After falling at home to Covina 4-3 earlier in the week, Northview (7-2, 1-1) returned the favor at Covina (5-4, 1-1), winning 2-1. We’ve got video interviews with Northview coach Darren Murphy, Covina coach Terence DeWan and Northview closer Kollby Oriti.

By Steve Ramirez
twitter.com/SteveRRamirez
WEST COVINA — Neither the South Hills or Damien high school baseball teams could afford to suffer their second Sierra League loss in a weekThursday.
That problem is now the Spartans.
Adrian De Horta tossed a three-hit shutout and the host Huskies squeaked out a 1-0 victory over Damien in a key early-season league game.
South Hills, also getting a RBI from Adam Goss, improved to 7-2 overall and 2-1 in league play. The Huskies, who began the week ranked No. 1 in the area, dropped an 8-7 setback at Charter Oak on Tuesday.
Damien, who opened league play with a 7-3 loss to Ayala last week, slipped to 4-4 and 1-2. The Spartans were led by pitcher Grant Hockin, who gave up three hits and struck out six in six innings.
De Horta gave up three hits and struck out four. He also yielded just five base runners.

South Hills coach Kevin Smith: “It’s a critical win for us, especially in this league. You don’t want to fall 1-2 this early. Damien is such a good team. Hockin can really pitch. After losing to Charter Oak, we felt we really needed this one.”
Damien coach Al Leyva: “There’s a reason why (De Horta is) what he is. He’s a very good pitcher, just like (Hockin) is. It came down to the same situation. They got a lead-off double and they moved him over and got the run in. We led off with a double in the fifth. We moved him over and didn’t get him in.”
Thursday’s Baseball results
Valle Vista League
Baldwin Park at Nogales, postponed until Friday (lockdown at school)
Northview 2, Covina 1
San Dimas 7, Wilson 1
Sierra League
Claremont 7, Chino Hills 6
South Hills 1, Damien 0
Ayala 9, Charter Oak 3
Montview Leauge
Bassett 5, Azusa 3
La Puente 6, Gladstone 3
Sierra Vista 18, Workman 1
Hacienda League
Diamond Ranch 6, West Covina 2

Check out the Tribune MaxPreps made easy standings, schedules and individual leaderboard. And a big thanks to coaches and teams who update regularly so the area can follow its favorites players and schools. Why so many coaches and teams continue to not update rosters, game scores or statistics is ridiculous.

“I’d like to see league play have more of an impact in division make-up, seeding and home game assignments. I think the system now devalues league play quite a bit.” — Damien boys basketball coach Matt Dunn

By Bob Keisser, Staff Writer
Bracketology in CIF-Southern Section basketball requires an advanced degree in demographics. Or at least some knowledge of the game Twister.
The CIF State playoffs convene Friday and Saturday in Sacramento with state titles at stake in six divisions each for boys and girls. But for the Southern California schools that reached this pinnacle, they had to succeed in their league – or not – and then sort out exactly where they belonged in the 12 divisions the CIF-Southern Section apportioned in basketball. There also were all of the factors, and non-factors, involved.
Oddly, the leagues they competed in during the regular season were not factors.
Even more strange is the record they had during the regular season was less of a factor than one would expect.
And there was nothing remotely orderly about the placement of teams based on what we’ve come to expect in the playoffs. Continue reading “What can be done to fix the CIF-SS basketball playoffs? Overall record and league play means nothing and where you compete in the playoffs is still a mystery” »

Damien and St. Lucy’s lost appeals with the CIF-Southern Section on Wednesday in hopes of remaining in the Sierra League. Damien lost by a vote of 14-6 and St. Lucy’s lost 13-7. Damien and St. Lucy’s are expected to be placed in Parochial Leagues (beginning 2014-15) barring the outcome of a legal fight in the courts, which is expected next. CIF sent a memo to athletic directors in November with recommendations for Area Placement for the 2014-18 cycle. One of those recommendations included moving Damien and St. Lucy’s, part of the Sierra League and Mt. SAC area, under the Parochial umbrella. That could pair Damien/St. Lucy’s with Bishop Amat, St. Paul, St. Francis or a number of different scenarios when new leagues are configurated.

STORY: Damien High and St. Lucy’s lost their final appeal cases Wednesday concerning area placement in a session before the CIF executive committee Wednesday. That means instead of the private schools staying in the Mt. SAC area, they are forced to switch to the parochial area for the four-year cycle beginning in 2014-15.
Damien, an all-boys school, and St. Lucy’s, an all-girls school, no longer will be part of the Sierra League after next spring. Where they will wind up will not be decided until a future re-leaguing meeting.

Video of Bishop Amat’s seventh-inning rally to pull out a 5-4 win over Alemany and interviews with Amat coach Andy Nieto and Adam Alcantara….

By Steve Ramirez
twitter.com/SteveRRamirez
LA PUENTE — Bishop Amat High School, despite its slow start, has held the belief that it’s still a very good baseball team.
The Lancers are beginning to live up to that billing.
Adam Alcantara had the game-tying RBI and Daryl Daniels scored the winning run in the seventh on a throwing error and host Bishop Amat rallied for a 5-4 victory over Alemany in a nonleague game on Wednesday.
The Lancers, who lost four of their first five, scored their second-consecutive win to improve to 3-5. Ruben Cardenas had three hits for Alemany, which slipped to 7-3.
Bishop Amat, after scoring three runs in the sixth to make it 4-3, then tied it at 4 on a single by Christian Moya, a walk to Anthony Walters and a two-out, RBI single by Alcantara. Daniels, who reached on a fielder’s choice, then scored the winning run on a throwing error by shortstop Ryan Alvarez.
Bishop Amat coach Andy Nieto: “When you play the teams we’ve played, the margin for error lessens. You have to play a baseball game as clean as possible and that’s what we were suffering. We weren’t able to finish the fight, finish the game. But these guys rally around each other. They were up, they weren’t going to be front runners. Win or lose, they were going to take their best swings. That’s an Amat trademark.”
Bishop Amat’s Adam Alcantara: “We knew we didn’t want to lose another (close game). You can’t give up. You can’t put your head down when you’re down 4-0. You just have to keep going.”
Alemany coach Randy Thompson: “(Bishop Amat) did a good of battling. (Rene DeLeon) has been our closer. He hadn’t given up a run all year. Yes, their hitters battled to put the ball in play, but we could have prevented those by taking care of the first batter each inning. That’s baseball.”
Wednesday’s Baseball Results
Hacienda League
West Covina 3, Diamond Ranch 2, 10 innings (Tuesday’s result)
Diamond Bar 9, Los Altos 1
Bonita 6, Rowland 0
Mission Valley League
South El Monte 10, Rosemead 7
Mountain View 3, Arroyo 2
El Monte 9, Gabrielino 7
Nonleague
Bishop Amat 5, Alemany 4

Diamond Bar jumps on Los Altos: In the new Hacienda League format teams face each other twice in the same week.
Winning on Wednesday doesn’t count more, but it sure makes things a lot easier for Friday’s rematch.
Diamond Bar (7-1,2-1) totaled 10 hits, got a complete-game performance from senior Zeph Walters and took advantage of three Los Altos errors while cruising to a 9-1 win.
“Anytime you can win the opener it’s important,” Brahmas coach Eric Shibley said. “With the change in the league format this year, getting the first win is huge. You don’t want to be guessing and chasing that second game.”

Bishop Amat, winners of seven consecutive games, continues to look like the best team in the area.
Staff photo by Keith Birmingham

Here’s this week’s area softball top 10
1. Bishop Amat (7-2) — The Lancers, after losing two early, are rolling with seven consecutive wins. They’ll test rival their streak vs. St. Paul today.
2. Chino Hills (10-4) — The Huskies have a deceiving record that’s been hampered by a tough schedule. They are still the favorite going into Sierra League play.
3. Ayala (8-2) — The Bulldogs look like Chino Hills’ chief challenger in the Sierra League. They enjoyed another solid week, with the only loss to a strong Los Osos squad.
4. South Hills (9-3) — The Huskies of West Covina are rounding into form, advancing to the finals of the Charter Oak tournament before losing to Corona Centennial.
5. Bonita (6-3) — The Bearcats look like the team to beat in the Hacienda League after reaching the Charter Oak Tournament semifinals.
6. Charter Oak (8-2) — The Chargers show how tough the Sierra League is, going 3-1 at their tournament, including a win over one of the top teams from Whittier in 2012 semifinalist La Habra.
7. Northview (4-4) — The Vikings have a solid start, advancing to the San Dimas Tournament semifinals and splitting four games at the Charter Oak tourney.
8. St. Lucy’s (3-5) — The Regents, who went 1-2 for the week, should make some noise in the Sierra League. But this still looks like a team finding its way.
9. San Dimas (6-6) — The Saints have been even keel until now, but their strength will be shown in Valle Vista League play.
10. Duarte (5-2) — The Falcons, the favorite in the Montview League have looked impressive in their last two games, outscoring the opposition, 37-0.

Covina-Northview photo gallery

By Steve Ramirez
twitter.com/SteveRRamirez

COVINA — All the talk about the chase for the Valle Vista League baseball title this season has centered on Northview, Nogales and San Dimas.
Covina showed Tuesday it’s ready to enter the fray.
Brian Maag, Adam Valdez and Jesus Perez had RBIs and pitcher Joseph Wills got the last four outs in relief as the visiting Colts rallied for a 4-3 victory over rival Northview in the league opener.
The Vikings (6-2) had the tying and winning runs in scoring position in the sixth and seventh innings before Wills closed to the door for Covina, which improved to 5-3.
Covina, trailing 3-1, rallied for a 4-3 lead after an error, a bunt single by Daziel Rodriguez, two walks and two hit-batters.
Northview, following a lead-off double by Anthony Amaya, had runners on second and third in the seventh. But Wills closed the door with back-to-back strikeouts.
Covina coach Terence DeWan: “We know this league is tough from top to bottom. We just try to focus on pitching and playing one inning at a time. We’ve played some good teams, both in the fall and in preseason, so we felt good coming into today. The kids stepped up and I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
Northview coach Darren Murphy: “We had plenty of opportunities. It’s frustrating, but their pitchers stepped up and got outs.”
Covina’s Joseph Wills: “You just have to have faith in your defense. You have to have confidence they are going to make the plays. This was a big game. All of our guys were excited. As a team, we just rallied.”
Tuesday’s results
Sierra League Baseball
Charter Oak 8, South Hills 7
Damien 10, Claremont 4
Chino Hils 4, Ayala 3
Valle Vista League Baseball
Covina 4, Northview 3
Nogales 2, Baldwin Park 1
San Dimas 9, Wilson 3
Baseline Leauge Baseball
Los Osos 6, Glendora 2

South Hills moves on up.
Staff photo by Keith Birmingham

Here’s this week’s area baseball top 10
1. South Hills (6-1) — The Huskies take over the top spot after evening its series with Northview with an 8-3 victory. South Hills, which beat Claremont, 6-2, to open Sierra League play, also has a victory over Bonita on its resume.
2. Northview (6-1) — The Vikings are the real deal. Their resume includes winning the Dick’s Sporting Goods Invitational, which included area heavyweights South Hills, Bonita and Los Altos, and beating traditional power Millikan last week.
3. Nogales (8-0) — Longtime Nobles coach John Romano earned his 600th win last week, but lost in the hoopla is Nogales is off to its best start in recent memory.
4. Bonita (6-1) — Don’t sleepwalk on the Bearcats, who look as solid as ever. Bonita’s only loss is to South Hills. They rebounded from it with a 7-5 win over San Dimas last week.
5. Diamond Bar (6-1) — How good are the Brahmas? We might find out this week when they play a home-and-home against Los Altos. Diamond opened Hacienda League play by splitting a pair with West Covina, which has also lost just once.
6. Glendora (7-2) — The Tartans, the lone area entry in the Baseline League, get lost on the radar, but Dan Henley has another strong group. Glendora went 2-1 last week, beating Etiwanda and Upland.
7. San Dimas (6-2) — The Saints came down to early, losing to Bonita in extra innings. But they will make noise in the Valle Vista League title chase, which they begin this week with a home and home vs. Wilson.
8. Baldwin Park (6-1) — How good the Braves are should be answered this week when they play Nogales twice.
9. West Covina (8-1-1) — The Bulldogs earned a respectful split against Diamond Bar. Diamond Ranch (4-4) is up next.
10. Los Altos (5-2) — The Conquerors split two games last week to hold on to the No. 10 slot. They’ll have the opportunity to move up with games vs. Diamond Bar on the docket.
OTHERS
11. Damien (3-3) — The Spartans could be in trouble. They opened Sierra League play with a loss to an improved Ayala squad, and now end the week with a trip to favorite and No. 1 South Hills.
12. Bishop Amat (2-5) — The Lancers, who won on Monday, are still bogged down by a tough nonleague slate. But the league season is fast approaching, which should see them get on a roll.