Gonzalez to Resign as Franklin Coach

Franklin Coach Armando Gonzalez, one of the City Section’s longest-tenured coaches, will resign his post after 17 seasons.

Gonzalez, 52, will coach his team through the remainder of the season. Franklin (9-1) will play Dorsey on Thursday night in the first round of the playoffs.

One of the section’s most respected coaches, Gonzalez has presided over 14 league champions and his teams won four 3-A division championships in the 1980s.

He moved his family to Laguna Niguel two years ago and cited a need to be closer to home for his decision.

“The commute has become kind of rough for me,” he said.

Gonzalez is 159-34-3 over three different stints -- 1980-83, 1986-89 and 1994-2002 -- at Franklin and has a 27-year association with his alma mater. He will remain a dean at the school.

Gonzalez said he wants to coach his 12-year-old son Erik when he gets to high school.

“I’m not going to deny if something opens up down there, I’d be interested if it was a good situation,” he said of South Orange County. “I’m not retiring because I’m burned out. I still have a lot of fire in me.”

-- Eric Stephens

The Southern Section will take no action against the Long Beach Wilson boys’ water polo program for an incident two weeks ago that led to a San Clemente player needing 24 stitches to close a gash on his head.

Thom Simmons, section administrator for boys’ water polo, said he found no conclusive evidence that Wilson’s Garrit Barth acted maliciously when he made contact with San Clemente’s Sean Staudenbaur in a game on Nov. 5.

Staudenbaur contended that Barth punched him in the head. Barth said he struck Staudenbaur with his knee, trying to escape his grasp. No penalty was called at the time of the incident and videotape was inconclusive, Simmons said.

With Staudenbaur back in the water Saturday, San Clemente lost, 13-8, to North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake in the second round of the Southern Section Division I playoffs. Wilson (29-0) plays Lake Forest El Toro today at 4:15 p.m. in a Division I semifinal at Newport Harbor.