Montclair Prep Drops Suit Against Southern Section

Montclair Prep High in Van Nuys dropped its lawsuit against the CIF Southern Section Thursday after attorneys for both sides reached an agreement ending the year-long legal battle.

Under the agreement, Montclair Prep will have playoff eligibility for all sports, beginning with the 1992-93 school year. It will continue to be ineligible for postseason play this fall, but its upcoming winter and spring sports may regain playoff status if sufficient evidence can convince Southern Section officials. The school can present its case at a hearing to be held in January.

Although the deal lightened the punishment, it did not help the school’s football team, which had sought to get into the playoffs. The Mounties, the Division X defending championships, finished the season 8-1 and won the Alpha League with a 5-0 record. But the probation denied them a playoff berth.

Two weeks ago, Montclair Prep was denied a temporary restraining order in Van Nuys Superior Court in an attempt to get its girls’ volleyball and football teams into the playoffs. The school’s attorney, Dan Grigsby, then filed a lawsuit against the Southern Section and was to go back to court this morning to try to get a preliminary injunction.

If the injunction had been granted, the football team would have been allowed to open the playoffs tonight, with the lawsuit pending. Coach George Giannini said his team was eager to play.

As of noon Thursday, Grigsby was confident the case would go to court and said he felt good about his chances against the Southern Section. But late Thursday afternoon, Southern Section attorney Andrew Patterson reopened negotiations with Grigsby, and by 7 p.m. a deal had been struck.

Neither Patterson nor Grigsby would comment on the agreement.

Vernon E. Simpson, Montclair Prep’s principal, said he was relieved a settlement had been reached.

“I’m happy that we got this much, but I still think the CIF’s whole case was based on people who were not telling the truth,” Simpson said. “I feel we should have been vindicated a long time ago. We have a lot of work now to rebuild our reputation.”

Stan Thomas, Southern Section commissioner, said he was willing to go to court but was happy it didn’t go that far.

Montclair Prep, a private school with 485 students, became the target of a Southern Section investigation in September of 1990 after an eligibility hearing for former football player Leland Sparks.

Leland and his cousin, Derek Sparks, transferred from Montclair Prep to Santa Ana Mater Dei in September 1990. While Leland was seeking a fifth-year of eligibility at a Southern Section hearing, allegations were made by his uncle, Jerome Sparks, that Montclair Prep recruited the cousins, tampered with their grades and provided free tuition, room and board.

Eventually, Montclair Prep was put on probation and banned from postseason play in all sports for the 1991-92 school year, and the football team was barred from the playoffs for the next three seasons.

As part of the agreement, Alpha League officials will determine whether Montclair Prep will remain a member when new leagues are established for the 1992-94 cycle.