Arcadia Invitational Webpage, which includes all the information you need on this weekends events.

By Keith Lair, Staff Writer
For more than 20 years, the Arcadia Invitational track and field meet has been more about national notoriety. San Gabriel Valley athletes have long played a part in helping the meet reach that goal, but the Valley’s top athletes have rarely made an impact on those national headlines. They could this year, though.
Seven of the marquee events in the two-day meet will have Valley athletes playing an integral role. The 44th annual meet, at Arcadia High School, begins tonight with a slew of relay races. The meet continues Saturday morning with open events and concludes Saturday night with the invitational portion, for which a capacity crowd is expected.

Feature on Bishop Amat’s Kylie Price: Track and field athletes often view the Arcadia Invitational as a springboard to a big season. Bishop Amat’s Kylie Price understands that line of thinking and is hoping to parlay a big performance in Arcadia this weekend into something area fans won’t soon forget. “Basically, this track meet is a preview of what state is going to be,” Price said. “I’m excited for this track meet. It’s one of my favorites.”

L.A. Times’ Eric Sondheimer writes great piece on defending 100, 200 meter state champ, Covina’s Remontay McClain: More than 200 track athletes were wandering around the field at Covina High waiting to warm up. Trying to identify the defending state champion in the 100 and 200 meters amid a diverse group of teenage boys and girls was difficult. Then, out of the blue, came a clue. Remontay McClain was the only student carrying a garbage container at the request of his coach, Kevin Glaspy.

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La Puente’s Jimmy Jacobo gets congrats from coach John Hermosillo after his three-run home run in the fifth inning. The Warriors went on to a 6-3 victory over Gladstone.

By Steve Ramirez
COVINA – Thursday was put up or shut up for the La Puente High School baseball team.
The Warriors answered with the former.
Jimmy Jacobo had a home run and three RBIs and Raymond Sedillo was solid on mound as visiting La Puente got back in the race for a Montview League baseball title with a 6-3 victory over first-place Gladstone.
The Warriors, who rebounded after losing 5-1 to the Gladiators on Tuesday, improved to 10-2 overall and 4-2 in league play. Gladstone, which is now tied for first with Sierra Vista, slipped to 9-2 and 5-1.

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By John Honell
Correspondent
LA VERNE – South Hills High School completed a two-game sweep of Damien this week with a 3-2 win in 9 innings Thursday.
The win gave the Huskies (9-3,5-2) a 2-1 season edge over the Spartans (6-9,4-3) and moved them into a tie with Chino Hills.
The Huskies clinched the season series and gave them the tie breaker should the teams be tied heading into the playoffs.
“On Tuesday, we scored seven runs in the first two innings then hung on,” Huskies coach Kevin Smith said. “We pitched a lot better today than we did then. This has been a huge week for us to take two from them. They’re a really good team.”
Senior Dominick Martinez led off the top of the ninth with a line-drive triple to center field. After an intentional walk to C.J. Saylor, Ty France brought Martinez home with a sacrifice fly to right.
“I was just looking for a fastball belt-high up,” Martinez said. “So our big hitters behind me could bring me in.”

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By Fred J. Robledo, staff writer
It’s amazing how the skies have cleared for the South Hills High School softball team after what looked like impending doom after getting routed by St. Lucy’s and pitcher Danielle O’Toole earlier in the week. The Huskies could have taken a nose dive in the Sierra League standings, but responded with a victory over league-leading Chino Hills Wednesday and a 5-3 win over St. Lucy’s when they met again Thursday. (To continue click thread).

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I will announce the senior all-star teams and coaches early next week.

By Miguel Melendez
It took a little while, but the Bonita High School baseball team eventually flexed its muscles to secure a 8-1 victory over Arcadia to win the Apache Invitational on Wednesday night at Arcadia High.
It put an end to the Apaches’ seven-game winning streak, and for the second year in a row lost its own tournament title game. Glendora beat Arcadia in last year’s final.
Any chance of an Arcadia (11-3) comeback came to an end in the seventh when Bonita (11-3) loaded the bases before scoring four runs on four hits in the seventh inning to pad its lead and put the game out of reach.
While the bats came alive for the Bearcats (12-3), it was pitcher Brandon Murfett who was brilliant, going the distance while giving up just five hits, two walks and one unearned run while fanning six with six strikeouts. He earned the tournament’s top pitching award with teammate KC Huth earning the tournament’s most valuable player award.

All Hacienda League
Boys Soccer
Most Valuable Player: Neal Ignacio, Diamond Bar, Sr.
First Team
Leonard Grigg, Bonita, forward, Sr.
Raul Huerta, Diamond Ranch, forward, Sr.
Juan Sanchez, Los Altos, forward, Fr.
Matthew Lares, Rowland, forward, So.
Juan Mendoza, Los Altos, midfielder, Sr.
Martin Lua, Bonita, midfielder, Sr.
Ernesto Maldonado, Diamond Bar, midfielder, Sr.
Quincee Worrell, Bonita, defender, Sr.
Simon Kim, Diamond Ranch, defender, Sr.
Aaron Valdez, Los Altos, defender, Jr.
Kevin Knight, Diamond Bar, defender, Sr.
Michael Luzzi, Diamond Bar, golakeeper, Sr.

Girls Soccer
Most Valuable Player: Haille Worrel, Bonita, Sr.
First Team
Lauren Stupin, Los Altos, Sr.
Tara Cofer, Los Altos, Sr.
Priscilla Llanos, Rowland, Sr.
Kelli Creese, Bonita, Jr.
Jessi Vargas, Bonita, Jr.
Mikayla Flores, Bonita, Fr.
Danielle Robinson, Diamond Ranch, Fr.
Bianca Balassi, Diamond Bar, Sr.
Stevie Thomas, Diamond Bar, Jr.
Tatum Lockett, Diamond Bar, So.
Stefanie Catone, Walnut, Jr.
Hannah Leu, Walnut, Sr.
Amber Maroni, Walnut, Jr.

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All Sierra League
Boys Soccer
Most Valuable Players: Cory Hodge (Claremont); Kwaku Yeboah (Damien)
First Team
Brent Chamberlain, Claremont, Sr.
Troy Ford, Claremont, Jr.
Denes Kantar, Claremont, Jr.
Esai Ramirez, Claremont, Sr.
Christian Del Cid, Chino Hills, Jr.
Kris Korich, Chino Hills, Sr.
Michael Montoya, Chino Hills, Jr.
Alex Sanchez, Chino Hills, So.
Jordan Bingham, Damien, Jr.
Nolan Leggio, Damien, Sr.
Danny Nicholls, Damien, Sr.
Anton Russell, Damien, Jr.
Carlos Pina, South Hills, Sr.

All Sierra League
Girls Soccer
Offensive MVPs: Makenzy Doniak (Ayala, Jr.); Victoria Camaj (St. Lucys, Jr.)
Defensive MVP: Alicen Wright (Ayala, Sr.)
First Team
Maya Jones, Ayala, So.
Lizette Luna, Ayala, So.
Alexis Weaver, Ayala, Sr.
Alyssa Caputo, Charter Oak, Sr.
Carly Lake, Charter Oak, Jr.
Meilessah Rangel, Chino Hills, So.
Joy Shiba, Chino Hills, Sr.
Hannah Chua, Claremont, Fr.
Ariana Holmes, Claremont, So.
Ari Vaughn, South Hills, Sr.
Shannon Kent, St. Lucy’s, Jr.
Carley Pennington, St. Lucy’s, Jr.
Alexandra Quincey, St. Lucy’s Sr.

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By Steve Ramirez
WEST COVINA – It’s a bit early in the high school softball
season for a must-win game.
But the South Hills was in that situation Wednesday, and thanks to
sophomore Lexi Robles, South Hills put itself back in the Sierra
League title chase.
Robles went 3 for 4, including a grand slam in the fourth, to lead
South Hills to a 6-2 victory over first-place Chino Hills in a key
league game in a battle of Huskies.
South Hills, also getting RBIs from catcher Britney Rodriguez and Sam
Nieves, improved to 10-5 overall and 4-2 in league play. Chino Hills,
getting a home run from Shianne Brannan, slipped to 9-4 and 4-1.

Here’s video interviews, first with South Hills’ coach Scott Fisch, and then Wednesday’s hero – Lexi Robles:

The La Puente High school baseball team was forced to forfeit a 3-0 win over Azusa on March 22 after Azusa filed a protest that was upheld by league principals.
Azusa protested that La Puente conducted an illegal batting practice on the day of the game, which is against league policy. La Puente first-year coach John Hermosillo took responsibility, explaining that two of his players were throwing over-hand with a whiffle ball prior to the game. (To continue, click thread).
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South Hills softball coach and San Gabriel Valley all-star tournament organizer Scott Fisch asked that we let everyone know the softball all-star game is scheduled for Tuesday, June 7 at Mt. San Antonio College at 6:30 p.m. Coaches who wish to nominate senior players for consideration should contact Fisch at his email address, sfisch@cvusd.k12.ca.us

As good as St. Paul pitcher AJ Gonzalez was Tuesday afternoon, the Bishop Amat baseball team made the senior pay for his wildness. Gonzalez walked two batters in the seventh before Lancers senior Brandon Castaneda drove in the game-winning run with a single, giving visiting Bishop Amat a big 3-2 victory in Del Rey League play. The win keeps Amat (10-2 overall, 4-0 in league) undefeated, while St. Paul (4-8, 2-3) remains in third place. The two teams conclude the three- game season series Friday at Amat at 3:15 p.m.

By Fred J. Robledo, Staff Writer
Spring tournament games mean different things to different teams and Bonita High School baseball coach John Knott made it clear what he was looking for following a mercy-shortened 10-0 loss to Glendora in Monday’s round-robin game at the Arcadia tournament. He got his answer with Bonita’s 9-1 rout of rival San Dimas on Tuesday, which included another solid outing from junior pitcher Justin Garza, who improved to 6-0 after allowing just three hits in six innings. (To continue story, click thread)

Saturday’s results
West Covina 9, Monrovia 0
Bonita 8, Temple City 2
San Dimas 6, Glendora 6, 8 innings
Arcadia 2 Nogales 0
Monday’s results
Glendora 10, Bonita 0
San Dimas 9, Temple City 4
Monrovia 5, Nogales 3
Arcadia 5, West Covina 3
Tuesday’s games
Bonita 9, San Dimas 1
Temple City 4, Glendora 3
West Covina 8, Nogales 3
Monrovia vs. Arcadia, 7 p.m.

Wednesday, April 6
Pool A No. 4 vs. Pool B No. 4, 10 a.m.
Pool A No. 3 vs. Pool B No. 3, 1 p.m.
Pool A No. 2 vs. Pool B No. 2, 4 p.m.
Pool A No. 1 vs. Pool B No. 1, 7 p.m.
Finals decided by:
1. Best won/lost in pool
2. Head to head
3. Least runs allowed
4. Least hits allowed
5. Coin toss
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1. Bishop Amat ( 9-2) – You know what I find most surprising? This great offensive team on paper is batting just .280 overall, while the supposed weakness, its pitching staff, has a team ERA of 1.59. Talk about flipping the script, coach Andy Nieto deserves a lot of credit for this.
2. Glendora (8-3-1) — I thought coach Dan Henley did a masterful job last year, but he’s been more impressive this year. Not many teams could reload like they have after losing so much.
3. Bonita (10-3) — I wouldn’t put too much stock in their 10-0 loss to Glendora on a Monday morning in a tournament game. But I did expect more out of them, simply because Glendora was on the other side.
4. South Hills (7-3) — Juniors C.J. Saylor and Ty France can pitch, catch and hit with the best of them. It reminds me of watching two kids dominate their Little League team, only they’re doing it in high school.
5. Chino Hills (9-3) – They were cruising until Charter Oak beat them 2-0. This must be some senior class, Chino Hills has been near the top of just about every boys sport, baseball no different.
6. Covina (10-4) – Have seen them a couple times and love how they compete. They’re playing themselves into a swagger that’s growing with each win. No way they don’t win the Valle Vista League.
7. Diamond Bar (8-6) – I still say the best is yet to come, they’re 4-1 in league but more impressively have scored 70 runs in their last five games after losing 2-1 to Bonita.
8. Damien (6-7) — How do you rank a team with a sub. 500 record? Answer: When they’re 4-1 and tied for first in the ridiculously tough Sierra League.
9. Charter Oak (6-6) — The most troubling stat is they have allowed more runs (59) than they have scored (56). They need ace Travis Santiago on the hill, but he hasn’t pitched all season, the Chargers keeping his pitching status on the down and low.
10. San Dimas (8-4-1) — If there is a team that’s got a shot at beating Covina to the VVL title, it’s the Saints. Coach Mike Regan doing a fine job again.

By Steve Ramirez, Staff Writer
San Dimas High School senior Katherine Salcido enjoyed a breakout season last spring and appears to have picked up where she left off. Salcido, arguably one of the area’s top track and field athletes after placing sixth in the high jump in Division 3 at last year’s CIF-Southern Section meet, has made some early noise this season. She is ranked No. 3 in the state in the long jump (18 feet, 10 inches), fourth in the 100-meter low hurdles (14.19) seconds) and fifth in the high jump (5-6).

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By Aram Tolegian, Staff Writer
A life-changing decision likely awaits for Diamond Ranch High School baseball slugger Rouric Bridgewater in two months, but for now he wants to concentrate on two things – beating Hacienda League rivals Bonita and Diamond Bar. “I just want to beat Diamond Bar and Bonita just once,” he said. “I want to beat both of those schools more than anything else.” That means all thoughts about the Major League Baseball draft in June and the subsequent decision whether to attend Arizona State, where Bridgewater has been committed to since last summer, or start a pro career are on the back burner for now.

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CLICK HERE FOR A PHOTO GALLERY FROM THE SAN DIMAS-TEMPLE CITY GAME

Jacob Ehret went 2 for 3 with four RBIs, two doubles and a run scored to lead San Dimas to a 9-4 win over Temple City in the Apache Invitational on Monday afternoon at Arcadia High. San Dimas’ Eric Morrel went 3 1/3 innings and gave up seven hits. Shawn Kennedy struck out two and allowed just two hits in 3-plus innings in relief. Temple City’s Calvin Copping struck out five but gave up seven runs on nine hits in 6 2/3 innings pitched. San Dimas jumped ahead 2-0 in the first on Ehret’s double to score Andrew Espinosa, who pinch-ran for Daniel Milwee who singled and advanced to second on an error. Matt Lee’s single scored Ehret to make it 2-0. The Saints added four more in the second with a little help from the Rams. After recording two quick ground outs, Temple City ran into some trouble to close out the inning. Elias Orona was hit by a pitch before Kennedy drew a walk. Milwee’s RBI single to the right-center gap scored Orona to make it 3-0, moving Kennedy to third. Kennedy then scored on a balk to make it 4-0 before Matt Muoz drew a walk. Ehret’s two-run double to left field padded the Saints’ lead 6-0. Temple City scored two in the second and added another in the fourth, but left the bases loaded in that inning before Kennedy struck out Kyle Starling and forced Caleb Halverson to ground out to end the threat.

Story to follow soon: My only thoughts are how could Glendora be this good after losing so much from its championship team? They’re blowing through the Baseline, and made easy work of a great team like Bonita…

By John Honell, Correspondent
There was no doubt about which team set their alarm clock for the 10 o’clock game of the Apache Invitational tournament. The game was a matchup between Glendora High School, the defending CIF-Southern Section Division II champions and ranked third by this newspaper, knocked off Bonita, currently ranked first in CIF Division III and ranked second by this newspaper.
The Tartans hit a pair of solo home runs in the first inning and never looked back in a 10-0 win over the Bearcats.

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Between the Star-News and Trib, we got this covered. Monday’s Glendora-Bonita is a can’t miss, plus a San Dimas-Bonita game on Tuesday. Gotta love it.

2011 ARCADIA HIGH BASEBALL INVITATIONAL
Pool A: Arcadia, Monrovia, Nogales, West Covina.
Pool B: Glendora, Temple City, San Dimas, Bonita.
All games on Giambrone Field at Arcadia High

Saturday’s results
West Covina 9, Monrovia 0
Bonita 8, Temple City 2
San Dimas 6, Glendora 6, 8 innings
Arcadia 2 Nogales 0

Monday, April 4
Glendora vs. Bonita, 10 a.m.
Temple City vs. San Dimas, 1 p.m.
Monrovia vs. Nogales, 4 p.m.
West Covina vs. Arcadia, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, April 5
San Dimas vs. Bonita, 10 a.m.
Glendora vs. Temple City, 1 p.m.
West Covina vs. Nogales, 4 p.m.
Monrovia vs. Arcadia, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, April 6
Pool A No. 4 vs. Pool B No. 4, 10 a.m.
Pool A No. 3 vs. Pool B No. 3, 1 p.m.
Pool A No. 2 vs. Pool B No. 2, 4 p.m.
Pool A No. 1 vs. Pool B No. 1, 7 p.m.
Finals decided by:
1. Best won/lost in pool
2. Head to head
3. Least runs allowed
4. Least hits allowed
5. Coin toss

By Fred J. Robledo
If there are a few more grey hairs on High School softball coaches, blame the rule change moving the pitching rubber from 40 to 43 feet, which has made no lead feel safe, and given life to offensive production in a sport that has produced little over the years because of dominant pitching.
Take San Dimas for instance, who squeezed on an 8-6 victory over Northview after leading 6-0 and 8-3, hanging on in the seventh after a Vikings running error ruined what could been a dramatic seventh-inning rally. (to continue, click thread).

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By Steve Ramirez
WEST COVINA – Los Altos High School could have folded Friday.
But instead, the Conquerors just pushed harder before freshman Esteban Ortega gave his teammates something to cheer about.
Ortega went 2 for 4 and hit a two-run home run in the 10th inning to help Los Altos to a 4-2 victory over host West Covina in a Hacienda League baseball game.
The Conquerors, getting solid efforts from pitchers Kyle Peck and Andres Mota, improved to 6-6 overall and 2-2 in league play. West Covina, which tied it at 2 on an RBI single by Steven Diosdado in the sixth, slipped to 3-9 and 2-3.

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Nobody saw this coming, and it won’t be the first time a basketball coach has moved to football. With Glendora not having a teaching position for its football coach after the resignation of Mark Pasquarella, LeDuc stepped up and has offered to take over the program on an interim basis. Everyone knows LeDuc is the best x’s and o’s guy in the business, now he will try his hand at football. Click thread for more

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By Aram Tolegian, Staff Writer
With preparations for this fall already under way, the big question around West Covina High School is who will pilot the Bulldogs football team as it tries to defend last year’s CIF-Southern Section Southeast Division championship. Three-year starting quarterback George Johnson is set to graduate in June and that means the luxury of having an experienced signal caller is no longer afforded on West Covina coach Mike Maggiore. “As a coach, at this point in the game, everything concerns me,” Maggiore said. “It was nice (with George) going into the spring and summer knowing what we had and that we were pretty much set. “I believe in our coaches and the ability that we have in getting our kids ready to play.”

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