USC and Miami Might Be Out of Running for Walsh

The number of colleges Carson High quarterback John Walsh is considering appears to have shrunk from four to two in the past week.

For starters, scratch Miami. The Hurricanes, who reportedly plan to sign only one quarterback, received an oral commitment last week from Alan Hall of Middleburg, Fla.

Walsh said Wednesday he might cancel his trip to Miami, scheduled for the weekend of Jan. 19.

USC also seems an unlikely choice for Walsh. The Trojans have gotten oral commitments from two of the Southland’s top prep quarterbacks--Kyle Wachholtz of Norco High and Rob Johnson of El Toro. Johnson, the top-rated quarterback in Orange County, is the brother of Bret Johnson, the former UCLA quarterback who transferred to Michigan State.

USC reportedly also plans to sign Loyola quarterback Corby Smith, the son of Trojan Coach Larry Smith.

Walsh said he isn’t “scared off” by the non-binding commitments--seniors cannot sign letters of intent until Feb. 6--but obviously the situation at USC is no longer attractive for an incoming quarterback.

That leaves Brigham Young and Washington. Walsh said he will visit BYU on Jan. 12 and Washington on Jan. 25.

Quarterbacks seem to get bigger and bigger every year.

Hall, the Miami recruit, is 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds. Wachholtz is 6-5 and 205, Johnson is 6-4 and 210, and Walsh is 6-4 and 215.

In the preseason issue of Super Prep magazine, Hall was rated the third-best quarterback in the nation, Wachholtz was No. 6 and Johnson was No. 13.

Walsh, who wasn’t a touted recruit until he began playing for Carson this season after transferring from West Torrance, wasn’t even listed among the top players on the West Coast by Super Prep.

However, after passing for a state-record 4,223 yards and 48 touchdowns, Walsh has been the recipient of several awards. Most notably he was honored with The Times’ Glenn Davis Award as the top player in Southern California, and was selected L.A. City 4-A Division Player of the Year.

“When I came to Carson, I didn’t envision getting all these awards,” he said. “Now that I’m getting them, I’m happy.”

The El Segundo boys’ and Morningside girls’ basketball teams traveled to the Central Coast area last week and came away with tournament championships.

El Segundo won the eight-team Santa Ynez Tournament and Morningside won the prestigious Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions.

In a repeat of last season’s State Division I final, Morningside defeated Berkeley, 71-60, in the tournament final Saturday night. Center Janet Davis, a 6-4 junior, led the Lady Monarchs with 31 points and 15 rebounds.

Morningside also received a strong effort from 6-1 sophomore forward Tina Thompson, who scored 12 points in the final.

“She’s going to make us a very dangerous team as the season goes on,” Morningside Coach Ron Randle said of Thompson.

El Segundo extended its winning streak to four games Saturday by beating Mission Prep of San Luis Obispo, 76-67, in the title game of the Santa Ynez Tournament. Senior forwards Travis Showalter and Chris Hansen led the Eagles with 27 and 25 points, respectively. Hansen was named MVP and Showalter was chosen to the all-tournament team.

Coach Rick Sabosky said El Segundo was hoping for a rematch with Laguna Beach in the final, but the Artists lost to Mission Prep in the semifinals. Laguna Beach beat El Segundo in last year’s Southern Section 2-A semifinals.

The tournament championship is an encouraging sign for El Segundo, which graduated the top six players from last season’s team. But after starting 1-3, the Eagles have won eight of 10 games to improve to 9-5.

“For having all new guys, I think we can play with people,” Sabosky said. “But we have to be really smart.”

The 6-4 Hansen has developed into quite a sharpshooter for El Segundo.

He leads the team in scoring, averaging 23 points a game, and has made 58 three-point shots in 14 games. He scored 41 points and made eight three-point shots Dec. 10 in a 63-57 victory over North Torrance.

Hansen’s outside shooting and the inside scoring of the 6-4 Showalter has proved to be a winning combination. Showalter is averaging 18 points and nine rebounds a game.

The Eagles have also benefited from the return of 6-4, 240-pound center Tom Frechette, who missed the first 10 games with a knee injury suffered during football season.

“When Hansen and Showalter are playing as a team, and not caring who is scoring, we’re pretty good,” Sabosky said. “When one guy says, ‘I’m going to win it for us,’ then we’re in trouble.”

Right-handed pitcher Armando Cervantes, who missed most of last baseball season with a shoulder injury after earning All-Angelus League honors for Bishop Montgomery as a sophomore, has transferred to Narbonne.

The 6-foot, 195-pound senior was one of the area’s best pitchers two years ago, when he went 7-1 and was named Bishop Montgomery’s team MVP.

“We’re bringing him along slowly,” Narbonne Coach Nick Van Lue said. “If he can throw, it will help us a lot.”

Cervantes joins a deep staff at Narbonne, which returns All-Pacific League right-hander Craig Valenzuela and junior left-hander Jason Donaldson.

Notes

San Pedro’s basketball team, led by senior guard Devon Hamilton, is off to an 11-2 start, its best start in many years. The Pirates took third place last week in the L.A. Invitational Tournament. . . . Palos Verdes had its 30-game unbeaten streak snapped Saturday by Ocean View of Huntington Beach, 2-0, in the final of the South Torrance Holiday Soccer Classic. The Sea Kings, two-time defending Southern Section 4-A champions, were 27-0-3 over two seasons before the loss. In the girls’ title game, Palos Verdes tied Chaffey, 1-1. . . . Damond Smith of Hawthorne has been invited to compete in the 60-yard hurdles at the Sunkist Invitational indoor track meet Jan. 18 at the Sports Arena. Smith has a best of 14.57 seconds in the 110-meter high hurdles. . . . The semifinals of the 24th annual Torrance Basketball tournament will be held at 6 and 7:30 tonight at West Torrance High.