Tologs make it a winter to remember
GLENDALE — Editor’s Note: The following is a recap of the 2010 local sports scene from the winter and spring seasons.
Plenty of championships were won throughout the first half of the 2010 sports year. They came in the form of team and individual success, whether on the fields, courts, track or pool. Some teams went on to achieve success by winning league crowns or a Southern California Regional Championship.
A handful of athletes received all-league and All-CIF accolades after guiding their respective squads to top-notch seasons.
Whether it came in the form of individual, team or coaching success, the area had an abundance of big stories at the high school, collegiate and professional levels.
WINTER
GIRLS’ SOCCER
After years of chasing down a championship, Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy finally tracked it down. After taking second in the Mission League, the Tologs used a talented cast to march to the CIF Southern Section Division II semifinals. Though they fell to Beckman in penalty kicks, the Tologs were awarded a spot in the CIF Southern California Regional Division III Championships.
The Tologs, led by All-Area Player of the Year Natalie Zeenni, captured the championship with a 2-1 come-from-behind victory against Francis Parker of San Diego.
Sacred Heart ended its season with a stellar 22-1-4 mark, with a dramatic 3-2 CIF Southern Section Division II quarterfinal comeback win over Saugus keying its longest playoff run in program history. The Tologs also went 7-0-3 in league, finishing a spot behind Harvard-Westlake despite an unbeaten record.
Crescenta Valley High won its second straight Pacific League championship and Flintridge Prep gained a piece of the Prep League title. The Falcons advanced to the Division II second round and then saw Coach Reggie Rivas turn the program over to former Falcon standout Jorden Schulz. Flintridge Prep fell in a Division III opening-round match.
Five Tologs — Zeenni, Katie Johnson, Breeana Koemans, Alexa Montgomery and Sarah Teegarden — earned All-CIF accolades They were joined by Crescenta Valley’s Frances Boukidis, Dana Dowse and Amanda Rose Johnson.
BOYS’ SOCCER
Under the direction of first-year Coach Kiel McClung, Crescenta Valley High won its first Pacific League championship before falling in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division IV playoffs. St. Francis, Hoover and Glendale also qualified for the postseason.
The Golden Knights lost in a Division I second-round match, while the Tornadoes and Nitros dropped Division IV wild-card matches.
St. Francis’ Max Cadena and Dante Ramunno received All-CIF recognition.
GIRLS’ BASKETBALL
The area saw the last stage of fine careers of Cassie Pappas of Crescenta Valley and Megan Musashi of Flintridge Prep. Each helped lead their respective teams to the quarterfinals.
Pappas was named the Pacific League’s co-Player of the Year and secured All-CIF Southern Section Division IA first-team honors after helping the Falcons advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2001. Pappas, who was voted the All-Area Player of the Year, averaged 25.2 points per game and was fifth in points scored and eighth in scoring average in the state.
Musashi concluded her four-year career with the Rebels by earning All-CIF Division VAA first-team accolades. The All-Prep League first-team member averaged 18.1 points per game in league.
Flintridge Sacred Heart, Glendale Adventist Academy and Holy Family all qualified for the playoffs. Each fell in the opening round.
BOYS’ BASKETBALL
Five local teams advanced to the playoffs after getting through the trials and tribulations of the regular season. Renaissance Academy had the deepest postseason run among the area squads by advancing to the CIF Southern Section Division VA semifinals.
Flintridge Prep, Crescenta Valley, St. Francis and Hoover also joined Renaissance in the postseason. Crescenta Valley and St. Francis moved on past the first round, while Flintridge Prep and Hoover lost their opening-round contests.
For the second straight season, CV’s Coltrane Powdrill was named the All-Area Player of the Year. Powdrill averaged 17 points per game and helped the Falcons win their first playoff game since 2002.
St. Francis’ Tommy Jordan, Kenyatta Smith of Flintridge Prep, Renaissance’s Gill Tacita, Bryan Bourgeois and Dushon Carter and Powdrill earned All-CIF Southern Section notice.
GIRLS’ WATER POLO
The main storyline proved to be Crescenta Valley’s Kim Fraisse, who registered a school-record 129 goals to earn All-Area Player of the Year honors. Fraisse helped the Falcons reach the CIF Southern Section Division IV quarterfinals for the third season in a row and earned All-CIF first-team accolades for the second straight season.
Crescenta Valley and Glendale were the only area teams to qualify for the playoffs. Glendale, under first-year Coach Forest Holbrook, reached the second round of the Division IV playoffs.
Fraisse was one of five Crescenta Valley players named to the All-CIF Southern Section Division IV team. Fraisse earned a spot on the first team, while Sofie Munoz, Julia Warden and Christine Cho were named to the second team and Adrienne Ingalla was placed on the third team.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Neither the Glendale Community College men’s or women’s teams qualified for the Southern California Regionals.
The men’s team finished 14-14 and 5-7 in the Western State Conference.
The women’s squad went 12-15 and 5-7. Coach Monica Hang left the Vaqueros after five seasons to take the head coaching job at conference rival L.A. Valley College. Hang was replaced by Carrie Miller.
BOXING
While 2009 was a historic year for boxing in Glendale, heralded by the return of the sport after a 62-year ban with the summertime showcase Glendale Glory, 2010 saw the sweet science’s presence in the Jewel City expand with Glendale Glory 2 at the Glendale Civic Auditorium on Jan. 8.
Televised live on ESPN’s “Friday Night Fights,” the card featured a dramatic come-from-behind knockout victory by Roman “Made In Hell” Karmazin in an International Boxing Federation middleweight title eliminator bout as its centerpiece.
Karmazin rallied to put Dionisio Miranda down twice in the 10th of 12 scheduled rounds, including a decisive flurry that stopped the fight at the 2:34 mark.
Spurred on by the success of the first two Glendale Glory shows, Art of Boxing Promotions, which is helmed by Glendale resident Kahren Harutunyan, and Bash Boxing staged Glendale Glory 3 at the Civic Auditorium on Oct. 22.
SPRING
GIRLS’ SWIMMING
The swimming scene was dominated by Flintridge Sacred Heart’s Andrea Kropp, who closed out her high school career in style. Kropp, the All-Area Girls’ Swimmer of the Year, helped the Tologs share the Mission League championship.
At the league finals, Kropp took first in the 200-yard individual medley and 100 breaststroke. She finished her three-year career with eight league titles.
Kropp kicked things off by winning her first crown in the 200 IM in 2 minutes 5.30 seconds. Then, in the breaststroke, Kropp broke her own meet record with a mark of 1:04.39.
Then Kropp showed she could compete at an even higher stage.
Kropp concluded her stellar high school career by winning the 100 breaststroke at the CIF Southern Section Division I swimming and diving championships in 1:01.23 at Belmont Plaza pool in Long Beach.
Glendale’s Katalina Sher concluded her stellar Nitros tenure with two Pacific League titles and another to the CIF finals.
BOYS’ SWIMMING
Crescenta Valley’s Young Tae Seo and Harrison Thai were the standards when it came to the boys’ swimming scene.
Seo, the All-Area Boys’ Swimmer of the Year, gradually got better with every race. Seo won a pair of events at the CIF Masters Meet at Belmont Plaza pool in Long Beach. He captured the 200-individual medley in 1 minute 50.71 seconds and then captured the 500 in 4:32.91.
Earlier, at the CIF Southern Section Division I finals in Long Beach, Seo clocked 1:50.14 to win the 200-individual medley. He then turned in a mark of 4:27.38 to take second in the 500 freestyle, in addition to helping Crescenta Valley’s 200 medley and 400 freestyle relay teams take second and fifth, respectively. Crescenta Valley finished second behind Oaks Christian.
At the Division I finals, Thai finished second in the 100 breaststroke, just missing his first CIF title by .19 seconds when he took runner-up in the 100 breaststroke. Later, Thai took third in the 100 backstroke in 51.73.
BASEBALL
Crescenta Valley and Flintridge Prep reached the CIF Southern Section playoffs and were eliminated right off the bat. Crescenta Valley fell to Northwood in a Division II wild-card game. Flintridge Prep suffered a Division VI first-round road loss against Capistrano Valley Christian.
Crescenta Valley and Flintridge Prep had one player apiece pick up All-CIF honors with Elliott Surrey of Crescenta Valley and Royce Park of Flintridge Prep.
SOFTBALL
No teams won a league championship, but there were several standout athletes who graced the diamond. Crescenta Valley pitcher Erin Ashby went 13-6 and struck out 137 en route to being named the All-Area Player of the Year. She also secured All-CIF Division III accolades.
Three teams — Crescenta Valley, Flintridge Prep and Holy Family — made the playoffs. Crescenta Valley lost in the first round of the Division III playoffs, Flintridge Prep was eliminated in a Division V wild-card game and Holy Family was dispatched in a Division VI wild-card contest.
COLLEGE BASEBALL
Glendale Community College suffered through a season that resulted in it going 15-21 and 7-14 in the Western State Conference. The Vaqueros did not qualify for the postseason. Pitcher Richie Valenzuela was named to the All-Western State Conference first team, as one of six Glendale Community College baseball players to earn all-conference recognition.
Outfielder Jason Ochart and pitcher Clay Dungfelder made the all-conference second team. Honorable mention went to catcher Erik Suarez, shortstop Ruben Padilla and pitcher Joe Stephen.
COLLEGE SOFTBALL
Glendale Community College finished 16-21 and 8-10 in the Western State Conference. The Vaqueros didn’t qualify for the Southern California Regionals.
BOYS’ TRACK AND FIELD
There proved to be plenty of established athletes on the track and field scene. Among them were Mike Davis of Glendale in the sprints, Hoover’s Joseph Roach in the hurdles, Levi Walker, Bryan Yaung and Andrew Roide of Crescenta Valley in the jumps, James Maturan of Crescenta Valley in the middle-distance races and David Chirikian of St. Francis in the shot put.
GIRLS’ TRACK AND FIELD
Melanie Samvalian of Crescenta Valley was named the All-Area Track and Field Athlete of the Year. Samvalian won a Pacific League championship in the shot put and then finished sixth at the CIF Southern Section Division I finals. Samvalian also excelled in the discus, winning a league crown. Other top athletes included Jessica Beerman and Tiernan Hebron of Crescenta Valley in the sprint and middle-distance events, respectively, Brooke Elby of Flintridge Prep in the hurdles and Tina Smith of Flintridge Sacred Heart in the pole vault.
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD
The Glendale Community College women’s team placed second in the Western State Conference and the men’s team took sixth. A number of Vaqueros qualified for the California Community College Athletic Assn. Track and Field Championships at Antelope Valley College.
Leading the way was women’s runner Rosa Del Toro, who emerged as a state champion in the 1,500-meter race with a mark of 4 minutes 43.88 seconds. The Vaqueros finished fifth with 58 points.
Seven Glendale runners combined for eight All-American individual honors over the two-day championships. Del Toro, Karen Rosas and Samantha Bogatz earned two All-American nods each. Del Toro placed third in the 5,000 (18:28.24). Rosas, who had finished second in the 10,000 (39.52.98), took second in the 5,000 (18:14.22). Bogatz finished fifth in the 100 (11.88) and fifth in the 200 (24.72).
Angie Gonzalez took sixth in 12:19.78 in the 3,000 steeplechase. Jonathan Alpizar of the men’s team took fifth in the steeplechase (9:48.93).
Also in the 5,000, Nina Moore grabbed fifth (18:50.79). Vivian Ochoa finished fourth in the 10,000 (40.10.14).
BOYS’ VOLLEYBALL
Three teams advanced to the playoffs — Flintridge Prep, Crescenta Valley and Glendale Adventist Academy. Flintridge Prep clinched a share of the Prep League championship for the first time since 2002 and reached the second round of the CIF Southern Section Division V playoffs. Crescenta Valley lost in the first round of the Division II playoffs, while Glendale Adventist was eliminated in the first round of the Division V postseason.
Edmund Chow and Kenyatta Smith of Flintridge Prep received All-CIF second and third-team honors, respectively.
MEN’S TENNIS
Glendale Community College played one of its most difficult schedules in recent memory and finished 6-11 and 3-5 in the Western State Conference. The Vaqueros didn’t qualify for the Southern California Regionals.
Five Glendale men’s singles players and two doubles teams received all-conference accolades.
The highest honor went to the men’s No. 1 doubles team of sophomores Emanuel Haug and Joey Tresierras, who secured co-first-team conference honors. Haug and Tresierras advanced to the round of 16 at the Southern California Regionals.
The Vaqueros No. 3 doubles tandem of sophomore Dinusha Wijesuriya and freshman Garn Sangsuriyakul earned second-team honors. In singles, Tresierras earned second-team honors at No. 1, while Haug snagged second-team honors at the No. 2 spot.
In addition, Paul Nagapetyan was honorable mention at No. 3, Wijesuriya was honorable mention at No. 4 and Chaz Hall received honorable mention at No. 6.
WOMENS TENNIS
Glendale Community College wound up at 4-11 and 2-8 in the Western State Conference and didn’t qualify for the Southern California Regionals.
One singles player and a doubles team earned all-conference accolades. Minelli Ebrahimi earned a pair of postseason honors, as she received honorable mention at No. 3 singles and teamed with sophomore Sarah Aguilar to secure honorable mention at No. 1 doubles.
BOYS’ TENNIS
A trio of teams qualified for the CIF Southern Section Division II playoffs in Crescenta Valley, Glendale and Flintridge Prep. All were defeated in the first round. Glendale’s doubles team of Jeff Asano and Elliot Kim advanced to the finals of the Pacific League Tournament for a second season in a row.
MEN’S GOLF
In its third year of existence, Glendale Community College’s program took fourth in the Western State Conference. A pair of Vaqueros reached the Southern California Regionals in Murrieta. Brennan Amirkhizi placed 26th and Nick Quintanilla took 49th at the event at the SCGA Course.
BOYS’ GOLF
Crescenta Valley finished third in the Pacific League. It turned to Michael Timpson, who won the league’s individual golf championship after he shot a one-over-par 72 to finish with a two-day 144 at the De Bell Golf Club in Burbank. The Falcons took 13th at the CIF Southern Section Northern Team Divisional. Timpson then finished tied for 38th at the CIF Southern Section Northern Individual Regional.
St. Francis finished fifth at the Mission League final and didn’t advance to CIF
Flintridge Prep also didn’t qualify for CIF, but freshman Jack Bouchard placed second in the Prep League individual final. Bouchard would go on to qualify for the regionals.
