February 2009 Archives

Above: Laura Beeman's Mounties opened the playoffs with a big win Saturday.

The Mt. San Antonio College women's basketball team and the Citrus men's team, both who won California Community College Athletic Association state titles last season, took the important first step to repeat, each scoring easy victories on Saturday.
The Mounties, getting 18 points from former Covina High star Blaire Egardo, scored an easy 76-51 victory over Cerritos, while Citrus got 25 points from Steven Bennett and rolled to a 95-81 victory over Victor Valley in the CCCAA Southern California Regional second-round games.
Both will play for Elite 8 appearances when they host SoCal Regional finals next week. Mt. SAC, which has won four of the past five CCCAA titles, host Fullerton. Citrus will be at home against Riverside City. Both games are slated for 7 p.m. starts. The CCCAA Elite 8 is scheduled for March 12-15 in Fresno.
The Citrus women's team, making its first playoff appearance in four seasons, saw its year end with a 74-56 setback at No. 2 seed Ventura.

It was a good day for locals at the CIF-SS Masters Meet. Northview's Steven Salinas led the way with the only individual title. But in all of our three zones, 23 local competitors punched their tickets to the CIF State championships in Bakersfield next week.
To view story, click thread

News Flash: This is what I'm hearing, that Tip Sanders is working out the details before accepting the head coaching job at Duarte. It's not a guarantee, but my source has been pretty good in the past, so lets watch how this unfolds

Not even the Glendora LeDucies could stop visiting Leuzinger from running the Tartans off the floor, 62-37. I hear Chino Hills and Damien went down to the wire, and Nogales was within six with three minutes left. The Tartans trailed 23-20 early in the third quarter, but Leuzinger went on a paralyzing 18-2 run, and that was that. "The tempo was the way we wanted in the first half," Tartans coach Mike LeDuc said. "We weren't running our offense real well, but give credit to them for playing great defense. We tried in the third quarter to get shots we wanted, but the pressure was so great we didn't do a good job of handling it. We knew if we left them have a run it would be real difficult to stay in the game, and they got that run, and you can't play from behind and try to catch those guys."

Boys Basketball
Friday's Semifinal results
Division I-AA
Riverside King 76, Dominguez 70
Mater Dei 70, Etiwanda 60
Division I-A
Ventura 66, Chino Hills 59
Division II-AA
Thousand Oaks 89, Marina 57
Leuzinger 62, Glendora 37
Division II-A
Eisenhower 48, Damien 45
Loyola 80, La Mirada 60
Division III-AA
Anaheim Canyon 67, Nogales 56
Santa Margarita 44, Arroyo Grande 41
Divisioin V-A
La Verne Lutheran 70, CAMS 46

Boys Soccer
Friday's quarterfinals
Division IV
Pacifica 4, Sierra Vista 1
Division V
Baldwin Park 2, La Canada 2, BP wins on PK's, 5-3
Salesian 4, Monrovia 2
Division VI
Mountain View 2, L.A. Baptist 0
Rosemead 5, Barstow 2

Pregame Preview: These are very winnable games for local teams. Let's start with the locks, I have no problem saying Mountain and Rosemead will not only win, but meet in next week's Division VI championship. To be honest, they don't belong in this division, they're much better than this. Unless they totally stumble, they should both be in the semifinals. But who knows, stranger things happen in soccer. Baldwin Park could have a tough time at La Canada, especially since they're still missing three starters because of injuries. But La Canada does have field turf like B.P., which should play into the Braves' hands. Sierra Vista has the toughest task against Pacifica, normally a physical team and a long trip. That's a toss-up.

Above: Sorry Lad, this is what happens when you go up against the Eastside's finest.

This could be a tough weekend for the Northview High School wrestling team, which leads a list of 13 area schools who have competitors at this weekend's CIF-Southern Section Masters Meet. But coach David Ochoa has always taught his athletes that positives can be born from negatives, and it will be the same this weekend for the Vikings. Northview learned Wednesday that the Northern Division title it won this past Saturday was taken away and awarded to Sultana due to errors in scoring, which came about when bout scores were incorrectly imputed into the computer.
To continue reading, click thread

Diamond Ranch, the lone girls soccer team in the CIF playoffs, was sent home in Thursday's quarterfinals, losing 2-1 to St. Joseph

Manny Ramirez rejected the Dodgers' latest offer.

Manny Ramirez just got back to the Dodgers, whose latest offer to the slugger was $45 million for two years, with the second year including a player option. And the answer was thank you, but no thank you.
What now? Hopefully, the will continue to talk and they can eventually reel him in.
But if the Dodgers are intent on signing a Ramirez, I'll take $3 mill for three years.

TAKE A LOOK -->: At the top right of our blog under links I have added several local high school prep pages, and prep sites that you might be interested in. If there are any other links you want added, leave it in the comment section and I'll take a look.

Just some housekeeping for you, the Softball preview is scheduled to come out March 3 and the Baseball Preview on March 4, followed by the official start of the season for both on March 5. Until then, you can talk about it all you want. Meanwhile, I've got some quarterfinal soccer and semifinal basketball to think about.

By Roger Murray
Montebello High School has a new football coach, and the Oilers didn't have to go far to find him. Pete Gonzalez, well-known in the city where he grew up and graduated from Cantwell Sacred Heart of Mary High School, has been named to replace Nishil Shah, who resigned after the 2008 season.
To continue reading, click thread

Note: Braves soccer photo taken by area legend David Casper

Boys Soccer
Friday's quarterfinals
Division IV
Sierra Vista at Oxnard Pacifica, 3 p.m.
Division V
Baldwin Park at La Canada, 4 p.m.
Division VI
LA Baptist at Mountain View, 3 p.m.
Barstow at Rosemead, 3 p.m.
Girls Basketball
Division III-AA
Saturday's semifinals
Diamond Ranch at Woodbridge, 7:30 p.m.

Fred's take: You know what this comes down to don't you? With Charter Oak being so scary next fall and the Lancers a real question mark, Bishop Amat didn't want to risk losing a local game. It was one of those nothing to gain, everything to lose scenario's. Dominguez has name power, but they were 2-8 last season while Charter Oak went undefeated and won a section title with one of the best running backs in the area returning. Dominguez sounds great on paper, but Charter Oak would have been a tougher opponent.

Yeah right: Even Diamond Ranch is upset it won't get to see Bishop Amat and Charter Oak

At the end of the day Charter Oak never backed down from a dreamy season opener against Bishop Amat next fall, in fact it pushed harder than ever, with Bishop Amat finally saying "no thanks," instead signing a deal to play Dominguez, a school that was 2-8 last season, a year after going 10-3 and advancing to the Western Division semifinals. Dominguez won the title in 2006. This leaves Charter Oak looking everywhere for a first round opponent, a frustration that Charter Oak coach Lou Farrar expressed on Thursday. "If we have to go to Chicago, we'll go to Chicago," Farrar joked. "We wanted to play Amat at their place or a neutral site like Mt. SAC. We thought it would have been great. They wanted three days to think it over, then thought about it again and decided to place somebody else. What can you do?" This leaves the Chargers looking at teams like Escondido, Quartz Hill, and others. "We can't find anyone within 30 minutes from us. It's going to be tough getting anything you want this late in the day." In fairness to Bishop Amat and coach Steve Hagerty, he said they already have three games against local teams (West Covina, Damien and Diamond Ranch), and that was enough. He felt playing Dominguez at home was an opportunity he couldn't pass up, though I think Charter Oak still would have been a tougher game next fall. "We think Dominguez is going to prepare us when the game is on the line," Hagerty said. "They have lots of speed and athleticism. We consider that a great game." Hagerty said that a game against Charter Oak could come in future years. "The Charter Oak (possibility) has been going on a long time. I talked to (Charter Oak AD) Glenn Martinez the night of our game against Notre Dame. But we figured in the end, this (Dominguez) is a better situation for us. I know the San Gabriel Valley would have loved it (playing Charter Oak), but this isn't about trying to make the Valley happy, it's about doing what we think is best for our team. When our current contracts with (West Covina, Damien and Diamond Ranch) runs out, then we can look at Charter Oak again."

Girls Basketball
Division II-A
Tonight's Quarterfinal games
Summitt 67, Bishop Amat 53
Mater Dei 77, Laguna Hills 39
Villa Park 73, Norco 68
Division III-A
Diamond Ranch 54, Magnolia 43
Marlborough 54, Arroyo Grande 43
Santa Margarita 66, Agoura 49
Woodbridge 43, Anaheim Canyon 39

This story comes from the San Bernardino Sun, written by T.J. Berka. We'll have more in the coming days, but the word is out, Northview loses its CIF championship... There is also a lot of chatter about this in California Wrestler under Forums, take a look.

By T.J. Berka
After finishing second, reserving themselves to a second-place finish behind Northview at the CIF-SS Northern Division individuals finals, the Sultana High School wrestling team got some good news Tuesday. A legion of scoring errors in Northview's favor were discovered, first by Sultana coach Rocky Humphrey and then confirmed using the bout sheets of the meet at Oxnard Pacifica. With the re-calcuations, the Sultans were awarded the CIF championship, an award they received Wednesday. "It's better late than never," Humphrey said. "It's kind of an after-the-fact thing, because we took all the pictures with the runner-up trophy after the meet. But we are definitely happy about it." The discrepancy was discovered when Humphrey went online to check out some scores. In the 112-pound third-place match featuring his nephew, Rod Keaster, Humphrey noticed that bout was scored 9-1 online in favor of Northview's Jacob Delgado instead of the 2-1 score Humphrey had. The point difference gave Northview a major decision and an extra team point. Humphrey continued to dig and noticed 10 other matches with scoring inconsistencies that swung Northview's way. After conferring with Pacifica, the team score was changed from 262-256 Northview to 257-252 Sultana.

I talked to Northview coach David Ochoa today and here's what he had to say:

On receiving the news from the CIF-SS: "I guess the Sultana coach noticed the recorded score on the brackets you can view online was wrong. I was called by CIF the next day and was asked what the score of Jacob's match was. I had to look at the bout sheet and told them it was 1-0. They then found enough additional errors (in other matches) to justify a change and give the championship to Sultana."

How did the team react: "It's been a rough week. I brought my guys in and talked to them as a group and told them, as to no fault of anyone with our our school, that Sultana was declared champs. I apologized to them. It was the toughest thing I've had to do as coach, and hope I never have to do it again.
"I've been telling them that sometimes life doesn't go your way, and you just have to put your best foot forward. I feel they can give that extra effort and try to use this to motivate it us."

Steve's take: First, people here have to get a life and realize a mistake was made, period. That's it. The Sultana coach noticed a mistake in one match, then noticed others. He informed CIF-SS officials and they made the right decision. People have to stop with an Oliver Stone/Jim Garrison reaction and quit acting like a bunch of squirrels looking for nuts. For one, there's no way to prove the mistakes made were intentional; there's no smoking gun on the bout sheets that show the score changed, just a different result on the online brackets. I applaud CIF-SS for realizing a mistake had been made and it was one they could change. I think we all need to follow coach Ochoa's advice and move on.
But I will say, I never realized how much hate there is in high school sports, until I saw the comments on this topic alone. It's funny how no one said anything about Northview until the school built a very successful CIF-SS sports program. I guess it's like the late Dale Earnhardt said to Jeff Gordon once when the latter was always getting booed in pre-race introductions. Earnhardt told Gordon: "Don't worry about that. They always boo the winner. When they do nothing, that's the time to worry."

There are supposed to be alternate sites in the semifinals, but all that really means is if you get a home game, you can play it nearby, which worked out well for Valley fans wanting to watch everyone in the semifinals. Glendora and Damien will switch gyms on Friday. Strange isn't it? But it works out well for both. Nogales will play at Rowland. BTW, even though Diamond Ranch lost, they might not be out of the state playoffs. Stay tuned. Also, which of these three area games deserves top billing on Friday?

Boys Basketball
Friday's Semifinals
All games at 7:30 p.m.
Division II-AA
Marina (23-6) vs. Thousand Oaks (27-2) at TBA
Leuzinger (24-5) vs. Glendora (24-7) at Damien H.S.
Division II-A
Eisenhower (26-3) vs. Damien (19-11) at Glendora H.S.
La Mirada (27-3) vs. Loyola (23-5) at TBA
Division III-AA
Anaheim Canyon (23-6) vs. Nogales (24-7) at Rowland H.S.
Arroyo Grande (20-8) vs. Santa Margarita (20-8), TBA
Divisioin V-A
La Verne Lutheran (23-6) vs. California Academy of Math and Science (20-5) at Long Beach Cabrillo H.S.
Buckley (25-3) vs. Windward (24-6) at TBA.

What's taking so long to fill the head football coaching jobs at South El Monte, Duarte, La Puente and Western Christian? With spring football so close, administrators better get on it, especially those looking to move "in a new direction."

Could the Damien soccer team continue on just like basketball? What a surprise. Not surprisingly is finding Baldwin Park, Rosemead, Mountain View and Sierra Vista in the second round, with all four having a great opportunity to advance to Friday's quarterfinals. La Puente will have a tough time against North Torrance. Hopefully there's no letdown after their dramatic 4-3 first round win over Bishop Amat.

Game Highlights: The second round of the playoffs sometimes provides a scare for the higher-seeded teams, but the Baldwin Park High School boys soccer team continues getting stronger.
Junior striker Edgar Padilla scored twice, and freshman Ruben Zamarripa added another as the Braves easily disposed of visiting Garden Grove Santiago 3-1 in the second round of the Division V playoffs on Wednesday.

Wednesday's second round results
Note: All games start at 3 p.m.
Division II
Troy 1, Damien 0
Division IV
North Torrance 2, La Puente 1
Sierra Vista 3, Crescenta Valley 2
Division V
Baldwin Park 3, Garden Grove Santiago 1
Division VI
Mountain View 5, Ontario Christian 0
Silverado 2, Arroyo 1
Rosemead at Milken Community

Girls Water Polo
Semifinals
Division VI
Bonita 11, Elsinore 3
Game Highlights: Andy Rosenberg has coached the Bonita High School boys water polo team in a CIF-Southern Section championship game, and now he will get the chance to lead the Bearcats girls team in one, too. Amber Pezzolla scored six goals and sister Megan Pezzolla had six saves as the Bearcats advanced to the Division VI championship game with an 11-3 victory over Elsinore at Lakeside High. Bonita, which also got three goals from Meghan Turner, improved to 25-5 and will face either Malibu or Chadwick for the divisional title at 10:40 a.m. on Saturday at Woollett Aquatic Center in Irvine. Elsinore, getting two goals from Holly Thoman, finished 24-6.
"We did a good job on defense," said Rosenberg, in his first season coaching the girls team after last guiding the boys team, a CIF-SS title game in 2000, "and that's always going to be the key at this point in the playoffs

Division III
Corona Santiago 9, St. Lucy's 8
Game Highlights: A thrill ride that went back and forth ended with Corona Santiago sneaking past second-ranked St. Lucy's 9-8 in the CIF-Southern Section Division III girls water polo semifinals on Wednesday at Mt. SAC, ending the Regents' hope of playing for their first title in school history. It was a sour ending for ninth-year coach David Miller, who is retiring after leading the Regents (29-3) to their first outright Sierra League title ever, and just their second semifinal since 2003. Sierra Smiley, who led the Sharks with four goals, came up with a huge assist when she whipped a pass in front to Ashley Dorrego, who converted the go-ahead goal to make it 9-8 with 3:05 left. The Regents, getting a team-high four goals from Emily Donohoe and two from Cambria Shockley, had several chances to even it down the stretch. Donohoe sent a shot over the net with 1:19 left, then Donohoe's steal and quick outlet to Hanna Lancaster on the break ended with a great point-blank save from Sharks goalkeeper Meghan Rowland with 52 seconds left.
In the final seconds it appeared the Regents might tie it after Bianca Adams' steal and quick pass in front to Shockley, but the horn sounded to end the game before Shockley could pull the trigger. "It shouldn't of come down to the last couple seconds I guess," explained Miller. "We had our chances, we had our opportunities, it just didn't happen."

An interesting boys soccer dilemma written by the Times' Eric Sondheimer. In no way would I let this kid play on his high school team just for the playoffs. How is that fair to the kid he replaces that starts all season.

Above: Nogales coach Ricky Roper all smiles after Nogales' 50-47 win over Palm Springs.

Tuesday's Quarterfinal Results
Division II-AA
Glendora 68, West Ranch 51
Thousand Oaks 62, Edison 45
Marina 71, Huntington Beach 70
Leuzinger 88, Valencia 66

Division II-A
Damien 66, Mayfair 64
Eisenhower 77, Loara 69
Loyola 88, Simi Valley 74
La Mirada 68, Ayala 48

Division III-AA
Nogales 50, Palm Springs 47
Anaheim Canyon 70, Hart 47
Santa Margarita 64, North Torrance 63
Arroyo Grande 49, St. John Bosco 44

Division III-A
Gahr 63, Diamond Ranch 62
Harvard-Westlake 63, Bonita 49
Golden Valley 75, Foothill 72
Sonora 49, Apple Valley 47

Division IV-AA
Inglewood 77, Northview 47
Bishop Montgomery 58, Atascadero 53
Ocean View 70, San Luis Obispo 56
Gardena Serra 60, Compton Centennial 50

Division V-A
La Verne Lutheran 75, Faith Baptist 41

Glendora's Calvin Smith scored 19 points in the Tartans' victory

I was covering Glendora, here are the highlights
Glendora High School boys basketball coach Mike LeDuc finally broke a smile, looking almost like a proud father explaining how the Tartans went all the way to Valencia West Ranch, and did it again. Junior guard Calvin Smith was the big difference, breaking past the Wildcats' constant pressure on his way to 19 points and five rebounds. Senior Kos Russell also scored 19, and Brad Gatlin had one of his finest games of the season, chipping in with 18 points as the Tartans outlasted the Wildcats 68-51 in Tuesday's CIF-Southern Section Division II-AA quarterfinals.
"We knew we were facing a great defensive team," Smith said. "They put a lot of pressure, but our guys kept moving and made it easier for me to find them.
"And when I had an opening I was able to knock down a few shots. But again, it was another total team effort."
The third-seed Tartans (24-7) advanced to the semifinals for the second consecutive season, where they will face third-seed Leuzinger, an 88-66 winner over Valencia, on Friday at Damien High School. LeDuc tried explaining how the magic continued.
"Our team has a high level of competitive spirit," LeDuc said. "I know a lot of teams do also, but they seem to rise up to the occasion and take a lot of pride in the tradition we have. When they get an opportunity, they look forward to it, they don't back away from it. I think that's the difference."

While it was a tough day for most area high school girls soccer team in the penalty shootout, Diamond Ranch came out on top. The Panthers pulled off the upset of the day, shocking top-ranked and undefeated Santa Ana Valley in penalty kicks after eighty scoreless minutes of regulation and two overtimes in Tuesday's CIF-Southern Section Division IV second-round game. The Panthers (13-7-4) defeated Santa Ana Valley (23-1-1) 4-2 in penalty kicks to move to the quarterfinals on Thursday against either St.Joseph's or California. "I'm really excited, that was the top team in our division and nobody had done this to them all year," Panthers coach Victoria Hentges said. "They were an amazing team, it was so hard fought, I'm just so glad to get through it and move on, because we've never gone this far in the playoffs."

Tuesday's Second Round
All games at 3 p.m.
Division II
Crescenta Valley 1, South Hills 1, CV wins on PK's, 4-2
Division IV
Diamond Ranch 0, Santa Ana Valley 0, DRanch wins on PK's, 4-2
Santa Ynez 0, Bishop Amat 0, Santa Ynez wins on PK's, 4-3
Cathedral City 1, Los Altos 1, Cathedral City wins on PK's, 4-3
Division VI
Milken Community 1, San Dimas 0
Division VII
Saddleback Valley Christian 0, Sierra Vista 0, Saddleback wins on PK's, 5-4
CAMS 1, Arroyo 0
St. Genevieve 1, South El Monte 0

A few times I week I'm going to toss general sports questions your way. At the end of the day we're all sports fans, so lets start with the biggest news of the month: You have had more than a week to digest news that Alex Rodriguez is an admitted steroids user for at least three years. Should this keep him out of the hall of fame?

Since we all love top ten's, how about the top ten high school athletic programs in the Valley. I listed the top teams with the sports they're the most competitive in compared to other teams in the Valley. I gave more weight to football, basketball, baseball and softball, since those are the marquee sports, with soccer a notch behind. Bishop Amat barely edges out Diamond Ranch for the top spot because in the signature sports, they're a little better all the way around except for boys basketball.

1. Bishop Amat: Football, Baseball, Softball, Boys and Girls Basketball, Boys and Girls Soccer, Wrestling
2. Diamond Ranch: Football, Baseball, Boys and Girls Basketball, Boys and Girls Soccer, Track
3. South Hills: Football, Baseball, Boys and Girls Soccer, Girls Volleyball, Girls Basketball, Wrestling, Cross Country
4. Bonita: Football, Boys and Girls Basketball, Girls Soccer, Baseball, Track, Girls and Boys water polo, Girls volleyball
5. Northview: Football, Boys and Girls Basketball, Wrestling, Baseball, Softball
6. Glendora: Football, Baseball, Softball, Boys Basketball, Swimming, Cross Country, Girls Soccer
7. Charter Oak: Football, Boys Basketball, Baseball, Girls Soccer, Softball, Swimming.
8. Walnut: Football, Boys and Girls Basketball, Girls Soccer, Boys and Girls Water Polo, boys and girls tennis, girls volleyball
9. Rosemead: Football, Boys and Girls Basketball, Boys Soccer, Wrestling, Softball
10. San Dimas: Football, Baseball, Girls Soccer, Softball, Girls Volleyball

Out of the seven boys basketball teams remaining in the playoffs, who has been the biggest surprise? There hasn't been a true standout like Dominic Tiger-Cortes to run away with player of the year, so have any suggestions? How about our Tribune top five? Coach of the year? This is extremely difficult also, but one of the coaches still alive are going to win, then will hopefully coach the all-star game.

The softball season starts next week, which means we're calling coaches and getting ready for our spring top ten. I have a rough idea of the top five, then it gets difficult. I still don't know who should be No. 1 between Glendora and Los Altos, but I'm leaning toward the Tartans.

Anything and anyone you want to talk about

A few weeks back I mentioned that CIF's new basketball playoff structure, merging enrollment with competitive value, waters-down the importance of league play. Eric Sondheimer touched on it today in the L.A. Times, there could be three to four section champions from the same league, making you wonder if they need league's anymore. You might as well just play a schedule, have more tournaments and do everything by enrollment. The Sierra League is looking the strongest around here with Chino Hills, Glendora, Ayala, and Damien alive in three separate divisions. By some miracle should the Sierra wind up with three CIF champions, how would you feel about it? Damien is a prime example. I'm fine with the fact that a fourth-place team can get an at-large, but to win a championship you should have to go through the teams that beat you in league to do it. Don't get me wrong, I hope they all with section titles, but the system doesn't sit right.

Wednesday's quarterfinals
All games at 7:30 p.m.
Division II_A
No. 7 Bishop Amat (22-5) at No. 2 Summit (24-4)
Division III-A
No. 5 Magnolia (18-9) at No. 4 Diamond Ranch (19-4)

Girls Basketball
Saturday's second round
Division I-A
Canyon Springs 66, Walnut 36
Division II-A
Bishop Amat 52, Keppel 49
Division III-AA
Diamond Ranch 56, Segerstrom 21
Agoura 64, South Hills 42
Division III-A
Sonora 39, Sierra Vista 33
Monrovia 52, Bonita 35
Inglewood 71, Rosemead 23
Division IV-AA
Bishop Montgomery 45, Northview 27

With seven teams in the second round, we're hoping to cover at least three on Tuesday, and possibly four. Why don't you play prep editor and explain what games you would cover.

Boys Basketball
CIF Southern Section Playoffs
Tuesday's quarterfinals
Note: All games start at 7:30 p.m.
Division II-AA
Glendora at West Ranch
Division II-A
Damien at Mayfair
Division III-AA
Palm Springs at Nogales
Division III-A
Gahr at Diamond Ranch
Bonita at Harvard-Westlake
Division IV-AA
Northview at Inglewood
Division V-A
Faith Baptist at La Verne Lutheran

The coaches finished voting, and no surprise, Northview and Bishop Amat are the top dogs in Division IV. South Hills starts high at No. 2 in Division III, but the big question is, where is Bonita folks? Why is everyone sleeping on the Cats?

DIVISION II
1. El Toro
2. Notre Dame/SO
3. Palos Verdes
4. Cypress
5. Redlands East Valley
6. Yucaipa
7. Crespi
8. Glendora
9. La Mirada
10. Paso Robles

DIVISION III
1. Paramount
2. South Hills
3. Elsinore
4. Quartz Hill
5. Paloma Valley
6. California
7. La Serna
8. Laguna Hills
9. Santa Margarita
10. Diamond Ranch

DIVISION IV
1. Northview
2. Bishop Amat
3. St Paul
4. Patriot
5. Sonora
6. San Dimas
7. Torrance
8. Don Lugo
9. Palm Desert
10. St Bonaventure

This from Mr. Pete Marshall at the Daily Bulletin
Rich Vasquez only departed last week as Damien's baseball coach, but the Spartans already have his replacement: Al Leyva.
Leyva is the former Claremont High head coach from 2002-05, who most recently had been serving as the assistant coach and head recruiter for the University of La Verne.
"I feel very lucky to get the guy," Damien athletic director Tom Carroll said. "I didn't think he'd be available. We played against him at Claremont, so I knew him from there."
Carroll said he was impressed with Leyva's first day of practice on Wednesday. "It's like he was on the ship the whole time," Carroll said. "They didn't miss a beat."

I'm hearing that Duarte will hire either former La Puente coach Ray Hernandez or former Blair and Marshall coach Tip Sanders. An announcement could come as early as Monday.

I told you I had a feeling Damien felt like Diamond Ranch in football, nice to see the Spartans confident and moving on. In fact, check it out, we have seven teams in the quarterfinals, and most of them did it on the road.

Above: Kos Russell's 3-pointer lifted Glendora in round one. Russell had another big night, scoring 23 points in the Tartans' 68-65 win over San Bernardino. The Magic continues ...

Friday's second-round results
Division II-AA
Simi Valley 67, Rowland 53
Glendora 68, San Bernardino 65
Division II-A
Damien 49, La Habra 47
Division III-AA
Apple Valley 55, Charter Oak 54
Nogales 73. West Torrance 70
Santa Margarita 72, South HIlls 63
Division III-A
Diamond Ranch 41, Fullerton 38
Bonita 61, Garden Grove Pacifica 45
Division IV-AA
Serra 93, South El Monte 65
Northview 80, Citrus Hill 57
San Luis Obispo 43, Bishop Amat 40
Division IV-A
Cathedral 70, Workman 50
Division V-A
La Verne Lutheran 79, Bloomington Christian 51

Charter Oak loses heartbreaker: Seconds away from dancing to the next round, the Charter Oak High School boys basketball watched it slip away. Literally.
Clinging to a one-point lead with the clock winding down and the game on the line, Charter Oak got exactly what it wanted, forcing Apple Valley guard Absalom Smith to take a running off-balance shot with Chargers guard Eric Rogers draped all over him.
For a moment it appeared Rogers grabbed the rebound, but the 5-foot-11 Smith reached in and wrestled it away, then drew a foul with four seconds left.
Smith calmly sank both free throws to finish with a game-high 23 points, and the Chargers couldn't get a shot off before time expired, watching painfully as Apple Valley celebrated a 55-54 victory in the second round of the CIF-Southern Section Division III--A playoffs on Friday.

Boy's Soccer
Wednesday's Second Round
Note: All games start at 3 p.m.
Division II
Troy at Damien
Division IV
North Torrance at La Puente
Sierra Vista at Crescenta Valley
Division V
Garden Grove Santiago at Baldwin Park
Division VI
Mountain View at Ontario Christian
Rosemead at Milken Community

Below: Win, and you won't feel this way today

La Puente stuns Bishop Amat: There will be a boys soccer champion crowned in a couple weeks, but its hard to imagine a more exciting game and finish than La Puente High School's 4-3 sudden-death overtime victory over Del Rey League champion Bishop Amat on Friday.
After the Lancers battled back from a 3-1 halftime deficit to finally tie it on Aaron Mireles' header in the 68th minute, the Warriors rallied back to pull off the upset in overtime.
Leo Villagrana's cross toward the back post was poked away by Lancers goalkeeper Christopher Mancilla, but sophomore David Ramirez cleaned it up, finishing in the 85th minute to send the Warriors (13-5-5) to the second round of the CIF-Southern Section Division IV playoffs. "I've always dreamed of something like this," Ramirez said. "I was hoping it would get away (from the goalkeeper) and give me a chance, and to finish and beat a team like Bishop Amat, it's a dream."

CIF-SS Playoffs
Friday's first round
Division II
Chino Hills 3, Canyon Springs 2
Arlington 0, Diamond Bar 0, Arlington advances, 4-2 on PK's
Damien 1, Palmdale 0
Division III
Jurupa Valley 3, Rowland 2
Santa Maria 4, South Hills 2
Redlands 0, West Covina 0, Redlands wins 5-4 on PKs
Division IV
Sierra Vista 2, Laguna Hills 1
La Puente 4, Bishop Amat 3, sudden death
Inglewood 1, Wilson 0
Mayfair 1, Los Altos 0
University 3, Diamond Ranch 2, sudden death
Division V
Baldwin Park 1, Pioneer Valley 0
Division VI
Mountain View 5, Tahquitz 2
Arroyo 3, Dunn 2 (OT)
Rosemead 5, Beaumont 1
Division VII
La Verne Lutheran 7, Bermuda Dunes Desert Christian 0

Another great example of sportsmanship
"They may not remember our record 20 years from now, but they'll remember what happened in that gym that night. -- Dave Rohlman, head coach.

On another thread one of you asked about the area's top ten gyms. Joe Amat beat me to it and after reading his list, I really can't complain.

Joe Amat's top ten
10. Edgewood (Freddy, this ones for you. It's on thee list if WSUSD woulda been smart enough to use that campus instead of WC)
9. Baldwin Park (there's something about old elevated stands that I like-don't know why)
8. Azusa (I swear...exactly the same as Glendora-just not as clean and without the history)
7. Charter Oak (haven't been inside since the renovation, Better I'd hope? But can we finish the outside paint job?)
6. South Hills (now it at least doesn't have a garage door for one whole wall
5. Covina (a lotta great players have been in that gym... floor is great, have we got new bleachers yet?)
4. Diamond Ranch (clean and new... but sterile with too much glass))
3. Glendora (when it's full it is probably the best place to be in, two decks is awesome)
1.T Damien (1A & 1B - tough to choose, flip 'em if you want)
1.T Amat (some design flaws but the biggest thing wrong is the Activity Centers official name-that I'll never utter)

Don't try this at home....The NBA mascot actually tore his ACL falling through the hoop.

Cal State Fullerton hopes to celebrate like this in 2009.

Hi all,

Fred and I decided it would be neat to have a College Baseball thread, what with former local players making such a big impact on some of the teams throughout the country.
I will concentrate mostly on the Division I teams in Southern California, but it will not be limited to this region. It will include a little information, some opinion and perhaps some post-season predictions at the end of the year. I hope you enjoy it.
I will start with our top five rankings for the SoCal teams, so here goes:

Anything and anyone you want to talk about

The baseball and softball previews come out the first week of March, so be patient until we finish our coverage of winter sports. For now, here is a quick look at the Glendora tournament baseball schedule (click thread). Any thoughts on who will win it? Also, does anyone know what's going on in Damien baseball search, and if anything else is happening in baseball or softball that we should know about it. I gotta tell ya, it's hard keeping up with all of this.

Shocker: Lancaster 2, Walnut 0: This time of year is usually reserved for the Walnut High school girls soccer team, who won three straight CIF-SS divisional championships earlier this decade, and who advanced to the semifinals last year.
One and done is certainly not something the Mustangs are use to dealing with.
After not allowing a goal during its undefeated San Antonio League championship run, visiting Lancaster came in and stunned the host Mustangs, scoring two first-half goals and making it hold up for a 2-0 victory in the first round of the Division II playoffs on Thursday. The Eagles (10-7-1) had just two shots on goal in the first half, and finished both of them. Walnut (16-5-2) had five shots on frame the first 15 minutes, and couldn't finish any. It was that kind of afternoon for the Mustangs, who were sent home in the first-round for the first time since coach Lorraine Hansen's first year in 2000.
"It stings, it really does," Hansen said. "We have a young team and hopefully they will remember how this feels and use it be stronger next season."

Above: Walnut goes down, 2-0

Update: Tuesday's Second Round
Division II
Crescenta Valley (18-2-4) vs. South Hills (15-8-1) at CDF
Division IV
Diamond Ranch (12-7-4) at Santa Ana Valley (23-0-1)
Santa Ynez (20-4-3) at Bishop Amat (18-2-4)
Los Altos (17-7-2) at Cathedral City (15-4-3)
Division VI
San Dimas (18-4-4) at Milken Community (13-2-4)
Division VII
Duarte (11-11-1) at Animo Leadership (17-6)
South El Monte (13-4-1) at St. Genevieve (15-1)
Arroyo (11-6-6) at CAMS (16-4-1)
Sierra Vista (13-9-4) at Saddleback Valley Christian (13-5-3)

Thursday's first round results
Division II
Lancaster 2, Walnut 0
Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 2, St. Lucy's 0
Corona del Mar 5, Rowland 0
South Hills 1, Chaffey 0, OT
Division IV
Bishop Amat 1, Silverado 0, OT
Diamond Ranch 1, Cajon 0
Sultana 2, Bonita 0
Granite Hills 7, Charter Oak 2
Los Altos 3, Magnolia 0
Division VI
San Dimas 3, Mammoth 2
Arrowhead 2, Northview 1, OT
Desert Hot Springs 1, Baldwin Park 1, DHSprings wins on PK's
Division VII
St. Paul 2, La Puente 0
Duarte 1, San Gabriel Mission 1, Duarte advances on PK's
Laguna Blanca 3, Mountain View 1
St. Genevieve 4, Azusa 0
Arroyo 4, St. Mary's Academy 0
Saddleback Valley Christian 2, El Monte 1
South El Monte 12, Bishop Contaty Loreto 0
Sierrva Vista 1, Sierra Canyon 0

Continue reading: Click the thread to read about the special thing the Bonita High School girls did prior to Tuesday's 2-0 win over Anaheim.

Girls Basketball Update
Saturday's Second Round
Division I-A
Walnut (18-8) at Canyon Springs (21-6)
Division II-A
Bishop Amat (21-5) at Keppel (18-10)
Division III-AA
Segerstrom (20-7) at Diamond Ranch (19-4)
Agoura (24-3) at South Hills (18-7)
Division III-A
Sonora (16-10) at Sierra Vista (21-3)
Bonita (18-9) at Monrovia (18-7)
Rosemead (13-10) at Inglewood (13-15)
Division IV-AA
Bishop Montgomery (18-8) vs. Northview (18-9) at Damien

Girls Basketball
Thursday's First Round
Div. I-AA
Etiwanda 67, Diamond Bar 42
Div. I-A
Walnut 47, Fountain Valley 43
Crescenta Valley 50, West Covina 34
Div. II-AA
Newbury Park 65, Glendora 48
Bishop Amat 61, Arroyo 22
Div. III-AA
South Hills 65, Los Altos 34
Fullerton 49, Rowland 20
Div. III-A
Rosemead 47, Charter Oak 36
Bonita 50, Beckman 39
Sonora 61, Wilson 41
Div. IV-AA
Banning 54, Covina 52
Calabasas 59, San Dimas 46
Whittier Christian 61, El Monte 34
Atascadero 43, Azusa 39
Northview 50, St. Lucy's 34
Div. IV-A
Harvard-Westlake 67, Duarte 28
Blair 71, Workman 44
Div. V-AA
La Salle 56, Western Christian 48
Div. VI-AA
Los Angeles Adventist 46, La Verne Lutheran 35

All games have been updated. I still can't believe that Glendora escape. We can cover three, maybe four games on Friday, which ones do you like?
Friday's games, 7:30 p.m.
Division II-AA
Glendora (22-7) at San Bernardino (15-11)
Division II-A
La Habra (21-7) at Damien (15-11)
Simi Valley (21-6) at Rowland (13-16)
Division III-AA
Nogales (22-7) at West Torrance (18-9)
South HIlls (18-7) at Santa Margarita (18-8)
Division III-A
Diamond Ranch (19-3) at Fullerton (16-11)
Bonita (23-5) at Garden Grove Pacifica (17-10)
Apple Valley (19-7) at Charter Oak (19-9)
Division IV-AA
Northview (22-6) vs. Citrus Hill (16-9) at Martin Luther King H.S.
San Luis Obispo (19-6) at Bishop Amat (18-9)
South El Monte (17-9) at Serra (21-7)
Division IV-A
Cathedral (13-15) at Workman (20-5)
Division V-A
La Verne Lutheran (21-6) at Bloomington Christian (21-3)

Did you see what happened in Alabama?

The La Verne Lutheran boys basketball team is 20-6, and the No. 2 seed in the Division V-A playoffs, with an opening round game tonight against Hamilton (13-13). The Trojans are the defending CIF champs with the area's best chance of adding another section title. But why no love from the Tribune?
To continue reading, click thread

The Scoop: Workman's Cezar Guerrero scored 34 points and Bobby Miles Serrano added 23 points to lift the Lobos to a 73-62 victory over Sherman Oaks Notre Dame in the first-round of the Division IV-A playoffs on Wednesday. Glendora survives a scare in the first round, beating Ontario, 52-51. Joe Amat reports that Kos Russell hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Tarts the victory. Oh, that magic again.

Wednesday's first-round results
All games start at 7:30 p.m.
Div. I-AA
Chino Hills 69, Riverside Poly 56
Colony 67, Diamond Bar 49
Div. II-AA
Buena 61, Walnut 59
Glendora 52, Ontario 51
Div. II-A
Damien 59, Baldwin Park 49
Rowland 50, Sunny Hills 41
Div. III-AA
Nogales 75, San Marcos 60
South Hills 70, Norwalk 48
Div. III-A
Diamond Ranch 74, Magnolia 38
Palm Desert 57, Sierra Vista 49
Bonita 51, Corona del Mar 38
Charter Oak 62, Segerstrom 55
Twentynine Palms 70, Mountain View 42
Div. IV-AA
Northview 74, Ridgecrest Burroughs 46
South El Monte 56, Covina 37
Compton Centennial 68, Gladstone 41
Bishop Amat 53, San Dimas 48
JSerra 57, Rosemead 49
Citrus Hill 62, La Puente 55
San Luis Obispo 63, Wilson 36
Div. IV-A
Workman 72, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 62
Div. V-A
La Verne Lutheran 84, Anza Hamilton 49

Above: Bonita's Angelica Padilla scored both goals in Bearcats' 2-0 victory over Anaheim in a Div. IV wild-card game on Tuesday.

Girls Soccer
Tuesday's wild-card results
Division II
Laguna Hills 1, Glendora 0
Division IV
Bonita 2, Anaheim 0
Charter Oak 1, Palm Desert 1, Charter Oaks wins on PK's, 4-3

Boys Soccer
Wednesday's wild-card results
Div. II
Diamond Bar 1, Corona Centennial 0
Div. III
Rowland 3, Redlands East Valley 1
Div. IV
Diamond Ranch 4, Azusa 0
Santa Monica 8, Gladstone 1

Jim McConnell, who writes a weekly Then & Now column, writes about the San Gabriel Valley's best baseball players of all time. It's a must read.

The great Jackie Robinson would bat leadoff on McConnel's all-time SGV team. Hey Orange County folks, why don't you try coming up with a better team than this? That's what I thought.

Here's the starting lineup for "your" San Gabriel Valley All-Stars:
1. Jackie Robinson (Muir Tech, PCC) 2B
2. Jim Edmonds (Diamond Bar High) CF
3. Nomar Garciaparra (Whittier) SS
4. Mark McGwire (Damien High) 1B
5. Ralph Kiner (Alhambra High) LF
6. Fred Lynn (El Monte High) RF
7. Cecil Fielder (Nogales High) DH
8. Darrell Evans (Muir, PCC) 3B
9. Lance Parrish (Walnut High) C
Starting Pitcher: Ewell Blackwell (Bonita High)

Here's the remainder of the roster:
Starting pitchers - Hank Aguirre (Keppel); Mike Garcia (San Gabriel); Mike Krukow (San Gabriel); Mike McCormick (Keppel).
Relief pitchers - Rick Aguilera (Edgewood of West Covina); Bill Campbell (Mt. SAC); Jim Gott (San Marino); Jim Merritt (West Covina); Dan Quisenberry (University of La Verne); Todd Worrell (Maranatha).
Reserve infielders: Jack Clark (Gladstone); Bobby Knoop (Montebello); Bobby Lillis (Pasadena).
Reserve outfielders: Tom Brunansky (West Covina); Johnny Lindell (Monrovia); Irv Noren (Pasadena); Albie Pearson (El Monte).
Reserve catchers: Andy Etchebarren (La Puente); Jamie Quirk (St. Paul).

From the moment St. Paul fired coach Pete Gonzalez, who won a CIF championship in 2007, the writing was on the wall. Nobody at St. Paul would talk about it, but it finally happened, they re-hired longtime coach Marion Ancich?

Here is what Roger Murray wrote in today's Whittier Daily News. Read it, principal Lori Barr finally speaks
By Roger Murray
Marijon Ancich, the former longtime San Pedro longshoreman who dabbled enough in football along the way to become California's winningest high school football coach, has been named head coach at St. Paul High School. Again.
To continue reading, click thread

It's time to scratch your head again, because the CIF-Southern
Section tweaked the boys and girls basketball playoffs in the first
of another two-year trial run. For many years the Southern Section playoff divisions were
organized by enrollment, which brought its share of problems.
Remember a few years back when Keppel had one of its best boys teams
ever, only to run into the unfair challenge of having to face Mater
Dei early in the playoffs because their enrollment numbers were
similar? There were many other cases like that, too.
To continue reading, click thread

FINAL TRIBUNE RANKINGS
BOYS BASKETBALL
1. Diamond Ranch (22-4)
2. Nogales (21-7)
3. Northview (21-6)
4. Bonita (22-5)
5. Glendora (21-7)
6. Workman (19-5)
7. Bishop Amat (17-9)
8. Charter Oak (18-9)
9. Diamond Bar (16-12)
10. Damien (16-11)

GIRLS BASKETBALL
1. Diamond Ranch (21-4)
2. Bishop Amat (20-5)
3. Sierra Vista (21-3)
4. Bonita (17-9)
5. South Hills (17-7)
6. Walnut (16-8)
7. West Covina (15-9)
8. Northview (17-9)
9. San Dimas (14-11)
10. Covina (16-9)

BOYS SOCCER
1. Baldwin Park (21-1)
2. Sierra Vista (18-2-2)
3. Mountain View (16-4-4)
4. Los Altos (11-4-3)
5. Wilson (17-4-2)
6. Bishop Amat (14-5-4)
7. Rosemead
8. West Covina (14-4-3)
9. South Hills (12-4-3)
10. Diamond Ranch (13-5-3)

GIRLS SOCCER
1. St. Lucy's (15-3-4)
2. Walnut (14-5-2)
3. Bishop Amat (17-2-4)
4. Glendora (15-9-3)
5. South Hills (14-8-1)
6. Los Altos (15-7-3)
7. Diamond Ranch (11-7-4)
8. San Dimas (17-4-4)
9. South El Monte (12-4-1)
10. Charter Oak (15-7-3)

This from Yahoo Sports: "Sad news to end the week: Everyone's favorite crazy gimmick offense, the "All-11," was effectively declared illegal today by the far-reaching National Federation of State High School Associations, which closed the "scrimmage kick" loophole the A-11 exploited for its existence," reports Yahoo Sports and Rivals.com.

To read about the horse-collar tackle being penalized and other rule changes from the NFHS, click on the thread to read the associated press story from Indianapolis

The CIF-SS boys and girls soccer pairings will be released this afternoon. I'll post the first-round match-ups as soon as they're released. But don't wait for me, click this link to access all the brackets

BOYS SOCCER
Friday's first round
Division II
Damien (11-9-3) at Palmdale (16-7-2)
Diamond Bar (12-8-3) at Arlington (16-3-7)
Division III
Rowland (10-11-4) at Jurupa Valley (14-4-7)
South Hills (12-4-3) at Santa Maria (19-5-1)
Redlands (15-4-8) at West Covina (14-4-3)
Division IV
Diamond Ranch (14-5-3) at University (8-6-2)
La Puente (12-5-5) at Bishop Amat (15-5-3)
Wilson (16-5-2) at Inglewood (10-9-4)
Mayfair (9-14-1) at Los Altos (11-4-3)
Laguna Hills (7-11-2) at Sierra Vista (18-1-2)
Division V
Pioneer Valley (13-10-1) at Baldwin Park (21-1)
Division VI
Tahquitz (12-8-3) at Mountain View (16-4-4)
Beaumont (DNR) at Rosemead (13-4-4)
Arroyo (4-11-4) at Dunn (10-5-2)
Division VII
Desert Christian (8-7-4) at La Verne Lutheran (10-2-1)
Note: All games start at 3 p.m.; and records provided by CIF

For a complete look at the CIF-Southern Section boys and girls basketball pairings, click the link. On Monday, CIF will release the boys and girls soccer and girls water polo pairings. For all the first-round matchups with records, I've listed them below.

CIF-SS playoffs
Boys Basketball
Wednesday's First Round
Div. I-AA
Diamond Bar (14-11) at No. 7 Colony (21-6)
Div. II-AA
Walnut (17-9) at Buena (9-16)
Ontario (12-9) at No. 3 Glendora (21-7)
Div. II-A
No. 13 Damien (14-11) at Baldwin Park (16-8)
Rowland (12-15) at No. 11 Sunny Hills (17-11)
Div. III-AA
San Marcos (12-13) at No. 4 Nogales (21-7)
Norwalk (13-11) at No. 13 South Hills (17-7)
Div. III-A
Magnolia (7-19) at No. 1 Diamond Ranch (18-3)
Sierra Vista (14-11) at Palm Desert (18-8)
Mountain View (16-10) at Twentynine Palms (16-7)
Corona del Mar (13-13) at No. 8 Bonita (22-5)
No. 10 Charter Oak (18-9) at Segerstrom (14-11)
Div. IV-AA
Burroughs (10-14) at No. 5 Northview (21-6)
No. 12 Citrus Hill (15-9) at La Puente (9-10)
No. 13 JSerra (10-14) at Rosemead (11-14)
Wilson (7-17) at No. 6 San Luis Obispo (18-6)
No. 10 Bishop Amat (17-9) at San Dimas (13-15)
Gladstone (5-18) at No. 8 Compton Centennial (14-11)
Covina (8-18) at No. 15 South El Monte (16-9)
Div. IV-A
Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (9-18) at No. 10 Workman (19-5)
Div. V-A
Hamilton (13-13) at La Verne Lutheran (20-6)
Note: All games start at 7:30 p.m.

CIF-SS playoffs
Girls Basketball
Thursday's First Round
Div. I-AA
Diamond Bar (12-13) at No. 5 Etiwanda (19-7)
Div. I-A
Fountain Valley (11-14) at No. 16 Walnut (17-8)
West Covina (15-10) at No. 15 Crescenta Valley (19-8)
Div. II-AA
Glendora (13-14) at No. 6 Newbury Park (20-5)
Arroyo (13-13) at No. 7 Bishop Amat (20-5).
Div. III-AA
Rowland (9-17) at No. 16 Fullerton (14-11)
No. 4 Diamond Ranch (18-4), bye
Los Altos (8-17) at No. 15 South Hills (17-7)
Div. III-A
No. 9 Sierra Vista (20-3), bye
Wilson (10-16) at No. 6 Sonora (15-10)
Beckman (3-20) at No. 12 Bonita (17-9)
Charter Oak (7-19) at Rosemead (12-10)
Div. IV-AA
Covina (16-9) at No. 16 Banning (16-10)
No. 13 Calabasas (14-10) at San Dimas (14-11)
No. 11 Whittier Christian (17-8) at El Monte (14-9)
No. 10 Atascadero (14-18) at Azusa (14-10)
St. Lucy's (11-11) at No. 15 Northview (17-9)
Div. IV-A
Duarte (6-13) at No. 4 Harvard-Westlake (16-9)
Blair (10-17) at Workman (7-13)
Div. V-AA
Western Christian (12-12) at No. 7 La Salle (14-10)
Div. VI-AA
La Verne Lutheran (4-12) at No. 11 LA Adventist (12-5)
Note: All games start at 7:30 p.m

Damien Principal and Father Patrick Travers has confirmed that baseball coach Rich Vasquez is no longer in charge just weeks from opening day on March 5. Travers said Vasquez and the school came to a mutual agreement, adding "that's all we're saying at the moment." Vasquez led the Spartans to a 17-9 record in 2008, finishing second in the difficult Sierra League and losing in the first round of the CIF-SS playoffs. Vasquez has not returned several calls seeking comment. Travers said the school will begin an immediate search, with some suggesting the Spartans could bring back former coach Bobby Sheridan, who coached six years at Damien.

Before you read Stevie's R's advance of tomorrow's team duals, please explain why some teams don't send their best wrestlers to dual meet championships? I don't know if it's the case this season, but it's happened in the past. If the best high school teams don't send their best wrestlers, then why have dual meet team team championships? I know the argument, that the best individuals have to rest for CIF prelims the following week, but what happened to sucking it up and winning one for the team, especially for that kid who works just as hard, but isn't going anywhere individually, but could do enough to help his team win a CIF team titloe, if only his best teammates were along for the ride. I grew up enjoying the duals, and think there isn't enough emphasis placed on them anymore.

Above: Our salute to late Rosemead coach Lou Madrigal. May you rest in peace Big Fella.

By Steve Ramirez
South Hills, Northview, Bishop Amat and Sierra Vista high schools were awarded top four seeds when the CIF-Southern Section released its pairings Thursday for Saturday's Toyota Dual Meet championships.
The division tournaments will be held at six campus sites. First-round matches begin at 11 a.m., with the finals scheduled for 7 p.m.
To continue reading, click thread

Fasten your seat belts - the CIF-Southern Section's winter playoffs are around the corner. The section office will release boys and girls basketball pairings Sunday, then follow with boys and girls soccer and girls water polo pairings on Monday.
But the general feeling I'm getting around the Valley is that everyone is waiting for the baseball season to begin March 5. And why not, because baseball is where our Valley shines.
To continue reading, click thread

The sixth annual Tribune/Star-News boys and girls all-star basketball game is set for April 4 at Azusa Pacific University, and who coaches the games usually depends on who earns coach of the year honors. We were talking about coaches of the year for all winter sports, and it created quite a discussion. There are no knockdown easy choices. With the playoffs nearing, here are a few of the candidates. Again, this is just a sample, who knows what happens in the playoffs.

Above: Northview girls basketball coach Jeff Butler deserves recognition for leading the Vikes to a 40-36 win over rival Covina, ending the Colts' long hold on the Valle Vista league.
Boys Basketball
Ricky Roper, Nogales
Loren Grover, Diamond Ranch
Ron Rice, Northview
Martin Flores, Workman
JT Cameron, Diamond Bar
Girls Basketball
Jeff Butler, Northview
Keith Locklear, Sierra Vista
Lori Huckler, Walnut
Michael James, Diamond Ranch
Chris Morrison, Bishop Amat
Boys Soccer
Ricardo Mira, Baldwin Park
Jeff Hess, Los Altos
Jose Rodriguez, Sierra Vista
Felipe Corona, Mountain View
Juan Rodriguez, Bishop Amat
Girls Soccer
Rob Rodrigues, St. Lucy's
Lorraine Hansen, Walnut
Chris Reeer, Los Altos
Ruben Gonzales, Bishop Amat
Kelly Kocalis, San Dimas

Play at your own risk: Now I know why virtually every league finished on Thursday instead of today. Not the Mission Valley League, they're playing, South El Monte and Rosemead for the boys basketball title tonight at Rosemead, 6:30 p.m.......

I say if you know anyone name Jason, like the Celtics dude in our office, avoid them at all costs.

Yahoo says you should avoid these things today.
A black cat crossing your path
Spilling salt
Breaking a mirror
Walking under ladders
Putting a hat on the bed
Taking off your wedding ring
Seeing an owl during the day
Opening an umbrella indoors
Killing a cricket
Putting your left foot on the floor first up when you get out of bed
Putting shoes on a table

I found this interesting item in the Daily Breeze prep blog, run by prep writer Tony Ciniglio. First, this is another great high school blog at one of our sister papers, and its building steam. Hopefully we can have some tongue and cheek chatter with them during crossover games this fall. You can also follow our blog on twitter, which has helped our numbers increase. But for now, here's a story Ciniglio had on his blog from the associated press, which calls for shorter high school season's in New York because of the economy. I was talking with Arroyo girls basketball coach Mike Gorball about it this morning. He says they might be asked to player fewer games next season, so it looks like it's already starting to take effect around here. This is something we need to pay close attention to, so if you hear anything along these lines, we'd love to hear about it.

Please don't cut our games: Okay, so I'm having a little fun, but I love the picture, which goes to show these girls leave it all on the line.

This story comes from The Associated Press in Albany, N.Y.
Here's a new play call courtesy of the recession: shorter seasons for high school athletes. The group that oversees public high school athletics in New York state recently
approved shaved-down schedules next school year as a cost-cutting measure, the
latest to take the step nationwide. Cuts vary by sport in New York: Baseball teams that play 24 regular-season games will go to 20, football teams will go from 10 games to 9 or 8, depending on regional officials.
The New York State Public High School Athletic Association says the shorter
schedules allow schools to cut budgets without cutting programs. Critics -- including
coaches and kids -- claim the new policy unfairly targets student athletes.

After forfeiting a game because of an ineligible player to fall out of first place, Los Altos was forced to win the Miramonte League boys soccer title the hard way, going through rival Wilson
and securing a 2-1 victory behind first-half goals from Alan De La Rosa and
Kevin Martinez. Wilson tried to come back in the final minutes, getting a 76th minute
goal from Gary Quintero, but their rally fell short.
When Los Altos beat Wilson 3-2 in their first meeting, Martinez was sent off with a double-yellow red card, but played in their next game against Bonita, a Conquerors' victory. Players must sit out their next games after red cards, but Conquerors coach Jeff Hess was under the impression Martinez could play because he received a double-yellow instead of a straight red card.
Hess was wrong, Wilson officials called him on it, and they had to forfeit, adding fuel to an already intense rivalry. That made winning Thursday's Miramonte League title even more
meaningful for the Conquerors, who improved to 12-5-3 and 5-1-2. Los Altos (17-5-2, 5-3), needing just a tie to win the league title, finished in second.
"We're the only team in league that hasn't lost a game on the field," Hess said. "We deserved this win, we won it on the field. This is my first league title in five years as the head coach. Last year we won our first CIF game in school history, and this is just our second league title ever, so I couldn't be more prouder."

Above: Wilson's Mira Valdez couldn't stop Los Altos from winning again, 2-1, to secure the Miramonte League title.

To get results into the newspaper, call 626-962-8811, Ext. 2233, 2242 or email to scores@sgvn.com. If you email, make sure to leave a contact number in case one of our reporters has questions. Also, we do not have reporters at every game like football, so the scoreboard is tough to update. If you're at a game, please come back and post the final score in the comments section, thanks.

Boys Soccer schedule
Miramonte League
Los Altos at Wilson, 3:15 p.m.
Bonita at Charter Oak, 3:15 p.m.
Mission Valley League
Mountain View at El Monte, 3:15 p.m.
Arroyo at Gabrielino, 3:15 p.m.
Montview League
Sierra Vista at Gladstone, 5 p.m.
Duarte at La Puente, 3:15 p.m.
Bassett at Azusa, 3:15 p.m.
San Antonio League
West Covina vs. South Hills at CDF, 5 p.m.
Rowland at Walnut, 3:15 p.m.
Sierra League
Chino Hills at Glendora, 3:15 p.m.
Valle Vista
Ganesha at San Dimas, 3:15 p.m.
Northview at Pomona, 3:15 p.m.
Baldwin Park at Covina, 3:15 p.m.

Girls Soccer
Miramonte League
Wilson at Los Altos, 3:15 p.m.
Charter Oak at Bonita, 3:15 p.m.
Mission Valley League
El Monte at Mountain View, 3:15 p.m.
Gabrielino at Arroyo, 3:15 p.m.
Montview League
Gladstone at Sierra Vista, 3:15 p.m.
La Puente at Duarte, 3:15 p.m.
Azusa at Bassett 3:15 p.m.
San Antonio League
South Hills at West Covina, 5 p.m.
Walnut at Rowland, 3:15 p.m.
Valle Vista
San Dimas at Ganesha, 3:15 p.m.
Pomona at Northview, 3:15 p.m.
Covina at Baldwin Park, 3:15 p.m.

The Diamond Ranch boys basketball proved again it deserves the area's top ranking, but Nogales isn't that far behind. In a hotly contested non-league game between two league champions just before the CIF-Southern Section pairings are announced Sunday, the Division III-A's top-ranked Panthers overcame an 11-point halftime deficit to defeat host Nogales, 62-60, on Thursday night.
Nogales had the ball last and opted to go for the game winner, but Randal Guillory's desperate three-point attempt at the buzzer was short, giving the Panthers (22-4) a season sweep over the Div. III-AA's fourth-ranked Nobles (22-6). "They're a heck of team, especially in their building," Panthers coach Loren Grover said. "We knew they were going to make shots, it's just a matter of making those shots as tough as possible on them. I thought we did a great job of contesting them in the second half, and making them take a tough shot at the end. For us, the main thing is creating momentum heading into the playoffs, so this was a good win. You never like to go in with a loss."
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To get results into the newspaper, call 626-962-8811, Ext. 2233, 2242 or email to scores@sgvn.com. If you email, make sure to leave a contact number in case one of our reporters has questions. Also, we do not have reporters at every game like football, so the scoreboard is tough to update. If you're at a game, please come back and post the final score in the comments section, thanks.

Thursday's games
Boys Basketball
Nonleague
Diamond Ranch 62, Nogales 60
Arrowhead League
California Lutheran at La Verne Lutheran, 7:30 p.m.
Miramonte League
Bonita at Charter Oak, 6:30 p.m.
Los Altos at Wilson, 6:30 p.m.
Montview League
Duarte at La Puente, 6 p.m.
Gladstone at Sierra Vista, 6 p.m.
Bassett at Azusa, 6 p.m.
San Antonio League
West Covina at South Hills, 6:30 p.m.
Rowland at Walnut, 6:30 p.m.
Sierra League
Glendora at Ayala, 7 p.m.
Diamond Bar at Damien, 7 p.m.
Chino at Chino Hills, 7 p.m.
Valle Vista League
Northview at Covina, 6:30 p.m.
Ganesha at Baldwin Park, 6:30 p.m.
Pomona at San Dimas, 6:30 p.m.
Note: All varsity girls games start before the boys games.

San Dimas won the Valle Vista League title with a 5-3 victory over Northview on Tuesday. Ariel Shore, Erika Kalmar, Rachel Quaternik and Shannon McKee each scored in the second half Tuesday as the Saints secured a rare come-from-behind victory. The Saints, who also received a first-half goal from Quaternik, improved to 16-4-4 overall and 9-0 in league. Northview, receiving goals from Natalie Barbera, Marissa Cross and Alyssia Fuentes, slipped to 12-10-2 and 6-3.

Look at these wonderful pictures, taken by award-winning sports photographer Keith Birmingham. Check out Birmingham's photo gallery, whether he's covering the Lakers, Dodgers, Angels, UCLA, USC, or SGV preps, he takes the same time and effort putting these galleries together.

Los Altos 3, Charter Oak 2: -- Los Altos girls soccer coach Chris Reeder knows his team is young and inexperienced, but he never stopped preaching will over skill, and on Wednesday the Conquerors' gutty effort prevailed, just as it has all season long. After falling behind twice, Los Altos rallied for a 3-2 victory over host Charter Oak, and can clinch the Miramonte League title outright with a victory over Wilson Thursday, which would be the Conquerors' first league title since 1993 -- also the last time the Conquerors won a CIF-SS divisional title. The Conquerors improved to 15-7-2 and 4-1-2 while the Chargers dropped to 15-7-2 and 3-3-1.
"To be honest I really didn't expect this from us," Reeder said. "We pretty much got outplayed on the field today. Charter Oak is a great team but our energy picked up in the second half and we started winning 50-50 balls and giving ourselves chances in front of the goal."
After Conquerors' forward Tara Coffer narrowly beat an offside trap and finished on a breakaway to level the match 2-2 in the 68th minute, sophomore midfielder Lauren Stupin delivered the knockout minutes later.
Running down the left flank looking for someone to cross the ball into, Stupin curled a shot toward the far post that kept on curling. It seemed to confuse Chargers goalkeeper Elvia Gonzalez, who back-peddled quickly to get finger on it, but she couldn't stop it from sneaking in, giving Stupin and the Chargers a 75th minute game winner.

Art Torres, the founder of PrepSportsMVP - a national recruiting network that includes over 10,000 college coaches at over 2,000 colleges and universities in every region of the USA, emailed and claimed that eight out of ten kids he works with earn scholarships. That's an extremely high number, but the website is definitely worth checking out.

The Scouting Guru wraps up the 2008 football season with his final thoughts. As always, the man who follows San Gabriel Valley football and beyond, says he will be back in the fall, althought not in the same capacity. I'd like to thank him for all his hard work, which he provides to us free of charge.

Scouting Guru says: So, we have found out that you don't need to be a five-star player to make it to the first round of the NFL Draft. So who are the players that signed last week that we feel have the potential to being quality football players? Well, for the use of this list, we looked at players that are 3-stars or lower on either Rivals or Scout.com. We have five players that we feel have tremendous upsides that will make their colleges happy. Let's call these "red-dot specials."
To continue reading, click thread

I got word from a very good source that Duarte is down to its final few candidates in its search to replace football coach Wardell Crutchfield, fired late last month after principal Eric Barba explained the school wants to move in a different direction. Former Marshall and Blair coach Tip Sanders is believed to be among the final candidates along with former La Puente coach Ray Hernandez, who is also believed to be interested in South El Monte after coach Erick Escamilla's resignation. Duarte could make an announcement as soon as Friday or early next week. Stay tuned.

Whittier Prep editor Roger Murray has been covering high school sports since I was in high school, and he had an interesting take in discussing the difference between an MVP and Player of the year, and the criteria for coach of the year. Here's Roger's explanation.

An MVP is someone who, if subtracted from his team, would have the greatest impact on its success, or lack thereof. A Player of the Year is the individual whom, based upon his talent, you would select first if you were building a team.
Coach of the Year should be the individual who gets the most out of his players. This could be the individual whose team wins the championship even if he or she had the most talent with which to work, or perhaps someone whose roster lacked talent or experience and finished well back in the pack.

Since Charter Oak and Bishop Amat have week one games still available, the two schools have finally had "actual" conversations about meeting up next fall. If it happens it would likely be at Bishop Amat, so stay tuned, my gut feeling is that it's going to happen. Finally.

Also: Word over at South El Monte is that former La Puente coach Ray Hernandez is interested in the position. Stay tuned for more news on that front.

Below: Another cool Amat video. This time you get a rare glimpse of coach Steve Hagerty firing up his troops in the locker room.

This story comes from longtime staffer Jim McConnell, the man we call, "The King" around the office. He writes a weekly Then & Now column.

The power of the press.
Don't laugh. History teaches us not to underestimate the role newspapers play in human events. Especially sporting events.
Many is the athlete whose very first non-parental recognition came via his hometown paper. There remains a certain magic over seeing your name in print - providing it isn't at the top of an obit or in the crime log. Which brings us back to May 24, 1950. The place? The Pasadena Civic Auditorium. The occasion? The Pasadena Star-News Sports Jamboree.
To continue reading click thread

Boys Basketball Top Ten
1. Diamond Ranch (20-4)
No. 1 in Div. III-A; at Nogales at Thursday
2. Nogales (20-6)
A win over Diamond Ranch would be huge heading into postseason
3. Bonita (21-4)
No. 5 in Div. III-A, overall record impressive considering two losses to DRanch
4. Northview (19-6)
No. 5 in Division IV-AA
5. Glendora (19-7)
Another loss to Chino Hills ends Sierra title hopes
6. Workman (18-5)
Cezar Guerrero on fire, averaging 27 points a game
7. Diamond Bar (16-10)
Brahmas have quietly put together a great season
8. Bishop Amat (17-8)
Ugly 2-5 in Del Rey, but should still make playoffs
9. Damien (15-10)
Only way to explain is they lost their confidence along the fall
10. South Hills (15-7)
Solid win over Walnut, still third in San Antonio

Boys Basketball standings
Arrowhead League
Christian League
Del Rey League
San Antonio League
Sierra League
Valle Vista League
Montview League
Mission Valley League
Miramonte League

Above: South Hills player can't believe their 1-0 loss to Walnut. The Mustangs' Krissy Slusser scored with 45 seconds left to clinch the San Antonio League title.

Girls Soccer Top Ten
1. St. Lucy's (14-3-4)
Loss to Ayala snaps 10-game win streak
2. Walnut (14-4-2)
What's new, they beat South Hills again, and win the San Antonio again
3. Bishop Amat (16-2-4)
Great finish, beats La Salle to take over first in Del Rey
4. Glendora (15-7-3)
A solid third-place finish in tough Sierra
5. South Hills (11-8-2)
Finishing against good defensive teams a recurring problem
6. Los Altos (13-7-3)
In Miramonte League drivers seat, but the road is bumpy
7. Diamond Ranch (6-6-3)
Despite overall record, they can still win Miramonte too
8. San Dimas (15-4-4)
Valle Vista League not much of a test for Saints
9. Charter Oak (14-6-3)
Missed playoffs in final week last year; in same situation again.
10. Bonita (10-10-1)
Bearcats better than overall record indicates

Girls Soccer standings
Del Rey League
Christian League
Miramonte League
Mission Valley League
Montview League
San Antonio League
Sierra League
Valle Vista League

Boys Soccer top ten poll
1. Baldwin Park (19-1)
No. 2 in Division V, ready for playoff run
2. Sierra Vista (17-2-2)
Impressive undefeated run in always dangerous Montview
3. Wilson (17-3-2)
Needs huge finish to capture tight Miramonte race
4. Mountain View (14-4-4)
Will win Mission Valley, but not closing strong. But hey, No. 1 in Div. VI
5. West Covina (12-3-2)
Needs win over South Hills to clinch San Antonio outright
6. Los Altos (10-5-3)
Still has shot to share a piece of Miramonte, gets rival Wilson Thursday
7. Diamond Ranch (11-4-1)
Four-time league champs losing grip on league race
8. Rosemead (11-4-4)
Not ranked in Div. VI. Why? The Panthers are a sleeper
9. Bishop Amat (13-5-3)
Great tie against Bishop Montgomery, playoffs next
10. South Hills (11-3-3)
Can't argue with overall record, they can play with anyone

Boys Soccer Standings
Del Rey League
Miramonte League
Mission Valley League
Montview League
San Antonio League
Sierra League
Valle Vista League

1. Diamond Ranch (19-4)
All that matters now is its No. 5 rankings in Div. III-AA
2. Bishop Amat (19-5)
Loss to Serra sort of ruined rematch with St. Paul
3. Sierra Vista (20-3)
Show them love, it's been a terrific season
4. Bonita (16-8)
Much improved, league champ DRanch was just too much
5. Walnut (15-8)
Winning the San Antonio all about coaching
6. South Hills (15-7)
Lost to West Covina ruined San Antonio title hopes
7. West Covina (15-9)
Another very improved team over a year ago
8. Covina (16-7)
Gunning for fifth straight league title on Thursday
9. Northview (15-9)
In position to fight for Valle Vista League title
10. Diamond Bar (12-11)
Tough two-loss week for the Brahmas

strong>Girls Basketball standings
Christian League
Del Rey League
Miramonte League
Mission Valley League
Montview League
San Antonio League
Sierra League
Valle Vista League

From James Escarcega, AKA the "Scouting Guru"
As we finally put the final touches to signing day (or signing week for some of us), one thing that assumes me to no end is how much the national recruiting websites miss on players that are going to be first round draft choice in the NFL. Now, we are here to say that we are the best at what we do, but we try. No service watches as much film as we do and goes out to games to get a feel for a player. But, in this line of business, everyone, and I mean everyone is going to miss out on players. Or have them graded badly. Hey, if the college scouts missed out on Tom Brady, Wes Welker and countless others, its going to happen in high school recruiting.
To continue reading, click thread

Riverside Press reporter Michael Becker wrote this story about a club baseball league that could compete against high school baseball by pulling away its best players. Is this something for baseball fans to be concerned with?

By MICHAEL BECKER
The Press-Enterprise
An Inland man with hefty influence in amateur baseball has formed a club league that could, if successful, compete directly with high school baseball by poaching its most promising athletes. The league -- said to be the first of its kind -- will take place in the spring and provide an alternative opportunity for players dissatisfied with the high school baseball experience, said Mike Spiers, the league's founder. But he is facing stark opposition from high school coaches and administrators who question his motives and worry that such action might someday cripple the high school game.
To continue reading, click thread

With one week before the boys and girls soccer playoffs, who is leading the race for the boys and girls soccer player of the year award? While you're chewing on that, here are the latest CIF rankings heading into this weekends CIF pairings.

Above: The Walnut girls team may have wrapped up the San Antonio League title with last week's thrilling 1-0 victory over South Hills in double overtime, but neither South Hills or Walnut are ranked in Division II.

Boys Soccer
Division IV
1. Norwalk, 2. Sierra Vista, 3. Channel Islands, 4. Estancia, 5. Wilson, 6. North Torrance, 7. Pasadena, 8. Carpinteria, 9. Bishop Amat, 10. Artesia.
Division V
1. Righetti, 2. Baldwin Park, 3. Salesian, 4. Apple Valley, 5. Hesperia, 6. Animo Leadership, 7. Monrovia, 8. Ganesha, 9. Pomona, 10. La Canada.
Division VI
1. Mountain View, 2. Silverado, 3. Buckley, 4. Granite Hills, 5. Arrowhead Christian, 6. Linfield Christian, 7. Brentwood, 8. Valley Christian, 9. Windward, 10. Citrus Hill.

Girls Soccer
Division II
1. Flintridge Sacred Heart, 2. Anaheim Canyon, 3. Harvard-Westlake, 4. St. Lucy's, 5. Chaminade, 6. Saugus, 7. Valencia Valencia, 8. Crescenta Valley, 9. Yucaipa, 10. Canyon Country Canyon.
Division IV
1. Santa Ana Valley, 2. Granite Hills, 3. Serrano, 4. La Serna, 5. California, 6. Santa Ynez, 7. St. Joseph, 8. Sultana, 9. Pacifica, 10. Bishop Amat
Division VI
1. San Jacinto, 2. Ontario Christian, 3. Lancaster Desert Christian, 4. St. Margaret's, 5. Arrowhead Christian, 6. Calvary Murrieta, 7. San Dimas, 8. Malibu, 9. Viewpoint, 10. Desert Hot Springs.

With the boys basketball playoffs beginning next week, who has the best chance of winning or advancing the furthest in the CIF playoffs? Obviously Diamond Ranch, No. 1 in Division III-A, has the best chance and should be the top seed entering next weeks playoffs, as long as they don't stumble on Thursday in a big non-league showdown at Nogales. Here's a quick look at our ranked teams.

Above: This is how Nogales felt after losing to Diamond Ranch earlier this season. They play again on Thursday at Nogales.

Division III-A
1. Diamond Ranch, 2. Sonora, 3. Harvard-Westlake, 4. Golden Valley, 5 Bonita, others. 13 Charter Oak.
Division II-AA
1. Thousand Oaks, 2. Leuzinger, 3. Glendora, 4. Marina, 5. Huntington Beach, others. 11. Walnut
Division III-AA
1. Cambell Hall, 2. Anaheim Canyon, 3. Santa Margarita, 4. Palm Spring, 5. Nogales, others 16. South Hills
Division IV-A
1.Bishop Montgomery, 2. Serra, 3. Ocean View, 4. Inglewood, 5. Northview, others 7. Bishop Amat, 14. South El Monte
Division V-A
1. Windward, 2. La Verne Lutheran, 3. Brethren Christian, 4. Buckley, 5. Sierra Canyon.

This is about the time we start thinking about the boys basketball player of the year. I'll give you ten choices, and feel pretty good that a player from this list will win it all. In no particular order, here is the top ten candidates ...

Chris Cunningham, Diamond Ranch
Cezar Guerrero, Workman
Garrett Johnson, Diamond Ranch
Manny Acosta, South El Monte
Aaron De Anda, Nogales
Nolan Abernathy, Bonita
Randal Guillory, Nogales
Kos Russell, Glendora
Danny Silva, Northview

Anything and anyone you want to talk about

Looking for athlete of the week suggestions and games to be covered. We're in the final week before playoffs, but most of the league titles are all but locked up. So what big games does that leave us with?

Glendora High School's success in big games over the years combined talent with a little Tartan luck.
Karma took some of the back Friday.
Michael Rodriguez scored back-to-back baskets in the final 90 seconds and visiting Chino Hills overcame a nine-point deficit by limiting Glendora to one point in the fourth quarter to score a 41-38 victory over the Tartans in a game featuring the top two teams in the Sierra League.
Glendora had a chance to tie the score in the final five seconds, but Kos Russell's 3-pointer from the left side bounced off the back of the rim as time expired.
Derek Brown had 11 points for Huskies, who took over first place and improved to 20-6 overall and 7-1 in league play. Glendora, getting 13 points from Calvin Smith and 12 from Russell, slipped to 19-7 and 6-2.

Friday's boys basketball games
Sierra League
Chino Hills 41, at Glendora 38
Ayala at Diamond Bar, 7 p.m.
Damien 60, at Chino 40
Miramonte League
Los Altos at Diamond Ranch, 7 p.m.
Wilson at Bonita, 7 p.m.
San Antonio League
At South Hills 70, Walnut 34
Rowland at Nogales, 6:30 p.m.
Mission Valley League
At South El Monte 70, Arroyo 64
Mountain View 25, at Gabrielino 23
Rosemead 48, at El Monte 40
Montview League
Duarte at Workman, 6 p.m.
At Gladstone 46, Bassett 38
Sierra Vista at La Puente, 6 p.m.
Valle Vista League
Baldwin Park 65, at Covina 54
Pomona vs. Northview at Damien HS, 7 p.m.
San Dimas at Ganesha, 7 p.m.
Nonleague
At Charter Oak 53, West Covina 42

When Edgewood High School, my alma mater, closed it doors after the 1988 graduating class, I found myself gravitating toward Bishop Amat football on Friday nights, where a guy named Eric "The Enemy" Bienemy was keeping the Lancers' proud tradition alive.
On the other side of town, a tradition was just taking shape at Glendora High School.
After Mike LeDuc cemented his status as the greatest boys basketball coach in the history of the San Gabriel Valley with his 700th career victory over Diamond Bar on Wednesday, it brought back memories of the early days, which started with a kid named Tracy Murray.
To continue reading, click thread

WALNUT - Walnut High midfielder Krissy Slusser had never scored off a header in high school, and couldn't remember ever finishing one that way.
She won't forget this one.
After a tiring afternoon of rain and back-and-forth action, Slusser scored the most dramatic of goals, heading home Megan Leu's cross with 45 seconds left in double overtime to lift the Mustangs to a 1-0 victory over visiting South Hills on Thursday.
The goal was a dagger for the Huskies (11-8-1, 5-2), who watched the Mustangs (14-4-2, 7-0) celebrate another San Antonio League title.
"It's heartbreaking," Huskies coach Scott Mocabee said. "It's the second time in a row we put ourselves in a spot to possibly win. They're a good team, I can't say we should have or would have won. But you put yourself in spots to win, we get chances, then you come up short and lose like that. It's tough to swallow."
Mustangs assistant Tosha Davda joked with Slusser about finishing with her head, but she was all smiles after knocking home her team-leading 12th goal of the season.
"We just kept fighting," Slusser said. "I don't know how to describe putting that in, I just know it feels great. It was a great cross and I didn't think about it, I just hit it hard and it was perfect."
South Hills dominated the first half, but finishing was a problem with defenders Nikkie McKee, Helena Simich, Marissa Woods and Leu constantly clearing through balls and keeping Huskies forward Natalie Maxey in check.
The Huskies were awarded a free kick at the top of the penalty area early in the second half, but couldn't get a clear shot on frame.
Huskies freshman Mayra Almazan created havoc late, and it nearly paid off when her left-footed shot in the 56th minute narrowly missed wide. Maxey had her chance in the 65th minute, sending a 35-yard shot barely over the crossbar.
In the first OT, Slusser's cross to Erika Garay was headed just over the bar. Minutes later, South Hills' Arianna Vaughn missed a shot at the near post.
Finally, in the 100th minute, Slusser finished it.

To get results into the newspaper, call 626-962-8811, Ext. 2233, 2242 or email to scores@sgvn.com. If you email, make sure to leave a contact number in case one of our reporters has questions. Also, we do not have reporters at every game like football, so the scoreboard is tough to update. If you're at a game, please come back and post the final score in the comments section, thanks.

Anything and anyone you want to talk about

I know everyone's practicing and you want to talk about baseball, and it should be an extremely entertaining season, especially with Bishop Amat and Northview in the same division. But relax, we've still got a month before the season starts. I will reveal that I've decided that Northview gets the cover shot for the baseball preview, because they will be No. 1 out of the gate. They deserve it, they ended No. 1 last year, and with what they have coming back, there's no reason to believe they're not the favorites to repeat. Sorry Bishop boys, you'll have to earn it back. While The Vikes and Lancers are No. 1 and 2 respectively, Bonita is super strong, and so is South Hills, San Dimas and Charter Oak. I'll leave it at that.

Tim Price, who graduated at Duarte in 1985, is believed to be interested in taking over his alma mater after the firing of Wardell Crutchfield. Price, a star at Duarte, has been coaching in Oregon. He had a real successful stint with Jefferson High in Oregon and was the defensive line coach at Southern Oregon from 2005 to 2007. A source called and said his mother still lives in Duarte, and he would like to come back home and coach. I don't know much about him, but he seems to have solid credentials.

A day of tears, pride and dreams realized hit home on national letter of intent signing day, where about a dozen area high school football players made their college choices official during a wild day in the San Gabriel Valley on Wednesday. Diamond Ranch, which advanced to the CIF-Southern Section Southeast Division championship game for the first time in school history, landed an area-best four players to Division I schools, led by cornerback Brandon Sermons, who chose UCLA even though Washington and others were still trying to pry him away early Wednesday.
To continue reading, click thread

Glendora High School has been the face of Valley basketball for more than two decades.
The Tartans' rosters have featured a who's who of the area's best, whether it be Tracy Murray in the 1980s, Cameron Murray and Casey Jacobsen during the 1990s and Davon Roberts, Dominic Tiger-Cortes and Kos Russell this decade.
But the one constant has been coach Mike LeDuc and Wednesday night the Valley's most-successful mentor scored a magical number.
Russell had a game-high 21 points and senior center Brian Downard had 10 points and 11 rebounds as LeDuc earned his 700th career victory with Glendora's 49-37 victory over visiting Diamond Bar in a key Sierra League game.
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Above Glendora coach Mike LeDuc, looking for win No. 700 tonight

Results of those who called in scores
Sierra League
Glendora 49, Diamond Bar 37
Chino Hills 67, Damien 52
Ayala 87, Chino 49
Miramonte League
Diamond Ranch 64, Bonita 55
Del Rey League
Bishop Montgomery 57, Bishop Amat 49
Mission Valley League
South El Monte 61, El Monte 42
Mountain View 64, Arroyo 63, 2OT
Montview League
Sierra Vista 75, Bassett 44
San Antonio League
Nogales 70, Walnut 61
Rowland 63, West Covina 53
Valle Vista
Northview 76, San Dimas 74
Baldwin Park 71, Pomona 50
Nonleague
South Hills 65, Los Altos 55

Anything and anyone you want to talk about

Today's Just Tribbin seeks out the players changing addresses. We just posted that Neiko Padilla is going from South El Monte to South Hills, and South Hills freshman quarterback Travis Santiago has moved to Charter Oak, where he will likely compete against Josiah Thropay for the starting job next fall. Your turn, anything else happening?

This is the time when we see who's changing addresses and it appears South El Monte junior running back/defensive back Neiko Padilla has already checked out and is taking classes at South Hills in preparation for next fall. This is what Padilla told the Mid-Valley news. "There were a few reasons why but it's mainly because my Dad lives out by South Hills and Coach (Erick) Escamilla stepping down here," Padilla said. "I know they have real good program there. It's going to real competitive. It looks like I'll be playing mostly strong safety and little bit of outside linebacker. I've already been working out there." Padilla rushed for 431 yards on 61 carries, and scored seven touchdowns. He had 19 tackles on defense.

The winningest high school boys basketball coach in the history of the San Gabriel Valley is approaching an unthinkable milestone. Mike LeDuc, who began his coaching career at Damien in 1979 before winning four CIF-Southern Section championships with Glendora and coaching three of the top four Southern Section scoring leaders of all time, is gunning for his 700th career victory.
LeDuc, sitting on 699 wins, can earn the big one tonight when the Tartans (18-6, 5-1) host Diamond Bar (15-9, 4-2) at 7 p.m., or at home Friday against Chino Hills (18-6, 5-1), which could ultimately decide the Sierra League title.
To continue reading, click thread

After agreeing to become Wilson High School's next head football coach more than a week ago, the Wildcats made it official on Monday by hiring Northview High assistant Brian Zavala.
He replaces Greg Hoyd, who resigned after one year and a 1-9 record. Hoyd butted heads with the school's boosters and administration and never was well-received. He resigned after being transferred to another school in the district.
To continue reading, click thread

This story comes from longtime staffer Jim McConnell, the man we call, "The King" around the office. He writes a weekly Then & Now column. This week he shares his emails.

It is the age of enlightenment, at least for this columnist. In response to recent columns, several readers have supplied additional information on local high school sports stars.
Andy Sais e-mailed a mini-biography of Mark Costello, the 1950 CIF Large Schools basketball Player of the Year from El Monte High. Costello went on to play for John Wooden at UCLA and graduated with a degree in engineering in 1954.
To continue reading, click thread

Boys Basketball top ten poll
1. Diamond Ranch (18-4)
Too much athleticism and size for the rest of the Valley
2. Bonita (20-3)
Much anticipated rematch with Ranch on Wednesday
3. Nogales (18-6)
They have the tools, but so do the teams ranked above them.
4. Glendora (18-6)
League title could be decided at home Friday against CHills
5. Northview (17-6)
Back in comforts of Valle Vista League
6. Diamond Bar (15-9)
On four-game win streak, at Glendora Wednesday
7. Damien (14-9)
They went from slipping to falling in a blink
8. Workman (16-5)
Not just winning Montview, crushing everyone in path
9. Bishop Amat (16-7)
1-4 in Del Rey. Say goodbye to CIF playoffs
10. Walnut (17-5)
Not bad for tenth-best in Valley.

Boys Basketball standings
Arrowhead League
Christian League
Del Rey League
San Antonio League
Sierra League
Valle Vista League
Montview League
Mission Valley League
Miramonte League

Boys Soccer top ten poll
1. Baldwin Park (17-1)
The depth is everywhere and so is the consistency
2. Sierra Vista (15-2-2)
Handling the Montview with relative ease
3. Wilson (15-3-2)
Couldn't handle rival Los Altos on the road
4. Mountain View (13-4-3)
Managed 1-1 tie on road against Rosemead
5. Los Altos (11-2)
Take your off, 4-0 in the tough Miramonte
6. West Covina (13-2-2)
Beats South Hills in battle for first
7. Diamond Ranch (11-3-1)
Four-time league champs still in the race
8. Bishop Amat (14-5-1)
Leading tight Del Rey League race
9. Rosemead (9-4-4)
Big improvement over year ago
10. South Hills (9-3-3)
West Covina has their number

Note: South Hills not reporting scores, stats or schedule, so they can't be ranked without information.

Boys Soccer Standings
Del Rey League
Miramonte League
Mission Valley League
Montview League
San Antonio League
Sierra League
Valle Vista League

Just like last year, the Miramonte League title is a four-team race that will come down to the final week. The same goes for Bishop Amat in the Del Rey League. It's a situation where you're still in the hunt for league title, but you can also miss the playoffs entirely.

St. Lucy's defender Lynsey Browne is a big reason why the Regents are No. 1

Girls Soccer top ten poll
1. St. Lucy's (12-2-4)
Closing in on prestigious Sierra League title
2. Walnut (10-4-2)
The wining streak is at six, South Hills in town Thursday
3. Glendora (13-7-3)
St. Lucy's in their head, has their number
4. Bishop Amat (14-2-4)
In tight four-team race for Del Rey title.
5. South Hills (11-7-2)
Needs to win a statement game. They get their chance at Walnut
6. Los Altos (13-7-2)
Leading Miramonte by the slimmest of margins
7. Diamond Ranch (5-5-2)
Loses 1-0 to Los Altos, 3-1 in Miramonte
8. San Dimas (13-4-4)
Record getting more impressive each week
9. Charter Oak (12-6-3)
Lose overtime thriller to Bonita
10. Bonita (9-9-1)
In the hunt for Miramonte league title

Girls Soccer standings
Del Rey League
Christian League
Miramonte League
Mission Valley League
Montview League
San Antonio League
Sierra League
Valle Vista League

1. Diamond Ranch (17-4)
They playoffs can't start soon enough. Can they win it all?
2. Bishop Amat (18-4)
Loss to St. Paul all but ends league title hopes
3. Sierra Vista (18-3)
Making it look too easy now
4. Walnut (14-7)
I thought this was supposed to be a rebuilding year?
5. Bonita (15-7)
They're good, just not Diamond Ranch good
6. Diamond Bar (12-9)
Closing in on precious playoff spot in Sierra
7. West Covina (13-9)
Big win over South Hills, then loses to Walnut
8. South Hills (13-7)
Let's face it, they should be better than this.
9. Covina (14-7)
Northview's shocks Colts, three-way tie for first in VVL
10. St. Lucy's (11-8)
Only 2-4 in Sierra; playoffs in serious doubt

Girls Basketball standings
Christian League
Del Rey League
Miramonte League
Mission Valley League
Montview League
San Antonio League
Sierra League
Valle Vista League

As of Monday, this is the list of football players that are expected to sign national letter of intent on Wednesday. This is one of the largest groups we've ever had, and give Diamond Ranch credit, they've got four and Brian Bonilla could be a fifth if he finalizes is plans. For everyone listed below, congratulations and see you in the office for a group picture on signing day. If there are any more football players expected to sign national letters of intent, call or email me.

Isaiah Bowens, Bishop Amat, UCLA
Brandon Sermons, Diamond Ranch, UCLA
Sheldon Price, Bishop Amat, UCLA
Colin Lockett, Diamond Bar, San Diego State
Graham Vickers, Diamond Ranch, Navy
Kyle Lengyel, Diamond Ranch, Air Force
Kyle Salm, San Dimas, Idaho
Cameron Deen, South Hills, Northern Colorado
Greg Reid, Covina, Southern Utah
Brent Seals, Bishop Amat, Stanford
Xavier-Molina Williams, Diamond Ranch, Colgate

The Scouting Guru has been all over the San Gabriel Valley and beyond, and like always, he's offered to share his thoughts, free of charge. Don't hate, enjoy it for what it's worth, which is one man's opinion on the talent in the San Gabriel Valley. Today he offers his post-season high school football thoughts, and the latest in the football recruiting wars.

It's tough to recruit on the west coast if you are coaching in either the WAC or the MWC. Kids can say that they like you, but once the Pac-10 comes calling, kids tend to opt for those schools more than the MWC or the WAC. But, these guys do a really good job year in and year on. So here is a look at some team in the conferences and what kids they took from the SGV and the IE...
To continue, click thread

What role did the blog play in former Bishop Amat coach Mark Verti deciding to resign last season?

After last week's column in which I talked about the large number of coaches getting fired, I received a voice mail from an area coach I don't need to identify, but he said our blog plays a large role in what's happening, because the perception that it creates with reader comments. I haven't met one football coach who has told me they like the blog, but I know they all read it, and they're aware of what's being said. Does it play a role in what's happening? If we never had a blog, would Greg Hoyd still be at Wilson, would Damien have kept Scott Morrison? How about Wardell Crutchfield? I think there is a lot of truth to what the coach said on that voice mail, and he's right, we play a role in the process. Maybe a bigger role that I imagined, but what are we gonna do, blogs and the internet aren't going anywhere.

Anything and anyone you want to talk about

It's that time again, I want your boys and girls athlete of the week suggestions and games that you think have to be covered.

The Scouting Guru has been all over the San Gabriel Valley and beyond, and like always, he's offered to share his thoughts, free of charge. Don't hate, enjoy it for what it's worth, which is one man's opinion on the talent in the San Gabriel Valley. Today he offers his post-season high school football thoughts, and the latest in the football recruiting wars.

As we get you ready for signing day on Wednesday, we felt that it was time to take a look at some of the schools that did well and other that didn't do so well. We are taking our perspective based on the players from the SGV and the IE. So without further adieu, it's time today to take a look at the Pac-10 schools. And we'll start with the men of Troy...

To read, click thread