Prep Football Roundup for Sept. 24

KAISER 48, APPLE VALLEY 42>> If anybody left Malloy Stadium on the Kaiser High School campus early, they missed a furious fourth quarter that saw the host Cats hold on and score a 48-42 win over Apple Valley after building a 21-point margin in the fourth quarter. The Cats (3-1) also had a 48-27 advantage in the fourth before Apple Valley (2-3) got back in the game on the strength of a pair of 33-yard runs by Tristian Mcnatt. One set up a fourth-down score by T.J. Lewis and Mcnatt scored his fourth TD of the night after the Sun Devils recovered an onsides kick.Mcnatt, who finished with 147 yards in nine carries, also caught a two-point conversion pass from Mossy Bell to make it exciting with 2:42 left. But the Cats killed the clock, thanks to a 11-yard carry by Tyler Allgeier for a first down with 131 left. He and Joshua Johnson were the big offensive keys for Kaiser as Johnson scored three times and rushed for 194 on 25 carries on the night late in the third quarter.

Continue reading “Prep Football Roundup for Sept. 24” »

Share this

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Ontario Christian football hopes to climb out of unfamiliar territory

Ontario Christian is only two seasons removed from a trip to the CIF finals. Success of this nature isn’t surprising for a program with one of the longest standing traditions in the Ambassador League.

What is surprising? The Knights have just one league championship over the last nine years outside of their banner season in 2012. Even more surprising? Last year, Ontario Christian missed the playoffs for the first time in at least 15 years.

A new coach, a strong returning nucleus and a promising young quarterback are plenty of reasons to believe this year will begin the Knights’ climb toward their traditional spot near the top of the league. The Ambassador League is deep, but Ontario Christian could benefit from the league’s expected parity. Continue reading “Ontario Christian football hopes to climb out of unfamiliar territory” »

Share this

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Saturday’s Tournament schedule

Here are schedules for some of Saturday’s Tournament games

Boys Basketball
San Bernardino Kiwanis
Semifinals
At Arroyo Valley HS
Yucaipa vs. Beaumont, 2 p.m.
Cajon vs. Redlands, 3:30 p.m.
5th place semifinals
At Pacific HS
Redlands East Valley vs. Grand Terrace, 2 p.m.
Jurupa Hills vs. San Gorgonio, 3:30 p.m.
Consolation semifinals
At Arroyo Valley HS
Summit vs. Barstow, 11 a.m.
Pacific vs. Kaiser, 12:30 p.m.
13th place semifinals
At Pacific HS
Rim vs. Arroyo Valley, 11 a.m.
Ramona vs. Indian Springs, 12:30 p.m.

 

Continue reading “Saturday’s Tournament schedule” »

Share this

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Friday’s Tournament results

Friday’s tournament results
Boys basketball
San Bernardino Kiwanis
Championship quarterfinals
Beaumont 77, Redlands East Valley 71
Yucaipa 65, Grand Terrace 59
Redlands 70, Jurupa Hills 55
Cajon 39, San Gorgonio 31
Consolation quarterfinals
Summit 68, Rim of the World 45
Barstow 64, Arroyo Valley 46
Pacific 55, Ramona 50
Kaiser 76, Indian Springs 31

Share this

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Oak Hills holds on to beat Ontario Christian 5-4 in CIF-SS Division 5 semifinals

That’s the final out of Oak Hills’ CIF-SS Division 5 semifinal win over Ontario Christian, 5-4.

Although it was a tight game, there was not nearly as much drama as Ontario Christian’s quarterfinal win over Templeton when the Knights recorded a triple play and got the benefit of a call when a Templeton runner failed to touch home plate.

This time, the big difference was extra-base hits. Oak Hills had nine hits, including four doubles and a home run. Ontario Christian had seven hits, all singles.

Here is how things shape up for Sun baseball and softball teams in the CIF-SS Finals.

Continue reading “Oak Hills holds on to beat Ontario Christian 5-4 in CIF-SS Division 5 semifinals” »

Share this

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

OCHS beats Aquinas for Ambassador title

It was a racuous, hot and overflow crowd on Thursday night as Ontario Christian pulled out a 65-58 victory over host Aquinas to take home the Ambassador League boys basketball title.
Aquinas, which earlier endured a 6 minute,15 second scoreless stretch late in the 3rd and early in the fourth quarter, went cold again in overtime as the Falcons were held scoreless for the first 3:15 of overtime while Ontario Christian was scoring the first nine points.
Ontario Christian won despite a poor night from the foul line, as the Knights made just 19 of 32 free throws.
it wasn’t quite as thrilling a finish as my other overtime game this week, when Cajon beat Arroyo Valley by 1 on a Michael Henley buzzer-beater in overtime. It could have been, as Ontario Christian’s Kevin Ross missfired on a long attempt in the final seconds of regulation.
Demetrius Overstreet scored 20 points, Joseph Rushing had 15 and Carlos Padilla had 13 for Aquinas. Brandon Zuidema scored18 points, Cameron Levise scored 16 and Daylan Lawrence and Ross had 13 points apiece for the Knights.

Share this

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Week 10 predictions

Doing this a day earlier than normal, as several county teams are pulling a Conference USA and playing on a Wednesday. Only dropped five games last week, which is tied with my high performance of the season to date. We’ll see if I get any smarter this week.

Redlands East Valley at Miller
With Miller’s upset at Redlands last week, this game is now for the Citrus Belt League title. These teams have played classics the last three years, with each game going down to the final minute. If the good Miller shows up and stays for a while, this game could very well be the same. I’ll be out to see this game Thursday and I expect a close game that goes to be more even-tempered team – which is REV.
Redlands East Valley 21, Miller 14

Upland at Los Osos
The tide in this series turned in 2008, when Upland smacked down the Grizzlies in the CIF semifinals to end a sizable losing streak to Los Osos. The Highlanders have added two more wins since, including a CIF championship win last December. A Los Osos win would put the Baseline on tilt, as Upland, Los Osos and Etiwanda would have to flip for two spots behind Rancho Cucamonga. An Upland win would make things nice and easy. We like nice and easy.
Upland 28, Los Osos 24

Ridgecrest Burroughs at Victor Valley
It very well could be feast or famine for the Jackrabbits. If they defeat Burroughs at home, Victor Valley will be the Desert Sky League champions and the No. 1 seed out of the league going into the playoffs. A loss could send them into a three-way tie for second with Silverado and Granite Hills and a resulting coin flip. While Victor Valley is in good shape for the at-large, it wouldn’t mind not going down that road. But it might have to, as I see Burroughs winning.
Burroughs 30, Victor Valley 17

Carter at Arroyo Valley
The SAL is nice and simple, as the top three playoff spots are set with seeding locked in and this game settling the No. 4 spot. Carter is extremely close to being undefeated, losing to Cajon and San G by one score and Colton in overtime. Arroyo Valley, meanwhile, wasn’t really close in any of its games against the Big 3. While the transitive property is dangerous to use to predict games, I feel as if Carter is a bit more equipped for this game.
Carter 21, Arroyo Valley 13

Summit at Norte Vista
The SkyHawks gave Kaiser all it could handle last week, actually having the top-ranked Cats behind in the fourth quarter before relenting and losing 19-7. Now can Summit shake off a possible letdown and get its first second-place finish in league? Norte Vista is physical and will try to pound the Cats. A first-round home playoff game is at stake, which should be enough for Summit to overcome any thoughts of regret from last week.
Summit 28, Norte Vista 22

Apple Valley at Oak Hills
Another game between teams jostling for seeding happens in the Mojave River League, as Oak Hills wants to cement its first season in league with a solid second-place finish. Apple Valley has been erratic at times, struggling to put away Sultana last week to clinch the playoff spot. The Bulldogs piledrove Hesperia last week and should take care of the Sun Devils this week.
Oak Hills 27, Apple Valley 14

Big Bear at Twentynine Palms
This is another league-title showdown, as the Wildcats will try to capture their fourth straight De Anza title by beating the Bears on their home turf. I expect this game to be a dandy, as the Bears’ option attack is being executed in tip-top form with junior quarterback Zakk Planz while the Wildcats have profited from the bruising running of fullback Chris Fuifui. However, I like the Bears here in a mild upset.
Big Bear 24, Twentynine Palms 22

Ontario at Colony
I could write a dissertation on the Mt. Baldy League playoff situation and still not explain it correctly. However, I’m going to defer to my colleague Clay Fowler on this, as I would probably turn myself crosseyed trying to explain how a five-way tie at 2-4 for two playoff spots (which is mathematically possible) could work. This game could contribute to that chaos, as Ontario is one of four teams at 2-3 playing a Colony team that has its spot already set. Colony could be nice, let the Jaguars win and save us all from grief, but it won’t.
Colony 34, Ontario 14

Ayala at Chino Hills
This battle of Chino Hills typically has huge implications riding on it but really doesn’t this year, at least for Ayala, as the Bulldogs are long since eliminated from the playoffs. Chino Hills could still sneak out with a Sierra League title, as South Hills’ upset of Claremont last week opened up that door just a tad. The Huskies still need Claremont to lose to Damien for a league title to happen, but they’ll do their part tonight.
Chino Hills 38, Ayala 6

Ontario Christian at Arrowhead Christian
With only two teams automatically making the playoffs out of the Ambassador League, Ontario Christian is in a precarious spot. Aquinas and Linfield Christian have the two spots locked up, which leaves the 3-6 Knights, who made the East Valley finals a year ago, scrambling for an at-large. How does this game with ACA factor in? Well, a few style points wouldn’t hurt, so I expect Ontario Christian to put a hurting on the Eagles and hope for the best on Sunday.
Ontario Christian 44, ACA 10

Other games of note
Aquinas 48, Western Christian 14
Rancho Cucamonga 38, Glendora 13
Etiwanda 65, Alta Loma 7
Redlands 49, Fontana 6
Yucaipa 38, Eisenhower 10
Yucca Valley 45, Shadow Hills 0
Silverado 28, Barstow 6
Serrano 42, Hesperia 0
Chino 49, Don Lugo 20
Montclair 26, Chaffey 22
Rim of the World 56, Jurupa Hills 12
Riverside Notre Dame 45, Citrus Valley 9
Colton 28, Rialto 7
San Gorgonio 62, Pacific 14
Cajon 55, San Bernardino 12
Kaiser 43, Bloomington 6
Granite Hills 16, Sultana 6

Last week: 26-5
Overall: 226-78-3

Share this

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Girls soccer playoff pairings

This sport returns a defending champion, as Mojave River League champion Sultana will try to defend its Division 4 crown. Ontario Christian, also a frequent participant deep in the playoffs, notched the No. 2 seed in Division 6. Wild card games will be played Wednesday, with the first round starting Friday.

DIVISION 2
Wild Card
A: Chino at Burbank Burroughs
B: Villa Park at Nogales
C: Canyon Country Canyon at Highland
D: Fontana at Ontario
E: Palmdale at Arcadia.

First Round
Wild Card A at Harvard-Westlake
Redlands at El Dorado
Eastside at Laguna Hills
Valencia at Walnut
Wild Card B at Redlands East Valley
Glendora at Hart
Montclair at Corona del Mar
Knight at Crescenta Valley
Wild Card C at Beckman
South Hills at Burbank
Chaminade at Ayala
Wild Card D at Anaheim Canyon
Wild Card E at Saugus
Colony at Yucaipa
St. Lucy’s at Lancaster
Brea Olinda at Flintridge Sacred Heart.

Continue reading “Girls soccer playoff pairings” »

Share this

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Championship predictions

Well, we are down to the nitty gritty here. The Central and Inland Divisions have blown up on me, leaving Serrano and St. Margaret’s as my only chances to predict champions (though with St. Margaret’s, getting that prediction right is akin to pick the Lakers to win the Pacific Division). Let’s see how we do in the final week.

Central Division
Los Osos vs. Upland
Really tough game to figure out. On one side you have the Grizzlies, who have won seven games in a row and are exploding scoreboards with their point totals. No brainer pick, right? Not exactly. The last team they lost to was, drumroll please, Upland, and in shutout fashion no less. The Highlanders can choke out even the most explosive offenses, giving up only 27 points in three playoff games.
So do you go with the hot team? Or with the adage of defense wins championships? I’m going with the second, as Upland will finish the job this year after losing in the finals last season.
Upland 17, Los Osos 13

Eastern Division
Serrano at Palm Springs
I proceeded to pick against Palm Springs last week in their matchup with Kaiser, only to see the Cardinals destroy the Cats 41-0. I also caught some guff about it from Palm Springs coach Steve Fabian. Either he’s got some moles in San Bernardino County or we have some readers in the Low Desert. Either way, I’m going back to the well. I picked Serrano when the playoffs started and nothing since has convinced me to back off that pick. If anything, watching them score 49 points against Norte Vista reaffirmed my faith in the Diamondbacks.
Serrano 27, Palm Springs 21

East Valley Division
St. Margaret’s at Ontario Christian
The Knights have been an awesome story. Veteran coach Laing Stevens comes back from retirement and does his thing, getting Ontario Christian back to the finals unexpectedly. It’s not like the Knights are getting lucky either, as they just blasted Grace Brethren 45-0 last week. OC is peaking and looking good. However, St. Margaret’s is the gold standard of small-school football. Three CIF titles in a row and a state championship speak for themselves and while I expect OC to come out swinging, I think the fairy-tale run comes just short.
St. Margaret’s 26, Ontario Christian 14

And just because I can…
Inland Division
Vista Murrieta 38, Temecula Chaparral 31

Share this

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email