Catholic Schools Approve Releaguing Proposal

A releaguing proposal approved Monday by the Catholic Athletic Assn. would disband the Del Rey League, restructure the San Fernando Valley League and create a new league that would include Valley schools Alemany, Chaminade, Crespi and Notre Dame.

The CAA adopted the proposal by a vote of 28 to six with one abstention at a meeting of member schools at the offices of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The releaguing proposal will be submitted to the Southern Section Council on Jan. 18. If it’s approved, it will take effect for the two-year releaguing cycle beginning next fall.

Schools may appeal the proposal at a Dec. 5 Southern Section meeting.

Alemany, Chaminade, Crespi and Notre Dame would join Bishop Montgomery, St. Bernard and St. Paul in a league that has not been named. The newly aligned San Fernando Valley League would include Bell-Jeff, El Segundo, Harvard, La Salle, Louisville, Flintridge Prep, St. Francis and St. Genevieve.

Loyola and St. John Bosco, current Del Rey members with Alemany, Crespi and St. Francis, would join Bishop Amat, Loyola, Mater Dei, Rosary, St. Joseph, Santa Margarita and Servite in another league that has yet to be named.

All eight Valley schools voted in favor of the proposal, according to Sister Barbara Joseph, the executive secretary of the CAA.

Crespi Athletic Director Paul Muff characterized the plan as a livable alternative but lamented the demise of the Del Rey League. Crespi, Loyola, St. Francis and St. John Bosco are charter members who have remained in the league since its formation in 1973.

The new league would mean the resumption of the Crespi-Notre Dame rivalry, which is in the second year of a two-year hiatus. Notre Dame halted the rivalry, claiming heated feelings between the athletic teams and fans of the two schools needed a cooling-off period.