Strength in the lower divisions, boys’ and girls’, continued to be the signature of San Diego Section teams.
The Christian girls followed the sensational mid-1980s stretch of four state championships by Point Loma by reaching the state Division IV championship game for the fourth season in a row.
Lincoln boys won the state D-IV title and were led by 6-foot, 8-inch Mark Sanford, a transfer from Kimball High in Dallas. The Hornets had lost D-IV championship games in 1987-88 and 1991-92.
NORSEMEN UNHAPPY
Playoff seeding meetings never would be confused with happy talk and sing-alongs around the camp fire. Agreement on pairings and on who gets in or is left out almost always is accompanied by grumbling coaches and shouting fans.
The old chant, “Elevator, elevator, we got the shaft” could be heard by Valhalla patrons as far away as Jamul.
Valhalla (19-8), a two-time winner over Monte Vista (15-12) in nonleague games, was seeded seventh in D-II and the Monarchs 10th.
The Norsemen, however, were forced to travel to Monte Vista for their first-round game, because the Monarchs won the Grossmont 2-A championship and Valhalla was third in the Grossmont 3-A race.
A CIF rule guaranteed league champions a home game in the first round.
“The coaches who were in the meeting feel it’s a bad rule,” said San Diego Section commissioner Kendall (Spider) Webb. “We’ll probably see it changed at the end of the year.”
Monte Vista ran the Norsemen out of the playoffs, 75-52.
BOYS PLAYOFFS
DIVISION I
FIRST ROUND
San Dieguito (13-16) 56, @ Mira Mesa 64.
Poway (14-14) 61, @Rancho Buena Vista 85.
QUARTERFINALS
Mira Mesa (14-12) 73, @1 Vista 107.
Rancho Bernardo 81, @4 Chula Vista (17-10) 60.
Fallbrook 50, @3 San Marcos (18-7) 45.
3 Rancho Buena Vista (16-12) 48, @1 San Diego (22-2) 72.
SEMIFINALS, @Mira Mesa.
1 Vista 63, Rancho Bernardo (16-10) 61.
Fallbrook 63, San Diego (22-3) 61.
“It’s those damn North County refs again,” fumed San Diego’s Dennis Kane of official Rusty Rinner to writer Ed Graney. “You don’t make that call. You don’t take the game away from the kids.”
Fallbrook led, 61-59, with 13 seconds left before the Cavers’ Sedrick Bagby converted a free throw.
A whistle blew before Bagby’s second shot. Rinner called Bagby for taking too much time, more than the allowed 10 seconds.
Said Fallbrook coach Russ Keith: “I don’t expect to get that call. I don’t want to win that way.”
Said Rinner, who primarily worked games north of the city limits: “All I’ll say is I got to 15 (seconds)…and that’s stretching it.”
Said Bagby, who scored 29 points in a contest that featured 11 lead changes: “That’s how I shot the first one and he didn’t say anything. He didn’t even warn me.”
After the official’s call, Fallbrook inbounded the ball and Al Smalley scored on a layup. San Diego’s Walt Williams made one free throw with one second left for the final margin.
CHAMPIONSHIP, @Sports Arena.
Vista 65, Fallbrook (17-12) 64.
Adam Vandevoort drained a 10-footer as time elapsed. “I knew I had to get it off quick, but I also knew I had time to turn and shoot,” he told Steve Brand.
“During the time out (before the play, which began with Vista trailing, 64-63), I calculated how long it would take to shoot. I wanted the ball.”
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL
Long Beach Poly (26-6) 81, @3 Vista (26-4) 70.
D-II
FIRST ROUND
Montgomery (14-13) 32, @1 El Camino 68.
Hilltop (18-11) 49, @Patrick Henry 63.
Escondido (13-11) 55, @Helix 83.
El Capitan (10-18) 58, @4 Carlsbad 66.
Hoover (12-12) 59, @3 Torrey Pines 82.
Mount Miguel (11-12) 63, @Serra (15-10) 68.
Four free throws by Lovell Swink and two by Nathaniel Wright in the final 80 seconds pushed Serra to the victory.
Valhalla (19-9) 52, @Monte Vista 75.
Mission Bay (11-13) 42, @2 Grossmont 58.
QUARTERFINALS
Monte Vista 53 (15-13) @2 Grossmont 67.
Serra (15-10), 58, @Torrey Pines 65.
Patrick Henry (18-11) 33, @1 El Camino 55.
Helix 74, @Carlsbad (17-9) 61.
SEMIFINALS, @Rancho Bernardo.
Helix 66, 1 El Camino (25-4) 63.
The Highlanders won their 16th game in the last 18 and avenged an 80-48 loss to the Wildcats in December.
2 Grossmont 45, 3 Torrey Pines (24-8) 42.
CHAMPIONSHIP, @Sports Arena.
Grossmont 60, Helix 52, OT.
“It’s nice to see a CIF championship where all the kids are from Grossmont,” said Foothillers coach David Hollman. “All my kids are homegrown. That’s the thing I’m proudest of. We did it without kids transferring in.”
“We played about five minutes of basketball,” complained Helix coach John Singer, reflecting on the final five minutes of regulation time in which Helix erased an 11-point deficit.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL
Compton Dominguez (28-3) 78, @4 Grossmont (22-7) 57.
Helix (19-12) 76, @East Bakersfield (26-4) 84.
D-III
FIRST ROUND
Kearny (7-19) 54, @Santana 57.
West Hills (9-13) 42, @La Jolla 81.
QUARTERFINALS
Santana (10-13) 29, @1 University 62.
Eastlake 66, @4 Ramona (12-12) 60.
Scripps Ranch 83, @3 Mar Vista (18-7) 75. The first-year Falcons, buttressed by five transfers for the last five games of the regular season, thrived with Ashante Johnson, who moved from Kearny and scored 33 points.
La Jolla 47 (11-14), @2 St. Augustine 53.
SEMIFINALS, @Mesa College.
University 74, Eastlake (17-8) 46.
St. Augustine 59, Scripps Ranch (10-16) 50.
CHAMPIONSHIP
University (26-3) 71, St. Augustine (24-5) 64.
University trailed, 52-41, early in the fourth quarter before a Sports Arena crowd of 7,395 persons.
Josh Merrill, the Dons’ 6-foot, 9-inch go-to guy, drained two, long, three-point attempts and was 8 for 8 from the free throw line in the final quarter.
The Saints, state D-III-ranked third behind the second-ranked Dons, had contained Merrill, holding him to six points in the first three quarters.
Merrill also had 10 rebounds, four in the fourth quarter, and blocked two shots.
“The threes, first Matt’s (Bryan) and then mine, got it going,” Merrill told Steve Brand.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL
Wasco (17-9) 39, @2 University 68.
St. Augustine 46, @Shafter (25-7) 43.
Jelani McCoy shattered a backboard in the pregame shootaround. “It wasn’t even one of his monster slams,” said Saints coach Bill Peterson. “It was a baby one.”
McCoy had, by Peterson’s count, more than 50 cuts to his body but was okay after visiting a hospital.
McCoy had 11 points, 20 rebounds, and five blocked shots, including one in the final five seconds.
SEMIFINALS
Rancho Santa Margarita (25-7) 39, @2University 41.
St. Augustine (25-6) 62, vs. 1 Garden Grove Pacifica (29-1) 65, @Cypress College.
The Saints missed a handful of showtime dunks and blew a 16-point, 43-27 lead early in the third quarter.
FINALS
2 University (28-4) 55, Garden Grove Pacifica (30-1) 60, @Anaheim Arrowhead Pond.
Uni led by 11 at halftime but the Mariners, using 11 players who each averaged 15 minutes on the floor, wore down the Dons with their press and depth.
“It’s tough,” said Josh Merrill. “I’d like to take a week off, but I’ll be at baseball practice tomorrow.”
D-IV
SEMIFINALS, @West Hills.
Lincoln 98, Imperial (13-11) 64.
Mark Sanford’s line for Lincoln: 32 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 blocked shots, 7 steals.
Holtville 77, Coronado (15-9) 64.
CHAMPIONSHIP, @Sports Arena.
Lincoln 102, Holtville (22-4) 69.
Seven section titles in a row for the Hornets. Mark Sanford had 24 points and 20 rebounds.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL
Easton Washington Union (23-7) 51, @2 Lincoln 105.
Holtville (22-5), @1 L.A. Verbum Dei (25-2). No score.
SEMIFINALS
Oxnard Santa Clara (19-8) 52, @Lincoln 83.
FINALS, @Cal State Dominguez Hills.
Lincoln 94, L.A. Verbum Dei (26-4) 93.
Lincoln’s Louis Johnson made the second of two free throws with 12 seconds left and the Hornets held on after losing all of a 13-point lead in the second quarter.
The Hornets’ Mark Sanford, staying tough after sustaining a fourth personal foul with 5:29 left in the third quarter, scored 32 points, including 15 in a pulsating fourth quarter, when Verbum Dei outscored the winners, 28-21, and had taken a 91-89 lead.
The shorter Eagles—their tallest starter was 4 inches shorter than Lincoln’s 6-8 Mark Sanford– continually drew Lincoln into foul trouble.
Verbum Dei, paced by future NBA star Andre Miller (23 points), was 29×42 from the free-throw line. Lincoln was 42×71, 59 per cent, from the field, but committed 29 turnovers to 11.
STATE CHAMPIONHIP, @Oakland Coliseum Arena.
Lincoln (25-7) 63, San Anselmo Sir Francis Drake (32-4) 50.
Seeing that Lincoln had averaged 93 points in the playoffs, the Pirates from Marin County took the air out of the ball but still trailed, 24-10, at halftime.
“It was evident they didn’t want to get into a running game,” Lincoln coach Charlie Paulk told Steve Brand. “That didn’t change our plan. We still run, no matter what they do.”
D-V
FIRST ROUND
Santa Fe Christian 68, @Calvin Christian (14-9) 60.
Calipatria (7-16) 69, @La Jolla Country Day 84.
Tri-City 89, @Julian (15-9) 76.
Army-Navy 62, @Horizon (15-6) 54.
QUARTERFINALS
Santa Fe Christian 42, @1 Christian (18-8) 40.
La Jolla Country Day (17-10) 48, @4 Calexico Vincent Memorial 59.
Tri-City (12-14) 55, @3 Francis Parker 67.
Army-Navy (11-11) 50, @The Bishop’s 58.
SEMIFINALS, @Scripps Ranch.
Calexico Vincent Memorial 61, Santa Fe Christian (11-16) 51.
The Bishop’s 43, Francis Parker (14-11) 38.
CHAMPIONSHIP, @Sports Arena.
The Bishop’s 56, Calexico Vincent Memorial (18-10) 47.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL
Pasadena Poly (22-5) 58, @4 The Bishop’s (19-10) 50.
North Hollywood Campbell Hall 68, Calexico Vincent Memorial (18-11) 61, OT.
GIRLS PLAYOFFS
DIVISION I
FIRST ROUND
San Dieguito (9-17) 41, @Rancho Bernardo 77.
Rancho Buena Vista 61, @San Diego (18-7) 52.
QUARTERFINALS
Rancho Buena Vista (12-17), 39 @1 Poway 57.
Fallbrook (20-6) 55, @4 Chula Vista 57.
Allision Hines’ layup with 3 seconds left doomed the visiting Warriors.
Mira Mesa (16-9) 60, @3 Vista 81.
Rancho Bernardo (15-10) 46, @Morse 58.
SEMIFINALS, @Mira Mesa.
1 Poway 46, 4 Chula Vista (22-5) 41.
Vista (19-7) 64, Morse (19-7) 43.
Vista went on a 20-0 run after Morse led, 14-13. “I think our press ruffled them a little,” said 28-point scorer DeAngela Minter. The Tigers turned the ball over eight times in the second quarter, 21 for the game.
CHAMPIONSHIP, @Sports Arena.
3 Vista 51, Poway (21-6) 41.
DeAngela Minter shook off a sore hamstring and two tender ankles to score 32 points, including nine in the fourth quarter.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL Ventura Buena (25-2) 39, @4 Vista (20-8) 37. The host Panthers missed their final 18 field goal attempts.
D-II
FIRST ROUND
Helix (7-17) 24, @1 Mission Bay 92. Adia Barnes led the Buccaneers with 41 points.
Mount Miguel 51, @Torrey Pines (13-13) 49.
The Matadors avenged a 67-37 loss to the Falcons as Amie Belanger scored 25 points, including their first 16, despite playing on a sore knee and after a physician suggested not playing.
San Pasqual (11-15) 45, @El Cajon Valley 60. Hilltop (14-9) 27, @4 El Camino 75. Montgomery (13-12) 40, @Grossmont 84.
Amber Phoenix’ 35 points rose the Foothillers.
University City (11-12), 39, @1 Escondido 65. Point Loma 62, @Bonita Vista (17-8) 60. Jill Birmingham’s 22 points and 13 rebounds weren’t enough for the Barons, who led, 21-9, after one quarter. Angie Martinez had 31 points for the winners.
Patrick Henry (9-17) 29, @2 El Capitan
QUARTERFINALS
Mount Miguel (14-10) 28, @Mission Bay 58.
Point Loma (19-12) 40, @El Capitan 67.
El Cajon Valley (18-8), 40, @El Camino 46.
Grossmont (20-7), 51, @Escondido 64.
SEMIFINALS, @Rancho Bernardo.
Mission Bay 68, vs. El Camino (20-6) 45.
Adia was at it again for the Buccaneers, triple doubling with 40 points, 11 rebounds, and eight steals.
Escondido (26-3) 52, vs. El Capitan (25-2) 35.
CHAMPIONSHIP, @Sports Arena.
Mission Bay 68, Escondido (25-4) 44.
Future collegiate head coach Adia Barnes said to Steve Brand of The San Diego Union: “I listened to their coach (Lori Becker) and every time she said to get the ball inside, I knew it was coming.”
Barnes forced six Escondido turnovers in the fourth quarter and the Buccaneers won their first championship, girls or boys, and their 2st straight victory, spoiling a Cougars hoped-for celebration during the school’s 100-year anniversary.
SOUTHERNCALIFORNIA REGIONAL
Hemet (21-7), 39, @3 Mission Bay (28-2) 59.
Escondido (26-5) @Mission Hills Bishop Alemany.
SEMIFINALS
Mission Bay (28-3) 51, Mission Hills Bishop Alemany (30-0) 68, @La Canada Flintridge.
Adia Barnes fouled out with 11 points. Alemany was 18×22 from the free-throw line and outrebounded the Buccaneers, 41-24.
D-III
FIRST ROUND Crawford (6-16) 35, @Oceanside 52. West Hills (4-21) 23, @Madison 50.
QUARTERFINALS Oceanside (5-23) 24, @1 Santana (23-3) 75.
Kelly Simers’ 33 points, including 9 three-pointers, was too much for the Pirates.
University 34, @4 Ramona (15-10) 32. Eastlake (13-12) 54, @3 Our Lady of Peace 66 Madison (9-16) 24, @2 Scripps Ranch 59.
Alyssa Murphy: 28 points, 13 rebounds, 5 steals.
SEMIFINALS University (17-10) 49, @Santana 61. Scripps Ranch (20-4) 44, vs. Our Lady of Peace (18-7) 40, @Santana.
CHAMPIONSHIP, @Sports Arena. Santana 61, Scripps Ranch 53.
The Sultans, in their fifth final in the last seven seasons, won their third title.
Scripps’ Alyssa Murphy, who led a University championship game upset of Santana in 1992-93, fouled out with 5:08 left.
Murphy scored 19 points, 11 below her average. “They double teamed me the whole game and I tried to do too much,” she said.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL
Dinuba (22-3) 46, @Santana 86.
Scripps Ranch (20-6) 43, @Brea-Olinda (30-0) 75.
SEMIFINALS
Newport Beach Newport Harbor 63, @Santana (26-4) 51.
D-IV
SEMIFINALS, @El Cajon Valley.
Coronado (13-11) 47, 1 Lincoln 71.
The Hornets, 12-9 competitively but 4-17 legislatively after an ineligibility, lived up to their top seeding.
3 Clairemont (12-12) 42, 2 Holtville 44.
CHAMPIONSHIP, @Sports Arena.
Lincoln (6-17) 58, Holtville (19-6) 43.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL
Sun Valley Village (25-1) 71, @Lincoln (6-18) 70.
Holtville (20-7), @2 Cerritos Valley (27-2) 62.
D-V
FIRST ROUND Francis Parker (11-10) 53, @Tri-City (12-4) 48.
Lutheran (10-11) 34, @LaJolla Country Day (11-10) 48.
QUARTERFINALS
Francis Parker 23 (11-11), @1 The Bishop’s 65.
Calvin Christian (13-6) 34, @4 Marian 47.
Calipatria (15-7) 43, vs. Julian (24-3) 89, @Ramona.
The Eagles outscored the Imperial Valley-based Hornets by at least 11 points in every quarter.
SEMIFINALS, @West Hills
The Bishop’s 50, vs. Marian (11-14) 29.
Christian 88, vs. Julian (24-4) 48.
CHAMPIONSHIP, @Sports Arena.
Christian 64, The Bishop’s 50.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL
San Bernardino Christian (20-9) 41, @1 Christian (26-4) 72.
The Bishop’s 60, @3 San Luis Obispo Mission Prep 39.
SEMIFINALS
Cambria Coast Union (19-7) 51, @The Bishop’s 65.
San Luis Obispo Mission Prep (19-7) 39, @Christian 74.
The Patriots gained the regional finals for the fourth consecutive year.
FINALS, @Cal State Dominguez Hills
Christian 53, The Bishop’s (27-4) 48.
STATE CHAMPIONSHIP, @Oakland Coliseum Arena.
Ripon (31-5) 62, Christian (28-5) 46.
A factor often overlooked, according to Steve Brand of The San Diego Union-Tribune, was Ripon’s dominance on the defensive backboard, outrebounding the Patriots, 27-17.
They were much bigger and stronger,” said Christian coach Ken Grainger. “They bulled us around. They had the muscle and the mass.”
Christian had beaten Ripon in the state championship game in the 1991-92 season.
