Crescenta Valley High School’s bid to join the Rio Hondo League beginning with the 2014-15 school year, thus creating a domino effect that would have led Arcadia and Hoover to seek the same thing, was voted down on Friday when the Foothill Area held its re-leaguing meeting at Hart High.
Thus, the Rio Hondo League and Pacific League will remain the same for the next four-year cycle of league play. Elsewhere during the meeting, the area voted to send Marshall from the Alpha League to the Mission Valley League in a move that has soured the Mission Valley League, which vowed to appeal.
As far as the Rio Hondo League and Pacific League were concerned on Friday, the bigger story was what didn’t happen, rather than what did.
Last week, the Rio Hondo League agreed to a proposal that would move Crescenta Valley from the Pacific League to the Rio Hondo and get rid of Blair, which has put a weight on the league with its struggling athletic programs.
That proposal prompted Arcadia to propose that it would also like to join the Rio Hondo League if Crescenta Valley was voted in. The Rio Hondo League was not in total agreement about the proposal, with San Marino opposed to the idea.
That number must have grown in recent days because when Friday’s motions to put proposals to a vote were made, the Rio Hondo League decided against going forward with its Crescenta Valley proposal.
“There wasn’t a united decision from the Rio Hondo League anymore as far as adding a team or two,” La Canada athletic director Craig Franzen said. “It was just the best option at this point for the league. If the Blair problem gets worse, you have another opportunity in four years to do something.”
With schools given the opportunity to put forth their own proposals for a vote, Crescenta Valley went forward with its bid to join the Rio Hondo League despite the idea no longer having support from the league. The proposal did not gain enough votes.
With Blair staying put, the Rio Hondo League must again cope with a league mate that could not field a varsity baseball team this season and sent out a varsity football team last fall that was shutout in every league game last season by an average score of 62-0.
Another option for the Rio Hondo League would have been to add Marshall. Instead, the Eagles were voted into the Mission Valley League, which immediately made clear that it will appeal that decision to the CIF-Southern Section.
Marshall would join current Mission Valley League teams Arroyo, El Monte, Gabrielino, Mountain View, Rosemead and South El Monte to form a seven-team league.
“In my opinion, all the other proposals — Crescenta Valley, Arcadia, the Rio Hondo League — were all just posturing so they didn’t have to take Marshall,” Arroyo varsity football head coach and athletic director Jim Singiser said. “Obviously, geography was not an issue because you have to pass every Rio Hondo League school to get to a Mission Valley League school.
“Neither was school size (an issue) because I think Marshall may be a better fit size-wise in the Rio Hondo League.
“We will appeal and see what happens. If it sticks, so be it. I know a lot of people over there and they are good people.”
