October 2008 Archives

All the local colleges will be in action this week. This late in the season very few are playing for anything. The exception being the University of Redlands which has an outisde shot at sharing the conference title and a possibility of a wild card playoff berth.

Redlands at Pomona-Pitzer.

It's one of the conference powerhouses against one of the lower tier teams. The Sagehens can throw the ball but don't have much of anything else. The Bulldogs are deeper and more physical and should be able to overpower Pitzer's offensive front so Jacob Caron might not have much time to get rid of the ball.

Redlands 44, Pitzer 14

La Verne at Whittier

This is a toss up but the Leopards have shown more progress lately than the Poets have.
La Verne 28, Whittier, 21

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at Chapman

CMS has a trio of quarterbacks, two of whom are coming off injuries and the other a junior that hasn't played much. The Panthers are solid and are playing at home.

Chapman 32, CMS 14

Riverisde at Chaffey

Chaffey is coming off a loss to woeful Citrus and Riverside has played better competition than have the Owls. Chaffey is the most penalized team in the state, with 185 yards called against it last week. One of Chaffey's two quarterbacks was a no-show in practice for the first half of the week. That isn't good.

Riverside 28, Chaffey 14

Southwestern at San Bernardino Valley

Southwestern hung 41 on Victor Valley and Victor Valley trounced SBVC. This one should be ugly early, unfortunately.

Southwestern 48, SBVC 10

San Diego Mesa at Victor Valley

If O'Ryan Bradley is back at quarterback the Rams could win a close one. If not they will lose. He is scheduled to go, for now.
Victor Valley 28, Mesa 24

When the University of Redlands lost to Occidental three weeks ago, hopes of a playoff bid appeared bleak. It might be natural to suffer a letdown, but the Bulldogs (5-1, 3-1) have lived up to their billing, beating two foes by a combined 101-14. Next up is a 1 p.m. contest Saturday at Pomona-Pitzer (2-4, 1-2).

"I have been proud of this team because that does show a lot of character," Bulldogs Coach Mike Maynard said. "That was a huge, disappointing loss but it shows nothing can keep us down."

Pitzer coach Roger Caron has been impressed with the way the Bulldogs regrouped after their loss.

"They're going out and playing to the bitter end and letting things play out," he said. "That's a tribute to their kids and coaching staff that they have played that well after such a big letdown."

This is yet another game that looks like a mismatch. The Bulldogs got back in the American Football Coaches Association poll at No. 25. More importantly they are ranked seventh in the West Region.

Redlands is ranked second in the country in total defense. Senior end Brock Arndt is tied for second nationally in both sacks and tackles for loss.

While the Sagehens have not fared well overall, they do boast a passing attack that ranks first in the SCIAC and 26th nationally.

Sophomore quarterback Jacob Caron, the coach's son, is the catalyst. He has the two top receivers in the conference in senior Kevin Kelly and sophomore R.J. Maki.
Maynard said he plans to mix up his defenses to try and keep Caron off balance.

"He's a very good quarterback and his receivers are solid," Maynard said. "He's very savy. He's a coach's son so they talk about coverages over the dinner table."

Caron knows that they key to that passing will whether or not the smaller offensive line can withstand a bigger, more physical defensive front.

Redlands will dress 100 while Pitzer, which also has smaller players physically, will dress 40.

"We're going to have to go out and play way over our heads," Caron said.
In SCIAC play elsewhere La Verne (1-5, 1-3) will be at Whittier (1-5, 1-2) and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (2-4) will play nonconference foe Chapman (3-3).

On the community college front, Chaffey (4-3, 1-2) will host Riverside (2-6, 0-4) at 1 p.m. and San Bernardino Valley (0-7, 0-4) hosts first-place Southwestern (5-2, 4-0).

The University of La Verne serves as host of the West Region championships as part of the NCAA Division III Volleyball Tournament, announced by the NCAA today.  Dates for the regionals are November 13-15.

The selection marks the fourth time in this decade that the West Region championships has come to La Verne, which previously hosted in 2000, 2003 and 2006.

Other regional hosts for the 2008 NCAA Division III Championships includes Tufts University (New England), New York University (New York), Juniata College (Mid-Atlantic), Wittenberg University (Great Lakes), St. Thomas University (Central), Trinity University (South) and the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh (Midwest).

The participating teams, pairings and complete schedule for the championship will be announced Monday, November 10.

The championship finals will be held November 20-22 at the Shirk Center in Bloomington, Illinois and will be hosted by Illinois Wesleyan University.

RIVERSIDE (2-6, 0-4) at CHAFFEY (4-3, 1-2)

Kickoff: 1 p.m.

About Chaffey: The Panthers need a win to keep even a remote shot at
a bowl bid alive. The Panthers have damaged their own cause with
penalties. They had 185 yards called against them in last week's
costly 27-20 loss to Citrus. Chaffey continues to use two
quarterbacks buy Greg Sprowls will get the start this week. DT David
Williams is the latest injury casualty. The Panthers have some depth
there with Garrett Haro and Chris Ramos, both out of Claremont,
likely to see more action. RB Mark Chase and WR-KR Aaron Mays
continue to be the bright spots for coach Carl Beach.

About Riverside: The Tigers have found the going tough in the
National Division Central Conference. They have lost six straight
games, the last four all conference games. Cedric Foster (366 yards,
5 TDs) is the team's leading rusher. Redlands High product Coy Glass
(1,246 yards, 11 TDs) directs an offense that averages 312 yards per
game. Miller grad Jacob Slouka is the top receiver. RCC has big-play
potential on special teams with James Calhoun on punt returns and
Corey Ham on kick returns. Sophomore SS Jamell Murry and Anthony
Caruthers (Redlands East Valley) lead the defense.

SOUTHWESTERN (5-2, 4-0) at SAN BERNARDINO VALLEY (0-7, 0-4)

Kickoff: 6 p.m.

About Southwestern: The Jaguars had traditionally been a bottom tier
team in the old Foothill Conference but have emerged as the
frontrunner in the new American Division Mountain Conference. They
have won five straight games, the eye-opening one a 14-10 win over
nonconference foe Grossmont. The rushing game revolves around Kenslow
Smith (694 yards, 9 TDs) with QB Ryan Nelson (1,820 yards, 16 TDs)
directing the aerial game. His favorite target is George Bell (847
yards, 8 TDs). David Ferris (51 tackles) is the team's top defender.

About SBVC: The Wolverines came up just short last week, falling to
Mt. San Jacinto 34-28. Freshman QB Danny Laugen(434 yards, 5 TDs)
has made great strides since taking over for injured Mike Stadler
three weeks ago. Other key offensive players arew RB Devon Libran and
WR Eric Charles. Freshman SS Dexter Reed had 12 tackles and two
interceptions to earn conference defensive player of the week honors.
Freshman SS Ricky Pesquera and freshman LB Shawn Borden are the
team's leading tacklers.

VICTOR VALLEY (2-5, 2-2) at SAN DIEGO MESA (3-4, 3-1)


Kickoff: 1 p.m.

Radio: 910-AM

About Victor: The Rams are looking to bounce back from a 41-19 loss
to conference leader Southwestern. Starting QB O'Ryan Bradley has
been sidelined with a hip flexor but is expected back this week. The
Rams rely on balance with Deandre Glasper (234 yards, 3 TDs) and Mel
Carmichael (204 yards, 4 TDs) sharing the workload out of the
backfield. Kenyatta Smith (383 yards, 2 TDs) is the top threat in
the passing game. Joshua Hudson (70 tackles) is the top defender. The
kicking game has been a bit inconsistent as well.

About Mesa: The Olympians have won three of their last four. Included
in that streak is a 31-27 win over L.A. Harbor, a team the Rams lost
to. Mesa averages 194 yards through the air with Philip Staback
directing the attack. Other prominent players in the offense are WR
Michael Medina (36 catches, 570 yards, 9 TDs) and RB Braxton Welford
(450 yards, 2 TDs). Sophomore LB Michael Johnson and ophomore DB Matt
Collins lead the defense. Mesa is in contention for a playoff berth
in the Mountain Conference (American Division).

REDLANDS (5-1, 3-1) at POMONA-PITZER (2-4, 1-2)

Kickoff: 1 p.m.

Radio: KMET (1490-AM)

About Redlands: The Bulldogs boast a balanced attack, led by junior
QB Steve Smith who is coming off his best game as a starter. Zack
Schafer (602 yards, 9 TDs) is second in the SCIAC in rushing while
Jeff Stewart (403 yards, 4 TDs) is fifth. The Bulldogs rank second in
the country in total defense led by senior DE Brock Arndt, freshman
LB Ian Sluss and sophomore DB Mike Nicolini. The teaqm had six sacks
last week with Arndt getting three of those. Special teams are also
solid with punter Wes Norris and kicker Joe MacMillan.

About Pitzer: The Sagehens are all about the pass as QB Jacob Caron
(1,637 yards, 10 TDs) leads the conference and wide receivers Kevin
Kelley (51 catches, 729 yards, 5 TDs) and R.J. Maki (43 catches, 572
yards, 3 TDs) are 1-2 in receiving. Pitzer ranks sixth of seven teams
in rushing although Russell Oka is coming off a good showing in last
week's win over Whittier. Senior TE Robert McNitt (ankle) is out for
the second week. Senior DB Taylor Barbour is second in the
conference in interceptions (4).

LA VERNE (1-5, 1-3) at WHITTIER (1-5, 0-3)

Kickoff: 7 p.m.

About La Verne: La Verne's losses are to teams with a combined record
of 25-8. The Leopards are coming off a 40-27 loss to unbeaten
Occidental. Despite that loss coach Andy Ankeny was pleased with his
team responded down 34-0. Backup QB Christian Winnewisser played well
in relief of starter Anthony Andre. Seniors WRs Charles Lacy and Phi
Van Le have come up big in the passing game which has helped since
the Leos rank last in the conference running the ball. Senior LB
Jason Carpenter has been the steady leader on defense.

About Whittier: The Poets boast the leading rusher the conference in
Anthony Pomponio (686 yards, 8 TDs) but they have been erratic with
the passing game. It has a true freshman at the controls in Chino
product Taylor Fallon. Senior Shawn Briggs (24 catches, 347 yards, 4
TDs) is ninth in the SCIAC in receiving. Leading defenders are senior
LB Sean MacNeil, senior LB Steffen Santos and junior LB Brandon Boehm
(Serrano HS).

CHAPMAN (3-3) at CLAREMONT-MUDD-SCRIPPS (2-4)

Kickoff: 1 p.m.

About Chapman: The Panthers are an independent but play all of the
SCIAC schools and are 2-2 against them thus far. They average 346
yards per game offense, 197 of that through the air. Senior Eric
Marty (1,183 yards, 9 TDs) runs the offense. Other key players in the
offense are RB Mike Christensen (648 yards, 8 TDs) and WR Kaleo Perez
(24 catches, 299 yards). Daniel Hartigan (46 tackles) is the top
tackler. Chino product Garrett Earls (40 tackles) is also a key
contributor.

About CMS: The Stags are coming off a 48-0 loss to Redlands.
Quarterback has been issue. Coach Rick Candaele said he plans to
start Scott Yingling, who is returning from a shoulder injury. Ryan
Larsen is the backup but will see action. The best performance last
week was turned in by Landon Patoc who had two interceptions, Brock
Olson is the SCIAC leader in interceptions (6).

Scott Preckwinkle and Ross Middlemiss from Sonoma State, along with San Francisco State's Robin Bowman and Cal Poly Pomona's Bethany Meichsner represented the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) on the ESPN The Magazine District VIII Academic All-District Team that was announced on Thursday.

The All-District VIII team is made up of NCAA Division II and III players as well as players from the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and two-year colleges. District VIII comprises schools from Alaska, Hawaii, California, Washington, Arizona, Idaho, Oregon, Utah, and British Columbia.

To be eligible, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.3 grade point average and be a starter or key reserve. The award is voted on by district Sports Information Directors. From all of the schools eligible, only 11 players are selected.

Middlemiss, an Academic All-District selection last year, has continued his superb work in the classroom, but his athletic prowess has increased tenfold. The Arcata native leads the entire west region in goals with 17 and his CCAA-leading total is eight more than second place. His 41 points and 74 shots attempted are also the best in the conference. Middlemiss is majoring in biology with a minor in Environmental Studies.

Preckwinkle, a senior defender from Sonoma, has been an anchor on the Seawolves' outstanding defensive unit. A starter since his freshman year, Preckwinkle has found a knack for scoring goals in clutch situations. He scored twice in last year's CCAA semifinals and scored the game-tying goal just minutes from the end of regulation against Fresno Pacific earlier this year. Preckwinkle is majoring in Kinesiology.

Bowman, a criminal justice major, is the only CCAA student-athlete selected to First Team.

Bowman has earned Dean's List honors at San Francisco State the past three semesters and also has been named to the San Francisco State Department of Athletics Honor Roll. A year ago, she earned All-CCAA Academic honors and was selected All-CCAA. The senior midfielder leads the Gators this season with her nine goals and 20 points (two came from assists). Of her nine goals, five were game-winners this season.

Meichsner, a junior from Redlands, Calif., was named second team All-Academic. A psychology, management human resource major, Meichsner has totaled four points in 12 matches for Cal Poly Pomona.

Shortly after her team was upset by host Cal Poly Pomona 3-0 (27-25, 26-24, 25-22) Wednesday at a raucous Darlene May Gymnasium, Cal State San Bernardino volleyball coach Kim Cherniss stood near the Coyotes bench talking about what went wrong.

The loss creates a log jam at the top of the CCAA standings. The Broncos and Coyotes are tied for first with Cal State Los Angeles and UC San Diego, neither of whom played Wednesday, a half game out.

Cherniss talked about how exhausting it is to play with the target on your back. As the perennial CCAA frontrunner and a team that is seemingly always ranked in the top five nationally, the Coyotes are always going to be the team others want to beat. It's a win that can help build a program. It's a win that brings recognition to programs that strive to be in that position.

So yes, when teams beat the Coyotes they're going to celebrate a little more loudly than if it were some other opponent.

It's up to the Coyotes to rise to the occasion so that doesn't happen.

While the Broncos played a stellar match from start to finish, many of the errors the Coyotes made were unforced. It was disappointing from a team with so many veteran players.

Now the CCAA is a crapshoot and UC San Diego looms. The Broncos play the Tritons on Friday and the Coyotes get them Saturday at Coussoulis Arena. Good news for the Coyotes because they are unbeaten at home. San Diego is a bitter rival so the Coyotes should have no trouble getting up for that one.

Cal State San Bernardino, coming off a 22-8 record and a share of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) regular-season title a year ago, has been ranked No. 20 in the 2008-09 NABC Preseason Men's Basketball Coaches Poll that was released on Thursday.

The Coyotes, who are also the preseason favorite to capture the 2009 CCAA title, received 40 points in the voting after finishing 14th in the 2007-08 final poll.

Findlay, Ohio, garnered the top spot in the NABC poll after concluding last season with a 28-5 mark. South Carolina Aiken was second and was followed by Bentley, Mass., Florida Southern and Augusta State.

Cal State San Bernardino received a Top 20 ranking despite losing three first-team All-CCAA performers in seniors Michael Earl, Lance Ortiz and Marlon Pierce. However, the Coyotes' roster will be strengthened by the addition of guards Devin Montgomery and DuBois Williams, who join the Coyotes after time at Division I institutions Pepperdine and Saint Mary's, respectively.

The 2008-09 season will begin November 7 when Humboldt State opens play in the Second Annual Disney Tip-Off Classic at the Anaheim Convention Center. CCAA play begins December 3 when Humboldt State hosts Sonoma State in Arcata, Calif.

The CCAA Tournament is slated for March 3-7 with the semifinals and finals scheduled for March 6 and 7 at Coussoulis Arena on the campus of Cal State San Bernardino.

2008-09 NABC/Division II Preseason Coaches Poll
                                                                                             
1.   Findlay, Ohio (8) - 28-5                      
2.   South Carolina Aiken -  27-4                     
3.   Bentley, Mass. - 34-1                      
4.   Florida Southern - 24-9                      
5.   Augusta State, Ga. - 27-7                     
6.   Northern Kentucky - 21-8                      
7.   Central Oklahoma - 28-6                      
8.   Minnesota State - 22-7                      
9.   Winona State, Minn. - 38-1                      
10. Gannon, Pa. - 26-5                      
11. Grand Valley State, Mich. - 36-1                      
12. Southwest Baptist, Mo. - 22-8                      
13. Central Washington - 21-7                      
14. LIU-C.W. Post, N.Y. - 26-5                       
15. North Alabama - 27-9                       
16. Northwest Missouri State - 24-8                       
17. Lenoir-Rhyne, N.C. - 23-7                      
18. Drury, Mo. - 25-6                       
19. Tarleton State, Texas - 25-7                       
20. Cal State-San Bernardino - 22-8                      
21. Mount Olive, N.C. - 24-7                       
22. Kentucky Wesleyan - 24-8                       
23. Brigham Young-Hawaii - 20-8                       
24. Fort Lewis, Colo. - 24-6                       
25. Pittsburgh-Johnstown, Pa. - 23-8                       
 
Others receiving votes: Ouachita Baptist (Ark.) 20, Ferris State (Mich.) 18, Bowie State (Md.) 17, Central Missouri 17, Philadelphia (Pa.) 17, Benedict (S.C.) 14, Catawba (N.C.) 14, Christian Brothers (Tenn.) 14, Northern State (S.D.) 13, Clayton State (Ga.) 11, Arkansas-Monticello 9, Valdosta State (Ga.) 8, Delta State (Miss.) 7, St. Edward's (Texas) 6, Virginia Union 6, Carson-Newman (Tenn.) 5, Metropolitan State (Colo.) 5, Montevallo (Ala.) 5, Armstrong Atlantic State (Ga.) 4, Pfeiffer (N.C.) 3, Northeastern State (Okla.) 2, Ashland (Ohio) 1, Millersville (Pa.) 1, Nebraska-Omaha 1.

 

 

 

 

Division III's only team ranked in the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Varsity Top 20, No. 13 University of Redlands, moved up one spot in this week's men's rankings, according to a press release from the CWPA.

 

After a nail biting win over Pomona-Pitzer Colleges by a 6-5 final and a decisive 11-5 triumph over Occidental College, the Bulldogs jumped Santa Clara University for the 13th-place spot in the national poll.

 

The team also received a unanimous vote as the top squad in Division III, an honor that the maroon and gray has had the entirety of the season.

 

Redlands (18-7, 3-0 SCIAC) plays against Chapman University in Orange at 3 p.m. this afternoon and will travel to Caltech later in the evening to take on the Beavers at 7 p.m.

The University of La Verne volleyball team reached the 20-win plateau for the ninth consecutive season with a 3-0 Senior Night triumph over visiting Pomona-Pitzer Tuesday at Frantz Athletic Court.

Scores were 25-11, 25-23 and 25-10.

The Leopards, ranked third in the latest AVCA Top 25 Poll, improved to 20-2 overall and remained unbeaten in SCIAC play at 11-0. In the process the Leos snapped Pomona-Pitzer's five-match conference win streak as the Hens fall to 18-8 and 7-4, respectively.

La Verne established control from the start, opening a 20-10 advantage on its way to a 25-11 verdict. The Leopards hit .400 in the first set while limiting the Sagehens to a .059 percentage.

The Hens battled the Leopards throughout the second stanza, reeling off four consecutive points after a 20-16 deficit to pull even at 20-20. Down 23-22, La Verne closed the set with three straight points, culminating in a Rebecca Villanueva ace to prevail 25-23.

The Leopards regained its focus in the third frame, seizing leads 7-1 and 15-5 before a block by Crista Jones finished the match for the Leopards' 20th win of the season. La Verne hit .406 in the third set and held the Hens to a .028 clip.

For the match, La Verne hit .280 compared to .047 for Pomona-Pitzer. Moreover, the Green and Orange tallied nine blocks and six service aces.

Before the match, the Leopards honored its seniors in outside hitter Brianna Gonzales, opposite Madison Bradley and setter Yesenia Lopez.

La Verne continues conference action Saturday as it hosts Caltech at Frantz Athletic Court in an 11:30 am start.

The biggest game in the SCIAC football season will take place on Saturday and it won't involve the University of Redlands. But it will go along way in determining the Bulldogs fate.

Occidental (6-0) will be at Cal Lutheran (5-1) for a 1 p.m. showdown. Both are tied atop the conference with 3-0 marks. Redlands (5-1) sits third at 3-1, having lost to Occidental earlier 28-15.

So if you're Redlands, who are you pulling for in that game? There are pluses in both scenarios (assuming Redlands runs the table and beats Cal Lutheran later this season).

If Cal Lutheran wins, the probablity is that all three teams finish in a tie, each with one loss. In that case Cal Lutheran would advance to the playoffs with the SCIAC's automatic berth based on the Rose Bowl rule.

All three teams would share the conference title. The down point is that both Occidental in Redlands would go into Pool C for playoff consideration. Pool C consists of the second place teams in conferences which would be considered for a wild card berth. Even if the SCIAC were to get a second team in, it probably would be Oxy because of the head-to-head win over Redlands, especially since the teams would both have the same record - 8-1.

If Oxy wins, Redlands would be able to deal Cal Lu a second loss, eliminating it from wild card contention. The SCIAC rarely gets a second team in the playoffs but Redlands would be a stong candidate with its lone loss to an unbeaten and nationally ranked team. Redlands has been ranked much of the year and played a strong enough nonconference schedule to at least be in the conversation.

Credit goes to the Bulldogs for overcoming that huge loss to Oxy and playing up to its capablitites. It was a devastating loss. But the Bulldogs regrouped and have played flawlessly since then despite some injuries. That is a testament to the character of the players and coaching staff.

The University of Redlands football team is back in one national football ranking, cracking the American Football Coaches Association poll at No. 25.

The Bulldogs (5-1) were as high as No. 14 in that same poll, the highest ranking the team has ever achieved. But it fell out of that ranking after losing to Occidental 28-15 three weks ago.

Coach Mike Maynard's squad is coming off a 48-0 homecoming thrashing of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. The Bulldogs looked a little more like themselves with a punishing defense and efficient offense.

Next up is a 1 p.m. game on Saturday at Pomona-Pitzer.

With one week remaining in the regular season, the men's field has been set and two of the four teams on the women's side have been identified for the 2008 California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) postseason soccer championships that will be held November 7-9 on the campus of UC San Diego.

Sonoma State and Chico State from the North Division and Cal State L.A. and defending tournament champion Cal State Dominguez Hills from the South Division have qualified for the four-team men's championship. The Seawolves (15-2-2, 9-1-2) have a five-point lead over the Wildcats (12-4, 8-4) and need one win in their final two matches to clinch the division title.

In the South Division, Cal State L.A. (12-3-2, 9-3-2) concluded CCAA play last weekend and has a one-point lead over Cal State Dominguez Hills (15-2-1, 9-2-1). The Toros conclude their regular season with road matches at Cal Poly Pomona and Cal State San Bernardino.

Seedings for the men's championship will be announced at the conclusion of play on Sunday. Match times are scheduled for 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on Friday, November 7.

On the women's side, San Francisco State and UC San Diego have qualified for the CCAA Championships after winning the North and South Divisions, respectively.

The Gators (12-6-2, 10-3-1) will be making their first-ever CCAA Championships appearance, while the Tritons (13-2-2, 9-2-1) are appearing in the postseason for the seventh time.

Sonoma State (13-4-1, 8-3-1), Cal State Dominguez (11-7, 8-4) and Cal State San Bernardino (9-5-4, 6-4-2) all enter the final weekend of play still alive for the final two playoff berths.

The women's championships will open next Friday with matches at 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. Host UC San Diego will play at 7 p.m.


2008 CCAA Soccer Championships Schedule
Nov. 7-9; La Jolla, Calif.

Friday, November 7

Men

Match 1: 11 a.m.
Match 2: 1:30 p.m.

Women

Match 1: 4:30 p.m.
Match 2: 7 p.m.

Sunday, November 9

Men's Championship: 11:30 a.m.
Women's Championships: 2 p.m.

The University of Redlands men's soccer team picked up its second national ranking of the season with a No. 23 berth in the Oct. 28 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll, supplementing its preseason ranking of No. 8, which it received back on Aug. 12.

 

Currently, the team is riding a 12-match winning streak and is undefeated in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC). The latest victim of the men's soccer team's run was Occidental College as the Tigers fell at the hands of Redlands 5-1.

 

The last time the Bulldogs lost a match was on Sept. 10 when they fell to Chapman University in Orange by a 1-0 final.

 

No. 23 Redlands (13-4-1) hosts Cal Lutheran University Wednesday at 7 p.m. on Farquhar Field. Prior to the start of the game, the team will recognize its seniors in a pregame ceremony.

 

It can't really beTHAT time of year already, can it?

The fall sports haven't even reached the playoffs yet and the start of winter sports is upon us. That means basketball.

The local colleges have all been stellar in that sport, so life is about to get a lot busier.

The two-year schools get going Nov. 7 with the men's teams from both Chaffey and San Bernardino Valley College opening their seasons. Both will be playing tournament schedules until opening Foothill Conference play in January. In fact SBVC doesn't make its home debut until Jan. 7.

Chaffey has a mix of returning players and newcomers and looked good in summer showcases. SBVC will be led by Quincy Brewer, an assistant coach under Gerry Wright last year. He has a completely new set of players, with the lone returning player one who missed much of last season with an injury.

The Division II schools will open one week later. Hopes are high at both Cal Poly Pomona and Cal State San Bernardino. The Coyotes were the coaches preseason pick to win the CCAA but the Broncos should have something to say about that. Stay tuned!

The California Collegiate Athletic Association is one of the top conferences in the country when it comes to women's volleyball. That is reflected in the national rankings with four teams ranked in the top 20 and another just missing the top 25.

Cal State San Bernardino is No. 2 in the most poll released Monday. Cal State Los Angeles is No. 13, UC San Diego No. 15 and Cal Poly Pomona No. 20.

Those teams should fight it out for first-place but all should qualify for the Pacific Regional which consists of eight teams from the three West Conferences - the CCAA, Great Northwest and Pacific West.

The only other conference that has that kind of depth is the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference which is led by reigning national champion Concordia-St. Paul.

Winning the conference is tough enough. Winning the regional is even tougher. So while Cal State is looking good at No. 2, the Coyotes will have a tough path ahead
If they make it to the elite Eight, they will truly deserve it.

Next up for the Coyotes is a 7 p.m. match Wednesday at Cal Poly Pomona. It will be equally big for the Broncos.

After an eight-month hiatus from competition, the University of Redlands men's and women's swimming & diving teams kicked off their seasons on Saturday hosting the UR Swim Invite at the Thompson Aquatic Center.

 

Redlands, Pomona-Pitzer Colleges, Occidental College, Chapman University and Grand Canyon University (AZ) joined up to compete in a five-team invite, and Redlands and Pomona-Pitzer won the men's and women's meets, respectively.

 

The Bulldog women amassed 521 points throughout the invitational and won by nearly 200 points. Pomona-Pitzer took second with 328.

 

On the men's side, it was a three-team race for first, and Pomona-Pitzer ended up taking the first-place laurels with 383 points. Redlands settled for second with 357 points while Grand Canyon nabbed the third-place spot (343).

 

Sophomore Kelley Cooper (San Antonio, TX) starred on the women's side, finishing second in the 200 freestyle with a 2:02.22 time, first in the 200 butterfly (2:16.96) and third in the 200 individual medley (2:18.13).

 

The depth at breaststroke proved to be in full force for the Bulldogs as sophomore Tory Haynes (Valley Center, CA) took first in the 200 breaststroke (2:38.46) and third in the 100 breaststroke (1:15.10).

 

Competing in her first meet for Redlands after transferring from Colorado College, sophomore Kat McIntosh (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) showed no signs of being intimidated by the pressure of Division III swimming in southern California as she placed third in the 100 freestyle with a 57.05 time, second in the 100 butterfly with a 1:02.33 standard and third in the 50 freestyle (26.12).

 

Also placing in the top four in their respective events for the Redlands women were senior Hillary Nicholson (Santa Cruz, CA) in the 200 backstroke (2:18.73, second), junior Melanie Loo (Waipahu, HI) in the 200 butterfly (2:17.98, second), sophomore Jo Navarro (Chandler, AZ) in the 200 butterfly (2:29.45, fourth), freshman Jenny Bates (Littleton, CO) in the 200 breaststroke (2:47.09, fourth), sophomore Kayla Desai (Lakewood, CO) and junior Danielle Caver (Highland, CA) in the 500 freestyle (5:42.38, tied for fourth) and freshman McKenzie Nakamura (Kenmore, WA) in the 100 butterfly (1:02.98, fourth) and the 200 individual medley (2:16.33, second).

 

In the final event of the meet, the 200 freestyle relay, the quartet of freshman Jaime Nippert (Gresham, OR), junior Leah Egbert (Antioch, CA), Caver and freshman K.C. Hughes (Gig Harbor, WA) edged the Redlands "B" relay, winning with a time of 1:47.21.

 

 Despite having most of its top swimmers in the heat of water polo season and therefore not competing at the time, the men's team yielded some solid showings throughout the meet.

 

The team's distance ace, sophomore Alec Alders (Los Angeles, CA), was a double-event winner, taking the 200 freestyle in a 1:49.87 time and the 500 freestyle in a 4:55.65 standard.

 

Making their debuts at the college level, freshman Steve Zarian (Superior, CO) and freshman Will Houser (Woodinville, WA) each displayed the raw talent that was added to the 2008-09 squad. Houser starred in the 100 breaststroke (1:05.73) and the 200 breaststroke (2:23.74) and placed fourth and third, respectively, in those events. Taking on the sprint freestyle events, Zarian fared well covering the 200 freestyle in 1:51.57 (third), the 100 freestyle in 50.62 (third) and the 50 freestyle in 23.27 (fifth).

 

Freshman Jesse Lieberman (Princeton, NJ) supplied swift performances in the butterfly events, placing second in the 200 butterfly (2:09.09) and third in the 100 butterfly (55.43).

 

The other male swimmers that placed in the top four were junior Marc Hicks (Granada Hills, CA) in the 500 freestyle (5:08.95, second), sophomore Sonny Morin (Seattle, WA) in the 200 butterfly (2:22.08, fourth) and junior Sheldon Gruendl (Danville, CA) in the 500 freestyle (5:10.84, fourth) and the 200 freestyle (1:53.07, fourth).

 

Redlands competes in its first dual meet next Saturday morning, Nov. 1, as it takes on Cal Baptist University in Riverside at 10:30 a.m.

 

University of Massachusetts-Boston volleyball standout Megan MacAuley
has been named Little East Conference Volleyball Defensive Player of
the Week for her play during the week of October 20-26.

MacAuley, out of Upland High School, has anchored the defense all
season since making the move from outside hitter the past two seasons
to libero for this year. She averaged 5.40 digs per set in addition
to getting up for a block solo in 10 sets over three matches on the
week.

The junior had at least 10 digs in all three matches and scooped up
25 in a four-set victory at University of Massachusetts Dartmouth on
Saturday and added 19 more digs in a three-set win over Plymouth
State University later on that day. The libero began the week with
10 digs in a 3-0 victory over Pine Manor College.

MacAuley became the Beacons' career leader in digs on Oct. 7 at
Lesley University and now has 993 as she closes in on becoming the
only player in school history with 1,000 or more. She leads the team
with 4.37 digs per set, which ranks her seventh among LEC leaders.
MacAuley has registered 10 or more digs on 20 occasions with a
career-high of 29 vs. Smith College on Sept. 20.

The Stags traveled to Thousand Oaks on Saturday and shutout the California Lutheran University Kingsmen 2-0. CMS tallied two first-half goals and held onto the lead for the full 90 despite a very determined Kingsmen squad.  This was the second time this season CMS shutout Cal Lu.

The game started with multiple chances for the Stags to put one in the net and grab the lead and finally did so with help from Stefan Gonzalez (JR, San Gabriel in the 17th minute. Kevin Festini (SR, Fremont) sent in a dangerous cross that deflected off the CLU keeper Braden Hoyt to Gonzalez who expertly headed the ball into the goal.

The Stags doubled their lead in the 40th minute as Chris Lowen (FR, Cherry Hill, NJ) stayed onside and found himself one-on-one with the keeper after Ryan Weaver (SO, Monument, CO) played a beautiful ball over the Kingsmen defense. Lowen recorded his first collegiate goal as he ripped a shot from the edge of the box that found the side netting and left Hoyt helpless.

CMS took 11 total shot attempts on the day and forced three saves out of Hoyt. Center backs Tomislav Zbozinek (JR, Paradise Valley, AZ) and Nick Sparks (JR, La Cañada) kept the Stags defense strong with outstanding play. Goalkeeper Ryan Fahey (JR, Bellevue, WA) earned the shutout for the Stags with three saves.

With just two games left in SCIAC play, the Stags (6-3-3) are in a good position to reach the SCIAC tournament, but still need good showings against Occidental and Redlands this week to ensure a good seed. CMS will travel to Occidental College on Wednesday afternoon in its final regular season road contest to take on the Tigers (6-5-1).

Cal Poly Pomona senior forward Larry Gordon was named to the Division II Bulletin 2008-09 Preseason All-American team that was announced on Thursday.

Gordon was one of 16 players selected to the team that consists of two players from each of the eight regions throughout the country.

As a junior, Gordon led Cal Poly Pomona to the championship game of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) postseason tournament. The 6-foot-5 forward led the Broncos in scoring and was second in the CCAA after averaging 17.7 points and 9.1 rebounds a contest.

Cal Poly Pomona, which concluded the 2007-08 campaign with a 13-15 overall record, including a 10-10 mark in conference play, was selected to finish third in the 2008-09 CCAA Preseason Coaches Poll.

The Broncos make their season debut on November 8 when they play an exhibition game at UC Irvine. Cal Poly Pomona opens its regular season on November 18 when it hosts Vanguard.

Division II Bulletin 2008-09 Preseason All-Americans
 
Super 16
East                    Kendrick Easley, Mount Olive
                           Ted Scott, West Virginia State
Great Lakes       Jeff Bostic, Findlay (preseason player of the year)
                           Brandon Dagans, Lewis
Northeast           Jason Westrol, Bentley
                           Jonathan Schmidt, C.W. Post
North Central     Kevin Ratzsch, Northern State
                          Drake Beranek, Nebraska-Kearney
South                 Rob Eldridge, Florida Southern
                          Nick Kohs, Christian Brothers
South Atlantic    Anthony Hilliard, Elizabeth City State
                          Chris Commons, South Carolin-Aiken
South Central    Matthew Rogers, Southwest Baptist
                          Dejan Sencanski, Abilene Christian
West                  Larry Gordon, Cal Poly-Pomona
                          Lucas Alves, BYU-Hawaii
 
Honorable Mention
Malcolm Ingram, Philadelphia
Thomas Fraise, North Alabama
Antonio Houston, Catawba
Jake Morrow, Minnesota State
Hunter Henry, Northwest Missouri State
Stan Hall, Alderson-Broaddus
Ben Madgen, Augusta State
Billy Arre, Lock Haven
Lew Finnegan, Bentley
Kenny Boyd, Morehouse
Stephen Dennis, Kutztown
Garrett Siler, Augusta State
Tony Gugino, Hillsdale
Kenny Barker, Alaska Anchorage
Jesse Wagstaff, Metro State
Pierce Caldwell, Incarnate Word
Jason Genova, Lewis
Jake Linton, St. Martin's
Darren Duncan, Merrimack
Jake Beitinger, Central Washington

Cal Poly Pomona middle blocker Vanessa Williams has been named Molten California Collegiate Athletic Association Women's Volleyball Player of the Week for Oct. 20-26.

Williams, a senior from Riverside, Calif., led the Broncos to a pair of wins over Chico State and Cal State Stanislaus. In eight sets, Williams totaled 28 kills, two set assists, nine digs and 10 total blocks. She made just one error in 56 kill attempts for a .482 hitting percentage.

During a five-set match against Chico State, Williams collected 18 kills (no errors) in 35 attempts, eight digs and six blocks, while posting a .514 hitting percentage.

Williams came back on Saturday to register 10 kills and four blocks while registering a .429 hitting percentage during a three-set victory over Cal State Stanislaus.

Cal Poly Pomona returns to action on Wednesday when it hosts CCAA-leader Cal State San Bernardino beginning at 7 p.m.

Molten CCAA Women's Volleyball Player of the Week:
Aug. 25-31: Jessica Granados (Cal State San Bernardino); Sept. 1-7: Jessica Granados (Cal State San Bernardino); Sept. 8-14: Ursula Vieira (Cal State L.A.); Sept. 15-21: Joliann Arzadon (Humboldt State); Sept. 22-28: Sylvia Schmidt (UC San Diego); Sept. 29-Oct. 5: Sara Hoffman (Cal State San Bernardino); Oct. 6-12: Gabriela Bulawczyk (Cal State L.A.); Oct. 13-19: Gabriela Bulawczyk (Cal State L.A.); Oct. 20-26: Vanessa Williams (Cal Poly Pomona).

The San Bernardino Valley College football team seems to be making some progress - just not enough, or as quickly as coach Pat Meech would like.

The Wolverines are coming off a 28-10 loss to Compton in an American Division, Mountain Conference game Saturday night.

At least it was somewhat competitive.

The good news . . . Next week the Wolverines get Mt. San Jacinto, which like SBVC is 0-6 overall and 0-3 in conference play. Someone has to win. The fact that they are playing a team in the same situation has to give the players at least a little confidence.

The bad news is that SBVC could be without quarterback Mike Stadler who missed last week's game and has been nursing a sore shoulder pretty much all season. For the Wolverines to get rid of the goose egg, it will take a team effort, especially if Stadler can't go.

Game time in Hemet is 1 p.m.

The Cal State San Bernardino volleyball team (18-3, 10-2) moved up a spot to No. 2 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association poll released Monday. The Coyotes moved ahead of Tampa, Fla.,  which lost over the weekend.

Reigning national champion Concordia-St. Paul, whom the Coyotes defeated in their season opener, are No. 1

The Coyotes are one of four teams from the CCAA who are ranked. Cal State Los Angeles (16-3, 9-3) went from 19 to 14 after beating UC San Diego, an outcome that also put the Coyotes along in first in the CCAA.

San Diego (15-4, 9-3) dropped from 13 to 16 and Cal Poly Pomona (12-5, 9-3) improved from 23 to 21.

Sonoma State (17-4, 9-3) and Chico State (15-7, 8-4) were in the receiving votes category.

The Coyotes hit the road this weekend for matches at Cal State Stanislaus and Chico State, both of whom they beat 3-0 in the first round of CCAA play.

The University of Redlands football team was back to form on Saturday as it handled Whittier 53-14. Coach Mike Maynard said it was good to see his team bounce back from a loss to Occidental the previous week that seriously damaged its playoff hopes.

 

"We needed to go out and play well and get over what was ailing us," he said. "Our focus was on getting back to playing Bulldog football and I think we did that."

 

The Bulldogs (4-1, 2-1) were superior in all facets of the game but were especially impressive on defense. They ranked first nationally against the run and second in overall defense before being throttled by Occidental.

 

But the Bulldogs were stellar in all aspects Saturday. They intercepted six passes with senior Conor Drake returning two for touchdowns and freshman Chris Yeakey running back another. The other three were recorded by Mike Nicolini, Josh Herrera and Eddie Stamm.

 

Maynard said he thought that might be a school record but further review showed it was tied for second. Redlands had eight in a 1980 game against La Verne and six against Pomona-Pitzer in 2002.

The Bulldogs were also solid against the run, giving up just 69 yards and holding the SCIAC's leading rusher Anthony Pomponio to 34 on 20 carries. He was kept in check even with backups playing much of the second half.

 

Maynard said he thought about making personnel changes but opted not do to so.

 

"We just wanted to go out and play better defense. We are what we are and we just wanted to get better," he said.

Maynard cleared his bench early with backup quarterback Dylan Barrera seeing action for the first time. He went from being third-string to backup when starter Dan Selway was injured.

 

San Bernardino Valley College sophomore quarterback Mike Stadler did not play in Saturday's 28-10 American Division Mountain Conference loss to Compton.

He has played through a sore shoulder much of the season and head coach Pat Meech said the problem was likely worsened by a hit he took against San Diego Mesa two weeks ago. He will have an MRI Monday.

Freshman Danny Laugen, a graduate of Colony High School, got the start and fared admirably, completing 13 of 23 passes for 149 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He was sacked four times.

He has seen some playing time because of Stadler's nagging injury but got the majority of the reps in practice last week.

"He showed great improvement," Meech said. "He hung on to the ball too long a couple of times but nothing major. That comes with experience."

Next week the Wolverines (0-6, 0-3) play at Mt. San Jacinto (0-6, 0-3) which has struggled as well.

"It's going to be a test of character," he said. "We're both struggling and hungry for a win. It will be a matter of who keeps it together and is able to perservere."
[

Victor Valley (2-4, 1-2) suffered a 40-30 loss Saturday at Los Angeles Harbor that makes next week's 1 p.m. home game against first-place Southwestern (4-2, 3-0) crucial.

Quarterback will be an issue as freshman O'Ryan Bradley, who ranks sixth in the state in passing, left the game with a hip flexor.

Coach Dave Hoover said Bradley got injured in the first quarter but played through it until it became unbearable and exited with 3:26 left in the third and the Rams trailing 33-10.

Freshman Elisah Filipili finished up, completing 12 of 18 throws for 142 yards and three touchdowns.

Bradley's status for next week is up in the air. But Hoover has faith in Filipili, who gray-shirted at Pasadena City College last year.

"There is no quarterback controversy. Bradley is our guy," Hoover said. "At the same time we trust Eli just as much. He has been a trooper. Of course he wants to play but he has taken his role of backup seriously. He has worked hard and been here every day. Eli is a very charasmatic guy, the kind the kids will rally around."

Few players get to leave a mark on an athletic program. Senior forward Ross Schunk will do that at the University of Redlands.

The Portland, Ore., native set the school's all-time career scoring record with a goal in the Bulldogs 4-2 win over the University of La Verne Saturday. That goal gave Schunck 126 points for his career, besting the 125 of Adam Acosta who graduated in 2005.

Earlier this season Schunk broke Acosta's career goals mark of 50. He has a team-high 12 goals and one assist this season in helping the Bulldogs (10-4-1, 9-0-1) to first place in the SCIAC.

Following Saturday's match, Redlands coach Ralph Perez handed the new career point record holder the ball that he scored the goal with in a short postgame recognition ceremony at the middle of the pitch.

 

Jimmy Paulson, a fixture in the athletic department at San Bernardino Valley College for nearly 50 years, died last week at the age of 69. Paulson graduated from Pacific High School in 1956 and SBVC in 1959.

While at SBVC he was a student manager for the baseball and wrestling teams. After a brief stint in private business, Paulson was offered the position of athletic equipment manager by Sylvester Heinberg, the chair of the physical education division and coordinator of athletics. He served in that position from 1962 until retiring in 1997, when he was inducted into the SBVC Hall of Fame.

During 35 years as athletic equipment manager, Paulson worked with 45 head coaches, six athletic trainers, five athletic directors, five physical education division chairs and more than 10,000 athletes, 134 of whom played professionally and 12 who qualified for the Olympics.

A moment of silence was held before Saturday's football game against Compton. Trainer Mike Sola is looking into a more permanent tribute to the mainstay.

 

The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women and Occidental men came out on top at the SCIAC Multi-Dual Meet Saturday at La Mirada Park.

The Athenas (7-0) were led by individual winner Evelyn Ross (22:15.86) and second-place finsiher Julia Rigby (22:20.42). Sophomore Ashley Scott (23:23.35) and senior Kathleen Harris (23:23.81) finished sixth and seventh.

The Sagehens claimed fourth through sixth places with Anna Scharfen (22:47.93), Maddy Kieselhorst (23:11.99) and Rose Haag (23:17.31).

Pitzer was without its top runner Alicia Freese who has been sidelined with a stress fracture the last three weeks. Coach Kirk Reynolds isn't sure when she will be able to run.

On the men's side Eric Kleinasser (26:11.26) of Occidental took individual honors.

Pitzer (6-1) was second and CMS third (5-2) in the team competition. Senior Torrey Olson of Pitzer was second (26:16.14) with junior teammate Brian Gillis fourth (26:36.38). The best finish for CMS was the sixth by junor Florian Scheulen (26:52.75)

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It is early in Foothill Conference play but the Chaffey College volleyball team is in contention for a championship.

The Panthers, coached by Larry Chowen, are off to a 4-0 start in conference play, trailing only Antelope Valley (5-0) which has played one more match. This week Chaffey will host San Bernardino Valley at 5 p.m. Wednesday, then trek to Antelope Valley for a first-place showdown on Friday.

"We played a pretty tough nonconference schedule and it gave us a good idea of our strengths and weaknesses," Chowen said. "So we have played to our strengths and done a good job of covering up our weakenesses."

Chowen singled out the play of sophomore middles Colleen Chauncey (Los Osos) and Tara Sawyer (Etiwanda) and also credited the improvement of sophomore oustide hitter Nikita Johnson (Yucca Valley)

Freshmen Christine Luna (Corona) and Britney Herrock (Ontario Christian) anchor the defense.

The No. 15 University of Redlands men's water polo team (16-7, 1-0 SCIAC) won its first conference game of the year, handling Cal Lutheran University by a 10-6 final on Oct. 18.

 

Junior center Brendan Meaney (Palm Desert, CA) paced the team offensively, netting three goals. Also contributing goals in the Bulldogs' victory were junior utility player Jim Kehrig (Danville, CA) and sophomore defender Andrew Smith-Jones (Annapolis, MD), who notched two apiece, and senior driver Andrew Becskehazy (Miami, FL), junior utility player Ryan Floersch (San Jose, CA) and sophomore center Miran Terzic (Palm Desert, CA), each of whom scored one goal.

 

In goal, senior goalkeeper Teddy Trowbridge (Mercer Island, WA) nabbed six saves for the Bulldogs.

 

Matt Heagy and Wes Lewis led the Kingsmen in scoring with two goals apiece while Jordan Bouey manned the net on the defensive side with 11 saves.

 

Redlands continues on with Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) play on Saturday when it faces off against Occidental College at 11 a.m. at Eagle Rock.

The University of La Verne women's soccer team defeated Occidental College in a 3-2 final Wednesday afternoon at Ben Hines Field. Leopard forward Falisha Ramirez was able to score all three of La Verne's goals in the win as the Leopards took sole possession of second place in the SCIAC standings.

Ramirez subbed in for the Leopards after the first ten minutes of the game and made an immediate impact, scoring in the 14th minute on a break away goal down the left hand side of the field. The Tigers would answer back on a Corrine Winkler penalty shot in the 29th minute, and the teams headed into halftime tied at 1-1.

The Leopards came out aggressively at the beginning of the second half and were awarded a penalty shot when Oxy goalkeeper Robin Feldman received a yellow card. Ramirez would capitalize on the penalty by recording her second goal of the match to give La Verne a 2-1 lead. The Tigers drew even at 2-2, thanks to a pass from Tiger forward Jesi Sasaki to teammate Carley Wachi, who would sneak a shot past Leopard goalie Tatiana Guiterrez in the 56th minute.

After a lull in action, La Verne moved the ball down the field and Ramirez scored her third and final goal of the game in the 80th minute. It would prove to be enough, as the Leopards would win the contest 3-2.

The Leopards claim both games against the Occidental Tigers in the 2008 season, each game ending in a 3-2 final. La Verne remains to be the only team to have played Occidental in a match where both teams have scored, as eight out of the Tigers last 10 outings have ended in a shutout either in favor of Oxy or their opponent.

Ramirez continues her impressive scoring campaign, and now has 15 goals on the season. Goalkeeper Tatiana Gutierrez also picked up five more saves in today's game, and now has 59 on the year.

The Leopards will try to take their momentum into Saturday morning's home game against the visiting Bulldogs from the University of Redlands. Game time is at 11 am.

A schedule replete with formidable opponents at the SoCal Water Polo Tournament from Oct. 11-12 was rewarded as the University of Redlands men's water polo team jumped one spot to the No. 15 ranking in the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA).

 

Redlands, a consensus No. 1 among Division III institutions, won against No. 14 St. Francis College (NY) over the weekend, solidifying an upward move in the rankings. The Bulldogs lost to No. 5 Pepperdine University and No. 9 UC Irvine, and it narrowly lost to No. 12 Princeton University (NJ) in a sudden-death overtime period in the SoCal Water Polo Tournament as well.

 

No other Division III institution is ranked in the Varsity Top 20 poll.

 

This Saturday, Oct. 18, the Bulldogs (15-7) start their Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) slate with an away game against Cal Lutheran University at 11 a.m.

 

Holmes College in Mississippi, won't be available until after the fall quarter in mid-December, Oliver said.

University followed by an exhibition game at College of the Desert in Palm Desert against Azusa Pacific on Nov. 13.

Cal State San Bernardino, ranked No. 3 in the nation and No. 2 in the Pacific Region, enters the weekend tied for the lead in the California Collegiate Athletic Association volleyball standings with 10 matches remaining in the regular season.

 

San Francisco State on Friday night and Cal State Monterey Bay on Saturday night - are a combined 6-14 in conference play, but if the Coyotes are looking past them to upcoming matches against regionally-ranked foes Chico State, Cal Poly Pomona and UC San Diego, it could be costly.

WEBSTREAMING - Both Coyotes volleyball matches this week will be webstreamed and shown live on San Bernardino community access channel 3 via Charter Cable at 7 p.m. To watch the matches on the CSUSB website go to www.csusb.edu and click on Multimedia and Live Video on right-hand menu. An effort will be made to post the link at www.csusbathletics.com

Cal State San Bernardino's 3-1 loss at the hands of Cal State L.A. last Saturday night was reflected in the first NCAA Division II Pacific Region poll that was released Wednesday - the Coyotes are No. 2.

CSUSB, ranked No. 1 in the nation for four weeks  before losing to UC San Diego on Sept. 26, find themselves in the "Avis" spot in the regional poll with 10 matches remaining in the final month of the regular season.

The Tritons took the No. 1 spot in the region poll which determines the eight teams that advance to the NCAA Pacific Regional tournament on Nov. 20-22.

"We're positioned to do what we need to do in the final weeks of the season," said Head Coach Kim Cherniss. "I think the ranking is just. San Diego beat us and we played pretty much the same teams thus far."

Cherniss, whose team is 16-2 overall and 8-2 in the CCAA and tied for the lead going into this weekend's home matches against San Francisco State and Cal State Monterey Bay, said getting past the two Northern California invaders this week is a must.

"Then we have some matchups at home against the two teams that have beaten us," Cherniss said. UCSD is the visitor on Nov. 1 with Cal State L.A. coming in on Nov. 14 in the next-to-last match of the regular season.

Saturday's loss to Cal State L.A. dropped the Coyotes to No. 3 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association top 25 poll behind Concordia St. Paul (21-1) and Tampa (16-1). UCSD is No. 13 and Cal State L.A. went from unranked to No. 19 after back-to-back wins over the Coyotes and No. 23 Cal Poly Pomona.

Somewhat surprising is the fact that Western Washington, ranked No. 3 in the nation and unbeaten heading into last weekend, dropped into a tie for 7^th in the national poll after losing on the road at Alaska Fairbanks.

More surprising was that under the regional ranking formula which includes strength of schedule, the Vikings were ranked No. 9 in the first region poll despite a 13-1 record, 8-1 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.

The top eight teams advance to the regional.

            NCAA PACIFIC REGION TOP 10

1. UC San Diego (14-3, 11-2 in region); 2. COYOTES (16-2, 11-2); 3. Cal State L.A. (14-3, 12-3); 4. Cal Poly Pomona (10-5, 10-4); 5. Chico State (14-6, 12-3); 6. Sonoma State (15-4, 14-4); 7. Western Oregon (14-1, 10-0); 8. Alaska Fairbanks (12-5, 9-3); 9. Western Washington (13-1, 8-1); 10. Alaska Anchorage (12-9, 8-4).

 

                        AVCA NCAA DIV. II TOP 25

1.       Concordia St. Paul (21-1); 2. Tampa (16-1); 3. COYOTES (16-2); 4. West  Texas A&M (20-3); 5. Southwest Minnesota State (20-2); 6. Grand Valley State (18-2); 7. (tie) Western Washington (13-1) and Nebraska Kearney (21-1); 9. Washburn (21-2). 10. Emporia State (22-1).

11.     Florida Southern (16-4); 12. Truman (19-5); 13. UC San Diego (14-3); 14. Central Missouri (20-6); 15. Pittsburg State (19-5); 16. Minnesota Duluth (16-6); 17. Lewis (18-3); 18. California PA. (25-1); 19. Cal State LA (14-3); 20. West Florida (15-5); 21. Northern Kentucky (20-3); 22. Augustana SD (15-6); 23. Cal Poly Pomona (10-5); 24. Indianapolis (20-4); 25. Wayne State (16-3).

 

The No. 2 Cal State San Bernardino volleyball team was upset by Cal State Los Angeles 3-1 on Saturday. It wasn't a good time for that as the first Division II regional poll will be released on Wednesday.

The national poll is for bragging rights only, it's the regional poll that matters as the team that is first at the end of the season traditionally gets to host the regional tournament.

The Coyotes (16-1, 8-2) would have clearly been first had it not been for the loss. But they got a bit fortunate because Western Washington (13-1), the regining Pacific Regional champion and current No. 3 in the national poll, lost to unranked Alaska-Fairbanks on the road.

The Coyotes only dropped one spot in the national poll released Monday while Western Washington fell from third to tied for seventh.

The Coyotes just completed the first round of CCAA play and are tied for first with long-time nemesis UC San Diego (14-3, 8-2). Cal State does have both San Diego and Cal State Los Angeles (14-3, 7-3) at home the second time through conference play though.

It's too bad the showdown between Occidental and the University of Redlands took place so early in the SCIAC schedule because the loser was pretty much going to be doomed the rest of the season.

In this case it is the Bulldogs, who went down 28-15 at The Runner.

Last year Redlands lost to the Tigers but they got a bit fortunate when Cal Lutheran beat Oxy and Oxy went and lost its season finale in a shocker at Whittier.Thus the Bulldogs tied for conference honors with Cal Lu but advanced because of its head-to-head win over the Kingsmen.

Redlands probably isn't going to get those favors this year. While Cal Lutheran looks like a formidable foe, it is probably the only one with a realistic chance of knocking off Oxy. Whittier isn't the same without its departed quarterback Josh Scurlock.

So what looked to be Redlands best ever shot at making the playoffs and winning a postseason game is pretty much done. It goes to show being good isn't enough, you have to be lucky too. The Bulldogs suffered a couple of key injuries that Occidental exploited to it's credit.

We'll see what character the Bulldogs have when they next take the field Saturday at 3 p.m. at whittier.

The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps volleyball team went into last weekend's Leopard Invitiational with nothing to lose and everything to gain and gain they did.

The Athenas upset No. 1 ranked Juniata, Penn. 3-2 (27-25, 17-25, 27-25, 18-25, 15-6) on Saturday. That was part of a weekend that saw them play the top three teams in the country. They lost to No. 2 Emory (Ga.) 3-1 (25-23, 25-23, 17-25 25-23) and No. 3 La Verne 3-0 (25-23, 25-12, 25-21).

"We looked at it as a great opportunity to showcase our skills," said CMS coach Dianna Graves, in her 10th year heading the program. "How often do you get a chance to play the top three teams in the country? It was great competition and we rose to the occasion."

Graves didn't think her team's win was a case of the more highly touted opponent not respecting her team.

"I don't think it was a matter of them looking past us," she said. "They had played the two really emotional matches against La Verne and Emory. It's hard to come back a third time so soon."

Graves credited senior setter Alex Harrison and senior middle blocker Helena Bottemiller for being the steadying influences the younger players rallied around.

Senior libero Greer Donley and freshman outside hitter Emily Hudson represented the Athenas (14-9, 5-2) on the all-tournament team. Senior Brianna Gonzales and junior Crista Jones of La Verne (14-2, 7-0) were also selected.

Last week I went 6-2. Pretty much nailed the outcome of Redlands-La Verne. Predicted 36-7 and it ended up 37-7.

Misfired on the two JuCo games, both of which went overtime with Victor Valley beating Golden West and Chaffey outlasting Cerritos.

Now on to this week . . .

Occidental at Redlands. Pretty hard to pick this one so early in the conference season, especially with the Bulldogs directed by backup QB Steve Smith. Last year Oxy won at home 28-21. The Bulldogs will rely more on their balance and I am going with them playing at home. Redlands 24, Oxy 21

Pomona-Pitzer at Cal Lutheran

The Sagehens have made great strides with a young team. But not enough to get by one of the perennial conference powerhouses. Both teams love to throw so this one could take four hours. Cal Lutheran 34, Pomona-Pitzer 24

La Verne at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps

This one is a tossup, with two programs with a lot of young players. Neither team scored an offensive touchdown last week and La Verne hasn't had one in nine quarters. La Verne has played a far tougher schedule so I'll give the Leos the edge here, barely.

La Verne 21, CMS 20

Chaffey at El Camino

The Panthers got by a good team last week but its hard to go against one of the top teams in the state.
El Camino 34, Chaffey 24

In 16 of the last 20 years either Occidental or Redlands has won or shared the SCIAC title. So when the teams square off at Ted Runner Stadium at 7 Saturday, it will be a pretty meaningful game despite coming early in the SCIAC schedule.

"Obviously it is a huge game," Bulldogs coach Mike Maynard said. "It's so early that even if you win it, you're not home free. But historically these are two teams that have always been in the hunt."

Occidental counterpart Dale Widolff agrees.

"It's like a one-game single elimination tournament. Last week CMS was our first round. This week it's Redlands for our second round."

The game pits the teams who have been the most successful in the last two decades with the Bulldogs having 10 SCIAC titles in the last 20 years and the Tigers six, including back-to-back titles in 2005 and 2006.

It also pits the two most veteran coaches with Widolff in his 27th year and Maynard in his 21st.

Both teams are 3-0 overall with impressive wins in their SCIAC openers last week. Occidental trounced Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 38-0 and Redlands beat La Verne 37-7.

Redlands played a day game last week while Occidental played at night so both veteran coaches took advantage of the opportunity to scout the other in person rather than rely on film.

Junior quarterback Steve Smith now directs the offense with reigning SCIAC Offensive Player of the Year Dan Selway (broken foot) sidelined.

Smith went 13-for-24 for 156 yards in a steady rain last week in his debut as the starter. He threw one touchdown and two interceptions, one of which was brought back 60 yards for a score.

Widolff isn't expecting less of a battle because Selway is out. All he needs to do is think back to last year.

"We lost to Cal Lu last year when they were going with a backup," he said. "Good teams still win with a backup. Average or below average teams are the ones that struggle."

Selway will be joined on the sideline by all-conference noseguard Mitchell Crocco who tore the ACL in his right knee last week against La Verne. The news was a little better elsewhere as the ankle injury to end Josh Cunningham was not as severe as first feared. He was on crutches at the end of the game last week but could see playing time. Senior Tyler Sutton is likely to see increased playing time in Crocco's absence.

"That's why we carry a lot of players," Maynard said. "During the course of a season you have injuries. The other guys have to be ready to step up."

Widolff expects the Bulldogs to overcome those injuries.

"They may not always have the best 22 players, but they always have the best 44," he said. "They have tremendous depth and they are more capable of overcoming those than most other teams."

 l

The Chaffey Panthers passed their first National Division Central Conference test last week, beating Cerritos in overtime. But it's about to get even tougher.

The Panthers (4-1, 1-0) will trek to El Camino (5-0, 1-0) for a 6 p.m. game Saturday against the Warriors who are ranked third in Southern California.

Chaffey coach Carl Beach knows his team is facing a juggernaut but hopes his team's showing against the Warriors in recent years will bode well even though personnel has changed.

"We have played them three times in the last five or six years and they have all been pretty close games," he said. "They're a solid program year in and year out. But they haven't blown us out of the water. We're going to go and play hard and compete and see what happens."

Beach said last week's 16-9 win will go a long way in boosting his team's confidence because it came against the best his team has beaten thus far.

"That was something to build on," he said. "There is definitely a difference when guys feel good about themselves. We also know this one will be tougher."

El Camino is unbeaten but has been pushed the last two weeks, squeaking out three-point wins over Bakersfield and Riverside, with last week's coming in overtime.

The Panthers lone loss came two weeks ago to Grossmont 51-16 but they regrouped in time for a solid showing last week.

Beach said he will keep using both quarterbacks - with Greg Sprowls starting and A.J. Springer entering in relief. The two are so different it presents a problem for the defense and Beach wants to keep using that to his team's advantage.

The team has other offensive weapons though. Running back Mark Chase, ranks eighth in the state in rushing at 101.6 yards per game.

Aaron Mays has been the Panther top receiver but also ranks fourth in punt return average at 22.9 per try.

El Camino's James Coy ranks eighth in the state in passing at 223.8 yards per game. He also does the punting and is ranked second at 43.3 yards per kick.

The Warriors kicking game is also solid with Brian Blumberg making seven of eight field goal tries, the longest of 40 yards.

"We need to contain the big play. We can't let them get easy scores quickly. We want to make them have to work for whatever they get," Beach said. "On the other side we need to be able to make a couple because that's what big games come down to."

Victor Valley (2-3, 2-0) and San Bernardino Valley (0-5, 0-2), both in the Mountain Conference of the American Division, are idle this week.

LA VERNE -- Bob Dyer, the University of La Verne public address football announcer, walked around the track some 30 minutes before a recent SCIAC game against the University of Redlands en route to the press box.

He stopped and picked up a scrap of paper, then placed it in a nearby trash receptacle.

"I do that because of Ort. He always did that, never left trash on the ground," said Dyer, in his 19th year as the voice of the Leopards.

Ort as in Roland Ortmayer, who headed the Leopard football program for 43 years, parts of six decades. He was an institution at the school and the community that the stadium was named in his honor when he retired in 1991.

Ortmayer, 91, passed away Thursday morning. He had a bout of pneumonia in August and his health had declined ever since. He had been under hospice care at Hillcrest Homes in La Verne the past several weeks.

Ortmayer, born in College Park, Md., on Aug. 22, 1917, was not known for his success on the field. His teams were 182-193-8, sharing the SCIAC title twice but never winning one outright. The program did not produce a professional player.

Ortmayer was more about teaching life lessons than wins and losses on the football field.

Rex Huigens played quarterback from 1967 to 1969, assisted Ortmayer for 25 years, then took over the program from him in 1991. He remembers calling his own plays, something unheard of even today for a college quarterback.

"He thought if you prepare all week the way you were supposed to, you should be able to handle it," Huigens said. "He was about more than just football," said Huigens. He was about molding people, not just football players. I'm a better person because I played for him and worked with him."

Ortmayer's coaching style was unlike any other. It had to be for Sports Illustrated to devote several pages on a Division III coach, as it did in a Sept. 4, 1989 profile by Douglas S. Looney.

Ortmayer didn't believe in playbooks because they stifled creativity and limited a player's ability to improvise.

He didn't believe in studying game film, especially of the opponent. He didn't endorse weight training because it wasted energy. He didn't actively recruit players but never cut one either.

He didn't make practices mandatory and didn't have a curfew.

He never cursed.

He believed in the hands-on approach, even if it meant he had to chalk the field himself or do his team's laundry.

He also had an adventurous side too, teaching a class called "When Lewis and Clark Met the Mountains," that included a four-week camping junket to Montana in which he took students kayaking, rafting and canoeing.

He also taught climbing and repelling.

"It wasn't unusual to walk around campus and see him repelling down the side of a building," said Don Morel, who played defensive end for Ortmayer from 1983 to 1986 and served as head coach from 1995 to 2006.  "That was Ort. What he taught transcended the football field. He taught values and life experiences."

Ortmayer also left a lasting impression on his peers. Occidental's Dale Widolff, in his 27th year, is the dean of coaches in the SCIAC and recalls many close contests against Ortmayer's teams.

"He always had the right perspective on college football," said Widolff. "I always considered him and Frank Serrao (former Redlands coach from 1964-1983) the moral compass of coaches. There are a lot of situations that come up when I think, 'What would those guys do?' "

Widolff also said he saw a human side of the coach even in the heat of competition.

"I really remember two games against them. One we kicked a 49-yard field goal on the last play to beat them by two and he came over to shake my hand. He was truly happy for me. The other they beat us 52-51 in double overtime and he felt really bad for me, more so than he felt good for his team."

Redlands coach Mike Maynard is the only other coach in the SCIAC whose tenure coincided with Ortmayer.

"He always appeared to be this laid- back guy and I think people often mistook that for his teams not being intense or ready to play. I never bought that for a minute," he said. "They were always prepared and were ready to play."

Ortmayer was preceded in death by wife Cornelia and son David, who died in 1953 from an accidental drowning at the age of 6. Cornelia was as much a fixture at the university as her husband. The concession stand, Corni's Corner, is named after her.

Ortmayer is survived by sister Marilee Franke of Madison, Wis., and two daughters, Suzi Bowles of Belfgrade, Mont., and Corlan Harrison of Upland, along with four grandchildren and two great grand children.

Funeral arrangements are pending. The school's plans to honor the icon will likely be announced next week.

University of Redlands junior center Brendan Meaney was named Western Water Polo Association Player of the Week honor for his 11-goal showing at the UC Santa Cruz Slugfest from Sept. 27-28.

Helping the Bulldogs obtain a No. 15 ranking in the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Varsity Top 20, Meaney supplied three assists, three steals, four ejections drawn and five field blocks en route to a 3-1 showing at the invitational, the big wins being over No. 20 U.S. Air Force Academy and No. 13 Santa Clara.

On the season, he has netted 40 goals in helping the Bulldogs to a 14-4 record.

Redlands will compete in the Southern California Invitational this weekend. The event includes Division I teams such as USC, UCLA, Stanford, Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount.

Cal State San Bernardino senior libero Meghan Haas is chasing the school's career record for digs.

The Menifee resident currently has 1,294, ranking her fourth behind Kim Ford (1,543 from 2000-2003), Jamie Lieveld (1,466 from 1997-2000) and Bridget Harris Crosby (1,458 from 2000-2003).

The No. 2 Coyotes (15-1, 7-1) have 12 matches left in the regular season. Whether Haas gets the record or not, she has left her mark on the program and coach Kim Cherniss. Her 554 in 2006 is the best mark for a single season and her 493 in 2007 is the second best. She also has the second, third, fourth and fifth best totals for a single match.

"She is the best defensive player we have ever had here," Cherniss said. "It may not seem like a glamorous position to those casual observers but those in volleyball know how important it is."

Making the run at the record even more impressive is that Haas has played just three years, having transferred from Louisiana Tech. The players ahead of her all played four years. The large numer of matches the Coyotes win 3-0 also works against her.

What has helped her is the chance to play six full rotations in the back. Two of the three ahead of her played both front and back.

The University of La Verne volleyball team has a big weekend coming up. The No. 3 Leopards (12-0) will host a four-team tournament Friday and Saturday that will feature local foe Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (12-7), as well as No. 1 Juniata, Penn. (17-1) and No. 2 Emory, Ga. (19-3).

"I can't wait," Leopards coach Don Flora said. "It's not often you get to play the top two teams in the country on the same weekend."

On Friday the Athenas will play Emory at 4 p.m. while La Verne playes Juniata at 7 p.m.

Then on Saturday La Verne and CMS will play at 11 a.m. The rest of the schedule will pit Juniata against Emory at 1:30 p.m., CMS against Juniata at 4 p.m. and La Verne against Emory at 6 p.m.

There is no admission charge for spectatots.

 

The Chaffey College men's soccer team is expecting to challenge for Foothill Conference honors this season. The team has never made the playoffs or won more than nine games but is 11-2-1 heading into its Foothill Conference opener in one week against Victor Valley.

The difference is simple, according to third-year coach Ben Cooper.

"Its recruiting. We have better players," he said. "We have some talented freshman that have brought a lot to the program and we're seeing the benefits."

Leading that group of newcomers is forward Ernesto Ramos (Rialto HS) who has a team-high 11 goals and three assists. Another freshman, Abel Rodriguez (Montclair HS), is next with seven goals.

The defense is also solid, having allowed just eight goals in 14 games. The players who are major factors there are Tyler Mitchell and Angel Betancourt, two of the four sophomores on the squad.

The success has come even though the team lost freshman forward Jorge Vergara to a ruptured kidney.

Cooper singles out traditional title contender Rio Hondo as the team to beat but expects a lot more competitive games.

"I think every team in the conference is better than it was last year," he said. "It's going to make for better games the rest of the way and that will only help us."

The University of La Verne football team may not exactly be a SCIAC title contender quite yet, but the Leopards will be soon. Leave it to second-year coach Andy Ankeny.

The Leopards are 0-3, but they aren't that bad. They played probably the three toughest teams on their schedule first. They only trailed Willamette (Ore.) 14-0 at the half last week. This week they lost to Redlands 37-7 but it was just 18-7 at the intermission.

Give Ankeny two more years. Yes, this is his second year. But the first hardly counts. He didn't come in until May, leaving him no chance to recruit. And he had to pretty much take the coaching staff that was handed to him.

You can't judge a coach until at least half the team is made up of players he recruited.

The trick will be keeping morale up when the progress may not show in the win column. Ankeny has been able to do that so far.

From what I have heard for his peers and those on the La Verne campus, it's only a matter of time!

The University of Redlands picked up the expected win Saturday, beating La Verne 37-7 in the first game of the Steve Smith era.

Smith was playing his first game in place of quarterback Dan Selway who went down two weeks ago with a broken foot. Smith completed 13 of 24 passes for 156 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.

He actually played a bit better than those numbers would indicate. He had to be nervous, being his first game in charge. The teams played the entire game in a steady drizzle which made for a lot of slips and dropped balls. He had one receiver in the corner of the end zone for what should have been an easy score in the first quarter and the ball was flat-out dropped.

The Bulldogs don't need him to throw for 200 every game. Not with the talented trio of backs they have.

Next week comes the true test - Occidental. The good news is the Bulldogs will be at home.

The bad news is Selway will have some company on the sideline. Noseguard Mitchell Crocco sustained a torn ACL in his right knee in the second quarter. Then defensive end Josh Cunningham broke an ankle. Not good news for Coach Mike Maynard. The loss of Crocco will be particularly tough to overcome.

So the depth of the Redlands team will be tested yet agin.

University of La Verne volleyball standout Brianna Gonzales was named SCIAC Female Athlete of the Week on Oct. 1 for her outstanding performances in conference action last week.

The senior outside hitter from Whittier led La Verne to a pair of conference wins last week as the Leopards remained unbeaten (9-0, 3-0 SCIAC) on the season.  Gonzales tallied doubles-doubles in kills and digs in 3-0 sweeps over #19 Cal Lutheran (Sept. 23) and Redlands (Sept. 26).  Against the Regals, Gonzales registered match-highs of 14 kills and 16 digs as La Verne prevailed 25-16, 25-18, 25-16 in Thousand Oaks.

She recorded 13 kills and 11 digs in a 25-20, 25-13, 25-15 triumph over the Bulldogs. Gonzales had a team high in digs averaging 4.5 a game and attacked at a .423 clip for the entire week. La Verne remains #3 in the AVCA Division III Top 25 Poll.

Gonzales also earned SCIAC Female Athlete of the Week honors on Sept. 10.

No Dan Selway. No problem.

The University of Redlands got off to a good start in the Steve Smith era, turning back the University of La Verne 37-7 Saturday in the SCIAC opener for both teams in a steady drizzle at Ortmayer Stadium.

The Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0), ranked nationally in three polls, were playing their first game since losing Selway to a broken foot two weeks ago.

Smith, a junior, made his debut as the starting quarterback and went 13-for-24 for 156 yards with one touchdown pass and two interceptions. He was aided by a rushing attack that totaled 319 yards.

"He was hot and cold," Redlands coach Mike Maynard said of Smith. "When he was pressuring and overanalyzing he became a little too mechanical. When he was in the flow and got in a rhythm he did good things."

Fortunately for the Bulldogs, the offense isn't totally dependent on the passing game. Zack Schafer rambled for 175 on 16 carries, highlighted by touchdown runs of 15 and 36 yards while Jeff Stewart powered his way to 130 yards on 22 tries.

The third prong of the three-headed monster, fullback Tom Romaine, caught an 8-yard scoring pass.

"We wanted to come out here with the same game plan," Smith said of his new responsibility. "We didn't want to go conservative at all. We have a good line and good backs, so one injury isn't enough to slow us down."

The Leopards (0-3) stuck with the Bulldogs early, blocking a field goal try on Redlands first possession and holding them to a 37-yarder by Joe MacMillan minutes later.

But Redlands found the end zone on its third try, capping a nine-play drive with the 8-yard pass from Smith to fullback Tom Romaine, a two-point conversion making it 11-0.

La Verne got the ball back after an interception by Branamier Courtney. It went the distance only to have a 19-yard scoring toss from Anthony Andre to Phi Van Le nullified by a holding. It proved costly as La Verne got nothing when a field goal try by Wesley Dean was blocked by Mike Nicolini.

The Bulldogs upped their lead to 18-0 and were driving for more in the closing minute of the half but a Smith offering was picked off and run back 60 yards by Rocky Keawekane, cutting the deficit to 18-7.

The Bulldogs put the game away in the third quarter.

But Leopards coach Andy Ankeny hardly sounded like a coach on the short end of the stick.

"We played hard. We played physical. We had some mental mistakes and some turnovers but we did a lot of positive things in the course of the game that we can build on as a program."

Andre threw for 118 yards but was picked off three times and was hurried by the Bulldogs defense all night. Van Le was the Leopards top reciever, catching six for 78 yards.

The Leopards managed just 31 yards on the ground on the nation's top-ranked rushing defense.

The win did not come without a cost as the Bulldogs lost two defensive linemen with what Maynard said are season-ending injuries. Noseguard Mitchell Crocco tore an ACL in his right knee in the second quarter while end Josh Cunningham sustained a broken ankle.

Next week the Bulldogs host Occidental at 7 p.m. while La Verne plays at Claremont-Mudd Scripps, also at 7 p.m.

All the area college football teams will be in action this weekend after a relatively light schedule last week.

Following the prep dog's lead we'll make a few predictions . . .

SBVC (0-4) at San Diego Mesa (1-3)

The Wolverines are in trouble, real trouble. Their losing streak is nine and counting. They are playing a team they have had some success against but they're on the road. If they don't win this one, 0-10 is a definite possibility. Mesa 34, SBVC, 20

Cerritos (3-1) at Chaffey (3-1)

Coach Carl Beach said his team wasn't THAT good when it was 3-0. And that was against lesser competition. Injuries are also an issue. Cerritos 34, Chaffey 24

Golden West (2-2) at Victor Valley (1-3)

The Hustlers like to wing the ball all over the field and the Rams secondary is a but suspect. The Rams can throw the ball too, but they have to make some stops. They won't make enough. Golden West 40, Victor Valley 30

On to the SCIAC schools . . .

Redlands (2-0) at La Verne (0-2)

The Bulldogs are without a great great quarterback in Dan Selway but this week it won't matter. The Leopards have had trouble running the ball and the Bulldogs boast the best run defense in the country. Not a good combination. I like the future for the Leopards but they are still a year or two away. Redlands 38, La Verne 7

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (1-1) at Occidental (2-0)

The Stags should have beaten the Tigers last year so expect Oxy to take this game a little more seriously this year. The Tigers have played a weak schedule to this point so it's hard to tell how good they are but they don't lose at home. Oxy 28, CMS 21

Pomona-Pitzer (1-1) at Chapman (1-1)

The Sagehens have a good quarterback but they can't stop anyone on defense.

Chapman 28, Pitzer 14

Junior Elizabeth Diaz served a redshirt season in 2007 and missed playing time on the court for the NCAA Tournament-bound Broncos.
   
But the Escondido native has made her mark in 2008 and played her finest match in her career Saturday night. She led the Broncos with a career-high 16 kills on a .268 night and three block assists as No. 21 Cal Poly Pomona handed visiting Sonoma State its first California Collegiate Athletic Association match loss of the season, 3-1 before 582 spectators in Darlene May Gymnasium.
   
The Broncos snapped their two-match losing streak - both against ranked teams - with their 25-16, 13-25, 25-16, 25-23 victory over the Seawolves (14-2 overall and 6-1 CCAA).
   
For the match the Broncos dominated on the attack with a 52-35 advantage in kills. They led on the block with 18 total blocks to Sonoma's 13.
   
Senior Anne-Marie Hofmans (Glendora) also had double figures in kills with 12, and teammate Vanessa Williams (Riverside) added 10. Williams added five block assists and added a solo block.
   
The Broncos fired a .400 attack percentage in the opening game, but stumbled in the second with a negative .081 percentage (10-13-37). They answered back with a solid .250 in the third (14-5-36) and outlasted the Seawolves in the fourth and deciding game.
   
Trailing 23-22 in the fourth, Diaz delivered a kill to tie the game and an attack error by Sonoma State gave the Broncos a one-point lead. It figured that Diaz would deliver the match winner as she delivered on a kill with the assist from setter Jasmine Davis (Pomona).
   
Ali Walker led the Seawolves with nine kills.
   
The Broncos are now 8-4 overall and 5-2 in the CCAA. They return to Darlene May Gymnasium on Saturday night with a match against Humboldt State. First serve is at 7 p.m.

Humboldt State,3-0, in a CCAA conference women's volleyball match before 301 fans in Coussoulis Arena.

State is now 6-8 overall and 4-3 in the CCAA.

Starting quarterback or no starting quarterback, the University of Redlands is still a formidable foe. That seems to be the prevailing thought among coaches in the SCIAC.

Conference play begins today and the Bulldogs (2-0) will trek to Ortmayer Stadium for a 1 p.m. showdown against the University of La Verne (0-2).

The Bulldogs will be without junior quarterback Dan Selway who earned SCIAC Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2007 but sustained a broken foot in a win over Whitworth (Wash.) two weeks ago.

He threw for 489 yards and five touchdowns in the first two games. His spot now goes to junior Steve Smith with freshman Dylan Barrera elevated to backup status. Smith did see some mop-up duty in the first two games. He also played the entire second half of Redlands' playoff game last year at St. Johns (Minn.).

"They're a good program and they're deep at every position," second-year Leopards coach Andy Ankeny said of the Bulldogs. "We don't shy away from tough competition. We want to play them at their best because there's no better way to find out where your progam is. We wish he (Selway) was in there but don't expect less of a game because he isn't."

The Bulldogs were idle last week, giving Smith an extra week to prepare. Redlands coach Mike Maynard said his team won't alter its game plan even though it has the luxury of a three-pronged rushing attack ignited by seniors - Tom Romaine, Zack Schafer and Jeff Stewart.

"We do what we do. We're not going to change anything, he said. "He has been here so he knows the offense. He has had a good week of practice and we have all the confidence in the world in him."

Selway was also the Bulldogs' punter. Maynard said freshman Wes Norris and senior Kraig Kraning are battling for that job.

The biggest factor in the game will likely be how the La Verne running game fares against a Redlands defense that ranks first nationally against the run.

The Leopards have managed just 101 yards total in two games on 75 tries with their leading rusher being freshman Curtis Puli with 61 yards.

The Bulldogs, led by senior defensive end Brock Arndt and freshman linebacker Ian Skuss, have held their first two opponents to minus-24 yards.

"We can't let our quarterback sit back there and get tattoed," Ankeny said. "Our young pups are going to have to hold up. That's obviously a big factor. If we can do that we have a chance."

Redlands is averaging 452 yards offense. The La Verne defense, led by senior linebacker Jason Carpenter, is giving up and average 453.

While the game looks one-sided on paper, Maynard is leary of the Leopards.

"They're a hungry team and it's the conference opener so they're going to be ready," said Maynard, who was at La Verne's game last week against Willamette (Ore.). "They have made a lot of progress even though it may not show in th win column. We're expecting a battle."

The other SCIAC teams will also be in action. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (1-1) will be at Occidental (2-0) to play a team it nearly upset a year ago. Pomona-Pitzer (1-1) will be at Chapman (1-1) for its final nonconference tuneup. Both the Stags and Sagehens are coming off byes.

Area community colleges will also be in action. Chaffey (3-1) will host Cerritos (3-1) in its National Division Central Conference opener at 6 p.m.

In American Division Mountain Conference play San Bernardino Valley (0-4) will be at San Diego Mesa (1-3) at 6 p.m. and Victor Valley (1-3) will host Golden West (2-2) at 1 p.m.

UCR freshman Chad Hall (Big Bear, CA) was named Big West Male Cross Country Athlete of the Week after his stellar performance at the 28th Annual UCR Invitational last weekend.

 In his first-ever collegiate cross country race, Hall won the 8k event by 18 seconds and helped guide the Highlanders to a first place team finish.

 Hall is the first UCR runner to win the Invitational in the program's Division I era.