All Quartz Hill Has to Do Is Ask Iabichella

Former Paraclete High running back Sal Iabichella has enrolled at Quartz Hill, but does not intend to play football for the Rebels, he said Wednesday.

Iabichella, who played in Paraclete’s first four games this season, said he would like to play at Quartz Hill but is apprehensive about joining a team midway through the season.

“If the coaches came up and talked to me and asked me to come out, then I would,” Iabichella said. “But I haven’t talked to them because I don’t think I’d be allowed to get on going into week six.”

Iabichella, who led Paraclete with 527 yards and seven touchdowns, said he left Paraclete last week for personal reasons but would not go into detail.

“If I could get him eligible, I’d let him play,” Quartz Hill Coach John Albee said. “We have a lot of games left and we’ll welcome him with open arms.”

* Shoe fetish: Recent technology in the athletic shoe industry has included velcro straps, blinking lights and air cushioning.

But Aaron Pettitt prefers athletic tape.

Pettitt, a senior fullback-linebacker on the Santa Paula High football team, wears a pair of size 13 cleats so battered that Cardinal Coach Hoppy Mumford has begged him to buy new ones.

“They have holes in the front he covers with tape and the shoelaces are usually tied together in three or four places,” Mumford said. “But he loves those shoes. He says they make him run better.”

Pettitt, who bought his shoes as a sophomore, said he simply doesn’t want the blisters that come with breaking in a new pair.

“I just keep fixing them up with whatever’s laying around,” he said. “I’m going to try to finish the year in them.”

* Trivia question: Who leads the Golden League with nine touchdowns and 54 points, who has scored three times rushing, three times receiving and three times on interception returns? Who is the best-kept secret in the league?

Answer: Will Demps of Highland.

The 6-1, 212-pound senior is the Bulldogs’ top receiver and second-leading running back. A safety on defense, Demps has six interceptions and 183 yards in returns.

Said Arizona State recruiter Donnie Henderson to Highland Coach Lin Parker, “Whatever you do, don’t tell the other scouts about [Demps]. I’m going to hide him.”

* Letterman: A busy off-season for Bell-Jeff basketball Coach Eli Essa continued on Monday when he received a letter from UCLA basketball Coach Jim Harrick inviting the Guards to watch a Bruin practice.

Essa said Harrick is interested in recruiting junior Reuben Douglas.

“The letter said, ‘We are actively interested in recruiting Reuben Douglas and watching his progress,’ ” Essa said. “It’s amazing that during [an NCAA investigation] he took the time to write us a letter.”

Recently Essa learned that 6-foot-6 junior forward Mike West, who averaged 6.8 rebounds for North Hollywood last season, was transferring to Bell-Jeff. Essa had two other transfers come in over the summer--Gaither Powell, a junior point guard from Burroughs, and Kenny Esteves, a 6-6 sophomore forward from Seattle.

* No sale: After the first two rotations of his team’s match against Burroughs, Hart Coach Steve Love approached Burroughs Coach Roy Bernhardt with a proposition.

The teams were tied, 6-6, but Burroughs held a 53-46 advantage in games.

“I asked him he wanted to sell me 10 games,” Love said. “But he wasn’t interested. He thought he might need them himself.”

The match ended 9-9 and Burroughs won on games, 80-67.

* Dialing long distance: Granada Hills quarterback Ricky Mathiesen has thrown seven touchdown passes this season. Four of the plays covered at least 70 yards.

* Short-handed: Kennedy will be missing two of its top defensive players for Friday night’s game against Chatsworth.

Middle linebacker Byron Williams and cornerback Gary Goss have been suspended from school due to an on-campus incident, Coach Bob Francola said.

Goss’ suspension will be for one game while Williams’ situation will be reevaluated next week.

* Roster moves: Andrew Bencze, coach of the Providence boys’ and girls’ volleyball teams, is haunted by his roster.

Bencze gets pen-shy whenever the season begins and it’s time to write up a roster.

Last year, he waited an extra two weeks to make the boys’ roster only to have a player quit to work on his grades.

This season, middle blocker Katie Malloy sprained her ankle the day after Bencze made the roster. Since then, Sonia Playo has broken her wrist and Jenny Velasco has injured her knee.

“It’s the curse of the roster,” Bencze said. “After I make it out, we always lose somebody.

“They keep telling me to stop making them, but in volleyball you have to.”

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Football Top 10

Rankings of Valley-area high schools by sportswriters of The Times

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RK LW Team (League) REC. 1 1 Westlake (Marmonte) 5-0 2 2 Taft (Northwest Valley) 5-0 3 3 Oxnard (Channel) 4-0-1 4 4 Antelope Valley (Golden) 4-1 5 5 Thousand Oaks (Marmonte) 4-0-1 6 6 Hart (Foothill) 3-2 7 7 Rio Mesa (Channel) 5-0 8 8 Notre Dame (Mission) 4-1 9 9 Newbury Park (Marmonte) 4-1 10 10 Palmdale (Golden) 4-1

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