Belin Has Alta Loma in Rush Toward Title

Running back DeAndre Belin rushed for more than 2,400 yards and scored 36 touchdowns last season while leading La Verne Bonita High to the Division IX football championship. In the process, Belin became one of the most highly regarded college prospects on the West Coast.

Belin transferred to Alta Loma last spring and has helped make the Braves one of the favorites for this season’s Division II championship.

Last Thursday, Belin rushed for 416 yards and scored six touchdowns in a 45-0 victory over Glendora.

Belin, 6 feet and 200 pounds, scored on runs of 25, 18, 56, 94, 12 and 78 yards after being limited to five yards in the first quarter.

“They said moving up to Division II was supposed to be such a big difference,” Belin said. “It’s not such a big difference with a line like that.”

Alta Loma (2-0) plays Chino Hills Ayala (1-1) tonight in a matchup of top Division II teams.

Ayala lost to Division I Santa Margarita in its opener, but rebounded with a 28-21 victory over Norco last Friday.

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The Long Beach Poly girls’ volleyball team made a statement Monday by defeating San Clemente to win the Dave Mohs Memorial tournament at Huntington Beach Edison.

Jennifer Randall, the most valuable player of the tournament, had 15 kills in the Jackrabbits’ 15-8, 16-14 sweep in the final.

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Palos Verdes Peninsula, the defending Division I girls’ tennis champion, appears to be on its way to a repeat if the Panthers stay healthy.

Peninsula dominated powerful Corona del Mar in a 15-3 victory Tuesday, winning all but two singles sets.

Peninsula plays defending Division III champion North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake today.

This is the first year that teams in sports with enrollment-based playoffs are not allowed to move up in divisions. Corona del Mar, which traditionally plays Division I, is competing at Division IV.