Westchester Loses Final Appeal on Ban

Only hours before the opening round of the City Section boys’ basketball playoffs began on Friday, Westchester learned its final attempt to overturn postseason sanctions had been denied.

Marie Ishida, executive director of the California Interscholastic Federation, refused to reverse a one-year playoff ban against Westchester for an alleged recruiting violation. The decision left Westchester unable to compete for a third consecutive state Division I title and a fifth consecutive City Section title.

“We’ve exhausted all remedies at this point,” Principal Dana Perryman said.

Last week, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge denied a request to issue a temporary restraining order sought by attorneys representing Perryman, Coach Ed Azzam and players Rogdrick Craig and Amir Johnson.

A City Section rules committee banned Westchester from postseason play for one year after hearing testimony that a Westchester assistant coach recruited Johnson, a 6-foot-9 junior center, from Los Angeles Verbum Dei last summer.

Johnson was banned from practice and interscholastic play for one year for allegedly giving false testimony at the Dec. 16 hearing, and Westchester assistant Marlon Morton was barred from coaching at any City Section school for one year.

Johnson and Morton have denied the allegations, which were largely based on eyewitness testimony from two Verbum Dei administrators.

“We still say the allegations are not true,” Perryman said. “I’m deeply disappointed at CIF’s treatment of our students.”

Eric Sondheimer and Rob Fernas

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UCLA-bound guards Arron Afflalo of Compton Centennial and Jordan Farmar of Woodland Hills Taft were chosen to play in the McDonald’s All-American game March 31 in Oklahoma City.

They will be joined on the West team by USC-bound center Robert Swift of Bakersfield.

Afflalo, Swift and Gabe Pruitt of Westchester were selected to play for the West in the EA Sports Roundball Classic on March 24 in Chicago. The East team will feature former Lawndale Leuzinger standout Dorell Wright, a 6-8, fifth-year senior at South Kent (Conn.) Prep.

The Rialto Eisenhower boys’ basketball team finally let go of its Southern Section title Friday night, falling 61-59 in overtime to host Temecula Valley.

The visiting Eagles (12-17), the defending champions in Division I-AA, finished fourth in the Citrus Belt League and had to win three of their final four games to earn the minimum number of victories required to be eligible for a wild-card berth.

Eisenhower escaped with a 66-65 overtime victory Wednesday over host Glendale, but couldn’t do the same against Temecula Valley, falling behind for good on David Hodge’s layup with 15 seconds left in overtime.

Hodge scored 15 points to lead Temecula Valley (21-5).

Dan Arritt

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Boys’ Soccer

Goals have not come easily for Santa Ana Mater Dei in its last four games, but the Monarchs’ defense is on a roll heading into a second-round game of the Southern Section Division I playoffs against visiting Quartz Hill on Tuesday.

Mater Dei (13-2-6) has given up only one goal in its last four games and that score came on a penalty kick by Tomer Knoweiki with a minute left in the second half of a 2-1 double-overtime victory at Long Beach Poly in a first-round game Friday. Chris Dunckel scored three minutes into the second overtime for Mater Dei.

El Shaddai Bent scored three goals for Quartz Hill in a 3-2 victory over visiting Rialto Eisenhower in the first round.

John Ortega

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Girls’ Soccer

Two players from Glendora St. Lucy’s have been ruled ineligible by the Southern Section for participation in an indoor soccer league, according to St. Lucy’s Athletic Director Judy Hartranft.

Players cannot take part in nonsanctioned athletic competition during high school play.

St. Lucy’s finished second to Chino Hills Ayala in the Sierra League. Because playoff brackets had been posted, Hartranft said section officials didn’t take any immediate action.

The Regents visit Mt. Baldy League runner-up Pomona Diamond Ranch in the first round of Southern Section Division I playoffs today.

The South Coast League had all four Southern Section Division I semifinalists last season: San Clemente, Mission Viejo, Mission Viejo Capistrano Valley and Lake Forest El Toro.

Only two of those four teams, top-seeded San Clemente (13-2-7), ranked No. 1 in the Southland by the Times, and at-large entry Capistrano Valley (10-5-6) are in this season’s field.

The surprise team was South Coast runner-up Mission Viejo Trabuco Hills (12-5-8), which used a late-game comeback to tie San Clemente, 2-2, in mid-January to spark its run to the playoffs. After going winless in league last season, Trabuco Hills had only two league losses this season. The Mustangs play host to Anaheim Esperanza today.

“They are a physical team,” Coach Dan Moreno said. “We know we’re in for a good match.”

Elia Powers

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Coaching Changes

* Dusan Ancich has been named the football coach at Whittier California. He coached the last two seasons at Cerritos, compiling an 11-9 record. California was 7-4 in the fall and took second in the Del Rio League in the final season of Coach Jim Patricio, who retired.

* Martin Smith will not be returning for a third season as football coach at Westchester. The school has begun looking for a replacement.

* Scott Russell, who coached the Rialto Eisenhower baseball team to six league titles and the 1996 Southern Section Division IV title, has resigned after 10 years at the school. Russell has been approved to teach at Rialto Carter, a new high school scheduled to open this fall. Rialto girls’ basketball coach Jamie Mickens has also been approved to teach at Carter.