Murphy Takes Heart in Victory

Simi Valley High’s losing streak in football is over--and none too soon for Dave Murphy, the embattled coach of the team.

Over the course of 17 losses in a row, Murphy had attempted to remain upbeat while his critics wondered aloud how much longer he could retain his post.

And of course, there were the snide remarks and jokes from the periphery. All that, he could handle.

“You put things in perspective,” he said. “You definitely look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself, ‘Are you doing what’s right?’ And the answer was always, ‘Yes, you’re doing it right.’ ”

It was after a game earlier this season when Murphy began to feel the most heat.

He had arrived home to his family after another loss, when his 4-year-old daughter observed, “Boy, you guys never win. When are we gonna win, Dad?”

“That kinda hurt,” Murphy said.

Murphy is well aware that one victory in 18 attempts does not turn a program around, even if it happens to be a 21-3 decision over Royal, Simi Valley’s cross-town rival.

But it’s a small step. One for which Murphy is grateful.

“Believe me, over the past two years there have been many trying times,” he said. “It was a great test, and thank God it’s over.

“We’re on a winning streak.”

Add Simi Valley: One would have expected that, as the losing streak grew, so too would Murphy’s imagination. Triple reverses, flea-flickers, hook and laterals--all kinds of unorthodox plays in an endeavor to win a ballgame.

However, when the Pioneers won their first game since 1987, it was with only six different offensive plays.

All six were out of the triple option, and all six with Eric Hale at quarterback.

Hale replaced Aaron Fisher, who moved from quarterback to running back and gained 137 yards in 26 carries.

Hale, who entered the game as the Marmonte League’s leading rusher, passed only twice but ran for three touchdowns.

In fact, so basic was the Simi Valley offense that, of the team’s first 11 offensive plays of the fourth quarter, nine were the same: Hale on the triple option to the left side of the field.

“We were going to run the option until they stopped us,” Murphy said. “Hale graded out at 80% on reading the triple option. Our kids really executed, played really well.”

Bottomed out: As a result of the loss, Royal is 0-4 in the league (2-6 overall), a game behind Camarillo and Simi Valley.

The 21-3 streak-breaker came eight days after the Highlanders had given undefeated Thousand Oaks all it could handle before losing, 28-21.

Royal Coach Gene Uebelhardt, however, was gracious in defeat.

“The better team won,” he said. “They came out and stuck it to us.”

Of his own team, he was a tad less gracious.

“I thought they played below expectations of their coaches and their fans,” Uebelhardt said.

Injury report: Chris Foster is back. So is Cory Bowen. But Dale Soliz is out and so is Brian Sturges, both likely for the season.

Foster, Thousand Oaks’ starting fullback and defensive tackle, injured his knee against Camarillo but will play Friday against Warren, as will Bowen, a sophomore who saw substantial time at running back before spraining his ankle against Royal.

Soliz, a starter at offensive tackle, stretched ligaments in his knee Friday against Westlake and will be in a cast for four weeks. He will be replaced by Matt Buchanan and Neil O’Connell. Sturges, a starting linebacker and part-time fullback, chipped a bone in his elbow in the Royal game and underwent surgery Friday.

Restraining order: Chaminade tailback Colin Havert, the second-leading rusher in the Valley with 1,146 yards and 21 touchdowns, sustained a slight shoulder separation in practice last week and did not play Saturday in the Eagles’ 17-7 victory over Harvard.

Coach Rich Lawson said Monday that Havert would be out for the next two weeks and would be questionable for the Eagles’ first playoff game.

Then, he changed his mind. “Nah,” he said. “He’ll play that first playoff game unless the doctor says no.”

Havert could barely stand sitting out one game. In the fourth quarter Saturday with the score tied, 7-7, he freed his arm from its sling and began to gingerly windmill it as if to signal his availability to Lawson.

The coach knew better and ignored the gesture. “I know the kid’s a competitor and he wants to get in there,” he said.

Underclass gas: San Fernando tailback LaKarlos Townsend rushed for 167 yards and two touchdowns in only five carries in a 27-7 win over Taft last week. Townsend, reportedly the fastest player on the team, is only a sophomore.

Did Taft get a good look at San Fernando’s speed of the future? Well, sort of.

“What we saw was a lot of the Taft defense,” Taft Coach Tom Stevenson said.

It seems that everyone can expect to see more of Townsend in the backfield; he also plays in the secondary.

“He didn’t really know the offense until not too long ago,” San Fernando Coach Tom Hernandez said.

And San Fernando losing its first three games by lopsided scores didn’t help the cause of the young running back either.

West Valley woes: Who’s best in the West? Perhaps nobody, according to one coach.

Entering the first week of West Valley League play Friday, only Cleveland (3-3, 2-2) has its head--more like the tip of its nose--above water, record-wise.

Taft, El Camino Real and Canoga Park all enter league play with 1-3 marks after four Northwest Valley Conference games.

In the City Section 4-A Division, three teams from each league advance to the playoffs.

“It won’t matter who’s good in our league,” Taft Coach Tom Stevenson said. “It’s who’s bad.”

Want ads: San Fernando baseball Coach Steve Marden is seeking varsity and junior varsity teams from the same school to participate in San Fernando’s six-team preseason tournament Feb. 21, 22, 27 and March 1.

Granada Hills, Poly, Grant and Franklin already have committed to play in the round-robin event.

Psyched up: For two weeks before the Royal High girls’ volleyball team played Thousand Oaks, Highlander players read sports psychology material borrowed from the Cal State Northridge women’s team, ranked seventh in the NCAA Division II.

“We needed to establish that we could beat them,” Royal Coach Bob Ferguson said. “I think there was some doubt.”

Royal, which had lost to Thousand Oaks six consecutive times, fell behind, 14-6, in the first game but never never lost confidence and came back to upset previously undefeated Thousand Oaks, 19-17, 15-11, 15-7.

Staff writers Tim Brown, Steve Elling and Sam Farmer contributed to this notebook.