Tonight's results
South Hills 48, Walnut 27 -- The Huskies jump out to a 41-0 lead keyed by Geoffrey Vaughns' two interceptions. The Mustangs scored 27 unanswered late.
Crespi 38, Bishop Amat 25 -- The Lancers trailed 21-3 and fought to get back in it, but they gave up too many points to claw all the way back. It's not the end of the world, they can still clinch a share of the Serra title next week with a win at home against Notre Dame, who beat Loyola 45-14.
Damien 52, Diamond Bar 3 -- The Spartans are not just winning, they're flexing their muscles and getting ready to clinch at least a share of the Sierra title.
Arroyo 57, Mountain View 7 -- The Knights actually trailed 7-0 before going on a 57-point run.
Rosemead 52, El Monte 20 -- Matt Fregoso had 370 all-purpose yards and five touchdowns. Can you say player of the week?
Rowland 42, Nogales 20 -- The Raiders only led 14-13 at half, then pulled away and clinched a playoff spot.
Gladstone 42, Bassett 6 -- The Gladiators needed this to stay in playoff contention while eliminating the Olympians at the same time.
La Puente 41, Sierra Vista 7 -- If not for their lone loss to Azusa, what would you be saying about the way the Warriors handled everyone else?
Workman 23, Duarte 0 -- The only surprise was how close the score was.
Chino Hills 14, Ayala 7 -- Just thought I would share it with you.
Glendora 28, Chino 10 -- The Tartans take care of business, can clinch a share of the Sierra and a playoff spot with a win at home against Ayala.
San Dimas 49, Northview 24 -- It's official, we can start getting ready for next week's showdown at Baldwin Park for the VVL title.
Covina 7, Pomona 2 -- Sounds like a Colts baseball score, but anyways, this probably does clinch a playoff spot.
Bonita 47, Wilson 3 -- The Bearcats take care of business to keep their playoff hopes alive.
South El Monte 28, Gabrielino 3 -- The Eagles not only clinched a playoff spot, but will play for a piece of the MVL against Arroyo next week.

The Tartans, who also received goals from Lauren Gold, Emily Ortiz and Natalie Hernandez, finished 10-5-2. It was Glendora's best finish since winning the tournament in 2005.

CIF-SS doesn't sanction a championship in field hockey, but the winner of the TofC is recognized as the CIF-SS champion.

"We proved we could come back as a team," Sefton said of her Glendora squad, which dropped a tough 3-0 setback to Newport Harbor in the semifinals on Wednesday.

"We showed we can fight strong. We just played really well and it was awesome. It was great to see us finish it off."

The Tartans controlled the ball for much of the game and held a 22-9 advantage in shots.

Glendora took the early lead when Sefton dropped a pass to Gold, who beat Barons goalie Alex Capuano for a 1-0 lead with 17:39 to play in the first half.

"We played well today," Glendora coach Leigh Morrison said.

"Some things kind of clicked for us. We passed the ball and used the whole field. We had some beautiful cross balls and it was kind of nice."

The feeling got better in the second half when Ortiz made it 2-0 with 19:23 to play. Hannah Thurston started the break by driving down the side. She made a nice cross pass to Sefton, who then fed Ortiz for an easy tap-in. Sefton then made it 3-0 on a stroke, field hockey's version of a penalty shot. Sefton had broken free in the scoring circle before being checked by Fountain Valley's Nancy Mendez. Sefton then easily beat Capuano to the left side for the three-goal advantage.

"That's fun to do," Sefton said. "The first half we were a little flat and only had one (goal). But the second half, we came back strong. We worked hard, and put three more in. It was nice to see us produce like that."

Fountain Valley had two decent chances to get back in it, but Tartans goalie Sara Hirakawa stopped two inside shots.

"We have a great goalie, but we also have a great defense," Morrison said. "They played calm and got the ball out of there. They've done that a lot this year."

Hernandez, getting a pass from Sefton, then made it 4-0 with 4:31 left to play. Ashley Woody then broke the shutout with less than a minute to play.

"Yesterday was a tough loss," Morrison said. "But for our girls, especially the five seniors, to bounce back and lead like they did today was awesome."

steve.ramirez@sgvn.com

(626) 962-8811, Ext. 2296

Thursday countdown question:I don't like to use the term sleepers with teams having great years, but wouldn't it be a total surprise if one of these four won a CIF championship? Which of them has the best chance of winning their division and shocking us all?

Guru Says: Well, this is my favorite time of year. We are watching tons of film for 2010 prospects. But more than that, it's close to playoff time - which means it's time for a little bracketology for the playoffs. Let's dive into it.
First, what needs to be understood is the protocol directly from the CIF-SS Handbook that is online at cifss.org. "The initial step is to designate four teams (maximum) as seeds, with No. 1 and No. 4 placed in the top bracket, and No. 2 and 3 in the bottom bracket (see Diagram 1). An exception to this procedure would be if seeds in the same half of the bracket are from the same league......Is it possible to designate more than four seeds? The task would be virtually impossible on two counts. Attempting to delineate which team is the No. 7 seed, as opposed to No. 8, or No. 12 rather than No. 13, would result in 25 different answers by 25 different people. Additionally, an attempt at a "true seed" would be in opposition to the CIF-SS Constitution and By-laws, which specify a league's designated No. 1 entry shall meet a No. 3 entry, and a No. 2 shall meet another No. 2, where the draw provides for same in the opening round."

SOUTHEAST
Almont -- Schurr takes on San Gabriel for the league championship Friday night. Winner gets a home game for the first round. Looks like Bell Gardens will make the playoffs safely.
Del Rio -- For what seems like the 50th year in a row (just kidding of course) California will be playing Santa Fe for the league championship Friday night. What's a bit different is that Santa Fe has defeated San Clemente but lost to La Serna? Right now, California is in first place coming into the game going undefeated in league play. La Serna looks like their in prime position for the other playoff spot from the league if they can defeat El Rancho Thursday night.
Miramonte - One thing seems certain, Charter Oak will win out in the league and will garner the top-seed in the Division. It also seems a bit certain that Diamond Ranch will be the second place team from the league (if they defeat Los Altos this Friday night) and it looks as if Bonita will be the third place team from the league. No drama here if everything goes to hoyle these next two weeks.
Pacific -- Now it gets very interesting a bit confusing for the average fan. First off, Burbank is ranked third in the latest CIF Poll that was released on Monday. If they win out the next two weeks (including a big game against Burroughs next Friday night), they will hold on to their spot as league champs and will be the three seed in the division. Crescenta Valley is ranked fourth and if they run the table this week (including a huge game against Burroughs this Friday night) they will garner the four seed in the Division. One thing that is very interesting is that Burroughs is tied with Burbank for first place in the division. They can cause a seismic eruption in the bracket process if they run the table and win league. Remember, Burroughs is ranked 10th in the latest CIF poll. The other drama being played out is the battle for the final playoff spot in the league. If all goes to hoyle, Muir and Pasadena will not only play for bragging rights to the city of Pasadena next Friday night at the Rose Bowl but they will also play for the final automatic spot in the playoffs.
San Antonio -- Well, it's pretty easy. If South Hills runs the table the next two weeks they not only win league, but they will also will garner the second seed in the division. If SH runs the table - that means West Covina finishes second and Rowland will finish third (that is if Rowland defeats Nogales this Friday night). It all seems cut and try if South Hills does its job. But Husky fans remember that all SH had to do last year was win West Covina and they would have had a high seed and a home game in the first round. And you all know what happened that night?

Now that you have been explained what's going on in the league's, you can see that there is a lot that has to be determined. But for argument sake, let's say that these are the seeds that play out.

1) Charter Oak
2) South Hills
3) Burbank
4) Cresecenta Valley

That means that there are two teams from the same league that are seeded. That just means you have to jumble brackets - which means someone might be unhappy. Well, here is what we have projected going into Friday night....

UPPER BRACKET
(1) Charter Oak (Miramonte 1)
La Serna (Del Rio 3)

(Winner of Schurr v. San Gabriel) (Almont 1)
Burbank Burroughs (Pacific 3)

(Winner of Cal vs. Santa Fe) (Del Rio 1)
Bell Gardens (Almont 3)

(4) Crescenta Valley (Pacific 2)

West Covina (San Antonio 2)

LOWER BRACKET

(3) Burbank (Pacific 1)
Bonita (Miramonte 3)

(Loser of Schurr vs. San Gabriel) (Almont 2)
Rowland (San Antonio 3)

(Loser of California/Santa Fe) (Del Rio 2)
Diamond Ranch (Miramonte 2)

(2) South Hills (San Antonio 1)
(Winner of Pasadena v. Muir) (Pacific 4)

MID VALLEY DIVISION

Mission Valley -- Arroyo looks like there are projected league champs. But there is a three way tie for second between Rosemead, South El Monte and Gabrielino at 2-1. SEM takes on Gabrielino on Friday night with a playoff birth at stake.
Montview -- This league has four births available for the playoffs. Azusa is in control on the league and if they win out, they will be the third seed in the division. Gladstone and La Puente are 3-1 entering the week and they will play each other for second place next Friday night. Workman looks to have the inside track on the fourth and final spot in the division.
Olympic -- Paraclete is control of the league and will play for the league title next Friday night against Valley Christian. If they win, they not win the league, but could also garner the fourth seed in the Division. Look for Valley Christian to be second and Village Christian to be the third place team in the league.
Rio Hondo League -- Looking for the top seed in the Division. This is the team. If the Wildcats run the table the next two weeks, the win the league and garner the top. Temple City, La Canada and San Marino are battling for the second place spot in the league. I'll project Temple City and La Canada making it into the show.
Valle Vista -- Comes down to this. The winner of the San Dimas vs. Baldwin Park game next Friday night not only win the league title, but garners a seed in the Division. Meanwhile there is a three battle for third place in the league between Covina, Pomona and Ganesha. We project Covina being the third place team.

As you can see, it's a mess. But let's project the four seeded teams as the following

1) Monrovia
2) San Dimas
3) Azusa
4) Paraclete

So, this becomes a lot simpler with the protocol that CIF-SS has to follow.....

UPPER BRACKET

(1) Monrovia (Rio Hondo 1)
(Third Place from Mission Valley) (Mission Valley 3)

(Winner of La Puente/Gladstone) (Montview 2)
Baldwin Park (Valle Vista 2)

Arroyo (Mission Valley 1)
(Third Place from Rio Hondo) (Rio Hondo 3)

(4) Paraclete (Olympic 1)
Gladstone/Sierra Vista (Montview 3)

LOWER BRACKET

3) Azusa (Montview 1)
Village Christian (Olympic 3)

(Second Place from Mission Valley) (Mission Valley 2)
Covina (Valle Vista 3)

Valley Christian (Olympic 2)
(Second Place from Rio Hondo) (Rio Hondo 2)

(2) San Dimas (Valle Vista 1)
Workman/Sierra Vista (Montview 4)

Hopefully things will come into light after this weeks games. Have a good week.

With two games left, against winless El Monte (0-8, 0-3) on Friday followed by Gabrielino (3-5, 2-1), the Panthers are hoping to double their two-game winning streak to create momentum heading into the playoffs.

That's when Diaz, who rushed for 233 yards and two touchdowns in a season-opening 23-20 victory over Covina, could return if not sooner.

Diaz suffered a slight tear in his MCL against Covina and has been out since, briefly returning for three carries against Arroyo before shutting it down to get ready for the stretch run.

"I feel good about where we are for a variety of reasons," Koffler said. "You look at who we lost to, Monrovia, Harvard-Westlake, South Hills, and we were in the game with South Hills until it got away from us late.

"Now you give me a healthy (Diaz) for the playoffs and who knows? Now you can control the clock. Now you have more options on offense. You know, if we had lost Tre Sumler for a long time last year it would have affected our record too. That's the same with Joey. When we get him back it changes the entire dynamic of our team."

With the exception of Paraclete, which defeated the Panthers 21-10 in last year's CIF-SS title game, and current No. 1 and undefeated Monrovia (8-0), Koffler says the Mid-Valley Division is wide open.

"People look at our league and say it's a down year, but I think it's a down year in the Rio Hondo League with the exception of Monrovia. It's down in the Valle Vista too. The championship still has to go through Paraclete, but I think the rest of us can knock each other off on any given night.

"Monrovia has been great, but a few weeks back they barely beat San Marino (14-12). I'm not knocking Monrovia, but a bad pass here, a turnover there, it happens. Nobody is so good that they can just pound you regardless. It's going to be an interesting playoffs, that's for sure."

Boys Basketball
1AA: Diamond Bar
1A: Walnut, West Covina
2AA: Glendora
2A: Damien, Nogales, Rowland
3AA: Arroyo, Los Altos
3A: Bonita, Charter Oak, Diamond Ranch, Mountain View, Rosemead, Sierra Vista, South Hills
4AA: Azusa, Bishop Amat, Covina, Duarte, El Monte, Gladstone, La Puente, San Dimas, South El Monte, Wilson,
4A: Bassett, Blair, Workman
5AA: La Verne Lutheran

Tribune Top Ten
1. Bishop Amat (8-0) - Wouldn't it be great if they defeated Crespi on the road. Think about the atmosphere next week when they would be going for 10-0 at home for first place in the Serra against reigning champion Notre Dame. It doesn't get much better than that. But first things, first.
2. Charter Oak (8-1) - People keep asking, do you still think Charter Oak would beat Bishop Amat on a neutral field? I'm stubborn enough to say yes, but also realize how foolish that sounds. I don't know why people still keep knocking the Chargers, they're only 22-1-1 since last year.
3. South Hills (6-2) - The Huskies are the sleeper nobody is talking about. We will find out just how polished they're with Walnut and Rowland next, but my guess is they will blow out both and go into the playoffs with a head of steam.
4. San Dimas (7-1) - If not for the loss against the Mid-Valley's No. 1 Monrovia, they would look so unstoppable on paper. Seriously, they're winning by a 28-point margin with three straight shutouts. That's just sick.
5. Baldwin Park (7-1) -- You gotta love that everytime San Dimas comes up with a statement victory, the Braves answer. I can't wait for the Valle Vista league finale.
6. West Covina (5-4) - I guarantee the Bulldogs will be the team nobody wants to face in the first round of the Southeast playoffs. I know they have four losses, but that was a lot of injuries ago.
7. Rowland (7-1) - The Raiders got handled by West Covina, but they still have a shot at the San Antonio league title in the finale against South Hills. A loss, which is more likely, drops them to third.
8. Damien (3-5) -- The Spartans are nowhere to be found in the Central Rankings, and for a very good five-loss reason. But they're in the best position to finish strong, and regardless of the rankings, they have a chance to grab the league's top seed with victories over Diamond Bar and Chino.
9. Glendora (5-3) -- Quarterback Chad Jeffries stepped up and had a monster game in their upset over Chino Hills. The Tartans should beat Chino this week, then can play for a tie of the Sierra League title against Ayala in the finale.
10. Azusa (8-1) -- The back-to-back Montview League champions are sitting pretty as the No. 3 seed in the Mid-Valley Division. We all talk about the great job Bishop Amat coach Steve Hagerty is doing, but Aztecs coach Joe Scherf deserves coach of the year consideration too.

The Middle 10
11. Walnut (6-2), 12. Arroyo (6-2), 13. La Puente (6-2), 14. Gladstone (6-2), 15. Diamond Ranch (2-6), 16. Bonita (2-5), 17. Workman (5-3), 18. Los Altos (3-5), 19. Pomona (5-3), 20. Rosemead (3-5).

On the bottom looking up
21. Covina (3-5), 22. Sierra Vista (4-4), 23. Wilson (2-6), 24. Nogales (2-6), 25. Bassett (3-5), 26. South El Monte (2-6), 27. Diamond Bar (1-7), 28. Ganesha (1-7), 29. Northview (1-7), 30. El Monte (0-8), 31. Mountain View (0-8), 32. Duarte (0-8)

The view from Diamond Ranch High School after a brush fire broke out on Tuesday....

Girls Volleyball Top 10
1. South Hills (15-5)
2. St. Lucy's (22-4)
3. Walnut (16-4)
4. Bonita (13-6)
5. San Dimas (18-4)
6. Glendora (8-4)
7. Los Altos 13-6
8. Ganesha (19-4)
9. La Puente (14-10)
10. Diamond Bar (16-10)

Comments: For the first time in a few weeks, we have a new No. 1 as South Hills subplants St. Lucy's after the Regents lost in five to Ayala last week. Will will see what the Huskies do with their new status when they travel to No. 3 Walnut tonight for a San Antonio League showdown. it's one of three battles for first place today. No. 9 La Puente hosts Gladstone and No. 5 San Dimas travels to No. 8 Ganesha. Speaking of the Saints, they move up to No. 5. after getting two more sweeps in the Valle Vista, and taking advantage of Glendora and Los Altos losing, albeit to ranked teams. Diamond Bar makes a return to the top 10 after putting together a late surge in recent weeks.

Above: South Hills' Jackie Valle-Acosta spikes Walnut

Update:
South Hills def. Walnut, 20-25, 25-20, 25-20, 21-25, 15-9 - The Huskies clinched their second outright title in three years with the victory. Melinda Gomez had 15 kills, with Marisa Gomez and Jackie Valle-Acosta 14 each to lead South Hills. The Huskies also got 13 kills from Karina Jones and 62 assists from Bre Hunter.

Other Scores
Miramonte League
Bonita def. Wilson 25-10, 25-16, 25-18.
Montview League
Gladstone def. La Puente 14-25, 25-13, 25-18, 25-20.
Sierra League
Glendora def. Chino 25-10, 25-7, 25-17.
Valle Vista League
San Dimas def. Ganesha 25-19, 25-19, 25-14.

Santiago could have played, but with a bye week before the Miramonte League finale against Los Altos on Nov. 13, Farrar thought it was best to give Santiago an extra week off.

He has passed for 946 yards and 10 touchdowns, and the Chargers (8-1, 3-0) moved back on top of the CIF-Southern Section Southeast Division poll Monday, a result of West Covina knocking off No. 1 and previously undefeated Rowland, 32-10 on Friday.

"He (Santiago) should be fine," Farrar said. "The doctor cleared him to play, but you read so much about concussions and head injuries that I thought it was best to be extra cautious. If it was a sprained ankle you ice it, wrap it up and get ready to play. But a head injury is different."