JUNIOR COLLEGES / FALL PREVIEW : Area Cross-Country Teams Capable of Repeating Feats

Let’s see, did Glendale College win the women’s or the men’s cross-country championship last season in the Western State Conference? Was Moorpark undefeated in conference action in wrestling and women’s soccer or was it in two other sports? Were Valley and Ventura in the hunt for the water polo title?

If your head is spinning trying to remember, give it a rest. The lowdown on how the area junior college teams fared last fall and how they are shaping up for this season appears below.

CROSS-COUNTRY

From A (Antelope Valley) to G (Glendale) to V (Ventura), the area should be well-represented when the state championships are held in Fresno on Nov. 20.

The men’s and women’s teams from each of those schools qualified for last year’s state meet and the same scenario could arise this year.

Antelope Valley Coach Mark Covert enters his fifth season at the Lancaster school with the best men’s and women’s team he has had.

Mark Sinderson, who placed 13th in last year’s state championships, will lead a Marauder men’s team that includes sophomores Dave Hensley--a transfer from Long Beach City College--and Kris Klausmeier. Add freshmen Joe Bedortha (Littlerock High) and Roy Richards (Boron) to the mix and Covert says you have the ingredients for a team that is “much better than last year’s team,” which placed 13th in the state meet.

Antelope Valley sophomores Teresa Santana (47th in last year’s state championships), Rene Azevedo (28th) and Kristin Whitehead return from last year’s women’s team that finished seventh in the state meet, and each is capable of finishing among the top 20 this season, according to Covert. But how well the Marauders finish as a team could be determined by freshmen Amber Williams (Antelope Valley) and Melissa Tibbs (Desert Christian), their Nos. 4 and 5 runners.

Glendale will be without Jacques Salsberg this season--the 1992 Western State Conference champion withdrew from school last semester--but the Vaqueros appear to have enough depth to contend for their fourth consecutive WSC title and a top-five finish in the state meet after finishing 11th last year.

Sophomores Luis Jacobo and Gilbert Roca are expected to be Coach Eddie Lopez’s top two runners, with freshmen Nacho Delgado (Glendale), Tony Uribe (Glendale), Dio Almendariz (Burbank) and Adrian Baca (Schurr) filling in the Nos. 3-6 positions.

“We don’t have that one big gun like we’ve had in the past,” Lopez said. “But this could be one of the best teams I’ve had here in terms of depth.”

The Vaquero women’s team will be dominated by freshmen, but Coach Gretchen Lohr-Cruz figures her squad--like the men’s--is capable of a top-five finish in the state championships.

Freshmen Joanna Potillo (El Camino Real), Auria Roberto (Belmont), Ana Hernandez (Eagle Rock) and Margarita Renteria (Eagle Rock) are expected to be the top runners on a team that is shooting for its second WSC title in the last three years.

The Ventura men will be hard-pressed to duplicate their ninth-place finish in last year’s state championships, but Coach Tuck Mason says the Pirate women have a good shot at successfully defending their WSC title.

Valerie Aceves (20th in the state meet), Isabel Saucedo (49th) and Melissa Bramlett return from last year’s team that placed eighth in the state championships. They will be joined by promising freshmen Julie Correa (Buena), Christy Ruffin (Buena), Sarah Kunde (Nordhoff) and Yolanda Ortiz (Channel Islands).

“The men are a question mark, but the women should be tough again,” Mason said. “We’ve got a nice combination of returning runners and freshmen.”

MEN’S SOCCER

After losing to East L.A., 1-0, in the state finals in 1990, Moorpark has struggled to regain that form. The Raiders finished fifth last season in the six-team WSC and third the previous season. They won only two of 17 matches in ‘92, both in conference play.

“We’ve had a little letdown, but I think we have a good shot at the playoffs,” fifth-year Coach Frank Parodi said. “We have a very fast front line and a very skillful midfield.”

The speedy forwards include redshirt sophomore Chris Goldsbury, who suffered a fractured ankle in the second match last season and didn’t play again. The midfield corps features Kimbo Katsuda, a transfer from Concordia College in Portland, Ore., and redshirt freshman Sean Takata from Simi Valley High. Returners Jason Lonas, who moves from fullback to halfback, and sweeper Mark Cargnel lend experience.

The experience factor, however, is not abundant at Glendale. Only two players return for the defending WSC champion, which was 8-2-2 (10-4-2 overall) and finished just ahead of Oxnard (9-3). The lack of veteran personnel, Coach Joe Agoston said, will make it difficult for the Vaqueros to repeat.

Sweeper Sal Rizzo and midfielder Yusaku Kobayashi are the only returning starters.

At Mission, Coach Ali Moshirifard takes over a team that finished last in the conference with an 0-10-2 record and was 3-12-2 overall. He will try to improve on those numbers with a predominantly freshman squad that includes four newcomers from Canyon--goalie Chris Askew, forward Jeremy Langer, right halfback Raymond Avalos and center fullback David Chellis.

Two sophomores, brothers Gustavo and Jose Alvarado, will anchor the Free Spirit from their midfield positions.

WOMEN’S SOCCER

Moorpark, under Coach Daniel Ohayon, went undefeated in WSC play last season (6-0-3) and finished with a 12-4-8 record. The Raiders won the title in the four-team conference by one game over Bakersfield (5-1-3). Santa Barbara (3-4-2) was third and Oxnard (0-9) finished fourth.

Ohayon, now in his fifth season at Moorpark, believes the Raiders might be the team to beat.

“I have a very talented team,” he said. “We should equal what we did last season.”

Two sophomores and former Agoura players will anchor the squad--sweeper Heather Williams and striker Staci Blough, a transfer from Cal State Dominguez Hills. Twins Cathy and Christy McGown, and Summer Salvaterra, freshmen from Royal, will be in the midfield.

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

Under four-year Coach Sharon McAlexander, Ventura has won two WSC titles and tied for second with Bakersfield last season behind Cuesta. The Pirates were 15-3 in the 10-team conference and 16-5 overall, and McAlexander hopes the team’s six returning players can help Ventura challenge for another championship.

“We have the potential, with the right set of circumstances, to have a good season,” McAlexander said.

The returners include setter Judi Gamboa, middle player Celeste Moulder and outside hitter Janine Laubaucher. Freshman middle player Kortney Rogers from Nordhoff could play a lot.

Two players who definitely will be in the thick of things at Pierce are sophomores Lisa Bussard, a 6-foot middle blocker who was an all-conference selection last season, and setter Shannon Yamasaki. They are the top Brahmas on a squad with only nine players.

“Our numbers have been small, but we are picking up some kids through the practices,” said Coach Burt Fuller, who guided Pierce (10-9, 10-7) to fourth place in WSC play last season. “Our core is pretty good.”

Newcomers to the Pierce program include 5-11 outside hitter Dina Jacobellis from Alemany and 5-11 opposite hitter Shannon Grim from Chatsworth.

Only two players return from a Glendale team that was 4-13 in the conference and finished tied for seventh with Moorpark--Kerri Puckett, a 5-8 outside hitter from Hoover, and Claudia Henry, a 5-9 middle hitter from Glendale Adventist.

They will be joined by a host of newcomers, including 5-4 setter Gabriela Gallegos and 5-7 converted outside hitter Jackie Villegas, both from Roosevelt.

“The team is young,” said George Rodriguez, the team’s second-year coach. “What I want is for the team to play .500 and beat each team in conference at least once.”

At Moorpark, second-year Coach Steve Burkhart also is looking for improvement. The Raiders tied with Glendale in the WSC and were 4-14 overall. But Burkhart believes the team’s promising core of freshmen can help turn that mark around this season.

Two Royal products, setter Amiee Moon and All-Marmonte League outside hitter Jill Enright, are among the freshmen. Others include Jenny Mengles, an All-Marmonte League middle player from Thousand Oaks, and Tami Villancourt, an outside hitter from Norco. Sophomores Sandy Conwell, the team’s starting setter last season; Tanya Chrisman, an outside hitter and Cindy McKinnon, a middle player from Thousand Oaks and a transfer from Abilene Christian, provide experience.

Canyons heads into the season under a new coach, Diana Stanich. The Cougars finished ninth in the WSC with a 3-15 record.

In the Foothill Conference, Antelope Valley again should be one of the strong teams. The Marauders feature nine sophomores and four returning starters from a squad that was third in the conference with a 15-3 record (16-3 overall).

Coach Jane Cwayna, in her 13th season with the program, will count on setter Aimee Sayles, outside hitters Andrea Buckner and Katie Berry, and middle blocker Anita Villagran to lead the charge. Sayles was an all-conference pick and the team’s most valuable player last season, and Buckner was an all-conference second-team selection.

“We should be in the hunt,” Cwayna said. “We don’t have much height but, hopefully, we’ll be tough defensively.”

Buckner and middle blocker Sheri Coolidge, a sophomore from Mojave who returns after a one-year absence, are the tallest players at 5-10.

WATER POLO

If numbers are an indication of strength, then Valley Coach Bill Krauss could be looking at another successful season with the Monarchs. Thirty-five players tried out for the team and Krauss, entering his 21st season at Valley, said his main problem was cutting the roster to 18.

“I have a lot of depth and good speed,” Krauss said. “But I may not have that one really outstanding guy.”

But, Krauss said, he has two top players returning and several impressive freshmen who could help Valley challenge defending champion Cuesta for the WSC championship. The Monarchs (16-7 overall) tied Ventura for second place with a 5-3 record, three games out of first. Pierce (1-13, 1-7) tied for fourth with Santa Monica in the five-team conference.

The key Valley returners are driver-hole setter Josh Fehring and goalie Ken Vudmaska, both all-conference selections last season. The leading newcomers include twins Brian and Bruce Park, drivers and hole setters from Hoover; drivers Jeff Bissell and Erin Fish from Agoura, and driver Juan Flores from Marshall.

Ventura, which won five of its last six conference matches after starting 0-2 last season, should have another solid squad.

The Pirates, led by second-year Coach Larry Baratte, will be fortified by all-conference goalie Paul Krueger, who averaged 10.1 saves a match last season and is being recruited by several four-year schools. They also have 6-5 sophomore Dan Ashmore, a two-meter man from Thousand Oaks, and sophomore driver Tyler Wiggins, who scored 42 goals last season.

Two freshmen who Baratte said will play an important role are driver Pedro DeLima, a Brazilian who has international experience, and two-meter man Dan Drown, a two-time All-Southern Section player from Santa Barbara High.

WRESTLING

Making it to the state championships has become a tradition at Moorpark under Coach John Keever. In the past five seasons, the Raiders have won the title twice (1990 and ‘91) and finished second in 1989. Last season, they scored 74 3/4 points and were fourth behind Palomar (116), Cerritos (86 3/4) and Fresno City (82).

Keever, whose teams have won 16 WSC titles in his 25 seasons at Moorpark, says this team might have a shot at the state finals again if the freshman corps comes through. But first, he must deal with defending Moorpark’s WSC title. The Raiders were 5-0 in conference matches last season and 7-2 overall.

Jorge Ruiz and Jason Pratt figure to lead the Raiders. Ruiz was 27-6 last season and took third in the state tournament in the 134-pound class, and Pratt was 18-10 and finished third in the 158-pound division. They were selected All-Americans.

Another outstanding wrestler on the squad is Todd Houtt, who was seventh in the state in 1991 in the 177-pound class but is moving to 190 pounds this season after a one-year layoff. Rudy Correa, a freshman from Santa Maria who was sixth at 118 pounds in the high school state finals last year, will compete in the same weight classification for Moorpark.