Sunday Tribbin: Let’s hope Bonita-West Covina II is in the works, we need a good sequel

Is that too much to ask? I’d ask for Covina-San Dimas II, but that road is full of landmines named Whittier Christian, Village Christian and Monrovia.

You make the call: What’s our best choice for game of the week, Santa Fe at West Covina, Maranatha at San Dimas or Bonita at Muir?

Friday’s CIF-SS quarterfinals
Southeast Division
Santa Fe (7-4) at West Covina (10-1)
Burbank Burroughs (7-4) at Mayfair (7-4)
Bonita (10-1) at Muir (7-4)
La Serna (10-1) at Norwalk (7-4)
Mid-Valley Division
Rosemead (8-3) at Village Christian (7-4)
Covina (10-1) at Whittier Christian (10-1)
Maranatha (8-3) at San Dimas (7-4)
Schurr (7-5) at Monrovia (9-2)
Inland Division
Corona Centennial (11-0) at Upland (8-3)
Chino Hills (9-2) at Etiwanda (6-5)
Rancho Cucamonga (10-1) at Corona Roosevelt (9-2)
Vista Murrieta (10-1) at Norco (9-2)

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Girls Volleyball: St. Lucy’s wins rubber match, beats Chino Hills 22-25, 25-23, 26-24, 25-20 to claim Division 2AA championship

Check out Keith Birmingham’s championship photo gallery.
By Fred J. Robledo, Staff Writer
It wasn’t that Chino Hills didn’t push enough or want it enough during Saturday’s CIF-Southern Section Division 2AA girls volleyball championship at Cypress College.
St. Lucy’s just pushed and wanted it a little more.
After splitting during the season and sharing the Sierra League title, the rubber match came down to the clutch points, St. Lucy’s winning just enough to pull out a come-from-behind 22-25, 25-23, 26-24, 25-20 four-set victory to claim their first championship over a Huskies team that advanced to the finals in their first-ever trip to the playoffs. (to continue, click thread)

Continue reading “Girls Volleyball: St. Lucy’s wins rubber match, beats Chino Hills 22-25, 25-23, 26-24, 25-20 to claim Division 2AA championship” »

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Saturday Morning Quaterback: Stunning endings for Bishop Amat and Azusa; San Dimas scores in final minute to beat Arroyo; West Covina, Bonita win big; Only six teams left in playoffs!

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

Tonight’s Results
Pac-5
Tesoro 31, Bishop Amat 21
— Quarterback Rio Ruiz had a tough night, committing four turnovers in the second half. The Lancers rallied from 14-0 down to tie the score at half and it was 21-21 going into the fourth, but three turnovers in the fourth quarter were too much to overcome. It’s going to be a long off-season for the boys in blue, who watched their 17-game home win streak come to and end.
Mid-Valley
San Dimas 21, Arroyo 14
— The Saints scored with 54 seconds left for the go-ahead touchdown. Arroyo scored on a trick play with no time left, but it was ruled an illegal pass, the defending champs moving on.
Village Christian 31, Azusa 24 — The Aztecs gave up more points than they had all season combined. An excruciating ending for the three-time Montview League champs and the Mid-Valley’s top seed.
Covina 42, La Canada 14 — The Valle Vista league champs jumped to a huge halftime lead and never looked back.
Rosemead 49, Temple City 36 — This was wild from start to end, the Panthers doing just enough to survive and advance.
Maranatha 41, La Puente 28 — The Minutemen one of three Olympic League teams to advance, proving what everyone thought about the Olympic having the best league in the division.
Schurr 31, Baldwin Park 7 — The Braves never had a shot, falling behind 31-0, the only Valle Vista league team to lose in the first round.
Monrovia 41, Gladstone 3 — The Wildcats proved why they’re the real Mid-Valley favorites, winning easy at home.
Southeast Division
Bonita 51, California 6
— The Bearcats scored like crazy, but now they get upset-minded Muir on the road next week. That should be a dandy.
West Covina 49, Bellflower 0 — The Bulldogs showed why they’re the division’s top seed, getting a shutout to boot.
Mayfair 25, Diamond Ranch 20 — The postseason magic is over for the Panthers, who advanced to the previous two Southeast title games.
La Serna 13, Walnut 10, OT — The Mustangs almost pulled off a shocker, giving La Serna all it could handle before falling in overtime.
Inland Division
Vista Murrieta 28, Charter Oak 7 — The Chargers won’t be practicing on Thanksgiving for the first time in years.
Chino Hills 70, Corona 42 — The Huskies jumped out to a huge lead, Corona came back, then the Huskies stretched their legs again.
Roosevelt 28, Claremont 21 — The Wolfpack ended their season with three straight losses after a promising start.

CIF-SS Quarterfinals
Friday, Nov. 19
Mid-Valley Division

Rosemead at Village Christian
Covina at Whittier Christian
Maranatha at San Dimas
Schurr at Monrovia
Southeast Division
Santa Fe at West Covina
Burroughs at Mayfair
Bonita at Muir
La Serna at Norwalk

FOR ALL CIF-SS RESULTS CLICK THREAD

Highlights and interviews with the Inland Insider, Tom Kiss

Highlighs of Amat’s 31-21 loss to Tesoro …Continue reading “Saturday Morning Quaterback: Stunning endings for Bishop Amat and Azusa; San Dimas scores in final minute to beat Arroyo; West Covina, Bonita win big; Only six teams left in playoffs!” »

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Water scare at Bishop Amat … The Lancers forced to practice at Charter Oak, probably the closest they come to playing each other

They might not meet during the regular season, but Bishop Amat and Charter Oak were eye-to-eye on Wednesday. A mix-up on Bishop Amat’s watering schedule flooded the field on Wednesday, forcing the Lancers to practice at Charter Oak, adjacent to where the Chargers were preparing for their first-round game Friday. A caller insisted Kiefer was flooded ankle high, but coach Steve Hagerty said that was not true, that they didn’t want to practice on it in fear of tearing the field up. Hagerty said he has no concern Kiefer will be in tip-top shape come Friday.

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Azusa’s defense speaks louder than words, but you have to love what they’re saying too

I love the confidence I read from Azusa players, and that’s what it is, plain old confidence, don’t confuse it with anything else. That belief is what gives them an opportunity to go a long way. They understand their situation, why they have skeptics, and when one of your team leaders, Edwin Garcia says, “Anything less than a CIF championship would be a disappointment. We want to earn respect because we know we’re lacking that respect,” it tells me they get it and are ready for the journey that lies ahead. I still don’t know if they’re talented enough to win it all. None of us do, that remains to be seen. But I know this, you can’t win it if you don’t believe you can win it first, and these boys believe they can. That’s half the battle right there.


Above: Azusa High defensive line left to right: Luis Nunez, Alex Tapia, Edwin Garcia and Nick Valverde ( Photo by Keith Birmingham)

By Aram Tolegian
AZUSA
– The Azusa High School football team knows that despite its 10-0 record and No. 1 seed in the Mid-Valley Division playoffs, there are still plenty of doubters around the Valley when it comes to the Aztecs’ validity. “They haven’t played anyone,” the skeptics say. Others argue that Azusa comes from the weak Montview League.
After allowing just 30 total points this season, there’s one group of Aztecs that’s anxiously awaiting its chance to show the Valley just how real Azusa is, and that would be the defensive line. (To continue click thread).

Continue reading “Azusa’s defense speaks louder than words, but you have to love what they’re saying too” »

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email

Let’s play the over/under game

With no football in town tonight, I thought I would play Aram’s over/under game for the first round of the playoffs. It’s real simple I’ll put out a number to a corresponding stat or situation and then give my take…You can give yours

Charter Oak’s chances of knocking off second-seed Vista Murrieta
OVER/UNDER: 25 percent
Fred’s bet: UNDER — still not buying it

Bishop Amat’s 50-50 amount on Friday Night
OVER/UNDER: $2,500
Fred’s bet: OVER — I’ve seen it climb to $2,800 before.

Number of teams from the Montview and Mission Valley League left after the first-round of the Mid-Valley.
OVER/UNDER: 1 1/2
Fred’s bet:
OVER – Some think Azusa and Arroyo aren’t slam dunks, so the rest must be in deep trouble. I have them both winning, however.

Number of times we quote a coach in the paper on Saturday blaming the ref’s for what happened.
OVER/UNDER: 2
Freds bet:
UNDER — Though I have witnessed it too many times before.

Number of yards quarterback Steven Rivera throws for against San Dimas
OVER/UNDER: 275
Fred’s bet:
UNDER — They need to mix up the run and pass.

Number of times Aram reports “Breaking News” before Monday.
OVER/UNDER: 1/2
Fred’s bet:
OVER — I would hate to have his phone bill.

Total rushing yards for Amat running back Jalen Moore against Tesoro’s powerful D-Line
OVER/UNDER: 115
Fred’s bet: UNDER — He gets his 100, but they need to air it out too.

Number of total rushing yards for West Covina against Bellflower
OVER/UNDER: 300
Fred’s bet: OVER — Seen it too many times against better teams

With 16 area football teams in the playoffs, how many will be left after Friday’s first round?
OVER/UNDER: 8
Fred’s bet: OVER — I like the favorites, plus a couple upset.

Facebook Twitter Plusone Digg Reddit Stumbleupon Tumblr Email