When South Hills and Bishop Amat meet in a nonleague game on Wednesday, April 28 at 6 p.m., at Mt. SAC, it will be the most anticipated nonleague game since Nieto and Murphy bumped chests in the 2008 Glendora Tournament Championship, won by Northview over Amat. That remains the largest non-CIF title crowd I’ve seen at a baseball game. I’m sure that could change if South Hills and Amat continue winning like this.

Intrigued minds want to know who’s the best of our four heavyweights, with three in action today and Glendora playing Crescenta Valley for its own title on Saturday.

Intrigue No. 1: Bishop Amat became the state’s No. 1 team on MaxPreps Thursday, though they’re still No. 2 with us …for now … Amat (4-0) takes on undefeated Orange Lutheran (4-0) in the championship game of the Newport Elks baseball tournament at 6 p.m. at Hart Park in Orange. The Lancers already have defeated CIF-Southern Section powers Palm Desert, Corona Santiago, Mater Dei and defending Division I champion Capistrano Valley 6-1 in the semifinals of the Elks tournament.

Intrigue No. 2: The Tribune’s No. 1 team, South Hills (5-0), has outscored its opponents 20-4 during the Don Lugo Tournament and will play in the championship at home this afternoon against Chino Hills (2-0-1) at 3:15 p.m. Chino Hills opened the Don Lugo Tournament with a 5-1 victory over defending Division IV champion San Dimas and the Huskies advanced with victories over Los Osos, Colony and Ontario.

Intrigue No. 3: Damien (3-0) is at home in the semifinals of the Chino Tournament at 3:15 p.m. against Redlands East Valley, with the winner advancing to Monday’s 7 p.m. championship game at Chino Hills High against the winner of today’s other semifinal between Chino and Rancho Cucamonga. Damien is holding a ceremony on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. to rename its baseball field after longtime athletic director Thomas Carroll, who has been at the school for 38 years. Damien’s baseball complex is one of the best in the Valley after upgrades over the past year, which include a new scoreboard and stadium seating the school purchased from Camden Yards, home of the Baltimore Orioles.

San Dimas Tournament, Friday’s Semifinals
Glendora 5, Bonita 2
Etiwanda 3, Charter Oak 0

Glendora-Bonita game story: When Glendora High School met Bonita in last year’s San Dimas Tournament softball game, then-sophomore Carly Argyle stepped in the circle for injured starter Dana Waldusky and promptly led the Tartans to an eye-opening victory over the Bearcats.

Saturday’s championship
Glendora vs. Etiwanda, 6 p.m.

Above: Alison Strycula greets teammate Kayla Papez of Charter Oak High School after scoring against Northview.

Softball Today: The Tribune’s No. 1 Bonita (6-0), already the winner of the Palm Springs Tournament, takes on Glendora (5-0) in the first semifinal at 3:15 p.m., two days after Tartans junior Carly Argyle threw a no-hitter in a 1-0 quarterfinal victory over Los Altos. In the late semifinal, surging Charter Oak (4-0) takes on defending San Dimas tourney champ Etiwanda (2-0) at 5:15p.m.
Predictions: This is almost the same situation as last year when Bonita was undefeated after winning the Palm Springs tournament and got beat by Glendora in in the San Dimas tournament, only they didn’t lose to Tartans standout pitcher Dana Waldusky, she was hurt. Argyle got the nod and the win. That’s not going to happen twice, Bonita is much better offensively and Chloe Wurst still does her job in the cirlce, take the ‘Cats. Etiwanda is Etiwanda, and though Charter Oak is scoring like crazy, not sure they can keep that up against the quality pitching they face today, take Etiwanda.

Twitter: I will twitter updates or final scores from the San Dimas tourney, as well as what’s going on at South Hills and Bishop Amat later tonight baseball.

The things I would like to do to Coach Wise would curl an executioner’s toes. For starters, I’d like to see him dipped in seal butter and dropped into a polar bear’s cage.

Bishop Amat game story: Arielle Wideman scored 20 points and Leticia Galarza and Vianai Austin had 15 each, and the visiting Lancers moved to the Southern California Regional semifinals with a 70-61 victory over No. 4 seed Agoura in a Division III quarterfinal Thursday.

Diamond Ranch game story: Diamond Ranch High School girls basketball coach Mike James knew his team couldn’t afford to get into foul trouble if it was to have a fighting chance against Southland power Brea Olinda in the second round of the CIF State Division II playoffs. But that’s exactly what happened on Thursday in a costly five-minute stretch of the second quarter that ultimately sent the Panthers packing with a 68-41 loss to end what’s been a stellar season.

La Verne Lutheran game story: Despite trailing 22-11 after one period and having no presence on the boards early, the Trojans rallied to beat Ribet 79-77, stunning a large contingency from Los Angeles that saw their Frogs lead through the first three quarters only to fall short.

Southern California Regional Playoffs
Girls Basketball
Thursday’s Regional Second Round
Division II
All games at 7 p.m.
Division II
No. 1 Brea Olinda 68, Diamond Ranch 41
Oakhurst Yosemite 76, Edison 75
Hanford 80, Beverly Hills 39
Mater Dei 74, Villa Park 35

Division III
Santa Margarita 42, Buena 39
Bishop Amat 70, No. 4 Agoura 61
Inglewood 46, Muir 41
Spring Valley Mount Miguel 64, Barstow 40
Saturday’s Regional semifinals
Bishop Amat at Santa Margarita
Inglewood at Spring Valley Mount Miguel

Boys basketball
Thursday’s Regional Second Round
Division II
All games at 7 p.m.
El Cajon Foothills Christian 94, Sierra Canyon 57
Windward 54, Besant Hill 36
San Diego Maranatha Christian 78, Visalia Central Valley Christian 54
No.2 La Verne Lutheran 79, Ribet Academy 77
Saturday’s Regional semifinals
San Diego Marantha Christian at La Verne Lutheran, 7 p.m.

Saturday’s championship
Crescenta Valley vs. Glendora, 7 p.m., Henderson Field
Saturday’s consolation games
Diamond Ranch vs Alta Loma , 11 a.m., Glendora HS
Northview vs Charter Oak, 11 a.m., Henderson Field
Bonita vs Claremont, 3:10 p.m., Henderson Field

Glendora-Northview game story: Behind a steady pitching performance from 6-foot-3 senior Jacob Cage, Glendora defeated Northview 3-1 in the semifinals of the 33rd annual Glendora Tournament on Thursday at Henderson Field and advanced to Saturday’s championship against Crescenta Valley at 7 p.m.

Thursday’s semifinals
Crescenta Valley 2, Bonita 1
Glendora 3, Northview 1

SGV BigTimers: It’s early, but Damien (3-0) is undefeated playing at home in the semifinals of the Chino Tournament on Friday at 3:15 p.m., against Redlands East Valley. South Hills (5-0) is undefeated and playing in the championship of the Don Lugo tournament on Friday at home against Chino Hills at 3:15 p.m. Bishop Amat (4-0) is undefeated and will play Orange Lutheran at Hart Park in Orange for the championship of the Newport Elks on Friday at 6 p.m. And tonight we have this little business between undefeated teams Glendora (2-0) and Northview (1-0-1) in the semifinals of the Glendora Tournament tonight at 7, which is where you, I, and all of us will be with our hot chocolates, beanies and blankets. I’m already off to a bad start though, Glendora and Northview haven’t even posted their rosters on MaxPreps yet … it must be baseball season.

For Glendora tourney schedule and results, click thread
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The 2010 Boys and Girls Soccer Division realignments proposals can be viewed by clicking the thread. These are not final, but this is what CIF is sending to all schools, who will then have a chance to review and/or submit their objections. But here’s the skinny for you local schools …

Above: If the proposals are passed, Bishop Amat and Los Altos will be joined in Division 3 girls soccer next season with all the top teams in the Valley from the Sierra and new Hacienda League. Winning that title is tougher than ever now.

Girls Soccer: The Mission Valley remains in Division 7, with the Montview, home of Division 7 champ Sierra Vista, moving up to Division 6, with check this out, the Rio Hondo and Valle Vista League both dropping to Division 6 as well. The new Hacienda League, which includes Los Altos and Walnut, will move to Division 3 along with the Del Rey League, which includes Bishop Amat. What will make this division even more intriguing is that the Sierra League, with St. Lucy’s, South Hills and Charter Oak, will also be in Division 3, throwing all the area’s top tier teams in the same playoff division.

Boys Soccer: Baldwin Park, say goodbye to Salesian. The Valle Vista League will remain in Division 5, and will be joined by the Mission Valley League, moving up a division after Mountain View’s back-to-back D-6 titles. Salesian and the Santa Fe League goes to Division 4, with the Montview, Hacienda League and Del Rey league joining them in D-4. The Sierra League will remain in D-2.

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Read all about “In the Huddle”

Game Story: The Lancers, who won Division V titles in 2007 and ’08 before advancing to the Division IV semifinals last season, improved to 4-0 and will face Orange Lutheran in Friday’s 6 p.m. championship game at Hart Park in Orange.

I can’t wait until the National Classic, with Amat we have a player, two if South Hills is legit. With all due respect to how well Damien, Glendora and South Hills are playing at the moment, you can’t compare their results with Bishop Amat, you just can’t. When our polls come out next week, regardless of whether Glendora wins the Glendora tourney or if South Hills wins Don Lugo, Bishop Amat will move to the top spot if they’re 5-0 with another win over Orange Lutheran, it’s that simple. They have just beaten Palm Desert, Corona Santiago, Mater Dei and now Capistrano Valley. You don’t roll through the caliber of opponents they’re rolling through and not get rewarded. This is absolutely great news for the Valley, reminding everyone everywhere that when it comes to baseball, the SGV takes a backseat to nobody. Amat will play Orange in the final on Friday at Hart Park in Orange at 6 p.m. Orange Lutheran has advanced with wins over Huntington Beach (8-5), Mission Viejo (11-7) and Tesoro (5-3).

Friday’s Newport Elks Championship
Bishop Amat (4-0) vs. Orange Lutheran (4-0), at Hart Park in Orange, 6 p.m.

Friday’s Semifinals
Bonita vs. Glendora, 3:15 p.m.
Charter Oak vs. Etiwanda, 5:15 p.m.

Above: The early reports on Tartans junior Carly Argyle is that she’s very, very impressive.

Recap: Forget about the Glendora rebuilding nonsense, just watched junior Carly Argyle throw a no-hitter, needing only five strikeouts to do it, beating Los Altos 1-0. The Conqs played well too, giving up just two hits, a single and triple that scored a run in the fourth, that was it. Bonita slammed West Covina in six and if Charter Oak continue’s to pitch and play defense, they will be a factor in the Miramonte. So here are the predictions, Bonita’s got the swag going, centerfielder Breeana Sandoval is off to a monster start, and with Glendora beating Bonita in last year’s tournament, you have to like the ‘Cats chances in the rematch. Etiwanda probably beats Charter Oak, but curious to know how the Chargers compete. In the final, sticking with Bonita, they’re still out to prove a point.

Charter Oak is charging: - Lost in the shuffle of the Bonitas and Glendoras of the Valley is the Charter Oak High School softball team, but that may change with more performances like Wednesday’s 12-0 win over Northview in five innings in the quarterfinals of the San Dimas Tournament.

San Dimas Softball Tournament
Wednesday’s Quarterfinals
Etiwanda 15, Wilson 0
Charter Oak 12, Northview 0, 5 innings
Glendora 1, Los Altos 0
Bonita 8, West Covina 0, 6 innings

Above: Charter Oak’s Cassie Andrews pitching against Northview on Wednesday.

Read more: http://www.sgvtribune.com/preps/ci_14653410#ixzz0ht0305k5

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In Mountain’s View’s fourth overtime in the playoffs, they weren’t so fortunate in the first round of the Southern California Division II State Regionals, losing on the road to Central Section’s Dinuba 7-6 in PKs after a 1-1 tie in regulation and two overtimes. Mountain View would have won in the first-round of PKs, but the ref called GK Ozzie Martinez for moving early, which sent the best-of-five PKs into a sudden-death PK situation, which they lost.

Not a bad result considering the San Diego Coronado team was ranked fifth in the state and 12th in the nation on ESPN’s Fab 50 Poll. “They were a way superior team,” Sierra Vista coach Steve Jimenez said. “Their size and the way they controlled the ball was amazing. They were by far the best team we played all season.

South Hills’ final round-robin baseball game in the Don Lugo tourney is at Ontario High School on Wednesday at 3:15 p.m., with the likely scenario of the Huskies in the title game on Friday at TBA.

The job is Arellanes’ if he wants it, sources tell “In the Huddle.” Now the question is, will he take it, keeping in mind what Arellanes posted on his facebook back in February. Arellanes has had discussions with Los Altos since former St. John Bosco coach Kiki Mendoza turned the job down, but Arellanes disputed Aram’s claims that the job is his if he wants it.

In today’s Southern California Regional boys and girls soccer playoff advance, read why Mountain View believes this is their time to add more hardware to the trophy case, and what chance does the Sierra Vista girls actually have on the road against the fifth-best team in California?

Today’s Games
Southern California Regionals first round
Boys Soccer
Division II
No. 5 Mountain View (17-4-3) at No. 4 Dinuba, Central Section (22-3), 4 p.m.
Girls Soccer
Division II
No. 8 Sierra Vista (24-3) at No. 1 Coronado (21-1-3), 4 p.m.

On a separate note, the L.A. Times reports that with Dodger and Angel Stadium unavailable, the Southern Section baseball finals for its top divisions will be held at the Lake Elsinore Storm, an 8,000-seat facility used by the San Diego Padres’ Class-A team, on June 4 and 5. The other division finals will take place at UC Riverside.

Bishop Amat moved into the semifinals of the Newport Elks tournament with a 7-2 win at Mater Dei on Monday, which comes after Elks victories over Palm Desert and Corona Santiago. Bernardo Zavala, who we failed to mention in our preview, had three homers and five RBIs. When you’re getting production from new names to go with the line-up they already have, that’s scary. Brandon McNitt struck out seven in going the distance, sending the Lancers to Wednesday’s semifinal against Capistrano Valley, the reigning Division I champions, at Capistrano Valley High at 3:15 p.m, and we’re hearing lefty Paul Paez will get the nod. BTW, Capo Valley crushed St. Paul 16-2 and also is 3-0. Coach, what do you think?
“Its’ Always nice to start out on the right foot,” Lancers coach Andy Nieto said. “Mater Dei is Mater Dei, it’s not one of their great teams, but they have a lot of tradition and are always good.
“I still don’t think our guys are operating on full cylinders, but it’s also nice to have others step up (Zavala) so you’re not counting on the same faces all the time. It wasn’t just the three home runs, it’s how hard he’s hitting the ball. Offensively, this team has a chance to compete, we just have to keep working.”

With a guy like Eddie Pedroza, how can Northview not be ranked in D-4?

Baseball Polls
DIVISION 2
1. Crespi, 2. Redlands East Valley, 3. Yucaipa, 4. Palos Verdes, 5. Foothill, 6. Loyola, 7. Glendora, 8. La Mirada, 9. Cypress, 10. Chino
DIVISION 3
1. South Hills, 2. Quartz Hill, 3. Paramount, 4. Beckman, 5. Bonita, 6. Downey, 7. Corona del Mar, 8. Hemet, 9. Lancaster, 10. Charter Oak
DIVISION 4
1. Bishop Amat, 2. Fullerton, 3. St Paul, 4. El Segundo, 5. Palm Desert, 6. San Dimas, 7. Torrance, 8. Kaiser, 9. Calvary Chapel/SA, 10. St. Bonaventure.

Someone needs to remind the D-3 Pollsters that Bonita is already 4-0 and has outscored its opponents 27-3, winning the Palm Springs tournament.

Softball Polls
DIVISION 3
1. Tesoro, 2. Glendora, 3. Los Altos, 4. Chino HIlls, 5. Crescenta Valley, 6. Oaks Christian, 7. Ayala, 8. Alemany, 9. Chaminade, 10. Cajon.
DIVISION 4
1. North Torrance, 2. El Segundo, 3. La Quinta, 4. Paloma Valley, 5. Torrance, 6. Bishop Amat, 7. Santa Monica, 8. Hesperia, 9. Ocean View, 10. Aquinas.
DIVISION 5
1. Whittier Christian, 2. San Dimas, 3. Heritage, 4. Village Christian, 5. La Canada, 6. West Covina, 7. San Jacinto, 8. Northview, 9. Woodcrest Christian, 10. Riverside Christian.
DIVISION 6
1. Marymount, 2. La Salle, 3. South El Monte, 4. Maranatha, 5. Grace Brethren, 6. Arroyo, 7. Oxford Academy, 8. Ramond Convent, 9. Big Bear, 10. Nordoff.

Crescent Valley-Charter Oak and Glendora-Claremont were rained out Saturday and will make up their games today, Charter Oak at APU at 7, with Glendora at home at 3:15 p.m. The only game at Henderson Field is Northview vs. Ayala at 7 p.m. To View the entire Glendora tournament with updated scores, click thread.

FYI: Bishop Amat has a big nonleague game today at Mater Dei, 6 p.m.

Monday Results
Charter Oak 5, Crescenta Valley 0
Glendora 10, Claremont 1
Northview 6, Ayala 4

Tuesday’s round robin
Diamond Ranch vs Glendora 3:15 Glendora H.S.
Crescenta Valley vs Alta Loma 7:00 Henderson
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Here’s the CIF State pairings for area teams
Boys basketball
Division II
No. 13 Damien (22-8) at No. 4 San Diego Hoover (26-6)
No. 11 L.A. University (19-14) at No. 6 Pasadena (24-7)
Division V
No. 15 L.A. View Park (15-17) at No. 2 La Verne Lutheran (23-8)
Girls Basketball
Division II
No. 9 Diamond Ranch (26-2) at No. 8 San Diego Westview (26-5)
Division III
No. 12 San Diego Academy OLP (23-8) at No. 5 Bishop Amat (23-7)
No. 11 Frontier (23-8) at No. 6 Muir (21-8)
Division V
No. 15 La Verne Calvary Baptist (18-8) at No. 2 Los Angeles View Park (27-6)
No. 11 Pasadena Poly (22-4) at No. 6 Fresno Christian (21-7)
Note: All first round games are at 7 p.m. on Tuesday. Quarterfinals and semifinals are slated for Thursday and Saturday with the regional finals scheduled for March 20 at Galen Center and Colony HS. The state finals are March 26-27 at Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield.

Boys Soccer
Southern California Regionals
Division II
No. 5 Mountain View (17-4-3) at No. 4 Dinuba, Central Section (22-3)
Note: First round games are Tuesday at home sites at 4 p.m. The tournament continues Thursday with semifinals at home sites with the finals scheduled for Saturday at Warren HS in Downey.
Girls Soccer
Southern California Regionals
Division II
No. 8 Sierra Vista (24-3) at No. 1 Coronado (21-1-3)
Division III
No. 5 LACES (8-6-2) at No. 4 Flintridge Sacred Heart (19-2-3)
Note: Division II first round games are scheduled for Tuesday at home sites at 4 p.m. The semifinals, also at home sites, are Thursday at 4 p.m. with the finals on Saturday at Warren HS in Downey. Division III begins on Monday at 4 p.m. at home sites. The semifinals, also at home sites, are Wednesday at 4 p.m. with the finals scheduled for Friday at Warren HS in Downey.

The CIF-State Playoff teams and brackets for boys and girls soccer and basketball will be announced by 5 p.m., on Sunday.

The L.A. Times already loving Bishop Amat baseball, calling them one of the top five teams in Southern California.

Anything and anyone you want to talk about.

You see what this is doing to me, after three straight days of covering championships, and ALL ending in SGV champions, I’m in prep overload, the beginning of baseball and softball, and already we have a few surprises. No Patterson and No. 9 Los Altos still crushes No. 3 South Hills in softball, the re-evaluation of the rankings already taking place, with the exception of course Bonita, already 4-0 and a tourney champ, winning in Palm Springs. I can’t think of a team hungrier than them. Glendora swept Upland twice, showing they’re not going anywhere, using two different pitchers, Argyle throwing a 1-hitter in the second. Didn’t need any convincing in baseball that Amat and South HIlls are legit, but wondering about Bonita and Northview, tied 7-7 after 9 innings on Saturday, just a day after Bonita crushed Ayala, 21-1. It doesn’t appear these two are ready to give up their area swagger just yet, either. Next week should be fun, the Glendora baseball and San Dimas softball tourney’s hit full tilt, state championship playoff games begin, and this guy and his crew have to start selecting the all-area winters teams, players of the year, coaches of the year, etc, etc. That’s life at the prep desk.

“Everyone has a special place in their heart for Salcedo,” Mountain View midfielder Fabian Villasenor said. “We all wanted to do this for him.”

Mountain View championship photo gallery

By Fred J. Robledo
This one was for Bobby.
Before the Mountain View High School boys soccer team accepted its championship plaque after knocking off top-seed Hesperia Oak Hills 2-1 to capture its second straight CIF-Southern Section Division 6 title on Saturday at Warren High School in Downey, the Vikings took a moment to gather themselves. They huddled, raised their hands, looked at the sky and shouted Bobby Salcedo’s name, the former vice principal of the school who was murdered during the Christmas Holidays while vacationing with his wife in Mexico.

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Above: Northview’s Frank Martinez battles Trinity’s Kevin Maelfeyt in a 140-pound semifinal match Saturday duirng the CIF State championships at Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield. Martinez rallied to win by fall. He then followed with a 3-1 victory over Selma’s Nathan Zarate to become Northview’s third state champion

Northview’s Frank Martinez rallied for a 3-1 victory over Selma’s Nathan Zarate to win the 140-pound weight class at the CIF State wrestling championships Saturday night at Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield. Santa Fe’s Joey Davis dropped a tough 4-2 decision to Central Catholic’s David Ferry in the 135 final, while Alhambra’s Abel Avila and Arroyo’s Noel Blanco both took seventh in their respective classes.
Here’s my story from the final day of the state finals

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Here’s my story from the first day at the CIF State wrestling championships, where Northview’s Frank Martinez is in position to win a state title:
By Steve Ramirez Staff Writer
BAKERSFIELD - Northview High School’s Frank Martinez came here
thinking about one thing and now he is halfway there.
Martinez put himself in prime position to win individual title after
winning quarterfinal match Friday night during the 37th CIF State
wrestling championships at Rabobank Arena.

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Los Altos-SHills game story: - One game doesn’t make a season, but the Los Altos High School softball team appears to have answered the biggest question Conquerors fans have been asking about their starting pitching. Sophomore Jennipher Solis made her first appearance in a varsity uniform Friday, giving up only two hits and striking out seven while going the distance in a 7-2 victory over South Hills in the season opener for both teams.

Friday’s softball results
Nonleague
Alhambra 4, Rosemead 0
Glendora 4, Orange Lutheran 2
Los Altos 7, South Hills 2
Nogales 11, La Puente 3
West Covina 6, St. Lucy’s 3
For Boxscores click thread
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I will continue to post boxscores and scores throughout the season. Thanks to the Glendora tournament for sending updates each night, if everyone did this, and reported results, we could be on top of things all the time.

Friday’s Baseball Results
Glendora Tournament
Claremont 6, Diamond Ranch 5
Bonita 21, Ayala 1
Alta Loma 12, Charter Oak 11. 8 innings
Saturday’s Glendora Tournament Games
Northview vs Bonita, 11:30 a.m., Henderson Field
Crescenta Valley vs Charter Oak, 3:30 p.m., Henderson Field
Glendora vs Claremont, 7 p.m., Henderson Field
Newport Elks
Bishop Amat 4, Palm Desert 3
Don Lugo tournament
South Hills 5, Los Osos 3
Montebello Tournament
Wilson 13, Pioneer 1
Chino Tournament
Covina 9, Arroyo 8
Loara Tournament
Diamond Bar 1, Kennedy 0, 8 innings

For Boxscores, click thread
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