49ers’ Winning Streak On the Line

Long Beach State’s 15-match home winning streak will be tested when the 49ers host Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Thursday and UC Santa Barbara Saturday, both at 7:30 p.m.

Junior Tayyiba Haneef, from Laguna Hills High, is hitting .387 for the defending Big West Conference champion 49ers (13-5, 4-3), who are in fifth place. San Luis Obispo (11-5, 5-2), which is tied for third with Idaho State, is led by the conference’s top blocking duo that includes former Sonora High standout Worthy Lien.

Lien, a sophomore, ranks third in the conference with 1.60 blocks per game. She had nine block assists Friday in the Mustangs’ sweep of Irvine.

Santa Barbara (14-3, 6-1) is tied with Pacific atop the conference standings. The Gauchos, who have won five in a row, are headed by former Foothill middle blocker Danielle Bauer, who has reached double digits in kills in 12 consecutive matches.

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Despite a sore foot, former Golden West College and Marina High middle blocker Julie Renfrow had a solid outing last weekend for Wichita State. The Shockers took a 2-15 record into the Southwest Missouri State tournament, but came away with two victories. Renfrow totaled 31 kills and 33 digs in three matches.

Other former Rustlers, Carla Miali and Charnette Fair, are having fine seasons. Miali, a 5-8 setter who attended Fountain Valley High and Maryland, had 46 assists last week for Weber State in its sweep of Portland State. Fair, a 6-0 middle blocker, has 171 kills and has been in on 62 blocks for seventh-ranked Minnesota.

Two former county standouts came off the bench in the final two games to help William and Mary sweep UC Irvine Sunday. Junior outside hitter Kristin Gundersen, from Laguna Beach, had eight kills and 10 digs. Freshman setter Alexis Cochrane, from El Dorado High, saw action primarily in the back row.

FOOTBALL

Former Orange Coast College player Doug McDaniel of Apple Valley is a middle linebacker at West Liberty (W.Va.) State, an NCAA Division II college.

McDaniel was named West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference defensive player of the week for an outstanding effort in preserving the Hilltoppers’ 20-17 victory over West Virginia State recently. McDaniel had nine tackles, an interception and a fumble recovery, which set up the game-winning score. His interception with 47 seconds remaining in the game sealed the victory.

His effort left him tied for the team lead with 33 tackles.

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A baseball player has been one of the few bright spots in Chapman’s 1-5 start.

Bobby Calderon, who attended El Modena High and Orange Coast College, has averaged 99 yards per game as a receiver. He leads the team with six touchdowns.

Calderon played shortstop on the Chapman baseball team the last two seasons.

SOCCER

Bobby Bruch, who spent most of the past four years as director for West Coast F.C., a youth soccer club in Mission Viejo, has been hired as the coach of Seattle Pacific’s first women’s soccer team, Athletic Director Tom Box announced Tuesday.

Bruch, a Seattle Pacific graduate, is currently an assistant in the men’s program and has agreed to continue in that position. A college standout, Bruch played professionally for eight years, including a stint with the Anaheim Splash.

He began his coaching career at Marina High in 1992. Under Bruch, the Vikings won three consecutive Southern Section Division I championships and went unbeaten in his final 61 games as coach.

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Deputy sports editor Bob Rohwer contributed to this story.

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