Steve Ramirez talks Prep Sports

Basketball: Mats, Chiefs prep for CIF-SS playoffs by closing league play with wins

2012-02-11T18:54:57Z

The La Mirada boys and Santa Fe girls teams knew they couldn't claim a league title Friday. But that didn't stop the two from closing the regular season with wins, which could give them some momentum going into the CIF-Southern Section playoffs, which begin Wednesday. Pairings are announced Sunday.
La Mirada (17-11) secured fourth place with a 73-57 victory at Cerritos in a Suburban League game. The Matadores were led by the sophomore guard duo of Taelin Webb and Deion Golffin, with 21 and 13 points, respectively.
On the girls side, Santa Fe (17-10) got a key 3-pointer in the final 20 seconds from senior Jackie Saiza and 14 points from Alisa Bueno to score a 36-33 victory over La Serna (13-14) to wrap up second place in the Del Rio League.
La Serna, which received 16 points from Rachel Nichols and 14 from Nanette Beightol, had sliced a Santa Fe' 33-22 lead to three points with less than a minute to play. But Saiza, with the shot clock at two seconds saved the day, draining a 3-pointer to clinch the victory. Beightol hit a 3-pointer with two seconds left to account for the final 36-33 score.

Here is the La Mirada game story
La Mirada 73, Cerritos 57

CIF-SS Wrestling: Santa Fe gets No. 2 seed for Division 3 duals; California, Schurr also earn bids

2012-02-10T01:05:01Z

Above: Santa Fe's Joey Davis leads the Chiefs quest for a CIF-SS dual championship on Saturday. Santa Fe will host the Division 3 meet, beginning at 11 a.m. (Staff photo by Keith Birmingham)

The CIF-Southern Section office released pairings for Saturday's dual wrestling championships and traditional power Santa Fe leads a group of three area teams selected.
The Chiefs, who won another Del Rio League title, received the No. 2 seed in Division 3 and will face Torrance, an at-large entry from the Pioneer league in the first round of the Division 3 meet, which is scheduled for Santa Fe High.
California, runner-up to Santa Fe in the Del Rio League, received an at-large entry and will meet Pioneer League champion North Torrance in the first round.
Schurr, which won the Almont League, will face Woodbridge, and at-large entry from the Pacific Coast League, in the Division 5 meet at Irvine High School.
All first round matches are slated to begin at 11 a.m., with the quarterfinals at 3 p.m., the semifinals at 5 and finals at 7:15 p.m.

Boys basketball: Cal High clinches a share of Del Rio League title; Cantwell loses title shot against St. Bernard

2012-02-09T18:10:46Z

Above: California's Roberto Campos, right, keeps the ball away from Santa Fe's Andrew Jimenez during Wednesday's Del Rio League game. The Condors routed the Chiefs, 62-41. (Photo by Chris Burt / Correspondent)

It was championship night for the area's top two teams in the area, with one happy story, the other not so much.
California, getting 26 points from Matt Lambrecht and 13 points and eight rebounds from Roberto Campos, clinched a share of the Del Rio League title with a 62-41 victory over Santa Fe. The Condors can win the title outright with a win at El Rancho on Friday. Second-place Whittier, which beat El Rancho on Wednesday, can gain a piece of the title if it defeats Pioneer and the host Dons can beat the Condors.
Over in the Camino Real League, Cantwell had a shot to get a piece of the league crown. But Brandon Randolph scored 24 points and Lance Booker had 14 and host St. Bernard won the league championship with a 66-57 victory over the Cardinals in Playa Del Rey. Cantwell, which slipped to 22-5, received 17 and 15 points, respectively from Jose Estrada and Jacob Contreras.

Cal High coach Jason Van Duyne: "We wanted to dictate the pace. playing an up-tempo game, to take Santa Fe out of their game plan. And it seemed to work."
Cantwell coach George Zedan: They were ready to play us. But with all that said, I still feel like if we could make a layup here or there, if we could make some free throws here and there, I still think (we could win). It's going to bother us for a while. We worked so hard, and I feel we were prepared. But sometimes it happens. It's very frustrating."

Here are the two game stories
Cal 62, Santa Fe 41
St. Bernard 66, Cantwell 57

La Serna stepping up football schedule, to include Westlake and Norco

2012-02-08T05:02:37Z

WEDNESDAY UPDATE:
I got an interesting e-mail from our SGVN scouting guru and confirmed this morning by La Serna football coach Margarito Beltran that Lancers, who advanced to a CIF-Southern Section divisional championship game for the first time since the 1960s, is bulking up its schedule for 2012. La Serna, which was 10-4 last fall, will feature a slate that includes CIF-SS power Westlake and Norco. Rancho Christian, of Temecula, Downey and Bonita are also on the nonleague schedule, according to Beltran.
Corona Centential, which are SGVN guru stated, is not on the schedule. Coach Beltran said the mistake is often made between confusing La Serna with La Sierra, of Riverside. But the addition of Norco, which has had solid teams in the past, and Westlake, which is coming off a 14-1 season, with the Northern Division title and a loss to state stalwart Condcord De La Salle in a CIF State bowl game, is definitely a major step up.
Coach Beltran: "It's a step up. Our kids will definitely be challenged. But that's the way we look at it. It is what it is. We'll see what happens."
Steve's take: La Serna's schedule, along with the one St. Paul has put together should make for a much-anticipated 2012. The Swordsmen slate will include matchups against old rival Bishop Amat, La Habra, Mater Dei and Servite. Then there's La Mirada, which will face Bishop Amat and St. Francis.

Boys Basketball: Santa Fe first obstacle for Condors Del Rio League title quest

2012-02-07T01:30:48Z

California High School has the inside track to win its first Del Rio League boys basketball title since 2008 this week.
But the Condors, who moved into first place with a 61-58 victory over Whittier last week, are not home safe yet.
Standing in the way is Santa Fe, which handed California it's only league loss (72-62) on Jan. 20, and would like nothing better to spoil the party again.
The Condors are very aware what's at stake when the teams meet Wednesday at California at 6:30 p.m.
"We need this game," said California coach Jason Van Duyne, whose Condors are 17-7 overall and 7-1 in league play. "In our league, in the Whittier area, when you are not the (league champion), it's so difficult to win a first round (CIF-Southern Section playoff game). We know we need to win out to win the Del Rio League, which is a big thing for Cal High."
But the Chiefs (11-14, 3-6), who scored a 72-62 victory over the Condors in the first meeting, offer quite a challenge, and Van Duyne said it comes from Santa Fe's inside game, mainly forwards Andrew Jimenez, Cristian Perez and Jonathan Parral.
"It's all about matchups and they give us a mis-match," he said. "They have three really strong forwards and we don't matchup well with them. The last time, we got really good looks and couldn't finish them. They dictated tempo.
"Coach (Leonard Romero) does a great job. They are a lot better than their record indicates. We want to make them take long shots, and hopefully we can finish our shots."
The Condors conclude the regular season at El Rancho on Friday.

Football: El Rancho still a few weeks from naming new coach

2012-02-07T01:24:53Z

El Rancho, which is seeking a football coach since Rick Zepeda resigned after the season, has closed the application process and officials are expected to review applications with the interview phase set to begin in two weeks.
El Rancho athletic director Lynn Lawson said Monday that the school hopes to name a new coach by the end of the month. He also said they received 40 applications for the position.
El Rancho went 5-5 and missed the playoffs this past season.

Boys basketball: Condors flying high, take Del Rio League lead with 61-58 victory over Whittier

2012-02-04T08:17:50Z

WHITTIER - California High School took a major step toward the Del Rio League boys basketball championship Friday.
But Whittier, which has shared the title with La Serna the past two seasons, died hard.
Matt Lambrecht scored 17 points, Chris Ortiz added 12 and the Condors withstood a furious fourth-quarter rally by the Cardinals to hold on for a 61-58 victory in a battle that featured the league's top teams.
Whittier, which rallied from 15 points down, had a chance to tie it but Willie Pittman missed a 3-pointer from about 35 feet at the buzzer.
California, which also got eight points each from Roberto Campos and Andrew Garber, improved to 17-7 overall and 7-1 in league. The Condors can clinch the title with two victories next week.
The Cardinals, who got 18 points from Pittman and 14 from Damien Salcedo, slipped to 14-10 and 6-2.
"We had trouble finishing the game," said California coach Jason Van Duyne, whose Condors scored an 81-71 victory over Whittier in January. "But good teams find ways to win games. We're a good team.
"(Whittier coach Joey Mata) does a great job with his team. They are very well coached. We knew it was going to come down to the team who had the ball last. We made our run, they made their run. But after 32 minutes, we were able to pull it out."

]]> But just barely, although for most of the second half, it looked like a sure thing for the Condors.
California, which used a 10-0 run during the middle of the second quarter and 10-1 blitz to begin the third quarter, was looking good when Campos hit a 6-foot floater in the lane at 4:34 of the third and Bryan Limon followed with a putback at 4:10 for a 38-23 advantage.
The Cardinals, who got 15 of Pittman's 18 points during the second half, could only cut it to nine points as the Condors countered each run with a surge of their own.
But Whittier, and Pittman, got hot during the last five minutes.
The senior guard converted a 3-point play at 3:09 to cut it to 54-48 before connecting on a driving layup at 2:12 and a second 3-point play at 1:01 to trim the deficit to 59-58. Whittier also got 3-pointers from Juan Quintero and Guillermo Bias during an 18-9 surge.
California's Andrew Garber scored on the inside to extend the lead to 61-58 with 17 seconds left before the furious final seconds that saw the Cardinals miss two shots to come up short.
Quintero missed from about 14 feet with 11 seconds remaining before Garber had his inside shot blocked with about 4 seconds to go.
Whittier got the ball to Pittman, who was short from about 35 feet at the buzzer.
"Pittman's a heck of a player," Van Duyne said. "He did what he's been doing the last couple of years. He plays with so much heart.
"I'm thankful he didn't get another look at the rim a little bit closer, because he might have finished."

National Signing Day: A Second Look

2012-02-03T20:16:04Z

Above: Schurr's Jaimee Rivera (Howard College); La Mirada's
Courtney Skogen (Eastern Arizona), La Mirada's Liza Perez (Chapman),
Whittier Christian's Brooke Contreras (South Carolina State); La
Serna's Savannah Francis (UC Santa Barbara). Front: Schurr's Jessica
Rivera (Howard College); Santa Fe's Briana Geffre (Cal State
Northridge); La Mirada's Amber Hickman (Towson State), La Mirada's
Rochelle Sablay (Delaware State), Whittier Christian's Kellian Hunt
(Biola).

The goal of any high school athlete is to succeed on the field and in the classroom to advance to the next level.
For 11 area athletes, that was not a pipe dream. They recently made it a reality, each signing national letters to four-year institutions.
The list, which includes four girls soccer players, six softball players and one girls cross country runner, features four who signed to play on the NCAA Division I level - Santa Fe's Briana Geffre (Cal State Northridge), La Serna's Savannah Francis (UC Santa Barbara), La Mirada's Sarah Carrick (Boston University) and Amber Hickman (Towson, in Maryland).
Also advancing to play at the next level is Whittier Christian soccer player Brooke Contreras (South Carolina State); Schurr softball players Jaimee and Jessica Rivera (Howard College in Big Spring, Texas); La Mirada softball players Rochelle Sablay (Delaware State), Courtney Skogen (Eastern Arizona) and Lisa Perez (Chapman); and Whittier Christian cross country runner Kellian Hunt, who will go to nearby Biola.
Geffre and Francis, friendly rivals in the Del Rio League, said the lure of Northridge and Santa Barbara was the opportunity to play at the Division I level.
Geffre, a senior forward, has nine goals and six assists for the Chiefs this season.
"I chose Cal State Northridge because it's close to home, so I can come back and forth to see my family," Geffre said. "I know the coach well, and I've played with his team before, and I like the coach a lot."
Francis is a key part of the La Serna team that is ranked in the CIF-Southern Section Division 5 top 10 and leads the Del Rio League.
"I chose to go to Santa Barbara because it's D-I soccer," Francis said. "I liked the campus and the location. It's also close to home. It's kind of far, but not that far, so I can still come home."

]]>
Hickman was one of the top players in the area last season, hitting .303 with 16 RBIs and scoring 15 runs. She now takes her talents to Towson, which is one of the up-and-coming softball programs in the Southeast.
"It's so beautiful over there," Hickman said of the Maryland campus. "It's East Coast, and coming from California, it's a different experience. It had the programs I'm thinking about studying, so it's a perfect fit."
For the Rivera sisters, it was about the lure of having the opportunity to attend an out-of-state college.
"I wanted to get away from home and be more independent," Jaimee Rivera said. "It's an overwhelming feeling to be the first ones from Schurr to go somewhere."
Jaimee and Jessica Rivera were two of the better hitters in the area last season, batting .452 and .417, respectively.
Carrick is one of the top goalies in the area and a four-year starter for the Matadores.
"(Boston University) is a great academic school and a powerhouse soccer program," Carrick said. "I had a few other schools I was looking at, but Boston just fit me better."
South Carolina State is getting one of the better forwards in the area in Contreras, who scored five goals and had four assists in leading the Heralds to a share of first place in the Olympic League.
Sablay, Skogen and Perez hit .451, .345 and .370, respectively for La Mirada last season.
Biola's program should be boosted with Hunt, who qualified for the CIF State championships in 2011 and was Daily News Runner of the Year.

National Signing Day: La Habra's Porter to UCLA leads 2012 class

2012-01-30T20:07:58Z

College football's national signing day sometimes can feel like a cross between Black Friday and Christmas.
It felt more like the latter for six area football players who did as expected Wednesday and signed national letters of intent with schools they previously had given oral commitments.
The head of the class was La Habra High School linebacker Aaron Porter, who signed with UCLA, but also includes Highlanders teammates Brett Bartolone and Sean Wale, who signed with Washington State and Boise State, respectively. The La Mirada trio of Spencer Fox, Devon Hall and Jesse Gonzalez signed with South Dakota, North Dakota and Western New Mexico, respectively.
Porter, the 2011 Daily News Player of the Year, was one of the major pieces to UCLA's recruiting class under new coach Jim Mora Jr., who replaced Rick Neuheisel in December. The senior, who also was CIF-Southern Section Southwest Division Player of the Year, was one of the top recruits in California and ESPN.com's No. 16 inside linebacker prospect.
"UCLA's a great school, great education and it's close to home," Porter said. "The new coaches are excellent. I think they are way better than (the previous coaches)."

]]> A key for Porter, who also plans to play baseball in Westwood, was Mora Jr., who had two head coaching stints in the NFL, with the Atlanta Falcons and Seattle Seahawks. He also spent several seasons as an assistant, including a stint as the San Francisco 49ers' defensive coordinator.
"It's always great to learn from someone who has coached (at that level)," Porter said. "I think he's going to make a big impact at UCLA."
Porter, who set a La Habra record with 388 career tackles, including 23 tackles for a loss this past season, toyed with going to Oklahoma after the Sooners, including head coach Bob Stoops, pushed hard for him during the past month.
But he couldn't be swayed from being a Bruin and being part of a recruiting class that has been ranked in the top 20 by most recruiting publications.
"UCLA was really the school," said Porter, who committed to the Bruins during the summer. "(Oklahoma) came in too late and I didn't really have any time to really think about them, so I went with UCLA."
It was the same for Bartolone, a receiver/running back who appears to be a perfect fit for new Washington State coach Mike Leach's spread offense.
Bartolone, who was first-team All-Area and on the All-Southwest Division team, accounted for 1,587 yards and 20 touchdowns for the Highlanders, who were 9-4 and advanced to the CIF-SS semifinals.
"I'm really excited," Bartolone said. "To be a receiver in that offense is a dream. I'm just doing the best I can to prepare for next season."
Wale, who was first-team All-Area and the Southwest Division punter, has similar feelings, especially joining a Boise State program that has been of the nation's best each of the past four seasons.
"It's obviously a pleasure (to go there)," said Wale, who is expected to compete for punter and place-kicker for the Broncos. "I'm excited to go out there.
"I have a tremendous opportunity that they've given me to go out and compete at one of those spots (punting and kicking), starting next year."
The 6-foot-5, 265-pound Fox was one of the area's top offensive linemen and helped the Matadores average more than 200 yards rushing a game and reach the division semifinals. He was first-team All-Area and All-Southeast Division.
"I took a trip to South Dakota and felt really welcomed there," Fox said. "It felt like that's where I was supposed to be.
"I like the coaching staff, they're all winners. I'm excited to get out there and start playing."
Hall, a defensive lineman who helped lead the Matadores to the CIF-SS Southeast Division semifinals, had similar feelings toward North Dakota.
"I went there and visited the school and it was really a beautiful environment," Hall said. "They have a really good football program and thought it would be the right fit for me.
"It's pretty far (from home) and pretty cold, but I think I'll be able to adjust. There are a few California kids on the team and they told me it's all right."
It was the same for Gonzalez, a tight end who helped the Matadores rebound from an 1-4 start to share the Suburban League title.
"It's not really a big place," Gonzalez said of Western New Mexico. "But they invited me out there. I liked it, and I can't wait to get out there and play."

Boys basketball: Hall scores 37, but La Habra comes up short in 63-61 loss to Troy; Warrior girls rout Highlanders, 58-24

2012-01-28T07:02:22Z

LA HABRA - La Habra High School's Ryan Hall and Troy's Taylor Maughan are two of the better boys basketball players in the Freeway League.
The duo showed how good Friday.
Hall won the personal battle, scoring 37 points to to Maughan's 28.
But the Warriors senior didn't mind after Ben Stiver hit two free throws with 8.9 seconds left to clinch a 63-61 victory in a league matchup.
La Habra's Brett Bartolone intercepted an in-bounds pass with two seconds left, but his halfcourt shot glanced off the top of the glass at the buzzer.
Troy, also getting 11 points from Mo Jomaa, improved to 16-6 overall and 3-3 in league play. The Highlanders, also receiving 14 from Alex Imhof, slipped to 14-9 and 3-3.
"(Maughan's) a great player," La Habra coach Mark Stewart said. "I thought we did a great job guarding (Maughan). But he elevated over our guys and scored, even though we were guarding them."

]]> Maughan had Troy looking good after hitting two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to lead 53-46 with five minutes left.
But Hall, arguably the top player in the area, wouldn't back down.
He scored 20 points during the quarter and hit three consecutive shots to pull the Highlanders within 56-54 with 3:46 left before hitting a 9-foot turnaround to cut the lead to 59-58 with 1:23 left.
Hall, after Johnny Bayeh's putback, cut it to 61-59 on a free throw with 46 seconds left. La Habra got the ball to Marcus Mellado, but his 3-pointer from the top of the key was short with 17 seconds left.
Stiver then sank made two free throws with 8.9 seconds left. Imhof had a layup at 2.4 before Bartolone missed at the buzzer after his steal.
GIRLS
Troy 58, La Habra 24
Alecia Dimas had 13 points and 10 rebounds and Gabriella Hanson had 12 points to lead the first-place Warriors, who led 38-8 at halftime.
Troy, also getting 10 rebounds and nine points from Amara Person-Hampton, improved to 13-5 and 6-0. The Highlanders, who received 10 points from Kayla Judkins, slipped to 15-6 and 3-3.
The Warriors jumped out to a 16-3 lead before two free throws and a 14-footer by Judkins made it 16-7 after one quarter. But Troy opened the second with a 7-1 run and closed the half with a 15-0 blitz to secure it.

Breaking News: Santa Fe hires alum Dave Pierson to succeed retiring Jack Mahlstede as the Chiefs new football coach

2012-01-27T18:42:07Z

Dave Pierson is coming home.
The veteran football coach, a graduate of Santa Fe High School, was named Friday to take over the Chiefs football program from Jack Mahlstede, who retired after 34 seasons.
"Dave Pierson is a well-respected teacher and coach and we're thrilled to have him come home to Santa Fe High School as our new head football coach," Santa Fe principal Kevin Jamero said in a statement released by the Whittier Union High School District. "He has great experience, having worked alongside some of our best coaches in the district, and has strong ties not only to our school but also to the Whittier Union High School District and community.
"Under his guidance we are confident that we will continue our long-standing tradition of athletic excellence and sportsmanship in the football program here at Santa Fe."
Pierson has been a football coach the past 17 seasons, including the previous seven as head coach at Jurupa Valley. He was 22-48-1 for the Jaguars, including 6-3-1 last season.
He also was an assistant under Mahlstede in 1995-96 and was Kevin La Vigne's assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at La Serna from 1997-2004.
"Our work begins now," Pierson said in a statement released by the district. "Obviously this is a great challenge and a great opportunity. It's like coming full circle, having grown up playing football in the community and at Santa Fe High School.
"There are a lot of great people in the community who mentored me and supported me throughout my life and this is a wonderful opportunity to give back by teaching and coaching the students and athletes at Santa Fe High."

Wrestling: La Mirada comes up short in Suburban League showdown

2012-01-27T08:40:25Z

By Red Williams
LA MIRADA - The pin is the name of the game in high school wrestling.
And Norwalk put six of them on the board to defeat La Mirada 38-35 on Thursday.
With the victory, Norwalk improved to 5-0 in the Suburban League while La Mirada fell to 4-1.
Norwalk took a 6-0 lead when its first two wrestlers, Gonzalo Vargas and Jethro Llamido, scored pins over Alex Powers and Alfonso Aguilar at 106 and 113 pounds, respectively.
"Pins certainly did us in," Matadores coach Robert Lipeles said. "We put five sophomores and two freshmen on the mat, and it showed."

]]> The third pin for the Lancers may have been the most important, according to Norwalk coach Francisco Soto.
Jesus Jurado was battling Carlos Gonzalez and took a commanding 7-4 lead early in the third period. But Gonzalez scored a takedown to narrow it to 7-6 with 50 seconds left before Jurado nailed him with the pin at 35.3 seconds. That increased the lead to 21-9.
"He pulled out a great victory in a tough match," Soto said.
Other pins for Norwalk were by Ivan Santana at 160 pounds over Joey Santana with 48.4 seconds left in the second period; Victor Castillo over Ramon Ayala at 182 pounds with just 46 seconds left in the match; and Jovanni Virgen over Devin Hedges at 195 pounds in the first period.
"That pin by Virgen was a big one. He sealed the victory," Soto said.
It allowed Norwalk to forfeit the next match (at 220 pounds) without using a lighter wrestler, because Soto's No. 1 wrestler was suffering from a sore ankle.
The Matadores had pins from Mauricio Perla at heavyweight over Josh Ramos with 2.6 seconds left in the first period, Steven Hart over James Flores at 145 with 1:18 showing on the third-period clock, and Matt Ortiz over Ruben Audetat in the 126-pound class. That fall came with 1:15 left in the second period.
"I thought we fought them well," Lipeles said. "They worked their butts off and should have no shame. Norwalk has a good squad. They were the toughest dog in the fight. I thought we had a good, positive attitude."
Lipeles said his squad also was hampered with injuries with his top three at 182 pounds missing.
After the opening pins by Norwalk's Vargas and Llamido, La Mirada's Robert Orbison ended the shutout with a 4-0 victory over Alex Perez in the 120-pound class.
And Christian Baeza just missed a pin for the Matadores at 170 when the referee counted his opponent, Charlie LaMantia, out just after the final horn sounded. That would have narrowed Norwalk's lead to a mere point at 27-26.
But Castillo and Virgen responded with pins for the Lancers to put the match out of reach.

Girls Basketball: Santa Fe wins battle of seconds, gets defensive in 51-41 victory at La Serna....Is Whittier next?

2012-01-27T08:37:12Z

By Steve Ramirez
WHITTIER - As far as Santa Fe High School girls basketball coach Matt Zamora is concerned, the success of the Chiefs is all about defense.
Santa Fe showed why Thursday night.
The Chiefs used a solid effort on the defensive end to break away in the second half en route to a 51-41 victory over host La Serna in a key Del Rio League game.
Santa Fe, getting 14 points from Jackie Saiza and 11 rebounds and seven points from Dijonnae Murphy, improved to 13-9 overall and 4-1 in league play. The Chiefs, who travel to El Rancho on Monday, are at league-leader Whittier on Wednesday.
La Serna, which had won six out of its last seven before Thursday, slipped to 9-12 and 3-2. Nannette Beightol had 14 points and Ruby Nichols had 11 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Lancers, who host Whittier on Monday.
Santa Fe, which has won six out of its last eight games, held its seventh opponent in its last eight under 40 points. The exception being Whittier, which scored a 40-33 over the Chiefs on Jan. 13.
"As much as I love offense, we're just a great defensive team," Zamora said. "That's what we're better at. In the beginning, we started out a little slow.
"But once we started getting settled in, and locked in, I thought our defense took over the game for us in the second half."

]]> Santa Fe, which fought back from a 10-5 deficit, seized control with a 7-2 run during the middle of the third quarter.
Desiree Pureco and Alisa Bueno hit back-to-back 3-pointers to push it to 30-22 before Saiza followed an inside shot by La Serna's Brandee Alfaro with a free throw for a 31-24 lead.
The Lancers, getting 3-pointers from Nichols and Beightol, cut it to two at 35-33 by the first minute of the fourth quarter, but Santa Fe forced three consecutive stops and countered with a 3-pointer by Bueno at 5:40 and a three-point play by Saiza for a 44-33 lead with 2:28 left.
"They really don't extend their pressure, either three-quarter or full court," La Serna coach Michelle Ortiz said. "We just didn't adjust very well, offensively.
"Most of it was self-inflicted. It was our own silly (mistakes)."
La Serna, which had just three turnovers, was looking good early.
The Lancers, getting outside shots from Beightol and Cheyanne Garcia, led 10-5 with just over a minute left in the first quarter.
Santa Fe countered with an 8-2 run to go up 13-12 at 5:30 of the second before leading 22-20 at the half and taking over during the final two quarters.
But the Chiefs took control in the second half to possibly set up next week's showdown against Whittier.
"A loss (tonight) would have put us out of league-title contention," Zamora said. "Luckily, we have the win. We still have El Rancho on Monday, and hopefully we can take care of business and get another shot at Whittier."

Wrestling: Condors leave no doubt

2012-01-27T08:29:02Z

Staff photo by Leo Jarzomb

By Red Williams
WHITTIER - It wasn't even close.
The California High School's wrestling team took a firm grip on the Del Rio League leadership with a dominating 47-11 victory over visiting La Serna on Wednesday.
The series between these neighborhood rivals has been decided by 10 points or less in the last eight years, and most of the sizeable crowd expected the same.
This time, however, Cal (5-2, 4-0) won the first six matches to take a commanding 27-0 lead and put the meet out of reach for the Lancers (8-4, 2-2).
Included in that onslaught was a pin in the second match (132 pounds) by the Condors' Nate Espinoza. He had a 4-0 lead over Brian Gracie and finally earned the fall at :29.4 in the second period.
Teammate Omar Lopez was even quicker for the Condors at 154 pounds, where he pinned Matt Mendoza at just 53 seconds of the first period.
In all, California had four pins in the match. Anthony Espinoza dispatched Niko Swengart at 162 with 1:14 left in the second period, and Chris Garcia pinned Gerardo Valenzuela at 115 with just 32.8 seconds left in the first period.
"Our kids stepped up with some heart," California coach Doug Loo said. "This is the best we've performed all year.
"A lot of matches could have gone either way. This was rewarding because our coaches and kids have been really working hard."

]]> The Lancers finally broke through with a victory when Jacob Cantu defeated Robert Rosa, 10-8, at 172 pounnds. Rosa nearly pulled that one out after trailing 10-5 at one point.
"Cal wanted it more," La Serna coach Pete Pietrantoni said. "They wrestled tonight; we didn't. It was a good, old-fashioned wrestling match."
Pietrantoni felt his athletes appeared a bit awed by the importance of the match.
"Stepping into the spotlight separates the men from the boys," he said in likening some of his wrestlers to "deer in the headlights. And Cal was not. They did a great job."
Anthony Ayala won the only other match for the Lancers, a 9-8 triumph at 184 pounds over Nathan Lowden. Ayala fell behind 5-0 in the first period and nearly lost the match on a fall with 43 seconds left. The match went into overtime when Lowden was penalized with a pair of one-point violations in the last 19 seconds. Ayala took the match at 31.1 in overtime with a takedown.
La Serna also earned three points when California was forced to forfeit the 220-pound match.
Perhaps the most exciting match occurred at 147, won by Cal's Alphonso Lucero over David Zoellner, 14-11. Lucero trailed, 8-2, midway through the second period, then rallied with a pair of reversals before Zoellner scored a 3-point near fall just as the buzzer sounded. But Lucero responded with an escape, a takedown and his own near-fall with 50 seconds to go for the victory.
Other winners for the Condors were Adrian Chavez at 128 over Rocky Carillo, Mark Gonzalez (140) over Omar Herrera, Eduardo Cerda (197) over Nick Piarello, Raul Cruz (heavyweight) over Nick Rivera, Richard Pocock (108) over Ronnie Schmidt and Elias Mercado (122) 21-5 over Brandon Galvan.

Breaking News: Pioneer makes it official, hires Chuck Willig as football coach

2012-01-25T21:20:37Z

Charles Willig, who has more than 25 years experience coaching high school football, including assistant stints at St. Paul and Salesian, is Pioneer's new football coach, principal Monica Oviedo announced today.
Willig played for and coached under legendary St. Paul coach Marijon Ancich. He recently coached at St. Anthony in Long Beach and also owns and operates a sports academy with his brother, Greg, who will be his offensive coordinator.
"I am more than pleased with our selection," Oviedo said in a statement released by the Whittier Union High School District. "(I) have every belief that, with coach Willig's experience and positive work with kids, we will soon see a major constructive shift in the culture of athletics at Pioneer."
Willig replaces Ramon Juarez, who was 65-88-1 in 15 seasons with the Titans. He was fired after the Titans went 1-9 this season.
"I have watched Dr. Oviedo and the administration do amazing things to improve Pioneer's academic standards and the school's infrastructure," Willig said in a statement released by the district. "I am looking forward to offering my experience to Pioneer's student-athletes in order to help build a winning tradition on the field and champions off the field as well.
"I believe that our staff of coaches, the parents, alumni and the Pioneer community will be proud of the character and enthusiasm, which we will bring to our football program. We want everyone involved to think, train, act and play like champions."