LOCAL : Savanna High Properly Barred From Tournament, Court Rules

The football season for Savanna High School ended in Orange County Superior Court today when a commissioner ruled that the team had been properly kicked out of postseason play for fielding an ineligible player.

The court ruling came on the heels’ of an appellate court decision Thursday ousting Huntington Beach’s football team from the postseason tournament for similar reasons. (Story, A1.)

The Savanna Rebels’ booster club went to court Thursday to get the team reinstated. The Rebels were disqualified for using a player who was in his fifth year of high school. The rules of the California Scholastic Federation-Southern Section, which govern local high school athletics, allow only four years of eligibility.

“I see no abuse of discretion or violation of the rules,” Commissioner Julian Cimbaluk said in denying Savanna’s request to be reinstated. “They (league officials) didn’t arbitrarily disqualify the team. They had the right to do so under the rules.”

Cimbaluk also questioned whether the booster club even had legal standing to sue on behalf of the football team.

“The courts will not interfere with the discipline or expulsion of members of private organizations or associations where the action was taken in good faith in accordance with its rules,” Cimbaluk said.