QUARTERFINALS
Thursday's results

DIVISION 1
Norco 15, Foothill 0
Vista Murrieta 3, Esperanza 0
Edison 6, Orange Lutheran 0
Corona Santiago 4, Garden Grove Pacifica 3

DIVISION 2
Chino 2, Millikan 1
Lakewood 4, Northwood 0
Don Lugo 2, La Mirada 1
Valley View 5, Camarillo 3 (10 inn.)

Kailey Palazzolo's fifth-inning blast was just close enough to a game-sealing two-run home run to provide La Mirada a circus catch and its only source of momentum all game. Turns out Palazzolo just had to wait two more innings to hit the actual game-winner as the Don Lugo shortstop's walk-off single gave the Conquistadores a 2-1 victory that advanced the second-place team from the Mt. Baldy League to Tuesday's CIF-SS Division 2 semifinal against Moreno Valley Valley View.

As Mt. Baldy League champion Chino continues to march through the top half of the bracket, Don Lugo (20-5) reached its first semifinal in seven years.

"It was only fitting that Palazzolo got the game-winning hit after she was robbed like that," Don Lugo coach Ray Sheffield said. "There's only eight teams left and they're all good but these girls just don't want to be the ones to lose."

To add some perspective to the boys 300-meter hurdle race at today's CIF-SS Masters meet, consider that Diamond Ranch High School's Andrew Fischer posted the the state's sixth-fastest time of the season last week at CIF-SS finals but finished fourth in his own race.

In all, the four 300-meter hurdle races at CIF-SS finals produced the top eight times in the state this year.

The competitors will all be the same today, but the difference at the CIF-SS Masters meet at Cerritos College is that there will only be one race for all of them. The stakes are high seeing as today is the final hurdle to reaching next weekend's the state track meet.

The winner of Fischer's Division 3 race last week was Damien's Jarrett Gonzales, whose time of 36.80 seconds is the state's fastest this season. He will have plenty of competition seeing as seven of the others on the track today have sub-38-second times to their name.

Of the nine local softball teams that entered Tuesday's second round of the CIF-SS playoffs, eight moved on to the quarterfinals.

The lone team to lose had some pretty stiff competition, to put it lightly. Etiwanda suffered a 2-0 loss to Norco, which not only is the Division 1 top seed but espn.com's No. 1 team in the country. Two locals knocked off No. 1 seeds as Chino prevailed over Mission Viejo in Division 2 and San Dimas knocked off Aquinas in Division 4. The two No. 1 seeds that are local, Chino Hills in Division 3 and Pomona Catholic in Division 7, both advanced without much problem.

There also were a couple of local games with plenty of dramatic flare. Kaiser erased a five-run deficit by scoring the final nine runs of its Division 4 second-round game to defeat Garden Grove Rancho Alamitos while Jurupa Hills held off a late charge from Arcadia Rio Hondo Prep in a 9-8 victory in Division 6. Don Lugo and St. Lucy's, which finished second in stacked leagues, also are still alive in their respective divisions.

Unlike the thriving softball teams, two rounds into the CIF-SS baseball playoffs only one local team remains alive, Division 3 No. 1 seed Bonita.

After a first-round 18-1 victory, the Bearcats ran into more resistance in Tuesday's second round but prevailed in a two-run game against Garden Grove. In Friday's quarterfinals, Bonita will host Paramount, the third-place team from the San Gabriel Valley League that has knocked off two league champions in as many postseason games.

The Damien baseball team, a Division 2 at-large playoff team from the Sierra League, failed in its bid to defeat a second league champ as Mission Viejo ousted the Spartans in the second round, 9-1. Alta Loma also went down in Division 2 as the Baseline League champions ran into the No. 2 seed and Mt. Baldy League winner Don Lugo lost to the Rio Hondo League champs in the second round.

DIVISION 1
Orange Lutheran 7, Vista Murrieta 2
West Ranch 8, Capistrano Valley 5
Corona 5, Agoura 4
El Dorado 6, Huntington Beach 1
Saugus 7, Riverside North 4
Newbury Park 2, El Toro 0
Esperanza 2, Marina 0
Mater Dei 6, Temecula Valley 5

DIVISION 1
Norco 2, Etiwanda 0
Foothill 4, Saugus 3
Esperanza 4, Mater Dei 3
Vista Murrieta 5, Los Alamitos 1
Orange Lutheran 3, Valencia 2, 11 inn.
Edison 13, Anaheim Canyon 0
Edison 6, Murrieta Valley 0
Corona Santiago 8, West Ranch 1
Garden Grove Pacifica 2, Royal 0

Pitcher Krystel Gabbard calmly shook her head when asked if she was worried about the Kaiser High School softball team's five-run deficit two innings into Tuesday's second-round CIF-SS Division 4 playoff game against Rancho Alamitos.

The same can't be said for the feeling in the Cats' dugout.

"I'm 64 going on 80," Kaiser coach John Stevens said after the Cats' 9-5 comeback victory punctuated by a tie-breaking four-run sixth inning.

After going hitless the first two innings, the Sunkist League champions collected 13 hits, more than half of which were for extra bases.

True to the playoff mantra, there was drama Friday on the Bonita High School baseball field.

It lasted one inning.

After the top seed in CIF-SS Division 3 allowed an uncharacteristic run in the first inning, Bonita quickly pulled away for an 18-1 victory over San Gorgonio in the first round of the playoffs.

It may have only been one run, but considering the circumstances, it qualified as dramatic.

Bonita pitcher Justin Garza, who has signed with Cal State Fullerton and is sure to be selected in the Major League Baseball draft in June after leading the Bearcats (27-2) through a dominant regular season, walked eight batters in 65 regular-season innings. He walked the first batter of Friday's game.

Rancho Cucamonga golfer Rico Hoey was low medalist at the CIF-SS Central individual regional qualifier on Monday by shooting a 69 at Mission Lakes Country Club in Desert Hot Springs. Hoey was one of 12 locals to qualify for next Monday's CIF-SS individual finals at Victoria Country Club. Hoey joined Damien's Brandon Tsujimoto, who qualified in the Southern Regional by shooting a 73 at Skylinks Golf Course in Long Beach.

Four players qualified from Diamond Bar, including Jefferson Kao and Sahith Theegala, who tied for fourth place by shooting 71 in the Central regional. Diamond Bar teammates Dean Sakata (74) and Brian Fong (75) also qualified.

Others who will move on are San Dimas' Tavit Garabedian (75), Diamond Ranch's Mike Alvarez (76), Los Osos' Rito Armenta (76), Bonita's Kevin Henley (76), Upland's Coit Monell (78) and the Ontario Christian duo of Bradley Fox (78) and Joshua Herman (78).

The 19th annual Inland Valley High School All-Star baseball game presented by the Daily Bulletin is scheduled for June 15 at the Epicenter. Seats are $5 and the first pitch will be at 6:30 p.m. after the gates open at 5:30. The game featuring the top seniors from the area will pit North against South with Interstate 10 providing the barrier between the two teams.

"I would like to thank both the City of Rancho Cucamonga and our administrative staff at the Daily Bulletin for making the game possible," game director and Daily Bulletin sports editor Louis Brewster said. "With resources being trimmed on both sides and the tough economic period, we are also grateful to the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes for their continued support of one of the best-attended games of its kind in Southern California."

Rancho Cucamonga is hosting a 12-team passing tournament on Saturday. While the host school may be the most touted program in the tournament after a second consecutive appearance in the CIF-SS Inland Division semifinals last season, the Cougars will have a two-time defending CIF champion to contend with in their own team pool. West Covina, which won the CIF-SS Southeastern Division championship game by a score of 84-21 over Whittier La Serna, will be in a pool with Rancho Cucamonga and Ganesha.

Chino Hills, which as of two weeks ago has a new quarterback in Colony transfer Matt Simko, is joined in a pool by Bishop Amat and San Juan Hills. Claremont, Diamond Bar and Ontario form an all-local pool and Ayala, Corona Santiago and Huntington Beach round out the field.

Following pool play, the top four teams will play semifinals at 11:30 a.m. with the winners meeting in the final at 12:20 p.m.

WILD CARD
Thursday's Games

DIVISION 1
A: Millikan (11-17) at Moorpark (15-12); B: Oxnard Pacifica (16-8) at Capistrano Valley (18-11); C; Riverside Poly (14-11 at Anaheim Canyon (15-12); D: Brea Olinda (14-13-1) JSerra (12-15); E: Corona (14-14) at Valencia (19-8); F: Huntington Beach (18-8) at Great Oak (17-10); G: Chaparral (13-13) at Edison (11-13); H: St. John Bosco (14-11) at El Modena (16-11); I: Hart (14-12) at Simi Valley (17-10); J: San Clemente (15-13) at Corona Santiago (16-10-1)

DIVSION 2
A: Burbank Burroughs (12-13) at Ventura (14-10); B: Placentia Valencia (16-13) at Yucaipa (18-9); C: Tustin (10-15) at La Sierra (16-9); D: Righetti (16-10) at Chino Hills (14-11); E: Loyola (19-9-1) at Trabuco Hills (13-13); F: Bellflower (17-13) at Redlands (22-5); G: Arlington (15-12) at Mira Costa (18-12); H: Burbank (13-9) at Claremont (11-10-2); I: Rancho Verde (12-15) at Kennedy (13-11); J: Pasadena (13-10) at Arroyo Grande (14-11); K: San Juan Hills (17-11) at Buena (19-7); L: Norwalk (12-14) at Upland (16-9); M: Paso Robles (15-11) at Chaminade (13-13); N: Damien (13-10-1) at La Mirada (14-15-1); O: Santa Barbara (15-10) at Arcadia (19-7); P: Santa Barbara (15-10) at Redondo Union (17-11).

WILD CARD
Tuesday's Games

DIVISION 1
A: Great Oak at Yucaipa; B: Foothill at Riverside Poly; C: Yorba Linda at Agoura; D: Hart at Upland; E: Roosevelt at Cypress; F: Fountain Valley at Rosary.

DIVISION 2
A: Arroyo Valley at West Covina; B: Norwalk at Chaffey; C: Rancho Verde at Rio Mesa; D: Long Beach Poly at Montclair; E: Rialto at Diamond Bar.

The Inland Valley produced many notable performances on Saturday at the Division 2 track and field prelims at Moorpark High School. The top nine in most events qualify for next Saturday's CIF-SS Finals.

Here is a list of Inland Valley qualifiers for the CIF-SS Division 2 finals:

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Grant Jerrett, La Verne Lutheran, Sr.
The 6-foot-10 Arizona-bound center led Lutheran to a pair of state championships and one CIF title in his tenure. The Gatorade state Player of the Year and McDonald's All-American Game invitee averaged 22 points and 10 rebounds this season as the Trojans reached the CIF finals.

FIRST TEAM
G: Jordan McLaughlin, Etiwanda, So.
The first team all-CIF sophomore averaged a team-high 17.8 points for an Etiwanda team that went undefeated in the Baseline League, was seeded third and reached the semifinals of the CIF-SS Division 1AA playoffs before going to the second round of the CIF state tournament.

G: Myles Pearson, Upland, Sr.
The first team all-CIF point guard averaged 17.8 points and 4.2 assists for an Upland team that reached the CIF-SS Division 1AA semifinals. Pearson, who often guarded the opposition's best perimeter player, made 67 percent of his 3-pointers and 91.6 percent of his free throws.

F: Miles Poullard, Colony, Sr.
The Mt. Baldy League MVP averaged 19.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.1 steals per game for the league champions. Poullard was selected first team all-CIF averaging 24.8 points during a run to the CIF-SS Division 2A semifinals, including a school-record 43 in the second round.

F: Marvelle Harris, Eisenhower, Sr.
The Citrus Belt League MVP and Division 1AA all-CIF selection averaged 25.6 points per game, including 30.6 per game during league play. The 6-foot-2 Fresno State-bound Harris also averaged 7.4 rebounds and 3.4 steals per game.

C: Chris Reyes, Damien, Sr.
The CIF-SS Division 3AAA co-Player of the Year averaged 16.7 points, 11.7 rebounds and 4.7 blocks per game for the Sierra League champions. The 6-7 Reyes, who helped Damien to a No. 1 playoff seed, will play at St. Mary's next season.

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jillian Alleyne, Summit, Sr.
The Oregon-bound 6-foot-3 center earned CIF-SS Division 1A Player of the Year honors after leading the SkyHawks to the first CIF championship in school history. The Sunkist League MVP led the league in four categories, averaging 14.5 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.9 blocks and 2.7 assists per game as she led the SkyHawks to an undefeated run through league play.

FIRST TEAM
G: Nikki Wheatley, Bonita, So.
The sophomore point guard earned Hacienda League MVP honors by leading the Bearcats to a 27-win season, a league title and the CIF-SS Division 3AAA semifinals.

G: Taylor Brown, Chino, So.
The sophomore averaged 20.3 points per game and 2.7 steals per game in leading Chino to an undefeated run through the Mt. Baldy League to end thr five-year run of Colony as the league champion.

F: Chelsea Barnes, Diamond Ranch, Sr.
The first team all-CIF guard filled up the stat sheet with 18.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.4 steals per game for a Diamond Ranch team that went 25-7 and reached the CIF-SS Division 3AA semifinals.

F: Ashtyn Anderson, Etiwanda, Sr.
The 5-foot-10 first team all-CIF forward averaged 12.5 points, 12 rebounds 2.9 steals and 2.8 assists per game in addition to shooting 71 percent from the free throw line for the Baseline League champion Eagles, who went 23-4 and reached the CIF-SS Division 1AA quarterfinals.

C: Denae Williams, Rialto, Sr.
The first team all-San Andreas League center averaed 23.1 points, 22.3 rebounds and 4.9 blocks per game for the league champions. A second team all-CIF selection, Williams has signed to play at the University of San Francisco next season.

Colony High School junior quarterback Matt Simko transferred to Chino Hills High School on Monday and had his eligibility approved by CIF Thursday per his family's residence change. The Mt. Baldy League offensive player of the year last season has joined Chino Hills spring practice and is competing for the starting quarterback job with Zach Chadwick, who also plays linebacker.

All indications from Chino Hills coach Derek Bub are that he would love to avoid playing Chadwick both ways and the 6-foot-3 Simko's arrival will likely make that an easy decision.

"I didn't have any idea this was happening before Friday," Bub said. "But he is going to help us a lot. He's a great drop back passer with a cannon for an arm. He's a 'yes sir, no sir' kid and all he's done is work hard."

With all-Inland Valley basketball running this week, it's time to release all-valley wrestling. Due to space/time/staffing constraints, we are only running a list of all-valley wrestling on the blog.
But here it is, all-valley wrestling for 2011-12 season.

Wrestler of the Year: Jacob Leon, Sr., Alta Loma (138)
Coach of the Year: Nick Nakamura, Chino Hills

On the day of the Mt. Baldy League championship two weeks later, Joe Marcos was afraid the Don Lugo High School baseball team's 16-3 pasting of Chino on April 25 may have done its league title hopes more harm than good.

"I told them right after the game," the Don Lugo coach said. "Don't expect this to happen when we play them again."

When they played again on Wednesday, it didn't happen again but Don Lugo showed plenty of mental fortitude in grinding out a 3-1 win over Chino in a winner-take-all showdown for the league championship.

Don Lugo senior Brett Early won the pitchers' duel with Chino's Michael Reina, allowing one run on seven hits in a complete game that included a combined total of 19 runners stranded between the teams.

"More is always better," as far as Tahaan Goodman is concerned. The Rancho Cucamonga four-star safety has already exceeded his expectations having pulled in 25 scholarship offers in the last few months. But the 6-foot-2, 185-pound junior is committed to remaining uncommitted. Though he has offers from LSU, Oklahoma, Florida, Nebraska, Boise State, USC and Oklahoma State, to name a few, his ears will remain open until he finishes his recruiting trips in the fall.

The two official visits cemented in his schedule are LSU and Hawaii. Goodman has already taken unofficial trips to USC, UCLA, Cal and Arizona State and plans to visit San Diego State this weekend.

"It's hard sometimes when you go to a school and it makes you want to commit right away," Goodman said. "But then I just think about all the schools I haven't seen yet. I've always said I want to see everything that I can before I make this decision."