Colton Earns One for the Citrus Belt

Colton’s 29-24 victory over visiting Santa Margarita on Friday doubled the Citrus Belt League’s victory total in the playoffs over the last three seasons.

Rialto Eisenhower had been the league’s only team to win a playoff game in that time, beating Anaheim Servite, 20-17, in a first-round game in 2002.

Including first-round losses by Eisenhower, Redlands and Redlands East Valley, Citrus Belt teams over the last five years have a combined record of 9-20 -- worst in the division, which includes the Moore, Serra and Sunset leagues.

Some have speculated the Citrus Belt may drop down a level when the section restructures its football playoff divisions after next season.

The league’s downfall, some say, can be traced to the recent opening of a number of schools in the fast-growing Inland Empire, including Fontana Kaiser and Redlands East Valley, which has dispersed the available talent.

Colton Coach Harold Strauss, whose team played in the Division V San Andreas League last season, said the situation is not unique.

“Before it wasn’t affecting Mater Dei, Loyola or even Poly, but now if you look, I think it’s even affecting those schools,” he said.

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Loyola Coach Steve Grady is still trying to understand how his team was called for three sideline interference penalties in its 28-14 Division I playoff victory over Huntington Beach Edison on Friday. Grady was one penalty away from being ejected.

“We’ve never gotten a sideline penalty in my 29 years of coaching and now we have three,” he said.

Sideline administration has been one of the points of emphasis in officiating this season. The Long Beach officiating crew that worked the game has strictly enforced the rule that requires players to be six feet behind the sideline and no more than three coaches in the box.

But the Southern Section office told officials before the playoffs to make sure common sense was used since a range of enforcement took place during the regular season.

“I’m under the impression [the officials] will work with us,” Grady said. “I have 90 kids on the sideline, and we do a fairly decent job.”

-- Eric Sondheimer

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L.A. Marshall will play host to South Gate at 7 tonight in a City Invitational quarterfinal, thanks in part to $2,500 provided from the city of Los Angeles’ general city purposes funds.

Marshall, which was built and opened in the early 1930s, does not have lights at Mike Haynes Stadium. Since the City Section stipulates that each quarterfinal game must be played at night, Marshall administrators either had to bring lights to the campus or play the game elsewhere. Councilman Tom LaBonge helped arrange for the funds, which are to be used to assist neighborhood services.