HIGH SCHOOL NOTEBOOK : Mission Bay’s Team Can Pull Its Weight

The Mission Bay wrestling team has both an outstanding lightweight and an outstanding heavyweight. Fortunately for the Buccaneers, they also have some depth in between.

Manny Martinez (105 pounds, 32-0) and Dereke Fleming (heavyweight, 22-0) finished Wednesday’s Western League finals undefeated. The Buccaneers had clinched the league dual meet title at 4-0 by defeating Clairemont, 39-21, Friday.

Last year, Mission Bay finished 2-2 with losses to Clairemont and La Jolla.

“We’ve come up short year after year, but this year we had enough depth and good enough kids to go undefeated,” Coach Jerry Surdy said.

Martinez and Fleming are in their fourth year with the program, which Surdy said is a major factor. Because of the transient nature of the Mission Bay student body, in part because of Navy families, he doesn’t always get an opportunity to work with a wrestler for his entire high school career.

Mission Bay finished second to Poway in last weekend’s El Camino tournament. The Buccaneers had both the lightweight and heavyweight most valuable wrestlers in Martinez and Fleming.

Fleming had three pins, each in less than a minute, and defeated Poway’s Corey Farkas, 6-5, to win at heavyweight.

Adding to the depth is 132-pound senior Mike Brooks (19-5), a transfer from Clairemont.

“He was really a pleasant surprise,” Surdy said.

The only flaw in the Valhalla boys’ soccer team’s 16-0-1 record is a 2-2 tie to Mt. Miguel, the same team that handed the Norsemen their last loss three years ago. Since then, Valhalla is 65-0-3.

Valhalla won section 3-A titles in 1986 and ‘88, tied with Poway in the 3-A final in 1987 and tied with San Diego for the 2-A title last season.

One factor in Valhalla’s continued success would seem to be a balanced lineup from year to year. This season, there are just four senior starters among sophomores and juniors.

“There’s a continuum of upcoming players,” Coach George Logan said. “There’s a very good youth program.”

Goalkeeper Chris Wyse has recorded 13 shutouts this season, 39 during three years on the varsity. Wyse was a member of the football team for four years.

“He has an outstanding defense in front of him,” Logan said.

One defender is junior Ien Sawarb, an all-section player last year and a team co-captain with senior midfielder Toby Taitano. Taitano, a three-time all-section player, has eight goals and 14 assists. Logan said he has been contacted by a number of colleges.

Sophomore Jeremy Hoolihan has 12 goals.

Just one look, that’s all it took. When Mike Oviedo read in a paper last week that Kearny lacked a dominant center, the 6-foot-7 junior was affected.

“I wanted to prove them wrong,” Oviedo said of the Komets’ mild upset (90-79) of visiting USDHS Friday in a City Western League boys’ basketball game.

The proof? Oviedo scored a season-high 27 points, including two crowd-pleasing “sky hooks.”

“I hope Mike Oviedo came of age tonight,” Kearny Coach Bill Peterson said.

Before league play, Peterson said Oviedo dominated practice but didn’t carry it through to competition.

“He’s a good player,” Peterson had said. “He can really move. He just hasn’t come out in a game.”

Make that hadn’t .