CUP CONTENDERS: Months of hard work paid...

CUP CONTENDERS: Months of hard work paid off this week when the soccer team from the African nation of Cameroon began preparing for the World Cup on newly laid fields at Oxnard College. . . . Decked out in green, gold and crimson, the Cameroonians have drawn hundreds of fans to their practices. They take on Ventura County all-stars tonight at 7 at Channel Islands High. . . . “Their practices are really supercharged and really something to take in,” college spokeswoman Cathy Garnica said.

IN THE CLEAR: Prosecutors have cleared Simi Valley High baseball coach Mike Scyphers of criminal wrongdoing, stemming from accusations that he mishandled team money and discipline (C1). . . . Parents who have supported the coach all along said their children’s baseball season was devastated. “I blame the school administration absolutely, in total, for ruining my son’s senior year baseball experience,” parent Maureen Celusta said.

PLAYING GAMES: It has come to this: even pool halls have gone upscale and become politically correct (Ventura County Life, Page 8). . . . Once near extinction, pool rooms have rebounded from the depths of disrepute by evolving into safe and wholesome places. Still, there remain some parlors that cling to their dark-and-dingy reputations. . . . “The new places have no character,” says Mark Morales, whose gritty Santa Paula pool hall is the oldest in Ventura County.

QUAKE RELIEF: Former Laker basketball star A.C. Green will tour Fillmore and Piru on Monday to see how merchants are recovering from the Jan. 17 earthquake. . . . Green, who now plays for the Phoenix Suns, helped provide modular trailers for merchants displaced by the quake. Officials have been trying to get Green to visit for some time. . . . “Unfortunately, he has the time now to come out because his team is no longer playing,” said Nancy Bocovich, a program assistant with the county. The Suns were eliminated from the NBA playoffs last month.