PREP WEDNESDAY : Los Alamitos Squeaks to the Top of the Heap : All-Sports: Griffins edge Esperanza among large schools. Corona del Mar wins small-school honor.

Los Alamitos vs. Esperanza.

Over the years, these Empire League powerhouses have battled for high school athletic supremacy.

So it’s really no surprise the inaugural Times Orange County All-Sports Award in the large-school division came down to a race between them.

The surprise is the closeness of the race, considering the comprehensive competition involves 21 sports and a maximum of 840 points.

When the seasons had ended and the numbers were tabulated--and retabulated--to determine the large-school champion for 1993-94, Los Alamitos edged Esperanza, 367.5 points to 366.1.

That’s 1.4 points.

That’s the Griffin softball team reaching the Southern Section Division I quarterfinals (worth eight points) instead of losing one round earlier (none). That’s the Esperanza baseball team finishing third (five points) instead of second (seven) in the league race.

Keep in mind, scoring wasn’t limited to spring competition, though with 10 of the school year’s 21 sports played in the spring, it could be considered final-exam time. The only total that matters is the one involving every boys’ and girls’ team sport that culminated in a sanctioned California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section championship.

“We’ve extremely proud of all our coaches,” said Los Alamitos Athletic Director Frank Doretti, who is retiring this month after a 34-year coaching career in Orange County.

“An important factor in a successful athletic program is that the nucleus of the coaching staff--the on-campus people--have been here for 10 to 15 years together. And the walk-on coaches are former Griffins who have come back to help us in all the sports. A pay back, if you will, for their time here as student-athletes.”

Esperanza and Los Alamitos moved to the top two spots from third and fourth. Edison, which led the large-school division (1,200 or more students) going into the spring season, finished third with 359.8 points.

Mater Dei, which was second--only two points behind Edison--after the winter season, scored only 52.6 points in the spring to finish eighth with 288.3 points.

The Monarchs, who many thought might run away with the competition, fared well in baseball and softball but did not have another spring team with a winning percentage better than .333.

Irvine matched Mater Dei for the biggest drop among the top 20 large schools in the spring, falling six places to 13th.

And the season’s biggest move? Garden Grove shot up 12 places to No. 18, thanks to its badminton team (runner-up in the Division I final) and its boys’ and girls’ track and boys’ tennis teams (all undefeated in Garden Grove League play).

Also making significant moves were Woodbridge (up 10 spots to No. 11) and El Toro (up seven positions to No. 9). The Warriors rode the successes of their boys’ and girls’ track teams, girls’ swim team and boys’ swim team, which finished second in the Division I finals. The Chargers can thank their volleyball team and boys’ and girls’ swim teams for picking up postseason points.

The small-school division wasn’t nearly as close; Corona del Mar was the wire-to-wire winner, leading the pack at the end of every season and scoring a county-high 375.4 points.

The Sea Kings, who were favored from the outset, didn’t disappoint. They won section titles in girls’ volleyball and girls’ cross-country in the fall, but their lone team to earn playoff points this spring was badminton.

Corona del Mar did well in Sea View League competition: baseball (second place), golf (first), boys’ swimming (first), girls’ swimming (third), tennis (first), boys’ track (third) and volleyball (first).

“Our success can be attributed to the outstanding senior leadership we’ve had this year,” Corona del Mar Athletic Director Jerry Jelnick said. “It’s been an outstanding senior class, in addition to all the other fine athletes. Also, the hard work and time our coaches put in, and our faculty, too. . . . We also have an administration that’s very supportive of us.”

Laguna Hills’ strong showing in the postseason in boys’ and girls’ swimming and boys’ tennis helped the Hawks move from fourth to second with 337 points, while Brea-Olinda dropped to third with 327.4.

Calvary Chapel of Santa Ana, only 5 years old and with 550 students, might have posed a stronger challenge had it fielded teams in more sports. Of 21 possible sports, the Eagles competed in 13. But Calvary Chapel, eighth with 217.2 points, was the only county school to win four section team titles this school year.

“We tried not to field too many teams right away so that they wouldn’t all be talent poor,” said Kris Van Hook, the school’s football coach and athletic director. “Slowly, we’ve built up, and we plan to add girls’ tennis next year.”

The Eagles won section titles in boys’ and girls’ volleyball and wrestling (both dual meet and individual team tournament; the dual meet championship was counted for all-sports purposes), and the baseball team was second.

“We estimate about 70% of our students participate in at least one sport,” Van Hook said. “We never envisioned this kind of success so soon, but I think it’s great.”

Pacifica, which was eighth after the winter season, suffered the biggest drop among the small schools’ top 20, scoring only 66.6 points this spring to finish 15th with 194.1 points.

On the other side of the spectrum, Foothill moved up 11 places to No. 5 on the strength of its softball team (section runner-up), and boys’ and girls’ track teams, which earned postseason points as well. La Quinta also made a big move, up seven spots to No. 11 thanks to the success of its baseball team, which won the Division III championship.

The Times’ competition is the county’s first comprehensive all-sports championship, rewarding not only playoff success but league finish and winning percentage as well.

The Times ranked the county’s 75 high school programs using a formula developed by the paper’s editors and prep sports staff.

The rankings are based on a formula that considers record (overall through Southern Section finals or league only, depending on the sport), league finish (points for first, second, third and at-large playoff teams) and section playoff performances. The boys’ and girls’ scores are combined to determine the overall winners.

A school received no points for a sport if it went winless, did not compete in that sport or did not report. Every effort was made, though correspondence and phone calls with school and the Southern Section office, to obtain a point total for every sport fielded by every school. But records were unavailable or not received in some cases.

Each division champion will be awarded a traveling trophy, a trophy to keep and a banner to display in its gym. Second- and third-place teams in each division will receive trophies.

Here’s how Los Alamitos and Esperanza battled to the finish line this spring. (Point totals are rounded to 10ths of a point; the computer program used to determine the final rankings carried calculations out to 1000ths.)

--Carry-over: Los Alamitos scored 216.9 points for its fall and winter efforts, and Esperanza 202.4.

--Baseball: The Griffins finished 14-12 overall (5.4 points), tied for fourth in league (none) and did not reach the playoffs. Total: 5.4.

The Aztecs were 14-13 (5.2), third in league (five) and reached the second round of the playoffs (none). Total: 10.2.

--Softball: The Griffins finished 23-5 (8.2), first in league (10) and reached the quarterfinals (eight). Total: 26.2.

The Aztecs were 9-10 (4.7), tied for fourth (none) and didn’t make the playoffs (none). Total: 4.7.

--Boys’ Track: The Griffins finished 3-2 in league (six), in second (seven) but earned no section final points. Total: 13.

The Aztecs were 5-0 in league (10), finished first (10) but earned no section final points. Total: 20.

--Girls’ Track: Los Alamitos was 2-3 in league (four points) and finished fourth (no points). Total: four points.

Esperanza was 5-0 in league (10 points), finished first in league (10 points) and at the section finals (20 points). Total: a perfect 40 points.

--Boys’ Swimming: Los Alamitos was 4-0-1 in league (nine), finished first (10) and was seventh in the section Division II finals (eight). Total: 27.

Esperanza finished 3-2 (six), in third place (five) but earned no section final points. Total: 11.

--Girls’ Swimming: The Griffins finished 5-0 in league (10), first in league (10) and eighth in the section Division I finals (eight). Total: 28.

The Aztecs were 3-2 (six), in third place (five) but earned no section final points. Total: 11.

--Badminton: Neither school fielded a team.

--Golf: Los Alamitos was 6-4 in league (six), finished third (five), but earned no points in the playoffs. Total: 11.

Esperanza finished 10-0 (10), in first place (10) and fifth in the section playoffs (eight). Total: 28.

--Boys’ Tennis: Los Alamitos was 9-1 in league (nine), first in league (10) and reached the quarterfinals of the playoffs (eight). Total: 27.

Esperanza finished 7-3 (seven), in third place (five) but lost in the second round of the playoffs (none). Total: 12.

--Boys’ Volleyball: The Griffins were 8-12 overall (four) and finished third in league (five). Total: nine points.

The Aztecs were 22-3 (8.8), first in league (10) and reached the playoff quarterfinals (eight). Total: 26.8.

--Spring Totals: Los Alamitos 150.6, Esperanza 163.7.

Next season, their rivalry will continue, but the league competition will be stronger: Los Alamitos and Esperanza move from the Empire League, which is Division II for most sports, into the Sunset League, which is predominantly Division I.

The Griffins laid claim to last year’s Sunset football title during the playoffs when they defeated Edison, Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach on consecutive weekends to win the section Division II championship.

Times staff writer Eric Shepard contributed to this story.

Final Large School Top 20

School Previous BB SB BT GT BS GS B 1. Los Alamitos 216.9 (3) 5.4 26.2 13.0 4.0 27.0 28.0 0.0 2. Esperanza 202.4 (4) 10.2 4.7 20.0 40.0 11.0 11.0 0.0 3. Edison 237.7 (1) 6.5 1.1 10.7 32.0 15.6 12.1 0.0 4. Trabuco 186.4 (5) 17.3 12.2 11.0 20.0 32.0 15.0 0.0 Hills 5. Sunny Hills 163.0 (6) 11.8 12.2 11.0 2.0 28.0 20.0 2.0 6. Fountain 144.6 (8) 38.9 21.5 10.7 15.6 12.1 20.0 15.0 Valley 7. Marina 140.9 (12) 6.3 39.3 20.0 12.1 28.0 15.6 28.0 8. Mater Dei 235.7 (2) 24.6 14.6 0.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 0.0 9. Villa Park 139.6 (13) 12.8 13.3 13.0 4.0 32.0 20.0 0.0 10. El Toro 113.0 (17) 13.3 17.1 11.0 11.0 23.0 24.0 0.0 11. Woodbridge 99.9 (21) 11.1 17.0 28.0 23.6 31.6 13.7 0.0 12. Canyon 143.8 (9) 25.9 5.5 4.0 20.0 11.0 11.0 0.0 13. Irvine 147.7 (7) 12.5 16.4 4.3 4.3 12.9 36.0 0.0 14. Capistrano 142.8 (11) 13.5 10.6 17.0 13.0 13.0 18.0 0.0 Valley 15. Dana Hills 143.2 (10) 5.2 3.0 19.0 4.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 16. Valencia 127.5 (14) 15.0 3.8 11.0 11.0 15.0 11.0 0.0 17. Huntington 123.1 (16) 11.4 6.0 4.3 5.7 5.7 4.3 0.0 17. Beach 18. Garden Grove 77.8 (30) 11.2 11.0 20.0 20.0 4.3 4.3 35.4 19. San Clemente 125.1 (15) 5.6 9.4 2.0 0.0 4.0 12.0 0.0 20. Katella 105.5 (19) 16.6 1.4 13.0 15.0 2.0 2.0 18.9

G TEN BV Total 1. 11.0 27.0 9.0 367.5 2. 28.0 12.0 26.8 366.1 3. 11.4 19.3 13.5 359.8 4. 18.8 20.0 9.4 342.1 5. 29.0 40.0 0.0 319.0 6. 2.5 14.9 12.1 307.8 7. 3.3 4.3 7.7 305.6 8. 3.0 1.0 3.3 288.3 9. 18.8 13.0 1.9 268.2 10. 11.0 10.0 31.0 264.4 11. 12.8 12.1 3.8 253.5 12. 0.0 13.0 18.3 252.4 13. 2.5 2.1 11.5 250.2 14. 2.0 2.0 4.0 243.6 15. 19.0 36.0 13.8 243.3 16. 18.8 19.0 5.2 237.3 17. 27.3 3.6 39.1 235.5 17. 18. 11.3 20.0 12.6 227.8 19. 19.0 10.0 22.8 212.7 20. 14.0 1.0 0.0 194.4

KEY: Previous--Carryover from fall and winter (previous place). BB--Baseball. SB--Softball. BT--Boys’ track. GT--Girls’ track. BS--Boys’ swimming. GS--Girls’ swimming. B--Badminton. G--Golf. TEN--Boys’ tennis. BV--Boys’ volleyball.

Values are rounded to nearest 10th for the purposes of this chart only. Rounding might create slight discrepancies between sum of individual figures listed and total. Teams that did not report or field a team in a sport received a score of 0.0.

Sources: Orange County high schools, Southern Section.

Final Small School Top 20

School Previous BB SB BT GT BS GS B 1. Corona 223.5 (1) 13.7 1.4 13.6 4.3 17.9 12.9 31.4 del Mar 2. Laguna Hills 180.4 (4) 5.2 16.0 15.0 18.0 36.0 28.0 0.0 3. Brea-Olinda 197.1 (2) 18.1 4.1 18.0 20.0 20.0 20.0 0.0 4. Santa 177.4 (5) 11.6 11.2 2.9 20.0 13.7 26.9 0.0 Margarita 5. Foothill 102.7 (16) 9.6 33.8 28.0 27.0 13.7 10.8 0.0 6. Newport 189.3 (3) 1.3 4.0 5.7 20.1 4.3 4.3 1.3 Harbor 7. El Modena 166.9 (6) 2.2 9.2 13.0 13.0 4.0 4.0 0.0 8. Calvary 121.5 (11) 27.8 8.9 11.7 3.3 1.7 2.2 0.0 Chapel 9. El Dorado 119.9 (12) 25.2 13.5 5.0 11.0 4.0 15.0 0.0 10. La Habra 145.3 (7) 3.6 3.8 18.0 6.0 2.0 4.0 26.8 11. La Quinta 98.5 (19) 39.0 6.0 2.9 1.4 2.9 20.0 11.7 12. Estancia 125.5 (9) 12.0 1.0 11.0 11.0 4.0 6.0 1.3 13. Saint 122.0 (10) 27.0 18.0 12.1 4.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 Margaret’s 14. Whittier 106.1 (15) 24.5 12.0 3.3 5.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Christian 15. Pacifica 127.5 (8) 4.2 29.7 2.9 5.7 7.1 12.1 0.0 16. Sonora 101.3 (17) 4.8 4.8 15.0 20.0 11.0 15.0 0.0 17. Costa Mesa 117.5 (13) 2.8 10.0 4.0 4.0 11.0 11.0 9.4 18. Laguna 115.2 (14) 2.6 2.4 0.0 0.0 1.7 1.7 0.0 Beach 19. Magnolia 100.7 (18) 9.6 15.9 2.0 4.0 10.0 3.8 14.0 20. Troy 97.6 (20) 10.6 8.9 2.0 15.0 0.0 11.0 2.5

G TEN BV Total 1. 19.2 19.3 18.3 375.4 2. 11.0 23.0 4.4 337.0 3. 15.0 15.0 0.0 327.4 4. 19.2 8.0 1.9 292.7 5. 10.0 20.0 16.9 272.6 6. 1.7 5.0 17.4 254.3 7. 2.5 1.4 10.0 226.2 8. 0.0 0.0 40.0 217.2 9. 5.0 1.0 12.6 212.2 10. 0.0 2.0 0.0 211.5 11. 0.0 15.3 13.1 210.7 12. 18.8 5.0 15.1 210.6 13. 0.0 10.0 12.0 205.2 14. 0.0 14.8 26.9 197.9 15. 0.0 2.5 2.4 194.1 16. 0.0 4.6 0.0 176.7 17. 4.0 0.5 2.3 176.5 18. 0.0 12.0 35.1 170.6 19. 2.7 5.0 0.0 167.8 20. 0.0 10.5 0.0 158.0

KEY: Previous--Carryover from fall and winter (previous place). BB--Baseball. SB--Softball. BT--Boys’ track. GT--Girls’ track. BS--Boys’ swimming. GS--Girls’ swimming. B--Badminton. G--Golf. TEN--Boys’ tennis. BV--Boys’ volleyball.

Values are rounded to nearest 10th for the purposes of this chart only. Rounding might create slight discrepancies between sum of individual figures listed and total. Teams that did not report or field a team in a sport received a score of 0.0.

Sources: Orange County high schools, Southern Section.