Some bold predictions for high school sports in 2013
It’s time to peer into my crystal ball and see what 2013 has in store for Southern California athletes, coaches and fans:
Adoree’ Jackson of Gardena Serra will reach 26 feet in the long jump, appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated and start wearing a Superman T-shirt around campus.
Catcher Jeremy Martinez of Santa Ana Mater Dei will hit three home runs in a game.
Sarah Baxter of Simi Valley will receive a phone call from President Obama after setting another cross-country record and going four years without losing a high school race.
Chatsworth baseball players will begin practicing dog piles in preparation for winning the City Section Division I championship at Dodger Stadium.
Thanks to a 3.7 grade-point average, quarterback Brad Kaaya of West Hills Chaminade will be invited to answer a physics question in a guest appearance on “The Big Bang Theory.”
Stanley Johnson of Santa Ana Mater Dei will become so good that Kobe Bryant will decide to take a short drive from his Orange County home to watch him play.
After former Harvard-Westlake pitcher Lucas Giolito is clocked throwing a 101-mph fastball, healthy high school pitchers will beg to have Tommy John surgery as their Christmas present.
Junior right-hander Jacob Nix of Los Alamitos will strike out 16 batters and throw a no-hitter.
Public and private school administrators will be called to a meeting in Los Alamitos with Southern Section Commissioner Rob Wigod on April 1, where they’ll shake hands and agree to stop accusing each other of recruiting.
Trey Mason of Los Angeles Loyola will make seven three-pointers, go home, sleep for a couple of hours, then get up and head to the gym for more practice.
After kicking 20 field goals as a sophomore, Kevin Robledo of Westlake Village Westlake will quit the soccer team after deciding he’d rather play in the Super Bowl than the World Cup.
An auction to raffle off two front-row seats for the St. John Bosco-Mater Dei basketball game on Jan. 9 at St. John Bosco will raise so much money that Coach Derrick Taylor will be able to get a second giant plasma TV in his office.
Etiwanda basketball Coach Dave Kleckner, who has never had his team play a second of zone defense during a game, will give in for one possession to pay off a bet.
The best college freshman hitter on the West Coast will be former Mater Dei outfielder Ty Moore of UCLA.
A producer for “Dancing With the Stars” will contact El Camino Real basketball Coach David Rebibo after seeing his moves celebrating a City Section championship.
Former Sherman Oaks Notre Dame outfielder Giancarlo Stanton will appear in a shaving commercial, a soap commercial and a mouthwash commercial after leading the major leagues in home runs.
The city of Manhattan Beach, home to more ice hockey players, college football head coaches and beach volleyball players than any place in California, will ask Mira Costa High to build an ice rink and a sand volleyball court.
After sitting out the last softball season, junior catcher Maddy Jelenicki of Saugus will be the comeback player of the year, hitting so many home runs that the Centurions will station a manager beyond the outfield fence to retrieve balls.
Serra will add traffic cones and security guards for its parking lot to deal with all the college recruiters visiting football practices.
Quarterback Brandon Dawkins of Westlake Village Oaks Christian will pass for four touchdowns, then be kissed by a cheerleader.
Ako Kaluna of Valencia West Ranch, Jordan Bell of Long Beach Poly and Thomas Welsh of Loyola will have a contest to see who can shatter the most glass backboards.
Calabasas junior point guard Jeremy Lieberman will become a YouTube sensation after he makes three consecutive behind-the-back passes for assists.
Coach Doug Mitchell of Torrance Bishop Montgomery will promise to never raise his voice — for at least one hour — after his team wins a state basketball championship in Sacramento.
The next junior sensation in high school football will be Ben Humphreys of Mater Dei.
Woodland Hills Taft guard Kris Yanku will appear in a commercial for Zankou Chicken.
Venice will hold a parade after the football team wins its first City championship.
Running back Demario Richard of Palmdale will rush for 2,000 yards.
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