May 2010 Archives

Defending Div. VII champion Cornerstone Christian of Camarillo (23-3) has a strong program again, qualifying for the semifinals at 3:15 p.m. today against Pacifica of Santa Monica (18-5).

Cornerstone Christian, which has outscored opponents 283-52, has not lost a home game since 2008, and the Eagles have a team ERA of 1.72.

-- Gerry Gittelson

In the City Section championship this past Saturday, El Camino Real started Jose Cardona at designated hitter for the first time all season - a risk considering the title was the on the line - and it paid off, as Cardona went 2 for 3 with a booming double and an RBI in a 9-8 victory over San Pedro at Dodger Stadium.

Cardona, who also pitched the final two innings to get the win, earned a spot in the lineup because he hit well in practice on Friday -- nothing scientific, El Camino Real coach Josh Lienhard said.

"Of all the guys we were looking at, Jose had by far the best batting-practice session, so we decided to go with him," Lienhard said. "He did a good job."

Also, El Camino Real's Mitch Bluman has been named co-MVP of West Valley League, along with Chatsworth's Steven Karkenny.

Defending Div. VII champion Cornerstone Christian of Camarillo (23-3) has a strong program again, qualifying for the semifinals at 3:15 p.m. today against Pacifica of Santa Monica (18-5).

Cornerstone Christian, which has outscored opponents 283-52, has not lost a home game since 2008, and the Eagles have a team ERA of 1.72.

gerry.gittelson@dailynews.com

HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL

SOUTHERN SECTION SEMIFINALS

All games 3:15 today unless indicated
Div. I
Royal vs. Mater Dei at Blair Field in Long Beach, 7 p.m.
Div. V
Montclair Prep at Woodcrest Christian
Campbell Hall at Linfield Christian
Div. VI
Desert Christian at Sage Hill
Div. VII
Pacifica Christian at Cornerstone Christian
Animo Leadership vs. Milken at Encino Little League

Royal of Simi Valley (25-6) plays Mater Dei of Santa Ana (18-10) at 7 p.m. Friday in the Southern Section Div. I semifinals at Blair Field in Long Beach, and both teams have an ultra dependable ace pitcher.

Left-hander Cory Hahn (12-1, 0.99), is scheduled to start for Mater Dei, but Royal right-hander Cody Buckel (12-1, 0.48) pitched a complete game Friday at San Clemente, so Royal plans to go with its No. 2, left-hander Tyler Abbott (8-2, 1.46).

Abbott, who has committed to UC Irvine, would be the ace on just about any other team. He has won his past four decisions, and he has three shutouts, 76 strikeouts and just 14
walks in 58 innings.

Hahn, who throws 90 mph, figures to impose quite a challenge. Like Abbott, he has won four decisions in a row, including playoff victories over locals Newbury Park and Camarillo.

-- Gerry Gittelson

If history is any indication, Montclair Prep High of Panorama City should be OK in the Southern Section Div. V baseball championship - if the Mounties can get past Woodcrest Christian of Riverside at 3:15 p.m. Friay in the semifinals, that is.

Montclair Prep is 6-0 in section baseball championships, winning small-schools titles in 1978, 1979, 1981 and 1982 under Jeff Pressman, and 1-A titles in 1990 and 1992 under Walt Steele.

Montclair Prep (23-7) is again on the brink of appearing in a championship, this time under coach Rick Weber.

Montclair Prep features three freshmen and a sophomore in the starting lineup, so it has taken some time for the Mounties to find themselves, but no one is playing better; they've won their last five in a row by an average margin of 8.6 runs, including two shutouts.

Max Miller is batting .479 with six home runs, 29 RBIs, 48 runs and 25 walks, and Max Fried is 10-3 with a 1.84 ERA.

Top-seeded Woodcrest Christian (25-1) has won 25 in a row since an opening loss to Div. II Rancho Cucamonga, and over the past 17 victories Woodcrest Christian has yet to allow more than three runs in a game.

"This is definitely a big game for us, and we'd like a little revenge because Woodcrest Christian beat us in the playoffs last year," Miller said. "This year, we're more of a team, and our chemistry is a lot better, and that definitely helps."

Montclair Prep has proven it can pitch and hit, and the Mounties have come a long way defensively, too - always an important component late in the playoffs.

"We've improved our defense a lot, and that's been a key for us," Weber said.

Fried pitched a complete game Friday, so it is not likely he will see much action on three days rest, though anything is possible because Weber said Fried is in the mix, along with with Nick Suniga (6-1) and Dylan Satin (4-3).

"I don't know which one of the three is going to pitch," Weber said.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Therese Berner has been named coach at Calabasas.

She replaces Dave Goosen, who resigned after two seasons.

Berner guided Alhambra to the Almont League championship last season.

Doc Pepping, a veteran of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment,101st Airborne Division, Easy Company, "Band of Brothers" U.S. Army during WWII, is scheduled to address the Westlake football team Friday and present them their dog tags.

In 2006, the Westlake Football Program adopted the "Band of Brothers" motto and all that it represents: 1) premium on physical conditioning 2) being part of an elite unit that executes the game plan to perfection 3) seeking a team to identify with, join, be part of and relate to as a family. Doc Pepping presented the "Currahee Patch" in support of the Warriors as a "Band of Brothers" in 2006 and the Warrior uniforms have proudly displayed the patch each year.

After the ceremony, Westlake plays its annual 7 on 7 spring game against Chaminade, JV at 4:30 p.m. and varsity at 5:30 p.m. There are free hot dogs and sodas for all attendees.

-- Gerry Gittelson

War on the Floor/Future Stars
Class of 2011 All Star Game/Saturday June 12
L.A. Pierce College in Woodland Hills 6 p.m.

West Roster

Taylor Hange-Oaks Christian
Blair Holliday-Oaks Christian
Evann Hall-Thousand Oaks
Michael Cohen-Sierra Canyon
Daniel Cohen-Sierra Canyon
Stephen Maxwell-Taft
Khiry Williams-Taft
Leonard Gorokhov-Calabasas
Frankie Flores-Chatsworth
Derrick Hector-Chatsworth
Jason Monje-Chatsworth

COACH-
Assistants-

East Roster
Jaylen Bland-Cleveland
Matt Mounier-Crespi
Alex Moreno-Sylmar
Mike McGlashan-La Canada
Nick de Bonfilhs-Buckley
Adam Colman-Burbank
Stephane Nembot-Montclair Prep
Chris Dees-Verdugo Hills
Tre Mauldin-Lancaster
Roman Delgado-Hart
Ed Burrows-Renaissance Academy

COACH-
Assistants-

Officials: Klaus Endrissat, Jr., Paul Landavazzo, Dan Teola

War on the Floor/Future Stars
Class of 2011 All Star Game/Saturday June 12
L.A. Pierce College in Woodland Hills 8 p.m.

West Roster
City Roster
Dominique Dunning-Centannial Corona
Ronnie Stevens-Serra
Reese Morgan-Peninsula
C.J. Cooper-La Verne Lutheran
Todd Lewis-Pasadena
Jordan Watson-Pacific Hills
Alex Carmon-Long Beach Poly
Ryan Anderson-Long Beach Poly
Travone Williams-Westchester

COACH-TBA

East Roster
Austin McBroom-Campbell Hall
Kevin Johnson-Taft
Damiene Cain-Harvard-Westlake
Jordan Fuller-Alemany
Spencer Dinwiddie-Taft
Temjae Singleton-El Camino Real
Gilles Diercikx-Chaminade
Lonnie Jackson-Valencia
K.J. Smith-Campbell Hall
Dillon van der Wal-Oaks Chr.

COACH-TBA

Officials: Klaus Endrissat, Jr., Paul Landavazzo, Dan Teola

With the crowd on its feet, Justin Scovel saved the best for last, tripling in the tying run in the bottom of seventh inning, then scoring on a passed ball today afternoon to lift El Camino Real High of Woodland Hills to a 9-8 victory over San Pedro in the City Section baseball championship at Dodger Stadium.

"I could never imagine this. It's amazing," Scovel said. "There was tons of pressure, and I was pretty nervous. It was a great finish."

There were five lead changes by the time the bottom of the seventh rolled around, and with two out and San Pedro ace John Mata (10-2) pitching, Scovel drilled a 3-2 offering deep to right-center for a triple - his second of the day -- to score pinch-runner Jonathan Cohn and tie the score 8-8.

Then a pitch got away from catcher Dan Matienzo and rolled all the way to the backstop, and Scovel raced home for the winning run that set off a massive blue-and-white celebration.

"As soon as I saw the ball get past, my eyes got big and I thought, 'Oh my god, we're going to win this thing,'" Scovel said. "I've never run so hard in my life."

Scovel, a senior batting in the No. 8 spot, entered with just 13 hits on the season but came through with his biggest performance on the grandest stage of all.

Scovel's first triple came with the bases loaded in the fourth inning, and he finished 2 for 4 with four RBIs and two runs.

El Camino Real (19-11) also received a clutch performance from Jose Cardona (11-1), who pitched the final two innings without giving up a run and earned his third playoff win, including an eight-inning shutout Wednesday in a 3-0 victory at Banning in the semifinals.

As a hitter, Cardona came in with just four hits in 17 at-bats, but in a last-minute decision by coach Josh Lienhard, Cardona started at designated hitter in the No. 9 spot and went 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI.

"It feels amazing to win at Dodger Stadium. All the hard work all season, and it came down to this," Cardona said. "I was ready to do whatever it took. No one gave up, not us and not San Pedro, and it was a great battle.

"We had a lot of confidence, and Justin worked hard all week and came through with the biggest hits of the game. He had a great game."

A team from the San Fernando Valley has won the City title 18 years in a row - this is El Camino Real's sixth championship since 1993 - and 36 times over the past 37 years dating back to 1973.

El Camino Real's Chris Whitmer doubled and scored twice, Ivan Vela added a single, a run and an RBI, and Kyle Keppel walked twice, scored once and drove in a run.

San Pedro (24-6) totaled 13 hits but went quietly in the top of the seventh with Cardona striking out Dino Boskovich with a runner on second for the final out.

The ending was celebratory, but it was not a perfect season for El Camino Real, which lost four of its first five games and was 2-5 through the first two weeks. But over the past month, El Camino Real proved as good as anyone, finishing with 10 wins over the final 11 games, outscoring three playoff opponents 36-1 to make it to Dodger Stadium.

"Our team just kept working and kept practicing hard," Cardona said. "I knew if we kept working hard that we would eventually come out on top."

Scovel started the season on the bench before eventually working his way into the lineup as the starting third baseman.

"It was a tough beginning, a tough start, but it all worked out," Scovel said.

Did it ever.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Thousand Oaks junior Marcos Giron captured his first Southern Section singles title Saturday when Claremont's Clarke Spinosa retired trailing 3-0 in the first set at Seal Beach Tennis Center.

Spinosa outlasted defending champion Clay Thompson of Crossroads of Santa Monica 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 in the semifinals and began cramping in his legs early in the championship match.

Giron is the first area player to win singles and doubles titles, following back-to-back doubles championships with Denis Lin, now a freshman at Stanford.

He is the first local singles champion since Calabasas' Gary Sacks in 2003 and the first Thousand Oaks player to win the title since Phil Sheng in 1999.

Justin Scovel tripled in the tying run in the seventh inning, then scored on a passed ball to lift El Camino Real to a 9-8 victory over San Pedro in the City Section championship at Dodger Stadium.

-- Gerry Gittelson

San Pedro is leading 8-6 with one out in the bottom of the sixth in the City championship at Dodger Stadium, as El Camino Real is using its third pitcher of the day -- ace Jose Cardona, who pitched eight innings Wednesday in a 3-0 win over Banning in the semi's.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's a wild one here at Dodger Stadium, as San Pedro has regained the advantage with four runs in the top of the fifth inning to pull ahead 7-5 over El Camino Real in the bottom of the fifth in the City Section championship.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Thousand Oaks junior Marcos Giron advanced to the Southern Section singles final Saturday following a 7-6 (3), 6-2 semifinal victory over Anaheim Canyon's Denis Nguyen at Seal Beach Tennis Center.

Giron will face Claremont's Clarke Spinosa, a 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 semifinal winner over defending champion Clay Thompson of Crossroads of Santa Monica. Spinosa is the first Claremont player to reach a singles final.

Giron, 11-0 all-time at Seal Beach Tennis Center, is attempting to become the first local player since Calabasas' Gary Sacks in 2003 to win the Southern Section singles title. Harvard-Westlake of Studio City's Ryan Thacher was the last local player to reach the final in 2006.

Giron is also trying to become the first area player to capture singles and doubles championships, following back-to-back doubles titles with Denis Lin, now a freshman at Stanford.

The last player to win singles and doubles titles was Corona del Mar of Newport Beach's Fabian Matthews, who captured doubles crowns in 2006 and '07 with Dustin Hladek, then won the singles championship in 2008.

El Camino Real has rallied for four runs in the bottom of the fourth to pull ahead 5-3 over San Pedro in the City final at Dodger Stadium, the key hit a three-run triple by Justin Scovel that chased starter Matt Zuvich.

Jose Cardona greeted reliever Armando Martinez with a double to drive in Scovel, as El Camino Real could be on its way to its sixth City title.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's 3-1 San Pedro leading El Camino Real in the fourth inning in the City Section championship at Dodger Stadium, the Pirates padded their lead with a run in the top of the fourth on Nate Etheridge's RBI single.

El Camino Real's Mitch Bluman has given up three runs (one earned) on five hits with three strikeouts.

-- Gerry Gittelson

San Pedro is off to a good start in the City Section championship at Dodger Stadium, scoring two unearned runs in the top of the first on a couple of infield errors, a sacrifice, a wild pitch and Jacob Johnson's RBI single.

El Camino Real rebounded with a run in the bottom of the first on Kyle Keppel's sacrifice fly.

It's 2-1 San Pedro heading into the bottom of the second.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's a beautiful day here at Dodger Stadium, and there is a buzz of excitement in the air, as El Camino Real readies for the City Section championship against San Pedro. First pitch is 1 p.m.

El Camino Real is trying to become the 18th consecutive City champion from the San Fernando Valley, a streak that started in 1993 and includes five El Camino Real championships, the last in 2005

Mitch Bluman is taking the mound for El Camino Real, and he's a hard-throwing left-hander and also a top hitter with nine home runs. Let's see if he can hit one over the wall here at Dodger Stadium; what a thrill that would be the Conquistadores.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Malibu High School is hosting a summer boys' basketball tournament June 18 and 19.

Here are the first round matchups on June 18. All games played at Malibu High

Pacifica of Oxnard vs. Villanova Prep of Ojai, 2 p.m. Large Gym
Agoura (A) vs. St. Monica of Santa Monica, 2 p.m. Small Gym
La Salle of Pasadena vs. Bishop Diego od Santa Barbara, 3 p.m. Large Gym
Channel Islands of Oxanrd vs. Wildwood of Los Angeles, 3 p.m. Small Gym

Oaks Christian of Westlake Village vs. Venice, 6 p.m. Large Gym
Agoura (B) vs. Hueneme, 6 p.m. Small Gym
Malibu vs. Pacifica Christian of Santa Monica, 7 p.m. Large Gym
Oxnard vs. Sun Valley, 7 p.m. Small Gym

CITY SECTION DIV. I BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

El Camino Real (18-11) vs. San Pedro (24-5)

WHEN: 1 p.m. today

WHERE: Dodger Stadium

RECORDS: El Camino Real 18-11; San Pedro 24-5

COACHES: Josh Lienhard, El Camino Real; Bob Ramirez, San Pedro

TICKETS: $10 ($8 children)

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS

SAN PEDRO

Ron Galosic, CF

Anthony Canjura, 2B

Jacob Johnson, SS

Bubba Costa, 1B

Dan Matienzo, C

Nate Etheridge, DH

Nolan Meadows, LF

Blake Mendoza, RF

Dino Boskovich, 3B

Matt Zuvich, P

EL CAMINO REAL

Chris Whitmer, C

Ivan Vela, SS

Mitch Bluman, P

Kyle Keppel, RF

Chris Nicholson, LF

Jake Mills, 2B

Daniel Dungan, 1B

Justin Scovel, 3B

Josh Heinold or Tony Rizzo, DH

-- Gerry Gittelson

Let's get back to what youth basketball (sports) is all about - perfect combination of fun, learning/skill development, responsibility, accountability and teamism!!! Whether you/your daughter live in SFV, Antelope Valley or the Los Angeles area, you are invited :).

Teams are being formed for ANY girl (regardless of skill) who wants to learn or improve her existing basketball skill level. This is a great opportunity to have fun learning the game in an instructional, positive, and fun environment.

TRYOUT DAY #1:
Date: Saturday, June 5, 2010
Time: 2:00-4:00pm (registration 2-2:30pm)
Location: Santa Clarita Athletic Club
Address: 24640 Wiley Canyon Rd, Santa Clarita, 91321
What to Bring: Water, basketball shoes and reversible jersey (if you have one)

TRYOUT DATE #2:
Date: Saturday, June 12, 2010
Time: 3:30-5:30pm (registration 3:30-4:00pm)
Location: Santa Clarita Athletic Club
Address: 24640 Wiley Canyon Rd, Santa Clarita, 91321
What to Bring: Water, basketball shoes and reversible jersey (if you have one)

Parents, your daughter will have a tremendous experience!!! Coach Knox is an esteem builder through sports and she has enjoyed much success with helping girls to learn the game, stay/get in shape and develop confidence/esteem! For more information, please email Coach Knox and she will gladly answer your questions.

Contact: Coach TJ Knox
Email: coachtjknox@yahoo.com

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ABOUT COACH KNOX:

Coach TJ Knox is the Girls Varsity Basketball Head Coach at Sierra Canyon School. Her responsibilities include oversight of all girl basketball teams (K-12). In her first year in this position, Coach Knox who has a high school career record of 197 wins and 52 losses, led the Lady Trailblazers to the school's first Southern Section Championship! Her resume includes over 10 years of coaching, which includes 8 years at the high school varsity level, five years at the High School Club level with the prestigious FBC National Basketball travel program, and four years running her own elementary and middle school travel teams.

Excellent References Available: current, former parents, players, & peer coaches.

San Clemente baseball coach Dave Gellatly is accusing Royal of using illegal bats, and he plans to lodge an official protest of Royal's 3-2 win today, according to a report in the OC Register.

-- Gerry Gittelson

What does the Olympic League have on the Marmonte, Mission, Foothill and Golden Leagues?

Two teams in the semifinals.

Montclair Prep beat Heritage of Riverside, 5-3. Max Fried threw a complete game five hitter. The Mounties will play at top-seeded Woodcrest Christian of Riverside Tuesday.

Campbell Hall roughed up possible first-round draft pick Dylan Covey in an 8-2 victory against Maranatha of Pasadena.

Royal from the Marmonte League is in the final four in Div. I but no one else from the four area power leagues.

Div. I
No. 1 Valencia at Santa Margarita of Rancho Santa Margarita

Div. V
Village Christian of Sun Valley at Whittier Christian of La Habra
La Canada at South Hills

Div. VI
Marymount of Los Angeles at Grace Brethren of Simi Valley

Dylan Covey is one of the top high school pitchers in the nation, but he could not beat Campbell Hall of North Hollywood on Friday.

Projected to be one of the top picks in the Major League draft next month, Covey, a senior from Maranatha of Pasadena who throws 97 mph, was hit hard, as the host Vikings came through with a shocking 9-3 victory in the Southern Section Div. V quarterfinals.

In the first inning, Logan Markley set the tone with a booming three-run home run over the center-field fence, and Campbell Hall was just getting started. The Vikings touched Covey for eight runs (four earned) in five innings, collecting seven hits and taking advantage of three walks, three errors, two passed balls, a wild pitch and numerous mental mistakes by Maranatha (19-10).

"He's just another kid like all of us," Markley said. "It was pretty fun and pretty exciting."

Markley said his home run was hit as well as he could possibly hit a baseball.

"Oh, it felt great," Markley said.

Covey, who entered with a 0.40 ERA and 138 strikeouts in 71 innings, had shut out Campbell Hall 4-0 a year earlier in the same round, but this time was a lot different for the defending Div. V champions.

"Campbell Hall came out to play and we didn't, basically," Covey said. "After beating them last year, I don't think we took them seriously. The umpires squeezed me a little bit on the strike zone, but I have no one to blame. There's nothing I can do except to move on."

Campbell Hall coach Juan Velazquez preparing his team by pitching hours of batting practice from about 40 feet away.

"I think I might need Tommy John surgery because I threw as hard as I can for as long as I could," Velazquez said.

But it was worth it.

"We did it with smoke and mirrors beating velocity," Velazquez said. "This is something amazing for our team. I am so happy and so ecstatic."

Campbell Hall (20-8) plays on the road Tuesday against either Cabrillo of Lompoc or Linfield of Temecula in the semifinals. Velazquez said the Vikings plan to practice today and on Memorial Day on Monday in preparation because they are bound and determined to win the championship.

"They're kids. They can take a day off when they're old," Velazquez said.

The stands were jammed with spectators keen to get glimpse of Covey (7-2) -- who almost certainly will sign for millions of dollars in the very near future - but Campbell Hall pitcher Jack Bensinger upstaged him.

Bensinger (6-3), a junior, retired the first 10 in order and finished with a five-hitter, no walks and seven strikeouts, and Campbell Hall supported him with errorless defense.

"I just did what I was supposed to do," Bensinger said. "I guess a lot of people weren't expecting this, so it's pretty exciting. I pitched great and Dylan Covey pitched great, too. I guess the difference was, we went out and played our game, and we did it better than them."

Brett Lake was 3 for 3 with three runs, Eddie Munoz was 2 for 3 with a double and two runs, and Adam Ehrlich had two runs and an RBI.

"This feels pretty good. I'm going to enjoy this," Munoz said.

Div. I
No. 2 Royal vs. Mater Dei at Blair Field in Long Beach

Div. V
No. 4 Montclair Prep at No. 1 Woodcrest Christian of Riverside
Campbell Hall at Linfield Christian of Temecula

Div. VI
No. 1 Desert Christian of Lancaster at Sage Hill of Newport Beach

Div. VII
Pacifica Christian of Santa Monica at No. 1 Cornerstone Christian of Camarillo
Animo Leadership of Inglewood at Milken Community of Los Angeles, at Encino Little League

It has been awhile since Montclair Prep of Van Nuys has had success in baseball.

Third-year coach Rick Weber, who formerly coached at Birmingham of Lake Balboa has things going in the right direction and has the Mounties into the semifinals for the first time in 19 years after a 5-3 victory against third-year school Heritage of Menifee Friday in a Div. V quarterfinal at Hartunian-Simpson field in Encino.

The last time Montclair Prep went this far was 1990 and 1991 with back-to-back championships teams featuring future Major League stars Brad Fullmer and Russ Ortiz and coach Walt Steele.

"This is really great for the school and the program because we have worked so hard," sophomore left-hander Max Fried said. "We have some amazing kids on this team. I couldn't be happier.

Fried did his part, throwing a complete game five hitter yielding three runs with eight strikeouts and no walks.

Fried gave up an RBI double in the first and a two run single in the third but hunkered down to retire 12 of the final 13 batters.

"I use the first inning to test things out and get a feel for the game," Fried said. "I figure out what I need to do."

The Mounties did most of their damage in the first off Patriots (20-9) starter Deven Owens.

Tony Rosales hit a two run homer, Fried walked and scored on an error and Blake Steele singled and came around on a wild pitch.

"I was looking first pitch fastball and got it down and in," Rosales said. "I was confident we would get some runs."

"Tony's home run was like a shot of adrenaline, it got everybody going and back in the game," Fried said.

The Mounties (23-7) added an insurance run in the sixth with three straight hits after two outs.

Josh Brodsky and Myles Hager singled and Max Miller doubled in Brodsky.

"I sure liked having a two run cushion instead of just one run," Fried said.

It was important too as Brian Engelbrecht led off the seventh with a hard sinking line drive to left but Steele charged hard, left his feet and made a rally saving catch.

"We really played some good defense and didn't walk any batters," Weber said. "e We played like we need to at this time of year."

Montclair Prep will play Woodcrest Christan of Riverside on Tuesday with a trip to the championship game on the line.

The Mounties should have no motivation issues. They lost last year against the Royals in the second round.

"This team has made tremendous strides and really progressed and we start a sophomore and three freshman."

Mike Moreau is the new coach at Sierra Canyon, replacing Colin Jamerson.

There are also plans to build a new campus gymnasium.

Meantime, Jamerson, who left by mutual agreement, said he is weighing offers to be the head coach at Shalhevet or an assistant at Harvard-Westlake.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Darren Burge is the front-runner to be named new girls basketball coach at Newbury Park.

An announcement could come any day

It sounds crazy, but Campbell Hall of North Hollywood says it will not be intimidated Friday against Dylan Covey, an All-American baseball pitcher for Maranatha of Pasadena who throws a 97 mph fastball - and that's not even his best pitch.

"That's right. We're going in really confident," Campbell Hall's Eric Munoz said.

Added teammate Adam Ehrlich: "It's a good opportunity to test our skills."

Projected as a sure first-round Major League draft choice and perhaps the No. 1 prep right-hander in the country, Covey, a 6-foot-2 right-hander, has proved nearly unhittable heading into a Southern Section Div. V quarterfinal at 3:15 p.m. at Campbell Hall.

Maranatha is the defending section champion, and along the way last year Covey shut out Campbell Hall 4-0 on five hits with 11 striketouts.

Munoz and Ehrlich reason that since they've seen Covey before, the outcome will be different.

"We faced him last year, so we're going into this game looking to be aggressive at the plate and looking for a good pitch," Munoz said. "We're definitely excited. Obviously, he's a little overpowering, but I think we've made the adjustments, and I think we'll be all right. We have the experience of seeing him before, so we're confident and excited."

Covey has won 18 career games, and this season he is 7-1 - he did give up an earned run in his only loss - with three saves, a 0.40 ERA and 138 strikeouts in 71 innings. He averages 13.6 strikeouts per seven innings, and no opponent has managed more than five hits against him.

"We know he's a good pitcher who throws really hard ... but when we faced him last year, we had chances to score and didn't get it done," Ehrlich said. "We have good hitters. We can string together some good at-bats and hopefully get a run or two."

At least Campbell Hall won't be surprised about anything, said coach Juan Velazquez.

"After facing him last year, we've been preparing for this day," Velazquez said. "He's a future major leaguer, and it's one of those things where we know it's about as tough as it gets in high school baseball."

A contingent of scouts and supporters follow Covey wherever he goes, so Velazquez is advising spectators to arrive early.

"There's going to be a large crowd, and we've got limited seating," Velazquez said.

-- Gerry Gittelson

SIERRA CANYON SCHOOL APPOINTS DIRECTOR OF IMG BASKETBALL ACADEMY MIKE MOREAU
AS NEW DIRECTOR OF BOYS BASKETBALL

School Set to Break Ground on New Gymnasium

Chatsworth, CA. - May 27, 2010 -Sierra Canyon School has been quietly establishing itself as an academically oriented, outstanding independent school with an up-and-coming athletics program. The announcement today of the appointment of Mike Moreau as Director of Boys Basketball should help to elevate the athletics program to top tier status. Known for his talent as Director of the Basketball Academy at IMG (International Management Group), Mike Moreau has overseen all aspects of the basketball program and has worked on the court with players at every level of the IMG Basketball Academy, from high school students to graduates who are NBA draft prospects. Over 100 players have gone on to play college basketball from the IMG program - with over 50 playing in Division I.

Mike was also instrumental in the NBA Pre-Draft Preparation Program at IMG, as well as the off-season training of NBA and international veteran players and teams. Over 60 current NBA players have trained in IMG's program, including seven 2009 NBA draft picks. Among IMG alumni who trained closely with Mike Moreau are Renaldo Balkman, Dejaun Blair, Courtney Lee, Kevin Martin, Roger Mason, Jr., Earl Clark, Omri Casspi and Rob Kurz.

During the 2008 and 2009 NBA Playoffs, Mike also worked as an analyst for ESPN.com, writing playoff series previews and providing individual game scouting reports and analysis. For the last three years, he has also served as an NBA analyst for Hoopsworld.com, writing weekly columns from a coaching and player development perspective.

As a high school coach in both public and private schools, Moreau has coached numerous state ranked teams and college bound players. He also coached both the high school and post graduate teams during his tenure at IMG. Sierra Canyon's Head of School Jim Skrumbis said of Moreau's appointment, "Mike is a universally well-respected coach in the realm of basketball and the NBA. His appointment will provide that rare opportunity for our young students to work with the best that the field of basketball has to offer."

In addition, Sierra Canyon School is announcing today its new gymnasium. Architectural plans are complete and construction is expected to begin in August, with completion expected by September of 2011. The new gymnasium will comprise Phase II of the master plan to develop the School's new Upper Campus. This architecturally dynamic, state-of-the-art facility will feature an all-new 20,000 square-foot athletics building which will be the center of the School's athletics program and is designed to support everything from physical education classes to CIF playoff matches in basketball and volleyball.

Sierra Canyon will break ground on the new gymnasium on property located adjacent to and just west of the School's new Science and Humanities Classroom Building off Rinaldi Street in Chatsworth. The architectural firm Parallax and Associates, Inc., which received numerous awards for its design for Phase I of Sierra Canyon's new Upper Campus facility, has completed plans and blueprints for Sierra Canyon's new gymnasium. Together, these two buildings will present a confident public expression of Sierra Canyon School's commitment to cultivating "mind, body and spirit" with its comprehensive academic program.

Oaks Christian of Westlake Village has given up two runs in the first inning and trails 2-0 against Chino Hills in a Div. III quarterfinal game.

Tashawn White, a returning All-West Valley League running back who rushed for more than 1,000 yards as a junior for Birmingham of Lake Balboa, has left the school.

"Tashawn checked out, and I haven't heard from him and don't know what he's doing or where he is going to end up," coach Jim Rose said.

White's departure is a big blow because he was expected to be the team's top player this coming season.

"Basically, we need to find a running back and a quarterback," Rose said.

Rose plans to give a long look to running back Taj Wheeler, who moved up to the varsity as a freshman last season. Birmingham figures to build around Daniel Williams, a tight end/defensive end.

-- Gerry Gittelson

After finishing 14-0 last season including winning the Northern Division championship, Westlake's returning quarterback Nick Isham has been counting the minutes until football season starts again.

"I've missed it a lot," said Isham, who completed 74.1 percent of his passes for 2,128 yards while accounting for 44 touchdowns. "It seems like it's been a long time, but I've been training every day, so it's all good."

Westlake also returns receiver Nelson Spruce, an All-America prospect who had 65 receptions for 1,325 yards and scored 19 touchdowns.

"Nelson looks great," Isham said.

-- Gerry GIttelson

The football team at Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks is rebuilding its defense, and the Knights figure to learn Friday if some of the newcomers are on right track in a 7-on-7 passing contest against state-power St. Bonaventure of Ventura.

"I think we're going to be pretty good but it's still hard to tell," defensive coordinator Joe McNab said.

Linebackers Nick Huynh and Micah Peters return, along with defensive lineman Justin Sabatine. One newcomer who could make an impact is freshman defensive back Khalfani Muhammad, also a top track sprinter.

"He's still running track, but Khalfani might play both running back and defensive back. He's pretty good," McNab said. "He's a talented kid, plus he's fast, and that always helps."

-- Gerry Gittelson

Former assistant Antonio Harrison is the new football coach at Flintridge Prep, replacing Perry Skaggs, who said he was fired a week after the season ended last year.

"I was told I did everything that was asked of me and that it wasn't about wins or losses - I never got a real, concrete reason," Skaggs said. "We have a boatload of returning seniors, so in that respect it's very disappointing. It's going to be tough because I had come to embrace the school, but obviously they didn't feel the same way."

-- Gerry Gittelson

Randy Cross, an offensive lineman who graduated from Crespi in '72 and played at UCLA and in the NFL, is being inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Marc Palacios, a top senior linebacker from Moorpark, has signed with Humboldt State.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Expected to finish somewhere in the middle of the pack in the lightly regarded Golden League, Lancaster High is the Cinderella of the Southern Section baseball playoffs.

With mostly new faces after graduating nearly every key starter from the previous season, Lancaster (19-8) lost five of its first six games and never even got a sniff of the weekly Div. III top 10 polls, but they've made it to the quarterfinals at 3:15 p.m. Friday at Bonita in La Verne (22-4-1).

Riding a 10-game winning streak, Lancaster is gaining confidence every day.
A year ago, the Eagles advanced to the semifinals - the furthest of any team sport in the school's 15-year history - but when you're in the middle of desert two hours from Los Angeles, sometimes no one notices.

"Being all the way out here, we've kind of come to accept it," fourth-year coach Tony Holiday said. "We need to win on a regular basis to earn any respect, and that's what we're trying to do."

Jakari Bass (6-0), a junior left-hander, is the scheduled starter, and he has a streak of 14 consecutive wins dating back to last season.

Lancaster's other key players include seniors Cameron Summers (.474, seven home runs, 31 RBIs), Neal White (.440, two home runs, 23 RBIs) and Cash Oliver (.430, two home runs, 19 RBIs, 12 stolen bases).

Holiday expects a stiff challenge.

"Once you get to this point, all the teams are good," Holiday said. 'They can hit and pitch very well. Right now, we just need to play our game and let the chips fall as they may. That's pretty much what we've been doing all season."

-- Gerry Gittelson

The Southern Section quarterfinals are on Friday, and Div. I entrants Royal of Simi Valley (24-6) and Moorpark (23-8) must do some major driving. Royal plays at San Clemente (19-10) and Moorpark plays at Dana Hills of Dana Point (18-12) - two of the Southernmost opponents in the Southern Section.

"It's going to be a long trip. I don't understand how we have so many traveling games," Royal coach Dan Maye said. "I can't figure out the format with these coin tosses. Plus, it's a three-day weekend, so we should hit more traffic on the way there, but I hope it will be pleasant -- especially on the way back."

Moorpark first baseman Marc Palacios is looking on the bright side.

"I'm excited we get out of school at 10 a.m. to go play baseball. What could be better than that?" Palacios said. "I think we have a good chance, too."

Royal and Moorpark continue to represent the Marmonte League, while every entrant from the Mission League and the Foothill League has been eliminated.

"That's what's expected when you come out of the Marmonte League," Palacios said.

The Royal-San Clemente matchup should be low-scoring, as Royal ace Cody Buckel (11-1, 0.48 ERA) faces Kyle Friedrichs (8-4, 2.20 ERA).

"I know Cody Buckel is good, I know he throws hard with a great curveball, and I know it's 50-50 whether you're going to score an earned run," San Clemente coach David Gellatly said. "He's a darn good pitcher, and we're going to have a battle on our hands."

San Clemente's top hitter is catcher Aaron Jones (.472, nine home runs, 35 RBIs), though he is 1 for 11 over the past three games.

Moorpark is trying to advance to the semifinals for the first time in school history. The Musketeers have won seven of their past eight, while holding five opponents to two runs or fewer.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Knowing he was going to pitch against three-time defending City Section baseball champion Chatsworth High, Jonathan Mata woke up this morning and for the first time scribbled "win" plus a happy face on his chest.

Strange, but it worked.

With a zippy fastball and an impressive assortment of breaking pitches, Mata pitched visiting San Pedro to an 8-5 complete-game victory before an overflow crowd of about 500 in the semifinals, denying the top-seeded Chancellors a return to Dodger Stadium on Saturday for the City championship.

Mata limited Chatsworth to three hits while striking out seven to give San Pedro (24-5) a chance to become the first non-San Fernando Valley in 18 years to win the City title, as the Pirates look to parlay the momentum Saturday against El Camino Real of Woodland Hills, a 3-0 winner over Banning in the other semifinal.

"I can't believe it. I'm so hyped up that I have to come back to reality," Mata said.

Chatsworth committed an uncharacteristic three errors that led three unearned runs, while three pitchers issued a total of eight walks. Meanwhile, the first four hitters in Chatsworth's lineup went a combined 0-for-12.

"This game is made for heartbreaks," Chatsworth's Justin Davis said. "We fought hard and it was a dogfight, we just didn't come out on top this time."

This was quite an upset considering Chatsworth has won nine titles, including seven over the past 10 seasons, and has appeared in 14 finals since 1983.

"I'm still proud of our team and the season we had," Davis said. "You can't let something like this carry on. Stuff happens sometimes."

Behind by as many as five runs, Chatsworth (25-5) managed two runs over the final four innings and went 1-2-3 in the bottom of the seventh.

Davis hit a home run in the third inning - his first of the season -- and pinch-hitter Chris Carlin had an RBI single in the sixth, while the rest of Chatsworth's runs were unearned, thanks to a couple of infield errors.

San Pedro jumped on starter Angel Rodriguez for three runs in the top of the first inning, including a two-run single by Dan Matienzo, who added a three-run homer in the third that brought on reliever Christian Lopez who pitched four innings-plus before giving way to Steven Karkenny in the seventh.

Every time Chatsworth tried to chip away at the lead, Mata came through with key pitches, finishing four of the last five innings with strikeouts for the third out.

"That was an All-City performance the way he was dealing like that," San Pedro coach Bob Ramirez said. "We were not intimidated today because I've been telling the players since day one to play every game like it's the championship.

"We took that approach, and today we played a quality team and got a quality win. Playing in Dodger Stadium? That's going to be awesome."

-- Gerry Gittelson

BOX

CITY PLAYOFFS

San Pedro 8, Chatsworth 5

SP 303 200 0 - 8-7-3
Chats 021 011 - 5-3-3

Mata and Matienzo; Rodriguez, Lopez (3),
Karkenny (7) and O'Connell. W-Mata (10-1);
L-Rodriguez. HR-C: Davis; SP: Matienzo. 2B-C: Bezjian.

R: SP 24-5; C 25-5.

Kennedy's Christien Carbajal strikes out Kennedy Johnston to end the game. Carbajal pitches a two-hitter, striking out eight for the Golden Cougars, who win their first city title since 1982.

Kennedy gets no runs, no hits and leaves a man on base. Heading in to the top of the seventh, Golden Cougars are down to its final three outs to win it. Last chance for Chatsworth. Kennedy leads 1-0.

A 1-2-3 inning for Carbajal and the Golden Cougars. Kennedy still leading, 1-0 going into the bottom of the sixth....

Tori Chiodo gets the second hit of the game for Kennedy but Adriana Correa flies out to right to end the inning. In the top of the sixth, the Golden Cougars, who lead 1-0, are six outs away from their first city championship since 1982.

Christien Carbajal strikes out Ashley Waters to end the Chatsworth threat. No runs, one hit, two left for the Chancellors. Kennedy still holding a 1-0 lead despite having just one hit.

Chelsea Anaya draw the walk giving the Chancellors runners on first and third with two outs and Ashley Waters coming up to bat in the top of the fifth...

Hasenfus singles down the right field line and then sacrificed to second by Kennedy Johnston for Chatsworth....

No runs, not hits, one runner left on base for Kennedy in the bottom of the fourth. Golden Cougars still leading, 1-0.

No runs, not hits, one runner left on base for Kennedy in the bottom of the fourth. Golden Cougars still leading, 1-0.

San Pedro has knocked off defending champion Chatsworth 8-5 and will face El Camino Real of Woodland Hills, a 3-0 winner over Banning of Wilmington, in the City Section baseball final Saturday at Dodger Stadium.

Three-time defending City champion Chatsworth has been eliminated from the playoffs, losing to visiting San Pedro 8-5 today in the semifinals.

San Pedro faces El Camino Real in the championship at 1 p.m. Saturday at Dodger Stadium. El Camino defeated Banning 3-0 in eight innings today.

Chatsworth committed three errors that scored three runs -- the difference in the game -- and three pitchers issued a total of eight walks.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Jake Mills' two-run triple, combined with a sacrifice fly from Daniel Dugan gave visiting El Camino Real of Woodland Hills three runs in the top of the eighth and Banning of Wilmington couldn't mount a rally in the bottom of the inning, giving the Conquistadores a 3-0 victory in the City Section baseball semifinals.

Adrienne Martinez's grounder goes off the glove of pitcher Cheyenne Coyle but Kalei Dickman is there to make the stop and make the throw to first to end the inning. Kennedy leaves a runner on. Golden Cougars still hold a 1-0 lead after three innings.

El Camino Real of Woodland Hills has finally broken through in the top of the eighth at Banning of Wilmington with a two-run triple and a sacrifice fly and leads 3-0 in the City Section baseball semifinals.

El Camino Real of Woodland Hills and host Banning of Wilmington are still scoreless in the bottom of the seventh inning in the City Section baseball semifinals.

El Camino Real's Jose Cardona held the Pilots hitless for the first four innings.

Chatsworth is making some uncharacteristic mistakes, and now San Pedro is leading 8-3 after scoring two unearned runs in the top of the fourth inning.

Meantime, El Camino Real and Banning are scoreless in the bottom of the sixth at Banning.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Chatsworth threatens with a runner on second but is unable take advantage. Katie Hasenfus grounds out to first to end the inning.

It's early, but Chatsworth could be in trouble today against visiting San Pedro in the City semifinals.

Dan Matienzo has just hit a three-run home run in the top of the third to boost San Pedro's lead to 6-2 and chase Chatsworth starter Angel Rodriguez, who has been relieved by Christian Lopez.

Chatsworth has won three titles in a row but looks to be in for a stiff challenge.

-- Gerry Gittelson

San Pedro has jumped on top-seeded Chatsworth, scoring three runs in the first inning to stake a 3-0 lead in a City Section semifinal at Chatsworth.

It's a crucial game, as Chatsworth is hoping to advance to the championship and extend its reign to four consecutive titles.

Dan Matienzo hit a two-run single for San Pedro.

It's the bottom of the second, and Chatsworth is threatening with the bases loaded and leadoff hitter Steven Karkenny at bat with two outs.

Stay tuned.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's just a couple minutes before the first pitch at Chatsworth High, as the Chancellors face off against visiting San Pedro in a City Section Div. I semifinal on a perfect spring afternoon and an overflow crowd awaiting the proceedings.

Chatsworth is sending Angel Rodriguez to the mound against San Pedro ace Jon Mata.

The winner advances to the championship at Dodger Stadium at 1 p.m. Saturday against the El Camino Real-Banning winner.

Chatsworth has won three titles in a row.

-- Gerry Gittelson

SOUTHERN SECTION QUARTERFINALS

3:15 p.m. Friday

Div. I

Moorpark at Dana Hills

Royal at San Clemente

Div. III

Lancaster at Bonita

Div. V

Heritage vs. Montclair Prep at Franklin Field (Encino)

Maranatha at Campbell Hall

Div. VI

Capistrano Valley Christian at Desert Christian

Vasquez at Sage Hill

Grace Brethren at Crossroads

Div. VII

Cornerstone Christian at Nuview Bridge

Milken Community at Rolling Hills Prep

Ryan Tinkham went 4 for 4 with with a home run and two doubles, and Tyler Abbott pitched six innings for the win, as Royal eliminated host Esperanza of Anaheim today in a Div. I second-round playoff game.

Cody Buckel hit a home run and pitched the last inning, striking out two.

"We hit the ball today, which is nice," Royal coach Dan Maye said.

Also, Moorpark defeated visiting El Modena 6-5, while Camarillo lost 8-0 to visiting Mater Dei.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Down by four runs and facing elimination against top-seeded Glendora, Harvard-Westlake of Studio City never gave up today in the second round of the Southern Section Div. II baseball playoffs.

Harvard-Westlake scored three runs over the final two innings and made it dramatic by bringing the potential tying run to the plate in the bottom of the seventh in a 5-3 loss at Franklin Field in Encino.

Down by two runs with a runner on second base, Andrew Shanfeld, who one inning earlier had hit a home run, struck out for the final out.

"This team never stopped fighting. No one gave up," Harvard-Westlake's Austin Wilson said. "We were right there at the end."

Three times during the regular season, Harvard-Westlake (17-14-1) had come back from a big disadvantage in the late innings, but this time the Wolverines ran out of miracles.

"We knew this team had a lot of toughness and a lot of resiliency, so I wasn't surprised at all at the way we tried to come back," Harvard-Westlake coach Matt LaCour said.

Glendora's Jacob Smigelski (7-0) held Harvard-Westlake to one earned run on five hits through six innings, and Joseph Winterburn pitched the final inning.

"Harvard-Westlake swings the bat well. They're a pretty good team," Smigelski said.

Harvard-Westlake was hoping to make it the quarterfinals for the first time since 2003.

"Glendora executed well, they moved the runner over when they had to," Wilson said. "That's how you win games, by executing well. I have to tip my hat to them."

To qualify, Harvard-Westlake won two playoff games on the road, including a wild-card game after finishing fifth in the Mission League, as the Wolverines lasted longer than first-place Crespi of Encino and second-place Alemany, both eliminated in the first round.

"We had a good run," Wilson said.

In the bottom of the seventh, Sam Horn led off with a double before being forced out at second on good play by first baseman John Alexander. Wilson followed with a two-run double off the top of the fence in right-center field, but Winterburn got the third out by catching Shanfeld looking on a inside strike that ended the season.

Glendora (24-2-1) played errorless defense and scored on Joseph Woodward's RBI triple and sacrifice fly, Clinton Harnick's RBI single, Kyle Layton's RBI double and Jacob Cage's RBI single.

Harvard-Westlake's Lucas Giolito (5-5) pitched three-plus innings, and three relievers kept Glendora scoreless over the final three innings.

"We knew Glendora was going to be a solid team, and they were. They don't have a lot of weak spots," LaCour said. "They didn't give us anything. From this point, it's going to take a really good team to beat them."

Glendora is leading Harvard Westlake 5-1 in the top of the seventh, as host Harvard Westlake has broken the shutout with Andrew Shanfeld's home run in the bottom of the sixth.

Glendora's Jacob Smigelski has pitched six innings, giving up five hits and one earned run with four strikeouts and no walks.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Glendora is the No. 1 seed in Div. II, and the Tartans sure look like it today against Harvard-Westlake in a second-ground game in Encino.

Glendora has jumped to a 4-0 lead in the top of the fourth to knock out starter Lucas Giolito.
Austin Kamel has been brought in as a reliever, and he is warming up now.

Harvard-Westlake has one hit off Glendora right-hander Jacob Smigelski, who retired the first eight before Jason Garfinkel's single in the bottom of the third.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's a nice day here in Encino, as Harvard-Westlake of Studio City (17-13-1) is getting ready for top-seeded Glendora (23-2-1) in a Div. II second-round playoff game at Franklin Fields just west of Balboa Park.

Harvard-Westlake, led by All-America prospect Austin Wilson, is trying to make it to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2003.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Because of a sprinkler issue on its home field, Chaminade has been forced to move its Div. II playoff game against Santa Barbara to Pierce College. First pitch is 3:15 p.m.

-- Gerry Gittelson

There are few prep sports dynasties stronger than Chatsworth High's baseball program, as the Chancellors have won three consecutive City Section championships and nine overall, including seven over the past 10 seasons.

Chatsworth is on the brink of another championship appearance at Dodger Stadium - Chavez Ravine seems like a second home - as the top-seeded Chancellors play host to San Pedro at 3 p.m. Wednesday in a City semifinal.

The championship is scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday.

"I think we're on the right path. It's very exciting," outfielder/pitcher Aaron Brown said. "We just need to come and play our game, do what we do, and get after it."

Chatsworth has a strong pitching staff led by Christian Lopez, Brown and Steven Karkenny, all of whom are also top hitters along with Sean O'Connell, Ryan Escobar, Justin Davis, Brady Conlan, Jeff Bezjian, Angel Calderon and others.

First baseman Derek Neely, expected to be Chatsworth's top returning slugger, has missed most of the season since breaking his hand in early April. He re-appeared for the first time Friday as a pinch-hitter, lining out to first in an 8-6 quarterfinal victory over Taft of Woodland Hills.

"Derek is back, and he brings a lot of energy to the team," Brown said. "He's excited to be back."

San Pedro's Ronnie Galosic is batting .390 with five home runs and 30 RBIs, and Jacob Johnson is batting .442 with two home runs and 31 RBIs.

Since 1973, San Pedro is the only non-San Fernando Valley program to win a City championship in the highest division, taking the 1992 title with a 6-3 victory over Poly of Sun Valley. San Pedro last appeared in a championship in 2004, losing 7-1 to Chatsworth.

EL CAMINO REAL FACES KEY TEST

After falling in the City Section semifinals last year - one victory short of making it to Dodger Stadium - El Camino Real of Woodland Hills has returned to the final four Wednesday at Banning (22-8).

Ace right-hander Jose Cardona takes the mound, and the junior is 9-1 with a 1.79 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 66 innings. In 13 appearances, Cardona has allowed only nine extra-base hits, and over two seasons he has a record of 17-3.

"Jose is our best guy on the mound, and he has proved it," El Camino Real coach Josh Leinhard said. "We have the utmost confidence in him."

In two playoff victories, El Camino Real has outscored opponents 23-1. Overall, the Conquistadores have won eight of the past nine.

El Camino Real has won five City titles, the last in 2005.

THIS KID CAN BLUMAN HIT

What a year Mitch Bluman is having for El Camino Real. The senior first baseman/pitcher is batting .457 with nine home runs, 40 RBIs and a .852 slugging percentage, plus he has been walked 16 times and hit by a pitch 12 times for an on-base percentage of .596.

As a pitcher, Bluman is 6-3 with a 3.79 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 48 innings.

Some of El Camino Real's other top performers include Chris Whitmer (.372, 32 runs, 26 walks), Kyle Keppel (.365, five home runs, 28 RBIs), Chris Nicholson (.368, two home runs) and Ivan Vela (.385, 17 RBIs).

HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL
CITY SECTION SEMIFINALS
3 p.m. Wednesday

Div. I

San Pedro (23-5) at Chatsworth (25-4)
El Camino Real (17-11) at Banning (22-8)

-- Gerry Gittelson

2010 VALLEY SPORTS FOUNDATION/SLAM JAM
BOYS' BASKETBALL "SF VALLEY ELITE" SUMMER LEAGUE SCHEDULE.

MONDAY JUNE 14
at Taft of Woodland Hills HS
4 p.m. Taft vs. Crespi
5 p.m. Harvard-Westlake vs. Calabasas
6 p.m. El Camino Real vs. Notre Dame
7 p.m. Montclair Prep vs. Cleveland
8 p.m. Buckley vs. Sierra Canyon
Bye-Birmingham

MONDAY JUNE 21
at Taft of Woodland Hills HS
4 p.m. Taft vs. Harvard-Westlake
5 p.m. Notre Dame vs. Crespi
6 p.m. El Camino Real vs. Montclair Prep
7 p.m. Cleveland vs. Sierra Canyon
8 p.m. Calabasas vs. Birmingham
Bye-Buckley

NO GAMES ON MONDAY JUNE 28 (WAR ON THE FLOOR TOURNAMENT)

MONDAY JULY 5
at Taft of Woodland Hills HS
4 p.m. Taft vs. Calabasas
5 p.m. El Camino Real vs. Harvard-Westlake
6 p.m. Crespi vs. Cleveland
7 p.m. Montclair Prep vs. Buckley
8 p.m. Birmingham vs. Notre Dame
Bye-Sierra Canyon

MONDAY JULY 12
at Taft HS
4 p.m. Taft vs. El Camino Real
5 p.m. Harvard-Westlake vs. Cleveland
6 p.m. Crespi vs. Birmingham
7 p.m. Calabasas vs. Sierra Canyon
8 p.m. Notre Dame vs. Buckley
Bye-Montclair Prep

MONDAY JULY 19
at Taft HS
4 p.m. Taft vs. Notre Dame
5 p.m. Buckley vs. El Camino Real
6 p.m. Harvard-Westlake vs. Montclair Prep
7 p.m. Birmingham vs. Cleveland
8 p.m. Crespi vs. Sierra Canyon
Bye-Calabasas

MONDAY JULY 26
ALL GAMES AT TAFT HS
4 p.m. Taft vs. Montclair Prep
5 p.m. Harvard-Westlake vs. Birmingham
6 p.m. Crespi vs. El Camino Real
7 p.m. Calabasas vs. Buckley
8 p.m. Sierra Canyon vs. Notre Dame
Bye-Cleveland

MONDAY AUGUST 2
ALL GAMES AT TAFT HS
4 p.m. Buckley vs. Sierra Canyon
5 p.m. Montclair Prep vs. Birmingham
6 p.m. Calabasas vs. Cleveland
Bye-Taft, Crespi, El Camino Real, Notre Dame, Harvard-Westlake

Oaks Christian has three new assistants, including 11-year NFL veterans Jay Schroeder (quarterbacks) and Mike Sherrard (receivers), along with Ron Evans (linebackers).

Schroeder is a former NFL quarterback who won one a Super Bowl and appeared in one Pro Bowl. Sherrard, a former first-round draft choice, played for four NFL teams. Evans, a former UCLA teammate of Sherrard, previously coached at Palisades High for three years and Hamilton of L.A. for four years.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Andre Chevalier Named New Boys Basketball Coach at Oaks Christian School

Release

Oaks Christian School has named Andre Chevalier as its new Boy's Varsity Basketball Coach. Andre will take over for Tom Roanhaus who stepped down to devote more time to his role as Athletic Director of Oaks Christian Middle School.

Coach Chevalier has been Oaks Christian's girls' basketball coach for the past 3 years leading them to the State Playoffs this past season. He also serves as the school's Dean of Students.

Prior to Oaks Christian, Coach Chevalier coached at Cleveland High School where he led the Cavaliers to state and national rankings during his seven year tenure. He has coached players currently in the NBA like Nick Young and has placed many players at college programs.

Andre starred at Cal State Northridge where he was a basketball Academic All-American. When he left he held 5 career CSUN records.

"I consider it an honor to follow Tom in building the OCS boys' basketball program. OCS strives for excellence in all that it does, I fully expect basketball to achieve great things" states Coach Chevalier.

Andre Chevalier has been appointed boys' basketball coach at Oaks Christian of Westlake Village.

Chevalier replaces Tom Roanhaus, who resigned to focus on being the middle school athletic director.

Chevalier coached the girls' basketball team at Oaks Christian the last three years and had two stints as boys coach at Cleveland of Reseda.

There will be three games Thursday at Taft High of Woodland Hills.

Taft and Notre Dame will play for the championship at 6 p.m.

Notre Dame lost to Taft during regular league play but is hoping for a better performance this week.

Sophomores Jonathan Bell and Kennedy Edwards lead Notre Dame along with freshman Jahmel Taylor and Ausar Madison.

Kevin Johnson, Spencer Dinwiddie, Brandon Perry and Khiry Williams are anchoring Taft this spring.

The other two games will feature Simi Valley and Alemany at 7 p.m. and Calabasas and Oaks Christian at 8 p.m.

Los Angeles Valley College freshman infielder Josh Goossen-Brown, who attended Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks racked up an award in his first year of college ball.

California Community College Baseball
2010
Southern California All-Star Teams

Southern California All-State
Infielders
Josh Goossen-Brown LA Valley Fr.

The annual Daily News East-West All Star Game is scheduled for Sunday, June 6 at Birmingham High in Van Nuys. Kickoff is 5 p.m.

Here are the rosters:

WEST
Head Coach - Kevin Williams,
El Camino Real High School

#0 - Tyquion Ballard
Salesian
#1 - Brad Lattanzio
Crespi
#2 - Jon Hilliger
LA Baptist
#3 - Ra'Shon Harper
El Camino
#4 - Logan Bates
El Camino
#5 - C.A. Nunerley, IV
Cleveland
#6 - Nick Wallin
Faith Baptist
#7 - Brando Tessar
Chaminade
#8 - Blake Borland
Hart
#9 - Daniel Llorens
Faith Baptist
#10 - Andrew Nairin
Chaminade
#11 - Darryl James
Santa Monica
#12 - Zach Tartabull
Valencia
#13 - Jake Stephens
Hart
#14 - Keelan Malone
Santa Monica
#15 - Jake Basmagian
Chaminade
#16 - Ryan Meier
El Camino
#17 - Jesus Ambriz
Canoga Park
#18 - Garrett Safron
Santa Monica
#19 - Matt Marky
Chaminade
#20 - Taylor Watkins
LA Baptist
#21 - Jelani Cristophe
Van Nuys
#22 - Marcuss Anderson
Kennedy
#23 - George Garcia
Cleveland
#24 - Branden Pistone
West Ranch
#25 - Brandon Graves
Crespi
#26 - Brian Gutierrez
Birmingham
#29 - Daniel Aslan
Granada Hills
#30 - Anthony Ascencio
Taft
#31 - Alex Rivera
Canoga Park
#33 - Michael Farias
Kennedy
#34 - C.J. Reyes
Hart
#36 - George Alvarez
Crespi
#44 - David Perez
Reseda
#49 - Fred Scott
Taft
#51 - Kory Crichton
Chaminade
#57 - Kevin Rush
Valencia
#61 - Steven Oviedo
Granada Hills
#64 - James Marsden
El Camino
#65 - Mike Cruz
Salesian
#67 - Brad Cotner
Westlake
#70 - Daniel Fis
Reseda
#71 - Kealan Crowley
Cleveland
#72 - Duncan Laliberte
Sierra Canyon
#73 - Andrew Duenes
El Camino
#77 - R.J. Melgar
Crespi
#85 - Alex Hanover
Calabasas
#90 - Nick Oliva
Valencia

EAST
Head Coach - Hector Valencia,
Burbank High School

#00 - Brandon Kolesky
Campbell-Hall
#1 - Michael Alexander
La Salle
#2 - Josh Hanson
La Canada
#3 - Jorge Cervantes
Poly
#4 - Tyler Thomas
Notre Dame
#5 - Corey Washington
Palmdale
#6 - Kenny Boggs
Notre Dame
#7 - Jay-qwan Redmond
Panorama
#8 - Chike Mbanefo
Alemany
#9 - Chris Cabrera
St. Francis
#10 - Ryan Kasdorf
Notre Dame
#11 - Kevin Lenik
Alemany
#12 - Albert Sandobal
Arleta
#13 - Bryan Choto
Arleta
#14 - Rocky Moore
La Canada
#15 - Tony Jones
Grant
#17 - Eric Solis
Notre Dame
#18 - Kohl Adams-Hurd
Burroughs
#19 - Vincent Neilson
Palmdale
#20 - Antonio Bray
Arleta
#21 - Leo Rodas
Burbank
#22 - Chris Crowell
Sylmar
#23 - Malcolm Meeks
Harvard Westlake
#24 - Harry Pessy
Crescenta Valley
#25 - Alex Davidians
Bell - Jefferson
#29 - Jonathan Aguirre
Saugus
#30 - Armando Ontiveres
Sylmar
#33 - Bronson Green
Loyola
#34 - Dalton Williams
Burroughs
#35 - Justin Joyner
San Fernando
#42 - Anthony Espinosa
Alemany
#45 - Charlie Hosea
Burroughs
#51 - Jordan Dias
Village Christian
#53 - Robert Chavez
Sylmar
#54 - DeAndre Roberts
Sylmar
#55 - Sam Campbell
Crescenta Valley
#56 - Julian Craig
Crescenta Valley
#58 - Michael Solano
Burroughs
#69 - David Quintanilla-Rico
Bell-Jefferson
#70 - Andy Pankow
La Salle
#71 - Michael Williams
Burbank
#75 - Mark Plaza
Eagle Rock
#77 - Collin Tanigawa
Loyola
#81 - Freedon McCullough
Campbell-Hall
#85 - Nat Bellamy
Loyola
#88 - Steve McCloskey
North Hollywood
#89 - Josh Lumer
Campbell-Hall
#92 - Ivan Aberenov
Hoover

Here is the complete list:

2010 JC Southern California All-Star Teams

Coach of the Year: Dave Mallas, Los Angeles Valley

Player of the Year: Kyle Petter, So., El Camino

Pitchers of the Year: Kyle Petter, El Camino; Christian Meza, Santa Ana

Big Stick Award: Alfredo Lopez, Compton

Southern California All-America

Pitchers
Kyle Petter El Camino So.
Hunter Herrera San Diego So.
Jeremy Perez Chaffey Fr.
Christian Meza Santa Ana So.

Relief Pitcher
Allen Townsend San Diego Mesa So.

Catcher
Dylan Nasiatka Bakersfield So.

Infielders
Julian Doran Santa Ana So.
Josh Goossen-Brown LA Valley Fr.
Alfredo Lopez Compton So.
A. J. Bayus Golden West So.

Outfielders
Cal Vogelsang Canyons Fr.
Jordan Tripp Golden West So.
Tommy White Santa Barbara Fr.

First Base
Jonathan Erb Oxnatd So..
Designated Hitter
Corey Levier Cypress So.

Utility Players
Bryan Wilson Oxnard So.

All-Southern California

Pitchers
Tom Hoenshell Cypress So.
Zak Edgington Santa Barbara So.
Victor Soto Rio Hondo So.

Relief Pitchers
Jacob Valenzuela Hancock So.
R. J. Hively Santa Ana Fr.

Catchers
Nick O'Loughlin Fullerton So.
Aaron Deguire El Camino So.

Infielders
Johnny Morales Cypress So.
Matt Anderson Chaffey Fr.
Brett Tanos Santa Ana So.
Chris Vopinek El Camino Fr.
Chris Mallory Hancock So.

Outfielders
Jonathan Kim LA Harbor So.
Erin Hempe Cypress So.
Joe Riley Mt. San Jacinto Fr.
Ryan Doeppel East LA So.

First Base
Alfonso Casillas Palomar So.
Chris Miller Santa Ana So.
Designated Hitters
Randy Bruce Mt. San Jacinto So.
Conner Rehage Santa Barbara Fr.

Utility Player
J. C. Aguayo Oxnard So.

SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFFS

Second round, Tuesday, 3:15 p.m.

DIV I

El Modena at Moorpark

Mater Dei at Camarillo

Royal at Esperanza

DIV II

Glendora vs. Harvard-Westlake at Franklin Field (Encino)

Santa Barbara at Chaminade

Div. III

Rancho Alamitos at Quartz Hill

South Hills at Lancaster

Div. IV

Oaks Christian at Fullerton

Div. V

Montclair Prep at Big Bear

Western Christian at Campbell Hall

Div. VI

Villanova Prep at Desert Christian

Vasquez at Kern Valley

Grace Brethren at Boron

Div. VII

Cornerstone Christian at Cate
New Roads at Valley Torah

Twin Pines at Milken Community

New Community Jewish at North County Christian

De'Andre Daniels, a 6-7 junior from Taft, has been named to the ESPN/RISE Underclass All-American team -- the only local on the list:

Juniors (30):
G -- Bradley Beal, Chaminade (St. Louis, Mo.) 6-3
F -- Chane Behanen, Bowling Green (Bowling Green, Ky.) 6-7
G -- Gary Bell, Kentridge (Kent, Wash.) 6-1
G -- Wayne Blackshear, Morgan Park (Chicago, Ill.) 6-5
G -- Ryan Boatright, East (Aurora, Ill.) 5-10
F -- Aaron Brown, Penn Wood (Lansdowne, Pa.) 6-5
C -- Angelo Chol, Hoover (San Diego, Calif.) 6-8
F -- Rakeem Christmas, Academy of the New Church (Bryn Athyn, Pa.)
*G -- Quinn Cook, DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) 6-1
F -- De'Andre Daniels, Taft (Woodland Hills, Calif.) 6-7
G -- Myles Davis, St. Peter's Prep (Jersey City, N.J.) 6-2
F -- Dorian Finney-Smith, Norcom (Portsmouth, Va.) 6-7
*F -- Mike Gilchrist, St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.) 6-8
G -- P. J. Hairston, Dudley (Greensboro, N.C.) 6-5
*G -- Chris Jones, Melrose (Cordova, Tenn.) 5-10
G -- Trevor Lacey, Butler (Huntsville, Ala.) 6-3
G -- Myck Kabongo, St. Benedict's (Newark, N.J.) 6-2
*F -- James McAdoo, Norfolk Christian (Norfolk, Va.) 6-9
G -- Sheldon McClellan, Bellaire (Houston, Texas) 6-5
G -- Ben McLemore, Eskridge (Wellston, Mo.) 6-4
*F -- Quincy Miller, Quality Education Academy (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 6-9
F -- LaBryan Nash, Lincoln (Dallas, Texas) 6-7
F -- Levi Randolph, Bob Jones (Madison, Ala.) 6-5
*G -- Austin Rivers, Winter Park, (Winter Park, Fla.) 6-3
C -- Julian Royal, Milton (Alpharetta, Ga.) 6-8
G -- Deville Smith, Callaway (Jackson, Miss.) 5-11
*G -- Marquis Teague, Pike (Indianapolis, Ind.) 6-2
F -- Adonis Thomas, Melrose (Cordova, Tenn.) 6-6
G -- Josiah Turner, Sacramento (Sacramento, Calif.) 6-3
F -- Kyle Wiltjer, Jesuit (Portland, Ore.) 6-9

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Rivers

Sophomores (20):
C -- Brandon Ashley, Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland, Calif.) 6-9
G -- Omar Calhoun, Christ The King (Middle Village, N.Y.) 6-3
F -- Willie Clayton, Thomasville (Thomasville, Ga.) 6-7
C -- DaJuan Coleman, Jamesville-Dewitt (Dewitt, N.Y.) 6-9
F -- Perry Ellis, Wichita Heights (Wichita, Kan.) 6-8
F -- Michael Frazier, Plant (Tampa, Fla.) 6-3
F -- Ricardo Gathers, Riverside (Reserve, La.) 6-6
F -- Dorial Green, Hillcrest (Springfield, Mo.) 6-6
F -- Xavier Johnson (Chaparral, Temecula, Calif.) 6-6
G -- Tyler Lewis, Forsyth Country Day (Lewisville, N.C.) 5-10
G -- Shabazz Muhammad, Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) 6-4
C -- Tony Parker, Miller Cove (Lithonia, Ga.) 6-8
G -- Jordan Price, McCallie School (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 6-5
G -- J-Mychal Reese, Bryan (Bryan, Texas) 6-1
G -- L.J. Rose, Second Baptist (Houston, Texas) 6-3
F -- Marcus Smart, Marcus (Flower Mound, Texas) 6-4
G -- D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera, North Central (Indianapolis, Ind.) 6-3
F -- Jarnell Stokes, Memphis Central (Memphis, Tenn.) 6-8
G -- Ladarius White, McComb (McComb, Miss.) 6-4
C -- Adam Woodbury, East (Sioux City, Iowa) 6-11

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Ellis

Freshmen (10):
F -- Brian Bridgewater, Episcopal (Baton Rouge, La.) 6-6
G -- Aquille Carr, Patterson (Baltimore, Md.) 5-6
F -- DeMonte Flannigan, Villa Angela-St. Joseph (Cleveland, Ohio) 6-7
F -- Isaac Hamilton (Crenshaw, Los Angeles, Calif.) 6-4
C -- Thomas Hamilton, Whitney Young (Chicago, Ill.) 6-9
G -- Kasey Hill, Mount Dora Bible (Eustis, Fla.) 6-1
F -- Jabari Parker, Simeon (Chicago, Ill.) 6-6
F -- Roschon Prince, Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) 6-5
C -- Julius Randle, Prestonwood Christian (Plano, Texas) 6-8
F -- Ishmael Wainwright, Raytown South (Raytown, Mo.) 6-4

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Parker

Mike Moustakas, the former Chatsworth star who holds the state single-season and career home run records, is off to his best professional start for the Double-A North Arkansas Nationals, a Royals' affiliate.

Moustakas is batting .398 with 10 home runs and 36 RBIs in 28 games.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Montclair Prep of Van Nuys is gearing up for a long road trip Tuesday when it travels to Big Bear for a Div. V second round game.

The Mounties are having one of their best seasons in recent memory having won the Olympic League, the Santa Ynez tournament in April and on Thursday easily defeated Serrano of Phelan, 9-0 on a combined one-hitter.

The trip to Big Bear will be a test but the Mounties would definitely have a quarterfinal home game on Friday against Heritage of Menifee or Gabrielino of San Gabriel.

"Maybe we can get some skiing," Montclair Prep coach Rick Weber quipped by phone. "You have to win on the road in the playoffs at some point."

Montclair Prep will have all its pitchers rested and ready to go. Look for Max Fried, Nck Suniga and Dylan Satin to take the hill.

If the Mounties continue to get timely hitting and solid defense they could make a serious run at the championship

On Tuesday, April 27 the Buckley School in Sherman Oaks hosted a signing ceremony to celebrate three of the top female athletes who have been recruited for college athletics or signed National Letters of Intent (NLI), binding agreements to attend a Division I or II NCAA school and join its athletic teams.

Congratulations to: Liana Diamond, who will dive for Division I Columbia University; Paris Sellon, who signed a NLI to join the Southern Methodist University equestrian team; and Emily Turner, who signed a NLI to play on the top-ranked Division I women's water polo team at Berkeley. (Note - while Ivy League schools can recruit athletes, they cannot offer formal NLIs.)

Congratulations and good luck ladies! Congratulations go out as well to senior Lindsay Schapiro, who has been recruited to play basketball for the Division III Wesleyan University Cardinals.

The Taft of Woodland Hills boys' basketball team will no longer have the services of sophomore point guard Landon Drew.

Head coach Derrick Taylor felt he needed to let Drew go for the best interests of the program after a series of events that were detrimental to the program.

Drew has rarely been seen this offseason even though the Toreadors played in the Fairfax and Westchester spring leagues as well as their own Thursday night league.

Taylor could not go into details about the dismissal but indicated the decision obviously had nothing to do with ability. In fact, Taylor only wishes the best for the younger brother of former Taft standout Larry Drew II, who is now the starting point guard at North Carolina.

"Landon is a great player and a great person," Taylor said. "He will be a huge addition to any school he ends up at. In his two years at Taft, he really was an integral part of the team and was showing breakthrough potential."

It is a big loss for Taft but Taylor still has many options, including Khiry Williams, Chris Yanku or Steven Jones to team with Spencer Dinwiddie in the backcourt.

Taylor indicated he would have loved to have Landon continue with the team but situations that became uncontrollable and unbearable made it impossible to continue in that direction.

El Camino Real High of Woodland Hills won four City Section baseball titles over a six-year period from 1993 to 1998, but the Conquistadores have won only one since.

This year, they mean business.

After a slow start, El Camino Real is playing as well as anyone, winning seven of its past eight, including an 11-1 victory today over visiting Birmingham of Lake Balboa in a City quarterfinal that was stopped in the bottom of fifth inning because of the 10-run mercy rule.

The co-West Valley League champion Conquistadores (17-11) scored six runs in the second inning to break it open, and left-hander Mitch Bluman (6-3) pitched a complete-game two hitter with six strikeouts.

"Last year, we were one game away from making it to the final at Dodger Stadium when we lost in the semifinals, and this time we're a lot hungrier," shortstop Ivan Vela said. "We want the chance to get back to Dodger Stadium.

"At this point, we're more focused, and we're ready to go. Nothing is going to stop us."

Third-seeded El Camino Real plays either second-seeded Banning or seventh-seeded Palisades on Wednesday in the semifinals. The championship is next Saturday at 1 p.m.

"This is definitely our year," catcher Chris Whitmer said.

Vela hit a three-run home run, Daniel Dungan hit a grand slam, and Whitmer was 3 for 4 with a run and an RBI.

El Camino Real totaled 12 hits (five for extra bases) and played errorless defense.

The Conquistadores are hoping a beefed-up nonleague schedule will be pay off. Of course, they would love to be 28-0 at this point, but the players believe they're battle-tested enough to win it all.

"We've played the toughest schedule in the league, and that's made us a lot better," Whitmer said. "We have come out and played hard every game."

Ahead by 10 runs, El Camino Real was one strike away from winning in the minimum four innings, but Birmingham pinch-hitter Manny Granillo hit a pinch-hit home run to extend the proceedings for one more inning before El Camino Real's Mason Novak ended things in the bottom of the fifth by doubling in Bluman to account for the last run.

Birmingham (14-14) was hoping to advance to the semifinals for the first time in 41 seasons since winning the City title in 1969.

"I don't know what happened. I guess we have to work a little harder on fundamentals," Birmingham's Kevin Torres said. "We only have three seniors, so we're going to have a good team next year."

Torres, a junior, was 0 for 1 with a walk after entering with a .494 average, 11 home runs and 24 RBIs.

gerry.gittelson@dailynews.com

Taft of Woodland Hills will hold a summer league on Thursday nights starting June 17.

Here is the schedule.

June 17
5 p.m. Alemany vs. Westlake
6 p.m. Alemany vs. Burroughs
7 p.m. Monroe vs. Burroughs
8 p.m. Birmingham vs. Agoura

July 1
4:30 p.m. Birmingham vs. Monroe
5:30 p.m. Taft vs. Westlake
6:30 p.m. Alemany vs. El Camino Real
7:30 p.m. Taft vs. Burroughs
8:30 p.m. Agoura vs. Burroughs

July 8
4:30 p.m. Westlake vs. Agoura
5:30 p.m. Taft vs. Monroe
6:30 p.m. Alemany vs. Agoura
7:30 p.m. Burroughs vs. El Camino Real
8:30 p.m. Birmingham vs. Burroughs

July 15
6 p.m.El Camino Real vs. Taft
7 p.m. El Camino Real vs. Birmingham

July 22
4:30 p.m. Westlake vs. Birmingham
5:30 p.m. Alemany vs. Taft
6:30 p.m. Alemany vs. Monroe
7:30 p.m. Taft vs. Agoura
8:30 p.m. El Camino Real vs. Agoura

July 29
5 p.m. El Camino Real vs. Westlake
6 p.m. Monroe vs. Westlake
7 p.m. Taft vs. Birmingham
8 p.m. Agoura vs. Monroe

It's been a down season for the talent-strapped Foothill League, usually one of the Southland's most respected baseball leagues.

Things got worse Thursday, as league champion Valencia lost 4-1 to visiting El Dorado of Placentia (17-10) in the first round of the Southern Section Div. I playoffs, as none of league's four entries remain alive, two losing Tuesday in the wild-card round, combined with West Ranch of Stevenson Ranch's first-round loss at Esperanza of Anaheim.

Valencia went quietly, scoring on Kyle Eaton's home run in the first inning but otherwise managing to hit just five balls out of the infield - a few hits, a flyout to left field, and a fly ball to right that was misplayed.

The Vikings could not figure out hard-throwing left-hander Cameron Yen -- who went five strong innings while inducing seven groundouts and three infield popouts - nor Kyle Twomey, who pitched two scoreless relief innings for the save.

"We haven't faced too many lefties, and I think all of us were trying to do too much," Valencia's Alex Lightfoot said. "We were all trying to be heroes, and that can kill a team."

Valencia had a runner on base every inning but stranded six and grounded into two double plays.

"We wanted to have a great year, so it hurts to go down this early," Lightfoot said. "We didn't just want to win the league championship. We wanted to make a run at the CIF championship. That was our goal."

The Vikings finished with 33 home runs but with a final record of 17-10-1, so something was adrift, particularly pitching and fundamentals.

It didn't help that two of Valencia's top returning players separated from the program before the opener, with all-state junior Christian Lopes transferring and another returning all-league player leaving for disciplinary reasons. Plus, there were a slew of about a half-dozen injuries, the first top pitcher Kyle Eaton's arm trouble in the frall that relegated him to the outfield, and the last key hitter James Bonds' broken leg this past week in a dugout accident.

"We've had a lot of adversity. We've dealt with a lot of stuff, a bunch of freak injuries like kids running into the wall at practice," coach Jared Snyder said.

But Snyder made no excuses Thursday.

"We just didn't execute very well. We didn't do our jobs, and El Dorado did," Snyder said. "We had our opportunities, so we can't complain. But they're the team that did everything right."

Valencia's Justin Hanks (2-4) pitched six innings, giving up two runs (one earned) on six hits, including Adam Velez's home run in the third inning.

"We just didn't do the little things, but I've got to give El Dorado credit. They shut us down," Valencia's Brian Mundell said. "I give a lot of credit to them. There's not really much else to say."

Yen was wary of Valencia's home-run power, so he did his best to keep the ball low, and he was especially careful pitching to Trey Williams, who entered with 10 home runs and 32 RBIs but went 0 for 3.

"I've never pitched so many sinkers, but they had a lot of powerful guys with long swings," Yen said. "We had a scouting report on Trey Williams. We knew he was a pull hitter who hits bombs, so the first thing I did was throw him a cutter inside to kind of back him off, then a lot of sinkers."

-- Gerry Gittelson

BOX SCORE:

El Dorado 4, Valencia 1

ED 101 000 2 - 5-7-1
Val 100 000 0 - 1-4-2
Yen, Twomey (6) and Luther;
Hanks, Quintero (6) and Bishop.
W-Yen; L-Hanks (2-4). HR: V: Eaton;
ED: A. Velez. 2B-V: Zeile.
R: ED 17-11; V 17-10-1

The Royal of Simi Valley softball team was on its way to a Div. I first round playoff victory against host Oxnard after scoring two first inning runs Thursday.

Usually that would be enough for sensational sophomore pitcher and Arizona-commit Nancy Bowling.

Unfortunately for the Highlanders it wasn't.

Oxnard battled back for a 3-2 win after Bryana Dorado singled in Kathryn Pilpil with two out in the bottom of the seventh.

The Yellowjackets (22-1-1) move on to Tuesdays second round against Riverside Poly while Royal can only look to next season.

"All I was thinking was I have nothing to lose and just get a base hit," Dorado said. "Bowling is tough and I was preparing for her all week. We moved the pitching machine in closer and I went to my hitting my lessons."

Ali Mosier tripled home Bowling and Kelyn Fillmore singled home Mosier as Royal grabbed an early 2-0 lead.

After getting out of a bases loaded jam in the fourth, Bowling wasn't as lucky in the fifth.

Oxnard finally came through with a big hit as Dorado singled home Pilpil and Demi Meza with two out to tie it at 2-2.

Royal had Fillmore reach second with one out in the sixth but Dani Newton flew out to second and Fillmore got caught off second for a double play killing a potential rally.

Royal turned its own double play in the seventh and was destined to go to extra innings but a single, two erros, a walk and Dorado's single ended the game.

Despite the loss, Bowling, who is one of several underclassmen on ateam with only three seniors was optimistic.

"It really hurts because this teamw as so close and we wanted to win for our seniors but I guess you have to fail to get better," Bowling said. "We have to learn from this to figure out what we need to do."

Royal had opportunities with runners in scoring position in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh innings but could not breakthrough.

"We definitely has some snafus," Royal coach Bill Dishon said. "We had some basrunning errors and couldn't get the bunt down. Oxnard is a tough team, we knew it would be tough coming here."

Bowling wasn't the only good sophomore pitcher in the circle.

Alexis Edwards yileded eight hits and a walk in her complete game but didn't allow a run over the final six innings giving her team a chance it finally cashed in.

"The girls never gave up," Oxnard coach Paul Tinoco said. "They played their hearts out. We have had a great season and we always try to keep the girls from getting too big in their heads. Because of our record and the teams we played we knew to just keep fighting."

Lindsey White, the coach at Simi Valley the past two years has resigned.

Interested applicants should direct resumes to athletic director Matt LaBelle.

Florida-bound shortstop Cheyenne Coyle, who was pressed into pitching duties this year for the Chatsworth softball team didn't have her best stuff Wednesday but came through in the clutch for the Chancellors in 3-2 City Section championship division quarterfinal victory against West Valley League-rival El Camino Real of Woodland Hills.

Not only did Chatsworth (24-5) beat the Conquistadores (23-7-1) for a sixth consecutive time, the Chancellors advance to Fridays semifinals at top-seeded Carson.

"I was a little shaky but we got some big outs in big situations and my team backed me up," Coyle said. "El Camino always use to beat us. It has been great to show we can play to."

Coyle escaped bases loaded jams in the first two innings, retiring Alex Conway on a line shot to third base and striking out Dani Gilmore in the second after yielding two singles and a walk.

"Before the game we told the girls to not panic, relax, forget about bad plays and move on," Coyle said. "We were able to stay clam and poised throughout the game."

No. 9 hitter Brianna Adams hit a two run home run in the second, a deep shot to left center and added the winning run in the fourth on an RBI sacrifice fly by Chelsea Anaya.

The deciding run was set up by a costly error by Dylan O'Connor, who missed on a Jenna Koziol line drive leading off the inning, allowing Koziol to reach second base.

The Conquistadores made things interesting in the sixth with three consecutive singles for a run and a Whitney West RBI single.

However, with runners on first and third and one out, Gilmore popped out to second and Kayla Dahlerbruch grounded out sharply to third.

Katelyn Downing (4 for 4, run scored) singled with two out in the seventh but Coyle retired the next batter on a ground out to shortstop.

"I don't know why we can't beat them," Dahlerbruch said. "They always come up with their 'A' game. I feel we beat ourselves most of the time. We couldn't come up with any big hits. We wanted to win. We played hard. We gave it our all."

West had three hits for ECR.

Anaya singled, doubled and had an RBI for Chatsworth.

Coyle reached base three times on a single, walk and error.

Koziol scored two runs for the Chancellors.

Looking ahead to trying to reach the first championship game in school history, Coyle was optimistic.

"We are going to go in with a good attitude, go in with our heads up and keep them off the bases. We know we can beat any team on any given day."

The record is flashy, and the press kit bulges in all the right places, but is Arleta High's baseball team for real?

Eyebrows were raised when Arleta, a fourth-year program, climbed all the way to the No. 4 seed in the City Section Div. I playoffs after winning 23 games during the regular season.

On a perfect cloudless day, Arleta took a big step toward proving its legitimacy by defeating Granada Hills 2-1 in a first-round matchup at College of the Canyons - Arleta's first-ever Division I playoff victory.

Javy Lopez, a junior right-hander who stands 5-foot-9 and barely weighs 140 pounds, improved to 8-0, pitching his eighth complete game of the season while limiting the Highlanders to one earned run on nine hits with nine strikeouts.

Lopez also singled in Pepe Marquez for the go-ahead run in the fifth inning.

"This was a good win," Lopez said. "The way we're playing, we can do a lot. We can make a run."

Arleta (24-4) plays Friday in the quarterfinals against either San Fernando or San Pedro.

Granada Hills (11-15) had a chance to tie the score in the top of the seventh. With Oscar Tinjaca on second, Orozco Martin singled to right with one out, and it appeared Tinjaca would have a good chance to score, but he was held up. Next up was Jimmy McCarron, who lined to short for a game-ending (and season-ending) double play.

"Arleta's a good team. They're aggressive with the bats, and they're definitely sound," Granada Hills' Bryce Kelly said. "They're going to keep going and try to get to the end, and you never know what's going to happen."

Kelly took the loss, pitching six innings and giving up four hits while striking out eight.

Granada Hills scored in the third inning when Kelly walked and eventually came home on McCarron's single.

Arleta scored its first run on Miguel Perez's RBI single in the first that scored Ryan Sanchez.

-- Gerry Gittelson

James Bonds, a junior designated hitter who worked his way from the bench to the No. 3 spot in Valencia's batting order, is out with broken leg suffered during a dugout slip-and-fall injury,

Valencia's leading hitter, Bonds is expected to undergo surgery soon and won't be available Thursday for a Div. I first-round playoff game against El Dorado of Placentia.

Bonds is a transfer from St. Francis. His father, Jim Bonds, is the head football coach at St. Francis.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's the first round of the City Section playoffs, and Arleta is playing host to Granada Hills on a beautiful day here at College of the Canyons.

In only its fourth year of varsity competition, Arleta is 23-4 and seeded No. 4, and there is no doubt the Mustangs are eager to prove how good they are because undoubtedly there are a lot of non-believers out there.

Granada Hills was once among the City's top programs back in the John Elway days and perhaps for a few seasons in the thereafter, but the Highlanders are only 11-14 this season. So like Arleta, Granada Hills is looking for a measure of respect.

It's 1-1 in the bottom of the third. Arleta scored on Miguel Perez's RBI single in the first, and Granada Hills tied it on Martin Orozco's RBI single in the top of the third.

-- Gerry Gittelson

SIMI VALLEY -- It's about 45 minutes before game time, and as Cody Buckel trots to the bullpen to begin warming up, a swarm of about a dozen professional scouts follow along, charting his every move.

That's life for the prized pitcher from Royal High, something that happens when you can throw a baseball 95 mph with pin point accuracy, complimented with a variety of breaking pitches that zoom in at various unhittable angles.

Buckel is among the top prospects in the nation, but he is just warming up. Each pitch gets a little faster, each pop of the catcher's mitt a little louder, each scout leans a little closer.

And with each spellbinding performance - he is 10-1 with an 0.54 ERA, four shutouts and 104 strikeouts with just 14 walks - the legend of Cody Buckel grows.

The scouts who lined up last game saw what they wanted to see, as Buckel pitched a three-hitter to defeat Thousand Oaks 8-1 on the last day of the regular season to wrap up a Marmonte League championship.

Buckel has signed with Pepperdine but the right-hander is expected to be drafted within the first few of the Major League draft, and depending upon when Buckel is selected (some have said it could be the first round), he could forego college and sign for more money than he ever dreamed of.

For now, Buckel is taking it all in. The Southern Section Div. I playoffs begin at 3:15 p.m. today - some divisions begin Friday - and Royal, seeded No. 2, is hoping to win a section championship for the first time.

"I'm going to miss it. There is something special about high school baseball," Buckel said. "Playing for Royal High School, it's something I take to heart."

Royal coach Dan Maye calls Buckel a coach's dream.

"Sometimes, after a game, you'll be talking to the kids in the dugout, and some of them kind of tune out - but never Cody," Maye said. "He really listens every time. You can see it in his eyes. He has tried to learn something from every coach he has ever met. He's just a student of the game."

Buckel has worked his butt off, too. When most of teammates are leaving practice, he's been there working. In the summer, when they're at the beach or hanging out the mall, he's been playing for the U.S. National Team.

"Cody works hard and puts in the extra time, and not just pitching but every aspect of the game," Maye said.

In three seasons, Buckel is 21-4 with four saves, and every year he has posted a sub-2.00 ERA.

His goal was to be perfect this season, and the only loss was a 2-1 defeat to Moorpark that saw Buckel pitch a two-hitter and not give up an earned run.

"Cody's worst outing is better than most pitchers' best outing," Maye said.

Buckel took the Moorpark loss hard. It was fellow ace Tyler Abbott's turn to pitch the following game against Thousand Oaks in the finale, but Buckel implored Maye to give him the baseball again, convinced he could come back strong and pitch Royal to victory with the league championship on the line. And he did.

"I did set a goal to be perfect, and I didn't get that, but I'm really proud of myself. It's one of my better years," Buckel said.

Buckel is also a top shortstop and a hitter who is batting .404 with five home runs and 23 RBIs. He's 2 for 13 over the past four games, so Buckel figures he is due.

"I'm kind of in a little hitting slump. Everything that I hit hard is getting caught," Buckel said. "I'll just keep swinging the bat, and the ball will take care of itself."

One of things that gives Royal an advantage is the presence of two top pitchers including Abbott (7-2, 1.08). But the Highlanders are counting on Buckel so heavily that not only has he pitched the last two games, but he could pitch today and Tuesday in the second round if Royal advances.

"Cody is going to carry most of the weight," Abbott said. "I'll be there just to keep a solid arm whenever we need it."

Having Buckel as a teammate has made Abbott that much better.

"When you know there is a guy who is obviously better than you are, you have to work extra hard to keep up," Abbott said.

Among Royal's other top players are Ryan Cerda (.377, six home runs), Justin Greco (.386, five home runs, 29 RBIs) and Nick Kinsman (.325, 26 runs).

"We're solid from top to bottom," Abbott said. "There are guys who can play defense and hit."

With Buckel on the mound, Royal feels unbeatable.

"Pitching is fun. It's the most fun I've ever had," Buckel said. "On the mound, I'm standing taller than anyone else and I feel really in control of the situation. I'm not going to let anything ruin that."

-- Gerry Gittelson

Taft High will be the site of an 11-team elite valley summer league.

Scheduled to participate are:

Taft, Cleveland, El Camino Real, Birmingham, Harvard-Westlake, Notre Dame, Crespi, Calabasas, Montclair Prep, Sierra Canyon and Buckley.

The league starts June 14 and the schedule will be released shortly.

Dillon van der Wal, a 6'8 defensive lineman and Blair Holliday, a 6'2 wide receiver have picked up multiple offers going into their senior season.

van der Wal has been offered by Minnesota, Baylor and Arizona St.

Holliday has been offered by Colorado St. and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

Sophomore Jordan Payton has already committed to USC and look for quarterback Trevor Gretzky to receive an offer soon.

All games played at Taft High in Woodland Hills

5 p.m. Taft vs. Calabasas
6 p.m. Taft vs. Alemany
7 p.m. Notre Dame vs. Calabasas
8 p.m. Oaks Christian vs. Simi Valley

Free admission

The eight head coaches in the Marmonte League held an end of season meeting Monday night and voted to ban metal-composite bats for next season.

They also voted to use wood or wood-composite bats during the offseason.

Another vote to completely eliminate all metal bats will take place sometime next year before the regular season.

Alex Guzzi is the latest Crespi football player to commit to a major-college scholarship, signing with New Mexico State. Guzzi, an offensive and defensive lineman, is the seventh Crespi senior to earn a scholarship. The others are Bryan Bennett, Hroniss Grasu, Brandon Graves, Ben Loth, Pierce Richardson, Mike Mitchell.

Combining other sports, Crespi has 19 athletes headed to college on athletic scholarships, including five baseball players, three soccer players, two volleyball players, one track athlete and one golfer.

-- Gerry Gittelson

SOUTHERN SECTION BASEBALL PLAYOFFS

DIVISION I

TOP FOUR SEEDS:

1. Orange Lutheran

2. Royal

3. Lakewood

4. Edison.

OTHER LOCALS: Camarillo, Moorpark, Newbury Park, Thousand Oaks, Valencia, West Ranch

PLAYER TO WATCH: Jeff Yamaguchi, Lakewood - Yamaguchi has been a terror as a pitcher and a hitter. He's 9-1 with a 2.04 ERA, and he's batting .471 with 42 runs and 42 RBIs.

SLEEPER: Valencia - The Vikings, led by Trey Williams (nine HRs), have never reached a final, but if their pitching holds up they can hit with anyone.

Div. II

TOP FOUR SEEDS:

1. Glendora

2. Crespi

3. Redlands East Valley

4. Cypress

OTHER LOCALS: Alemany, Chaminade, Harvard-Westlake

PLAYER TO WATCH: Ryon Healy, Crespi - Healy, the returning Div. II Player of the Year, was 11-0 as a pitcher last year but has not pitched since an early-season arm injury. He is batting .369 with three HRs and 18 RBIs.

SLEEPER: Alemany - The Indians, loaded with young talent that continues to improve as the season progresses, has been a different team over the second half of the season.


Div. III

TOP FOUR SEEDS:

1. Beckman

2. Alhambra

3. South Hills

4. Hemet

OTHER LOCALS: Highland, Lancaster, Palmdale, Quartz Hill



PLAYER TO WATCH: Brenton Allen, Gahr - Allen hit his fifth HR in the season finale Thursday. He's batting .446 with 29 RBIs and 12 SBs.

SLEEPER: Quartz Hill - The Rebels are one of the hottest teams in Southland with nine consecutive victories by an average margin of 14.2 runs.

Div. IV

TOP FOUR SEEDS:

1. Bishop Amat

2. Palm Desert

3. St. Paul

4. Northview.

LOCALS: La Canada, Oaks Christian

PLAYER TO WATCH: Rio Ruiz, Bishop Amat - Ruiz, a sophomore, is batting .519 with four HRs, 31 runs and 28 RBIs.

SLEEPER: Oaks Christian - Oaks Christian, led by Trevor Gretzky (.341, 33 RBIs), Drew Hacker (.459, 25 RBIs) and Evan Ocello (.421, 36 runs), has won six of seven, including a sweep of St. Bonaventure in the final week to win the Tri-Valley League championship.

Div. V

TOP FOUR SEEDS:

1. Woodcrest Christian

2. Tahquitz

3. Maranatha

4. Montclair Prep

OTHER LOCALS: Campbell Hall, Paraclete

PLAYER TO WATCH: Max Fried, Montclair Prep - Fried, a sophomore, is batting .451 with four HRs and 38 RBIs, and he is 8-3 with a 1.90 ERA.

SLEEPER: St. Monica - St. Monica, 15-10 overall but 9-3 on the road, finished by sweeping Junipero Serra and Cathedral.

Div. VI

TOP FOUR SEEDS:

1. Desert Christian

2. Grace Brethren

3. Oxford Academy,

4. Vasquez

OTHER LOCALS: Bell-Jeff, Buckley, Flintridge Prep, Viewpoint

PLAYER TO WATCH: Nick Schmidt, Grace Brethren - Schmidt has a Southern Section-record 55 career doubles.

SLEEPER -- Buckley -- After losing its first six games of the season, Buckley, led Jake Brodsky (.524, 28 runs), has closed strong and feels like it has nothing to lose.

Div. VII

TOP FOUR SEEDS:

1. Cornerstone Christian (Camarillo)

2. North County Christian

3. Milken

4. Pacifica Christian

OTHER LOCALS: Delphi Academy, Hillcrest Christian, New Community Jewish, Valley Torah

PLAYER TO WATCH: Aaron Roth, Cornerstone Christian - Roth is batting .479 with six HRs and 31 RBIs, and he is 9-0 with a 1.11 ERA.

SLEEPER: New Roads - The Jaguars, led by Nick Rhys (.383, three HRs, 31 RBIs), have finished with three wins in the last four games, scoring nine runs or more in every victory.

-- Gerry Gittelson

SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFF PREVIEW

1. Is pitching the key for Royal?

Absolutely, and the Highlanders, seeded No. 2 in Div. I, will ride aces Cody Buckel (10-1) and Tyler Abbott (9-2) as far as they can take them. Buckel, a right-hander headed to Pepperdine (if he does not sign a Major League contract), throws 95 mph and could pitch in both the first and second rounds. Abbott, a left-hander headed to UC Irvine, has not pitched since May 5 but has won his past three decisions.

2. Will Crespi's injured ace Ryon Healy pitch in the playoffs like he had been hoping to do?

It doesn't matter. Defending Div. II champion Crespi can do it again without him. Healy is 13-0 in his career, including 11-0 last season when he earned section Player of the Year honors, but after hurting his arm early in the season, the rest of Crespi's pitchers have done a great job - Ryan Brockett (6-1, 2.03), John Kearns (6-1, 4.10) and Josh Mason (3-1, 1.50, three saves).

3. Who is a good long-shot pick?

Alemany. The Indians, one of five Mission League entrants in Div. II, don't have the flashiest record in town at 19-8, but they keep on improving and have lots of momentum. There are lots of young starters, including sophomore pitchers Ryan Paramo and Cody Thompson, and they've played a tough schedule that includes quality losses to Crespi, Hueneme of Oxnard and Chatsworth.

4. Is there a good opening game if you like home runs?

Yes. Try a Div. I matchup between host Valencia and El Dorado of Placentia. Valencia's Trey Williams has nine home runs, including several that have traveled well more than 400 feet, and teammates Kyle Eaton (eight home runs), Shane Zeile (four home runs) and Quincy Quintero (four home runs) are dangerous, too, as Valencia has totaled 32 home runs. And there is always a good chance the wind will be blowing out.

5. What about the small schools?

It's a good year for small schools in the area, and the odds are a local team will win a title in Div. V, Div. VI or Div. VII - and maybe all three. In Div. V, Montclair Prep of Panorama City is seeded fourth and has played tough nonleague competition. In Div. VI, Desert Christian of Lancaster is seeded No. 1, Grace Brethren of Simi Valley is No. 2 and Vasquez of Acton is No. 4. In Div. VII, defending champion Cornerstone Christian of Camarillo is No. 1 and has returned its top player, Aaron Roth.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Advancing to the City Section championship match has not been a problem for the Taft of Woodland Hills boys' volleyball team.

However, winning the title is another story.

The Toreadors will get another opportunity to win the championship Saturday after beating West Valley League rival Granada Hills for a third time this season in the semifinals 25-16, 25-19, 28-30, 25-12.

Taft advanced to its 10th championship game appearance in the past 14 years and will face No. 3 Palisades of Pacific Palisades, who features devastating outside hitter Kene Izuchukwu.

"This feels great, it is really important for our whole team," Taft outside hitter Kenny Molar said. "We came back in that fourth game and I'm so happy for coach (Arman) Mercado."

Mercado has guided the Taft program to its past five championship games but has come up short each time.

"We have to win one sooner or later you would think," Mercado said.

Alex Piatt and Molar led Taft with 13 and 11 kills.

Jordan Shoham had 36 assists and Taieb Habib had 15 digs.

"All the credit goes to our coach because it is his system that can't be beat," Molar said. "Every ball goes to the middle and the system has worked for us."

Taft was on the verge of a sweep but couldn't hold a 24-22 lead in set three or two other match-point chances.

"We just stumbled right there," Molar said.

Taft shook it off easily as it grabbed a 10-4 lead and was leading 23-9 in the deciding set before Molar ended the match with a kill that was partially blocked up front but landed on the Highlanders (11-5) side of the net.

Granada Hills was hoping to make its fourth championship game in the past five years but graduation losses and poor execution were too much to overcome.

"Everyone has to come to want to win," Granada Hills outside hitter Phillip Pawlikowski said. "We weren't experienced enough to win a match like this. The crowd was a big factor. We didn't have enough seniors who understand what this rivalry is like."

Pawlikowski had 16 kills, nine blocks and four digs and led the charge in set three.

Jose Juarez added 35 assists and sophomore Shon Greene had eight kills and nine blocks for Granada Hills.

"Ball control was the main issue for us," Granada Hills coach Tom Harp said. "The passing would break down and we couldn't get big hits from the middles."

Taft will face a tough team in Palisades and Izuchukwu but is hoping to reverse its losing trend.

"This is for all the alumni who came before us and came up short," Molar said. "We are going to throw four hands at Kene on Saturday and see what happens. We just have to continue to play consistent."

Newbury Park has not had to interview for the girls' basketball position for quite some time because Nori Parvin held the spot for many years.

Parvin retired after this past season and Newbury Park is close to hiring its first coach in a while.

Three candidtates have emerged.

Rich Bradley, who coached the Junior Varsity at Oaks Christian of Westlake Village, Gary Abraham, a former boys' coach at Oaks Christian and Darren Burge, who has coached at La Reina of Thousand Oaks and has a daughter on the Newbury Park team.

Stay tuned.......

Royal got the No. 2 seed in the Div. I playoffs, and the Highlanders could see West Ranch in the second round.

The Highlanders open Thursday at home against the Long Beach-Corona winner.

The top seed is Orange Lutheran.

Div. II brackets coming soon, and that's when we will see where Crespi is seeded.

-- Gerry Gittelson

The Southern Section baseball pairings are just being released, and in Div. IV, Oak Park and La Canada have earned wild-card berths on Tuesday.

Oak Park plays at Patriot, and La Canada plays at Costa Mesa.

In the first round on Friday, Tri-Valley League champ Oaks Christian plays host to Temple City.

In Div. VI, Desert Christian of Lancaster is seeded No. 1, and Grace Brethren of Simi Valley is No. 2.

In Div. VII, Cornerstone Christian of Camarillo is No. 1.

-- Gerry Gittelson

The Southern Section playoff brackets are scheduled to be released any minute -- they say noon, but sometimes it's a few minutes earlier -- and we will update you when they're all finished sometime in the afternoon.

It will be interesting to see where Div. I Royal and Div. II Crespi end up. They could be close to the top-seed.

-- Gerry Gittelson

The Montclair Prep of Van Nuys baseball team completed a solid regular season at 20-7 and won the Olympic League suffering only two losses to Whitter Christian of La Habra.

One of the losses was a 1-0 setback and the Mounties beat Campbell Hall of North Hollywood three times.

Rick Weber, in his third year at the helmafter coaching at Birmingham of Lake Balboa, has Montclair Prep back on the right track.

The Mounties are thinking championship for the first time in 19 years.

1991 was the last time the Mounties won a title, when they featured two would-be major leaguers in Russ Otiz and Brad Fullmer.

Montclair Prep is doing it with a host of youngsters, including sensational sophomore Max Fried, a 6'2 lefthander, who pitches and plays first base.

Other top playeras are Tony Rosales and the freshman trio of Ben McKendall, Nick Suniga, Myles Hager.

Mckendall plays shortstop and pitches, Suniga plays third base and pitches and Hager plays infield and is the designated hitter.

It won't be easy for the Mounties especially if they have to go against Marantha of Pasadena and flame-throwe Dylan Covey.

Woodcrest Christian of Riverside, Tahquitz of Hemet and Cabrillo of Lompoc are also top teams in Div. V.

Watch out for Justin Sheehan, a Saugus junior who has hit a school-record eight home runs -- all during Foothill League competion.

Sheehan, an outfielder, is batting .422 with 24 RBIs and a 1.044 slugging percentage.

-- Gerry Gittelson

As far as team efforts go, Viewpoint of Calabasas couldn't have asked for much more Thursday night at the Southern Section Div. IV swim finals at Belmont Plaza in Long Beach.

The Patriots didn't win a single event, but captured their first boys' team title with 195 1/2 points to defeat Liberty League rival Crossroads of Santa Monica (138 1/2 points).

Viewpoint finished in the top four in all three relays and had senior Jared Stern and freshman John Brody both compete in two championship heats to gain a measure of revenge after finishing runner-up last season to Patriot of Riverside by 9 1/2 points.

Devin Nagendran, Dylan de Caussin, Isaac Wender, Brian Salomons and Sean Gunn provided important contributions for co-coaches Greg Bisheff and Eliot Saki, whose girls' team finished fourth with 142 points.

It was a new year and a different venue for Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth's Lilly Parks, but the result was the same for the sophomore standout, who repeated as 100-yard breaststroke champion at the Div. IV swimming finals Thursday night at Belmont Plaza in Long Beach.

Parks, who captured her first championship in 1:07.37 last year at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, posted a lifetime-best 1:05.54 to hold off Morro Bay's Kendall Swanson (1:05.65).

Parks, who switched to Rattler Swim Club this season, has benefited from training with Princeton-bound Andrea Kropp of Flintridge Sacred Heart of La Canada Flintridge.

Kropp, who captured the 100 breaststroke title in Div. II in 2007, posted the fastest qualifying time Wednesday in the Div. I prelims.

Parks added a third-place finish in the 200 individual medley (2:12.23). Freshman Shayne Eisenman was ninth in the 200 free (2:01.50) and 11th in the 500 free (5:30.79) for the Trailblazers, who finished 16th with 51 points.

Marlborough of Los Angeles captured the team title with 275 points.

There is no such thing as a sure thing in high school baseball.

Three days ago, Chaminade High of West Hills had won 19 of its last 20 games and owned a one-game lead in the Mission League with two to play, but that was before Alemany of Mission Hills completed a two-game sweep today with a 1-0 victory that ruined a chance for the host Eagles to win a share of the league title for the first time since 2005.

Combined with Crespi of Encino's 4-3 win over Loyola to clinch the championship, Chaminade (23-6, 8-4) fell all the way to third place behind second-place Alemany (19-8, 8-4).

"I'm going to have a short-term memory about this one and get over it," said Brando Tessar (8-2), a hard-luck loser who held Alemany to one earned run on five hits and no walks while striking out 10. "The playoffs are coming, and this game didn't mean anything except a seed in the playoffs. I'd much rather win a CIF championship than a league championship."

Cody Thompson and Anthony Esparza keyed Alemany. Thompson (3-2), a sophomore right-hander with a big-breaking curveball, pitched a four-hit shutout while striking out four, and Esparza, a junior catcher, hit a home run in the fifth inning and tagged out Jason D'Andrea at the plate in the bottom of the seventh with the overflow crowd on its feet.

Thompson was coming off a one-hit loss, and this time he did not flinch. The only time Chaminade threatened was in the final inning, when D'Andrea tried to score from second on Brandon Rapoport's sharp single to left.

The ball was fielded on a hop by Mark Strazzeri, who fired to third baseman Sergio Placencia, who relayed to Esparza, who tagged D'Andrea as he tried to hook slide.

"I knew Anthony was going to tag him. I had full trust in him," Thompson said. "It was a great win. I love pitching under pressure."

Esparza said his main focus was to catch the baseball. The rest was just instincts.

"I saw the guy was trying to hook slide, so I kind of moved my body in that direction, and the rest is just a blur," Esparza said.

Esparza's home run was an opposite-field shot that cleared the short fence in right field above the 265 sign - a tough way to lose by one run, if you're Chaminade.

"It can be a big advantage. This place is a tough place to pitch but a great place to pitch," Tessar said. "With that short right-field fence, it can go both ways."
Alemany played errorless defense, including center fielder Edgar Montes' reaching catch near the top of the fence on a long drive by Tessar in the fifth.

Playoff pairings are scheduled to be released Monday, and the loss in the finale might have cost Chaminade a first-round home game. The Eagles could end up opening on the road against a league champion.

"This game today was about as close as you can get to a playoff game," Alemany coach Randy Thompson said. "You had two very good high school teams and two very good pitchers battling it out. I was expecting a low-scoring game. Brando Tessar is a bulldog. He battles."

-- Gerry Gittelson

Viewpoint swimming co-coach Greg Bisheff is feeling confident prior to the start of tonight's Southern Section Div. IV swim finals at Belmont Plaza in Long Beach, with the Patriots looking to improve on last year's runner-up finish behind Patriot of Riverside and capture the program's first championship.

Viewpoint qualified for the finals in all three relays, in addition to having senior Jared Stern and freshman John Brody both reach the championship in two individual events.

"The stars have aligned, just give me four more hours," said Bisheff, who coaches with Eliot Saki. "Having those three relays is huge."

Littlerock could also play a significant role in the relays, posting the fastest qualifying time in the 200 free and 400 free relays. Ben Skelding and Yurien Seyssel should also score important points for the Lobos in their pursuit of a top-three finish.

In the girls' competition, Quartz Hill is the top qualifier in the 200 medley relay, Highland of Palmdale's Sarae Dydo posted the fastest prelim time in the 200 free and Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth's Lilly Parks is in contention to win the 200 individual medley and 100 breaststroke.

Coach David Rebibo led El Camino Real to the City Section Div. III championship game this past season and is now hosting events for all levels at the Wooldand Hills campus.

The lineups are top-notch and still have room. Contact coachrebibo@gmail.com

ECR Varsity Showcase:
July 9-11- teams included

ECR- Div. III finalist
Notre Dame- Div. 4-A semifinalist
Santa Monica- Div. I-AA finalist
Burbank-Div. II-A semifinalist
Westlake
Chaminade
Kennedy

ECR JV summer league includes:

ECR
Taft
Simi Valley
Birmingham
Chatsworth
Grant
Campbell hall
Buckley
Calabasas
Westlake
Viewpoint

ECR freshman tourney: July 24-25

Includes:

ECR
Chaminade
Westlake
Calabasas
Crespi
Viewpoint
Providence
Newbury park

Former Crespi quarterback Matt Wabby, now at Pierce, has signed with Western Carolina, a Div. I-AA school where he will be reunited with former Crespi coach Jeremiah Ross, who has taken an assistant job at Western Carolina.

-- Gerry Gittelson

SIMI VALLEY -- Coming off his first loss off the season last Friday, pitcher Cody Buckel was itching for another chance, so he implored Royal coach Don Maye for one last opportunity in the season finale Wednesday against visiting Thousand Oaks.

Royal needed a victory to win the Marmonte League title outright, so Maye did not need much prodding, penciling in Buckel as the starting pitcher once again and letting his prized ace take it from there.

"He usually pitches on Friday, but Cody wanted the ball," Maye said. "So I changed the pitching rotation because he deserves it."

Buckel did his thing. With more than a dozen scouts charting his every move, the Pepperdine-bound senior allowed one earned run on four hits while striking out nine in six innings, as Royal (22-6, 12-2) defeated the visiting Lancers 8-1 to win the league title for the first time since 2005.

"This is the best feeling in the world. I've been waiting three years to win a league title," Buckel said. "Two years ago, we finished third, and last year we finished second."

Justin Greco and the rest of Royal's teammates had total faith in Buckel.

"No matter what, whenever Cody is on the mound, we have a lot of confidence," Greco said.

Greco was 2 for 2 with five RBIs and a grand slam, his fifth home run of the season. Scott Hockenberry added a two-run single, and Connor Detko pitched a perfect seventh inning.

Coming in, fourth-place Thousand Oaks (15-13, 8-6) knew it was going to make the playoffs as one of the top five teams in the eight-team league, and the Lancers also knew they were out of title contention.

"We wanted to win, but I think we had all that in the back of our mind," Thousand Oaks pitcher Cody Thomson said. "We still tried to give it our best effort."

Thousand Oaks' Trevor O'Shea spoiled the shutout with a third-inning home run that cleared the center-field fence.

"After I gave up that home run, I remember coming back to the dugout and thinking, 'OK, I am going to be perfect from now on,'" Buckel said.

Buckel nearly pulled it off, retiring 12 of the final 13 batters he faced, finishing with four consecutive strikeouts.

Buckel improved to 10-1. In 65 innings, he has a 0.54 ERA with 104 strikeouts and 27 hits allowed.

Thomson pitched four innings and took the loss.

O'Shea was 2 for 4, and Timmy Ginther added a single and a stolen base.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Losing in the first round of the City Section playoffs is something the El Camino Real of Woodland Hills softball team has never had to experience in school history.

Thanks to junior center fielder Dani Gilmore, the streak will continue till at least next year.

Gilmore singled home Emily Waterbury and Dylan O'Connor with one out in the bottom of the seventh to give the Conquistadores a close 4-3 victory against San Fernando.

El Camino Real, which last won a City championship in 2005 and won six titles in the 1990's advances to the quarterfinals at West Valley League rival Chatsworth next Tuesday.

"It was a little nerve-racking up there," Gilmore said. "I saw the outfield was so far back I just had to drop one in."

Gilmore actually lined a sharp single to right off Tigers right hander Melinda Robertson and by the time the throw came in , ECR was celebrating a victory too close for comfort.

"We were lucky," ECR coach Lori Chandler said. "We made too many mistakes to expect to win. San Fernando did a great job putting the ball in play."

No. 12 San Fernando was primed for an upset against the No. 5 seed when two singles and a walk loaded the bases in the fifth and Karena Esparza and Monica Gonzalez each came through with RBI singles.

Laura Aguilar and Victoria Perez came around to score and the Tigers led 3-2, a lead they would take into the last inning, needing only three outs to pull off the upset.

It wasn't meant to be as No. 9 hitter Waterbury led off with a walk, O'Connor reached on an attempted sacrifice, Whitney West sacrificed the runners to second and third and Gilmore hit the game winner.

"We took it to them, this is very disappointing," San Fernando coach Danny Arguello said. "It is tough because of all the hard work the girls have put in this season.

Sophomore Karyn Wright went the distance for ECR yielding three runs on eight hits with two walks and seven strikeouts.

Robertson gave up four runs on nine hits and a walk with two strikeouts for San Fernando (15-8).

El Camino Real left runners on base in scoring position in every inning except the sixth.

Wright had an RBI triple in the fourth and Alex Conway had an RBI single.

Cynthia Govea had an RBI double in the third for the Tigers.

The City Section Div. I playoff pairings have been announced, and 12 of the 18 teams selected are from the San Fernando Valley -- including top seeded Chatsworth, which opens next Wednesday at home against the Verdugo Hills-Narbonne wild-card winner.

Chatsworth has won three consecutive City titles. Seeded No. 3 is El Camino Real of Woodland Hills, and No. 4 is Arleta.

The quarterfinals are Friday, May 21, the semifinals are May 26, and the championship game is at 1 p.m. May 29 at Dodger Stadium.

Here are the Div. I pairings:

Wild-card games (Friday, 3 p.m.):

No. 17 Verdugo HIlls (16-11) at No. 16 Narbonne (10-15-1)

No. 18 Poly (16-14) at No. 15 Cleveland (8-18)

First round (next Wednesday, 3 p.m.):

Verdugo Hills-Narbonne winner at No. 1 Chatsworth (23-4)

No. 9 Sylmar (14-11-1) at No. 8 Taft (16-10)

No. 12 San Fernando (16-10) at No. 5 San Pedro (21-5)

No. 13 Granada Hills (11-14) at No. 4 Arleta (23-4)

No. 14 South East (13-6) at No. 3 El Camino Real (15-11)

No. 11 Birmingham (13-13) at No. 6 Kennedy (13-12)

No. 10 Bell (24-7) at No. 7 Palisades (17-10)

Poly-Cleveland winner at No. 2 Banning (20-8)

-- Gerry Gittelson

City Section Div. I Top eight seeds

1. Chatsworth
2. Banning
3. El Camino Real
4. Arleta
5. San pedro
6. Kennedy
7. Palisades
8. Taft

After more than two decades of football dominance that included five upper-division section titles over a six-year span from 1998 to 2003, Hart High of Newhall's football team has not won a playoff game over the past two seasons.

Last season, Hart finished second in the Foothill League to Valencia, a strong favorite to repeat because of the return of quarterback Alex Bishop and running back Steven Manfro, who combined to account for 75 touchdowns last year.

"It's not going to be easy because West Ranch is going to be better, Canyon is going to be better, Golden Valley has a lot of athletes and is going to be better, and Saugus is still rolling, too," said Herrington, who began spring drills last week.

Hart plans to build around John Cornelius, a linebacker who averaged 10.2 tackles per game last season.

Four different schools have won the Foothill League title over the past four seasons.

"Hart dominated for so long, and now we have parity," Saugus coach Jason Bornn said.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Chaminade of West Hills and visiting Alemany of Mission Hills meet in a key Mission League baseball finale at 3:45 p.m. today, and there is a lot on the line.

Chaminade (23-5, 8-3) is tied with Crespi of Encino (21-5, 8-3) for first place, and a Chaminade victory over Alemany (18-8, 7-4) would give the Eagles at least a share of the league title for the first time since 2002.

Chaminade has saved its ace, hard-throwing Brando Tessar, for today's game. He is scheduled to oppose Alemany sophomore Cody Thompson (2-2, 2.91).

If Alemany wins and Crespi loses to Loyola of Los Angeles today, there would be a three-way tie for first, with Alemany being the top playoff entrant based on a tiebreaking formula that first looks at head-to-head competition.

One thing Alemany needs to work on is its fielding. The Warriors have committed 40 errors, though coach Randy Thompson says things are getting better.

"The first half of the season, we were making a ton of errors that were putting our pitchers in some tough spots, but over the past eight games or so we've really cut them down," Thompson said. "We're doing a better job."

-- Gerry Gittelson

Small-schools baseball standout Josh Clark of Hillcrest Christian of Granada Hills hit another home run Tuesday, his ninth of the season. Clark is producing quite a sophomore season - a .696 batting average, 32 RBIs and a 1.435 slugging percentage -- but because Hillcrest Christian has scheduled so few games, he could be doing a lot more.

Hillcrest Christian finishes today against Santa Clarita Christian, and it's only the 16th game of the season compared to other programs that play as many as 29.

Averaging Clark's stats over a 29-game season, he would have 17 home runs and 62 RBIs - not including playoffs.

Of course, sometimes small-school baseball stats can be out of whack. For example, this past Friday saw Cornerstone Christian of Camarillo draw 17 walks and total 18 stolen bases in a 33-0 victory over visiting First Lutheran of Sylmar.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Three locals are among MaxPreps' top 100 baseball players in the nation: No. 14 Austin Wilson, an outfielder from Harvard-Westlake of Studio City; No. 34 Christian Yelich, an infielder from Westlake; and No. 57 Cody Buckel, a pitcher from Royal of Simi Valley.

Here's a link to check out the whole list:

The fourth annual City vs. Southern Section All-Star Baseball Game is scheduled for 6 p.m. June 12 at Birmingham High in Lake Balboa. The rosters should be finalized soon. The event includes a pregame home run contest. Information: (818) 758-6529.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Brad Lattanzio, a top running back at Crespi, is considering a switch from football to lacrosse in college, perhaps at Santa Barbara City College or Grand Canyon University.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Brad Katz is the new coach at Poly of Sun Valley, again.

After leading Poly to a semifinal berth in the City championship and a state playoff berth in 2007, Katz ventured into coaching at the junior college level, with astint at Pierce College as an asst. to Yervant Babayan.

Most recently, Katz was an asst. to Jay Werner witht he Valley College women's program.

Katz is back to old roots. Now, only if he can find another guard like he had in D.J. Gay, who is the starting point guard at San Diego St.

Despite playing sparingly this season because a back injury, infielder Andrew Rosenberger of Chaminade of West Hills has accepted an offer from Hofstra University in New York.

Also, teammate Dalton Brown, a pitcher, is considering an offer from Stanford.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Outside hitter Carter Franciskovic has had a great season leading the Oaks Christian of Westlake Village boys' volleyball team to a second place finish in the Tri-Valley League and a berth in the Div. III playoffs.

In fact, Franciskovic had 23 kills and 10 digs Tuesday in a first round victory against Littlerock, the No. 3 team from the Golden League.

The 6'5 junior is starting to gain interest from colleges across the country.

UCLA, UC Irvine, UCSB, Hawaii, Harvard, Princeton, Penn St. and Div. II UC San Diego have all had interaction and considering Franciskovic is a whiz in the classroom, he might just have his pick of the litter when it is time to make a decision next year.

Franciskovic can't be contacted until after June 15th but will be at a top-level showcase event in Long Beach in July and should attract plenty of attention.

Brett Ackermann, a receiver who played one season at L.A. Valley College after graduating from Loyola High, has committed to Oregon State.

- Gerry Gittelson

Angelica Sahagun, a point guard from Alemany of Mission Hills, will attend Vanguard College in Costa Mesa next year.

Sahagun was an all-CIF selection this past season and a two time all-Mission League selection.

Sahagun, along with Northern Arizona-bound forward Trinidee Trice, led Alemany to the semifinals in Div. IV-AA, suffering a one-point setback to state finalist Bishop Montgomery of Torrance.

Maverick Ahanmisi, a former shooting guard at Golden Valley of Santa Clarita, who played last year at fifth-year school Stoneridge Prep of Simi Valley has signed a national letter of intent with Minnesota.

Ahanmisi was one of the best long range shooters in the area in 2009, including a 41 point outburst against Foothill in the playoffs.

Viewpoint of Calabasas started off its day by posting the fastest qualifying time in the boys' 200-yard medley relay and things continued to go well for the Patriots at the Southern Section Div. IV prelims at Belmont Plaza in Long Beach as they closed in on capturing the program's first division championship.

Viewpoint clocked 1:44.27 in the 200 medley relay, then posted the fifth-fastest qualifying time in the 200 freestyle relay (1:32.92) and the No. 3 mark in the 400 free relay (3:25.55).

Jared Stern qualified third in both the 100 and 200 freestyles for Viewpoint, which received important contributions from John Brody, Dylan de Caussin and Devin Nagendran.

Littlerock put itself in strong position to take second on the strength of its 200 and 400 freestyle relays. The Lobos posted the fastest 200 free relay time (1:31.55) and the No. 2 qualifying mark in the 400 free relay (3:24.71).

Ben Skelding qualified third in the 200 IM (2:00.50) and the 100 backstroke (56.66) and Yurien Seyssel was fifth in the 50 free (22.18).

Several local girls' swimmers put themselves in position to capture individual titles Thursday night, with Quartz Hill and Viewpoint challenging for top-five team finishes.

Highland of Palmdale's Sarae Dydo posted the fastest prelim time in the 200 free (1:57.75) and was third in the 500 free (5:12.25).

Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth's Lilly Parks, the defending champion in the 100 breaststroke, qualified third at 1:07.42. Parks also posted the second-fastest qualifying time in the 200 IM (2:12.06).

Quartz Hill led the field in the 200 medley relay with a prelim time of 1:54.42, with Viewpoint qualifying fifth (1:55.83). The Patriots qualified third in the 200 free relay (1:45.71) and Quartz Hill was third in the 400 free relay (3:49.78).

Viewpoint's Michelle Germain posted the fourth-fastest prelim time in the 100 butterfly (1:01.13).

Oaks Christian of Westlake Village received 16 valuable points Tuesday from divers Chris Todd and Mike Logsdon in its bid to win the Southern Section Div. II boys' swimming and diving title.

Todd finished eighth at the division final at Fullerton College with 309.75 points on his 11-dive schedule. Logsdon was 12th with 292 points.

Oaks Christian will compete Friday in the Div. II swimming prelims and Saturday in the championship meet, already holding an important advantage over four-time champion La Canada and fellow challenger Crescenta Valley of La Crescenta.

In the girls' Div. II final at Fullerton College, Calabasas' Casey Rakauskas placed 14th with 334.90 points and Oaks Christian's Brooke Bauer took 15th with 330.90 points.

With 19 victories in its preceding 20 games and a chance to win a share of the Mission League baseball title Tuesday for the first time since 2002, Chaminade High of West Hills picked the wrong day for a breakdown.

This was business to take care of, but Chaminade's hitters slept walked through the first five innings, its defense made key errors, and four pitchers issued a total of six walks and a hit batter in an 11-6 loss at Alemany of Mission Hills.

Chaminade (23-5, 8-3) has one more to chance to win a share of the league title by defeating Alemany (18-8, 7-4) at 3:45 p.m. on Thursday. If not, combined with a loss in the finale by co-leader Crespi of Encino (21-5, 8-2), Alemany could force a three-way tie for first and qualify as the league's No. 1 playoff entry based on the tiebreaker format of head to head competition.

So, with one game remaining, nothing is finalized.

"It's going to be a big game on Thursday," Chaminade's Brando Tessar said. "It's senior day, it's our last home game, and we need to win the title to get a good seed in the playoffs."

The first thing Chaminade needs to do is snap out of it.

The Eagles did not look like a championship-caliber team Tuesday, as Alemany exploded for 10 runs in the fourth inning, parlaying five hits, three walks and two Alemany errors while sending 14 batters to the plate.

"We walked a lot of guys, made some errors. That's what lost it for us," Tessar said.

The key hits for Alemany during the spree were Cody Sulflow's two-run double, Scott Rhodes two-run single and Andrew Davidson's two-run single.

"The boys needed to finish today, and they didn't do it," Chaminade coach Frank Mutz said. "Sometimes that's what happens with young athletes. They need to learn how to close things out, and we didn't."

Alemany deserves some credit. Ace left-hander Ryan Paramo (7-1) had a no-hitter going until Brandon Rapoport doubled to lead off the fifth inning. In the sixth, Chaminade finally got to Paramo, as Dylan Delaney and Jason D'Andrea hit opposite-field home runs and Michael Dingilian hit a two-run double.

But there wasn't much drama because Alemany had such a big lead.

"We showed a lot of discipline at the plate, especially during that 10-run inning, and that was the difference," Alemany coach Randy Thompson said. "We're still in this thing."

The most pressure is on Alemany. Not only do the Warriors need to win Thursday, but they need for Crespi to lose to Loyola of Los Angeles.

"I like pressure because it makes us play to our potential," Alemany's Anthony Esparaza said. "We're looking for another win."

gerry.gittelson@dailynews.com

Alemany 11, Chaminade 6

Cham 001 004 1 --- 6-6-2
Alem 001 (10)00 x --- 11-8-1

Brown, Katz (4), Mercer (4), Van Gansen (6)
and Strazzeri; Paramo, Sulflow (6) and Esparza.
W-Paramo; L-Brown. HR: C: Delaney, D'Andrea. 2B: C: Rapoport, Dingilian;
A: Sulflow.

R: C 23-5, 8-3; A: 18-8, 7-4

It's the bottom of the fourth on a windy day at Alemany, and the host Warriors have scored 10 runs to lead 11-1 -- and the inning isn't over yet in this key Mission League game.

Chaminade is trying to stay within range of first-place Crespi -- which leads 2-1 over Loyola in the fourth -- and a loss today would eliminate the visiting Eagles from championship contention with one more game remaining.

Meantime, I hate to jinx him, but Alemany's Ryan Parama has yet to allow a hit.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's a huge day in the Mission League, as Chaminade is hoping to win at least a share of the league title today at Alemany, which is in third place but only two games out with two to play.

A win by Alemany keeps its league-title aspirations alive, and depending what happens with second-place Crespi, there is a lot up for grabs with three teams vying for the title with two games remaining.

Chaminade is sending Dalton Brown (3-0) to the mound against Alemany ace Ryan Parama (6-1), as both teams are hoping to win a title for the first time since 2002, when they shared first place.

Brown, who is considering a Stanford offer, should be brimming with confidence.

I'm predicting Chaminade center fielder Brando Tessar will play a key role. He is a returning all-league selection who has committed to Oregon and is also a top football player. He might even pitch, if Chaminade needs him.

-- Gerry Gittelson

2010 War on the Floor Girls Basketball Tournament
June 18-21

Teams scheduled to participate include:

Taft, Calabasas, Bell-Jeff, Corona Centennial, Birmingham, Sylmar, Fairfax, Alemany, Oaks Chr., Golden Valley, L.A. Baptist.

The tournament will be held at Taft High in Woodland Hills.

Teams can still sign up to participate.

Contact Bort Escoto at 818-601-8776.

Gymcheer USA, home of the award-winning California Flyers cheerleading team, is in its 12th year and is still going strong with individual lessons to recreation cheer and tumbling to competitive team training for girls of all ages.

It's probably one of the only clubs that offers a full money-back guarantee for the first 30 days.

There are summer workouts planned for June 21 through Aug. 12, including Monday through Wednesday morning tumbling, summer sleepovers on June 25 and July 16, BBQ/Back tuck clinics June 12 and Sept. 11, and summer movie nights on May 28, July 9 and Sept. 3.

Gymcheer is located at 20724 Centre Pointe Pkwy, in Santa Clarita. Information: (661) 299-6849.

John Kukurada, a pitcher from East Nicolaus High in Nicolaus, Calif., pitched his fourth consecutive no-hitter on Friday.-- the most in state history, according to Cal-Hi Sports.

East Nicholas, with 325 students, is is between Yuba City and Sacramento.

Kukuruda, who has thrown 22 1/3 consecutive no-hit innings including 1 1/3 innings in relief.

Tom Engle of Lancaster Fairfield Union, Ohio (1989) and Chris Taranto of Biloxi Notre Dame, Miss. (1961) hold the national record with six consecutive no-hitters. Three other pitchers, Gary Rowe of Wagoner, Okla. (1977), Tom Murray of Uncasville St. Bernard, Conn. (1968-69) and Colt Molloy of Memphis, Texas (2007) each threw five in a row.

It's the last week of the baseball season, and there remain four teams with a chance to finish first in the Mission League -- Chaminade (23-4, 8-2), Crespi (20-5, 7-3), Alemany (17-8, 6-4) and Loyola (17-9, 6-4).

Chaminade can clinch a share of the title by defeating Alemany on Tuesday in the first of a two-game series, and Chaminade can clinch the title outright with a sweep -- no matter what anyone else does.

Defending Southern Section Div. II champion Crespi, ranked No. 1 in the area by the Daily News for much of the season, finishes with a two-game series against Loyola.

In the Foothill League, Valencia (15-9-1, 10-3) holds a one-game lead over West Ranch (17-7, 9-4) with two to play. Valencia plays a two-game series against last-place Canyon beginning Wednesday at Valencia, while West Ranch closes with a two-game series against third-place Saugus beginning Wednesday at West Ranch.

Valencia can clinch the title outright with a sweep.

Hart must sweep Golden Valley to make the playoffs. Otherwise, the Indians will miss the playoffs for the first time in 24 years.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Allan Sadowsky is the new boys' coach at Camarillo, replacing 20-year coach Mike Prewitt.

Sadowsky, 33, was Camarillo's frosh-soph coach. He graduated from Camarillo in 1994.

-- Gerry Gittelson

I know this sounds crazy, but a couple of long-time West Valley League observers are saying that the home run hit by Chatsworth's Aaron Brown on Tuesday at El Camino Real might have traveled 500 feet or close to it.

I was there, and it might have been the longest -- and highest -- home run I have ever seen, clearing an extremely tall tree beyond the right-center field fence, and, I'm told, clearing Burbank Boulevard and landing in a front yard across the street.

"It was still going up when it cleared the tree," said a parent who fetched the ball.

Well, through the computer program Google Earth you can get a pretty clear picture of how far Brown's home run might have traveled. Using a scale of the bases being 90 feet apart, the ball landed at least 100 feet over the fence, which I am told is about 360 feet from home plate (there are no markings).

Brown's father told me Thursday he is accustomed to seeing his son reach 450 feet when he really gets into one, and he added that the home run Wednesday was the farthest his son had ever hit.

No matter how you slice it, that was a SICK home run.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Check out this field for a large summer tournament to be held primarily at Pierce College in Woodland Hills.

2010 WAR ON THE FLOOR SUMMER TOURNAMENT

JUNE 26-29
SATURDAY THRU TUESDAY
PIERCE COLLEGE IN WOODLAND HILLS, TAFT HS
AND EL CAMINO REAL HS

SCHEDULES COMING FIRST WEEK OF JUNE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TAFT dtaylor814@aol.com
CLEVELAND obnalls@yahoo.com
PARACLETE bernardnichter@yahoo.com
DORSEY gstpat@aol.com
CALABASAS jpalarz@hotmail.com
CHATSWORTH chatsworthbball@earthlink.net
BLAIR blairhoops@yahoo.com
CAMPBELL HALL stevewachs1@gmail.com
BUCKLEY mhamilton@buckleyla.org
CRESCENTA VALLEY szargarian@gusd.net
SAUGUS dballard@hartdistrict.org
MONTCLAIR PREP gpatterson@montclairprep.com
MALIBU Robert.tenorio@ouhsd.k12.ca.us
BELL-JEFF bryancamacho@bell-jeff.net
NORTHRIDGE ACADEMY attyamster@aol.com
BIRMIGHAM jarvulous@hotmail.com
PALISADES jpaleno@palihigh.org
PASADENA coachdadawgs@yahoo.com
RENAISSANCE ACADEMY coachsidplaytowin@yahoo.com
OAKS CHRISTIAN troanhaus@oakschristian.org
SYLMAR bort@icomnetwork.net
RIPON rowright@sjcoe.net
SUN VALLEY talocanknight@aol.com
WASHINGTON PREP
EL CAMINO REAL coachrebibo@gmail.com
RESEDA tlm5044@lausd.net
BRENTWOOD jpugliese@bwscampus.com
HIGHLAND jssmith@avhsd.org
SIERRA CANYON rpillsbury@sierracanyon.org
GOLDEN VALLEY cprintz@hartdistrict.org

Former Crespi of Encino basketball coach and athletic director Dick Dornan has put together another great field for the 2010 San Fernando Valley Invitational Tournament.

The 32 team field is all set-(Dec. 17 - 22, 2010)

Crespi

Granada Hills

Kennedy

Alemany

Oak Park

Servite

Orange Lutheran

North Hollywood

Univ. (LA)

Desert Christian/Lancaster

Saugus

West Ranch

Sierra Canyon

Golden Valley

Milken

Corona Santiago

Canadian team

Camarillo

Poly (LA)

Ribet Academy

Burroughs

El Camino Real

Westlake

Crescenta Valley

Antelope Valley

Knight

Burbank

Verdugo Hills

Eastside

Grant

Calabasas

Bell-Jeff

Oaks Christian of Westlake Village junior left-hander Travis Radke threw his second no-hitter of the season in a 6-0 Tri-Valley victory against Carpinteria.

Radke had 15 strikeouts and will be on the mound next Thursday when the Lions battle St. Bonaventure of Ventura for the league championship.

Oaks Christian improved to 18-7, 10-0.

The Lions play at St. Bonaventure Tuesday with a chance to clinch the league title outright.

If it doesn't happen, Radke will be counted on to get the job done next Thursday at Oaks.

Lots of scoring today at Valencia. Brian Mundell hit a grand slam, Kyle Eaton hit a two-run home run, and Michael Bratt was 3 for 3 as Valencia remained one game ahead of West Ranch in the Foothill League with two remaining.

In other Foothill League action, West Ranch defeated Hart 10-7, as Ryan Keller earned his sixth win and Allen Sarkissian got the save. Josh Heinz had three hits and four RBIs, and Nico Rusconi and Jared Ortiz had three hits. Ortiz extended his season-long hitting streak to 24 games.

-- Gerry Gittelson

MOORPARK - Considered the area's top pitcher, Cody Buckel came through with another masterful performance on today.

The senior right-hander from Royal of Simi Valley limited host Moorpark to two first-inning singles, retiring the final 16 in a row while striking out six.

The only problem was Buckel lost for the first time this season, as Moorpark took advantage of three infield errors to push across two unearned runs in a 2-1 victory that pulled the Musketeers (20-8, 10-3) to within one game of first-place Royal (21-6, 11-2) with one Marmonte League game remaining.

"It happens. I remember one time I pitched a one-hitter and lost," Buckel said. "We need to forget about this game real quick."

Royal, which entered the week No. 1 in the Southern Section Div. I rankings, must defeat fourth-place Thousand Oaks on Wednesday in the season finale to win the league title outright. If Royal loses and Moorpark defeats seventh-place Agoura, the teams would finish in a tie for first.

"We've got to approach the next game like it's the last game we'll ever play," Buckel said. "We need to come out with that attitude."

Moorpark right-hander Matt Higginbotham (5-1) matched Buckel pitch for pitch, tossing a complete game while allowing one earned run on two hits and one walk, striking out eight and retiring 10 of the final 11.

"It was a dogfight, a real pitcher's duel," Higginbotham said. "I love the pressure. Before the game, I told my girlfriend and my parents that I love it loud and to make a lot of noise in the stands. I just tried to keep my rhythm. Winning this game takes a lot of weight off our shoulders.

"It feels great to beat Cody. He's a great pitcher."

Once among the area's most feared programs while winning four league titles in the 1990s, Moorpark has finished first just once since 2002.

"We're hungry. These kids are hungry," Moorpark coach Scott Fullerton said. "We're a 20-win team this year, and from top to bottom we're pretty solid. We talked about nipping at Royal's heels, and now this puts them in a tight spot as far as the pressure is concerned."

So dominant were both pitchers that the game was completed in a breezy 70 minutes.

"I guess my wife will be happy because I'll be home early," Fullerton said.

Buckel, a member of the USA National Team (18-under), was coming off consecutive shutouts. Expected to be picked as high as the first round in the Major League draft next month, Buckel s 9-1 with a 0.47 ERA and 95 strikeouts and just 10 walks in 59 innings.

If only he could have the first inning back. He gave up two singles and was done in by three errors - one was his own - to fall behind 2-0, and the advantage turned out to be too big of a hole.

"Those errors in the first inning cost him, and our guy pitched well," Fullerton said. "Matt hit his spots all day."

-- Gerry Gittelson

Junior Jason Brooks (Oaks Christian of Westlake Village, Calif.) played a large role in Dartmouth clinching the Rolfe Division crown for a third consecutive year, driving in 13 runs in the final six Ivy games played this past week.

The junior started off the week by going 2-for-4 at Brown, giving the Big Green a 2-1 lead with a two-run single and scoring the decisive run in the fourth of an 8-4 victory.

The next day he drove in two more with a solo homer and a sacrifice fly in a 13-10 slugfest triumph.

At Harvard, he gave Dartmouth a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning of the first game with an RBI single, but the Big Green faltered in the end, 8-4. The first baseman saved his best for the last day of the year, going 3-for-3 with a double, triple and three-run homer to drive in a career-high six runs -- the most for a Big Green player in six year -- of the 9-0 clinching victory.

He completed the cycle in his first at-bat of the second game and went 3-for-4 with two more RBIs in the 9-7 win. All told, he was 10-for-22 (.455) on the week while slugging .864.

The Agoura softball team beat Royal of Simi Valley and ace pitcher Nancy Bowling last month in a Marmonte League game that raised a few eyebrows in Ventura county softball circles.

The big question going into Thursdays rematch with sole possession of second place on the line was, 'Could Agoura and rising sophomore pitcher Stephanie Lord do it again?'.

The answer was a resounding 'Yes'.

Agoura scored three runs off Bowling in the third inning and Lord threw a complete game six hitter with four walks and seven strikeouts in a 4-1 victory.

"Once my team got me the lead, I knew I just had to hold them down," Lord said. "It was an exciting win."

After Bowling doubled home Katelyn Tolleson in the first, Agoura rallied with two outs in the third.

Kelli Barmasse had an RBI double and Stefany Valentino singled home leadoff hitter Stephanie Kauffman and Barmasse.

Lord did the rest.

Lord didn't allow another run, getting out of jams in the fourth, sixth and seventh innings.

Bowling popped out with runners on first and second in the seventh.

"My team got me out of the run I gave up so I had to come through for them," Lord said.

Bowling went six innings, yielding four runs on six hits with six strikeouts.

"I have played against Nancy for a lot of years and she is a great pitcher but I am glad we won both games this year," Lord said. "The big thing for us is we have a full lineup and everyone can hit."

There are still two games left in league but Agoura controls its own destiny to stay right behind Simi Valley and receive a good playoff draw.

"This is the best we have ever done at Agoura," Chargers coach Chance Redmond said. "I think it couls be the best finish in the Marmonte League for us. We also blew some opportunities against Simi Valley (two losses). It has really helped this year that we have seen some top pitchers. Just playing in the Michelle Carew Classisc tournament is paying off."

Kauffman, headed to Sacramento St., had two hits, a run scored and stole a base for Agoura.

Royal's Amber sanders went two for three with a double for Royal.

The Oak Park boys' volleyball team was in danger of losing its first Tri-Valley League match in three years in a regular season finale at Oaks Christian of Westlake Village Thursday.

However, the Eagles regrouped after getting stretched to a fifth set and came out on top in a 25-20, 21-25, 25-18, 25-27, 15-11 victory.

Oak Park won completed its third consecutive undefeated run through league play and has now won 32 consecutive matches against its league counterparts.

"That was real important because we wanted to keep the legacy going," outside hitter Christien McManus said.

The Eagles (25-4, 10-0) almost wrapped things up in four sets but couldn't shake a determined Lions team, who played much better than in a three game sweep last month.

In the fourth set there were 10 ties and each team had chances to win the set before Oaks Christian prevailed on an Oak Park hitting error and a kill at the net.

"That was stressful but it was a momentary thing," McManus said. "I think we got more pumped up to pull it out. It didn't work against us."

The fifth set was tied at 9-9 before Oak Park received a kill from Michael Shea and a block from Zach Moskowitz to take control.

McManus had 27 kills to lead Oak Park, Shea had 11 kills and eight blocks, Bradley Sakaida had 22 digs and Moskowitz chipped in five blocks.

"It was tough," McManus said. "They wanted it, it was their senior night but we managed to pull it out. The definitely had more heart and proved something."

Carter Franciskovic had 19 kills to lead Oaks Christian.

Brothers kevin and Kyle Schoch added 16 and 11 kills for the Lions.

Freshman Jennings Franciskovic had 48 assists and Kyle Sisson added 31 digs.

"We just had some mental lapses that gave them points," Carter Franciskovic said. "Overall, Oak Park was a little more consistent."

Oak Park is looking at a probabale No. 2 seed when playoff pairings are released Sunday and Oaks Christian shouldn't be too far behind.

"They had a lot to gain, it would have made their year and really helped them for playoffs," Oak Park coach Patrick Quinn said.

Nick Schmidt of Grace Brethren has 54 doubles, tying the Southern Section career record (Gerald Laird, La Quinta, 1995-98).

Schmidt has nine doubles this year after hitting a 21 last year, plus 15 as a sophomore and nine as a freshman, according to coach Jim Romero.

Schmidt has three games remaining in the regular season to break the record. He is two shy of the state career record.

Romero, by the way, is a former Cleveland of Reseda standout who was the MVP of the first ever Daily News Bernie Milligan All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium in 1977.

-- Gerry Gittelson

The pressure was on, and Chatsworth High's baseball team came through.

The three-time City Section champion Chancellors extended their hopes of sharing the West Valley League title by defeating first-place El Camino Real of Woodland Hills 2-1 today before an overflow crowd of about 500 at Chatsworth.

Now all Chatsworth needs to do is defeat fifth-place Granada Hills in a makeup game at noon Saturday, and the Chancellors (22-4, 8-1) would share the league title with El Camino Real (15-11, 9-1) and all but guarantee the No. 1 seed in the City Section playoffs by virtue of a better overall record.

Pinch-hitter Chris Carlin singled in the go-ahead run in the fourth inning, and hard-throwing Steven Karkenny pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings for his sixth save.

"It was a dogfight, and it feels good to win," Carlin said. "We wanted this game, and we were ready."

The teams locked in a 1-1 tie, Carlin, a 5-foot-7 junior who is Chatsworth's smallest player, came off the bench and hit a clean single to center field that scored pinch-runner Jared Holley.

"I just got up there and executed and did my job," Carlin said. "It's an amazing feeling."

The victory avenged an 8-3 loss to El Camino Real two days earlier that clinched a share of the title for the Conquistadores for the first time since 2002.

"We did what we needed to do," Chatsworth's Ricky Obando said.

Karkenny entered in the fifth inning with a runner on second base, inducing a groundout to second to end the inning. In the seventh, El Camino Real's Daniel Dungan singled and advanced on Justin Scovel's sacrifice, but Karkenny got a strikeout and a groundout to shortstop for the final out.

"I have full confidence in Steven. I wouldn't want anyone else but him out there in that situation," Obando said.

Karkenny, a junior, came in with a 1.46 ERA against elite competition.

"This game was fun. It was a dogfight," Karkenny said.

Chatsworth right-hander Christian Lopez earned the win, pitching 4 1/3 innings while allowing one earned run on five hits and a walk with four strikeouts.

Mitch Bluman (5-3) pitched a complete game for El Camino Real, giving up two earned runs on eight hits and no walks while striking out four.

"It's their place, and obviously they were hyped up," Bluman said. "I knew it was going to be a close game today. Every time we hit the ball hard, we hit it right at someone, but that's baseball. I thought I pitched well, but what can you do?"

Chatsworth played errorless defense.

In the third inning, Aaron Brown hit a double off the center-field fence to drive in Karkenny for Chatsworth's first run.

El Camino Real scored on Chris Whitmer's RBI double in the fifth.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Box score:

Chatsworth 2, El Camino Real 1

ECR 000 010 0 - 1-7-1
Chats 001 100 x - 2-8-0
Bluman and Whitmer; Lopez,
Karkenny (5) and O'Connell.
W-Lopez. L-Bluman (5-3).
2B: ECR-Whitmer; C-Davis, Brown,
Obando.

R: ECR 15-11, 9-1; C 22-4, 8-1

Daymond Cowlah, a 5'10 former point guard from Montclair Prep of Van Nuys, has signed with UC Riverside.

Cowlah led Montclair Prep to the playoffs his junior and senior seasons before spending last year at an East coast boarding school.

Andrew Gold, a top outfielder at Kennedy of Granada Hills, has been out since breaking his hand April 15 while sliding into second base in a win over Reseda.

"The first round of the playoffs is Wednesday, May 19, and that's my target date," Gold said. "I'm hoping to return a couple of days before so I can get some swings in and hopefully be ready."

-- Gerry Gittelson

In the Foothill League, defending champion Valencia (14-9-1, 9-3) is trying to hold off second-place West Ranch (16-7, 8-4), and there is a real battle for the third and final automatic playoff spot between Saugus (14-9, 6-6), Golden Valley (11-11, 6-6) and Hart (11-12, 5-7).

"We control our own fate, so we're taking things one game at time," Valencia left fielder Alex Bishop said. "We want to make sure we get the outcome we want."

Hart is in danger of not making the playoffs for the first time since 1986. A fourth Foothill League team could make the playoffs as a wild-card, but a .500 overall record is a requirement.

In other Foothill League news, there is still a buzz about West Ranch coach Casey Burrill's decision to intentionally walk Trey Williams with the bases loaded in the fifth inning Friday in an eventual 8-4 win over Valencia.

Williams had hit three home runs the last time West Ranch played Valencia and two home runs the time before.

"My dad said it was a great call and a great decision but to never do it again," Burrill said.

Williams, son of former Major Leaguer Ed Williams, is batting .412 with nine home runs, 29 RBIs and an .850 slugging percentage in 80 at-bats.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Quartz Hill, hoping to protect a half-game lead over Lancaster in the Golden League, has a hot hitter in Jay Sheeley, who has 10 hits in his last 13 at-bats to raise his average to .493, including .657 in league competition.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Jon Hilliger of L.A Baptist of North Hills stole eight bases in eight attempts April 22 in a 15-10 victory over Flintridge Prep - the third-highest stolen-base total in Southern Section history and the most ever by an area player, according to the section record book.

Hilliger, a senior outfielder, is 37 for 37 in stolen bases after going 28 for 30 last season and 8 for 9 as a sophomore - a career success rate of .961. This season, Hilliger is batting .438 with 24 runs.

Another impressive small-schools player is Dylan Lohman, a junior pitcher at Vasquez of Acton who has yet to allow an earned run in 28 innings, compiling a 4-0 record with three saves, a 0.00 ERA and 33 strikeouts while allowing 14 hits. Opponents are batting .120 against him.

Lohman is hitting .456 with 19 RBIs.

The West Valley League will remain intact for 2011 with Taft, Cleveland, Birmingham, Chatsworth, El Camino Real and Granada Hills still the regular members.

However, the East Valley and Valley Mission leagues are slightly different.

The East Valley adds new school Sun Valley and newcomer Monroe to Arleta, North Hollywood, Grant, Poly, and Verdugo Hills.

The Valley Mission lost Monroe but added Van Nuys and Canoga Park to the originals of Sylmar, Kennedy, Reseda, San Fernando and Panorama.

J.C. Cloney of West Ranch pitched a complete game and earned his seventh victory with a 10-2 win over Hart of Newhall. Chris Caldwell and Allen Sarkissian hit home runs, and Jared Ortiz hit a doubled to extend his season-long hitting streak to 23 games.

-- Gerry Gittelson

The Oaks Christian school in Westlake Village is hosting summer youth basketball camps.

The Nick Young Flight school camp is June 28-July 2. Young, the former Cleveland of Reseda star and current player on the Washington Wizards will be atthe camp each day.

The Andre Chevalier basketball camp will be July 6-9.

Go to www.oakschristian.org to register or call 818-575-9209

achevalier@oakschristian.org

After sweeping Campbell Hall of North Hollywood last week to wrap up the Olympic League championship, Montclair Prep of Van Nuys lost its first league Tuesday in a tough 1-0 defeat against Whittier Christian of La Habra.

Whittier Christian's Grant Escobar threw the shutout allowing only four hits while striking out three.

Sophomore Max Fried was the hard-luck loser allowing an unearned run on three hits with eight strikeouts.

Whittier Christian improved to 14-9, 3-6 and the Mounties dropped to 18-6, 8-1.

El Camino Real High of Woodland Hills clinched at least a share of the West Valley League baseball title today for the first time since 2002, defeating rival Chatsworth 8-3 on a sweltering day at El Camino Real.

Jose Cardona, a junior right-hander, used an effective sinking fastball to keep three-time City Section champion Chatsworth off-balance, pitching a complete game while allowing three earned runs on six hits and four walks with four strikeouts.

"I knew it was hot out here but I came in with a job to do - to pump strikes and come out on top," said Cardona (8-1), who threw 108 pitches. "It's taken a little while, but we're right where we should be."

The teams meet again Thursday at 3 p.m. at Chatsworth. A win by El Camino Real (15-10, 9-0) would give the Conquistadores the title outright. If Chatsworth (21-4, 7-1) wins the rematch, the Chancellors must then take care of business in a make-up game Tuesday at Granada Hills to preserve a share of the title.

"Chatsworth is going to be even more hungry on Thursday, so we've got to go out and play our game," Cardona said.

A win Thursday - by either team, but especially El Camino Real - would all but guarantee the No. 1 seed in the City Section playoffs.

"I don't want to share the title. I want the whole thing," El Camino Real coach Josh Leinhard said. "It's a very important game on Thursday.

With El Camino Real nursing a one-run lead in the bottom of the sixth, the Conquistadores rallied for six runs, including consecutive bases-loaded walks followed by Mitch Bluman's grand-slam home run.

Bluman was 3 for 4 with a home run, double and five RBIs. Ivan Vela added two hits and a run-scoring walk, and Chris Nicolson contributed a second-inning home run.

Bluman has eight home runs and 35 RBIs, and he is also 5-2 as a pitcher with his next start scheduled for the rematch.

"This is what we've been waiting for the whole season," Bluman said. "The game Thursday means even more. We want to win it and be the No. 1 seed, so that way the road to Dodger Stadium (for the City final) goes through us."

The win was El Camino Real's sixth in a row, snapping Chatsworth's winning streak at 17 games.

Both teams played errorless defense.

In the fourth inning, Chatsworth Aaron Brown hit a deep home run that cleared the highest tree beyond the wall in left-center field. The Chancellors added two runs in the seventh on Ryan Escobar's run-scoring walk and Justin Davis' RBI single.

Brown, Chatsworth's ace pitcher, pitched one-plus innings of relief and took the loss.

gerry.gittelson@dailynews.com

WEST VALLEY

El Camino Real 8, Chatsworth 3

Chats 000 100 2 - 3-6-0
ECR 010 016 x - 8-6-0
Rodriguez, Brown (5), Voetz (6)
and O'Connell; Cardona and Whitner.
W-Cardona (8-1); L-Brown. HR-ECR: Bluman (8), Nicholson;
C: Brown. 2B-ECR:Bluman.
R: C 21-4, 7-1; ECR 15-10, 9-0.

The Oaks Christian of Westlake Village softball team had nine hits against La Reina of Thousand Oaks ace freshman pitcher Dani Marrieta, including seven in five of the last six innings but could not score a run.

It was only fitting that the Lions scored the winning run in the bottom of the 11th without the aid of a hit in a key 2-1 Tri-Valley League victory.

Nicole Leonard scored from third base on a wild pitch with two out, just eluding the tag on a play at the plate.

"The ball was away and I knew I had get home as soon as possible," Leonard said.

Leonard led off the inning with a walk and was on second with two out after a groundout and a pop up to short.

Oaks Christian coach Peter Ackermann gambled with a fake bunt-steal play and Leonard outraced shortstop Jordan Needle to the bag as third baseman Michelle Smith broke in to the plate.

"That was vital right there to get to the third," Leonard said. "If I'm not on third at that point, we wouldn't have won the game the way we did. Ava (Jensen) did a great job with the fake bunt. She got me there."

The Lions (23-4, 8-2) avenged an earlier league loss to the Regents (17-3, 7-2) and moved a half a game ahead in the race for the league championship and going into the playoffs with higher priority.

"It definitely puts us in a better place," Leonard said. "We know we can win big games."

La Reina coach Bob Creamer was not too happy after the tough loss, only the third defeat all season and first since March 30 when the Regents couldn't hold a 4-0 lead against Oak Park.

"The ball hit her in the foot on the last play," Creamer said. "We have lost two games because of the umpires. We just have to move on and start over I guess."

Each team had multiple chances in the final six innings after each scoring a run in the fourth.

La Reina had runners on base in five of the final six innings but could not come through with a hit against junior pitcher Kiana Quolas.

The Lions had runners on second and third in the sixth, a runne ron third with one out in the ninth and two on in the 10th but Marrieta would work her way out of trouble each time.

Quolas went all 11 innings giving up seven hits and a walk with eight strikeouts. Her most impressive stretch came in the 11th when she struck out the Nos. 3-5 hitters side after a leadoff single by Jordan Needle.

"I don't think that will ever happen again," Creamer said. "We pressed a little bit at the plate but their pitcher bottled down and did a good job on us."

Quolas was just relieved she didn't have to jog out to thr circle for a 12th inning.

"I was going off adrenaline the whole time," Quolas said. "I am so glad we finally scored. We were on our toes the whole time. It was a big relief."

La Reina plays Oak Park Thursday in a game that noe becomes even more important if it has aspirations of winning the league championship.

Oaks Christian hosts St. Bonaventure of Ventura before ending the season with Santa Paula next Tuesday.

El Camino Real ace Jose Cardona was near flawless for the first three innings today against visiting Chatsworth, but with the Conquistadores leading 1-0 in the top of the fourth, Aaron Brown has just blasted a home run that cleared a 100-foot tree behind the wall in right-center.

What a shot. It's 1-1 now in this West Valley league showdown. Stay tuned.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Chris Nicholson hit a home run in the second inning to give El Camino Real a 1-0 lead over Chatsworth through 2 1/2 innings.

Jose Cardona is looking sharp on the mound for El Camino Real. He has held the three-time defending City champion Chancellors to two singles with three strikeouts in three innings.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's a bit on the hot side but a beautiful day here in Woodland Hills, as host El Camino Real readies for a West Valley League showdown against visiting Chatsworth.

The winner has the inside track to the title, as El Camino Real is 8-0 in league and Chatsworth is 7-0 in league.

The teams play again Thursday. If either team sweeps, they win the league title, something El Camino Real has not accomplished since 2002.

El Camino Real is sending ace Jose Cardona to the mound. We'll see what happens.

Weighing offers from several colleges, Tre Holden of El Camino Real has signed with Cal State Dominguez Hills.

Holden averaged 24 points this past season.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Friday Sept. 3 at Venice
Friday Sept. 10 at Fairfax
Thursday Sept. 16 vs. Leuzinger
Friday Sept. 24 vs. Sylmar
Friday Oct. 1 At Alemany
Friday Oct. 15 vs. Chaminade
Saturday Oct. 23 vs. Cathedral (Homecoming)
Friday Oct. 29 at Serra
Friday Nov. 5 at St. Paul
Friday Nov. 12 vs. St. Francis

After two seasons without reaching the playoffs, Crespi of Encino decided it was time for a change.

Jeremiah Ross was shown the exit door and former St. Bonaventure coach Jon Mack was hired as head coach.

Mack is already making a huge difference as 76 players were in the weight room at 6:15 a.m. according to a letter Mack wrote on the football website.

Mack also revamped the schedule. Here it is for 2010.

9/3- DOMINGUEZ
9/10- @LA Jordan
9/17- CLOVIS WEST
9/24- @Chula Vista
10/1- @Vista Murrieta
10/8- TAFT
10/15- @Bishop Amat*
10/22- ALEMANY*
11/5- LOYOLA*
11/12- @Notre Dame*

*-Denotes Serra League contest

Plans are underway to raise money for a new, state-of-the-art scoreboard at Crespi -- complete with video.

The cost is $250,000, so it won't be easy, but new coach Jon Mack is spearheading the project, and he's a good fund-raiser.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's always fun when Chatsworth and El Camino Real wait until the end of the year to play their two-game West Valley League series, and sure enough both are undefeated in league competition heading into the stretch.

El Camino Real (14-10, 8-0) plays host to Chatsworth (20-3, 7-0) on Tuesday, then Chatsworth plays host to El Camino Real on Thursday. Chatsworth then has one more game the following week against Granada Hills -- a makeup game because of a rainout -- before the playoffs begin.

If Chatsworth sweeps El Camino Real, the Chancellors clinch the league title and a probable No. 1 seed in the City playoffs.

-- Gerry Gittelson

It's a tight race in the Foothill League this season with five teams competing for three automatic playoff spots in the six-team league plus a possible wild-card berth.

With four games remaining over the final two weeks, Valencia (13-9-1, 8-3) is first, West Ranch (15-7, 7-4) is second and Saugus (14-8, 6-5) is third.

How Saugus performs over the last stretch could prove key because the Centurions finish with a two-game series against Valencia, then a two-game series with West Ranch.

In the meantime, Hart (11-11, 5-6), tied for fifth with Golden Valley (10-11, 5-6) is in danger of not making the playoffs for the first time since 1986 -- a 24-year run. Golden Valley has never made the playoffs, and two of its final four games are against last-place Canyon this week.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Some football recruiting news: Hart quarterback C.J. Reyes is going to Idaho State.

Also, Saugus quarterback Zack Gauthier is going to Humboldt State.

-- Gerry Gittelson

Moorpark College is the site for the 1st annual Moorpark College Invitational on June 19 and 20.

Tornament oragnizer Ryan Moore, an asst. coach at Simi Valley High is looking for 16 teams.

So far, the tournament includes Simi Valley, Calabasas, Ventura, Crescenta Valley, Golden Valley, Westlake, Moorpark, Camarillo, St. Francis, and Sierra Canyon.

Any interested teams should contact coach Moore at ryanmas4@gmail.com

Kevin Torres has been on fire for Birmingham in a two-game sweep over Cleveland this past week.

On Friday night, he pitched a five-hitter with 12 strikeouts and went 3 for 3 with two home runs in a 4-3 victory at Birmingham.

Two days earlier, Torres went 4 for 6 with a home run and two doubles and pitched three relief innings to get the win in a 26-15 win at Cleveland.

He has 10 home runs this season.