Grootegoed Makes a Smashing Return in Shrine Game

Matt Grootegoed’s return to the football field could be summarized in one word: “ooh.”

That was the response Grootegoed’s bruising tackles often elicited from the crowd Saturday during the California-Texas Shrine All-Star Football Classic at Cerritos College.

Grootegoed, a safety from Mater Dei High who will play for USC next season, led the California team with 11 tackles and made a key interception in the first quarter.

Not bad, considering it was the first time Grootegoed had played since twisting his right ankle during Mater Dei’s Southern Section Division I championship game in December against Long Beach Poly.

“[The ankle] felt great,” Grootegoed said. “I taped it up and I had no pain.”

Grootegoed’s diving interception of a pass in the California end zone halted a long Texas drive. Afterward, Grootegoed said he relished being back on the field.

“It felt awesome,” he said. “I loved being back out there hitting.”

ROUNDBALL STARS

Troy’s Amanda Livingston, the freshman center for Orange County’s top-ranked girls’ basketball team last season, and Sonora guard Brandi Davis were most valuable players for the winning and losing teams at the Roundball Extravaganza Saturday at Santa Margarita High.

Livingston scored 12 points, all in the second half, to lead her team to a 57-54 victory over a team that included Brea Olinda’s Chelsea Trotter and El Toro’s Giuliana Mendiola. They were The Times’ Orange County players of the year the last two seasons.

“She’s good,” said Trotter, who scored a game-high 16 and left Sunday for Stanford to acclimate herself to the program. “Honestly, I didn’t know who she was.”

But Trotter found out. Livingston went over Trotter for a defensive rebound in the last minute and scored the basket that gave the Red team a 56-54 lead.

“I was kind of surprised [to be MVP],” Livingston said. “I was kind of nervous to play with all these players. I mean, Chelsea Trotter? When I was younger, I was hoping I would never have to play against her, but now she’s one of the top players and it was a great experience.”

Livingston has discovered that she is a changed player after Troy’s run to the Southern Section Division I-A title game: “I was really nervous before the [Chino] Don Lugo game [in the quarterfinals] where we played Diana Taurasi, but since then, I haven’t really been afraid of anyone.”

BIG CONTRIBUTION

Martin Iti was selected the most valuable player for the junior boys’ all-star basketball game at the Roundball Extravaganza after scoring 18 points, grabbing 13 rebounds and blocking six shots.

The 6-foot-11 Iti, who in April transferred from Servite to Villa Park, remains embroiled in an international custody dispute. His mother, who lives in Australia, has said she wants her son to return home so she can assess his future. Iti has said he wants to remain in Orange County with a local guardian, who has filed a petition seeking permanent custody of the 17-year-old.

A preliminary hearing on Iti’s fate is set for July 17 in Orange County Superior Court.

“I’m going to be at Villa Park,” said Iti, who averaged 12 points and 7.6 rebounds per game for Servite last season. “I’m excited.”

As for Australia?

“I’ll be staying here,” Iti said. “My goal is to win a state championship for the school.”

COMMITMENTS

Hillary Hamilton, a softball player from Edison, will attend Barry University in Miami Shores, Fla., according to her father, John. Hamilton played shortstop for the Chargers but was recruited as a second baseman.

IMPRESSIVE DEBUT

The return of the Coaches Classic next season as a second softball all-star game is considered likely. Played the same week as the eighth North-South All-Star game, the coaches’ game had an impressive debut two days after the older game.

Each team had 21 players, seven more than the North-South game, and they played nine innings instead of seven. “Even though I didn’t play as much [as in the North-South game,] I had more fun,” said Sonora’s Andee Lindgren, who will play at Fullerton College.

The expanded roster provided a chance to showcase seniors, including little-known ones like Capistrano Valley Christian’s Lauren Capriotti, who pitched two scoreless innings. It was her last game before attending Tulsa.

Also, the selection process wasn’t limited to two seniors from any school, which allowed all three all-county players from Los Alamitos--Farber, Phelan Wright and Darcey Brown--to participate.

The game was played in the new Col. Bill Barber Marine Corps Memorial Park. The umpires were all retired Marines and Vietnam veterans. Jim Abraham, Butch Locke, Lou Neubecker and Norris Rushing officiate in the Orange County Assn., and donated their time. All are Purple Heart winners; Rushing was awarded it three times.

TOURNAMENT NOTES

* The Panthers Gold softball team defeated American Pastime from Upland to win the ASA national qualifier Sunday in Tustin. Among the local players on the Panthers are Foothill’s Caitlin Lowe, Woodbridge’s Kayla Creamer and El Modena’s Morgan Scott.

* Marina Coach Butch Fredlow has canceled the Firecracker girls’ basketball tournament.

* Christine Johnson of Irvine and Stacy Lindstrom of Laguna Niguel, both midfielders, have been selected to participate in the 2000 Adidas Elite Soccer Program in Memphis. Both play for the Southern California Blues.

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Staff writer Martin Henderson contributed to this report.

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