Angel Eyes U.S. Open, Passes on CIF Meet

Golf standout Darren Angel of Granada Hills High, who won his second consecutive City Section title this week and led the Highlanders to the team championship, will pass up the CIF-Southern California Golf Assn. championships to play in a U.S. Open qualifying tournament.

Both the high school tournament at Redlands Country Club and the Open qualifier at Lake Merced Golf and Country Club in Daly City, Calif., are scheduled for June 6.

Angel, a junior who won the City title with back-to-back 69s, qualified for the sectional by winning a local qualifying event Monday with a one-under-par 71 at Rio Bravo Resort in Bakersfield.

“The U.S. Open is a little more important,” Angel said. The Open is June 16-19 at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pa.

Angel’s absence won’t help Granada Hills’ chances in the team competition, which features schools from the City, Southern, San Diego and Central sections. Angel almost single-handedly led the Highlanders to the title.

Coach Joe White told his team after the two-day tournament: “You guys ought to pick Darren up and carry him off on your shoulders. He carried you both days (of the event).”

Field Hockey

Of the 60 players selected by the U.S. Field Hockey Assn. to participate in the U.S. Olympic Festival July 1-10 in St. Louis, 23 are from the Valley and Ventura regions.

On the West team are Larry Amar, Shawn Nakamura and Matt Yarbrough of Camarillo; Brian Cosgrove and Scott Williams of Thousand Oaks; Jeff Horrocks and Mark Ruvalcaba of Newbury Park; Steve Ondrak and Tom Vano of Simi Valley; Matthew Cody of Ventura, and Davinder Plaha of Northridge.

On the South team are Shawn Bindy and Binh Hoang of Westlake Village; Nicholas Butcher and Alex Stewart of Simi Valley; Jason Horrocks of Newbury Park; Ryan Langford of Camarillo; Jarod Reinhold of Ventura, and Brian Schledorn of Thousand Oaks.

Mohammed Barakat of Moorpark, Davidson Adler of Newbury Park and Bill Neff of Simi Valley are on the East squad. Alex Wijnveldt of Camarillo will play for the North.

Baseball

Jack Mutz, a nine-year assistant at The Master’s College, has been named the school’s head baseball coach. Mutz, 55, replaces Chris Harrison, who resigned after last season. Mutz will remain assistant athletic director at the school.

Jason Shapiro of UC Davis, a 1989 graduate of Taft High, has been selected Northern California Athletic Conference player of the year by a vote of conference coaches. Shapiro batted .363.

Cal State Northridge assistant P.C. Shaw, who for the past three seasons has served as a volunteer coach, will not return next year. Shaw, who graduates from Northridge next month, plans to pursue a position in the college or high school ranks.

Golf

The Fairways Golf Camp, for boys and girls aged 7-17, is scheduled for this summer at the Encino and Balboa courses in the Sepulveda Dam Recreation Area.

The camp, run by Birmingham High golf and football Coach Chick Epstein, has five sessions beginning next month.

Information: 818-899-7888.

Miscellany

Northridge Skateland will hold a series of two-week Roller Hockey Summer Camps for youths aged 5-13 between July 11 and Sept. 2.

Information: 818-885-7655.

Holy Cross Medical Center will sponsor a grand prix bicycle race May 29 at the Warner Center in Woodland Hills. Several races will highlight a daylong schedule that begins at 7:30 a.m. A 45-mile race for professional and elite amateurs will begin at 3:15.

Information: 818-884-8525.