RANK	TEAM/RECORD	POINTS	MAX PREPS.COM	CAL-PREPS.COM	CAL-HI SPORTS
1	Lincoln (9-1)	22*/292/2	17/24	51.1/48.5	15/17
2	Carlsbad (9-1)	8*/271/3	20/18	50/51.8	18/19
3	Madison (9-1)	239/12	30/29	45.2/46.9	29/18
4	Poway (10-0)	216/4	46/45	39.8/39	43/On the bubble
5	Granite Hills (8-2)	156/7	56/65	37.4/35.5	**On the bubble
6	Cathedral (5-5)	151/6	51/47	39/40.2	35/35
7	Helix (7-3)	105/5	79/58	33.9/37	NR/NR
8	Mater Dei (6-4)	89/8	82/80	32.7/32.1	**On the bubble
9	Mission Hills (7-3)	81/9	59/63	37.2/35.8	On the bubble
10	El Camino (7-3)	38/10	76/76	34.3/36.4	NR/NR

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
Mira Mesa (7-3, 3 points), La Costa Canyon (6-4, 2) University City (7-2, 1), El Capitan (7-2,  1).

• John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune.
• Steve Brand, Thomas Gutierrez, Rick Hoff, Terry Monahan, Don Norcross, Eric Williams, Freelance contributors.
• Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll, KUSI-Channel 51 TV.
• Rick Smith, partletonsports.com.
• Ramon Scott, Adam Paul, eastcountysports.com.
• John Kentera, Braden Suprenant (97.3 FM The Fan).
• Bodie DeSilva, scoreboardlive.com.
• Steve (Biff) Dolan, Mountain Country 107.9 FM.
• Christian Pedersen, San Diego Sports Association.
• Troy Hirsch, Nic Pollino (Fox 5 San Diego).
• Todd Cassen, Joe Heinz, Ron Marquez, CIF San Diego Section.
• Mike Dolan, Rex Johnson, CIF Advisory Committee.
• Joe Evangelist, San Diego Coaching Legends Committee.
• Will Torrez, Valley Sports Network.
• Raymond Brown, sdfootball.net.
• Tom Helmantoler, Southern Conference Advisor.
• MaxPreps.

TRUE GRID

Granite Hills’  victory over Helix  marked the 81^st overtime since the first in 1976…the breakdown:  four overtimes (1), three  (4), two (18), one (58)…Sixty-four of 98 football-playing teams made the playoffs, 65.3 per cent…we’ve gotten used to teams with awful won-loss percentages getting in…this year’s champ, Westview, 1-9.

 

RANK	TEAM/RECORD	POINTS	MAX PREPS.COM	CAL-PREPS.COM	CAL-HI SPORTS
1	Madison (9-0)	20*/285/1	29/25	46.3/47.6	18/19
2	Lincoln (8-1)	5*/266/2	24/24	48.5/47.6	17/18
3	Carlsbad (8-1)	5*/265/3	18/21	51.8/49.3	19/20
4	Poway (9-0)	202/4	45/48	40.4/39	**On the bubble
5	Helix (7-2)	172/5	58/50	37/38.5	**On the bubble
6	Cathedral (4-5)	154/6	47/43	40.2/41.2	35/37
7	Granite Hills (7-2)	106/7	65/70	35.5/33.2	NR/NR
8	Mater Dei (5-4)	89/8	80/75	32.7/32.1	**On the bubble
9	Mission Hills (6-3)	57/NR	63	35.8	NR/NR
10	El Camino (6-3)	27/9	71/55	34.3/36.4	NR/NR

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
Mira Mesa (6-3, 7 points), La Costa Canyon (5-4, 7) University City (7-2, 4), El Capitan (7-2,  4).

• John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune.
• Steve Brand, Thomas Gutierrez, Rick Hoff, Terry Monahan, Don Norcross, Eric Williams, Freelance contributors.
• Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll, KUSI-Channel 51 TV.
• Rick Smith, partletonsports.com.
• Ramon Scott, Adam Paul, eastcountysports.com.
• John Kentera, Braden Suprenant (97.3 FM The Fan).
• Bodie DeSilva, scoreboardlive.com.
• Steve (Biff) Dolan, Mountain Country 107.9 FM.
• Christian Pedersen, San Diego Sports Association.
• Troy Hirsch, Nic Pollino (Fox 5 San Diego).
• Todd Cassen, Joe Heinz, Ron Marquez, CIF San Diego Section.
• Mike Dolan, Rex Johnson, CIF Advisory Committee.
• Joe Evangelist, San Diego Coaching Legends Committee.
• Will Torrez, Valley Sports Network.
• Raymond Brown, sdfootball.net.
• Tom Helmantoler, Southern Conference Advisor.
• MaxPreps.

TRUE GRID 

Helix has won 16 of the last 20 Grossmont South or Grossmont Hills championships, dating to the early 2000s and the era of Reggie Bush and Alex Smith…the Highlanders won 17 loop titles before the millennium, their first in 1956…Granite Hills has won four and tied for one Grossmont Valley or Grossmont Hills gonfalon since 2015, but is 1-3 against Helix during that span and the Highlanders hold a 45-12-1 edge in the series that began when Granite Hills opened in 1960…Eagles coach Kellan Cobbs is 76-38 since a 1-9 start in 2012…Damaja Jones is 7-2 in his first season at Helix…Lincoln holds a 13-12 edge over Madison in a series that goes back to 1970…Madison coach Rick Jackson is 16th all-time in the section with 162 wins and Jackson’s .742 winning percentage is third to John Carroll’s .763 and Birt Slater’s .753 and ahead of George Ohnessorgen’s .735 among coaches with at least 100 victories (see Coach 100 Club)… David Dunn is 78-57-1 at Lincoln, but 57-22 since 2016….

 

 

San Diego High, one year removed from a San Diego Section championship, posted a 10-12 record. The sub-.500 finish represented the Cavemen’s poorest record since the 1907 squad of coach Lawrence Carr, Sr., was 0-7.

Yes, 1907, according to Don King’s Caver Conquest.

Power had moved East after being seated for most of the last 60 years at the school near downtown.  Crawford had won three championships, Hoover two, and Helix one since 1961, the first season of the San Diego Section.

San Diego, since Clarence (Nibs) Price became coach in 1915, succeeded mostly by John Perry, Dewey (Mike) Morrow, and Les Cassie, had enjoyed unparalleled success through the 1950s.

The competition was ramping up, but first-year coach Jerry Dahms guided the Cavers to the Southern California finals in 1960 and Bernie Flaherty won a championship in 1966.

Flaherty left for San Diego City College and was replaced by Charlie Davidson. The Cavers were 8-7,  fourth in the Eastern League and out of the playoffs, but they were 3-0 against eventual section champion Hoover.

EXPANSION

The CIF board of managers agreed to extend the playoffs this year by increasing the 2-A field from eight to 12 teams. 

5/2/67

Chula Vista clinched its first Metropolitan League championship since 1962, 1-0 over Hilltop.  The Spartans, 10-1 in league, would take a 17-7 record into the playoffs.

–The 11-run mercy rule ended San Miguel’s 12-1 win over Julian in the fifth inning of the first game of their Southern Prep League doubleheader.  The second game went six innings before the Knights made it a mercy sweep of the Eagles, 20-9.

–Dale Davis (8-3) won his third game against Hoover, scattering four singles in San Diego’s 3-2 victory that left the Cavers with an 8-5 Eastern League record, one game behind Crawford and Hoover, and clinching the championship for St. Augustine (11-3), which shut out Morse, 4-0.

–Saints coach Bill Whittaker had a four-man pitching rotation of Mike Valeri, Jim Adesso, Skip Redondo, and Steve Chipp, which had a combined earned-run average of 1.59 in league play and 1.28 for the season.

–The Saints (19-3 overall) also could run out a hard-hitting lineup that included future major leaguer John Wathan (.391), Charles Benitez (.380), Wayne Bradley (.348), Skip Redondo (.340), Steve Ferrari (.333), and Dave Gonzalez (.318).

–Point Loma (11-3), fifth in 1966, clinched the Western League championship with an 8-1 win over La Jolla, while Clairemont was routing Mission Bay (9-5), 11-2.

–El Capitan (11-2) wrapped the Grossmont League gonfalon, 6-4, over Helix, as coach Art Preston’s team opened a 2 ½-game lead on the Highlanders and Santana, each 8-4.

5/5/67

Brien Bickerton pitched a no-hitter and lost.

The Santana lefthander’s career ended with a 1-0 defeat to Helix, which clinched second place in the Grossmont League and a berth in the San Diego Section playoffs.

“He took the challenge,” said Helix coach Bill White of his ace, Larry Sweat.  “I told him he was going against the best lefthander in the County and he would have to match him.  And by golly, he did.”

Helix scored in the first-inning on a pair of errors, one for three bases, and a swinging bunt, and Sweat kept the Sultans at a distance, scattering three hits, striking out 10.  He improved to 10-3 and lowered his earned-run average to 0.52.

Bickerton finished the season with a 9-2 record.  He gave up 46 hits in 92 innings,  struck out 150 and posted a 1.67 E.R.A.  Bickerton also hit six home runs, drove in 33, and batted .384.

–Mission Bay took some pleasure although out of the Western League title race when the Buccaneers scored on a bases-loaded walk in the last half of the ninth inning to defeat champion Point Loma, 3-2.

–Al Forman’s three-run home run and solo shot by Vic Foster wasn’t enough as Morse dropped a regular-season finale, 5-4, at Hoover.

–Brad Cutler lost a no-hitter on a leadoff single by Clairemont’s Dwayne Lawson, but Kearny defeated Clairemont, 5-0.

–Marian was going nowhere in the Palomar League but it traveled in style on the final day, hammering undefeated San Marcos, 14-0.

FINAL LEAGUE STANDINGS

PALOMAR

TEAM	W-L	Pct.	G.B.	ALL GAMES
San Marcos	9-3	.800	—	13-9, .591
Army-Navy	7-4	.667	1/12	9-8, .529
Marian	7-5	.583	2	11-10, .524
Ramona	0-11	.000	8 1/2	2-17, .105

EASTERN

St. Augustine	12-3	.800	—	21-3, .875
Crawford	10-5	.667	2	19-5, .792
Hoover	10-5	.667	2	14-9, .609
San Diego	8-7	.533	4	10-12, .455
Morse	4-11	.267	8	7-15, .318
Lincoln	1-14	.067	11	3-20, .130

WESTERN

Point Loma	11-4	.733	—	16-6-1, .717
Mission Bay	10-5	.667	1	15-9, .625
Kearny	8-7	.533	3	13-11, .542
Madison	8-7	.533	3	13-11, .542
Clairemont	6-9	.400	5	11-11, .500
La Jolla	2-12	.143	9	2-18, .105

SOUTHERN

S.D. Military	8-0-1	.944	—	12-2-1, .833
L.J. Country Day	6-3	.667	2 ½.	9-4, .692
San Miguel	2-5-1	.313	5 1/2	6-6-1, .500
Julian	0-8	.000	8	0-8, .000

METROPOLITAN

Chula Vista	10-2	.833	—	17-7, .708
Sweetwater	8-3-1	.708	1 ½	10-9-2, .524
Hilltop	8-4	.667	2	16-6, .727
Escondido	6-5-1	.542	3 ½	10-10-1, .500
Mar Vista	4-7-1	.375	5 /1/2	6-16-1, .283
Castle Park	3-8-1	.292	6 1/2	4-17-1, .205
Coronado	1-11	0.83	9	3-16, .158

AVOCADO

Poway	12-2	.857	—	18-5, .783
Orange Glen	10-4	.714	2	14-4, .778
University	9-5	.643	3	16-7, .696
Oceanside	7-7	.500	5	11-12, .478
Carlsbad	6-8	.429	6	10-10-1, .500
San Dieguito	6-8	.429	6	11-11, .500
Fallbrook	5-9	.357	7	9-12, .429
Vista	1-13	.071	11	4-18, .182

GROSSMONT

El Capitan	11-3	.786	—	13-8, .619
Helix	10-4	.714	1	14-7, .667
Santana	8-6	.571	3	14-8, .636
Granite Hills	8-6	.571	3	12-6, .667
Mount Miguel	7-7	.500	4	12-11, .522
Monte Vista	5-9	.357	6	8-14, .364
Grossmont	4-10	.286	6	9-13, .409
El Cajon Valley	3-11	.214	8	6-16, .273

5/9/67

2-A PLAYOFFS

FIRST ROUND

Mission Bay 1, Sweetwater (10-10-2) 0, @Southwestern College.

The Buccaneers’ Gary Myron gave up two hits and stretched his scoreless innings streak to 27. 

“We won’t hurt many people with the bat,” said Bucs coach Ken Bailey, after his team scratched four hits against the Red Devils’ Bill O’Quinn and didn’t get a runner past first base until the seventh inning.

Mike Shepherd doubled and eventually came home on Mike Fox’ single.

Hoover 2, Helix (14-8) 1, @Mesa College.

George Cappelletti singled in Pat Roark with the winning run in the ninth inning and offered that luck was involved.

“I think it was a curve,” Cappelletti said of pitcher John Sturgeon’s offering.  “I know he had me faked out.”

Crawford 2, Orange Glen (14-5) 1, @MiraCosta College.

Tim McClure hit a 350-foot home run over the left field fence in the eighth inning, giving Leo Edge the pitching victory over Ernie Oliva.

Hilltop 3, Poway (18-6) 1, @Palomar College.

The Lancers’ Ed Saffer had two hits and Hilltop made the most of three Poway errors, all runs unearned.

5/12/67

QUARTERFINALS

Hoover 4, Point Loma (16-7-1) 2, @Mesa College.

“I didn’t expect to hit it that well, but I’m not complaining,” said Hoover’s Dana Baltzer of his ringing, two-run triple in the fifth inning that overcame a 1-0 Pointers lead.

“I just wanted to hit the ball someplace,” Baltzer told Bill Finley of the Evening Tribune.

Paul Brunner hurled the first five innings for the Cardinals and then was backed up by Ben Epstein and Mike Harrison.

Mission Bay 5, St. Augustine (21-4) 1, @Westgate Park.

Mission Bay’s Rick Phillips socked a three-run home that broke a scoreless tie in the fifth inning and stunned the favored Saints.

Phillips’ drive, on an incoming fastball, cleared the centerfield fence, 405 feet away. “That’s the longest ball I’ve ever hit…by far,” said the Buccaneers’ third baseman.

“He seems to be thriving on throwing,” ‘Bay coach Ken Bailey said of the sturdy Myron, of whose 9 strikeout victims included 8 in the last four innings, and scattered six hits.

Crawford 7, El Capitan (13-9) 1, @Grossmont College.

Leo Edge (14-4) gave up a run on two hits in the first inning and then battled through seven bases on balls to shutout the Vaqueros for the remainder of the game.

The Colts broke open the game with five runs in the third inning on four singles, El Capitan errors, and force plays.. Earl Altshuler drove in the first run with a single.  

5/15/67

1-A CHAMPIONSHIP

San Diego Military (13-2-1) 3, San Marcos (12-8), 2, @MiraCosta College.

5/16/67

SEMIFINALS

Hoover 3, Chula Vista (18-8) 1, @Southwestern College.

Jerry Bartow’s comments seemed patronizing. “Chula Vista’s got a good little team,” said the Hoover coach to Bill Weurding of the Evening Tribune.

“They handled several balls that we hit real well,” Bartow added.

The coach declared that his sore-armed pitcher, Paul Brunner, benefitted from the hot, Santa Ana weather: “The heat was just what he needed.  Just as good as having his arm in a whirlpool.”

Pat Roark was 4 for 4 for Hoover and Brunner cuffed the favored Saints on three hits. Of Roark, Bartow said, “He’ll run the count on you, because he knows he’s not going to strike out.  He’s got that much confidence.”

Crawford 3, Mission Bay (17-10) 2, @Mesa College.

The Colts made it five trips to the finals in Bill Sandback’s six years as coach.

“We’ve been lucky, but we’ve had some fine talent here, too,” said Sandback.  “In a single-elimination playoff anything can happen.  Any team in it can win.”

Crawford had a 3-0 lead after three innings, two resulting from Mission Bay errors. The Buccaneers reached Colts ace Leo Edge for two runs in the sixth inning.

CHAMPIONSHIP

5/19/67

Hoover (18-9) 6, Crawford (22-6) 4, 13 innings, @Beeson Field, Marine Corps Recruit Depot.

The game went on and on, the lights of Beeson Field illuminating, some of the 1,200 persons on hand eventually heading home for dinner, before the Hoover Cardinals, after three hours and 45 minutes, finally edged the Crawford Colts.

Dana Baltzer’s two-run home run in the top of the 13th inning, was the difference. Hoover, which won the first San Diego section championship in 1961, went home with a second championship trophy.

Baltzer’s drive over the left field fence saddled Crawford’s ace pitcher, Leo Edge, with his fifth loss against 15 victories.  “It was a low curve, down and away,” said Edge.  “He must have been looking for it.”

Baltzer, rushed after the game by many in a mob of about 500 Hoover students, also had cleared the fence in the ninth inning but his drive drifted foul.

Ross Barnhart, who was on base when Baltzer homered, pitched the last eight innings in relief. “My arm felt good,” said Barnhart, adding, “That’s the longest I’ve pitched in a while.”

Edge, who had pitched 35 innings in the last two weeks and four games, received a standing ovation from the crowd when he came to bat in the 11^th. “I was physically exhausted, but my arm felt all right,” said Edge.

Jerry Bartow, the emotional and somewhat eccentric Hoover coach, was asked what he was going to do with the trophy.   “I’m going to take it home and just look at it, I guess…for a long time.”

 

RANK	TEAM/RECORD	POINTS	MAX PREPS.COM	CAL-PREPS.COM	CAL-HI SPORTS
1	Madison (8-0)	19*/285/1	25/20	47.6/48.2	19/20
2	Lincoln (8-1)	6*/267/2	24/24	47.6/49.3	18/19
3	Carlsbad (7-1)	5*/248/3	21/25	49.3/46.8	20/21
4	Poway (8-0)	200/4	48/43	39/39.2	**On the bubble
5	Helix (6-2)	184/5	50/44	38.5/39	**On the bubble
6	Cathedral (3-5)	155/6	43/40	41.2/39.2	37/37
7	Granite Hills (6-2)	111/7	70/65	33.2/32.1	NR/NR
8	Mater Dei (4-4)	85-8	75/76	32.1/31.9	**On the bubble
9	El Camino (6-2)	76-9	55/70	36.4/31.4	NR/NR
10	La Costa (5-3)	21/NR	84	30.4	NR/NR

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
Mission Hills (5-3, 8 points), Mira Mesa (5-3, 7),  University City (6-2, 3)..

VOTING PANEL

• John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune.
• Steve Brand, Thomas Gutierrez, Rick Hoff, Terry Monahan, Don Norcross, Eric Williams, Freelance contributors.
• Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll, KUSI-Channel 51 TV.
• Rick Smith, partletonsports.com.
• Ramon Scott, Adam Paul, eastcountysports.com.
• John Kentera, Braden Suprenant (97.3 FM The Fan).
• Bodie DeSilva, scoreboardlive.com.
• Steve (Biff) Dolan, Mountain Country 107.9 FM.
• Christian Pedersen, San Diego Sports Association.
• Troy Hirsch, Nic Pollino (Fox 5 San Diego).
• Todd Cassen, Joe Heinz, Ron Marquez, CIF San Diego Section.
• Mike Dolan, Rex Johnson, CIF Advisory Committee.
• Joe Evangelist, San Diego Coaching Legends.
• Will Torrez, Valley Sports Network.
• Raymond Brown, sdfootball.net.
• Tom Helmantoler, Southern Conference Advisor.
• MaxPreps.

TRUE GRID  

Granite Hills, seventh in San Diego, is unranked by Cal-Hi Sports. Or is it? The  publication also has categories for  so-called medium-sized schools and small schools…the Eagles are 17th among medium schools and Mira Mesa is on the bubble…Escondido Charter is a small schools bubble team…things have picked up at Chula Vista…prevail this week and the Spartans will have a five-game winning streak for the first time since 2008…El Camino’s 6-2 record after eight games is the best since Herb Meyer’s last good team in 2001 opened 7-2…Mike Hobbs’ Wildcats started 3-6 in 2019, and went on a six-game winning streak before bowing to Santa Rosa Cardinal Newman, 31-13, in the state III-AA championship…Kyle Wiliams’ Poway 11 hasn’t been 8-0 since Damian Gonzalez’ last club opened 9-0 in 2016….

RANK	TEAM/RECORD	POINTS	MAX PREPS.COM	CAL-PREPS.COM	CAL-HI SPORTS
1	Madison (7-0)	21*/287/1	20/26	48.2/45.3	20/23
2	Lincoln (7-1)	6*/268/2	24/20	46.9/49.3	19/19
3	Carlsbad (6-1)	3*/252/3	25/23	46.8/46.8	21/20
4	Poway (7-0)	196/6	43/43	39.2/38.3	**On the bubble
5	Helix (5-2)	173/4	44/35	39/41.8	On the bubble/29
6	Cathedral (3-5)	150/5	40/30	39.2/38.3	37/28
7	Granite Hills (5-2)	113/7	65/77	32.1/29.2	NR/NR
8	Mater Dei (3-4)	77-8	76/66	31.9/28.7	**On the bubble
9	El Camino (5-2)	65-53	70/85	31.4/28.3	NR/NR
10	Mira Mesa (5-2)	24/10	109/96	24.4/26.1	NR/NR

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
La Costa Canyon (4-3, 15 points), Point Loma (6-1, 10), Mission Hills (4-3, 7).

VOTING PANEL

• John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune.
• Steve Brand, Thomas Gutierrez, Rick Hoff, Terry Monahan, Don Norcross, Eric Williams, Freelance contributors.
• Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll, KUSI-Channel 51 TV.
• Rick Smith, partletonsports.com.
• Ramon Scott, Adam Paul, eastcountysports.com.
• John Kentera, Braden Suprenant (97.3 FM The Fan).
• Bodie DeSilva, scoreboardlive.com.
• Steve (Biff) Dolan, Mountain Country 107.9 FM.
• Christian Pedersen, San Diego Sports Association.
• Troy Hirsch, Nic Pollino (Fox 5 San Diego).
• Todd Cassen, Joe Heinz, Ron Marquez, CIF San Diego Section.
• Mike Dolan, Rex Johnson, CIF Advisory Committee.
• Joe Evangelist, San Diego Coaching Legends.
• Will Torrez, Valley Sports Network.
• Raymond Brown, sdfootball.net.
• Tom Helmantoler, Southern Conference Advisor.
• MaxPreps.com.       

TRUE GRID

Reader Nick Pellegrino provided the obscure stat that Julian’s 36-34 win over Warner Springs Warner last week marked the Eagles’ first venture into overtime…Julian has played 487 games since 1967…the contest also was Warner’s first in extra minutes after 233 jousts since 1996…The Manzanita League designation, dumped in 2021 for the return to the Desert League, resurfaced this season and replaced the Citrus League appellation…Petrich is a name in San Diego football that goes back to the 1960s, when Bob Petrich was a linebacker for the San Diego Chargers from 1963-66 before embarking on a successful real estate career in El Cajon…Petrich’s grandson, Robert, is a placekicker for Granite Hills, following his father and Bob’s son, Aaron, who kicked for the Eagles a generation ago….

 

Sweetwater High was the site for several outstanding performances over the years in the National City Junior Chamber of Commerce Relays and other events of distance, usually in early March.

Few of those individual or team marks were repeated or equaled, one of which drew the most attention and eventually called for surveyors and tape measures.

El Cajon Valley’s Armando Valencia took the national lead when he ran 4:07.2 in the invitational mile at the JC Relays. That Valencia did not come close to that time again, his best being 4:08.8 after his high school season had ended, probably set some coaches to thinking.

A few years later frustrated Sweetwater coach Dave Ashley had the school’s 440-yard layout surveyed and it was found to be more than a yard short, a distance of at least four yards for a four-lap race such as the mile.

Short tracks meant better but not accepted marks.  How many tracks like Sweetwater’s were out there?  At least two, Mount Miguel and El Capitan, also were found abbreviated.  CIF Commissioner Don Clarkson said city schools tracks had been measured and met standards years before.

More on Valencia and competition in the mile as the season turned to May and the high stakes meets:

5/4/67

Lincoln coach Bobby Smith made a surprising announcement the day before the Eastern League trials. Lloyd Apgar, a potential state meet medalist in the two-mile run, was opting for the mile in the upcoming league and San Diego Section meets.

Apgar and teammate Otis Martin were favored to be the San Diego Section’s two qualifiers in the two-mile for the state meet in Balboa Stadium in June.

The local cognoscenti was surprised.  Apgar, according to the track nuts and so-called experts, was making the wrong decision.

The Hornet senior’s best time in the mile was 4:17.3, which compared unfavorably to the 4:11.4 of Clairemont’s Thornton Bigley and the 4:07.2 at Sweetwater by El Cajon Valley’s Armando Valencia.

“I’m not going to criticize Lloyd for his decision,” said Smith. “I’m grateful for the contribution he’s made.  He’s one of the best kids I’ve ever had.”

Apgar held school records in the Class C 660 (1:25.6) and 1320 (3:10.8) and Class B 1320 (3:07.9), plus the mile and a portion of the 440, 880, 1320, and mile distance medley (10:18.

(In 2009 Apgar’s daughter Elizabeth, running for Lincoln,  won the San Diego Section 880-yard run in 2:12.16).

5/5/67

–Orange Glen’s Mike Quirk set three school records in a triangular meet with Escondido (66 points) and San Marcos (63).  The Patriots scored 40.

Quirk ran wind-aided times of :14.5 in the 120-yard high hurdles, :20.1 in the 180 lows, and pole vaulted 13 feet.

–El Cajon Valley won its first outright league dual-meet championship since 1956 with a 75 ½-56 ½ win over Monte Vista.

The Braves’ Armando Valencia, running the last 880 of his high school career, clocked 1:53.4, fastest in the area, with Monte Vista’s Danny Ungricht second in 1:54.2, best mark of his injury-slowed season.

LEAGUE TRIALS

–Lincoln led with 22 qualifiers in the Eastern League, while Kearny topped the West with 17.

Most significant achievement was in the Eastern League mile, where Lloyd Apgar set a meet record of 4:17.

Lincoln and Morse sustained two significant losses. The Hornets’ Doug Jones, stumbled and crashed in the 180-yard low hurdles, and the Tigers’ Donald Anders, leading the area with a :09.8 100, pulled up lame in his heat.

5/12/67

LEAGUE FINALS

EASTERN, @BALBOA STADIUM

Lloyd Apgar, set a meet record with a 4:14.9 mile and teammate Otis Martin nailed a record 9:09.6 two-mile.  San Diego high jumper Phillip Singleton cleared 6-6 to tie Eddy Hanks’ and Harold Greenwood’s record, set in 1964 and 1966, respectively.

Lincoln won the team championship with 76 points.  San Diego followed with, 52, Crawford, 31, Hoover, 27, Morse, 22, and St. Augustine, 1.

WESTERN, @MADISON

–Kearny edged Point Loma, 74-70, for the team title. Madison and Clairemont each had 25, followed by La Jolla, 6, and Mission Bay, 2.

METROPOLITAN, @CHULA VISTA

–Mar Vista outscored Chula Vista, 57-38, trailed by Sweetwater, 31, Hilltop, 30, Escondido, 24 ½, Coronado, 23 ½, Castle Park, 4 ½, and Bonita Vista, 0.

Mike Griffiths of Mar Vista moved into the top five all time of County pole vaulters when he cleared 14 feet, 6 inches.  Teammate Dan Helton put the shot 59-5, No. 9 all time.

GROSSMONT, @GRANITE HILLS

Granite Hills won the team championship with 52 points, followed by Grossmont, 47, El Cajon Valley, 33, Monte Vista, 32, Santana, 29, Mount Miguel, 26, Helix, 14, and El Capitan, 7.

The discus of Granite Hills’ Brian Wadlington caught an early-evening breeze and the Eagles’ junior set a County record when his toss sailed 176 feet, 1 1/4 inches, bettering the 174-6 of Grossmont’s Richard Grise in 1964.

Wadlington, whose best in 1966 was only 127-3 and had a best of 167-10 coming into the meet, said, “I worked out well all week. I’m not lifting weights anymore, just doing isoes (isometrics).  I felt a good throw.”

Brian’s teammate George Brown set a meet record with a 63-foot, 4 ½-inch shot put.  Monte Vista’s Danny Ungricht blazed a 1:53.2 half mile. Armando Valencia of El Cajon Valley ran 4:16.4 to win the mile.

AVOCADO, @VISTA

Vista won the 880 relay in a school record 1:31.1 and claimed the team title, 46-42, over rival Oceanside.  San Dieguito scored 35 points, followed by Orange Glen, 21, Carlsbad, 20, University, 19, Fallbrook, 11, and Poway, 5.

Bruce Burdick of Fallbrook cleared 13-4 ½ to win the pole vault and San Dieguito’s Pete Shmock won the shot put at 56-1 ½. Mike Turnipseed’s :09.9 100 was a league record and the Carlsbad runner returned with a winning, :22.5 220.

PALOMAR LEAGUE, @PALOMAR COLLEGE

Ramona’s Pat Hallman added more than seven inches to the high jump record when Hallman cleared 6-5, leaping past the 5-9 ¾ by two Carlsbad jumpers in 1964.

San Marcos ran away with the championship, scoring 106 ½ points.  Marian had 41, Ramona 34 ½, and Army-Navy 16.

5/19/67

SAN DIEGO SECTION TRIALS, @BALBOA STADIUM

Momentum in the mile was building

Clairemont’s Thornton Bigley, recovered from a mid-season attack of strep throat, narrowly nipped Lincoln’s Lloyd Apgar as both runners were timed in 4:12.9.

El Cajon Valley’s Armando Valencia, running unopposed in another heat, clocked 4:14.9.

“Aw, man, I am tired,” gasped Bigley.  “Apgar’s so good.  I just hope it’s a good race next week.”

–Granite Hills’ George Brown pushed the shot 62-4 ½ to break the meet record of 60-9 by Helix’ Doug Nelson in 1964.

–Season bests:  Leonard Thompson, Orange Glen. :14.4 in 120-yard high hurdles.  Hoover 880 relay, 1:28.9.  Mike Turnipseed, Carlsbad, :21.8 220 on curve.

SAN DIEGO SECTION FINALS, @BALBOA STADIUM

5/25/67

Mike Robinson of Mount Miguel won the discus championship with a toss of 155-11 in Balboa Stadium.  Pat Foley of Monte Vista was second at 153-4.

Favored Brian Wadlington of Granite Hills fouled on three of his seven attempts and was fourth at 145-10.  Steve Burgesser of Monte Vista was third at 146-10, presumably giving the Monarchs seven points.

5/26/67

“The Battle of Balboa Stadium is in the books,” I wrote after the controversial finish to the mile.

Thornton Bigley, Lloyd Apgar, and Armando Valencia were virtually neck and neck as they turned for home and the final 100 yards to the finish line.

Bigley passed Valencia and at that point Valencia suddenly left the track and stumbled into the infield.  Valencia quickly got back on the track, but Bigley finished first in 4:10.8 and Apgar nosed out Valencia for second in 4:11.8. Valencia was timed in 4:12.1.

The question was whether Valencia was bumped or pushed off the track, or did he jump?

Valencia claimed he was pushed.

NO FOUL

“We had three guys there from three different angles,” said Vernon Finch, the meet’s chief turn judge.  “There was no contact.”

Two competitors from other schools said they saw Bigley’s arm hit Valencia in the side, causing the El Cajon Valley runner to stumble.

“He was running really close to the rail,” said Bigley.  “I was watching that.  I thought he jumped off.  I didn’t touch him.”

El Cajon Valley coach Joe Brooks did not file a protest.  Brooks was sitting on the other side of the stadium, where coaches gathered.

“I’ve never seen him lose his balance like that, but I was sitting clear over here and I didn’t see what happened,” said Brooks.

Even if Valencia hadn’t stumbled, it appeared Bigley would have won. Apgar’s second-place finish qualified for the state meet.

–Lincoln won the team championship for the fifth time in seven years with 30 points.  Monte Vista scored 19, El Cajon Valley 16 ½, Orange Glen 13 1/2, Carlsbad 11, and San Diego 10. Twenty-eight schools scored at least one point.

With a virtual junior varsity relay team of Nate King, Melvin Maxwell, Ezell Roberts, and Willie Wilson, replacing Clarence Warren and Lewis King, Lincoln won in 1:29.8, its six points separating the Hornets from Monte Vista.

The Monarchs believed their seven points in the discus gave them a final score of 26, which would have had them in front of the Hornets entering the final event.

But the discus points did not count, said San Diego Section commissioner Don Clarkson, who noted that the CIF board of managers never had written the discus into scoring rules. Most leagues in the CIF did not have discus competition; points in the finals all came from Grossmont League throwers.

Lincoln’s Otis Martin set a meet record of 9:01 in the two-mile and Martin’s pace brought along Monte Vista’s Don Olsen, who ran 9:03.6, almost 16 seconds better than his career best of 9:19.

George Brown of Granite Hills set a meet record for the second week in a row with a shot put of 63-11.  Bruce Ruff of El Cajon Valley was a double winner, :21.7 220 and :48.6 440.

Danny Ungricht of Monte Vista won a duel with Fallbrook’s Frank (Pancho) Enriquez in the 880 with a time of 1:53 to 1:53.8.

6/2/67

STATE TRIALS, @BALBOA STADIUM

Danny Ungricht of Monte Vista won his heat in the 880  in 1:54.2. Thornton Bigley (4:15.2) and Lloyd Apgar (4:15.6) won their mile heats.

–Qualifying third in their competition was Granite Hills shot putter George Brown (63-11½), Lincoln long jumper Lewis King (24-2 ½), and the Hornets’ relay team, with Doug Jones replacing Nate King in the starting blocks, 1:28.6.

–Pasadena Muir’s Jerry Proctor was in four trials and won the 120 high hurdles in :13.9, 180 lows in :18.9, long jump (25-2), and ran the third leg for a relay team that was first in 1:26.4.

STATE FINALS

6/3/67

For the first time in the seven years of the San Diego Section there was no individual champion.

Thornton Bigley (4:13) was second and Lloyd Apgar (4:13.2) third in the mile, beaten by the 4:11.4 of Westminster’s Mike Solomon.

George Brown was third in the shot put at 63-6 and Lincoln’s Lewis King fifth in the long jump at 23-6 ¼. Otis Martin was fifth for the second year in the two-mile with a time of 9:16.6.

San Diego’s Philip Singleton was sixth in the high jump (6-7). Danny Ungricht (1:54.3) was seventh in the 880. Monte Vista’s Don Olsen was seventh in the two-mile in 9:17.

Lincoln was eighth in the 880 relay but its time, 1:28.3, was 11^th all time in the County.

Pasadena Muir’s Jerry Proctor was the meet’s star, with Santa Rosa Montgomery’s Mel Gray a close second.

Proctor scored 19 of the Mustangs’ 24 points with wins of :13.7 in the 120 high hurdles, :18.7 in the 180 lows, 25-4 1/2 in the long jump and contributed a powerful third leg on Muir’s runner-up relay team, beaten in the stretch by Los Angeles Fremont’s 1:26.

Gray scored all 16 of his team’s points, tied the national record of :09.4 in the 100, set a national record of :20.7 for the 220 on a turn, and was second in the long jump at 24-1.  He ran down a handful of runners after starting in last place in the relay but the Vikings were seventh in 1:27.7.

Attendance for the finals was 8,268 and state CIF Commissioner Bill Russell enthused that “this was the best (meet) we’ve ever had from the standpoint of organization, performances, the works.”

6/4/67

His high school career behind him, Armando Valencia finished sixth in a field of 16 that included some international competitors at the Rose Bowl Invitational in Pasadena with a time of 4:11.7.

6/10/67

Armando Valencia won the special high school mile in the San Diego Invitational, beating, among other New Jersey’s Martin Liquori, a future international star, with a time of 4:08.8, which, as it turned out, was Valencia prep career best.

Bigley finished behind Valencia in 4:11.

6/15/67

Bigley had a non-winning 4:11 clocking in the Golden West Invitational in Sacramento.