Heather Gripp: February 2008 Archives

High school baseball season kicks off today and one of the top local players to watch will be Westlake senior shortstop Cutter Dykstra. Dykstra's latest honor is a selection to Baseball America's Preseason All-America first team.
Dykstra, the son of former major leaguer Lenny Dykstra, is best known for his speed. He hit .337 with three home runs, 16 RBIs and 14 stolen bases last season. He has signed with UCLA.
He is among six California players on the first team.

The Los Angeles Water Polo Club recently won the Florida International 19-under tournament. Agoura High's Peter Kurzeka was named tournament MVP. Harvard-Westlake's Max Eliot, Max Lubin, Alex Popoff and Matt Hartwick were among the other locals.
LAWPC's tournamt scores:
LAWPC 14, Riptides (Florida) 5
LAWPC 11, SET (Orange County) 6
LAWPC 11, WASP (Washington) 7
LAWPC 9, CHAWP (Riverside) 3
LAWPC 9, Stanford 8

The sites have been determined for the Div. IV semifinals, where three of the four participants are locals. Louisville of Woodland Hills is the surprise of the division, having upset defending champion Cabrillo and No. 3 Malibu, and could set up an All-Mission League final if the Royals pull off another upset Wednesday.
Here is the scheule for Wednesday's games:
No. 1 Harvard-Westlake vs. No. 4 Rio Mesa at Pasadena City College, 3:15 p.m.
Louisville vs. No. 2 Arroyo Grande at Pepperdine, 3:15 p.m.

Here are the locals remaining in the Southern Section girls water polo playoffs. Saturday's winners advance to the semifinals on Wednesday.

DIV. II
No. 4 Laguna Beach at Agoura, 1 p.m.

DIV. III
La Canada at No. 1 Riverside Poly

DIV. IV
No. 1 Harvard-Westlake vs. Glendale at Burbank, 2 p.m.
No. 4 Rio Mesa vs. Crescenta Valley at Burbank, noon
Louisville at No. 3 Malibu, 3 p.m.
Burbank at No. 2 Arroyo Grande, 1 p.m.

Senior Whitney Delgado scored four goals, including the deciding shot with eight seconds remaining to lead Thousand Oaks' comeback in a 6-5 victroy over host Canyon of Anaheim in a Southern Section Div. II wild-card game. The Lancers (20-9) trailed 5-3 entering the final quarter but scored the only three goals of the period.
Thousand Oaks goalie Christy Kilgore finished with 14 saves.
The Lancers, the third-place representative from the Marmonte League, advance to face Bay League champion Palos Verdes in Thursday's first round.
Also, Marmonte champion Agoura learned which team it will open against. Ventura defeated Capistrano Valley in the division's other wild card game and will play at Agoura on Thursday.

The Mission League had a successful day in the opening round of girls water polo Southern Section playoffs. All three of the league's members that played Tuesday advanced to Thursday's second round, where they'll join league champion Harvard-Westlake of Studio City, which had a first-round bye as Div. IV's top seed.
Mission runner-up Louisville of Woodland Hills opened with an 11-3 victory over visiting Nipomo. The Royals play at Cabrillo of Lompoc on Thursday.
Alemany of Mission Hills defeated visiting Pasadena Poly 15-4, led by big games from Whitney Ukanis and Erin Manke. Ukanis scored five goals with three assists and Manke added four goals and five assists. The Warriors (12-12) face Pacific League champion Crescenta Valley, which had a first-round bye, in the second round at Pasadena City College.
Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks edged host Pacifica of Oxnard 5-3 behind three goals from Kate Kurzeka. The Knights (16-11) face Burbank in the second round.

The Agoura High girls' water polo team's quest to defend its Southern Section Div. II title just got a lot tougher. Star senior Casey Flacks will miss the postseason with a broken left hand.
Flacks, last year's division Player of the Year and an All-American who has signed with Loyola Marymount, suffered the injury during practice Friday and received the official diagnosis Monday when a cast was also put on the hand.
Flacks, who leads the Chargers in almost every statistical category, was the only returning starter for a program that has reached the division final the past three years.
Marmonte League champion Agoura (19-9) begins playoffs Thursday at home against the winner of Tuesday's wild-card game between Ventura and Capistrano Valley. Agoura narrowly defeated Ventura in overtime during the regular season. The next two rounds would likely feature matchups with No. 4 Laguna Beach, then No. 1 Dos Pueblos.
"The rest of the girls just need to step up and do a little more," Chargers coach Jason Rosenthal said. "If each girl steps up, I think we still have a good chance. We played all summer without her. This is our chance to prove we're not a one-man team."

Loyola water polo teammates Forest Monroe and Connor Plaga have signed with USC. Both were All-Southern Section Div. I selections this past fall for the Mission League runner-up Cubs. Monroe was the team's leading scorer while Plaga was a speedy two-meter defender.
The pair join a talented USC recruiting class that also includes Agoura's Peter Kurzeka, Northern California standouts Thomas Avery and Andrew Reego as well as Michael Rosenthal, a driver from Florida.

A USC men's water polo program that has reached the NCAA championship game the past three years has gained another of the country's premier players. Agoura's Peter Kurzeka committed to the Trojans today.
Kurzeka was the Southern Section Div. IV Player of the Year after scoring a school-record 143 goals and leading Agoura to its first division title this past fall.

Draws were released today for Saturday's Southern Section dual meet championships.
Marmonte League champion Royal of Simi Valley is the top local seed at No. 3 in Div. II. The host Highlanders open against Baseline runnerup Los Osos and would likely have to overcome No. 2 North Torrance in order to reach the final and a chance for a third title in four years. Laguna Hills is the division's top seed. Royal's Marmonte rival Thousand Oaks opens against Mission Valley champion Arroyo.
In the Div. V meet at San Gabriel, Golden League champion Highland of Palmdale opens against Santa Ynez and is in line to face No. 1 Bishop Amat in the second round. The Golden League's other representative, Quartz Hill, opens against No. 3 Loara.
Local hopes in Div. VI rest on Mission League champion Alemany and Rio Hondo League champion La Canada, who both have a tough path through the event at Western High in Anaheim. Alemany opens against Santa Paula and could face No. 1 Elsinore in the second round. La Canada begins against Perris and would likely face No. 2 San Jacinto in the second round.
Competition at each site is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.

Newbury Park junior infielder Jack Marder has verbally committed to Oregon. Although he has two full high school seasons ahead of him, his performance in the first two was enough to convince Ducks coach George Horton that the second baseman/shortstop should be a part of an Oregon program that is reinstating baseball beginning with the 2009 season. Marder hit .371 with 22 RBIs and a team-high 10 doubles last season.

A little more than three weeks before its season begins, the El Camino Real of Woodland Hills baseball team has a new coach. Billy Ramirez, who was entering his second season as the Conquistadores head coach, has been replaced by interim coach Vince Orlando.
Orlando, who played at Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks, is ECR's assistant athletic director and was an assistant on former coach Matt LaCour's staff.
The Conquistadores, who won their fifth City Section title in 2005, went 17-14 and were eliminated in the second round of playoffs last year in Ramirez's lone season at the helm.

Birmingham of Lake Balboa's final step in the quest for a perfect season will come against a familiar foe. Valley League rivals Birmingham and Cleveland of Reseda won their respective City Section semifinals Wednesday to advance to Friday's championship game at John Argue Swim Stadium.
Top-seeded Birmingham (18-0) advanced with a 20-6 victory over No. 4 Venice at Panorama High. Sophomore Darin Weltsch led the Patriots with seven goals. Teammate Favio Carcamo contributed four goals, four assists and six steals. Goalkeeper Adrian Almeida blocked 13 shots.
The victory extends Birmingham's winning streak to 28 games since the City reinstated the sport last season. Two of those wins this season were against Cleveland during league play, including a 16-3 victory two weeks ago.
The second-seeded Cavaliers continued their postseason dominance Wednesday by defeating No. 3 Roosevelt of Los Angeles 15-4.
Roosevelt and Venice meet at 4 p.m. Friday in the third-place game, followed by the final at 6 p.m.

Here are the results from the Mission League finals at Chaminade, where the top performers qualified for the Southern Section Central division individual championshps Feb. 15-16 at Brea Olinda.

103
1. Ramin Sobati, Chaminade, Soph. 2. Alex Schmidt, Alemany, Soph. 3. Christian Vemoy, Crespi, Fr.

112
1. Ben Kogan, Harvard-Westlake, Fr. 2. Adam Moreno, Chaminade, Jr. 3. Corey Wynn, Brentwood, Fr.

119
1.Craig Seidenglanz, Chaminade, Soph. 2. John Harris, Alemany, Sr. 3. Garret Morris, Crespi, Soph.

127
1. Gavin Ross, Harvard-Westlake, Jr. 2. Steven Flores, Alemany, Jr. 3. Gurjeet Gill, Chaminade, Soph.

132
1. Spencer Friedman, Harvard-Westlake, Jr. 2. Paul Romero, Alemany, Sr. 3. Alex Bader, Crespi, Soph.

135
1. Gary Espinoza, Alemany, Jr. 2. Anthony Micelli, Brentwood, Jr. 3. Tarek Tohme, Harvard-Westlake, Sr.

140
1. Richard Leuchter, Harvard-Westlake, Sr. 2. Johnny Artner, Crespi, Jr. 3. Mike Villegas, Alemany, Sr.

147
1. Daniel Meer, Harvard-Westlake, Sr. 2. Dax Grove, Crespi, Sr. 3. Behrod Gramian, Brentwood, Jr.

152
1. Mikio Island, Crespi, Jr. 2. Hank Murr, Harvard-Westlake, Jr. 3. Henry Stevvens, Brentwood, Fr.

160
1. Sean Cochran, Chaminade, Sr. 2. Evan Ryan, Harvard-Westlake, Jr. 3. John Kearns, Crespi, Soph.

171
1. Anthony Espinoza, Alemany, Soph. 2. Ryan Callahan, Crespi, Jr. 3. Brian Shultz, Harvard-Westlake, Fr.

189
1. Rudy De La Cruz, Brentwood, Sr. 2. Chris Carter, Crespi, Jr., 3. Steven Ray, Chaminade, Soph.

217
1. Akeem Gonzales, Alemany, Fr. 2. Mark Haskell, Crespi, Jr. 3. Nathan Romo, Chaminade, Soph.

HWT
1. Geo Ketchedijian, Alemany, Sr. 2. Mikey Stone, Brentwood, Soph. 3. Karim Williams, Crespi, Sr.

Team Results
1. Harvard-Westlake 152
2. Alemany 146
3. Crespi 141.5
4. Chaminade 106
5. Brentwood 86

Crespi is holding its baseball alumni game Feb. 23 at 1 p.m. at College of the Canyons. The Celts want to get the word out in hopes of a good turnout for a planned celebration of the five-year anniversary of their 2003 Southern Section championship.

Birmingham continued its perfect season by making its playoff debut Monday with a 17-6 victory over Eagle Rock in the City Section quarterfinals at Panorama High.
The top-seeded Patriots (17-0), who had received a first-round bye, advance to Wednesday's semifinal against No. 4 Venice at Panorama.
Sophomore Darin Weltsch led Birmingham with five goals and nine steals. His senior brother, Gavin Weltsch, added four goals. Patriots goalie Adrian Almeida made eight saves.
"They're pretty confident," Birmingham coach Chris Laidig said. "It's a lot of pressure. Being undefeated isn't easy, but if they play their game they'll do alright."
Birmingham is 27-0 in the two seasons since the City reinstated water polo. The Patriots have two lopsided victories over Venice this season, and if they can beat the Gondoliers again Wednesday they'll get a chance to play for the City's first championship in the sport in more than 30 years. The final is 6 p.m. Friday at John Argue Stadium.
About all that worries the Patriots now is how their season has paralleled that of the team with the same name, the New England Patriots, who also entered the postseason 16-0 but lost in Sunday's Super Bowl.
"We're getting superstitious," Laidig said. "Hopefully our ending will be better."

Quartz Hill had an encouraging weekend at the Golden League finals, where the Rebels finished in first, had three league champions and 12 qualifiers for the Southern Section Northern individual championships.
There was also reason to be encouraged about the future. Freshmen Eric Arce (103) and Ben Harvey (189) were promoted to varsity as injury replacements, and both took second in their weight class. Harvey had gone 27-0 at the JV level. The freshmen are expected to remain with the team for this weekend's Southern Section duals.
Quartz Hill's league champions were Jacob Ricker (130), Josh Randenberg (152) and Dan Thomas (215).
"It was really cool," Thomas said. "It sucked last year when I came in second, I had to wait a whole year to make up for that. It was cool to take first individually and as a team to prove we are the No. 1 team in the valley. Our lineup's pretty solid."

Hart baseball senior infielder Trevor Matern has committed to San Francisco. Matern batted .355 last season.

Royal's dominance of the Marmonte League continued at Saturday's league finals. After completing an undefeated run through league to secure a fifth consecutive Marmonte team title earlier in the week, the Highlanders had a school-record 11 finalists at the individual tournament. Fourteen of Royal's wrestlers qualified for the Southern Section meet.
Highlighting Royal's six champions were Mike Dumelle (140) and Aaron VanDriessche (160), who clinched their titles with pins.
Royal looks to ride that momentum into next weekend's Southern Section duals, where the Highlanders will be aiming for a third title in four years.

Here are all the winners from the Marmonte finals
103: Jeff Tabachinick, Agoura
112: Collin Sasaki, Thousand Oaks
119: Philip Dimalanta, Royal
125: Kyle Nance, Moorpark
130: Chris Barr, Simi Valley
135: Behrod Katebian, Thousand Oaks
140: Mike Dumelle, Royal
145: Thomas Lang, Westlake
152: Sergio Cortez, Royal
160: Aaron VanDriessche, Royal
171: Pascal Combs-Knoke, Agoura
189: Matt Rulon, Royal
215: Dillon Brockert, Thousand Oaks
Heavyweight: Diego Vargas, Royal

The area's most sought after boys' water polo player is getting closer to making a college commitment. Agoura's Peter Kurzeka has narrowed his choices to USC, UCLA and 2007 national champion Cal.
Kurzeka was the Southern Section Div. IV Player of the Year and repeated as Daily News Player of the Year after leading Agoura to the division championship and scoring a school-record 143 goals this past fall. In December he was selected to the U.S. Men's Senior National "B" training squad.

After a 16-0 start, Harvard-Westlake was handed its first loss of the season on Thursday. The Mission League champion Wolverines, ranked No. 1 in Div. IV, lost 9-5 to Whittier, the No. 2 team in Div. III, in the opening round of the Irvine tournament. Harvard-Westlake continues in the tournament this afternoon with a game against Long Beach Poly.