Sports

PREPS

The Lynwood High girls’ basketball team, the two-time defending Southern Section Division I-AA champion, has won 62 of 64 games the past two seasons. In 1993, they won the state title. In 1994, they were the runner-up.

Winning another Southern Section championship, not to mention the San Gabriel Valley League title, could be a tall order for the Knights. Monique Matthews, Michelle Franklin and Ieesha Hayword return from last season’s 32-2 team, but only the Long Beach State-bound Matthews was a starter.

Lynwood (9-5) lost to Downey, 46-41, in its league opener Jan. 11--its first league defeat since the 1991-92 season. The Knights struggled against Gahr on Friday before emerging with a 40-34 victory, behind 13 points from sophomore Kristian Jackson and 12 from junior Tanisha Johnson, to even its league record at 1-1.

Should Lynwood falter, Downey, Dominguez or Gahr could claim the league title.

Dominguez (11-4), which won the Mt. Carmel tournament in December, is led by seniors Crystal Hogan, Jamie Jeter and Nekeda Allen. The Dons beat Downey, 58-53, on Friday to take over the league lead at 2-0.

Downey (13-3) has the league’s tallest lineup with 6-foot-7 junior center Rhonda Smith and 6-2 forward Kelly Black, who will attend Idaho State. Point guard Jennifer Gall (5-7) is averaging 18 points, seven assists and seven rebounds. Carmina Morales, a 5-5 junior guard, and Monica Farias, a 5-9 senior who returns for her third season, round out the starters.

Gahr (10-6) advanced to the Division II-AA semifinals last season behind the play of junior guard Nicole Oliver and Rhonda Anderson. Anderson was selected the most valuable player of the Gahr tournament after leading the Gladiators to the championship in a 65-46 victory over Long Beach Poly.

Prediction: 1--Lynwood, 2--Gahr, 3--Dominguez, 4--Downey, 5--Warren, 6--Paramount.

Here is a look at other league races:

* Almont League--Defending champion San Gabriel and runner-up Schurr will battle for first with Bell Gardens, Alhambra and Keppel contending for third.

Schurr, which defeated San Gabriel, 53-43, on Tuesday, is led by 5-8 senior Jennifer Matsui, an all-league guard who was named to the all-tournament team in the Hacienda Heights Wilson tournament after leading the Spartans to third place. Senior Christine Atobe (5-6), junior Vanessa Chacon (5-9) and sophomore Lisa Moya (5-2) are the other starters.

Bell Gardens’ playoff hopes will rely on seniors Adriana Villalobos and Susan Rendon.

Prediction: 1--Schurr, 2--San Gabriel, 3--Bell Gardens, 4--Keppel, 5--Alhambra, 6--Montebello.

* Camino Real League--Cantwell-Sacred Heart and Pius X will battle Bell-Jeff for the championship.

Cantwell is led by 5-10 senior twins Veronica and Monica Quezada. Seniors Shirley Lalicker (5-5) and Montebello High transfer Letty Heredia (5-10) are other starters.

Pius X is in its first season in the Camino Real League after moving from the Del Rey League. The Warriors are built around forward LeTonya Shaw and sophomore center Shanee Thomas.

Prediction: 1--Bell-Jeff, 2--Cantwell-Sacred Heart, 3--Pius X, 4--St. Anthony, 5--Mary Star, 6--St. Mary’s Academy.

* Del Rey League--It will be difficult to unseat St. Bernard, the two-time defending State Division IV champion, as league titlist. Bishop Montgomery and Bishop Amat should claim second and third.

St. Paul has 6-1 center Gina Monte, but will be hard-pressed to finish above .500 in league play.

Prediction: 1--St. Bernard, 2--Bishop Montgomery, 3--Bishop Amat, 4--St. Joseph, 5--St. Paul, 6--Serra.

* Del Rio League--Pioneer is the two-time defending league champion and little stands in the way of a third title. Maria Camacho, a 6-1 junior center, is one of five returners. Also back is Melissa Godinez, Marisa Menick, Lillian Marin and Wendy Ramos.

La Serna, led by the trio of Genea Allen, Chris Payne and Nikki Kenna, is the only team that appears to have a shot at knocking off Pioneer.

Santa Fe, with returning starters sophomore Shantee Anderson (5-8), Jennifer Reveles (5-10) and sophomore Rachel Vazquez, and El Rancho, which features 5-10 senior forward Melissa Carreon, a two-time all-league player, will contend for third.

Prediction: 1--Pioneer, 2--La Serna, 3--El Rancho, 4--Santa Fe, 5--California, 6--Whittier.

* Delphic League--Crossroads has top-flight Division IV players in Sherrise Smith and Yasmeen Benjamin. Brentwood, Faith Baptist and Whitney will be chasing Crossroads.

Prediction: 1--Crossroads, 2--Brentwood, 3--Whitney, 4--Faith Baptist, 5--Campbell Hall.

* Mission Valley League--Cerritos, most recently of the San Gabriel Valley League, stands to benefit from its move to the Mission Valley. The Dons are led by guard Sherilyn Frazier.

Prediction: 1--Cerritos, 2--Arroyo, 3--El Monte, 4--Rosemead, 5--South El Monte, 6--Mountain View.

* Moore League--Long Beach Poly shared the league title with Millikan last season but should claim it outright this season.

Senior guard K.K. Johns (5-6) is a four-year starter. She is joined by junior forward Kanisha Sanders (5-8), senior forward Sarah Cherin (5-9) and senior center Katrina Reynolds (5-10). The Jackrabbits are bolstered by senior guard Qyana Wallace and Laneka Allen, a transfer from Millikan High.

Jordan has not won a league title since 1977 but will have to wait another season to end the drought. The Panthers should battle Millikan for second. Junior Antoinette Bryant is one of four underclassmen, along with sophomores Reta Sula, LaToya North and Marquita Ryan, in the Jordan lineup.

Millikan is led by junior center Neisha Cleveland (6-0) and forward Kristy Brannon (5-9).

Prediction: 1--Long Beach Poly, 2--Jordan, 3--Millikan, 4--Lakewood, 5--Long Beach Wilson, 6--Compton.

* Olympic League--USC-bound Jodi Parriott might not be enough to lead Valley Christian to a fourth-consecutive Division IV-A championship. The 6-2 senior, though, should have no problem guiding the Crusaders to the league title.

Prediction: 1--Valley Christian, 2--Whittier Christian, 3--Santa Ana Calvary Chapel, 4--Brethren Christian, 5--Orange Lutheran, 6--Ontario Christian.

* Suburban League--Norwalk will be difficult to beat with 6-foot center Laura Clark and 5-9 guard Adrianna Cuevas. Glenn has perhaps the league’s top player in 5-3 junior guard Angelina Baca.

Prediction: 1--Norwalk, 2--La Mirada, 3--Glenn, 4--Bellflower, 5--Artesia, 6--Mayfair.

* Dominguez, ranked sixth in the nation, and Millikan are among six boys’ basketball teams who will participate in the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Challenge Saturday at UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion.

The Challenge will feature three games. Millikan plays Rowland at 5:20 p.m., Inglewood meets at 7 and Dominguez plays Westchester at 8:40. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Belmont Shore basketball club. Admission is $6 for adults and $3 for students and senior citizens.

Information: (310) 984-8355.

COMMUNITY COLLEGES

The Cerritos College men’s basketball team, which opened the season with a school-record 18 consecutive wins, improved to 20-1 with a 90-85 double overtime victory over Mt. San Antonio College in its South Coast Conference opener.

Freshman forward David Owens had 18 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Eric Barnes and Monty Owens added 14 points each for Cerritos. The Falcons, ranked fourth in the state, play Saturday night at Pasadena City College.

* Michelle Coleman scored a career-high 30 points, making 14 of 23 shots, and Liz Espinosa had 12 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists to lead the Cerritos women’s basketball team to a 77-74 South Coast Conference victory over Long Beach City.

On Jan. 11, Cerritos lost to Harbor, 88-76.

Cerritos (13-8, 3-1) plays Friday night at Mt. San Antonio.

* The Compton College men’s and women’s basketball teams play Friday at Trade Tech in a Southern California Athletic Conference doubleheader beginning at 5:15 p.m.

The Tartar men were 1-1 last week. Compton (8-11, 0-1) defeated Harbor, 84-82, in overtime in a nonconference game behind 23 points from Joe Austin, but lost to L.A. Southwest, 85-77, in a conference opener Saturday despite 16 points from Austin and Marquis Flemmons.

The Compton women defeated Pasadena City College, 61-51, to improve to 10-5 and 2-1 in conference. Eugenia Mays had 22 points and Andrea Haynes had 18 points and 11 rebounds.

NAMES IN THE NEWS

Former Compton High and Long Beach City College shotputter Tiny Lister Jr. and Charles Gwynn, a graduate of Long Beach Poly High, will be inducted tonight into the Cal State L.A. athletic hall of fame at the Tower Restaurant in the TransAmerica building downtown.

Lister was the 1982 Division II shotput champion and holds the school record at 61-feet-8.

Lister, an actor who challenged Holk Hogan to a match with no rules in the 1989 film “No Holds Barred,” is a veteran of more than 20 films. He was a regular on the HBO series “1st and 10,” and been a guest star on “Webster,” “Matlock” and “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” In 1993, he co-starred with Mario Van Peebles and Tone Loc in the Western “Posse.”

In October, Lister organized the first Tiny “Zeus” Lister celebrity basketball game, which raised more than $30,000 for athletic scholarships at Cal State L.A. and the West Angeles Church of God in Christ.

Gwynn, the older brother of major league baseball players Tony and Chris Gwynn, was a three-time Division I All-Far West region selection at Cal State L.A. from 1979-81. He holds school records for a 22-game hitting streak, 17 home runs in a season and most extra-base hits in a career with 74.

Information: (213) 343-3080.

* Montebello High Coach Doug Rihn and Tim Nelson of Alta Loma have been selected coaches for the 16th annual National Football Foundation Hall of Fame all-star football game July 14 at Citrus College.

Rihn will coach the West team and Nelson will coach the East squad in the game for graduated high school seniors. The Hall of Fame game serves as a fund-raiser for the Pasadena/San Gabriel Valley chapter of the National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame.

Rihn guided Montebello (10-2) to a share of its second consecutive Almont League title and the Southern Section Division III quarterfinals last fall.

A graduate of Montebello High and Cal Lutheran, Rihn has a record of 102-49 in 14 seasons at Montebello. He has won five league titles and led the Oilers to the playoff semifinals twice.

* The brother and sister combination of Aaryn and Theresa Macias of Norwalk won five titles in the recent Sports Karate International championships in Burbank.

Aaryn, 8, competing in the red-belt division, won the open form (ages 8 and under), weapons (age 9 and under) and musical form (age 17 and under) for the second year in a row.

He also placed second in fighting (age 8 and under) and was fourth in traditional form (age 17 and under).

Theresa, 11, was second in fighting for girls’ age 10-11 in the blue belt division.