VALLEY / VENTURA COUNTY SPORTS : More Top Athletes Switching Schools Than Ever Before : Following trend of rampant transferring, Taft High loses basketball standout Cecil Brown to Canoga Park.

If it’s September, then it’s time to see which top athletes transferred for the 1999-2000 school year.

Transfers among athletes have increased considerably since open enrollment began in 1994.

Each summer, coaches hold their breath, not knowing who’s staying, coming or going. More and more, seniors are willing to leave behind friends to spend one year at a new high school with a winning program.

No coach suffered a bigger blow Wednesday than boys’ basketball Coach Mark Drucker of Taft. Junior guard Cecil Brown checked out of Taft in the afternoon and transferred to Canoga Park. The Toreadors also lost senior forward Thaddis Bosley, who transferred to Chatsworth.

Earlier this summer, junior forward Kingsley Anyanwu transferred from Taft to Crespi. But Taft picked up 6-foot-8 Gregg Guenther from Crespi and freshman Steve Smith, who played for Alemany during the summer.

Is this madness or an example of high school athletics in 1999?

“It’s the life of being a high school coach now, meaning you either have to deal with it or you get out,” said a frustrated Drucker.

In baseball, three top seniors switched schools.

Michael Grossman, the starting third baseman at El Camino Real, transferred to Calabasas, which returns seven starters from its Frontier League championship squad.

Matt Parris, ace pitcher at Paraclete, transferred to Highland.

Drew Kennedy, one of Highland’s best pitchers, transferred to Palmdale, where he’ll likely be the No. 2 pitcher behind highly touted Matt Harrington.

The most intriguing transfer involves junior Andrew Strickland, who batted .368 last season as the first baseman for Cleveland.

Strickland was considered Chatsworth’s catcher of the future as a freshman, but he transferred to Cleveland last year after seeing he’d have a difficult time starting on the Chatsworth varsity as a sophomore.

Now Strickland has transferred back to Chatsworth, leaving Coach Tom Meusborn with a dilemma. Should Meusborn show loyalty to the players who stayed or give Strickland every opportunity to earn a starting spot?

“There’s no way he’s a starter at this time,” Meusborn said.

Meusborn faced a similar situation last season when the Spector brothers, Jeff and Jason, transferred from Taft. After intense winter competition, the Spectors became starters and helped Chatsworth win the City Championship.

Jason Zuniga, a junior outfielder, also is transferring from Cleveland to Chatsworth.

Two sophomore baseball players seeking stronger competition have transferred to Notre Dame and El Camino Real, respectively.

Outfielder Steve Moss, the Delphic League co-player of the year last season at Brentwood, could start immediately for Notre Dame. Christian Hariot, who batted .608 at Faith Baptist, will challenge for an infield spot at El Camino Real.

Anthony Davis, a 6-foot-5 junior basketball player from Locke, transferred to Cleveland. He’s capable of averaging more than 20 points a game.

Brandon Robinson, who played for Alemany this summer after attending school in Texas, has enrolled at Sylmar.

No girls’ basketball transfer will have a greater impact than Courtney Young, a 5-10 junior who moves from Crossroads to Buena. Young was rated the No. 2 sophomore in the nation by one publication last season, when she averaged 26 points and 12 rebounds.

Buena also picked up Britney Hamilton, a sophomore guard, from Campolindo in Northern California.

Most experts now consider Buena a heavy favorite to win the state Division I championship, but Coach Joe Vaughan remains cautious.

“There haven’t been any state titles won on paper,” Vaughan said.

In boys’ tennis, Jesse Ferlianto, the Foothill League singles champion as a freshman at Hart, transferred to Harvard-Westlake.

Staff writer Lauren Peterson contributed to this story.