Canoga Park’s Redmond Ineligible

The rocky high school basketball career of Canoga Park’s David Redmond came to a grinding halt Monday when he was declared academically ineligible for the remainder of the season.

Redmond, a 6-foot-8 senior center and one of the region’s best post players, did not achieve the minimum required grade-point average during the winter semester, which ended Friday.

“He’s out,” Coach Ralph Turner said. “It’s not something that surprised either one of us.”

Redmond, who quit the Birmingham team after six games last season and transferred to Canoga Park in March, averaged 19.2 points, 13.5 rebounds and 5.7 blocks for the Hunters (12-9).

*

Melolini Malaki, a guard on the Burroughs High girls’ basketball team, is academically ineligible. Malaki was averaging 10 points and 11 rebounds a game.

*

Mitchell Miranda, a junior forward on the Sherman Oaks CES High boys’ soccer team, is academically ineligible. Miranda scored 11 goals for the Knights.

*

College bound: Westlake tennis players Katy and Erin Smith have committed to the University of Portland, Katy said on Tuesday.

The twins were all-Marmonte league selections each of the past two seasons and helped Westlake to the Southern Section Division III final in the fall.

*

Antelope Valley High running back Eric Mobley is expected to sign a letter of intent today with Oregon State after making a commitment last weekend. Mobley, a 5-11, 185-pound senior, rushed for 407 yards and seven touchdowns in an injury-riddled season after rushing for nearly 3,000 in two years at Antelope Valley Christian.

*

Injury report: Poly’s Ellis Richardson, a 6-3 senior forward who is averaging 18.3 points a game, will miss today’s key Mid-Valley League game against Sylmar (11-9, 4-2).

Richardson sprained his ankle in the fourth quarter of a game against Reseda on Jan. 29 and hasn’t played since. Poly (15-5, 6-0) debuts this week in the Times’ Top 10 poll at No. 7.

*

Jacob Rice of Palmdale, the Falcons’ only returning league wrestling champion entering Saturday’s Golden League finals at Antelope Valley, is out for the rest of the season because of a separated shoulder.

Rice, a junior and 26-3 at 152 pounds, suffered the injury Jan. 8 against Burroughs but continued to compete despite pain for the next few weeks.

“Now he’s in a sling for six months,” Palmdale Coach Gary Dickerson said.

*

On track: Jon Fleming, the defensive coordinator for the Alemany High football team last season, has been hired as the head boys’ and girls’ track coach at the school.

*

Bad call: Chatsworth High boys’ soccer Coach Desmond Willows has been suspended indefinitely by school officials after arguing with a referee last Thursday following the Chancellors’ match with Granada Hills.

Willows said he was angered by a call and followed the referee to his car where he was joined by a Chatsworth parent, who used obscene language.

Willows, in his fourth year coaching the team, said Chatsworth officials will reevaluate his suspension once written statements from the match’s two referees are received.

*

Last words: Russell Prior, the Oak Park High boys’ soccer team’s leading scorer, has been suspended for the remainder of the season, Eagle Coach Zoran Lomic said.

Prior, an All-Tri-Valley League forward who had 18 goals, was ejected after a Jan. 16 match against Fillmore because he cursed at the referees. Last Friday, school officials suspended the senior as a result of that incident.

*

Changing course: Newbury Park golfer Alicia Um has transferred to Westlake High for her senior year under the Conejo Valley School District open enrollment policy.

Um, the 1996 Southern California PGA Junior girls’ champion, was expected to be the top golfer for the Panthers. Westlake is the defending Southern California Golf Association High School team champion.

*

Change of heart: Dan Murphy, who resigned as the Thousand Oaks boys’ track coach at the end of last season in order to spend more time with his family, will coach the Lancer girls’ team this season.

*

Bryan Krill, a former sprinter at Thousand Oaks, was originally hired to replace Scott Veres as girls’ coach. But when Thousand Oaks had difficulty in finding a qualified replacement for Murphy, Krill was given the boys’ position and Murphy agreed to come back as the girls’ coach.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Girls Basketball Top 10

Rankings of regional high schools by sportswriters of The Times:

*--*

RK LW TEAM (League) REC. 1 1 Buena (Channel) 18-2 2 2 Crescenta Valley (Pacific) 21-2 3 3 Palmdale (Golden) 20-3 4 4 Bell-Jeff (Camino Real) 22-1 5 5 Quartz Hill (Golden) 14-2 6 6 Alemany (Mission) 18-2 7 7 No. Hollywood (Valley Pac-8) 17-3 8 8 Kennedy (Northwest Valley) 18-3 9 9 Harvard-Westlake (Mission) 17-6 10 10 Nordhoff (Frontier) 18-3

*--*

Boys Basketball Top 10

Rankings of regional high schools by sportswriters of The Times:

*--*

RK LW TEAM (League) REC. 1 1 Harvard-Westlake (Mission) 24-1 2 2 Antelope Valley (Golden) 18-6 3 3 Simi Valley (Marmonte) 18-2 4 6 Hart (Foothill) 18-5 5 5 Cleveland (Northwest Valley) 16-5 6 8 Chaminade (Mission) 16-5 7 NR Poly (Valley Pac-8) 15-5 8 NR Santa Clara (Frontier) 14-4 9 9 L.A. Baptist (Alpha) 19-1 10 4 Rio Mesa (Channel) 14-5

*--*