Glendale High’s Michael Davis leads cast of athletes that stood out in 2012-13

The top-10 male high school athletes from the 2012-13 season were voted on by the Glendale News-Press sports department. These are selections 2-10. See the Aug. 22 edition for the Male Athlete of the Year.

2 Michael Davis, Glendale High track and football, senior — Success began and ended with speed for the two-way sports star.

The area’s fastest sprinter was a do-it-all first-team All-Pacific League and All-Area pick in football, as well as the first All-CIF football selection for the Nitros in roughly two decades. The BYU-bound talent had seven total touchdowns, including a kick return, a passing touchdown, a rushing score and a reception.

Davis finished with 409 yards receiving, 258 yards rushing and also tallied 45 tackles on defense. In the team’s three victories in 2012, Davis shined, including when he hauled in three receptions for 132 yards and two touchdowns in a 21-3 victory over La Cañada on Sept. 7.

As for track and field, Davis was a member of the Nitros’ Pacific League champion 400-meter relay team, while he individually won 100-meter and 200-meter titles. Davis eventually finished runner-up in the 200 at the CIF Southern Section Division I championships and advanced to the CIF State Finals, where he claimed fifth and a medal.

“Here’s a kid who has lost one league race in his four years and that was at the Pacific League finals his freshman year when he was [just clipped],” Glendale High athletic director Pat Lancaster said during the postseason about Davis’ success in the Pacific League. “He’s helped put Glendale, California, not Glendale, Arizona or anywhere else, but Glendale, California back on the map. He knows how to compete.”

3 Ted Boeke, Crescenta Valley High baseball, senior — The Loyola Marymount-bound infielder/pitcher enjoyed a highly successful 2013 campaign for the Falcons, which included several accolades.

Boeke was named both the Pacific League’s Most Valuable Player and, shortly after receiving that award, also earned an All-CIF Southern Section II first-team pick and, eventually, the All-Area Baseball Player of the Year accolade.

“Getting All-CIF was something I had been striving for since I’ve played varsity ball,” said Boeke upon finding out he had been selected. “A lot of alums from our program have received it, so it’s something special.

“Last summer, I set out to help the team win league and get All-CIF. It’s a dream to be able to do both of those things.”

Boeke batted .378 (34 for 90) with five home runs and 24 runs batted in. He scored 29 runs and registered six doubles and a pair of triples. Boeke finished with a .486 on-base percentage and a .656 slugging percentage.

On the mound, Boeke went 4-1 with an 0.98 earned run average and two complete games. He struck out 53 and walked 22 in 35 2/3 innings covering 11 appearances.

Perhaps as important as any individual accolade, Boeke paced the Falcons to a co-Pacific League championship with his biggest effort coming May 10 in the regular-season finale.

Boeke hammered a game-winning three-run home run at archrival Arcadia in the top of the seventh to give the Falcons an unbelievable 5-4 victory.

His finest overall game arguably came when he earned the win, shutout and no-hitter in the second half of a doubleheader in a 1-0 nonleague win over a formidable Loyola team at USC. Boeke’s two-way play was clear when he doubled and came around to score the game’s only run.

4 Cole Currie, Crescenta Valley High basketball, senior — As the lone returning starter for the Falcons before the 2012-2013 season, much responsibility was heaped on Currie.

Yet, the senior shooting guard rose to the challenge and paced the Falcons to a 23-9 overall record and an 11-3 mark within the Pacific League, which was good for second behind perennial champion Pasadena.

In the CIF Southern Section Division I-A postseason, where the Falcons were awarded the fourth seed, Crescenta Valley posted playoff victories against Paloma Valley, Edison and Long Beach Millikan before falling to top-seeded El Toro in the divisional semifinals.

A week later, Crescenta Valley was eliminated by host Crenshaw in the first round of the state Division I tournament, culminating a season in which the Falcons matched their run of a season prior despite having to replace four starters.

Currie averaged 19.1 points, five rebounds and 4.5 assists per game en route to being named the league’s co-most valuable player and later voted the 2013 All-Area Boys’ Basketball Player of the Year.

“Last year, we expected a lot of success because we had a lot of experienced players who had been together for a long time,” Currie said after the season. “I think this year was a lot more impressive because we didn’t have a lot of guys who had played together.

“We were able to piece things together and developed along the way. That made it that much more fun and rewarding being out there on the court. This season was a lot of fun.”

In June, Currie confirmed he will heading to Louisiana, where he signed a letter of intent to play for Division I Tulane University.

5 Jared Lebowitz, St. Francis High football and lacrosse, senior — The one-time Vermont prep star statistically shined in his final year with the Golden Knights in 2012.

Lebowitz completed 192 of 350 passes (55%) for 2,560 yards and 23 touchdowns to just seven interceptions, as he was part of a young St. Francis squad that often relied on his senior leadership. Lebowitz also added 200 yards rushing and three touchdowns on the ground.

“No doubt, they could’ve been better,” said St. Francis Coach Jim Bonds of his quarterback’s statistics had he been with a team who matched his experience. “We were very young up front [on the offensive line]. That affected Jared two ways. We had difficulty protecting him, but we also had difficulty running the ball. So, everybody knew we had to throw the ball and he still put up big numbers.

“For him to put up the numbers he did is pretty darn impressive.”

As for St. Francis, while the Golden Knights finished with a 4-7 season, they tallied victories over Arcadia, Righetti and West Ranch before topping rival St. Paul, 34-14, in the Mission League finale Nov. 11.

St. Francis did qualify for the postseason and was eliminated in the first round by Lompoc, 42-7.

In January, Lebowitz, who was also a part of the St. Francis lacrosse team’s first-ever season, signed his letter of intent to play football at UNLV.

6 Arman Momdzhyan, Glendale High water polo, junior — The 6-foot-3 junior driver was a force for Glendale, which enjoyed a historic 2012 season.

Momdzhyan enjoyed a stellar individual season in being named to the CIF Southern Section Division V first team shortly after being awarded the Pacific League MVP.

Those honors came after Momdzhyan tallied an-area best 136 goals, while also tallying 25 drawn ejections and 22 assists.

As for Momdzhyan’s squad, the Nitros won the Los Altos Tournament due to a six-goal effort from Momdzhyan in a 14-12 victory over then Division V’s top-seeded La Serna on Sept 25.

Glendale later captured its second straight league crown after having not won a title since 2002 and reached the Division V postseason as the No. 1 seed.

The Nitros advanced to their first-ever CIF-SS championship, where they fell just short to Pasadena Poly, 12-10, on Nov. 17. Glendale finished with a 22-6 record.

7 Robert Cartwright, Flintridge Prep basketball, junior — The incoming senior guard has been involved in a flurry of recruiting activity since the conclusion of his junior year, having been offered by 22 schools as of early August, according to rivals.com.

Much of the fanfare came after Cartwright posted a season in which he averaged 18.9 points, 4.6 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game in being named an All-Area and CIF Southern Section Division V-AA first-teamer, along with being named the Prep League MVP.

“Robert was our leader both on and off the floor with his play on both the defensive and offensive end,” Flintridge Prep Coach Garrett Ohara said after the season. “He made things easier offensively for our guys, getting the guys the ball in the right spots and being able to score.”

Cartwright also led the Rebels to their 11th Prep League championship in the last 12 years before guiding Flintridge Prep (22-7) to a second seed before the start of the postseason.

The Rebels advanced to the semifinals before falling, 60-58, on Feb. 22 to Mission Prep at La Cañada High.

Flintridge Prep also lost a tough battle in the first round of the CIF State Division V playoffs to Village Christian.

8 Harrison Thai, Crescenta Valley High swimming, senior — The phenom was part of a celebrated swimming squad that won a CIF Southern Section Division II championship in 2012.

Thai teamed with Young Tae Seo, Edward Yi and Jacob Ksendzov to establish a new Division II record in the 200-meter medley relay with a mark of 1 minute, 33.39 seconds at the divisional championships at Riverside Community College on May 11.

Thai also claimed the bronze in the 200-yard individual medley in 1:49.94 on an evening in which the Falcons finished runner-up, 285-234, to Los Osos.

More than a week earlier, Thai helped pace the Falcons to their 21st straight Pacific League crown with a victory over Arcadia, 623-402, at league finals.

At the league finale, Thai joined Seo, Eric Park and Yi to win the Pacific League crown in the 400-meter freestyle relay in 3:12.61.

Thai, Seo, Yi and Ksendzov also set a new league record in the 200-medley relay (1:35.98). It bested a mark Thai and Seo had set three years ago (1:37.80) by nearly two seconds.

Thai also owns the league 100 backstroke (51.16 in 2012) and the 200 individual medley (1:51.29) records, two of five Pacific League records he owns.

“We’ve had great success at CIF and league is always a good gauge,” Thai said, “and to beat the previous record by so much is a pretty good indicator we’re ready for CIF.”

9 Charles McCarthy, St. Francis boys’ volleyball, senior — The University of Pacific-headed senior may have been the area’s best offensive talent.

A 6-foot-5 outside hitter, McCarthy led his team with 362 kills and nabbed both a first-team selection on the All-Area and All-Mission League squads.

“A lot of people depended on me to help get the job done,” McCarthy said. “I just went out there and kept trying to improve my game.

“It was a goal of mine to try to get on the first team. There are so many great players in our league and there’s respect out there. It’s definitely a tough league.”

While St. Francis finished 7-12, tied for fifth in place in the Mission League and missed the playoffs, McCarthy did see postseason action at the second annual San Gabriel Valley All-Star Boys’ Volleyball Game at La Salle on June 9.

In that contest, McCarthy was named the Private School MVP after leading all scorers with 28 kills, two blocks and one ace.

As for city dominance, the Golden Knights finished 3-0 with two victories over Flintridge Prep and a win over La Cañada.

10 Chadd Cosse, Flintridge Prep football/boys’ basketball/boys’ volleyball, senior — There might not have been a more well-rounded area athlete than Cosse.

Cosse played an integral part in the Prep League championship Flintridge Prep boys’ volleyball and basketball teams and in the historic run of the football team.

Cosse may have performed best on the gridiron as a tight end and linebacker and earned a CIF Southern Section Northeast Division, All-Area and Prep League first-team honors.

On defense, Cosse tallied 67.5 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 12.5 tackles for loss and two blocked kicks, while being an excellent blocking tight end.

The Rebels (6-5) finished runner-up in the Prep League and won a first-round football playoff game, the first for the team since 2003.

On the basketball court, Cosse was a Prep League second-team selection and finished averaging 8.5 points and 7.4 boards per game as a power forward for the Rebels (22-7), who won the Prep League title and advanced to the semifinals of the Division V-AA playoffs.

Only days after the basketball season concluded, Cosse joined the Rebels’ volleyball team (19-8), which won an undefeated league title and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Division IV playoffs.

The outside hitter was a Prep League first-teamer and led the squad with 203 kills, while adding 69 digs and 16 aces on the year.

Honorable mention: Gabe Collison, Crescenta Valley cross-country and track; Brian Gadsby, Crescenta Valley football and baseball; Gio Martinez, Hoover football and wrestling; Stefan Smith, Flintridge Prep football and track; Karlsen Termini, Flintridge Prep baseball.The top-10 male high school athletes from the 2012-13 season were voted on by the Glendale News-Press sports department. These are selections 2-10. See the Aug. 22 edition for the Male Athlete of the Year.

2 Michael Davis, Glendale High track and football, senior — Success began and ended with speed for the two-way sports star.

The area’s fastest sprinter was a do-it-all first-team All-Pacific League and All-Area pick in football, as well as the first All-CIF football selection for the Nitros in roughly two decades. The BYU-bound talent had seven total touchdowns, including a kick return, a passing touchdown, a rushing score and a reception.

Davis finished with 409 yards receiving, 258 yards rushing and also tallied 45 tackles on defense. In the team’s three victories in 2012, Davis shined, including when he hauled in three receptions for 132 yards and two touchdowns in a 21-3 victory over La Cañada on Sept. 7.

As for track and field, Davis was a member of the Nitros’ Pacific League champion 400-meter relay team, while he individually won 100-meter and 200-meter titles. Davis eventually finished runner-up in the 200 at the CIF Southern Section Division I championships and advanced to the CIF State Finals, where he claimed fifth and a medal.

“Here’s a kid who has lost one league race in his four years and that was at the Pacific League finals his freshman year when he was [just clipped],” Glendale High athletic director Pat Lancaster said during the postseason about Davis’ success in the Pacific League. “He’s helped put Glendale, California, not Glendale, Arizona or anywhere else, but Glendale, California back on the map. He knows how to compete.”

3 Ted Boeke, Crescenta Valley High baseball, senior — The Loyola Marymount-bound infielder/pitcher enjoyed a highly successful 2013 campaign for the Falcons, which included several accolades.

Boeke was named both the Pacific League’s Most Valuable Player and, shortly after receiving that award, also earned an All-CIF Southern Section II first-team pick and, eventually, the All-Area Baseball Player of the Year accolade.

“Getting All-CIF was something I had been striving for since I’ve played varsity ball,” said Boeke upon finding out he had been selected. “A lot of alums from our program have received it, so it’s something special.

“Last summer, I set out to help the team win league and get All-CIF. It’s a dream to be able to do both of those things.”

Boeke batted .378 (34 for 90) with five home runs and 24 runs batted in. He scored 29 runs and registered six doubles and a pair of triples. Boeke finished with a .486 on-base percentage and a .656 slugging percentage.

On the mound, Boeke went 4-1 with an 0.98 earned run average and two complete games. He struck out 53 and walked 22 in 35 2/3 innings covering 11 appearances.

Perhaps as important as any individual accolade, Boeke paced the Falcons to a co-Pacific League championship with his biggest effort coming May 10 in the regular-season finale.

Boeke hammered a game-winning three-run home run at archrival Arcadia in the top of the seventh to give the Falcons an unbelievable 5-4 victory.

His finest overall game arguably came when he earned the win, shutout and no-hitter in the second half of a doubleheader in a 1-0 nonleague win over a formidable Loyola team at USC. Boeke’s two-way play was clear when he doubled and came around to score the game’s only run.

4 Cole Currie, Crescenta Valley High basketball, senior — As the lone returning starter for the Falcons before the 2012-2013 season, much responsibility was heaped on Currie.

Yet, the senior shooting guard rose to the challenge and paced the Falcons to a 23-9 overall record and an 11-3 mark within the Pacific League, which was good for second behind perennial champion Pasadena.

In the CIF Southern Section Division I-A postseason, where the Falcons were awarded the fourth seed, Crescenta Valley posted playoff victories against Paloma Valley, Edison and Long Beach Millikan before falling to top-seeded El Toro in the divisional semifinals.

A week later, Crescenta Valley was eliminated by host Crenshaw in the first round of the state Division I tournament, culminating a season in which the Falcons matched their run of a season prior despite having to replace four starters.

Currie averaged 19.1 points, five rebounds and 4.5 assists per game en route to being named the league’s co-most valuable player and later voted the 2013 All-Area Boys’ Basketball Player of the Year.

“Last year, we expected a lot of success because we had a lot of experienced players who had been together for a long time,” Currie said after the season. “I think this year was a lot more impressive because we didn’t have a lot of guys who had played together.

“We were able to piece things together and developed along the way. That made it that much more fun and rewarding being out there on the court. This season was a lot of fun.”

In June, Currie confirmed he will heading to Louisiana, where he signed a letter of intent to play for Division I Tulane University.

5 Jared Lebowitz, St. Francis High football and lacrosse, senior — The one-time Vermont prep star statistically shined in his final year with the Golden Knights in 2012.

Lebowitz completed 192 of 350 passes (55%) for 2,560 yards and 23 touchdowns to just seven interceptions, as he was part of a young St. Francis squad that often relied on his senior leadership. Lebowitz also added 200 yards rushing and three touchdowns on the ground.

“No doubt, they could’ve been better,” said St. Francis Coach Jim Bonds of his quarterback’s statistics had he been with a team who matched his experience. “We were very young up front [on the offensive line]. That affected Jared two ways. We had difficulty protecting him, but we also had difficulty running the ball. So, everybody knew we had to throw the ball and he still put up big numbers.

“For him to put up the numbers he did is pretty darn impressive.”

As for St. Francis, while the Golden Knights finished with a 4-7 season, they tallied victories over Arcadia, Righetti and West Ranch before topping rival St. Paul, 34-14, in the Mission League finale Nov. 11.

St. Francis did qualify for the postseason and was eliminated in the first round by Lompoc, 42-7.

In January, Lebowitz, who was also a part of the St. Francis lacrosse team’s first-ever season, signed his letter of intent to play football at UNLV.

6 Arman Momdzhyan, Glendale High water polo, junior — The 6-foot-3 junior driver was a force for Glendale, which enjoyed a historic 2012 season.

Momdzhyan enjoyed a stellar individual season in being named to the CIF Southern Section Division V first team shortly after being awarded the Pacific League MVP.

Those honors came after Momdzhyan tallied an-area best 136 goals, while also tallying 25 drawn ejections and 22 assists.

As for Momdzhyan’s squad, the Nitros won the Los Altos Tournament due to a six-goal effort from Momdzhyan in a 14-12 victory over then Division V’s top-seeded La Serna on Sept 25.

Glendale later captured its second straight league crown after having not won a title since 2002 and reached the Division V postseason as the No. 1 seed.

The Nitros advanced to their first-ever CIF-SS championship, where they fell just short to Pasadena Poly, 12-10, on Nov. 17. Glendale finished with a 22-6 record.

7 Robert Cartwright, Flintridge Prep basketball, junior — The incoming senior guard has been involved in a flurry of recruiting activity since the conclusion of his junior year, having been offered by 22 schools as of early August, according to rivals.com.

Much of the fanfare came after Cartwright posted a season in which he averaged 18.9 points, 4.6 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game in being named an All-Area and CIF Southern Section Division V-AA first-teamer, along with being named the Prep League MVP.

“Robert was our leader both on and off the floor with his play on both the defensive and offensive end,” Flintridge Prep Coach Garrett Ohara said after the season. “He made things easier offensively for our guys, getting the guys the ball in the right spots and being able to score.”

Cartwright also led the Rebels to their 11th Prep League championship in the last 12 years before guiding Flintridge Prep (22-7) to a second seed before the start of the postseason.

The Rebels advanced to the semifinals before falling, 60-58, on Feb. 22 to Mission Prep at La Cañada High.

Flintridge Prep also lost a tough battle in the first round of the CIF State Division V playoffs to Village Christian.

8 Harrison Thai, Crescenta Valley High swimming, senior — The phenom was part of a celebrated swimming squad that won a CIF Southern Section Division II championship in 2012.

Thai teamed with Young Tae Seo, Edward Yi and Jacob Ksendzov to establish a new Division II record in the 200-meter medley relay with a mark of 1 minute, 33.39 seconds at the divisional championships at Riverside Community College on May 11.

Thai also claimed the bronze in the 200-yard individual medley in 1:49.94 on an evening in which the Falcons finished runner-up, 285-234, to Los Osos.

More than a week earlier, Thai helped pace the Falcons to their 21st straight Pacific League crown with a victory over Arcadia, 623-402, at league finals.

At the league finale, Thai joined Seo, Eric Park and Yi to win the Pacific League crown in the 400-meter freestyle relay in 3:12.61.

Thai, Seo, Yi and Ksendzov also set a new league record in the 200-medley relay (1:35.98). It bested a mark Thai and Seo had set three years ago (1:37.80) by nearly two seconds.

Thai also owns the league 100 backstroke (51.16 in 2012) and the 200 individual medley (1:51.29) records, two of five Pacific League records he owns.

“We’ve had great success at CIF and league is always a good gauge,” Thai said, “and to beat the previous record by so much is a pretty good indicator we’re ready for CIF.”

9 Charles McCarthy, St. Francis boys’ volleyball, senior — The University of Pacific-headed senior may have been the area’s best offensive talent.

A 6-foot-5 outside hitter, McCarthy led his team with 362 kills and nabbed both a first-team selection on the All-Area and All-Mission League squads.

“A lot of people depended on me to help get the job done,” McCarthy said. “I just went out there and kept trying to improve my game.

“It was a goal of mine to try to get on the first team. There are so many great players in our league and there’s respect out there. It’s definitely a tough league.”

While St. Francis finished 7-12, tied for fifth in place in the Mission League and missed the playoffs, McCarthy did see postseason action at the second annual San Gabriel Valley All-Star Boys’ Volleyball Game at La Salle on June 9.

In that contest, McCarthy was named the Private School MVP after leading all scorers with 28 kills, two blocks and one ace.

As for city dominance, the Golden Knights finished 3-0 with two victories over Flintridge Prep and a win over La Cañada.

10 Chadd Cosse, Flintridge Prep football/boys’ basketball/boys’ volleyball, senior — There might not have been a more well-rounded area athlete than Cosse.

Cosse played an integral part in the Prep League championship Flintridge Prep boys’ volleyball and basketball teams and in the historic run of the football team.

Cosse may have performed best on the gridiron as a tight end and linebacker and earned a CIF Southern Section Northeast Division, All-Area and Prep League first-team honors.

On defense, Cosse tallied 67.5 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 12.5 tackles for loss and two blocked kicks, while being an excellent blocking tight end.

The Rebels (6-5) finished runner-up in the Prep League and won a first-round football playoff game, the first for the team since 2003.

On the basketball court, Cosse was a Prep League second-team selection and finished averaging 8.5 points and 7.4 boards per game as a power forward for the Rebels (22-7), who won the Prep League title and advanced to the semifinals of the Division V-AA playoffs.

Only days after the basketball season concluded, Cosse joined the Rebels’ volleyball team (19-8), which won an undefeated league title and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Division IV playoffs.

The outside hitter was a Prep League first-teamer and led the squad with 203 kills, while adding 69 digs and 16 aces on the year.

Honorable mention: Gabe Collison, Crescenta Valley cross-country and track; Brian Gadsby, Crescenta Valley football and baseball; Gio Martinez, Hoover football and wrestling; Stefan Smith, Flintridge Prep football and track; Karlsen Termini, Flintridge Prep baseball.