Aldrich to Go From Sidelines to Side Out at Mira Costa

Dae Lea Aldrich hopes the second time around will be as rewarding as the first.

Aldrich, who built something of a dynasty during 10 seasons as the girls’ volleyball coach at Mira Costa, will return to coach the Mustangs next season after sitting out a year to become acclimated with her new position as a counselor at the school.

Aldrich discovered last fall that she didn’t like being away from volleyball.

“I couldn’t stand it at all,” she said. “I missed it so much. It felt like half my soul was missing.”

Aldrich replaces Carrie Rey, a former assistant who guided the Mustangs to the Ocean League title and a 19-3 record. Aldrich said Rey, who was a part-time coach, is working toward a teaching credential and will not be with the team next season.

Not being in charge was a big adjustment for Aldrich, who began her prep coaching career in 1974 at Aviation. After Aviation closed, she took over the Mira Costa program in 1982 and guided the Mustangs to two mythical national titles, three state titles, eight Southern Section titles and a 237-15 record.

She tried to stay close to the team last season, but it wasn’t the same.

“It was weird not to be in charge of everything,” she said. “I snuck into practice a couple of times and sat on the bench during games, but it was real hard not to be responsible for (the players). I felt lost, really.

“I think I just need to get one more (championship) under my belt. I’d like to go to the (state) finals one more time. I need to do it in the ‘90s.”

Mira Costa reached the state final five times in the 1980s, winning titles in 1982, 1985 and 1989.

The Mustangs are probably a year or two away from contending for another state championship. A senior-dominated team last season, Mira Costa will rely primarily on sophomores and juniors in the fall, Aldrich said. Three of the top players in the program are sophomores Kelly Cordary and Mandy Lawson and junior Amity LaBree, a 6-foot middle blocker. The program should also be bolstered by a talented group of incoming freshman, Aldrich said.

However, the days when Mira Costa dominated Southern California volleyball year-in and year-out are probably over. Last season, the Mustangs were eliminated in the second round of the Southern Section Division I playoffs by Corona del Mar, the eventual state champion.

“The competition is tougher than in the early ‘80s,” Aldrich said. “There are better players and the game is much faster now. I don’t think a team is going to dominate like we did.

“But I think we’re in the ballpark to win again.”

Serra’s Akeli Jackson learned last week that he scored 740 on his third try on the Scholastic Aptitude Test, making him eligible to play basketball for Cal State Long Beach next season.

Jackson, a 6-8 forward who led Serra to the State Division IV title last season, had twice fallen short of 700, the NCAA-required score for freshman eligibility. He signed a letter of intent with Long Beach in November.

“I guess the third time was the charm,” Serra Coach Dwan Hurt said.

The same cannot be said for Morningside’s Stais Boseman, who scored 680 on his third try. The 6-4 guard signed with USC in November but will not be able to attend the school on scholarship unless he scores at least 700 out of a possible 1,600 on the SAT.

USC Coach George Raveling would not discuss Boseman’s SAT scores, but he said he supports USC’s policy of not accepting Proposition 48 (non-qualifying) athletes. Many schools, including Long Beach, accept non-qualifiers, who must sit out their freshman season--forfeiting a year of eligibility--and pay their own way the first year in college.

“We’ve got to set some standards,” Raveling told a Times reporter. “(The athletes have) got to be accountable for themselves.”

Boseman has two more chances to take the SAT during the current school year. The next test is Saturday morning, the day after Morningside’s prom.

“After 31 years (of coaching), I always expect the worst,” Raveling said. “But if something good happens, I’ll take it.”

The Pacific League always seems to produce at least one dominating pitcher. Last season, it was Banning left-hander Carlos Garibay, who was 11-2. The two seasons before that, it was Banning right-hander Mike Busby, who was 11-1 in 1991 and 9-4 in 1990. In 1989, Banning right-hander Chico Limas was 8-3.

All three were named to The Times’ South Bay All-Star first team.

Most believed Garibay would continue the streak this season, but the senior has struggled to a 1-4 record.

Instead, Carson senior Jason Cole has emerged as the ace of the Pacific. The right-hander improved to 9-0 on Tuesday, giving up six hits in an 8-2 victory over host San Pedro. It was Cole’s third complete game and lowered his earned-run average to 2.23. He has 64 strikeouts and 31 walks in 62 2/3 innings.

“He’s got a decent fastball and a good changeup,” Carson Coach Mike Kline said of Cole, who missed most of last season because of a broken right wrist suffered in a car accident. “He’s a gutty kid. He hits his spots and he battles.”

Cole, whose father, Steve, was a standout pitcher for Carson in the early 1970s, will start three of his team’s last five conference games. The Colts (9-2) lead Banning (8-3) by one game and San Pedro (7-4) by two entering today’s 3 p.m. game against San Pedro at Carson. Carson plays Banning in two games next week.

With Garibay struggling, Banning has relied on senior right-hander Mario Soto, who pitched a complete game Tuesday in a 3-1 victory over Gardena to improve to 7-1.

North Torrance football Coach Joe Austin and South Torrance assistant Mike Christensen are the finalists for the vacant South coaching position. Another possibility is that Austin and Christensen will work together as co-coaches.

South Athletic Director Roger Bryant said the school will probably make an announcement before the end of the week.

Austin coached South for 17 years before leaving after the 1988 season to go into private business. He returned to teaching and coaching in 1990 at North, where he has coached the football team for three seasons.

Don Morrow, South’s coach for the past four seasons, left to become the coach at Mira Costa.

Notes

Three former South Bay prep standouts were drafted by NFL teams. USC wide receiver Curtis Conway, who played quarterback at Hawthorne, was selected in the first round (seventh pick) by the Chicago Bears; Colorado defensive back Deon Figures, a Serra graduate, was chosen in the first round (23rd) by the Pittsburgh Steelers; and USC wide receiver Travis Hannah, who caught Conway’s passes at Hawthorne, was selected in the fourth round (102nd) by the Houston Oilers. Stanford running back Glyn Milburn, who competed against Conway and Hannah when he played at Santa Monica High, was drafted in the second round (43rd) by the Denver Broncos. . . . Former Torrance standout Jeff Cummins, an All-Pacific 10 Conference defensive end at Oregon, has signed with the Rams as a rookie free agent.

Peninsula pitcher Arin McCarthy took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and finished with a three-hitter Tuesday to help the Panthers extend their lead in the Bay League with a 4-1 victory over host Santa Monica. Peninsula (8-1) can clinch at least a tie for its second consecutive Bay title with a home victory over Santa Monica (5-2) at 3 p.m. today. . . . Mary Star third baseman Chuck Ursini was five for nine and had seven runs batted in two games last week, raising his season average to .424 and RBI total to 23. Ursini had six RBIs in a 16-3 victory over Murphy. . . . Lakewood and Gahr of Cerritos will meet in the championship game of the Redondo baseball tournament at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Redondo. Redondo plays host to Millikan of Long Beach in the consolation final at 4. Lakewood beat West Torrance, 5-1, and Gahr defeated South Torrance, 7-4, in the semifinals Saturday.

Several area track athletes competed in the Southern California Showdown meet, run in conjunction with the USC-UCLA dual meet at UCLA’s Drake Stadium on Saturday. Winners included Edward Turner of Morningside in the 400 meters (47.05 seconds), the Inglewood boys’ 400 relay team (42.27) and Morningside’s 400 and 1,600 girls’ relay teams (47.11 and 3:49.26). . . . Kyle Spencer of Peninsula and Susumu Sugai of North Torrance reached the singles quarterfinals of the interscholastic portion of the Ojai tennis tournament last weekend. Spencer was the only player who won a set against champion Alex DeCret of Santa Barbara, losing 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, in the quarterfinals. The Peninsula doubles team of Matt Kravits and Loren Peters lost in the semifinals to eventual champions Nathan Jackmon and Jason Merrin of Santa Barbara. Peters defeated DeCret in the Southern Section singles final in 1992.