A couple newcomers led the shouting in a last hurrah for San Diego.

Area schools were preparing to leave the Southern Section after 47 years and embark on their own, 31 institutions forming the San Diego Section in the next school year.

Clairemont and El Capitan, numbers 30 and 31, ignored usually unsuccessful results for start-up programs.

Clairemont’s Chieftains, in their second year and without a senior class, with students and transfers from Kearny’s and Mission Bay’s enrollment districts, won the Western League track championship and bulldozed through four games in the baseball AA playoffs to another title.

El Capitan’s Vaqueros in Lakeside, sharing with another new school, Granite Hills, students from El Cajon Valley, won the Grossmont League baseball championship, finishing ahead of redoubtable Helix.

CAVERS MISS

San Diego High gained the Southern Section AAA finals in baseball, in which it had been dominant from the beginning of the CIF, but lost in its bid for a record 17^th championship when Whittier scored an 11-1 victory at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles.

Track http://1952-by-any-name-cavemen-cavers-hillers-broke-all-records/and field competition was as steady as usual, although the area was blanked in the state meet in Palo Alto.

Some 1960 highlights, baseball in regular typeface, track in italics:

2/20/60

Righthander John Lippert opened the season by pitching a no-hitter in Helix’ 1-0 victory over visiting Point Loma.

Ray Koenig’s seventh-inning home run provided the victory over the Pointers’ Ronnie Holmes, who allowed only two hits.

2/24/60

Fred Shuey hit a bases-loaded triple and Myron Morper drove in the winning run with a single in the bottom of the seventh inning as San Diego topped Point Loma, 5-4.

3/3/60

Lefthander Ronnie Holmes pitched a no-hitter and Point Loma gave the lefthander more offense than he needed in an 11-0 win over Coronado.

St. Augustine’s Dennis Shields pitched four innings of a 7-1 win over La Jolla and helped himself with three hits, two home runs and four runs batted in.

3/5/60

Darryl Nelson won three events, 120-yard high hurdles (:15.8), high jump (6-1 ½), and broad jump (20-11 ½) and would become a double or triple winner almost every week but Kearny dropped a 72-32 dual meet decision to Lincoln.

Dick Armstrong allowed three hits and drove in four runs as Hoover defeated visiting Alhambra Mark Keppel, 9-2.

Harold Peterson and Steve Simon hit home runs and San Diego erupted for six runs in the sixth inning to defeat guest San Gabriel, 14-9.

3/7/60

Dick Waisman of Mount Miguel and Dave Rebello of University pitched no-hitters and 10 losing teams in the County scored a total of 11 runs.

Waisman punched out Clairemont, 7-0.  Mountain Empire scored a run on a walk, two stolen bases, and an error but was beaten, 9-1.

3/14/60

Crawford’s Norm Marr tripled in a run in the sixth inning and drove in the winning run with a single in a 10-inning, 2-1 victory over Point Loma.

3/18/60

Point Loma’s Ron Steele was second in :49.5 in one of two, 440-yard dash heats in the 37^th Southern Counties’ Invitational at Huntington Beach. 

Steele’s time in the one-turn race, behind the :49.1 of Long Beach Poly’s Willie Martin, tied for the second fastest ever by an area runner.  San Diego’s Norman Stocks ran :49.3 in 1946 and Coronado’s John Fawcett :49.5 in 1937.
Lincoln’s Lafayette (Mackie) McIntosh was second in 1:58.3 in a large schools 880-yard run.  Point Loma’s Robert Nelson was third in the broad jump at 22-8 ¾.

Kearny’s Darryl Nelson tied for first in the small schools’ high jump at 6 feet, 3 ¼ inches and was second in the broad jump, won by Oceanside’s Rich Lazaro at 21-10 3/4.

3/25/60

A three-way tie in the pole vault was enough for Lincoln to score an upset, 53 2/3-50 1/3 victory over San Diego in the decisive Eastern League dual meet.

Lincoln trailed, 47 1/3-42 2/3, going into the final running event, the 880-yard relay.  Ed Goodman held off the Cavers’ Benny Lewis on the anchor lap for a 1:31.3 victory, but the pole vault had not been completed.

Jim Cransey and Adam Cato of Lincoln and San Diego’s Otis Doxey finally tied for first, each with the same number of misses, and the Hornets claimed 6 of the event’s nine points

Dave Morehead, who would pitch a no-hitter for the Boston Red Sox in 1965, was chased in a five-run San Diego first inning.

The Cavers went on to score two runs in the top of the seventh inning and defeat Hoover, 10-9, in a big Eastern League contest.

3/28/60

Gary (Slats) Maloy allowed five hits and went the distance in Crawford’s 7-6 victory over San Diego, which committed seven errors and fell into a first-place tie with Crawford, each at 3-1 in the East.

The loss was San Diego’s first in 10 games.

El Capitan improved to 9-0 by scoring a run in the bottom of the seventh inning to edge El Cajon Valley, 12-11.

The first-year Vaqueros were led by Danny Kern, who tripled and came home on an error for the winning run.  Kern added a single and double in four times at bat.

NO-HITTER BY CADETS

Jack Vincent and Ed Standon combined to no-hit San Miguel School in Army-Navy’s 14-0 win.

A 55-49 dual meet loss to Helix was San Diego’s third of the season, the most since the 1943 squad posted a 2-3 dual-meet record.

Helix’ Larry Aiken won both hurdles events and tied the 1957 school record of :20.0 by Gale Barsotti in the 180 lows.

4/2/60

San Diego outscored Grossmont, 50-44, with El Cajon Valley third at 38 points to win the large-school division of the sixth annual South Bay relays at Sweetwater.

Lincoln’s 53 points were enough to win the medium schools over Helix (51 1/3) and Point Loma (31 2/3). 

Mission Bay (61), Mar Vista (51), and Kearny (36) were the leading small schools.

Grossmont’s Don Clarke cleared 13-2 ½ in the pole vault, bettering by almost nine inches the record of 12-5 /12 by Escondido’s Bing Howe in 1959.

A San Diego team of Charles Dimry, Thomas Phillips, Emile Wright, and William Dentham raced the 440-yard relay in :42.7.

The Cavers’ time in the infrequently run event was the fastest in County history but was erased, along with other marks, after a survey of the Sweetwater track years later showed the oval was less than 440 yards.

4/8/60

Bill Jones cleared 6-3 ½ in the high jump to break Joe Page’s school record of 6-3, set in 1947, and Grossmont won the big meet in the foothills, 57 ½-46 ½ over Helix.

Don Hamlin :10.3, :22.2 in the 100 and 220-yard dashes, and Dennis Cradit, :51.6, 21-4 ½ in the 440 and broad jump, were double winners for the Foothillers.

Hamlin, Steve Adams, Dick Pray, and Cradit combined to run 1:32.1 to win the 880-yard relay. 

Grossmont improved to 6-0 and Helix slipped to 5-1.

4/11/60

Don Dart of Grossmont pitched a no-hitter in setting down Lincoln, 3-0, on the first day of the 10th annual Lions’ Tournament at Navy Field.

Hoover topped Escondido, 1-0, in eight innings and was the only city school of six to win an Unlimited Division game.

Kearny won its Limited Division opener, 8-3 over Coronado.

4/12/60

Tournament teams played doubleheaders on the second day of the three-day event.

Defending Unlimited Division champion San Diego shut out by El Cajon Valley, 2-0, on opening day, was bounced from the consolation bracket by St. Augustine, 3-2.

4/13/60

Sophomore George Sherrod cuffed Hoover on two hits and Helix won the Lions’ Unlimited Division title, 5-0.

El Centro Central beat Kearny, 7-2, for the Limited championship, while St. Augustine, 2-1 in eight innings over Escondido, and San Dieguito, 7-4 over Coronado, won the respective division consolation titles.

4/15/60

Competitors from San Diego to Yuma, Arizona, converged on Balboa Stadium for the first annual Easter Relays.

Mike Graves of El Cajon Valley cleared 13 feet, 6 ¼ inches in the pole vault for the day’s outstanding mark. 

Graves’ performance allowed the Braves to tie Grossmont at the three-man cumulative height of 37 feet and earn the schools the Dean C.E. Peterson perpetual trophy in honor of the late San Diego State coach.

4/20/60

Bill Froehling hurled a no-hitter as Army-Navy shut down visiting Mountain Empire, 9-0.

4/22/60

San Diego outlasted visiting Hoover, 13-12.  The Cardinals’ Dave Morehead pitched in the first inning, was removed and went to first base and then returned to pitch in the fourth inning.

4/26/60

Jim Thompson’s two-run home run was important in San Diego’s 8-7 win over Crawford, and moved the Cavers closer to the Eastern League title, its 7-1 record three games better than runner-up Hoover (4-4).

4/29/60

Favored Point Loma was shocked by first-year Clairemont, which won the 880-yard relay, the meet’s deciding event, and claimed the Western League dual meet championship, 53-51.
Lanky Jim Godfrey got up for second in the 100-yard dash, won the 220-yard dash in a County-leading :21.7, and anchored the Chiefs to a 1:31.2 victory in the battle of baton exchanges.

Clairemont’s surprising win was especially satisfying for coach Bob Kirchhoff, who had been out of the loop since being let go at Hoover after a stunning football loss to San Diego in 1954.

A City Schools administrator and parent of a Clairemont thinclad had asked the reluctant Kirchhoff to take the coaching reins as a personal favor.

Helix (9-3) walloped El Capitan (10-0), 14-6, in a Metropolitan League battle as Randy Schwartz and Ray Koenig hit home runs.

5/6/60

League finals were held at Camp Pendleton (Southern), El Cajon Valley (Metropolitan), La Jolla (Western), and Balboa Stadium (Eastern).

San Diego, despite losing leading 220-440-and-relay anchorman Benny Lewis to scholastic woes, dominated with 79 1/3 points to runner-up Lincoln’s 51. A Cavers foursome of Thomas Phillips, Emile Wright, Eddie Frost, and Bill Dentham timed 1:29.5 in the 880 relay.

Darryl Nelson set a Western League meet record of 6-3 ½ in the high jump but Clairemont won the team title with 54 5/6 points to Mission Bay’s 43 1/3.

Point Loma’s Ray Alexander ran faster than any city-wide Class C sprint ever with winning times of :10 in the 100 and :18.3 in the 180.

Grossmont, 8-0 in the dual meet season, with wins over Compton Centennial, Helix, and San Diego, outscored Helix, 41-38 for the varsity championship.

El Capitan improved to 12-2 in the Metro League with a 12-3 win over Escondido that included John  Udall’s eighth home run of the year and Al Hinkle’s 5-for-5, three doubles, a triple and single.

Point Loma clinched a tie for first for the Western League crown behind Jerry Jeli’s two-hit pitching and 6-0 win over La Jolla.

5/14/60

Athletes from the Eastern, Western, Metropolitan, Avocado, and Southern leagues met those from the Orange County Sunset, Freeway, and Orange leagues in a Southern California divisional meet in Balboa Stadium.

El Cajon Valley’s Mike Graves, the Southern California pole vault leader at 13-8 ½, dropped down to Class B and cleared the same height, breaking the record of 13-6 ¼ by a Glendale vaulter in 1957.

San Diego led with 7 varsity qualifiers.  Fullerton and Tustin had five each.

5/17/60

Clairemont, runner-up to Point Loma in the Western loop, topped Vista, 6-0, in a first-round, Southern Section AA playoff as Ron Power tripled and hit a two-run homer.

5/20/60

Dave Morehead shut out El Capitan, 9-0, in a surprising Southern Section AAA playoff result.  The Cardinals, in and out all season, rolled with Morehead’s three-hit pitching and stunned the first-year Vaqueros, who were 14-2 in the Metropolitan League.

San Diego outlasted Helix, 10-8, as Steve Simon was 3 for 4 and pitcher Larry Murillo 2 for 3.

Clairemont advanced with an 18-5 win over Torrance Bishop Montgomery in Class AA.

Riverside Ramona ousted the Southern League’s Ramona, 11-8, in Class A.

5/21/60

San Diego qualified five entries in the semifinal divisional meet at Chaffey high in Ontario, led by its relay team, which clocked a season-best 1:28.9.

Kearny’s Darryl Nelson led all high jumpers at 6-4 and San Diego’s Thomas Phillips won a 100-yard dah heat in :10 and was second in his 220 heat.

5/24/60

Clairemont earned a trip to the Southern Section AA finals with a 6-3 victory over Santa Ana Mater Dei at Anaheim.

Bill Black’s three-run homer in the fourth inning broke a 2-2 tie in the Chieftains victory.

San Diego advanced to the AAA quarterfinals with a 6-1 win at Compton as lefthander Larry Murillo and last-inning reliefer Frank Lopez set down the Tarbabes on 3 hits.

About 30 professional scouts descended on San Diego State to watch future major league pitchers Dave Morehead of Hoover and Tommy Sisk of Long Beach Poly.

Sisk and the Jackrabbits turned back the Cardinals, 3-1, on Brian McCall’s two-run home run in the fifth inning.

5/27/60

Clairemont, coached by Ernie Beck,  struck with five runs in the first inning as Mike Smith and Jay Critchley hit back-to-back home runs and lefthander Jerry Haight limited Rosemead Bosco Tech to four hits for six innings in a 9-2 win and surprising Southern Section championship.

San Diego High advanced again behind the two-hit pitching of Larry Murillo and surprised the favored and host Fullerton Indians, 11-2, in the semifinals round.

Murillo allowed two hits and first baseman Jim Thompson drove in four runs with a single, double, and triple.

5/28/60

Thomas Phillips of San Diego ran the 100 in :09.9 for third and Darryl Nelson of Kearny was third with a 6-4 1/2 high jump in the Southern Section finals at Long Beach Veterans’ Stadium.

Phillips and Nelson each qualified for the state meet at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto. 

El Capitan’s Les Cites was fourth in the shot put at 58-2 ¼.

More impressive were some lower division competitors.

Vernie King of San Diego set a Class B broad jump record of 23-10 ¾ and won the 120-yard low hurdles in :12.8. El Cajon Valley’s Mike Graves cleared 14 feet in the pole vault, bettering his record of 13-8 ½, set two weeks before.

Lincoln’s Class B 660-yard relay team of James (Preacher) Johnson, Walter Scott, Ed Goodman and Vernus Ragsdale, won in 1:07.9, off their best of 1:06.3 but also qualifying the group to run in an exhibition 660 at Palo Alto.

Ray DeBolt represented a third new County high school, Granite Hills, located about a mile east of El Cajon Valley, and won the B 660-yard run in 1:23.6.

6/4/60

Lincoln’s B 660-yard speedsters bettered the national high school record of 1:05.9, running 1:05.7 but Los Angeles Freemont won the exhibition race in 1:04.9.

Thomas Phillips of San Diego and Darryl Nelson of Kearny did not place in the 100 or high jump. 

Larry Murillo’s bid for a fourth straight playoff pitching victory and San Diego High’s attempt to win its 17^th championship since 1917 came up short.

Whittier took a 5-0 lead after two innings and cruised to an 11-1 triumph at Los Angeles’ Wrigley Field.

The Cavers, under first-year coach Jerry Dahms, posted an overall record of 23-4 and came much further than expected to this, the last competition of San Diego County teams in the Southern Section.

 

CIF bosses approved a fifth division for playoffs.

“Those who worried that five playoff divisions would take some of the glitter off league races needed to be in the stands at Christian and San Diego High this past weekend,” wrote Steve Brand before the start of the postseason.

“When Christian beat Our Lady of Peace there was genuine exhilaration from the Christian girls,” continued Brand.  “You’d have thought they won the state title again.”

Same at a boys game featuring the Cavers and St. Augustine, pointed out Brand, endorsing the added playoff grouping and contending that league titles were as important as ever.

The Palomar League produced all 4 Division1 playoff semifinalists. Power  was in the North County.

Come the Southern California regionals, only Lincoln enjoyed an extended stay.  Area teams were 1-8 in first-round games.

With apologies to the Surfaris and their early-1960’s hit, the playoffs were a collective “wipeout” for San Diego’s best.

BOYS PLAYOFFS

FIRST ROUND

D-I

Mt. Carmel 63, @San Diego (13-8) 42.

Morse (7-16) 65, @Poway 86.

Montgomery (9-18) 41, @Rancho Bernardo 82.

Mira Mesa (12-13) 60, @Rancho Buena Vista 79.

San Dieguito 54, @Fallbrook (15-13) 51.

Granite Hills (4-18) 76, @Chula Vista 93.

The Spartans bettered their season average of 80.9 points a game.

Bonita Vista (4-21) 57, @Vista 138. 

The No. 1-seed Panthers reached 100 points with a minute left in the third quarter and won their 21^st straight.  Shane Jager (30) and Kyle Duport (28) led the carnage.

Vista came close to the one-game record set in 1991-92 by La Jolla Country day in a 143-60 romp over Mountain Empire.

Southwest (9-16) 72, @San Marcos 81.

D-II

Patrick Henry (14-11) 69, @Carlsbad 79.

Grossmont (13-11) 58, @Kearny 64.

El Capitan (17-10) 45, @Monte Vista 76.

Hilltop (8-16) 48, @Valhalla 78.

Castle Park (12-12) 47, @Serra 72.

Point Loma (8-15) 49, @Helix 67.

Mount Miguel (8-18) 52 @Torrey Pines 58.

Mar Vista (9-15) 50, @El Camino 97.

D-V

Lutheran (13-10) 66, @Marian 86.

Calvin Christian (7-14) 57, @Santa Fe Christian 88.

La Jolla Country Day (7-17) 49, @Tri-City 72.

Army-Navy (9-10) 46, @Francis Parker 50.

Horizon 35, @The Bishop’s 90.

Calexico Vincent Memorial 74, Julian (16-8) 71.

QUARTERFINALS

D-I

San Dieguito (12-15) 59, @Poway 66.

Rancho Buena Vista 58, @Rancho Bernardo (16-11) 54.

San Marcos (15-13) 76, @Vista 99.

Mt. Carmel 64, @Chula Vista (26-2) 61.

D-II

Carlsbad 66, @Valhalla (21-8) 53.

Torrey Pines (18-13) 65, @El Camino 78.

Helix (17-7) 50, @Serra 56, OT.

Kearny (20-5) 43, @Monte Vista 49.

D-III

Crawford (3-19) 54, @University 74.

Madison (9-14) 63, @St. Augustine 84.

La Jolla (13-11) 50, @Santana 53.

Ramona (10-12) 43, @Oceanside 64.

D-IV

Eastlake 75, @Coronado (10-16) 74.

D-V

Marian (9-14) 65, @Calipatria 75.

Tri-City (13-11) 47, @Santa Fe Christian 66.

Francis Parker 40, @Christian (19-6) 34.

Calexico Vincent Memorial (10-10) 50, @The Bishop’s 54.

SEMIFINALS

D-I

3 Poway 74, Mt. Carmel (12-15) 50.

The Titans virtually were playing at home before 2,400 persons at neighboring Ranch Bernardo

The game was the second half a doubleheader and a capacity turnout was guaranteed when the opponent also was close-by Mt. Carmel.

Andy Davis scored 23 points and had 11 rebounds as Poway moved out to a 40-21 halftime lead.

1 Vista 60, 4 Rancho Buena Vista (19-11) 57.

Carlsbad 79, 2 Serra (23-3) 53.

The loss ended a 14-game winning streak for the Conquistadors.

D-II

1 El Camino 69, 4 Monte Vista 62 (20-7). 

The Wildcats trailed by 11 points late in the third quarter, when Chris Dade, sitting with 4 personal fouls, was called on by coach Ray Johnson and scored 13 points in the final 8:30, finishing with 19.

“We just needed to survive the third quarter (a 25-11 Monte Vista run) without him,” said Johnson.

D-III

Santana (13-11) 50, @St. Augustine 53.

Oceanside (14-14) 38, @University 39.

D-IV

Holtville (12-10) 52, @Clairemont 58.

John Brady and Will Gray each scored 21 points and the Chieftains drained 11 three-point shots.  “Good thing we were nailing those threes,” said coach Greg Lee.

Lincoln 129, Eastlake 38, @Hoover.

Lincoln, which averaged 78.8 points during the regular season, got started with a 33-7, first-quarter run and closed with 40 points in the fourth as Eastlake committed 15 of its 41 turnovers. Twelve Hornets scored, six in double figures, led by Chester Mangum’s 27.

The 129 total was sixth highest in County history.

Eastlake, which opened months before, played a junior varsity schedule during the regular season.

D-V

3 Santa Fe Christian 39, the Bishop’s (23-4) 37.

4 Calipatria 44, Francis Parker (14-13) 43.

CHAMPIONSHIP

D-I

1 Vista 64, 3 Poway 52.

The Panthers’ championship was their first since defeating Fallbrook for the small-schools title in the 1962.

Poway had won the last two D-I championships and trailed only 49-48 before Vista closed with a 13-4 push.

1 El Camino 77, Carlsbad 62 (24-4).

Football Parade Magazine all-America Bryant Westbrook had 12 points and 11 rebounds and the Wildcats blew open the game with a 16-0 run in the first quarter.

Carlsbad rallied with a 14-2 streak in the third quarter to close to 48-39, but Westbrook halted the Lancers with a basket that returned the double-digit lead.

D-III

St. Augustine 62, University 46.

The somnolent Saints, trailing, 39-36, awakened and blitzed the Dons with a 26-7 fourth quarter.  Jelani McCoy scored 20 points and added 10 rebounds and seven blocked shots.

D-IV 

Lincoln 88, Clairemont 58.

Lincoln won its sixth consecutive championship and third straight division title over Clairemont, which led the Hornets, 28-25, midway through the second quarter.

“Sometimes it’s hard to get our kids up for these games,” said Hornets coach Ron Loneski, whose team had beaten the Chieftains, 96-49, in the regular season.

The Hornets’ five starters scored from 12 to 14 points each.

D-V

4 Calipatria 49, 3 Santa Fe Christian 41.

The Hornets won their second straight title in their eighth consecutive visit to the Sports Arena, despite missing Referral Simpson, a 20-point scorer as a sophomore who transferred to Hemet West Valley.

Guillermo Zendejas paced the Hornets with 20 points.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL

QUARTERFINALS

D-I

Poway (25-5) 65, @Santa Ana Mater Dei (32-1) 88.

Huntington Beach (29-4) 81, @Vista 55 (28-3).

Future NFL All-Pro tight end Tony Gonzalez led the Oilers with 18 points and 17 rebounds. 

Vista, which averaged 83 points a game in the regular season, had one run of 13-4 in the third quarter that provided temporary relief and some hope for the standing-room home crowd.

D-II

Lakewood Artesia (26-4) 67, @El Camino 64 (25-5).   

“We put everyone on him,” said El Camino coach Ray Johnson to Ed Graney of The San Diego Union.  “A great player.  We’re tired of seeing him.”

The object of Johnson’s praise was 6-foot 7-inch Charles O’Bannon, who scored 28 points and had nine rebounds, dished five assists, and slammed four dunks.

The highlight and the definitive O’Bannon contribution was a three-point play with one second left in the game.

El Camino came the closest in this third Regional matchup in the last four seasons against Artesia.  The Wildcats did it after trailing by 15 points with 3:57 left in the third quarter.

WILDCATS TAKE LEAD

Artesia’s lead was down to one entering the fourth quarter and El Camino held a 64-62 advantage inside two minutes.

Artesia’s Shawn Caracoza tied the score and then, back on defense, O’Bannon forced a change of direction of an El Camino shot and blocked a second attempt, giving Artesia the ball with 37 seconds left.

The Pioneers dribbled and passed until there were seven seconds remaining, then gave the ball to O’Bannon, who scored on a 10-foot, baseline jumper and was fouled and converted a free throw.

“We never went away from what we do best,” Johnson said to Graney of his team’s man-to-man defense and up-tempo offense.

The coach shrugged.  “They beat us, but we gave them hell,” he said.

Carlsbad (24-5) 55, @Riverside North (31-0) 65.

Kewan Shariff kept the Lancers in the game with 26 points.

D-III

University (16-9) 56, @South Torrance (27-3) 72.

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (25-6) 70, @St. Augustine (20-8) 58.

The Saints cut a 15-point halftime deficit to three points but faded. Jelani McCoy led them with 20 points.

D-IV

Clairemont (10-18) 45, @Gardena Serra (23-7) 112.

The top-seeded Cavaliers fattened their lead with a 22-0 run in the first half.

Playa del Rey Sr. Bernard (13-16) 76, @Lincoln 90.

The Hornets were breezing, 53-28, at the half, but the visitors were pressing, 79-71, with 2:01 left.

We got very complacent,” claimed Lincoln coach Ron Loneski.

D-V

L.A. Bel Air Prep (18-9) 61, @Calipatria 65.

The Hornets never trailed, buzzing with Guillermo Zendejas’ 15 points, including four from deep.

@Palos Verdes Chadwick 64, Santa Fe Christian (20-10) 50.

SEMIFINALS

D-V

Bakersfield Garces Memorial (21-9) 58, @Lincoln 70.

Joe Evans scored 33 points and told Ed Graney of the Union, “I felt it.  I was at home (before the game) and began meditating….”

D-V

Palos Verdes Chadwick (24-9) 68, Calipatria (17-9) 48, @Imperial Valley Community College.

REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

Gardena Serra (25-7) 69, Lincoln (29-5) 67, @Cal State-Dominguez Hills.

A beef behind the Lincoln bench as the game ended resulted in both teams not being present to accept postgame rewards.

Lincoln botched an inbound play with 18 seconds left and the score tied at 67.  Serra promptly turned the ball over.  Lincoln then turned the ball over again.

Serra got the ball inside, where it accumulated 46 of its 69 points and the Cavaliers’ Akeli Jackson scored with three seconds to go.

Lincoln was 6×16 from the free-throw line, missing the front ends of five 1-and-1 opportunities, and committed 30 turnovers.

“We’re a better team than Serra,” said coach Ron Loneski.  “They didn’t beat us; we beat ourselves.”

GIRLS PLAYOFFS

FIRST ROUND

DIVISION I

Sweetwater (5-12) 18, @Rancho Bernardo 114.

Mt. Carmel 66, @San Diego (14-9) 61, 3 OT.

Granite Hills (6-20) 26, @Morse 53.                                                        

San Dieguito (8-18) 45, @Chula Vista 49.

Allison Hines’ 3×4 free throws in the final 1:30 to go with 22 points, seven assists, and five steals got the Spartans to the finish line.                                                                                                             

Orange Glen (11-15) 39, @Bonita Vista 52.

San Marcos (7-16) 28, @Poway 77.

Fallbrook 39, @Mira Mesa (17-8) 29.

D-II

Torrey Pines (12-13) 48, @Kearny 56.

Hilltop (12-12) 30, @El Capitan 52.

Mount Miguel (13-10) 41, @Escondido 59.

Castle Park (13-13) 61, @Grossmont 79.

San Pasqual 54, @El Cajon Valley (16-7) 47.

Patrick Henry (8-14) 27, @Carlsbad 67.

Valhalla (9-19) 47, @University City 62.                                                                                       

Mission Bay 55, @El Camino (15-9) 47.

Adia Barnes led the way for the Buccaneers with 22 points, 16 rebounds, and five steals.

D-III

Crawford 40 (3-19), @Ramona 46.

D-V

Calexico Vincent Memorial 45, @Marian (4-18) 38.

Tri-City (4-12) 17, @Francis Parker 69.

QUARTERFINALS

D-I

Mt. Carmel (11-15) 45, @Rancho Bernardo 63.

Vista (16-10) 50, @Morse 63.

Fallbrook (10-17) 44, @Chula Vista 47.

Bonita Vista (14-10) 49, @Poway 77.

D-II

San Pasqual (12-12) 36, @University City 61.

Mission Bay (11-12) 47, @Carlsbad 66.

Kearny 61, @El Capitan 36 (19-7).

Grossmont 48 (20-6), @Escondido 69.

D-III

Madison (6-16) 29, @University 53.

Ramona (4-18) 51, @Santana 80.

West Hills (3-19) 17, @Our Lady of Peace 67.

Oceanside 47, La Jolla (5-16) 40.

D-IV

Eastlake (17-7), 29, @Clairemont 45.

D-V

Calvin Christian (8-11) 53, @La Jolla Country Day 63.

Calipatria (5-15) 33, @Julian 74.

Calexico Vincent Memorial (12-9) 26, @The Bishop’s 47.

Francis Parker (15-6) 17, @Christian 79.

SEMFINALS

D-I

2 Poway 66, 3 Morse (23-6) 36.

1 Rancho Bernardo 71, 4 Chula Vista (20-7) 40.

D-II

1 Carlsbad 73, Kearny (22-6) 42.

Vanessa Nygaard, sidelined with a broken right ankle in a seven-point December loss to the Komets, led the Lancers with 29 points.

2 University City 60, 3 Escondido (20-6) 59, OT.

Alicia Weihi’s two successful jump shots in overtime were the difference for the Centurions.

D-III

Oceanside (8-17) 34, @Santana 61.

Our Lady of Peace (19-5) 35, @University 39.

D-IV

3 Lincoln 67, vs. 2 Holtville 16-5) 58, @West Hills

4 Clairemont (4-16) 20, @1 Coronado 49

D-V

La Jolla Country Day (10-10) 37, vs. Christian 78, @West Hills.

Alisha Nater pulled down 26 rebounds and Stephanie Shadwell scored 18 points for the Patriots.

2 The Bishop’s (22-3) 68, 3 Julian (19-8) 39.

CHAMPIONSHIP

D-I

Rancho Bernardo 48, Poway 38.

Ratings mean something.  The Cal-Hi Sports 10^th-ranked Broncos topped the No. 20 Lady Titans after losing two of three to Poway during the regular season.

D-II

2 University City 46, 1 Carlsbad 37.

The Centurions hounded Vanessa Nygaard with a 1-1-3 defense and U. City’s 11-0 shutout of the Lancers in the second quarter led to a 20-10 halftime lead.

Nygaard scored 10 points and had seven rebounds but the pressure applied by her defensive escorts resulted in teammates becoming reluctance to pass her the ball.

D-III

University 52, Santana 44.

The Dons stunned No. 1 seed and 26-1 Santana after getting to the finals with a victory over the second seed Our Lady of Peace.

Kathleen Murphy scored 18 points, including 13 in the second half and five in the final 3:30.

DI-V

Coronado 55, Lincoln (11-11) 50.

The sixth consecutive D-IV trip to the finals had the makings of a sixth consecutive defeat for the Islanders, who trailed by 11 points in the first half.

Lincoln’s Shondel Robinson scored 38 points, but Coronado offset Robinson’s performance with a 49-24 advantage in rebounds.

“The happiest I’ve ever been,” rejoiced the Islanders’ Michelle Stevens, who hit a game-clinching free throw in the final seconds after the Hornets took a one-point lead into the final quarter.

D-V

Christian 53, The Bishop’s 48.                                                 

The Patriots’ third straight championship saw them trail until the final six minutes after shooting 29 per cent from the field in the first half and lagging, 34-22.

“Coach (Kenny) Grainger yelled at us, then he left the room and let us think,” said Stephanie Shadwell, who scored 15 of her game-high 22 points in the second half.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL

QUARTERFINALS

Thousand Oaks (30-1) 54, @Rancho Bernardo (25-4) 47. 

Track star Marion Jones also had hoop game. The 5-foot 11-inch senior had 30 points, 18 rebounds, nine blocked shots, and four three-point baskets.

Poway (25-5) 42, @Lynwood (28-0) 58.

D-II

Cerritos Gahr (23-9) 42, @University City 46.

Jenny Gross scored 10 points and had 12 steals and Shannon Colton led with 21 points.

Carlsbad 74, @South Bakersfield (22-4) 58.

Vanessa Nygaard had 24 points and 11 rebounds and the Lancers forced 23 turnovers.

D-III

Lemoore (23-5) 52, @University 61.

The Dons wiped out a 30-21 halftime deficit with an 18-3 sprint starting the third quarter. Leslie Falante held sway with 16 points.

Santana 63, @Fresno Edison (17-8) 44.

Cathy Bass scored 33 points and her sister Michelle posted nine rebounds and seven assists.

“We limited them to one shot in the (21-7) second quarter and took advantage of some fast break opportunities,” said Sultans coach Wade Vickery.

D-IV

Santa Ynez (27-2) 71, @Coronado (18-8) 40.

Lincoln (11-12) 46, @Playa del Rey St. Bernard (26-4) 90.

D-V

Lone Pine (24-5) 40, @Christian 61.

The Bishop’s 38, Lancaster Bethel (19-6) 32.

SEMIFINALS

D-II

3 University City 45, @2 Hacienda Heights Wilson (27-1) 34.

For the third consecutive game U.C. players wore blue, stick-on tattoos of a blue Centurion on their arms and ended Wildcats streaks of 25 wins in a row at home and 17 in the season.

Jennie Gross scored 15 points and added 10 rebounds and six assists and the favored Southern Section team shot only 23 per cent from the field, 12×51.

Carlsbad (23-4) 55, @1 Brea-Olinda 64, OT.

The Lancers led, 51-45, with 3:23 left in regulation time.  Vanessa Nygaard (20 points) and Holly Gerdes (16, plus 8 rebounds) fouled out in overtime.

Brea-Olinda made six, three-point baskets, Carlsbad one.

D-III

Santana (27-2) 59, @Inglewood Morningside (27-2) 68.

The Sultans made it respectable with a 30-13 fourth quarter, but they were outscored in every other period, 17-7, 20-13, and 18-9.

University (17-10), 45, @Costa Mesa (28-4) 67.

 D-V

Pasadena Poly 32 (26-5), @Christian 37.

Stephanie Shadwell scored 10 of her 18 points in the fourth quarter.

“I don’t feel I have to do everything,” said 5-foot, 10-inch freshman Shadwell to writer Steve Brand, “but I don’t mind having the ball at the end of the game.”

Shadwell’s two free throws with 17 seconds left iced it for the Patriots.

The Bishop’s (24-5) 41, @San Luis Obispo Mission Prep (23-6) 56.

REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

D-II

Brea-Olinda (31-2) 45, University City (18-10) 39.

“I never dreamed we’d get this far,” said Centurion coach Steve Vukojevich.  “I was just along for the ride; these girls let me come with them.”

Vukojevich took over the program this season after coaching the football team for the school’s first 11 seasons.

D-V

Christian 48, San Luis Obispo (22-7) 46, @Cal State Dominguez Hills.

The Patriots advanced after Stephanie Shadwell drained an eight-foot jump shot with 37 seconds remaining.

STATE CHAMPIONSHIP                                                         Atherton Sacred Heart (37-0) 59, Christian (24-4) 39.

The Lady Gators led, 11-0, after their first five possessions and concluded a two-year run with a 59-1 record.

 GIRLS SCORING LEADERS

NAME	TEAM	GAMES	POINTS	AVERAGE
Cindy Bass	Santana	29	713	24.6 (3)
Odom	Castle Park	26	668	25.69 (2)
Shondel Robinson	Lincoln	23	602	26.17 (1)
Allison Hines	Chula Vista	27	542	20.08
M. Krause	Kearny	28	541	19.32
Burnside	Oceanside	23	540	23.47 (5)
Reco Edwards	El Cajon Valley	22	521	23.68 (4)
Stacie Terry	El Capitan	25	517	20.68
Adia Barnes	Mission Bay	23	449	19.52
Diamond	Patrick Henry	22	395	17.95

BOYS SCORING LEADERS

Jerome Green	Chula Vista	28	825	29.46 (1)
David Demien	San Dieguito	27	732	25.24 (3)
Shane Jager	Vista	30	705	23.5 (5)
Marty Ellis	Monte Vista	27	691	25.59 (2)
John Brady	Madison	28	654	23.35 (6)
Smalley	Fallbrook	26	633	24.34 (4)
Brian Baum	San Marcos	27	569	21.07 (9)
Kewan Shariff	Carlsbad	28	561	20.03
Jelani McCoy	St. Augustine	27	557	20.63 (10)
Shane Lantz	Madison	25	549	21.96 (7)
Scott Schoenwald	Mt. Carmel	27	546	20.22
Charles	Morse	22	482	21.91 (8)
Silva	San Pasqual	22	429	19.5

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                   

 

 

 

Point Loma canceled its season, hours after the story below was published.

Joel Allen, who quarterbacked Christian to a Division IV championship in 2002 and created a brilliant coaching record at The Bishop’s (11 seasons, 100-39-1 record, .739 winning percentage) had stepped down.

Allen was going to go into business with his brother and was stepping back, but when Mike Hastings suddenly retired after 22 seasons at Point Loma, Allen, a Point Loma resident, stepped back in and became the Pointers’ fourth head coach in the last 75 years.

Talk about stability.

Don Giddings guided the Pointers from 1946-54 and Bennie Edens from 1955-97. Hastings took over in 1998.

The pandemic and and the uncertainty around it virtually emptied the cupboard.  Only 17 players turned out for practice and Point Loma considered opting out of the season, according to John Maffei of The San Diego Union.  “Joel went out and ‘recruited the campus’,” said Maffei and got the roster count up to 27.

Much work lies ahead as the Pointers attempt to negotiate the season, which began with a 64-0 loss to ascendant Lincoln.  The score represented the most decisive shutout in school history, replacing a 55-0 defeat to Coronado in 1929, and were the most points allowed since a 63-7 loss to Helix in 2001.

TOP 10

Cathedral had 14 first place votes and took the top spot in the weekly Union-Tribune poll.  No. 2 was St. Augustine, followed by Lincoln, Carlsbad, Mater Dei, Mission Hills, El Camino, Oceanside, Granite Hills, and Grossmont.

QUICK KICKS

Losing, 19-2, to Mater Dei was Helix’ second loss in a row and marked the first time since losses of 31-14 to Steele Canyon and 31-14 to Valhalla in 2009 that the Scots had lost successive games to teams from the San Diego Section…Santa Fe Christian, with 91 points and Cathedral, with 90, are off to roaring starts but no two-game record…under Nick Ruscetta the Eagles scored 95 in 2004 and 103 in 2009…Cathedral tied its two-game record set in 2008….

 

Comparisons are building for Cathedral.

The Dons are a unanimous No. 1 in The San Diego-Union-Tribune poll and seventh for the second week in a row in the respected Cal-Hi Sports ratings.

At No. 7, Cathedral is at its highest level in the Cal-Hi eye test rankings since the 2016 club finished fifth.  Coach Sean Doyle’s team is ninth in the respective computerized rankings of Max Preps and Cal Preps.com.

I agreed with the Union‘s John  Maffei, who wrote in 2016 that the Dons were the greatest team in the history of the San Diego Section, which began in 1960.

That is an arguable point, but my reasoning was that no team had gone 15-0.  Morse of 1990 and Cathedral of 2008 were 14-0.   This Cathedral team, if it runs the table and possibly is as good as its predecessor, will be unable reach those lofty heights.  The Dons’  season, which we list as 2020,  will end after five games.

At least the Dons and others have gotten the chance to play despite the pandemic and will look forward to a full, 2021 slate beginning in late August

Interestingly, the 2015 and 2020 Cathedral squads have been quarterbacked by the sons of former NFL players who were first-round draft choices.

Tate Haynes (’16) is the offspring of Mike Haynes, a 14-season cornerback with the New England Patriots and Oakland Raiders and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.  Rick Mirer was an NFL quarterback for 12 seasons and is father of Charlie, the Dons’ 2020 field boss.

Other Cal-Hi selections this week:  16, Lincoln; 18, Mater Dei; 28, Carlsbad; 31, St. Augustine; 39, Mission Hills; 45, Helix.

Additional Max Preps ratings:  21, Carlsbad; 22, Lincoln.

More, from Cal Preps.com:  13, Carlsbad; 18, Lincoln; 22, Mission Hills;  33, St. Augustine; 53, El Camino.

The San Diego Union-Tribune Week 3 poll, following games of the season’s third week:

Points on 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.

First-place votes in parenthesis. NR–Not ranked.

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	POINTS	PREVIOUS
1.	Cathedral (17)	3-0	170	1
2.	Carlsbad	2-0	141	4
3.	Lincoln	2-0	132	3
4.	Mater Dei	3-0	109	5
5.	Mission Hills	2-0	105	6
6.	St. Augustine	2-1	101	2
7.	Granite Hills	3-0	57	9
8.	La Jolla	2-0	44	NR
9.	Helix	1-2	34	NR
10.	Ramona	2-0	21	NR

Others receiving votes: El Camino (1-1, 7 points), Poway (2-0, 4), Eastlake (1-0, 3), Rancho Bernardo (2-0, 2), La Costa Canyon (1-2, 1).

Voting panel of 17sportswriters, sportscasters:

• John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune
• Steve Brand, Jim Lindgren, Terry Monahan, Don Norcross, Thomas Gutierrez, freelance contributors.
• Brandon Stone, Nick Pollino, KUSI Chl. 51
• Adam Paul, ecpreps.com.
• Bodie DeSilva, scorebooklive.com.
• John Kentera, Braden Suprenant (97.3 The Fan).
• Ramon Scott (eastcountysports.com)
• Rick Smith, partletonsports.com
• Steve (Biff) Dolan, Mountain Country 107.9 FM
• Christian Pederson, San Diego Sports Association.
• Eric Williams, WBK Sports/San Diego Friday Night Lights Magazine.

Football season is just beyond the horizon in this chaotic year, but  many coaches are actively preparing for a January start (in the usual basketball season), including those who have reached 50 victories in their San Diego Section football careers.

Earlier postings listed the Top 10 active football coaches in victories, and the all-time Top 27 in winning percentage.  Use the Football/Coach 100 Club page for a list of the 100 game winners.

NAME	SCHOOL	W-L-T	OVERALL	PCT
Troy Starr	Mount Miguel Helix	8-13 83-18-1	91-31-1	.744
Ron Burner	El Capitan		83-85-2	.494
Kerry Legarra	Imperial		80-56-2	.587
Jason Texler	El Cajon Valley Escondido San Marcos	18-16 5-15-1 56-27	79-58-1	.576
Tony Corlee	San Pasqual		73-71-1	.507
John Self	Brawley		72-33	.690
Sean Sovacool	La Costa Canyon		70-44	.614
John Joyner	Marian		70-57	.551
Tim White	Westview Julian Borrego Springs	10-24 34-54-2 24-16	68-94-2	.421
Tracy McNair	Morse		67-61-1	.523
Tristan McCoy	Rancho Bernardo		61-45	.575
Thadd MacNeal	Carlsbad		60-44	.577
Kellen Cobbs	Granite Hills		58-37	.611
David Dunn	Lincoln		58-51-1	.532
Scott Longerbone	Steele Canyon		54-42-1	.562
John Wallace	Santa Fe Christian		52-30	.634

CLOSING IN ON 50

John Anderson	Mt. Carmel	46-55	.455
David Wong	Calexico Vincent Memorial	44-16	.733
Tyler Hales	La Jolla Country Day	44-32	.579
Charles James	University City-San Diego	44-36	.550
Tim Estes	Santana	43-48	.473
Robbie Owens	Helix	42-12	.778
Dave Rodriguez	Oceanside	40-25	.615

Bill Rainey left with a couple championships when he graduated from Crawford High in 1962 and went on to the University of Southern California.

Rainey, who passed away recently at his home in Seattle, was the San Diego Section football player of the year in 1961 and also was the first San Diego Section track-and-field champion in the 880-yard run in 1961.

Two separate and distinctive achievements.

As a junior Rainey bested  the field at Kearny High in the inaugural San Diego Section championships, winning in a time of 1:58.0.

Rainey proceeded to score 19 touchdowns in the fall and led Crawford to the CIF championship, 13-0 over Kearny, but it was in the game the previous week that forever etched Rainey’s name in San Diego Section lore.

 

The 175-pound halfback scored 5 touchdowns in a 31-13 victory over Helix in a contest billed as matching the two best teams in the County.  Entering the game Crawford was 6-0-2 and Helix 8-0.

Crawford’s 8-0-2 championship record remains the only unbeaten season in school history.

Rainey was an all-Southern California, first-team choice by the Helms Athletic Foundation and the San Diego Section player of the year.

Bill did not defend his 880-yard championship in the spring track season.  He instead contributed to Crawford’s track-and-field squad by becoming a pole vaulter.