Did Principals Gang Up Against Serra? : Prep football: Although Camino Real League rules state that three-way ties are broken by a coin flip, a vote was taken that designated Cavaliers as No. 3 entry in Division VIII playoffs.

Upset Serra High officials may appeal a vote by Camino Real League principals designating Serra as the league’s No. 3 entry in the Southern Section Division VIII football playoffs, despite the fact the Cavaliers finished in a three-way tie for first.

Serra, St. Monica and Cantwell all finished league play with 5-1 records. According to league rules, three-way ties are broken by coin flips when head-to-head results fail to determine a No. 1 playoff entry, as in this case. Serra beat St. Monica, St. Monica beat Cantwell, and Cantwell beat Serra.

However, no coin flips were held. A majority of Camino Real principals voted to ignore Serra’s victory by forfeit over Verbum Dei and use on-field results to determine playoff entries.

“The league basically said ‘We can do this to you and we’re doing it,’ ” Serra Athletic Director Tim Boyer said.

It appears Serra has little recourse. Boyer said an appeal to the Catholic Athletic Assn. could take up to two weeks, and the Southern Section has a policy of allowing leagues to determine their playoff entries.

St. Monica was awarded the Camino Real’s No. 1 entry because it beat Cantwell, 26-10, Friday night. Cantwell will go to the playoffs as the No. 2 entry.

As a No. 3 entry, Serra (6-3) will likely travel in the first round and face a first-place team. A coin flip could have given the Cavaliers the No. 1 entry.

“The league determined we were a No. 3 seed; it is unfair,” Boyer said. “I don’t know how they arrived at that position. We should have had some type of meeting or coin toss. My question is, ‘Why?’ ”

Verbum Dei was forced to forfeit its victories over Serra and Mary Star for using an ineligible player. Friday morning, Verbum Dei Principal Rev. Marvin Threatt petitioned the league for clemency, citing administrative oversights.

A vote was taken of the principals, and Verbum Dei’s request that on-field records determine playoff entries was granted. The decision to use on-field records gave Serra a 3-2 league record going into Friday’s game against Pius X. Serra’s 30-0 victory over the Warriors would not have qualified the Cavaliers for the playoffs, if Verbum Dei had beaten St. Anthony Friday. However, St. Anthony won, 16-8, to knock the Eagles out of playoff contention.

“Ignorance of the rules is no excuse,” Serra interim coach Charles Nash said. “This means if a school breaks a rule, all they have to do is ask the league for forgiveness. It sets a dangerous precedent.”

The league vote, involving Cantwell, St. Monica, Pius X, Mary Star and St. Anthony, was 3-2 in favor of Verbum Dei.

“That’s the way they do it when they don’t like you,” Boyer said.

The votes of St. Anthony and St. Monica could have been affected by the animosity created by two highly publicized transfers, and the conduct of former Serra football coach Kevin Crawley, Serra assistant Don Bohannon said.

Basketball standout Alex Davis transferred from St. Monica to Serra in the middle of last season and helped the Cavaliers win the State Division IV title as starting point guard. This past summer, Duke recruit Ricky Price transferred from St. Anthony to Serra and will play his senior season for the Cavaliers.

“The league voted against us because of an accumulation of things,” Bohannon said. “Our previous head coach didn’t make a whole lot of friends. Then Alex Davis transferred and Ricky Price. Everybody gets upset at us because they can’t hold their athletes. They come (to Serra) because of the great program run by (basketball Coach) Dwan Hurt.”

“All of this stuff is (happening) because this is our last year in the league. The league can’t handle it the adult way, so they’re going to hammer the kids.”

Serra will compete in the Mission League starting in the 1994-95 school year.

Controversy has dogged Serra all season. After a 1-3 start, Crawley was fired as coach for allegedly using abusive language toward his players. Since Nash took over, the team is 4-1 and has won its last four games.