October 2009 Archives

Rowland coach Craig Snyder informed us this morning that junior quarterback Michael Ball is out at least six weeks with a broken collarbone suffered in Friday's 27-7 victory over Walnut. Ball helped lead the Raiders to a perfect 6-0 record and the No. 1 ranking in the Southeast Division. Walnut's Aubrey Coleman, shown in this picture below, almost spun Ball's head around by the facemask and was given an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, and later in the game drew another unsportsmanlike call, though was never ejected from the game. "It was a blatant cheap shot," Snyder said. "He (Coleman) tackled all night going for the head. When you watch him tackle, his arms are always going above the pads. I know that (Walnut coach) Mike O'Shields doesn't teach that, he's a great coach, but that kid should have been thrown out of the game. For a 15-yard penalty we lose one of the best players in the Valley for probably the whole season, it's heartbreaking. Michael's obviously crushed, he was having a great season and it's over in the snap of a finger."

Steve and I will go head-to-head throughout the season. Here is our updated records on the Tribskin Pick'em thread.

Robledo: Last week/Total: 10-6/98-32
Ramirez: Last week/Total: 13-3/91-39

Last Week: Steve is chipping away, making up three games over the weekend to cut my lead to seven. The big differences were that he took South Hills over West Covina, Northview over Pomona and Baldwin Park over Covina, which obviously I missed and missed badly. We both missed terribly picking Damien. I was getting text message updates from my buddy Tom and by the end of the first quarter, that game was over.
This week: Not a real difficult time making these picks, if I lose more than two something's wrong. The only real difficult games were Los Altos-Bonita, of which I took L.A., and Alemany-Bishop Amat, which of course I'm sticking with the Lancers (even though Alemany is 4-2 with a win over Crespi). I would have included Damien-Glendora in the toss-ups, but not after what Chino Hills did to the Spartans on Friday.

This week's games and predictions
Thursday's games
Azusa vs. Gladstone at Citrus College, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Azusa); Ramirez (Azusa)
Baldwin Park vs. Pomona at Ganesha, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (BPark); Ramirez (Pomona)
Friday's games
Bonita at Los Altos, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Los Altos); Ramirez (Los Altos)
Diamond Ranch vs. Charter Oak at Ganesha, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (COak); Ramirez (Ch. Oak)
El Monte at South El Monte, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (SElMonte); Ramirez (El Monte)
Gabrielino at Arroyo, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Arroyo); Ramirez (Arroyo)
Mountain View at Rosemead, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Rosemead); Ramirez (Rosemead)
La Puente at Bassett, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (La Puente); Ramirez (La Puente)
Workman vs. Sierra Vista at La Puente, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Workman); Ramirez (Workman)
South Hills at Nogales, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (South Hills); Ramirez (South Hills)
Walnut at West Covina, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (West Covina); Ramirez (West Covina)
Damien vs. Glendora at Citrus College, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Glendora); Ramirez (Glendora)
Diamond Bar at Ayala, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Ayala): Ramirez (Ayala)
Covina at San Dimas, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (San Dimas); Ramirez (San Dimas)
Ganesha vs. Northview at Covina District, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Northview); Ramirez (Northview)
Alemany at Bishop Amat, 7:30 p.m. -- Robledo (Bishop Amat); Ramirez (Bishop Amat)
Wilson at Rowland, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Rowland); Ramirez (Rowland)

Anything and anyone you want to talk about

Quotable:"That's unreal," former Lancers and UCLA corner Sheldon Price said of Bishop Amat's start. "When you think of who they lost - myself, DeShawn Gaisie, Isaiah Bowens and all those guys on defense - I would have never expected it. They're having a better year than we had (7-4). I'm so proud of them. It all goes to show what hard work can get you."

Game of the week? There are four under consideration, Charter Oak-Diamond Ranch, Damien-Glendora, Walnut-West Covina, Alemany-Bishop Amat.
Bishop Amat history?: The 6-0 start is the best this decade, can anyone tell me the last time a Lancers team started 6-0 or better?
More Bishop Amat: It's just a thought, but someone over there should start inputting stats on MaxPreps or provide some public forum for fans to access stats. If Bishop Amat can sell season seats, they can certainly provide stats for the community.
Athletes of the week: Looking for nominations for boys and girls athletes of the week.

Thursday's games
Azusa vs. Gladstone at Citrus College, 7 p.m.
Baldwin Park vs. Pomona at Ganesha, 7 p.m.
Friday's games
Bonita at Los Altos, 7 p.m.
Diamond Ranch vs. Charter Oak at Ganesha, 7 p.m.
El Monte at South El Monte, 7 p.m.
Gabrielino at Arroyo, 7 p.m.
Mountain View at Rosemead, 7 p.m.
La Puente at Bassett, 7 p.m.
Workman vs. Sierra Vista at La Puente, 7 p.m.
South Hills at Nogales, 7 p.m.
Walnut at West Covina, 7 p.m.
Chino Hills at Chino 7 p.m.
Damien vs. Glendora at Citrus College, 7 p.m.
Diamond Bar at Ayala, 7 p.m.
Covina at San Dimas, 7 p.m.
Ganesha vs. Northview at Covina District, 7 p.m.
Alemany at Bishop Amat, 7:30 p.m.
Wilson at Rowland, 7 p.m.

Wallace Gonzalez's hardship transfer request to Bishop Amat was denied by CIF-Southern Section officials on Friday, ruling that Gonzalez is not eligible for any sports the remainder of the school year, including baseball. Gonzalez, a junior wide receiver, played one game for Glendora before leaving the team for reasons Tartans coach Mark Pasquarella described as "mutual." A week later, he left the school and enrolled at Bishop Amat.

Friday's results
Rowland 27, Walnut 7 -- The Raiders' remain perfect but it was costly. Quarterback Michael Ball left the field in an ambulance, a possible injury to his collarbone. The Raiders' D was mighty impressive again.
South Hills 27, West Covina 6 -- This wasn't even as close as the score indicated. South Hills rushed for 277 team yards with Geoffrey Vaughns going for 167 yards and two TDs. The Bulldogs only had two first downs midway through the fourth.
Bishop Amat 38, St. Paul 6 -- We know this isn't one of the better St. Paul teams but still, the Lancers put them away like a Pac-5 power should.
Arroyo 14, Rosemead 12 -- The Panthers didn't want to give up the Mission Valley league title without a fight, and that's what they gave the Knights, who won't lose an MVL game the rest of the way.
Baldwin Park 28, Covina 7 -- The Braves needed a statement win, and beating the Colts as thoroughly as they did makes a statement.
La Puente 32, Workman 7 -- Did I just type that? A week after the Warriors get hammered by Azusa, they do the hammering against a crosstown rival.
Charter Oak 31, Bonita 0 -- Just what you expected from the defending champs, who for all intents and purposes can wrap up league next week against Diamond Ranch.
Chino Hills 38, Damien 7 -- This was a step-back bigtime. The Spartans should have been able to make a better game of this with two weeks at home to prepare. Guess what, Glendora's next.
Glendora 40, Diamond Bar 19 -- The Tartans rolled, and now can get ready to face Damien at Citrus College on Friday.
Azusa 34, Sierra Vista 13 -- Not a bad showing for the Dons, but once again, the Aztecs just too much.
Los Altos 54, Wilson 17 -- It was only 14-10 Los Altos at half, but the Conqs opened it up in the second half. The game ended with an ugly scene as fans piled onto the field.
Gladstone 40, Duarte 14 -- The Happy Rockers roll over the punchless Falcons.
Gabrielino 21, El Monte 14 -- Somebody had to win, right?
South El Monte 35, Mountain View 6 -- Did we wee the Eagles have a terrible non-league a few years back then rally to win league? Just saying.

For quarter-by-quarter updates of tonight's games, click thread

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 and teams in the San Gabriel Valley and surrounding areas.

The Guru Says: We are officially at the halfway point in the season. Rather than give your favorite team grades and make a fool out of myself (did I say that it would take a miracle for a Bishop Amat to defeat St. Bonaventure...I meant to say that it would take St. Bonnie's a miracle to win over Amat...yeah, right. And what is going to happen next...the Dodgers are going to sweep the Cardinals and take on Philly in the NLCS...oh wait - that happened too?...This has been some year!), I wanted to go in a different direction.

By Andrew J. Campa, Staff Writer
With seemingly all the history and present factors stacked against it, maybe it's fitting that the St. Paul High School football team is looking for venerable coach Marijon Ancich to lead it to a victory versus archrival Bishop Amat on Friday. The visiting Lancers (5-0 overall) ride into the 7:30 p.m. contest as high as they've ever been this decade, two weeks removed from a stunning victory over state power St. Bonaventure, 24-23.
Bishop Amat is ranked No. 11 in the entire CIF-Southern Section by calpreps.com and is eighth in the Pac-5 Division in this week's CIF-SS poll.

For quarter-by-quarter updates of tonight's games, click thread

Thursday's Results
Pomona 28, Northview 10: Pomona High School, based on the nonleague portion of its schedule, hadn't received much respect.
The Red Devils earned a little Thursday night.
Darrian Lewis threw for 107 yards and two touchdowns and Taj Teague scored two touchdowns and Pomona opened Valle Vista League play with a 28-10 victory over Northview at Covina District Field.
Pomona, also getting 69 yards rushing and a touchdown from Jamal Overton, improved to 5-1. Northview, which received 122 yards rushing from Kameron Germany, slipped to 1-5.
Pomona coach John Brown: "We just played the schedule they gave us. I took over, there was a schedule there and we played it. People are going to bash it, but the truth to it is, 4-1 is 4-1. No matter which way you put it. We're a 4-1 team and that's what we are. Now we're 5-1."
Northview coach Jim Arellanes: They hit us with some big plays. We just couldn't execute, and make things happen. It's kind of been the story of our season."

San Dimas 63, Ganesha 0: Sophomore quarterback Shawn Kennedy completed 6 of 8 passes for 148 yards and two touchdowns, including a 63-yarder to Dillon Corona that began a 28-point second-quarter flurry and the Saints rolled to a 42-0 half-time edge. San Dimas compiled 387 yards, 242 in the first to improve to 5-1 in its Valle Vista League opener.
San Dimas coach Bill Zernickow: "Obviously our intensity needs to increase next week. But we got some good experience tonight. Our young guys all got to play and we're hoping that will pay off for us in the future."
Ganesha coach Dave Flemming: "We've taken a few steps back. We lost some key seniors from last year but give these kids credit. They tried hard. We're looking forward to getting into that new league next year."

By Pete Marshall, Bulletin: The Sierra League football season last year was quite a race, with Chino Hills, Ayala and Glendora finishing in a three-way tie for the top. These are the same three expected to battle for the top spot this year. As league play opens this week, perhaps a fourth team could battle for the league crown, too.
"I don't care that their record is 1-4," Ayala coach Tom Inglima said. "They look very good." That 1-4 team is Damien, which has played one of the toughest nonleague schedules around. Damien's nonleague opponents are a combined 22-4 this season, and the Spartans lost their past two games to La Puente Bishop Amat and Covina Charter Oak by a combined 12 points. To continue reading, click thread

Los Altos High School football coach Felipe Aguilar and first-year Wilson coach Brian Zavala want to make sure the annual rivalry game - when the two schools compete for "The Wheel" - doesn't end after this season. The CIF-Southern Section Council is expected to cast its final vote on Oct. 22 to decide the Mt. SAC area league realignment for the 2010-14 seasons, with Wilson expected to move to the Valle Vista League while Los Altos remains in the Miramonte League. The schools haven't always been in the same league, but they have met annually since 1969, with Los Altos owning a 31-11-1 record, which includes playoff encounters. To continue reading, click thread

Once again, a local coach has stepped up and offered to help give insight to what's going on in cross country. This comes from Glendora assistant coach Bob Ramsey

Said Ramsey: Last weeks major was the San Gabriel Valley 1 v 1 Championships, where many local teams made their Mt. SAC debut.† The St. Lucy's girls won the team title, while South El Monte's Jayson Perez and Bonita's frosh pair, Lexie Jackson and Marissa Scott were the top individuals, as the girls were in the Miramonte League race earlier in the week.† Full coverage of these meets is below.
Also on Saturday, Rosemead traveled to the statewide Clovis Invitational, run over the same 5k course that hosts the State Championships.† Seniors Brittnie Munoz and Elizabeth Lyons led the Panthers to a high finish in their race, while Christopher Le was the team's top boy. To Continue Reading, click thread

Correspondent John Honell is a longtime contributor to the Tribune, and well-known throughout the San Gabriel Valley. He knows the area's history, coaches, and always seems to have insider information. He will share some of it with his "Touching Base" pieces that will run from time to time.

Back at the plate
Just returned from "A taste of St. Louis." That is an annual street event staged by downtown restaurants with the Arch in the background. Good, cheap ($2 for an appetizer sized sample) food is something I've never been able to pass up. Former Diamond Bar star, Jim Edmonds has a steak house in St. Louis called, remarkably "Jim Edmonds Steakhouse." He has been traded to the Cubs (much hated in St. Louis) but his steakhouse serves a super horseradish Bar-B-Q sauce. Even though the Cubs - Cardinals rivalry is longer and more intense than the Dodgers - Giants, Edmonds received a standing ovation on his first trip back. (I used to think the Angels would have been better off getting rid of Tim Salmon and kept Edmonds. The Angels were right and,
once again, I was wrong. To touch all the bases, click thread

By Pete Marshall: The St. Lucy's volleyball team isn't facing much adversity from its Sierra League opponents so far this season. On Tuesday, the Regents had to overcome what they perceived as a bit of adversity from officials. It still wasn't enough, though, as St. Lucy's swept Ayala 25-21, 25-12, 25-18 at Ayala High School.

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL TOP 10

1. St. Lucy's (12-3)
2. Walnut (11-3)
3. South Hills (6-4)
4. Bonita (7-5)
5. Glendora (5-2)
6. Los Altos (9-4)
7. Ganesha (13-3)
8. San Dimas (8-3)
9. Gladstone (17-5)
10. Bishop Amat (10-3)
Notes: Normally, I don't like leap-frogging a team when the team above has done everything asked of them, like Walnut did last week, sweeping two opponents. But it was just too hard to ignore what St. Lucy's did last week. The Regents not only swept two opponents, but did it against two of the better teams in the Sierra League in Chino Hills and Glendora, and the Tartans also were our No. 1 team the past few weeks. St. Lucy's now has defeated two teams ranked our top five its past two matches. It does set up a monster match on Thursday between Nos. 2 and 3 at South Hills. The two teams have split their last four matches, including the past two going five games. Thursday should be no different. Glendora dropped down four slots to No. 4, but when they get swept and the teams ahead of them all swept opponents, including Bonita winning in three against ranked Los Altos, it was explainable. Tonight we have a big non-league match between Los Altos and South Hills. But I will be at the big Montview League showdown between defending champion La Puente and preseason favorite Gladstone. Both teams are 4-0 in league play.

TUESDAY'S RESULTS
La Puente def. Gladstone, 25-14, 25-18, 20-25, 25-14 - The Warriors won their 20th consecutive Montview League match to take over the league title chase, improving to 8-10 and 5-0. Gladstone, ranked No. 5 in CIF-SS Division 4-A, slipped to 17-6, 4-1. Rocio Armendariz had 14 kills and Elisa Valenzuela had eight for La Puente. Marissa Flores led Gladstone with nine kills.
La Puente coach Daniel Krawiec: "It's exciting beating Gladstone. The girls were nervous before the (match), but once it started we got into rhythm. This was the best we played all year."
Gladstone coach Jeff Divine: "We were out of sync. One of our problems has been hitting errors, but lately we've been overcoming that.
"La Puente had a good defense, but our setting was inconsistent. The hitters were trying to things they couldn't normally do."

Other Scores
Miramonte League
Bonita def. Diamond Ranch, 25-19, 25-22, 25-8
Wilson def.Charter Oak, 25-19, 20-25, 25-22, 25-15
San Antonio League
Walnut def. Nogales, 25-8, 25-7, 25-4
Sierra League
St. Lucy's def. Ayala, 25-21, 25-12, 25-18
Glendora def. Chino Hills, 25-15, 25-20, 22-25, 26-24

The CIF-state appeals board ruled against South Hills' Jordan and Jamie Canada, who have not played football for the Huskies, and who will likely sit out the remainder of the season unless a family attorney files an injunction through the state courts and is successful, which is considered a longshot. The brothers were hoping the state appeals board would overturn the CIF-Southern Section's decision to declare them ineligible after transferring from Duarte High School to South Hills. The Canada's mother, Gala Canada, moved with her sons to the South Hills high school district over the summer and filed a "change of address" request through the school in hopes of her sons becoming eligible.
However, that request was denied by CIF after Duarte officials filed paperwork with the CIF-SS offices claiming the Canada's left to South Hills for "athletically motivated," reasons.

By Jim McConnell, Staff Writer
This month, former Los Altos High School football coach Dwayne DeSpain will be inducted into the CIF Hall of Fame. It's an honor long overdue. DeSpain's credentials speak for themselves. More than 30 years in education. Over 200 coaching wins. Nineteen consecutive winning seasons. Ten league titles. Seven CIF-Southern Section titles.

Tribune Top Ten
1. Bishop Amat (5-0) - We may need Joe Amat's help on this, but as far as I can tell, this is the best Lancers start since beginning 4-0 in the Del Rey League in 2001 when they finished 9-2, and obviously the best start ever since moving to the Serra League. With St. Paul next, there's no reason to believe they won't make it 6-0.
2. Charter Oak (5-1) - The Chargers might not be perfect, but considering they beat two very good teams in Damien and Etiwanda a week after losing to Rancho Cucamonga, they're still very, very good and probably won't lose another game.
3. Rowland (5-0) - The most impressive stat other than being undefeated is that the Raiders are beating teams by a Valley best 25-point margin. They're averaging nearly 40 points on offense, and allowing just 14 a game. That's what I call a "wow" factor.
4. Walnut (5-0) - Is this the point of the season where the rubber meets the road for the Mustangs? Are they good enough to challenge for the league title? Are they good enough to make the playoffs. We will all soon find out.
5. West Covina (3-3) - Not ranked or even listed in "others" in the Southeast rankings, the Bulldogs are still considered by many to be the "actual" San Antonio League favorites, and what better way to start league than with rival South Hills.
6. Glendora (3-2) - The Tartans' victory over El Dorado was by far their most impressive of the season. Offensively and defensively, they're starting to click, and what better time to do so than with league starting up.
7. South Hills (3-2) - The Huskies learned this week that Jordan and Jamie Canada's state appeal was denied, so the question now becomes are they good enough to contend with what they will have the rest of the way.
8. San Dimas (4-1) - After losing to Monrovia a couple weeks back, the Saints needed a "swag" victory over Bonita to feel good about themselves heading into the Valle Vista. Guess what, they got it.
9. Baldwin Park (4-1) -- The verdict is still out as the Braves open the VVL with a much improved Covina squad that is 3-2 and hoping to become the league sleeper.
10. Damien (1-4) -- The Spartans' second season begins on Friday against Chino Hills followed by Glendora next week. Talk about a tough way to start the Sierra.

The Middle 10
11. Azusa (5-1), 12. Arroyo (3-2), 13. Workman (4-1), 14. Wilson (4-1), 15. Covina (2-3), 16. Los Altos (2-3), 17. La Puente (4-2), 18. Diamond Ranch (1-5), 19. Gladstone (4-1), 20. Bonita (1-4).

On the bottom looking up
21. Sierra Vista (3-2), 22. Rosemead (1-4), 23. Northview (1-4), 24. Nogales (2-4), 25. Bassett (3-3), 26. Diamond Bar (0-5), 27. El Monte (0-5), 28. South El Monte (0-5), 29. Mountain View (0-5), 30. Ganesha (0-5), 31. Duarte (0-6)

By Steve Ramirez
As far as Michael Ball is concerned, nothing has changed. The junior quarterback is still one of three main options for the Rowland High School football team, and the Raiders are still one of the top teams in the CIF-Southern Section Southeast Division. "Last year I had a lot of players to work with, the coaching staff was great and I felt we really worked well together as a team," Ball said. "We had team leaders and it all came together. This year, it's just like last year, except we have new players and a new system.
"It really doesn't change anything for me. I'm going to still play my game. If (the defense) focuses on me more, that gives my teammates like Josh (Onovughe) to show what he has, or (receiver Leonardo Freeman) to do what he can do. If the pressure is on me, I can get it to one of them, and they'll do the job."

By Fred J. Robledo, Staff Writer
Friday's battle of unbeatens between the Southeast Division's top-ranked Rowland (5-0) and No. 2 Walnut (5-0) in the San Antonio League opener could go down to the wire. If it does, a girls soccer player might decide it. Walnut junior Nikki McKee, a center back and midfielder on the girls soccer team, also is the Mustangs' placekicker on extra points and - guess what - is 19 for 19. "I'm not surprised at all," Mustangs coach Mike O'Shields said. "She's accurate in practice, too."

CIF-Southern Section Polls
Southeast Division
1. Rowland (5-0), 2. Walnut (5-0), 3. Charter Oak (5-1), 4. South Hills (3-2), 5. Burbank (4-1), 6. Santa Fe (4-1), 7. Bell Gardens (4-1), 8. Crescenta Valley (3-2), 9. Alhambra (3-1), 10. El Rancho (3-2); Others: Burroughs (3-2), Whittier (3-2), Wilson (3-2). Explanation please: Where's West Covina (3-3), not even a mention?
Pac-5 Division
1. Edison (5-0), 2. Mission Viejo (5-0), 3. Servite (4-1), 4 Notre Dame (4-1), 5. Lakewood (4-1), 6. Los Alamitos (5-0), 7. Fountain Valley (5-0), 8. Bishop Amat (5-0), 9. Crespi (3-2), 10. Mater Dei (3-2).
Mid-Valley Division
1. Monrovia (5-0), 2. San Marino (5-0), 3. San Dimas (4-1), 4. Azusa (5-1), 5. Baldwin Park (4-1), 6. Paraclete (3-3), 7. Gladstone (4-1), 8. Arroyo (3-2), 9. Village Christian (4-1), 10. Pomona (4-1); Others: La Puente (4-2), Bassett (3-3), La Canada (2-2).
Central Division
1. Rancho Cucamonga (5-0), 2. Upland (5-0), 3. Colton (4-1), 4. Colony (4-1), 5. Chino Hills (5-1), 6. Elsinore (4-1), 7. Ayala (4-1), 8. Cajon (3-2), 9. Etiwanda (3-2), 10. Claremont (4-1); Others: Glendora (3-2), Don Lugo (3-2), Damien (1-4).

Above: They get excited at West Covina, check out the vertical leap by one of the Bulldogs' coaches.

Is there a more competitive race in the Valley that what will go down in the San Antonio League with two undefeated teams, Rowland (5-0) and Walnut (5-0), No. 1 and 2 respectively in the Southeast, along with who I believe are the real two favorites, No. 4 South Hills (3-2) and unranked West Covina (3-3)? If you're really going to dissect this and pick a winner, forget the Huskies and Bulldogs' losses, look at their quality wins. South Hills beat Ayala, a team that is 4-1 and a better win than anything Rowland and Walnut has done. West Covina's win is even bigger, beating Glendora, a team that just beat El Dorado and has played everyone on their schedule close. With West Covina as close to healthy as they have been since week one, they're good enough to beat South Hills on Friday. However, a decision on Jordan and Jamie Canada's status for the Huskies could come this week, and if they both become eligible, I'm switching gears and taking the Huskies. Stay tuned. Rowland and Walnut still have a lot to prove, and though this is 1 vs. 2, I really believe this is for third place and the final playoff spot. What a shame that with four great teams, one has to go.
San Antonio Prediction: 1. West Covina, 2. South Hills, 3. Rowland, 4. Walnut, 5. Nogales.

Steve and I will go head-to-head throughout the season. Here is our updated records on the Tribskin Pick'em thread.

Robledo: Last week/Total: 14-1/88-26
Ramirez: Last week/Total: 14-1/78-36

Last Week Steve should have chipped away at my lead by going 14-1, but I went 14-1 also, which equals our best week combined. The only games that kept us from being perfect is that I stubbornly picked La Puente over Azusa, and he picked Bassett over Workman. The darn Montivew, it got us again.
This week: The San Antonio is going to be a great race all the way. Friday's game of the week is between undefeated and Southeast No. 1 Rowland against undefeated No. 2 Walnut, a game that sounds great on paper, but I'm leaning heavily towards the Raiders, who have been more impressive in nonleague. How about West Covina and South Hills? If the Huskies had the Canada's, I would take the Huskies but without them, I like the Bulldogs' chances to beat them for a second straight year. Chino Hills and Damien is another special one, and though the Spartans have burned me before, I'm taking them again with two weeks off to prepare and being at home. Bishop Amat and St. Paul in most weeks would get top billing, but this might not be as close as past encounters, the Lancers are playing too well.

This week's games and predictions
Thursday's games
Northview vs. Pomona at Covina District, 7 p.m. - Robledo (Pomona); Ramirez (Northview)
San Dimas at Ganesha, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (San Dimas); Ramirez (San Dimas)
Friday's games
Rowland at Walnut, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Rowland); Ramirez (Rowland)
West Covina vs. South Hills at Covina District, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (WCovina); Ramirez (SHills)
Bishop Amat at St. Paul, 7:30 p.m. -- Robledo (Bishop Amat); Ramirez (Bishop Amat)
Arroyo at Rosemead, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Arroyo); Ramirez (Arroyo)
Covina at Baldwin Park, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Covina): Ramirez (Baldwin Park)
Workman at La Puente, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Workman): Ramirez (Workman)
Bonita at Charter Oak, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Charter Oak); Ramirez (Charter Oak)
Chino Hills at Damien, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Damien); Ramirez (Damien)
Glendora at Diamond Bar, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Glendora); Ramirez (Glendora)
Sierra Vista vs. Azusa at Citrus College, 7 p.m. (Azusa); Ramirez (Azusa)
Los Altos at Wilson, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Los Altos); Ramirez (Los Altos)
Gabrielino at El Monte, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (El Monte); Ramirez (El Monte)
Mountain View at South El Monte, 7 p.m. (S El Monte); Ramirez (S El Monte)
Gladstone at Duarte, 7 p.m. -- Robledo (Gladstone): Ramirez (Gladstone)

L.A. Times Rankings

Check this out, a high school official in Alabama is attacked at the end of game, but it appears the official gets the best of him.

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Anything and anyone you want to talk about

Game of the week: Steve and I were debating this, is is undefeated Rowland-Walnut, the top two-ranked teams in the Southeast Division meeting in week one of the San Antonio League. Or is it traditional rivals West Covina and South Hills at Covina District Field?
Bishop Amat: What the Lancers did last night was impressive. What I thought could be a letdown turned into a confident group of guys who now have that swag. Roddy probably said it best when he said all is well in the San Gabriel Valley.
Athlete of the week: Need boys and girls athlete of the week nominations
Mid-term grades?: This week in the blog we will grade every team in the SGV, and start league predictions.
I knew we could all get along: Blog Harmony? It appears so after blog regulars Randy and Frank talked at the game last night and patched-up whatever differences they had.

Thursday's games
Northview vs. Pomona at Covina District, 7 p.m.
San Dimas at Ganesha, 7 p.m.
Friday's games
Rowland at Walnut, 7 p.m.
West Covina vs. South Hills at Covina District, 7 p.m.
Bishop Amat at St. Paul, 7:30 p.m.
Arroyo at Rosemead, 7 p.m.
Covina at Baldwin Park, 7 p.m.
Workman at La Puente, 7 p.m.
Bonita at Charter Oak, 7 p.m.
Chino Hills at Damien, 7 p.m.
Glendora at Diamond Bar, 7 p.m.
Sierra Vista vs. Azusa at Citrus College, 7 p.m.
Los Altos at Wilson, 7 p.m.
Gabrielino at El Monte, 7 p.m.
Mountain View at South El Monte, 7 p.m.
Gladstone at Duarte, 7 p.m.

Bishop Amat 41, Diamond Ranch 13 - Darien Johnson returned a punt back 53 yards for a touchdown and it went downhill from there for the host Panthers, who were totally thrashed. Jay Anderson rushed for just 75 yards, but hit paydirt four times to lead the Lancers, who also took advantage of four Diamond Ranch turnovers.
Bishop Amat coach Steve Hagerty: "We started off quick. We never considered it to be a trap game. (Diamond Ranch) is a good football team. We know if we don't show up and play hard every week, we have problems."
Diamond Ranch coach Roddy Layton: "All is right in the San Gabriel Valley. Bishop Amat is back on top. Historically, they are the best. To play a good team like that, and for us to play our worst football, I don't want to take anything away from them, but I'm just disappointed we didn't play our best football and give them a game."

Box Score
Bishop Amat 41, Diamond Ranch 13
Bishop Amat 7--21--13--0--41
Diamond Ranch 0---7----0--6----13
1st Quarter
BA: Darien Johnson 53 punt return (Alexander Ragsdale), 10:39, 7-0
2nd Quarter
BA: Jay Anderson 1 run (kick failed), 10:46, 13-0
BA: Anderson 1 run (Ragsdale kick), 7:35, 20-0
BA: Anthony Avila 12 pass from Jerry McClanahan (Idilio Sanchez pass from McClanahan), 3:36, 28-0
DR:Elisha Henley 70 pass from Gus Viramontes (Jeff Stamp kick), :01, 7-28
3rd Quarter
BA: Anderson 1 run (kick failed), 10:37, 34-7
BA: Anderson 1 run (Ragsdale kick), 8:41, 41-7
Fourth Quarter
Cesar Carillo 3 run (pass failed), :25, 13-41

Tonight's Results:
San Dimas 21, Bonita 13 -- Ryan Kohler scored all three touchdows as the Saints kept the Smudge Pot for the third straight year. The Saints also forced two turnovers and stopped Bonita at the Saints 32 with a minute left.
Charter Oak 27, Etiwanda 26 -- Trailing 19-7 at half, the defending Southeast Division champs were forced to dig deep and pull one out.
Glendora 24, El Dorado 3 -- The Tartans finally flexed their muscles, dominating an Orange County power that once gave Charter Oak and South Hills fits.
South Hills 30, Rosemead 9 -- After dropping 60 on Northview, the Huskies let off the gas and cruise to another win. Um, bring on West Covina.
West Covina 41, Diamond Bar 20 -- That's three straight for the Bulldogs, but the real proof comes next week against the team above.
Azusa 51, La Puente 20 -- The Aztecs rushed over 50 times, getting 179 yards and two TDs from Kendrec McDade and 153 yards and two TDs from Steven Blount.
Workman 42, Bassett 23 -- The Lobos keep pace with Azusa, and is probably the only Montview team that has a chance to knock them off.
Arroyo 31, La Canada 27 -- The Knights bounce back after two straight losses, getting a key win against a Mid-Valley foe.
Covina 21, Wilson 17 -- The Colts squeeze one out against an improved Wildcats squad.
Rowland 42, El Monte 14 -- the Southeast Division's top team stays undefeated heading into next week's showdown against No. 2 Walnut.
Los Altos 14, La Serna 7 -- The Conqs needed a win to feel good about opening the Miramonte next. Mission accomplished.
Northview 27, Nogales 7 -- The Vikings finally get in the win column after last week's tough loss.
Walnut 14, Sonora 7 -- The Mustangs hang on, stay unbeaten, and now will host Southeast No. 1 Rowland to open the San Antonio.
Sierra Vista 33, Duarte 7 -- Not a surprise the Dons won, but significant in that the Falcons scored their first touchdown of the season.

For quarter-by-quarter updates of tonight's games, click thread

Los Altos hung with Bonita for the most part, but the Bearcats won all the pressure points, sweeping the Conquerors 25-22, 25-18 and 25-21 in pursuit of their third straight Miramonte League title. UCLA bound Allie LaPierre had 17 kills and Katie Kirby had 9 kills and 9 digs to pace the Bearcats, now 7-5-1 and 2-0 in league. Ashley Maxfeldt was huge too with 27 assists and six clutch aces. Jazmen Russell and Amanda Brown paced the Conq's with 6 kills each.

By Fred J. Robledo, Staff Writer
There is something about facing Los Altos that brings out the best in the Bonita High School girls volleyball team. The Bearcats, entering the week with a .500 record and questions about their confidence and consistency, found all the motivation they needed on the opposite side of the net and swept Los Altos, 25-22, 25-18 and 25-21 as they continued pursuit of their third consecutive Miramonte League title.

With no football in the area tonight I thought I would answer a question that gets asked a lot in regards to our football rankings: Who are the "real" top ten teams in the Valley? People always ask things like, "How can you rank Baldwin Park and San Dimas ahead of Damien when you know if Damien really played them, Damien would win." Same could be said about Diamond Ranch. Or how could we rank Walnut and Rowland ahead of South Hills and West Covina when they have competed against far different competition. Wouldn't West Covina and South Hills be undefeated if they played the same opponents? Probably. But to answer the question, wins and records do matter in rankings. Whether it's the Associated Press, USA Today, the CIF poll or ours, you get rewarded for winning and impressive win-loss records. I do reward teams when they lose close games against superior competition, as is the case with West Covina, South Hills, and Damien, all of whom also have solid wins on their resume, but it's a balancing act and the end result will always be debatable. So, to answer the original question, if I had to pick the best teams in the Valley based purely on who I think are the best teams, regardless of record, and based on what I have seen so far,it would look like this. I know I'm going to get hammered for taking Charter Oak over Bishop Amat, but I still believe in a head-to-head, the Chagers edge them out.

1. Charter Oak
2. Bishop Amat
3. West Covina
4. Damien
5. South Hills
6. Glendora
7. Diamond Ranch
8. Rowland
9. San Dimas
10. Walnut

BTW, you have to check out this video. I felt bad for the kid, but almost fell to the floor laughing.....

Brian Mustain loves his new role as San Dimas High School's defensive coordinator about as much as coach Bill Zernickow loves having him. "He is more detailed than any coach I have ever been around," Zernickow said. How ironic, because paying attention to detail was something the Saints defense needed to do a lot better.

El Monte-South El Monte: El Monte High School was down in its Mission Valley League girls volleyball match against South El Monte on Wednesday. But the Lions showed they were definitely not out. Middle blocker Sandra Gutierrez had 14 kills and El Monte rallied from two games down to score a 23-25, 21-25, 25-17, 25-18, 15-10 victory over the host Eagles in the league opener.

Arroyo-Gabrielino:The tendency is to take it easy. That's what happens when a team has won 50 consecutive league volleyball matches. Gabrielino High School took it easy only once in its Mission Valley League opener on Wednesday. The Eagles got out to a quick 2-0 lead, but lost the third game to host Arroyo before rebounding for a four-game victory, 25-17, 25-12, 22-25, 25-14.

For those at Bishop Amat's game on Friday, you know what an exciting player they have in Darien Johnson, but could the Lancers get even more out of him? He has been amazing on special teams, but with just 10 receptions, is he getting the rock enough to really make the offense click? Far be it from me to tell a coach what he should do when his team is 4-0 and just knocked off one of the top ranked teams in the state and country, but wouldn't you like to see Johnson with more touches in the backfield? If this is him as a sophomore, I can only imagine what he could do now with 10-12 rushing attempts a game. Against Notre Dame that sophomore year he had a season-high nine carries for 72 yards.

Above: Gladstone quarterback Paul Flores leads the Valley in passing.

Top Ten Quarterbacks
1. Paul Flores, Gladstone: 68-129, 873 yds, 174 avg. 9 TD, 3 INT
2. Andrew Cameron, Diamond Bar: 66-113, 802 yds, 200 avg, 7 TD, 5 INT
3. Steven Rivera, Arroyo: 51-94, 785 yds, 196 avg, 10 TD, I INT
4. Austin Cooper, Walnut: 52-85, 776 yds, 194 avg, 8 TD, I INT
5. John Chavez, Azusa: 46-75, 701 yds, 140 avg, 6 TD, 3 INT
6. Chad Jeffries, Glendora: 42-82, 626 yds, 156 avg, 3 TD, 5 INT
7. Garrett Hrey, La Puente: 32-65, 579 yds, 144 avg, 6 TD, 3 INT
8. Travis Santiago, Charter Oak: 27-47, 527 yds, 105 avg, 6 TD, 2 INT
9. Garrett Pendleton, Bonita: 42-78, 504 yds, 126 avg, 5 TD, 4 INT
10. Michael Ball, Rowland: 24-37, 475 yds, 118 avg, 7 TD, 1 INT

Top Ten Receivers
1. Chris Rodriguez, Arroyo: 15 rec, 371 yds, 5 TD
2. Abraham Ochoa, Azusa: 20 rec, 314 yds, 5 TD
3. Dennis Rufus, Charter Oak: 16 rec, 312 yds, 3 TD
4. Leonard Rhodes, Walnut: 19 rec, 295 yds, 4 TD
5. Geoffrey Vaughns, South Hills: 16 rec, 274 yds, 2 TD
6. Jesse Rodriguez, Gladstone: 22 rec, 257 yds, 3 TD
7. Ify Umodo, South Hills: 11 rec, 241 yds, 3 TD
8. Jesus Romero, Azusa: 11 rec, 232 yds, 1 TD
9. Jossymar Ulloa, Mountain View: 10 rec, 220, 0 TD
10. Dawani Bankhead, Glendora: 16 rec, 219, 2 TD

Tackle Leaders: Joseph Herrera, Gladstone, 64; Jhossep Juarez, Gladstone, 53; Jesus Vargas, La Puente, 52; Alfred Zamora, Gladstone, 57; Andrew Varela, Bassett, 46; Max Paronelli, San Dimas, 45; Alejandro Restrepo, Walnut, 45; Keith Smith, Charter Oak, 44; Sam Uweh, Diamond Bar, 43; Michael Gonzalez, Glendora, 41.
Sack Leaders: Christian Morgan, San Dimas 11; Sal Paris, Gladstone, 10; Donte Hughes, Covina, 4.5; George Frossine, Walnut, 4.5; Justin Winrow, San Dimas, 4; Joseph Herrera, Gladstone, 4.

Glendora's football team is honoring the 20th anniversary of its 1989 CIF-Southern Section Division IV co-championship team during its homecoming game against El Dorado on Friday at Citrus College. Late Tartans coach Dean Karnoski will be honored along with several members of the 1989 championship team during an afternoon parade in downtown Glendora, and later during festivities at the game. There will also be a special tribute for 1989 starting tight end/defensive end and captain Brad Baiotto, who will not be able to attend. Baiotto is a First Sgt. with the U.S. Marines in Ferrah, Afghanistan. The Tartans shared the 1989 title with Ramona, a game that finished in a 28-28 tie.

As you know by now, former Glendora receiver Wallace Gonzalez has enrolled at Bishop Amat, and the school has moved quickly in filing a hardship request to CIF for him to become eligible. The forms were filed on Monday, but CIF spokesperson Thom Simmons said it could take up to two weeks before a ruling is made. For those wondering what his chances of becoming eligible are, read what Mr. Rules himself, Joe Amat, wrote on a recent thread by clicking this thread....

By Fred J. Robledo
If La Puente High School's football team is going to give defending Montview League champion Azusa fits during Friday's showdown between the Mid-Valley Division's No. 5 Aztecs (4-1, 1-0) and No. 9 Warriors (4-1, 1-0), quarterback Garrett Hrey will probably have some say. Few have experienced the type of roller-coaster career Hrey has gone through. In 2007, Hrey led the Warriors to a dramatic 10-7 victory over Duarte in the Montview finale to clinch the league title.

You have to read what Glendora High school's Casey Jacobsen, a Tartans Hall of Famer and one of the best basketball players in Valley history, wrote in Slam Magazine on greed and corruption in AAU basketball.

Said Casey: "By the time I was 13, I was traveling all over California and Las Vegas, Nevada for AAU tournaments. When I arrived in high school, that is when things changed. I first noticed the change on the annual basketball tournament in Las Vegas. I went to a shopping mall with my team and coaches in the "Caesar's Palace" hotel on the Vegas trip. I was 14 years old and a member of Southern California All-Stars, a collection of the best high school players in Los Angeles. The coach/owner of the team was a man named Pat Barrett, an employee of Nike and a well-known man in the AAU basketball circles. Mr. Barrett took all of us into this giant shoe store in the mall and told each kid that they can have any two pairs of Nike basketball shoes we wanted. I was so excited! Although we were already sponsored by Nike and wore their sneakers, I had never had a "shopping spree" (can two pair of shoes be considered a spree?) before. Little did I know, it was just the beginning of what was to come."

Johnson and Anderson: Bishop Amat's version of thunder and lightning.

Tribune Top Ten
1. Bishop Amat (4-0) - The Lancers are 11-4 in the Hagerty-era, and with a win over Diamond Ranch on Saturday, would become a perfect 6-0 against area teams in his two-year tenure.
2. Charter Oak (4-1) - The expectations were so high, even a close win over Damien felt somewhat disappointing. It doesn't get any easier with Etiwanda in town next, but it's another game that should net a W.
3. Rowland (4-0) - The Southeast No. 1 for the second straight week blew out Covina, and will probably do the same with El Monte next. We know they're good, we just don't know how good.
4. Walnut (4-0) - Ditto for Walnut, though beating Arroyo was a nice sign. But again, until they bang heads with the San Antonio's traditional finest, South Hills and West Covina, we just don't know for sure.
5. West Covina (2-3) - Beating Los Altos doesn't register like it once did, but still a sign the Bulldogs are on their way back. After Diamond Bar, they get South Hills at the District.
6. South Hills (2-2) - The Huskies took out their frustration on Northview, and solved a problem in the process. It appears that senior Jacob Shirley will be the starting quarterback the rest of the way after a dominant performance. Now, if they could just get the Canada's ....
7. Glendora (2-2) - You have to give it up to quarterback Chad Jeffries. Twice now, he's led Tartans on last minute drives to victory. That's good to know come playoff time when the season is on the line.
8. San Dimas (3-1) - You know what's up next, the Saints hoping to drop a three-peat on rival Bonita in the Smudge Pot.
9. Baldwin Park (4-1) -- The Braves continue to pile up the wins, and should pile up a few more in the Valle Vista until they get San Dimas at the end of the year. But oh, don't forget stubborn Pomona.
10. Damien (1-4) -- When does a loss move you in the top ten? When they're close back-to-back losses to Bishop Amat and Charter Oak in consecutive weeks, not to mention a tough loss against Rancho Cucamonga. Or tell me this, who ranked below has a more impressive victory than the Spartans' 24-0 shutout over Claremont?

The Middle 10
11. Arroyo (2-2), 12. Workman (3-1), 13. La Puente (4-1), 14. Azusa (4-1), 15. Wilson (3-1), 16. Diamond Ranch (1-4), 17. Bonita (1-3), 18. Gladstone (4-1), 19. Covina (1-3), 20. Los Altos (1-3).

On the bottom looking up
21. Sierra Vista (2-2), 22. Rosemead (1-3), 23. Nogales (2-3), 24. Bassett (3-2), 25. Diamond Bar (0-4), 26. Northview (0-4), 27. El Monte (0-4), 28. South El Monte (0-5), 29. Mountain View (0-5), 30. Ganesha (0-5), 31. Duarte (0-5)

Above: Rowland and Ganesha in last week's action.

Girls Volleyball Top 10
1. Glendora (5-2)
2. Walnut (7-3)
3. St. Lucy's (10-3)
4. South Hills (4-4)
5. Bonita (5-5)
6. Los Altos (9-3)
7. Ganesha (11-3)
8. San Dimas (6-3)
9. Gladstone (14-5)
10. Bishop Amat (9-2)

Comments: The Tartans took a drop, losing to Hart last week, but not enough to knock them off the top perch. It will be interesting to see how they do in the first week of Sierra League play, first tonight at Diamond Bar, then at St. Lucy's on Thursday...Walnut and St. Lucy's look to be settling in to how we saw them before the season...Bonita has hit a slump I didn't think they would make. But the Bearcats will have to have their ship righted by Thursday when they visit Los Altos in a much-anticipated match...Ganesha is off to a fast start and now may be the best in the Valle Vista League heading into league play. But I wouldn't count out San Dimas just yet...I expect Gladstone to get on a roll now that they have began league play...I couldn't ignore Bishop Amat's record anymore, so let's see what the Lancers do with the attention....We have some big matches this week, with the two best on Thursday. St. Lucy's is hosting Glendora in the battle of the foothills and Bonita is at Los Altos for the war of the Miramonte, chapter 1. Bishop Amat also hosts St. Paul, in another traditional battle. I will be at the Glendora-Diamond Bar match tonight and will cover Bonita-Los Altos on Thursday. We also plan to have someone at the Glendora-St. Lucy's match.

Jim McConnell, Staff Writer
It's down to the Final Four in our mythical All-Valley football playoffs. The four survivors - 1992 Bishop Amat, 1971 Bishop Amat, 1966 El Rancho and 1965 West Covina - have two things in common: outstanding coaches and rock-solid defenses. Oh yes, they also finished their seasons undefeated. Here we go with the semifinals: click thread to continue

Wow, we found video of El Rancho's 1966 team

Above: Damien hopes there are more chest bumps in their future.

By Fred J. Robledo, Staff Writer
First-year Damien coach Greg Gano is no fan of moral victories. But after staying close with Rancho Cucamonga, arguably the best team in the Inland Empire, and going toe to toe with the San Gabriel Valley's two best teams in Bishop Amat and Charter Oak in consecutive weeks, Gano is feeling all right for a team with a 1-4 record. "I'm not happy we're 1-4," he said. "It could be worse. We could be 0-5. It's a two-edged sword. We have been playing some tough football against great teams. Those leadership plays you need to make at the end against good teams we haven't made yet. But that will come, the real-part of the season is just getting started."

By Fred J. Robledo, Staff Writer
San Dimas High School will host the 37th annual Smudge Pot football game against Bonita on Friday, a contest that drew more than 5,000 fans at Bonita last year and raised more than $6,000 for charity. San Dimas is looking for its third consecutive Smudge Pot victory and owns a 19-16-1 lead in the series. It's become such a huge rivalry Bonita coach Eric Podley jokingly described it as "the contract renewal game."

By Imani Tate
Staff Writer
LA VERNE -- Noah Ramos, a tough and nearly 10-year-old boy with lots of friends who share his love of sports, skateboarding and bicycling, needs help and La Verne Heights Elementary School classmates, teachers, staff, administrators and parents are working together to make sure he gets it.
Noah was diagnosed with aplastic anemia on Sept. 4 at Children's Hospital of Los Angeles. Dr. Thomas Hofstra, a hemotologist, headed the medical team that conducted tests to determine what was wrong with Noah.

Pac-5 Division
1. Edison, 2. Mission Viejo, 3. Servite, 4. Notre Dame, 5. Lakewood, 6. Los Alamitos, 7. Fountain Valley, 8. Bishop Amat, 9. Crespi, 10. Mater Dei
Southeast Division
1. Rowland, 2. Walnut, 3. Charter Oak, 4. South Hills, 5. El Rancho, 6. Burbank, 7. Santa Fe, 8. Bell Gardens, 9. Crescenta Valley, 10. Alhambra
Mid-Valley Division
1. Monrovia, 2. San Marino, 3. Pomona, 4. San Dimas, 5. Azusa, 6. Baldwin Park, 7. Paraclete, 8. Gladstone, 9. La Puente, 10. Arroyo
Central Division
1. Rancho Cucamonga, 2. Upland, 3. Colton, 4. Colony, 5. Chino Hills, 6. Elsinore, 7. Etiwanda, 8. Ayala, 9. Arroyo Valley, 10. Cajon.

Steve and I will go head-to-head throughout the season. Here is our updated records on the Tribskin Pick'em thread.

Robledo: Last week/Total: 13-4/74-25
Ramirez: Last week/Total: 11-10/64-35

Last Week: Neither of us were bold enough to take Bishop Amat over St. Bonny's, but the difference was the Montview league, I went 3-0 and Stevie went 0-3. That has stretched my lead over Ramirez to ten, the biggest difference in our three years doing this. We also both missed taking Mountain View over Keppel and Rosemead over Temple City.

This week: The Smudge pot game between San Dimas and Bonita takes center stage, and though I expect it to be closer than last year's Saints blowout, I'm still taking the Saints in a close one at home. Charter Oak faces a very formidable opponent in Etiwanda, whose only loss is to Norco. Calpreps takes the Chargers by a touchdown, which sounds about right. Azusa and La Puente are both 4-1. Though Workman will have something to say about it, the winner has the inside track toward the league title. Take La Puente, they're playing too well at the moment. On Saturday the entire Valley can watch Bishop Amat vs. Diamond Ranch at Ganesha. It's a trap game for the Lancers. Diamond Ranch has them just where they want them, on a high coming off the big win over St. Bonny. Bishop isn't good enough to win on just talent alone, so expect another tight one, but another Lancers victory.

Friday's games
Bonita at San Dimas, 7 pm -- Robledo (San Dimas); Ramirez (San Dimas)
Etiwanda at Charter Oak, 7 pm -- Robledo (Charter Oak); Ramirez (Charter Oak):
Glendora vs. El Dorado at Citrus College, 7pm -- Robledo (Glendora); Ramirez (Glendora)
South Hills vs. Rosemead at Covina District, 7 pm -- Robledo (SHills); Ramirez (SHills)
West Covina at Diamond Bar, 7 pm -- Robledo (WCovina); Ramirez (WCovina)
Azusa at La Puente, 7 pm -- Robledo (La Puente); Ramirez (Azusa)
Sierra Vista at Duarte, 7 pm -- Robledo (SVista); Ramirez (Sierra Vista)
Workman at Bassett, 7 pm -- Robledo (Workman); Ramirez (Bassett)
Arroyo at La Canada, 7 pm -- Robledo (Arroyo): Ramirez (Arroyo)
Covina at Wilson, 7 pm -- Robledo (Covina): Ramirez (Covina)
El Monte at Rowland, 7 pm -- Robledo (Rowland); Ramirez (Rowland)
La Serna vs. Los Altos at California, 7 pm - Robledo (Los Altos); Ramirez (Los Altos)
Northview at Nogales, 7 pm -- Robledo (Northview); Ramirez (Northview)
Sonora at Walnut, 7 pm -- Robledo (Walnut); Ramirez (Walnut)
Saturday's game
Bishop Amat vs. Diamond Ranch at Ganesha, 7 p.m. Robledo (BAmat); Ramirez (BAmat)

What: Smudge Pot
When: Friday
Where: San Dimas HS
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
When it started: 1972
Series record: San Dimas leads 19-16-1
Streaky: San Dimas won 50-33 last year, its second straight win after snapping Bonita's three game winning streak prior. However, the Bearcats have won 10 of 13 Smudge Pots since 1996.
Records: San Dimas (3-1); Bonita (1-3).
Predictions: Robledo (San Dimas)
Thoughts: In my two years covering this, it has been Saints domination, and truly one of the special rivalries in the Valley. Get there early, seats go fast, and if you have never been to one of these, make plans on Friday. These are two teams that truly dislike each other, you won't want to miss it. The Bearcats have a worthy 9-3 win over Baldwin Park., but not much more. Last year Nico Barbone rush for 201 yards and five touchdowns, and Daniel Joseph rush for 219 yards and two touchdowns. They rushed for 454 yards in all. While I don't expect the Saints to pile up the same numbers, especially after they got manhandled by Monrovia, the Bearcats still have allowed 21 points or more in three losses, including a 43-22 loss to Santa Fe. See where I'm going with this, a Saints 3-peat.

Video Highlights of 2008 Smudge Pot

Once again, a local coach has stepped up and offered to help give insight to what's going on in cross country. This comes from Glendora assistant coach Bob Ramsey

Above: Bonita's Marissa Scott ran a 17:30 to lead the Bearcats at Saturday's Warren Stauffer Invite.

Tribune Roundup, Week 4
Ramsey: The past week was a busy one for the East San Gabriel Valley Cross Country teams. Several leagues held their first cluster meets, and nearly half of the local teams ran in big races on Saturday. Glendora was the top boys team, winning the tough Sierra League meet with a course record on Tuesday, and finishing second at the Brea Invite on Saturday. They were led both days by junior Anthony Castro, who was first and fourth in those two meets. The top individual honor went to Brittnie Munoz (Sr, Rosemead) who set a new course record while winning Saturday's Weisenberger Invite, but the top performance came from Bonita frosh Marissa Scott at the Warren Stauffer Invite. Her team was fourth overall, joining South Hills (6th, Brea) and St. Lucy's (2nd, Sierra League) for the top team performances of the week. Click the thread to read coverage of each of these meets, this week's top ten, and the Valle Vista cluster, which Covina dominated on both sides.

East San Gabriel Valley Top Performers - Week 4
Note: It is notoriously difficult to compare cross country performances over differing terrain, surfaces, distances and weather conditions.† The lists below are a rough attempt to rank performances while trying to account for these differences.† Your mileage may vary.

Boys
1. 16:24, Anthony Castro, Jr-Glendora - Brea 5k, hilly, slow footing
2. 17:00, Kelly Hernandez, Jr-Glendora - Brea
3. 16:16, Austin Goodheart, Sr-Glendora - Sierra/Bonelli 5k, rolling
4. 15:54, Fabian Velasco, Sr-Duarte - Yucaipa 3m, rolling
5. 16:20, Austin Mendoza, So-Glendora - Sierra/Bonelli
6. 16:30, James McCreary, So-Diamond Bar - Sierra/Bonelli
7. 17:18, Jonathan Flores, Jr-South Hills - Brea
8. 17:20, Israel Orosco, Sr-Azusa - Brea
9. 16:47, Neill Netzeband, Sr-Glendora - Sierra/Bonelli
10. 16:48, Shin Yamamura, Jr-Glendora - Sierra/Bonelli
Girls
1. †17:30 Marissa Scott, Fr-Bonita - Stauffer 3m, flat and (probably short)
2. 20:10 Carly Lake, So-Charter Oak - Brea 5k, hilly, slow footing
3. 19:08 Taylor Hebb, Jr-St. Lucy's - Sierra/Bonelli 5k, rolling
4. 18:42 Brittnie Munoz, Sr-Rosemead - Weisenberger 3m rolling
5. 17:52 Lexie Jackson, Fr-Bonita - Stauffer
6. 19:59 Katy Hebb, So-St. Lucy's - Sierra/Bonelli
7. 21:11 Ashley Holguin - Sr-South Hills - Brea
8. 21:12 Vanessa Holguin - Jr-South Hills - Brea
9. 21:08 Illiana Velasquez - Jr-Bishop Amat - Staub/Barnes 3m, very hilly
10. 20:24 Emily Bruce - Jr-St. Lucy's - Sierra/Bonelli

To continue, click thread

Anything and anyone you want to talk about..

Bishop Amat -- Were we seriously pushing for Bishop Amat to play Charter Oak instead? St. Bonny's was the right call, and I finally agree with coach Hagerty, while it's great to schedule and beat area teams, it's time to bring in the Mater Dei's, Oak's Christian's and other prominent teams the Lancers need to compete against to return to prominence. They're not back yet, not until they go deep in the playoffs and compete for championships. But you get the feeling no matter who they play, they've got a great shot, which is something you haven't been able to say about Bishop Amat most of this decade.

Athlete of the week nominations: Looking for boys and girls athlete of the week nominations.

The LA Times New Rankings1. Crenshaw 5-0 , 2. Oaks Christian 4-0, 3. Edison 5-0, 4. Lakewood 4-1, 5. Servite 4-1, 6. Rancho Cucamonga 4-0, 7. Gardena Serra 4-0, 8. Moorpark 4-0, 9. Los Alamitos 4-0, , 10. Mission Viejo 5-0, 11. Redlands East Valley 4-0, 12. Bishop Amat 4-0, 13. St. Bonaventure 4-1, 14. S.O. Notre Dame 4-1, 15. Mater Dei 3-2, 16. Corona Centennial 3-1 17. Crespi 2-2, 18. Valencia 4-0,19. Fountain Valley 5-0, 20. Norco 3-1, 21. Carson 3-2, 22. Chaparral 2-2, 23. Charter Oak 4-1, 24. Vista Murrieta 4-0, 25. Westlake 4-0 (NR)

This week's schedule
Friday's games
Bonita at San Dimas, 7:00pm
Etiwanda at Charter Oak, 7:00pm
Glendora vs. El Dorado at Citrus College, 7:00pm
South Hills vs. Rosemead at Covina District, 7:00pm
West Covina at Diamond Bar, 7:00pm
Azusa at La Puente, 7:00pm
Sierra Vista at Duarte, 7:00pm
Workman at Bassett, 7:00pm
Arroyo at La Canada, 7:00pm
Covina at Wilson, 7:00pm
El Monte at Rowland, 7:00pm
La Serna vs. Los Altos at California, 7:00pm
Northview at Nogales, 7:00pm
Sonora at Walnut, 7:00pm

Saturday's game
Bishop Amat vs. Diamond Ranch at Ganesha, 7 p.m.

CBS highlights of Bishop Amat's victory
"Normally the guy that you (Robledo) interview has a terrible game. I told him you got to break that streak tonight. He was on the cover and he played a great game, so we can throw that one out. -- Bishop Amat coach Steve Hagerty on Darien Johnson, who we profiled on Thursday in the Tribune. Johnson scored on a kick return, interception, and his 25-yard reception set up the game winning TD in OT..
Note: Bishop Amat game story already in, click thread

The Blue Blur: Darien Johnson scored on a 91-yard kickoff return that gave the Lancers a 10-7 lead, then made a game-changing 84-yard interception that turned what would have been a 21-7 deficit into a 14-14 tie in the middle of the third quarter. He capped his night with a huge 25-yard reception in overtime to the Seraphs' 3, which set up Jay Anderson's game-tying one-yard TD run on fourth down, and the Ragsdale to Rich's clutch extra-point clincher.

Friday's results
Bishop Amat 24, St. Bonaventure 23, OT -- Darien Johnson said it could be done, and he walked it. Say goodbye to the 14-game win streak. The No. 3 state ranking in CalHiSports, Maxpreps, and the No. 17 national ranking in USA today. For Bishop Amat, this is as sweet as it gets. The way back to prominence is through beating prominent teams, the second time they have done so in the Hagerty era going back to the Orange Lu. game.
Charter Oak 23, Damien 20 -- This is much closer than anyone at Charter Oak thought it would be, and another scratch-your-head near miss for the Spartans.
Azusa 39, Bassett 18 -- The Aztecs begins defense of the Montview league title with a convincing win over surging Bassett.
La Puente 62, Duarte 3 -- Ouch, I don't know if the Warriors are this good, of if the Falcons are really this ..... we'll leave it at that.
Gladstone 20, Sierra Vista 14 -- The Happy Rockers next meet Azusa in what could become the first big step toward a league title for both.
Glendora 16, Diamond Ranch 14 -- The Tartans squeeze out another while the Panthers manage to lose another close one. DRanch can always say they were looking ahead to Bishop Amat.
Baldwin Park 35, El Monte 14 -- The Braves are beating teams they're supposed to beat, it's that simple.
Montebello 35, Nogales 20 -- The Nobles are going to have a very tough time in the San Antonio.
Keppel 36, Mountain View 0 -- When it goes bad, it really goes bad.
Temple City 27, Rosemead 13 -- The Panthers have fallen a long way since last year's Mid-Valley championship-game run.
Ayala 44, South El Monte 7 -- The Eagles need to rework that nonleague schedule next year.
South Hills 62, Northview 0 -- If you say you didn't see this coming, you weren't paying attention.
Walnut 27, Arroyo 16 -- The Mustangs remain undefeated with a solid win over the Knights.
West Covina 47, Los Altos 12 -- The Bulldogs get back-to-back wins, getting ready for the San Antonio.
Wilson 42, Blair 0 -- With last week's blowout loss behind, the Wildcats blow past Blair.

For quarter-by-quarter updates, click thread

Tonight's results
Rowland 48, Covina 12 -- Covina was driving and hoping to cut a 14-0 lead in half when Rowland's Michael Ball grabbed the interception and went more than 80 yards for a touchdown. After another quick INT on the ensuing series, it was 28-0 like that.
Troy 49, Diamond Bar 21 --Scoring doesn't seem to be the problem, it's the outscoring part that's driving them Brahmas crazy. Not good with the Sierra around the corner.

For quarter-by-quarter updates, click thread

The Tribune's Fred Robledo, Steve Ramirez and Time Warner's popular Reginald Miller discuss four of Friday's top games. Don't miss it!

Friday's games
St. Bonaventure (4-0) at Bishop Amat (3-0), 7:30 p.m.
Damien (1-3) at Charter Oak (3-1), 7 p.m.
Azusa (3-1) vs. Bassett (3-1) at Citrus College, 7 p.m.
Arroyo (2-1) at Walnut (3-0), 7 p.m.

By Fred J. Robledo, Staff Writer
There's a time to smile, laugh and crack jokes, but knowing when and where has been a growing process for Bishop Amat two-way standout Darien Johnson. No longer just a role-playing corner, Johnson has become the Lancers' sudden-impact performer. He's already returned a kick and punt for touchdowns, has an interception, and also has seven receptions for 142 yards and a touchdown.