Crawford was emerging as a legendary power and would appear in the San Diego Section championship game six times, winning four, by the end of the decade.

The Colts’ coach was Bill Sandback, a hockey-playing Minnesota transplant who, after seeking more agreeable weather, moved west, and taught one year at Memorial Junior High before becoming the Colts’ mentor this season.

Two players on this team, catcher Dave Duncan and outfielder Eddie Herrmann, would go on to the major leagues as catchers, Duncan later as perhaps the major leagues’ premier pitching coach with the St. Louis Cardinals…

3/2/62

Crawford’s Ron Dargo pitched a no-hitter in a 1-0 victory over visiting Helix, striking out 5, walking 2, and hitting one batsman.

Dargo also allowed only one hit in an earlier, season-opening victory over El Cajon Valley on Feb. 28.

3/9/62

His team trailing, 3-2, with one out in the seventh inning, Henry Peavy struck a three-run, reported 360-foot home run that cleared a 20-foot fence in right field at Golden Hill playground, earning San Diego a 5-3 victory over host St. Augustine in an Eastern League opener

3/13/62

Jim Rupe slugged a first-inning home run and followed with three singles and John Allison allowed one run and two hits in 6 2/3 innings of relief as Crawford muscled Hoover, 11-2.

3/14/62

Jim Rupe hit solo home runs in the first and third innings and Crawford defeated visiting Sweetwater, 3-2, behind Ron Dargo’s two-hit pitching and improved to 7-0.

Three-run home runs at Clairemont by Mike Christino and George Mahaffey Barnes led San Diego to a 9-5 win and 6-0 record.

3/16/62

Froebel Brigham, eighth in the batting order, led San Diego to a 4-2 victory over Lincoln in an Eastern League game at Robb Field, Ocean Beach.

Brigham homered and tripled, and drove in all four runs as the Cavers improved to 7-0 and pitcher Larry Murillo to 3-0.

3/23/62

Ron Scagliotti struck out 18 Granite Hills batters and allowed two hits in a 5-1 Monte Vista victory.

Helix’ George Sherrod stopped Mount Miguel on three hits, 3-1.

Hoover staked a 7-0 lead in the first two innings and gave it all up in the third.  San Diego sent 18 men to the plate and scored 12 runs and went on to a 17-8 victory.

Home team Lincoln beat Crawford, 1-0, as Lou Marone outpitched Ron Dargo in a battle of lefthanders.

3/26/62

Gary Rucker’s one-hit pitching was essential as La Jolla’s John Fink gave up only two hits in the Pointers’ 1-0 triumph.

3/30/62

Joe Jacobo’s one-hit pitching for San Diego stopped St. Augustine, 2-1, in the Eastern League. Helix retained first in the Grossmont League, edging El Capitan, 4-3, behind Dick Gowin’s single with two outs in the seventh inning.

4/4/62

Gary Rucker stuck out 16 batters and Bobby Falar’s squeeze bunt brought home the winning run in Point Loma’s eight-inning, 4-3 nod over Kearny.

Homers by Mike Christino and Carl Limbrick offset Phil Boland’s homer in San Diego’s 5-4 win over Lincoln.

Coronado sophomore Dan Jordan, up from the junior varsity squad, punched out San Marcos, 3-0, allowing only a base on balls.

4/6/62

Fireballer  Ron (Flame) Tompkins hurled Chula Vista to a 1-0, eight-inning victory over Sweetwater’s Joe Camacho that landed the Spartans (4-1) in first place in the Metropolitan League, ahead of Sweetwater (4-2)

Tompkins made the major leagues and had a baseball card that became very popular.  Tomkins shared his “rookie” card with future Hall of Famer Johnny Bench.

4/10/62

John Allison allowed Lincoln one hit in a 4-0 Crawford win that kept the Colts within a game of Eastern League-leading San Diego.

Bob Crowley’s three-run home run was the difference in Sweetwater’s 5-4, Metropolitan League win over Mar Vista.

Poway beat Ramona, 15-3 for its fourth consecutive Palomar League triumph.  Nick Dillon, Daro Quiring, and Bill Jack homered for the Titans.

Visiting Crawford was one out from an Eastern League tie for first place, but San Diego scratched out two runs for a 4-3 victory and improved to 7-1 in league play to the Colts’ 5-3.

4/16/62

LIONS TOURNAMENT

Thirty-two teams in Unlimited and Limited divisions, all from the San Diego Section, began play in the 12^th annual Lions Tournament, games at Navy Field, foot of Fifth Avenue and Harbor Drive.

Gary Rucker’s three-run home run in the fourth inning propelled Point Loma to a 7-5 victory over Escondido in the first round of the Lions Tournament and Russell (Hush) Puppe pitched the Pointers into the semifinal round, 4-3 over Grossmont after Rucker doubled and scored on Lynn Kemp’s bases-loaded walk.

4/17/62

George Mahaffey Barnes and Fred Shuey each had four hits as San Diego knocked out Crawford, 13-3, in the quarterfinals after the Colts set down Chula Vista, 6-3, behind John Allison’s six-hit pitching and double and single, which produced two runs batted in.

A Point Loma-San Diego championship game was assured after the Cavers followed their morning win over Crawford with a 4-3 victory over El Capitan in the afternoon.  San Diego came from behind in the last of the seventh inning on Henry Peavy’s single, which scored Sylvester Crowell and George Mahaffey Barnes.

Point Loma advanced with a pair of 4-3 victories over Grossmont and St. Augustine, respectively.

4/18/62

Husky Gary Rucker, backed by an errorless defense, allowed three hits and struck out 11, and pitched Point Loma to a 2-1, Unlimited Division championship game victory over San Diego.

So described by  writer Roger Conlee, the 6-foot, 1-inch,  205-pound Rucker boasted a 5-1 record and was one of the reasons Pointers coach Kermeen (Punky) Fristrom predicted a Western League championship for his team.

“It’s going to be tough, but I don’t think anyone is going to beat us out of it now,” Fristrom told Conlee after his club won its 11th in a row. San Diego (15-3) saw an eight-game winning streak end.

Ron (Flame) Tompkins hurled a no-hitter and Chula Vista claimed Unlimited consolation honors, 3-0, over Escondido.

El Centro Central was the Limited  champion after topping El Cajon Valley, 7-1, and University claimed the consolation prize, 9-8, over La Jolla.

5/1/62

Herb Palmtag singled in the winning run in the 12^th inning of a game that was resumed after being  suspended earlier in the 10^th inning against Clairemont.

The Pointers’ 5-3 victory enabled them to claim a share of the Western League championship.

Clairemont’s Arnie Powers no-hit the Pointers in the regularly-scheduled game, outdueling Gary Rucker, 2-0, who was the winning pitcher in the 5-3 game.

5/4/62

Point Loma, Chula Vista (Metropolitan), Oceanside (Avocado), and Poway (Palomar) clinched league championships and Helix gained a tie for the Grossmont League title.

A Clairemont pitcher, Jim Tarlton, hurled the Chieftains’ second consecutive no-hitter, blanking Mission Bay, 2-0.

Bob Serrano’s two-run home run in the sixth inning and Russell (Hush) Puppe’s two-hit pitching clinched Point Loma’s championship, 2-1 over La Jolla.

Jim Quiring’s homer in the ninth inning beat San Marcos, 7-6, and separated Poway from the rest of its circuit rivals.

Phil Edwards’ two home runs paced Helix to a 10-9 win over El Cajon Valley.

5/8/62

George Sherrod stopped host El Capitan, 9-3, aided by 6 Vaqueros errors that led to six unearned runs, and Helix won its 11^th Grossmont League game in a row and the league title.

Kearny, 3-16 overall, stunned 18-3 San Diego, 6-4, behind John Green’s two-run home run.

Dave Duncan’s grand slam home run in the first inning propelled Crawford to a nonleague victory at Point Loma.

5/10/62
PLAYOFFS

2-A

Eight teams, two each from the Eastern, Western, Metropolitan, and Grossmont leagues would square off in the San Diego section 2-A playoffs.

A one-game playoff with between Oceanside (Avocado) and Poway (Palomar) would determine the 1-A champion.

REGULAR SEASON STANDINGS

EASTERN LEAGUE

                                      LEAGUE                                                                        OVERALL                                            

TEAM	WON	LOST	Pct.	GBL	WON	Lost	Pct.
San Diego	11	1	.917	—	19	4	.826
Crawford	7	5	.583	4	16	6	.727
St. Augustine	6	6	.500	5	12	11	.522
Lincoln	3	9	.250	8	9	12	.429
Hoover	3	9	.250	8	9	13	.409

WESTERN LEAGUE

                                      LEAGUE                                                                         OVERALL

TEAM	WON	LOST	Pct.	GBL	WON	LOST	Pct.
Point Loma	11	1	.917	—	16	8	.667
Clairemont	9	3	.750	2	15	6	.714
La Jolla	4	8	.333	7	8	12	.400
Mission Bay	3	9	.250	8	7	15	.318
Kearny	3	9	.250	8	5	15	.250

GROSSMONT LEAGUE

                                       LEAGUE                                                                          OVERALL

TEAM	WON	LOST	Pct.	GBL	WON	LOST	Pct.
Helix	11	0	1.000	—	16	4	.800
El Capitan	9	3	.750	2	16	6	.727
El Cajon Valley	5	7	.417	6	11	12	.478
Grossmont	5	7	.417	6	11	9	.550
Monte Vista	5	7	.417	6	10	9	.526
Mount Miguel	4	8	.333	8	7	13	.350
Granite Hills	2	10	.167	9	5	15	.250

METROPOLITAN LEAGUE

                                             LEAGUE                                                                           OVERALL                                          

TEAM	WON	LOST	Pct.	GBL	WON	LOST	Pct.
Chula Vista	9	3	.750	—	16	6	.727
Escondido	7	5	.583	2	13	9	.591
Sweetwater	6	6	.500	3	8	12	.400
Hilltop	4	8	.333	5	7	13	.350
Mar Vista	4	8	.333	5	4	14	.222

PALOMAR LEAGUE

                                             LEAGUE                                                                       OVERALL

TEAM	WON	LOST	Pct.	GBL	WON	POST	Pct.
Poway	10	0	1.000	—	16	3	.842
Army-Navy	6	4	.600	4	7	8	.467
Carlsbad	5	5	.500	5	7	8	.467
Fallbrook	5	5	.500	5	7	9	.438
San Marcos	4	6	.600	6	8	8	.500
Ramona	0	10	.000	10	5	12	.294

AVOCADO LEAGUE

                                             LEAGUE                                                                      OVERALL

TEAM	WON	LOST	Pct.	GBL	WON	LOST	Pct.
Oceanside	9	3	.750	—	14	7	.667
University	8	4	.500	1	14	6	.700
Coronado	7	5	.583	2	11	11	.500
San Dieguito	4	8	.333	5	7	11	.389
Vista	2	10	.167	7	5	16	.238

 GBL:m Games behind leader.

5/15/62

FIRST ROUND

Clairemont (15-7) 6, @Chula Vista  7.
Dick Pipes, facing an 0-2 count with two outs in the eighth inning, singled in Tim White for the winning run in the eighth inning.

The Spartans had lost a 6-4 lead when the Chieftains scored three in the top of the seventh.

Clairemont’s Arnie Powers and Chula Vista’s Ron (Flame) Tompkins each went the distance, each surviving 11 combined errors, six by the Chieftains.

The Spartans-Chiefs game was the only contest, as the three others scheduled were rained out or postponed because of wet grounds.

El Capitan 5, San Diego (19-5) 4, @Beeson Field.

Vaqueros lefthander Dave Varvel allowed only one hit and survived five errors, but a defensive play saved the game.

Dave Duncan cut down a tying run in the third inning with a perfect throw from right field.

Graig Nettles’ single to right field scored Fred Shuey, but Vaqueros catcher Gordon Carlson took Duncan’s throw and held on to the ball despite a collision with 200-pound Henry Peavy.

The victory avenged the East County club’s controversial, 4-3 loss to the Cavemen in the Lions Tournament.

Crawford (17-6) 4, @Helix (16-5) 3, eight innings.
The Colts, who overpowered Helix in the football playoffs, again carried the hammer.

The Highlanders were leading 3-1, in the third inning when John Allison and Tom Whelan hit home runs.

Dave Duncan led off the eighth inning with a 340-foot drive that decided the duel between pitching aces Ron Dargo of Crawford and George Sherrod.

Escondido (14-9) 1, @Point Loma (16-8) 0.

Pitcher Jack Turner hit a two-out single in the fourth inning, scoring Nick Thurlow, and won a tense duel with the Pointers’ hard-luck Gary Rucker.

SEMIFINALS        

El Capitan 9, Chula Vista (17-7) 5.

Dave Varvel, pitching on one day’s rest, got the better of Chula Vista’s Ron Tompkins,

Varvel allowed eight hits but the Vaqueros attacked Tompkins with 12 hits, including a double and two singles by Ron Carlson and a three-run home run by  Dave Duncan that broken open the game in the fifth inning.

Crawford 3, Escondido (14-10) 1. 

John Allison’s complete-game five-hitter was enough for Crawford to advance and allowed coach Bill Sandback to rest lefty ace Ron Dargo.

CHAMPIONSHIP

Crawford (19-6) 9, El Capitan (18-7) 0, @Westgate Park.

Ron Dargo limited El Capitan to three singles and the Vaqueros’ Dave Varvel, pitching his third straight playoff, issued six walks in one inning.

Dave Bruen drove in three runs and Tom Ault two runs.  Tom Cassie had two hits and Cassie and Tom Whelan each had two-base hits.

Attendance was an estimated 1,200 persons, giving Crawford two major championships, defeating more renowned Helix along the way.

1-A

Poway (17-3) 3, Oceanside (14-8) 2.                                                                                         

Daro Quiring won his 13th game against two defeats, allowing two hits, and the second-year Titans survived eight errors.

The single-game playoff was between Palomar League Poway and Avocado League Oceanside.

The innumerable number of games and points and lack of sustained record keeping, or reporting, in earlier years make basketball a most challenging  sport when it comes to posting stats of the “most”.

The table below, which begins decades after the game came to San Diego, lists an evolution of  individual high scoring for one game.  Corrections and additions  welcomed.

YEAR	NAME	TEAM	POINTS	OPPONENT	SCORE
1939-40	Bud Engle	Coronado	35	La Jolla	57-16
1943-44	Ivan Robinson	San Diego	38	Kearny	70-25
1950-51	Paul Lockridge	Fallbrook	47	Brown Military	90-31
1956-57	Tom Shaules	St. Augustine	49	Helix	86-72
1957-58	Shaules		60	Crawford	102-38
1969-70	Rob Petrie	Julian		Mountain Empire	115-76
1976-77	Mitchell Lilly	Madison	61	San Diego	118-84
1989-90	Tony Clark	Christian	64	La Jolla Country Day	103-65
2004-05	Tyrone Shelley	Crawford	76	Burlington Central, Canada	138-29
2019-20	Mikey Williams	San Ysidro	77	Kearny	116-42

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	POINTS	LAST WEEK
1.	Torrey Pines	16-0 (10)	127	1
2.	Cathedral	6-0 (2)	112	2
3.	San Marcos	15-0 (1)	109	3
4.	Santa Fe Christian	10-2	89	4
5.	Carlsbad	10-2	71	6
6.	El Camino	11-3	57	5
7.	St.. Augustine	6-2	53	8
8.	Orange Glen	14-2	30	9
9.	Mission Hills	9-4	29	7
10.	Mater Dei	5-1	21	10

Others receiving votes: Coronado (11-3, 9 points),  Bonita Vista (5-3, 4).

First-place votes in parenthesis..  Points awarded on scale of 10 down to 1.

Poll voters:13 sportswriters, sportscasters from around San Diego County.

• John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune.
• Aaron Burgin, fulltimehoopos.com.
• Terry Monahan, Steve Brand, Union-Tribune correspondents.
• John Kentera, Braden Suprenant, 97.3 FM The Fan.
• Bodie DeSilva, scorebooklive.com.
• Ramon Scott, EastCountySports.com.
• Adam Paul, ECPreps.com
• Steve Dolan Mountain Country 107.9 FM.
• Christian Pedersen, San Diego Sports Association.
• Rick Smith, partletonsports.com
• Brad Enright, L.A. Court Report.How others see San Diego Section’s top 10 in their California ratings*.
  

  TEAM	RANK	CAL-HI SPORTS	MAX PREPS
  Torrey Pines	1	11	3
  Cathedral	2	10	10
  San Marcos	3	Bubble	8
  Santa Fe Christian	4	NR	19
  Carlsbad	5	NR	21
  El Camino	6	NR	41
  St. Augustine	7	NR	29
  Orange Glen	8	NR	38
  Mission Hills	9	NR	24
  Mater Dei	10	NR	54

  *Cal-Hi Sports‘ ranks a Top 25.

San Diego Section teams have been staying close to home because of the pendemic, but the season is in full swing with usual powers Cathedral and Torrey Pines almost neck and neck. San Marcos and a few others appear to be lying in the weeds.

Coach John Olive’s Torrey Pines Falcons managed to get in a home game against a tough Southern Section opponent and defeated Corona Centennial, the Los Angeles Times‘ No. 7 team, 65-62, in the most significant exercise thus far.

Below, the second weekly Union-Tribune poll result and the latest from Cal-Hi Sports and Max Preps.

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	POINTS	LAST WEEK
1.	Torrey Pines	14-0 (8)	125	1
2.	Cathedral	6-0 (4)	116	2
3.	San Marcos	13-0 (1)	108	3
4.	Santa Fe Christian	7-2	82	4
5.	El Camino	9-1	65	7
6.	Carlsbad	7-2	50	8
7.	Mission Hills	7-3	36	9
8.	St. Augustine	2-2	34	5
9.	Orange Glen	11-2	28	NR
10.	Mater Dei	3-1	27	NR

Others receiving votes: Coronado (9-3, 16 points), La Jolla Country Day (6-4, 11), Bonita Vista (3-3, 4), Montgomery (2-0, 4), Calvin Christian (8-0, 2), Francis Parker (3-2), Mission Bay (6-4), 1 point each.

How others see San Diego Section’s top 10 in their California top 25.

TEAM	RANK	CAL-HI SPORTS	MAX PREPS
Cathedral	1	13	9
Torrey Pines	2	14	3
San Marcos	3	Bubble	5
Santa Fe Christian	4	NR	22
El Camino	5	NR	21
Carlsbad	6	NR	25
Mission Hills	7	NR	17
St. Augustine	8	NR	NR
Orange Glen	9	NR	NR
Mater Dei	10	NR	NR

*The respective campuses of Torrey Pines and Cathedral are barely two miles apart on the Del Mar-Carmel Valley corridor.

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 of The San Diego Union.

“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 16^th 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,” Helix coach John Singer complained to Steve Brand of The San Diego Union, 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 (26-3) 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.
—The Panthers’ 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  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 lifted 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 Barnes was at it again for the Buccaneers, tripling 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 21st straight victory, spoiling a Cougars hoped-for celebration during the school’s 100-year anniversary.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 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.
—Scripps Ranch’s 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, Marian (11-14) 29.
Christian 88, 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.

 

 

The world pandemic almost  brought the San Diego Section to its knees, but the governing athletic body survived, thanks to determined coaches, players, and administrators.                     

Thirteen of the 96 schools fielding varsity teams were able to play a maximum six games, as mandated by the state CIF.  Sixty-nine managed from 1 to 5 games and 13 canceled their entire season.

Six-game survivors: Calexico Vincent Memorial, Brawley, El Capitan, Granite Hills, Helix, Holtville, La Costa Canyon, Mira Mesa, Mountain Empire, Santa Fe Christian, Steele Canyon, Torrey Pines, and Valhalla.

A possible game of the year between Cathedral and Carlsbad couldn’t be put together, although teams were scrambling up to the last week looking for possible matchups.

Cathedral got all 17 votes for first place in the final poll. Carlsbad was a solid second and Mission Hills was not far behind as the first three separated themselves from the pack.

First place votes in parenthesis.  Points on scale of 10 points to 1 point.

RANK	TEAM			RECORD	POINTS	PREVIOUS
1.		Cathedral	5-0 (17)		170	1
2.		Carlsbad	5-0		153	2
3.		Mission Hills	5-0		136	3
4.		Lincoln	4-1		105	7
5.		La Jolla	5-0		102	6
6.		Eastlake	4-0		57	9
7		Granite Hills	5-1		54	5
8.		Ramona	5-0		50	8
9.		Poway	5-0		43	NR
10.		St. Augustine	2-2		36	4

Others receiving votes:  Torrey Pines (3-3, 19 points), Otay Ranch (3-1), Sweetwater (5-0, 3 each), Mater Dei (4-2, 2), El Centro Central (5-0, 1).

Voting panel:  Seventeen sportswriters and sportscasters throughout San Diego County.

• John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune
• Steve Brand, Jim Lindgren, Terry Monahan, Don Norcross, and Thomas Gutierrez, freelance contributors.
• Brandon Stone, Nick Pollino, KUSI Ch 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.

How others saw San Diego’s Top 10

Team	Record	Cal-Hi Sports	MaxPreps	CalPreps.com
Cathedral	5-0	6	5	66.6
Carlsbad	5-0	16	6	58.4*
Mission Hills	5-0	31	16	52.4
Lincoln	4-1	39	19	48.9
La Jolla	5-0	NR	51	36.2
Eastlake	4-0	47	73	31.4
Granite Hills	4-1	NR	75	31.1
Ramona	5-0	NR	127#	23.4
Poway	5-0	NR	67	32.8
St. Augustine	2-2	NR	70	32.5

*Max Preps’ and CalPreps’ computer ratings are identical, except Max Preps gives Carlsbad a 58.1 rating.

#Four teams not in the Union-Tribune Top 10 had higher placement and ratings from Max Preps:

• Torrey Pines, 46/37.9
• El Camino, 58/34.5
• Oceanside, 110/25.9
• Mater Dei, 112/25.8

Cal-Hi Sports’ ranks only the top 50.

CAL-HI SPORTS HONORS EAGLES

Tri-City Christian, which finished with a 4-1 record, was named the state Division V Team of the Year by Cal-Hi Sports.

The Eagles, a member of the Coastal League, defeated  Division II The Bishop’s, D-III Orange Glen, D-IV Classical, and D-V Temecula Rancho Christian.  Their only loss was to D-III Santa Fe Christian.