SIDELINES : Chatsworth Girls Idle but ‘Losses’ Mount

Chatsworth High girls’ soccer Coach Jack Sidwell could only hope that his team didn’t spend Christmas vacation reading the paper.

Royal tournament officials erroneously listed the Chatsworth girls’ team as a participant. So when the Chancellors failed to show for scheduled games against Moorpark and Kennedy, results of the matches were phoned in as Chatsworth forfeits.

“I just didn’t want to have the girls pick up the paper and be horrified to see that we forfeited games in a tournament we never entered,” Sidwell said.

Sidwell said that Royal Coach Andy Silva called and apologized for the mistake.

“The boys’ team from Chatsworth entered a tournament there and somehow we ended up getting included,” Sidwell said.

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Zero tolerance: The Chaminade High boys’ basketball team plays a swarming defense that produces turnovers and discourages opponents.

Case in point: In the first round of their tournament Wednesday, the Eagles (6-3) forced 22 turnovers, held Yeshiva to 39 points and made Shawn Blank live up to his name.

Blank, a senior point guard, did not score.

“Defense is our philosophy,” said Chaminade Coach Jeff Young, whose team has allowed an average of 46 points a game.

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Double vision: Spectators at the Bell-Jeff High girls’ basketball tournament this week were seeing double.

A first-round game featured North Hollywood, with senior twin guards Anna and Bobbie Celaya, against Oak Park and its identical backcourt tandem of Alexa and Alisha Valavanis, also seniors.

North Hollywood won, 82-66, and the Celayas and Valavanises accounted for 81 points. Anna Celaya scored 35 points, Bobbie 15. Alisha Valavanis countered with 26 points, Alexa five.

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Two-minute drill: Blake Jacobson, a starting 6-foot-9 senior center for Crescenta Valley High, recently was given only two minutes of playing time--but he made the most of it.

Jacobson is slowly recovering after suffering a hyper-extended right knee last week. He originally was told he would be out two weeks but lobbied successfully for playing time.

“The doctor said he could play two minutes,” Coach John Goffredo said. “That’s all.”

Jacobson didn’t waste any time. Coming off the bench in the third quarter, he scored four points, grabbed three rebounds and drew a charge. The Falcons went on to defeat Bev Facey of Canada, 86-43, in the opening round of the Covina tournament.

Stats

Dave Ulloa has moved into 10th place on Cal Lutheran’s all-time list in assists with 247. The 5-foot-9 junior from Glendale High is averaging 5.3 assists a game this season and 4.0 during his career.

Quotebook

Village Christian High girls’ basketball Coach John Domke, after his team committed 29 turnovers and was outrebounded, 43-26, in a 62-50 loss to Crescenta Valley on Monday: “They decided to be aggressive and we decided to stay on Christmas vacation for an extra day.”

Things to Do

Tonight, 8 p.m. at Thousand Oaks High gymnasium: championship round of the Lady Lancer Holiday girls’ basketball tournament. Also tonight at 8 at Bell-Jeff High: championship round of the Bell-Jeff Holiday Classic girls’ basketball tournament.

* Compiled by Irene Garcia. Contributing: Dave Desmond, Dana Haddad, Vince Kowalick, John Ortega and Bryan Rodgers.