Softball: Glendora earns shot at San Dimas; South El Monte blanks Arroyo


Above: Brandi Andrews is all smiles Friday after her three-run homerun helped
Glendora to a 10-2 victory over El Rancho. Next up, San Dimas.

Friday Update: Brandi Andrews, Kendra Alfonso and Katrina Brandt all hit home runs and Carly Argyle was solid in the circle with eight strikeouts as Glendora rolled into Saturday’s Charter Oak Tournament championship game with an easy 10-2 victory over El Rancho in the semifinals. Next up is San Dimas, which beat Covina 11-1 in the other semifinal on Monday. Game time is Saturday….Reina Gaber was solid in the circle, tossing a four-hitter with seven strikeouts as South El Monte took sole possession of first place in the Mission Valley League with a 1-0 victory over Arroyo. Demi Nguyen had an RBI single in the fourth.

Other scores
Valle Vista League
Northview 5, Covina 3
Montview League
La Puente 3, Gladstone 2
San Antonio League
West Covina 5, Rowland 0

Softball Standings and Schedules
Del Rey League
Miramonte League
Mission Valley League
Montview League
San Antonio League
Sierra League
Valle Vista League

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Track: San Gabriel Valley Invite on Saturday at West Covina High School, 10 a.m.

Note: For the Area’s top track marks, click thread.

The fourth annual San Gabriel Invitational at West Covina High School on Saturday is picking up steam, with 29 schools already scheduled to take part, which could balloon up to 35 schools by the weekend. “Last year’s meet was the biggest yet, with 22 schools taking part despite the conflict with the Mt SAC Relays, and it was the deepest meet so far,” explained meet organizer, Bob Ramsey. “This year we hope to expand the meet to include many more of the 55 schools in our target area and to take further steps toward becoming a complete and high quality regional championship meet.” Saturday’s meet begins at 10 a.m., and will feature some of the area’s top track standouts, like Diamond Ranch’s Karynn Dunn Dunn, a senior, is the state leader in the girls long jump with a personal best 20-foot leap that she turned in at the Covina Invitational, followed by a 19-foot, 10 inch jump to win at Arcadia.Dunn, hoping to repeat her performance of three CIF-SS divisional titles next month, is hoping to advance to the state finals in the 100-meter hurdles and triple jump as well as her signature event, the long jump. Dunn has the fourth-best triple jump in California with a 39-7 at Arcadia. In the 100-meter hurdles she currently holds the eighth-best time in the state with a 14.34, which she is expected to improve upon. The boys meet includes shot put specialist Graham Vickers of Diamond Ranch, Bishop Amat speedster Sheldon Price, and the big surprise from Saturday’s Mt. SAC Relays, Glendora’s Chris Ramsey, who won the 800-meter invitational, and leads the area in two other events, the 400-meters and 1,500-meters.

Continue reading “Track: San Gabriel Valley Invite on Saturday at West Covina High School, 10 a.m.” »

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Legendary coach Jim Brownfield: The Ten Commandments of coaching

Joe Amat made a good point that Jim Brownfield, the legendary Muir football and track and field coach, didn’t get enough discussion on a recent thread. Brownfield told our reporter Jim McConnell that through the years, in addition to preaching the virtues of Wooden’s Pyramid of Success, he developed what he called “The Ten Commandments of Coaching.”

Here they are:

1. Safety First, Last and Always. “The worst thing a coach can do isn’t to lose,” Brownfield said. “It is not being attentive to the things that can prevent injuries. That’s why I made this commandment No. 1. You have to take care of your kids. Injuries happen, but you can do a lot to minimize them.”

2. Just Do The Right Thing. “You need to know the rules, and obey them. Once you start trying to cut corners, to cheat even a little bit, your players know it immediately. And you lose their respect. Once that’s gone, you’ve lost their attention.”

3. Teach Life Skills. “I had winning teams and was lucky enough to have some great athletes. But nothing makes me prouder than to know my players went on to have productive lives. You coach football, or basketball, or track but you also can do so much more. Nothing is more gratifying than to have a positive impact on a kid’s life.”

4. Know Your Clientele. “You should never expect more out of an athlete than they are capable of giving. This is especially true of young athletes. Coaches have to know their players’ strengths, and weaknesses. It’s just unfair to the kid not to.”

5. Their Bodies Are Their Temples. “This is where proper training and conditioning come in. Other teams may have had better athletes, but I never wanted a team of mine to lose because of lack of proper conditioning. And that includes making sure your athletes understand the dangers of substance abuse.”

6. Good Coaching is Good Teaching. “What works in a classroom will work on the football field. A great coach is always first and foremost a great educator.”

7. Be A Student of the Game. “You should always be learning. Attend clinics. Talk to other coaches. Watch game film. If you aren’t really interested in the sport you’re coaching, how in the world can you expect your athletes to be interested?”

8. Plan Ahead. “Sounds simple, but I am always amazed at how many in coaching and teaching are so disorganized. You have to have a plan. You should never be surprised or caught off-guard.”

9. Develop Your People Skills. “Hey, you’re not coaching donkeys, you’re coaching human beings. You need to learn how to communicate. You need to keep your commitments. Treat your players right and they will do right by you.”

10. Be a Pro. “You’re getting paid, act like it. Strive to better yourself. You want to get paid more? Better yourself first.”

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Softball: Ariel Whiteman’s walk off beats St. Paul


Above: Ariel Whiteman struck out 13 and hit the game-winning home run to
lead Bishop Amat over rival St. Paul on Thursday.

Ariel Whiteman did it all in leading Bishop Amat to a 2-1 victory over rival St. Paul in 10 innings on Thursday.
The senior was dominant in the circle, giving up just two hits and striking out 13. She also had the game-winning hit, a two-out bomb to left field to give Amat an important vicory in the Del Rey League. The Lancers are now 11-10 and 1-2 in league play. St. Paul slipped to 9-10, 1-2.
Ariel Whiteman: “I got it all the way to the full count and that pitch was right there. That was my pitch. I’ve been waiting for it all day long.”
Bishop Amat coach Jesse Mendez: “This was a big win for us today. We had to have it. (Both teams) came to play today. St. Paul is a good team, and Ariel did an awesome job today. We’re just working hard. We lost a tough one to (Bishop) Montgomery, which was the same type of game. But these girls are ready to make a run.”
St. Paul coach Craig Worthington: “This was a great game to be in. Both teams battled and it just came down to execution.”

Other scores:
Miramonte League

Los Altos 9, Charter Oak 2
Wilson 7, Diamond Ranch 5
Montview League
Azusa 7, Workman 3
Sierra League
Glendora 8, St. Lucy’s 0
BASEBALL
Christian League

Western Christian 17, Loma Linda 4
Montview League
Gladstone 11, Duarte 4
La Puente 12, Workman 0
Sierra League
Damien 6, Glendora 3
Diamond Bar 9, Ayala 3

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Releaguing 2010: South Hills, Charter Oak, Glendora, Rowland file appeals; coaches react

By Fred J. Robledo, Staff Writer
Say goodbye to some of the best league rivalries in recent years, including Damien-Glendora, West Covina-South Hills and Los Altos-Wilson. The 42 high schools that compete in the Mt. SAC area voted on new league alignments for 2010 on Wednesday. Glendora, South Hills and Charter Oak understandably were disappointed with the results. After Tuesday’s 4 1/2 hour meeting that took 15 votes before a proposal was finally accepted, four schools met Wednesday’s deadline to submit appeals: Charter Oak, Glendora, Rowland and South Hills.
The appeals are scheduled to be heard on May 6.

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Baseball: Sierra Vista and La Puente headed for an old-fashioned showdown in May


Sierra Vista did everything they could to interrupt my Lakers plans on Wednesday, using almost four hours to rally from a 5-2 deficit in the seventh inning to tie it 5-5, sending it into extra innings, like I needed more of that blistering sun. But it was worth it, the Dons completed the thrilling comeback with a 6-5 victory in 11 innings when Christian Huerta’s game-winning double brought home Michael Lomeli for the game-winner. With La Puente’s 15-5 win over Workman, the Montview League is beginning two shape into a two-team race. La Puente (10-5, 6-1) and Sierra Vista (12-5, 6-1) are tied for first and will meet in a home and home on May 5 and 7, which could very well determine the league champion.

Today’s games
Miramonte League
Wilson at Charter Oak, 3:15 p.m.
Diamond Ranch at Bonita, 3:15 p.m.
San Antonio League
Nogales at Walnut, 3:15 p.m.
West Covina at Rowland, 3:15 p.m.
Mission Valley League
El Monte at Gabrielino, 3:15 p.m.
South El Monte at Rosemead, 3:15 p.m.
Mountain View at Arroyo, 3:15 p.m.

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Area Releaguing set for 2010: Glendora gets the boot east, SHills, Charter Oak in tough, and why is Diamond Ranch still hanging out in the SGV?

This is the new league alignment as passed by Mt. SAC Area Principals on Tuesday.
Baseline League – Alta Loma, Etiwanda, Glendora, Los Osos, Rancho Cucamonga, Upland
Sierra League – Ayala, Charter Oak, Chino Hills, Claremont, Damien/St. Lucy’s, South Hills
Miramonte/San Antonio League – Bonita, Diamond Bar, Diamond Ranch, Los Altos, Rowland, Walnut, West Covina
Mt. Baldy League – Chaffey, Chino, Colony, Don Lugo, Garey, Montclair, Ontario
Valle Vista League – Baldwin Park, Covina, Nogales, Northview, Pomona, San Dimas, Wilson
Montview League – Azusa, Bassett, Duarte, Ganesha, Gladstone, La Puente, Sierra Vista, Workman

Big Winners: Diamond Ranch, Wilson, Damien, Nogales
Big Losers: Glendora, South Hills, Charter Oak

Fred’s thoughts: Here we are worried about operating costs, travel, and teachers getting pink slips, and this committee goes ahead and approves a proposal that makes little geographical sense. Again, rationale decisions take a back-seat to personal agendas, and who pays, the schools. Glendora moves out of the Sierra League and will have it tough for years to come in the Baseline. Competive-wise, they will be okay, but lots of travel. Kind of sad when your closest league opponent is Upland, with Bonita, Damien, and Charter Oak around the corner. But that would make sense. For what it’s worth, I like the Sierra League. I would have flip-flopped Chino Hills and Glendora (geographical/competitive reasons), but I like South Hills, Charter Oak and Damien all in the same league. How Damien got this lucky, I don’t know. Why isn’t Diamond Ranch among these teams if you’re going to leave them in the SGV? Shouldn’t they be in the toughest SGV group if they stay? Chino Hills will make the Sierra extremely tough across the board, and so will Ayala. The Miramonte/San Antonio league is the best the SGV has to offer with upper-tier sports schools not named Charter Oak, South Hills and Glendora. My question, why they heck is Diamond Ranch in there. Again, this is the price South Hills and Charter Oak pay for being good. It make complete geographical sense for one of them to be in this league, and no sense whatsoever for Diamond Ranch to be in it. But here’s the kicker, Diamond Ranch and Diamond Bar in the same league. It’s on now fellas. The Valle Vista adds Wilson and Noglaes, which is huge relief for the Cats and Nobles and will raise their athletic profile now that they will be able to win again. Other than that, what do you think?

I’m writing local reaction for tomorrow, and thought I would share some of it ...
South Hills football coach Steve Bogan welcomes the challenge of competing in the Sierra League, but wonders why principals would vote for a proposal that will further strain the school’s operating costs. With West Covina a few blocks down the road and Walnut around the corner, South Hills is now being asked to travel to Claremont, Ayala and Chino Hills. “This (Sierra) looks like a heck of a football league, and it’s a great challenge for us to try and compete,” Bogan said. “But as a school, when I look at our size and the transportation costs, especially when it comes to the lower-level sports, it doesn’t make much sense. This is going to be a huge travel cost. The Covina school district is closing two (elementary) schools and laying-off teachers, where are we going to get the (gas) money for these additional costs, not to mention the extra-time the kids have to spend traveling. There is no free lunch, the money has to come from somewhere.”


I don’t know if South Hills coach Steve Bogan will have this much vacation time in the new league. South Hills, Charter Oak and Damien? Which school reigns supreme?

Reaction from the Bulletin’s Pete Marshall, who was there: Someone was going to be unhappy, and it turns out it is Glendora and South Hills. I firmly believe that Damien/St. Lucy’s was a better fit competitive-equity wise for the Baseline League, but the Chaffey district schools blocked that possibility. Glendora wanted relief from the Sierra League, only to be placed in a tougher league. Glendora will likely appeal on competitive equity grounds, as Glendora officials repeatedly said as the school’s name kept being mentioned in the Baseline League. South Hills’ issue is more with geography, and transportation costs that would rise. But, competitive equity has been determined to be the No. 1 criteria. South Hills should be able to compete in the Sierra League, which it is under the new plan. Just like there are a lot of schools that don’t want to be in the same league as Damien/St. Lucy’s, there are also a lot to the west that don’t want to be in the same league as South Hills. Last time that happened, it was 8 years ago, and South Hills’ fellow Covina Valley schools Covina and Northview wanted to be separated from South Hills, after the trio had been together in the Valle Vista League.

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