Notebook : Santa Ana Valley Game Is Subject of Protest

Santa Ana Valley officials have filed a protest as a result of the Falcons’ 21-17 loss to Canyon Friday night, Athletic Director Leon Smith said Monday.

Smith said they are protesting a controversial and bizarre play at the end of the game.

According to Smith, Santa Ana Valley’s Jason Parrott attempted a pass that Greg Jacobs intercepted with 11 seconds left. Jacobs, the county interception leader, began celebrating but was never tackled.

Smith said Jacobs then threw down the ball and Santa Ana Valley’s Tyson Lewis tried to recover it. Canyon Coach Bob Hughes then came on the field and jumped on the football. Lewis wrestled the ball loose and began running toward the end zone.

Officials whistled the play dead. They awarded Santa Ana Valley the football and penalized the Comanches 15 yards. The Falcons attempted a running play but did not score.

Smith said officials ruled the ball dead because the ball was touched on the field by someone not in the game.

Santa Ana Valley officials claim the team should be awarded a touchdown and the victory.

Steve Anderson, Canyon’s athletic director, said Hughes picked up the ball out of instinct but put it right back down and the play was whistled dead without a Santa Ana Valley player near the ball.

Century League officials will probably hold a hearing this week.

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Seven of the 10 Tustin football players suspended from last Friday’s game against Servite will be reinstated, Principal Bob Boies said Monday.

The 10 players--eight of them starters--were suspended last Thursday for violating the school’s athletic code. None, however, were suspended from school. They are expected to be in uniform and could play Saturday when Tustin meets Santa Ana. At least two of the players practiced with the team Monday.

“Basically, it was a one-game suspension,” Boies said. “But we had to take a stand.”

School officials are expected to decide, possibly today, the fate of three players who were involved in an additional incident, Boies said.

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The Canyon girls’ tennis team fell from the unbeaten ranks and from fourth to ninth in the Orange County coaches polls after close Century League losses to Villa Park and El Modena. But the Comanches (12-2) get a chance to avenge the first loss Thursday at Villa Park, which moved from eighth to seventh in the polls.

In Canyon’s 10-8 loss to Villa Park last week, No. 1 Shannon Wilkins blew a 5-2 lead to Villa Park’s No. 1 Faye DeVera, and No. 2 Kim Westerman lost a 4-2 lead in one of her sets. Wilkins’ 7-6 loss to DeVera was only her second in 39 sets. A victory by Villa Park (9-1, 5-0) would put the Spartans in the driver’s seat for the Century League title.

In another key match Thursday, third-ranked Newport Harbor plays at fourth-ranked Corona del Mar. The match could decide the Sea View League title and the second-seeded team in the upcoming Southern Section Division I playoffs.

Newport Harbor, led by No. 1 singles player Sarah Hawkins, was beaten by Corona del Mar this season. But a Sailor victory Thursday could tie them with the Sea Kings (9-3, 5-0) for first place.

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Newport Harbor, the top-ranked girls’ volleyball team in Orange County, and seventh-ranked Calvary Chapel each will play two of the state’s best at the Rams Challenge in the Spanos Center Saturday at the University of Pacific.

Newport Harbor, the No. 1-ranked team in the state, will play San Jose Archbishop Mitty, ranked eighth, at 10 a.m. Calvary Chapel, ranked 13th in the state, plays Archbishop Mitty at noon.

Stockton St. Mary’s, ranked third in the state, will play Calvary Chapel at 3 p.m. before playing Newport Harbor, ranked No. 1 in the nation by USA Today’s Mizuno Top 20 poll, at 7 p.m.

In a nonleague match Saturday, Huntington Beach, ranked ninth in the state, plays host to 12th-ranked Santa Barbara San Marcos.

In league play, it’s a make-or-break week for Katella (6-4, 3-1), which is at Cypress (3-5, 3-1) Tuesday and at Kennedy (10-0, 4-0) Thursday in the Empire League. In the Century League, unbeaten Orange (10-0, 4-0) plays at defending league champion Foothill (4-4, 3-1).

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Cross-country runners are pointing toward the Mt. San Antonio College Invitational, which takes place at 8 a.m. Friday and Saturday, featuring the usual powerhouses.

The premier dual meets are in the boys’ competition Thursday as No. 6 Villa Park (3-1) races against No. 4 Santa Ana Valley (2-2) at Centennial Park in the Orange League; and No. 1 Orange (3-0) meets No. 10 El Modena (3-1) at Irvine Regional Park in the Century League.

The best South County matchup looks like Dana Hills (3-0) and Mission Viejo (2-1) at Laguna Niguel Regional Park on Wednesday.

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To commemorate Sonora’s first victory over La Habra High since 1979, Athletic Director John Link sat in front of the student body Monday and let the seniors cut off his hair. Link’s offer had been a standing one for two years at Sonora, and Friday’s 24-12 victory let the football team collect.

“We tried to think of something motivational and fun,” Link said. “We were going to do it Friday after the game, but they forgot to bring the clippers.”

Link said the toughest part will be to convince his wife it is him when he gets home.

“Having been a coach before, she is used to me doing some weird things,” he said. “But I still think she’ll be shocked when I get in tonight.”

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Reuben Droughns gained 219 yards Friday in a 15-15 tie with Valencia. Droughns, a junior, has gained 1,024 yards this season and 3,053 in two seasons. He can break into the county top 10 with more than 3,745 yards (Orange Lutheran’s Jason Neben, 1986-88). The county record is Ray Pallares’ 5,396 yards, gained at Valencia from 1983-85.

At his current pace, Droughns will finish his career in the 4,600-yard neighborhood, which would put him third on the all-time list.

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Martin Henderson, Michael Itagaki, Forrest Lee, Dave McKibben and Mike Terry contributed to this story.