SCOREBOARD / FACTS, FIGURES AND COMMENTS FROM AREA EVENTS : PREPS

Margarito Casillas of Hoover and Carlene Pengra of La Canada will participate in the State cross-country meet Saturday at Woodward Park in Fresno.

Casillas earned a berth in the meet by winning the Southern Section Division I championship last week at Mt. San Antonio College. Casillas, a senior, covered the three-mile course in 15 minutes 9.02 seconds to become Hoover’s first section champion since Phil Anderson in 1962.

Pengra, who won the 1991 Division III title as a sophomore, finished seventh at Mt. SAC in 19:11.75.

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La Canada’s improbable run through the Southern Section Division IV girls’ volleyball playoffs ended last week when the Spartans lost in the semifinals to top-seeded Nordhoff, 9-15, 15-8, 15-8, 15-5.

La Canada, under first-year Coach Tami Aldrich, finished the season 12-7. The Spartans had advanced to the semifinals by defeating Valencia, 14-16, 15-8, 15-2, 15-10.

Tiffany Neumeier had 12 kills for La Canada against Nordhoff.

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The Marshall High girls’ volleyball team finished second in the City Section 3-A Division, losing to Van Nuys, 16-14, 15-5, 15-11, Friday at Cal State Northridge.

The Barristers, who were seeded third in the playoffs, finished the season with a 15-2 record.

COMMUNITY COLLEGES

If someone had told Glendale Coach John Cicuto that his team would gain 430 yards against the top defense in the state, Cicuto probably would have predicted a victory.

That’s how many yards the Vaqueros gained Saturday against Moorpark, but Glendale still lost its regular-season finale, 49-32. The loss dropped Glendale to 8-2 and 4-1 in the Western State Conference Northern Division. The Vaqueros will meet Antelope Valley Dec. 5 in the WSC Bowl.

Moorpark (9-0-1, 5-0), which will meet Bakersfield in the Potato Bowl Dec. 5, overcame a 17-7 deficit by scoring touchdowns on all six of its possessions in the second half.

The loss offset an impressive performance by Glendale tailback Pathon Rucker, who gained 225 yards and scored four touchdowns.

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The Glendale men’s cross-country team finished 11th, and the Vaquero women’s team finished 20th, at the community college state meet last weekend at Woodward Park in Fresno.

America Rivas was the highest Glendale finisher, placing 17th in the women’s race in 19:01 over the 5-K course.

Sergio Becerril was the top finisher for the Vaquero men, placing 40th in 20:51 over the 8-K course.

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The Glendale men’s basketball team fell to 1-3 when the Vaqueros lost to Rancho Santiago, 90-74, in the consolation championship game of the Rancho Santiago tournament.

Glendale, which defeated Rio Hondo, 71-67, Nov. 18, fell into the consolation bracket of the Rancho Santiago tournament by losing to Yavapai (Ariz.).

The Vaqueros played Long Beach City College on Wednesday and will play host to East Los Angeles College on Friday. On Dec. 2-5, Glendale will play in the Golden West tournament in Huntington Beach.

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The Glendale women’s basketball team continued its impressive start by finishing second at the Cypress tournament.

Glendale (3-3) beat Victor Valley, 42-35, in the semifinals before losing to Cypress, 68-53. Denise Dal Ponte had 12 points against Cypress to lead the Vaqueros.

Glendale will play in the Yavapai tournament in Prescott, Ariz., starting today.

COLLEGES

The Occidental College men’s cross-country team finished 14th last weekend at the 1992 NCAA Division III national championships at Saratoga State Park in New York.

Senior Jose Garcia finished seventh overall, covering the 8-K course in 25 minutes 5.5 seconds. Occidental junior Konstantine Kinderich finished eighth in 25:08.9. Garcia and Kinderich earned All-American honors for their performances.

Occidental did not qualify as a team for the women’s competition, but three Tiger runners competed as individuals.

Senior Arcelia Gomez finished sixth to earn All-American honors by covering the 5-K course in 18:17.6. Occidental junior Becky Kopchick, who was second overall at last year’s championships, finished 27th in 18:49.9. Freshman Kelly Dearborn was 74th in 19:31.2.

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Two members of the Occidental women’s volleyball team were selected first-team All-Southern California Intercollegiate Conference.

Sophomore outside hitters Patty Buffett and Jennifer Kunz helped Occidental to a 17-6 record.

The Tigers, under first-year Coach Jeff Campbell, tied Claremont and La Verne for the conference championship.

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Occidental’s men’s basketball team plays its first home game Dec. 1 against Life Bible College.

Occidental lost its opener at UC San Diego, 88-74, on Saturday in a game in which the Tigers committed 28 turnovers and had four players foul out.

Junior guard Hung Duong scored 22 points for Occidental. Junior center Blair Slattery had 17 points and 13 rebounds.

PREP ATHLETE OF WEEK

Aman Abye, Marshall--Abye, a senior, rushed for 145 yards in the Barristers’ 14-7 victory over Granada Hills in the first round of the City Section 4-A playoffs.

Abye also intercepted a pass in the fourth quarter to preserve the victory for Marshall, which will meet Garfield in a second-round game Friday.

COLLEGE ATHLETE OF WEEK

Arcelia Gomez, Occidental--Gomez, a senior who graduated from Wilson High, earned NCAA Division III All-American honors for finishing sixth at the national cross-country championships at Saratoga State Park in New York.

MISCELLANY

Matt Whisenant, a former standout pitcher for La Canada High and Glendale College, was acquired by the Florida Marlins on the day of baseball’s expansion draft. Whisenant, a left-hander, was traded along with minor league pitcher Joel Adamson from the Philadelphia Phillies to the Marlins for veteran left-hander Danny Jackson.

HOW THE AREA’S TOP PREP FOOTBALL TEAMS FARED Rank, Team, Record Entering Week and Synopsis 1 Crescenta Valley: 10-1; Defeated Marina, 25-9. Erik La Com gained 105 yards and scored on runs of one and 13 yards as the Falcons won a first-round Southern Section Division II playoff game. Crescenta Valley will play Hart, a 45-14 winner over Downey, Friday night at Glendale High in a second-round game. 2 Marshall: 9-2; Defeated Granada Hills, 14-7. Aman Abye gained 145 yards and intercepted a pass in the fourth quarter to lead the Barristers in a City Section 4-A Division upset. Shane Gerard rushed for one touchdown and passed for another for Marshall, which plays Garfield, a 7-6 winner over Banning, Friday night in a second-round game. Marshall defeated Garfield, 12-7, this season. 3 Eagle Rock: 4-7; Lost to Hamilton, 39-0. Manny Navarette passed for 65 yards for an Eagle Rock team that began and ended its season with losses to Hamilton. Eagle Rock, under first-year Coach Gary Kuniyuki, lost to Hamilton, 30-3, in the season opener. 4 Glendale; 5-5; The Dynamiters started the season fast but won only one game in the Pacific League and missed the playoffs. 5 Franklin: 5-5; The Panthers got another outstanding season from Eric Jaimes at receiver and defensive back but fell short of advancing to the City playoffs and finished the season .500. 6 St. Francis: 3-6; The Golden Knights were hurt by injuries and a schedule that featured Loyola and Mater Dei. 7 Hoover: 1-9; Quarterback Nathan Dishington was one of the surprises of the Glendale area, engineering a Hoover run-and-shoot attack that was effective against most opponents. 8 La Canada: 3-7; The Spartans were hurt by injuries, making it difficult to perform well consistently. 9 Verdugo Hills: 1-8-1; The Dons won only one game but showed mark improvement from previous seasons. Eddie Powell was a standout for the Dons on offense and defense. 10 Flintridge Prep: 5-4; The Rebels concluded their season with the defeat by Webb in the first round of the Southern Section Large School Eight-Man division playoffs. 11 Ribet Academy: 7-3; Defeated by Valley Christian Academy, 55-40. The Fighting Frogs’ loss in the second round of the Southern Section Eight-Man Small Schools playoffs ended an impressive season under Coach Fred Lewis. Rankings according to Times Glendale sportswriters’ poll.