"He got good wood on it. Squared up pretty good," he said. "Fortunately it was right at someone."
With the win Hanson improved to 4-3 on the season with a 4.32 earned run average in nine starts. He has 49 strikeouts in 50 innings. Take out one bad outing in which he allowed eight earned runs and his ERA is a nifty 3.02.
Hanson, a 22nd round draft pick, started the season with the Braves affiliate in Myrtle Beach, S.C., of the High-A Carolina League but earned a promotion after going 3-1 with 49 strikeouts in 40 innings and an 0.90 ERA in seven starts there.
Fresno City College topped all other junior college athletic programs and has been named winner of the National Alliance of Two-Year Colleges Athletic Administrator's Cup for the 2007-2008 school year.
Fresno totaled 164 points as the top four schools were within seven points. It was followed by Cerritos (160), Sierra (159) and Mt. SAC (157).
Riverside Community College was sixth (139.5).
Other local schools finished in the middle portion of the 103 school rankings.
Chaffey was 41st with 40 points, getting all its points in the pool. The Panthers got 15.5 points in women's water polo, 14.5 in men's swimming and 10 in women's swimming.
San Bernardino Valley College was 47th (28.5), with 20 coming for its state championship in men's cross country and the other 8.5 coming in women's soccer which finished as the Foothill Conference runner-up.
The Chaffey College baseball team waited a little too long to make its move Friday. By the time it did, it was a little too late.
The Panthers fell to host Riverside Community College 7-6 in the opening game of a best-of-three Southern California Regional at Chaffey. The teams will play again at 11 a.m. today, with the deciding game to follow if Chaffey wins.
"We didn't cash in early when we had some chances and that was the difference," Panthers coach Jeff Harlow said. "We always play well at home and we feel we can come back at any time, but we dug ourselves too big a hole."
The Tigers (28-17), the fifth place team out of the Orange Empire Conference, surged out to a 7-1 lead, scoring six of those runs with two outs.
Cody Madison was the main contributor to RCC's early rallies, stroking a two-run home run in the third off Chaffey starter Andrew Schile to give the visitors a 3-0 lead.
He added a three-run double off reliever Julian Ramirez in the sixth that extended the Tigers' lead to 7-1.
Foothill Conference champion Chaffey (30-10) began its comeback in the bottom of the inning, aided by the control touble of Riverside starter Erick Carrillo.
Jonathan Peters singled and James Koerner and Josh Manzano worked walks to load the bases with none out. Carrillo came close to working out of the jam, enticing strikeouts from Mychal Johnson and Jonathan Costantino, both of whom swung at pitches in the dirt.
Gerry Hernandez showed a little more patience by working the count to 3-2 before walking, forcing home a run to cut the deficit to 7-2.
It became a game again seconds later when Ryan Delgado blasted a first-pitch slider from Carrillo over the right-center fence, a grand slam that cut the deficit to 7-6.
The Panthers were just 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position before the blast and were just 2-for-14 in the game in that department.
"I was just looking for a pitch I could drive," said Delgado, who now has 11 home runs this season. "That felt could because it gave us some momentum."
Willie Holmes just missed tying the game seconds later, blasting an offering from reliever Sean Greer off the top of the center-field fence for a triple.
Anthony Delgado then walked and stole second, but the rally ended there when Madison chased down a deep fly ball off the bat of Peters.
The bullpens of the respective teams then restored order: Neither team had a 1-2-3 innings through the first seven, but both did in the eighth and ninth.
Schile (9-3), the conference pitcher of the year, took the loss. He gave up four runs and eight hits and struck out five while walking two, and exited with the Panthers down 4-1.
Ramirez pitched 4 and a third innings and held the Tigers scoreless over the three, retiring the final nine hitters he faced.
Carrillo (3-1) earned the win. He scattered seven hits, five walks and six strikeouts.
Right-hander Kyle Morgan, a freshman out of Redlands East Valley, retired nine of the 10 hitters he faced over three innings to notch his second save for RCC.
"We're coming in here tomorrow with the thought of winning two," Harlow said. "This team battles and never gives up. We showed that today."
RANCHO CUCAMONGA -- One can forgive the Chaffey College baseball team for heading into the playoffs with a bit of a chip on its shoulder.
The Panthers (30-9) come out of a weaker conference. They haven't had great success in the playoffs lately and they usually face a tough draw. Maybe they don't get enough respect.
They have a chance to gain some as they square off against defending state champion Riverside (27-17) in the best of three Southern California Regional the first game getting under way at 3 p.m. Friday.
Game two is slated for 11 a.m. Saturday, with the deciding game following if necessary.
It will also be a chance to strike a blow against a team that they go head-to-head with in recruiting.
"We have guys that tried out over there and got cut. So yes I would hope there is a little bit of incentive," Chaffey coach Jeff Harlow said. "They're from that dominant conference so it is a chance for us to make a statement."
Sophomore right-hander Andrew Schile (8-2, 2.94), the pitcher of the year in the Foothill Conference, will be on the mound for the Panthers, seeded seventh in the 18-team draw.
He doesn't think there is any extra pressure because of the opponent or the situation.
"It's the playoffs so you always want to win. We don't want to win more because it's RCC," he said. "But it will make it more rewarding if we do beat them."
The No. 10 Tigers were the fifth-place team out of the Orange Empire Conference, regarded as the toughest in the state. Last year's state championship series featured two schools from the conference, with Riverside downing Cypress for the title.
None in the Panther camp are surprised with the first-round matchup.
"We thought all long we would get them," sophomore catcher Mike Surina said. "We have been looking at it all season so we're not surprised. It will be fun because we all have played with and against a lot of their players."
It has been four years since the Panthers advanced past the first round. They cruised through conference play this season which probably isn't a good thing. They won the conference by three games and were so dominant they swept runner-up Rio Hondo - 15-0, 11-6 and 11-1.
This was the third straight conference title for the Panthers. Harlow, whose teams have made the playoffs five straight years, admits that Orange Empire teams are better prepared for the postseason because of the competition they see year-round.
Of Chaffey's 24 conference games, only six were decided by less than three runs.
"There's not a lot we can do about it," Harlow said. "We try and play the toughest preseason schedule we can get but facing that much competition is an advantage for them."
The Panthers had nine players earn all-conference honors. Joining Schile on the first team are freshman Willie Holmes (.408, 42 RBI), sophomore outfielder Mychal Johnson (.336, 42 runs), sophomore catcher Anthony Delgado (.384, 26 runs), sophomore third baseman Ryan Delgado (.329, 43 RBI) and sophomore first baseman Josh Manzano (.349 26 runs).
Second-team selections included sophomore left-hander Andrew Steinmeyer (5-1, 3.86), who will likely start one of the other games, freshman outfielder Jonathan Costantino (.359, 44 runs) and sophomore shortstop James Koerner (.336, 44 RBI).
Steinmeyer and Schile both pitched gems in their last outings. Harlow has also been pleased with the emergence of his relief crew, particularly sophomores Tim Redmon and Bret wolf and freshman Erik Bastio.
Top players for the Tigers are freshman second baseman Daniel Duran, sophomore outfielder Michael Hur and freshman third baseman Billy Hamilton (Carter HS).
Kaiser High grad Erick Carrillo (2-1, 4.03) and sophomore Peter Birdwell (2-1, 4.67) have drawn the majority of the starts. Redlands East Valley product Kyle Morgan (6-2, 2.27) has a team-high 22 appearances, all out of the bullpen.
