Runners, teams ready for prelims Burbank High...

Runners, teams ready for prelims

Burbank High senior Preston Richardson and Burroughs junior Katie

Vahoviak know what it’s like to run in big cross-country races.

Today, the two will take to the course to compete in the CIF

Southern Section preliminaries at Mount San Antonio College in

Walnut.

Richardson will be competing in the Division I boys’ race at

approximately 2:40 p.m. with his Bulldog team. Vahoviak will be

running as an individual in the girls’ Division II race at 11:02 a.m.

Also competing will be the Bellarmine-Jefferson boys’ team -- in

the Division IV race at 3:34 p.m. -- the Guards’ girls’ team -- in

the Division IV race at 1:30 p.m. -- and Providence’s Nadia Simon --

as an individual in the Division IV race at 8 a.m.

Vahoviak, who finished fourth in last week’s Foothill League

final, is making her third appearance in the prelims.

Richardson -- the league runner-up -- is a veteran of the

postseason and is in the event for the third consecutive year. Last

season, he helped lead the Bulldogs to the Division II final and a

berth in the CIF-State Cross-Country Championships.

Burbank will have to run well to advance to the Southern Section

finals Nov. 22 at Mount SAC, especially after moving up to Division

I.

“They moved four of the best teams from last year in Division II

up to Division I this year,” Burbank boys’ Coach Bob Shaw said. “So

now, Division I is a lot tougher.”

Media City Tribe wins championship

The Media City Tribe, a girls’ youth basketball team, is coming

off a championship performance in a big tournament.

Last weekend, the team won a title in the Swoosh Fall Classic, an

event run by the Central Coast Swoosh and Elite in the Santa Barbara

area.

Burbank won, 33-30, in overtime in the title game

The Media City Tribe won the championship in the Girls’ JV

Division by sweeping all five games played in two days -- with the

last two wins coming in overtime.

With mostly ninth-grade players from Burbank and Sun Valley, the

team is coached by Bear Whitfield. The team has played year-round for

Whitfield for three years, with players joining the squad as Burbank

Park, Recreation and Community Services seasons end.

The team includes: Britney Morgan, Heather Hansen, Carly Brown,

Chrissie Seilie, Liz Reuter, Natalie Kasbarian, Shawnee Carter,

Amanda Bryan, Amanda D’Egidio and Natalie Nichols.

At-large berth Bell-Jeff’s only hope

Beginning the season with a 7-0 record, the Bellarmine- Jefferson

High football team looked is if it was poised to vie for a Santa Fe

League championship, and have a fine run in the CIF Southern Section

Division XII playoffs.

However, after suffering three straight league defeats to finish

the regular season, the Guards’ title hopes went up in smoke.

The losses also severely hampered Bell-Jeff’s shot at even making

the playoffs.

By placing fourth in league, the Guards (7-3, 1-3 in league) have

to hope for the lone at-large berth given in the division.

If the team doesn’t get the at-large bid, it’s out.

The Guards’ losing streak has also led to the team’s downfall in

the division. Three weeks ago, Bell-Jeff held the No. 2 spot,

trailing only Bishop Union. However, this week -- even before

Wednesday’s 25-22 league loss to Panorama City St. Genevieve -- the

Guards plummeted to No. 8.

Jeff Tully