Newbury Park Bringing Back Its Glory Days

Anybody remember John Martens? How about Monte Harrick?

The 1981 Newbury Park High basketball team, which was 25-1 and lost in the Southern Section semifinals to San Marcos at the Sports Arena, will celebrate its 20-year reunion Friday night at halftime of the Panthers’ Marmonte League home game against Westlake.

Ken Barone, who coached the team before becoming coach at Ventura College and an assistant at UCLA, is retiring as a teacher and will be presented with a gift by the team.

Among the players who will attend are Martens, the 6-foot-9 center who went on to star at San Francisco and San Diego State, and Harrick, the point guard whose father, Jim, is the coach at Georgia. Rick Maloney, former All-Southern Section forward, also will be there.

“That was Newbury Park’s best record ever,” said Jay Dodwell, a member of the 1981 team who is director of the Thousand Oaks Teen Center. “Most of us have remained friends for two decades. Getting some recognition after so long should be a lot of fun.”