Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Smith Honored




Lompoc's Joel Smith has done more than let his hair grow out since he made the transfer from the University of Washington. He made the Pac West Conference Weekly Honor Roll for his play with the Chaminade University (Hawaii) Silverswords basketball squad. The citation reads -

Joel Smith - Chaminade (Sr., G, 6-4, 210, Lompoc, CA/Lompoc)...ranked in the Top 10 in the PacWest for the week in scoring, rebounding, assist average,three-pointers made and three-point shooting...averaged 15.0 points (8th) and 8.0 rebounds per game (8th)...doled out 4.00 assists per game (5th) while making 3.00 three-pointers per contest (3rd)...connected on 9 of 25 three’s (36%) to rank ninth for the week.

--- el stato

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Vai Plays Today; Lydell in LA Times

Change is Good for Lydell
Chris Dufresne
Los Angeles Times
December 30, 2008


















Barack Obama's "change" message, delivered to central Pennsylvania last spring at a campaign rally, was a subject Penn State senior cornerback Lydell Sargeant knew well.

As the son of a career military man, Sargeant changed a lot -- mostly addresses.
The summer before Lydell's sophomore year in high school, Drew Sargeant was transferred from Pittsburgh to Lompoc, north of Santa Barbara.

But on dispatch day, with the family car running and ready to go, Rhonda couldn't find her son.

"He and some friends ran away," she said. "We had to find him. It took three hours to get him in the car."

Lydell was discovered hiding in the woods, near a local football field.

Rhonda can't forget that day because she cried through most of it.

Change was hard, but it was how Lydell came to California and ultimately came to love it.

Change helped him to thrive in football at Cabrillo High, earn a scholarship to play for Joe Paterno and turn a 4-7 Penn State program into Big Ten Conference champion.

Change tripped the dominoes that put Sargeant on center stage as he helped get a candidate to the White House.

And change also triggered a return trip "home" to the Rose Bowl as the only Southern Californian listed on Penn State's roster.

Good thing he got in that car.

"He definitely became a man in four years at Penn State," Lydell's mother says.

Rhonda wanted her son to attend Stanford -- or anywhere but Penn State. She's a University of Pittsburgh grad.

"He was not only 3,000 miles away, he was at the wrong school," she joked in a telephone interview.

But everyone is happy now.

Sargeant developed into an accomplished cornerback on the nation's fifth-ranked defense. His four interceptions lead a unit that has given up only six touchdown passes this season.

Sargeant spent only three years in California, and Lompoc is nowhere near Hollywood and Vine, yet he's the player teammates have turned to for a map of the stars.

"I'm the designated tour guide," Sargeant said.

Getting here was quite a trip.
Drew Sargeant has been in the United States Air Force for 21 years. Lydell was born in New Jersey but has lived in Germany, Arizona, Pennsylvania and California.

Leaving suburban Pittsburgh after six years was the toughest transition. Sargeant had formed friendships and bonds. He went from a winning high school football team to a losing one.
His mother says sports helped Lydell assimilate into new situations.

"He always had a team he felt part of," Rhonda said.

Sargeant developed into a star running back at Cabrillo, rushing for 1,772 yards as a senior. He was rated nationally by Rivals.com as the 12th-best football athlete in his class.

Through the prep circuit, he came to know some of the USC Trojans who will be on the opposite sideline in the Rose Bowl -- Mark Sanchez, Kevin Ellison, Rey Maualuga.

Sargeant chose Penn State over Oregon, the other school recruiting him hard, because Justin King, one of his closest friends at Gateway High outside Pittsburgh, had decided on the Nittany Lions. King, a star cornerback, left Penn State after three years and last year was the St. Louis Rams' fourth-round draft choice.

Sargeant was part of a recruiting class that probably saved Paterno an ignominious exit. Penn State was 21-26 in the four seasons before Sargeant's class arrived. The Nittany Lions are 40-10 since.

"He's an angel," Sargeant said of his coach, who turned 82 on Dec. 21. "I think God definitely has a hand on him. To play with the best coach, in my eyes, the best coach to ever coach college football, is a blessing. To know him personally, to have spent four years underneath him, learning from him, kind of watching his every move, is something I'll remember the rest of my life."

Sargeant played 139 snaps as a freshman on an 11-1 team that would have gone to Pasadena if not for the fact the Rose Bowl that year hosted the Bowl Championship Series national title game between USC and Texas. Penn State went to the Orange Bowl instead, defeating Florida State.

This fall, Sargeant earned second-team all-Big Ten recognition. And the spring wasn't shabby, either.

In March, in front of 22,000 on the Old Main Lawn on campus, Sargeant stood on stage at a campaign rally with Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) and Barack Obama.

Sargeant introduced Casey to the roaring crowd and later handed a Penn State jersey to the man who would become president-elect.

Obama and Sargeant chatted afterward, but not about politics.

"We just had a normal conversation," Sargeant recalled. "It was kind of a blur. It was probably the fastest five to 10 minutes of my life."

Sargeant was so struck by Obama's closing remarks he did a double take.

"At the end of the conversation, he said, 'I'm proud of you.' And I said, 'What?' He said, 'I'm proud of you.' That's something I'll definitely remember."

Never before had Sargeant been caught up in a cause. "I actually had no interest in politics," he said.

Sargeant first became enamored of Obama after hearing him speak at the 2004 Democratic National Convention.

Lydell's dad was serving in Afghanistan at the time.
"There were a lot of issues," he said.

When Obama announced his candidacy for 2008, Lydell became a political player.
He joined the "Penn State Students for Barack Obama" campaign and also served on a nonpartisan get-out-the-vote club.

Sargeant spent Nov. 4 mobilizing the masses.

"We made sure students voted," he said. "We had maps for them to tell them what polling places they had to go to."

Sargeant said he secured votes from Jay and Sue Paterno, Joe's son and wife, but wasn't about to press his head coach on the issue.

"He's keeping his vote private," Sargeant joked of Joe Paterno, who spoke at the 1988 Republican convention. "We got three-fourths of the family."

Election night 2008 was a buzz as Sargeant watched the returns come in.

"As an African American myself, to have the first African American president, well, it was definitely emotional," he said. "[Obama's acceptance] speech was amazing. Just that whole night is something I'll never forget."

The week was spoiled only by a last-second loss on Nov. 8 at Iowa, a defeat that cost Penn State a trip to the national title game.

Friends have told Sargeant he has what it takes to run for office someday.

"I don't know," he said. "Politics is a lot of stress . . . People have said I have the personality, but I don't know if that's the road to go."

In one respect, though, running for office is a lot like football.

Said Sargeant: "Politics is only fun when you win."

chris.dufresne@latimes.com

===============================

And Vai??

Vai Taua performs on national TV today at 1:30 on ESPN from Boise's Humanitarian Bowl.

Sunday, December 28, 2008

Athlete of the Year Voting Continues

Just Scroll down to Vote for the:

Male Athlete of the Year
Female Athlete of the Year
Coach of the Year
Team of the Year

{You may vote once a day. The polls will remain open through 15 Jan 09}

Thursday, December 25, 2008

People's Choice - Male Athlete of 2008

You know the drill - scroll down to vote for your selection as "2008 Lompoc Valley Male Athlete of the Year".Voting is now closed.














































Who is the 2008 Lompoc Valley Male Athlete of the Year ?





View Results
Web Poll from Free Website Polls

Paola Power












Remarkable 13 year-old Paola Hernadez added another tremendous performance to her resume when she swam recently at the SMS Winter Invitational [Belmont Pool, Long Beach]. In the the 100 yard Backstroke she had qualified 73rd out of 112 contestants (some as old as 23) with a time of 1:02.85.

That's a pretty good time by itself - good enough to beat the CIF Consideration (1:10.50) and Qualification (1:07.20) times from last spring by wide margins. St. Joe's Erica Branson won the LPAL last year with a 1:02.71 and posted the League record mark of 1:00.09 in 2007. A 1:02.85 time would also have been good enough to finish second in the LPAL boys race - behind Morro Bay's Trent Popovich (59.74), but ahead of Conquistador Greg Herrera (1:03.67).

Hernandez, was not done, however. She finished 25th overall - just missing the finals, by 0.03 seconds, while swimming a blistering 59.93 . Yup, the LVMS student put up an event time better than any female swimmer in the history of the Los Padres League meet. Can't wait to see what she'll do when she's finally old enough to compete in one. - el stato

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

People's Choice - Female Athlete Voting

Select your choice for the Lompoc Valley Female Athlete for 2008 !!!
{You may vote once a day. The polls will remain open through 15 Jan 09}
Scroll Down to Vote below:Voting is now Closed.







































Female Athlete of the Year





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Free poll from Free Web Polls

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Think the "Experts" Got It Wrong ???

Well, here's your chance to be heard !!!
Scroll down to vote !!!!!
Voting is now Closed
Team of the Year
The Panel picked the YFL Panthers-


Who do you think should have won?



















Team of the Year






View Results
Free poll from Free Web Polls


And Coach of the Year was Lompoc Baseball's Jim Allen -- Your Pick ?



























Coach of the Year





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Monday, December 22, 2008

Male Athlete of the Year-- Vai Taua


GOES FROM THIRD-STRING TO ALL-WAC


One of two sophomores on all-WAC first team


...........................and Lompoc’s Athlete of the Year for 2008

Taua, the third-string sophomore running back at the University of Nevada who seized upon an opportunity to play and went on to lead the Western Athletic Conference in rushing, has been voted Lompoc Locker Room’s top honor.

Taua did not become a starter until the third game of the season when the WAC rushing leader of 2007 Luke Lippincott went down injured. Taua jumped into the breach with gusto and went on to total 1420 yards in 12 games for an average of 118 per game. He scored 14 touchdowns. His average per carry was 6.7 yards, his longest was 79.

He also pulled in 29 passes for 226 yards and two TD, one reception going for 54. All from a red-shirt sophomore who was so discouraged the year prior that he thought about quitting.

His teammates voted him Outstanding Offensive Player of the Year. The WAC voted him all-league first team.

Lompoc Locker Room’s Blue Ribbon Panel voted him Lompoc Athlete of the Year, but just barely.

Taua inched past Kansas City Royals pitcher Danny Duffy by just two points 89-87. Duffy was the award-winner in 2007.

Lydell Sargeant, the Penn State cornerback, Masson Blow the Lompoc High wrestler and track man, and Boo Jackson, the Ohio quarterback rounded out the top five.

Preparing for the Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl in Boise on December 30 Taua was unable to appear on today’s Lompoc Locker Room, the TV Show, but his 2008 was the stuff of storybooks.

He began the season buried behind Lippincott.

In the opener vs. Grambling Taua did not start but got 12 carries and rushed for 103 yards. It was the first 100-yard game of his career. He reeled off a 62-yard run which was his longest in college.

Against Texas Tech did not start again but Lippincott was injured and declared out for the season. “With Luke out, Vai and Fragger are going to have to step up,” announced coach Chris Ault. “They are going to have to play well.” Brandon Fragger backed up Lippincott in 2007 but soon he too was injured.

Against Missouri Taua got the start and carried for 47 yards on 15 carries but the Wolfpack was blown out. Against UNLV he started again and run for 123 yards. Ault was beginning to see something good.

Against Idaho Taua totaled 90 yards but for the first time he was Nevada’s leading rusher. For the next five weeks he would dominate.

Against New Mexico State he rambled for his career high of 188 yards and two touchdowns. He caught a pass for a third. Opposite Utah State he gained 122, at Hawai’i he posted 160. At Fresno State he exploded for 263 yards, the sixth-best performance in Nevada’s record books. He was named WAC Player of the Week for that performance. Then against San Jose State he piled up 125 more.

Over those five games Taua went over the 100-yard mark every outing and totaled a whopping 858 yards.

"What a guy," grinned his high school coach Don Cross with whom he is pictured above. The Humanitarian Bowl is scheduled for a 1:30 game time.

The Lompoc Locker Room Top Ten are as follows:
1-Vai Taua 89 (two first place votes)
2-Danny Duffy 87 (four first place votes)
3-Lydell Sargeant 77 (two first place votes)
4-Masson Blow 53 (two first place votes)
5-Boo Jackson 40
6T-Ryan Church 37
6T-Michael Coe 37
8-Frank Piemme 27
9T-Robert Nooney 26 (one first place vote)
9T-Jurgen Schmidt 26


Twenty-one athletes were nominated. The panel consisted of 12 writers, broadcasters, sports administrators, game officials and fans. The twelfth first-place vote went to track man Duane Solomon who finished 12th in the voting.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Chelsea Cassulo Named Female Athlete of the Year


Starred as Rebounder and Shot Putter







Chelsea Cassulo, Lompoc High’s versatile senior basketball and track star, is Lompoc Locker Room’s Female Athlete of the Year.

Cassulo led the LHS girls basketball team, and the entire Los Padres League, in rebounding last winter. Then in the spring she set a school record in the shot put and won the shot and discus in the league championships. She tied the Santa Barbara County track meet record in the shot. Then she joined the Hancock College women’s basketball team and, despite faster competition, has held her own rebounding and raised her scoring average.

In our poll Cassulo outpointed San Diego State water polo captain Becca Ur 94-78 to win the top spot with three more water poloists, Sarah Ur, Rachel Nelson and Heather Fenske following in third, fourth and fifth.

“This year has been so amazing for me in sports,” Cassulo said after receiving word of her honor. “Everything’s really gone the way it should

“In basketball we made it to the second round. That’s the farthest I’ve made it in my high school career so that was a lot of fun. And then track comes around and everything just goes over the top with me making it to the Masters Meet in the shot put and second round in the discus. It seems so unreal.”

In addition to her 240 rebounds last winter Cassulo scored eight points per game and made a last minute free throw to win Lompoc’s first round CIF contest. She was named to the all-Los Padres League first team. She was also named to the Santa Barbara News-Press all-county basketball team.

In track and field she combined the most unlikely events – the 100 and the 100 hurdles along with the shot put and discus.

At the Santa Barbara County Track & Field meet she tied the meet record in the shot put at 42'-6." She also won the discus (119-08) and finished eighth in the 100.

At the Arcadia Invitational Cassulo posted a school record mark in the shot at 42-8.5, which was good enough for third in the high level event. Her performances ranked her among the top 25 in the nation in the shot put.
“I was shocked when I was invited to the Arcadia Invitational,” Cassulo confided. “I was even more in awe when I took third place.”
At the LPL finals Cassulo took her usual firsts in the shot put and discus and also was 3rd in the 100 Hurdles. She advanced as far as the CIF masters’ meet.
In May she was named the North County Female Athlete of the Year by the North County Athletic Round Table.

Cassulo’s current statistics with the Hancock College women’s basketball team show her with 10 points per game, a higher number than she posted in high school.

In the spring she plans to compete in the shot and discus for the Hancock women’s track team and add the javelin and the hammer throw.

Last year’s Female Athlete of the year was shared by Sarah Ur of Cabrillo’s CIF champion girls water polo team and Lompoc High soccer star Jani Carmona.

The final poll results for the Top Ten finishers:

Chelsea Cassulo – 94
Becca Ur – 78
Sarah Ur – 62
Rachel Nelson – 58
Heather Fenske – 52
Jeana Carrillo – 51
Paola Hernandez – 37
Katie McIntosh – 30
Julia Heath – 28
Jozza Ray - 24

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Jim Allen Named Coach of the Year





LHS Baseball Won the Los Padres League Title


Jim Allen, coach of Lompoc High’s three-straight Los Padres League champions, has been named Lompoc Locker Room’s Coach of the Year.

Allen outpolled a list of 12 nominees ranging from Frank Taitague, coach of the YFL Panthers, LLR’s Team of the Year, to six other high school coaches, and even to Mike Sullivan, receivers coach of the NFL New York Giants.

“It’s a huge reflection on our team,” Allen said upon receiving word of the honor. “Any time you can win an individual award it can’t come without the team.

“We were fortunate enough to start playing well at the end of the season. We try and do that. We try and prepare ourselves for the end of the season. We had some guys like Cody Berryman, Dalton Rouleau, and Chris Mallory who really came on at the end.”

Allen said it was his young and unheralded pitching staff which impressed most.

“We swung the bats well. We weren’t a real powerful team. We were more a gap to gap kind of team but we pitched extremely well. We had some young guys really step up. A guy like Ryan Bower who was just a freshman came in and filled the number two role for us. Cody Berryman had to step into a number one role. We really try to pride ourselves on our pitching. We try and pride ourselves on our defense unfortunately that wasn’t a strong point for us last year but our bats picked up our defense a little bit and our pitchers kept us in the ballgames.”

Allen also called attention to his assistant coaches—Jake Kougl, Kyle Darg, Rickie Aguilar and Andrew Jones. “They do a tremendous job,” he said.

Allen was in his seventh year at LHS after succeeding Dan Bodary, for whom this award was named when it was sponsored by the Lompoc Record newspaper. Bodary won the award the first year it was made. In the summer Allen coaches the Santa Maria Packers, thus he is pictured above in a Packer uniform.

Allen narrowly outpolled Taitague and LHS girls basketball coach Claudia Terrones by a single vote. Drawing one vote each were Craig Knowles, Cabrillo football, Peter Anderson, Cabrillo boys cross country, Scott Alvarez, Cabrillo girls swim, Sullivan, and Mark Haley, Manager of the Year in professional baseball’s Midwest League. Twelve panelists cast votes.

Allen fed his Braves tough competition in out-of-town tournaments and as a result the club posted a lackluster 13-14 overall record, this compared to the previous years' 20-6 and 18-9. But Allen's objective was met-- the team improved over the season to win the LPL with a 9-3 mark, the same as in 2007. The Braves won five of their last six league games.
The team was a well-balanced crew with the #2 hitter in the league (Rouleau .400), the #3 home run hitter (Brandon Alonzo 5), the #4 and #5 RBI men (Scott Aguailar 24 and Rouleau 23), the #2 baserunner (Chris Mallory 20 stolen bases) and the #4 strikeout pitcher (Berryman 47 K's).

The squad looks ready for another title year in 2009. Asked how many returnees he expected, Allen replied,

“We’ve got a ton of ‘em, Scotty Aguailar, Cody Berryman, Daniel Mallory, a first team all-leaguer as a freshman, Richie Hirzel. Dalton Rouleau and on and on.”

Friday, December 19, 2008

YFL Panthers LLR's Team of the Year



Lompoc’s Team of the Year for 2008 is the YFL Panthers.

The Panthers went undefeated (11-0) including a come-from-behind victory over the Paso Robles Bearcats in the Super Bowl to win the Central Coast Youth Football League Junior Title.

It was that undefeated season, and no doubt the triumph over Paso, a feat which few other local grid squads have been able to accomplish in recent years, which impressed Lompoc Locker Room’s Blue Ribbon Panel. The group of 12 sports aficionados cast six votes for the Panthers, as many as for all the other eight nominees combined.

Not only did the YFL’ers emerge victorious, they were the first youth team in the seven-year history of the award to win. All previous honorees were high school teams.

Other 2008 nominees included Lompoc High’s Los Padres League champion baseball team, and LOST, Lompoc’s Other Swim Team, an aggregation of Masters swimmers led by Frank Piemme and Jurgen Schmidt. Each attracted two votes. Cabrillo boys cross country picked up one vote as did Cabrillo’s girls water polo team, Lompoc Locker Room’s Team of 2007.

“I can’t say enough about our kids,” said head coach Frank Taitague. “It took a lot of hard work on their part to get where they are.”

At Friday’s taping of the Lompoc Locker Room awards show to be aired on Monday, assistant coach Pablo Martinez shared a previous unknown detail of the heart-stopping Super Bowl victory.

After 10 games the Panther coaching staff implemented two new defenses just for the Paso Robles game. The new defenses involved not just different assignments but different positions for many key players, a high-risk change for a team made up of mostly sixth graders. “But these kids are really smart,” said Martinez.

Still and all the Bearcats went up by 20-8 after one quarter before the Panther defense took command. The Cats did not allow another score in the game.

Meanwhile Austin Hayes scored from 18 yards out to close the gap before halftime and in the second half Matt Hamon forced a fumble at the Paso four-yard line and Chris Taitague scored on the next play. With a two-point kick by Esteban Sandoval, Lompoc took a 24 -20 lead. Early in the fourth quarter, Creighton Morales and Trevor Gioiene sacked the Paso quarterback in the end zone for a safety to push the score to 26-20.

Paso drove twice to the Lompoc 25 in the closing minutes but the Lompoc defense stopped both.

The Lompoc Locker Room awards show featuring the Panthers will air on Monday at 5:30 p.m. on TAP-TV Channel 25.

Lompoc Locker Room’s Coach of the Year will be announced tomorrow.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Ballot Complete; First Winner Friday

Male Athlete Category Sports 21 Nominees

The 21 male Lompoc athletes nominated for Lompoc Locker Room's Athlete of the Year are listed below. The winner of the first of our four categories will be announced Friday, December 19. Interviews with the honorees will be televised on Lompoc Locker Room, the TV show on Monday at 5:30 p.m. on TAP Channel 25.

Joe Alerta—Lompoc High basketball

Casey Belluz—Hancock football

Masson Blow – LHS wrestling/track

Ryan Church, New York Mets

Michael Coe, Cal track/x-country

Corey Dotzler, Hancock baseball

Danny Duffy, Kansas City Royals

Boo Jackson, Ohio football

Alex Jensen, Lompoc High tennis

Robert Nooney, Chico State track

Frank Piemme, Masters swim

Dalton Rouleau, LHS baseball

Matt Rotondi, CHS football

Lydell Sargeant, Penn State football

Jurgen Schmidt, Masters swim

Mike Slaughter, Upper Iowa football

Joel Smith, Washington basketball

Duane Solomon, USC track

Vai Taua, Nevada football

Geoff West, U. of Mary basketball

Chris White, Detroit Tigers baseball

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Female Athlete Ballot Completed -- 17

From Carrillo to Ur


From Jeana Carrillo to Sarah Ur, the Lompoc Locker Room annual poll for Female Athlete of the Year is complete. It is now in the hands of the Blue Ribbon Panel and the winner will be announced Sunday. The nominees are:


---Jeana Carrillo, Lompoc High softball

---Chelsea Cassulo, LHS basketball/track

---Jessica Farley, CHS volleyball/basketball

---Heather Fenske, San Diego State waterpolo

---Julia Heath, Cal Poly golf

---Paola Hernandez, Tsunami swim

---Cameron Lizarraga, LHS volleyball/basketball

---Paty Martinez, LHS tennis/softball

---Katie McIntosh, Chico State soccer

---Amanda Murray, CSU Dominguez soccer

---Kathryn Nelson, UCSB waterpolo

---Rachel Nelson, Cabrillo waterpolo

---Jozza Ray, Lompoc High basketball

---Roxanne Rentschler, Cabrillo basketball

---Morgan Salm, Cabrillo golf

---Becca Ur, San Diego State waterpolo

---Sarah Ur, Cal Poly water polo

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Coach of the Year Ballot Complete

Twelve coaches named


Twelve Lompoc coaches have been nominated to the Lompoc Locker Room Coach of the Year poll ballot now in the hands of the LLR Blue Ribbon Panel. They are:


--- Jim Allen, Lompoc High baseball – Los Padres League champions

---Scott Alvarez, Cabrillo girls swim – Los Padres League champions

---Peter Anderson, Cabrillo boys cross country– SB County title-winners

---Mark Haley, South Bend Silver Hawks, Midwest League Manager of the Year


---Joel Jory, Cabrillo boys swim – Los Padres League champions

---Craig Knowles, Cabrillo football --Wins Big Game in his first try.

---Mike Maher, Roy’s Boxing Gym – Trainer of Pepe Mares as he goes pro

---Corey McIntyre, Cabrillo girls water polo - Los Padres League champions

---Jeff Storie, Tsunami swim-- Recruits a whopping 66 into youth swim

---Mike Sullivan, New York Giants– receivers coach for Super Bowl champs

---Frank Taitague, YFL Panthers football— undefeated YFL champions



---Claudia Terrones, LHS girls basketball – 9-3 in LPL for second place





The winner will be announced on Sunday.

Monday, December 15, 2008

The Team of the Year 2008 Ballot

The Ballot is complete.


Here are the eight nominees for Lompoc Locker Room's Team of the Year- The winner will be announced December 20.


---Cabrillo boys cross country –SB County titlists led by Levi Block, Joel Velazquez, and Eddie Tovar looked like a cinch for CIF but got caught in a super fast heat.

---Cabrillo boys swim -- won the Los Padres League title led by Wes Hain, Kody Ogan, Patrick Robinson and Greg Herrera

---Cabrillo girls swim -- won the Los Padres League title led by Rachel Nelson, Katherine Vega, Cassandra Fox, Ashley Coski, Sarah Munar and Kate Leach

---CHS girls water polo -- expecting a down year after a CIF title in 2007, they were led by LPL MVP Rachel Nelson in surprising the pundits with a crushing 19-2 victory over runnerup St. Joe

---Lompoc High baseball – LPL champions with slugging Dalton Rouleau, Scott Aguailar, Chris and Daniel Mallory, Kevin Erickson and Brandon Alonzo and strikeout ace Cody Berryman

---Lompoc’s Other Swim Team (LOST)—Frank Piemme, Jurgen Schmidt, John Huth, and Ed Farrell finished 21st of 62 teams at Southern Pacific Masters Swim Zone championships

---Lompoc Tsunami swim -- 66 youth swimmers led by the fastest female swimmer of any age in Lompoc Paola Hernandez

---YFL Panthers—Won the junior division of the Central Coast YFL with a 26-20 win over Paso Robles. The club went 11-0 to lead from coast to coast.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Solomon Nominated Athlete of the Year



DUANE SOLOMON missed the Olympics but....



He's been nominated for Lompoc Locker Room's Athlete of the Year.




The USC 800 runner in his final collegiate year posted several times in the 1:45s, placed third in the NCAA finals, then advanced to the finals at the Olympic trials, where he finished sixth.




Solomon then gained sponsorship for a short trip to Europe, where he won two races, and placed second in another. He is now training in Southern California with American 800-meter record holder Johnny Gray, pointing toward making the USA's team in 2009.


Solomon joins 85-year-old swimmer Jurgen Schmidt, Upper Iowa linebacker Mike Slaughter, Kansas City Royals pitcher Danny Duffy, Penn State cornerback Lydell Sargeant, LHS wrestler Masson Blow, Nevada running back Vai Taua and University of Mary point guard Geoff West among the nominees for Lompoc Locker Room Male Athlete of the Year 2008. Results will be announced by Lompoc Locker Room's Blue Ribbon Panel beginning December 20. Nominees in all four categories (male, female, coach and team) may be seen in the right hand column below our sponsors.

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Nelson Sisters Nominated Athlete of the Year



Cabrillo, UCSB Water Poloists Attract Nominations


KATHRYN NELSON, UCSB's sophomore water poloist, and her sister, RACHEL NELSON, Cabrillo's leading water polo scorer last winter, have each been nominated for Lompoc Locker Room's Female Athlete of the Year poll.


Kathryn, pictured here in Gaucho blue, scored seven goals in her freshman season for UCSB in 2008, a significant feat when considering the Gauchos had a weak team, a coaching shakeup and a poor record.


Rachel Nelson, in her senior year at Cabrillo, scored eight goals to lead the Q’s as they squashed St. Joseph 19-2 in the Los Padres League title match. Then she was named MVP of the Los Padres League and all-CIF. Then she signed a scholarship offer to UCSB to play alongside her sister. Here she is pictured as she signed with the Gauchos.


The last time the two played together was in 2007 when Cabrillo won the CIF title.


The Nelson sisters join Lompoc Tsunami swimmer Paola Hernandez, Lompoc High softball pitcher Jeana Carrillo, San Diego State water polo standouts Becca Ur and Heather Fenske, and Chelsea Cassulo, Lompoc High's CIF shot putter on the Lompoc Locker Room ballot. All the nominees to date can be see in the right hand column below our sponsors. The winners, as selected by our Blue Ribbon Panel, will be announced beginning December 20.

Friday, December 12, 2008

Paola Hernandez Nominated Athlete of the Year



13-year-old the fastest swimmer in town






PAOLA HERNANDEZ of the Tsunami Swim team has been nominated as Female Athlete of the Year for 2008.




We can’t write a lot about Paola. She has not been around very long. But the 13-year-old eighth-grader is the fastest female swimmer of any age in the Lompoc Valley. She has posted 1:01.77 in the 100 fly, 1:02.85 in the 100 back, 2:15.01 in the 200 IM, and 25.65 in the 50 free.



What else can we write? She never swam competitively until now with the Tsunami. Oh, her father Mario once played pro soccer for the Pachuca Tuzos of the Mexican Soccer League.




Paola joins Lompoc High softball pitcher Jeana Carrillo, San Diego State water polo standouts Becca Ur and Heather Fenske, and Chelsea Cassulo, Lompoc High's CIF shot putter on the Lompoc Locker Room ballot. All the nominees to date can be see in the right hand column below our sponsors. The winners, as selected by our Blue Ribbon Panel, will be announced beginning December 20.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Jeana Carrillo Nominated Athlete of the Year



Had string of 39 scoreless innings.





JEANA CARRILLO, Lompoc High's star softball pitcher, has been nominated for Lompoc Locker Room's Female Athlete of the Year poll.





Carrillo had a misleading won-loss record of 11-6, good but not great.


But look more closely--- in 115 innings she posted an ERA of 1.04 and struck out 89. She walked only 14. At one point she strung together 39 consecutive scoreless innings.




Besides that she was the Braves' second leading hitter at .294. She was voted to the Los Padres League's all-league first team.



Carrillo joins Becca Ur and Heather Fenske from San Diego State's #5-ranked water polo team, and Chelsea Cassulo, Lompoc High's CIF shot putter on the Lompoc Locker Room ballot. All the nominees to date can be see in the right hand column below our sponsors. The winners, as selected by our Blue Ribbon Panel, will be announced beginning December 20.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Heather Fenske Nominated Female Athlete of '08



Stars in Goal after Three Years on the Bench



HEATHER FENSKE, San Diego State's water polo goalie, has been nominated Lompoc Locker Room's Female Athlete of the Year for 2008.


Fenske amassed 245 saves in goal as the Aztecs matched their all time high-water mark with a fifth place national finish. Fenske established personal bests in every category this season. In her first year as a starter she racked up 234 stops in 26 games. Her 9.00 saves per game average ranked fourth in the Mountain Pacific conference and seventh in the nation. She has notched 11 double-digit save games, including a career-high 16 blocks vs. Cal State Bakersfield.


Fenske posted personal bests in every category for a very simple reason. She hardly played her first three years at San Diego.


More amazing than her numbers was the fact that Fenske sat and watched the Aztecs for three whole years with precious few opportunities to play. Nevertheless she stayed with the team and when finally given her chance, she excelled.


Maybe Lompoc Locker Room should establish a RUDY award for athletes like Fenske.


Fenske joins teammate Becca Ur and Lompoc weight thrower/power forward Chelsea Cassulo on the ballot for top female athlete of the year.


All the nominations in all four categories are listed in the right-hand column below our sponsors. Results will begin being posted on December 20 as determined by the Lompoc Locker Room Blue Ribbon Panel.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Jurgen Schmidt Nominated Athlete of the Year



85-year-old Set Five Swim Records


Jurgen Schmidt, 85, has been nominated as Athlete of the Year in the Lompoc Locker Room annual poll.



Schmidt set five U.S. national swim records at the Southern Pacific Regional Masters meet recently in Mission Viejo. Schmidt, 85, a freestyle long distance specialist, set new records in three freestyle races, the 500, 1000 and 1650, and surprised even himself with new marks in the 100 and 400 Individual Medley.


Schmidt was named Southern Pacific Masters Association Swimmer of the Year for 2008.


Schmidt joins Upper Iowa linebacker Mike Slaughter, Kansas City Royals pitcher Danny Duffy, Penn State cornerback Lydell Sargeant, LHS wrestler Masson Blow, Nevada running back Vai Taua and University of Mary point guard Geoff West among the nominees for Lompoc Locker Room Male Athlete of the Year 2008. Nominations will be received through Wednesday. E-mail YOUR nominations to pressboxprod@verizon.net. by December 10. Results will be announced by Lompoc Locker Room's Blue Ribbon Panel beginning December 20. Nominees in all four categories (male, female, coach and team) may be seen in the right hand column below our sponsors.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Mike Sullivan Nominated Coach of the Year




RECEIVERS COACH GIANTS


In his fifth season as the Giants receivers coach MIKE SULLIVAN is responsible for the Super Bowl champs’ air game.. Under Sullivan’s direction, the wide receivers have been a consistently productive group.

Last year, Plaxico Burress and Amani Toomer were the team’s top two receivers, with Burress catching 70 passes for 1,025 yards and a career-high 12 touchdowns, while Toomer contributed 59 catches for 760 yards and three scores. In the postseason, Toomer topped the Giants with 21 receptions for 280 yards and three scores, while Burress had 18 catches for 221 yards including the game-winning 13-yard touchdown in the Super Bowl.

Picture David Tyree’s helmet-instead-of-hands reception which has been called the greatest play in Super Bowl history. Consider the story of Plaxico Burress. Mike Sullivan is the one who kept this crew together while Eli Manning matured as a quarterback.
Sullivan joins Corey McIntyre, coach of Cabrillo's Los Padres League champion girls water polo team and Jim Allen, coach of Lompoc High's LPL baseball champions on the nominees list as the Lompoc Locker Room Coach of the Year poll. The entire list can be seen in the right hand column here below our sponsors.

Sunday, December 7, 2008

Slaughter Nominated Athlete of the Year




Player of the Week in his Final Game





MIKE SLAUGHTER, linebacker at Upper Iowa, has been nominated for Lompoc Locker Room Athlete of the Year.


In his final game the senior linebacker spent all day in the Minnesota- Crookston backfield and seemed to always be around the ball. Slaughter tallied 13 tackles (five solo) in the game while accounting for 4.5 tackles for loss and one sack. UIU won 37-36 in double overtime.



For his effort Slaughter was named Northern Sun Conference Defensive Football Player of the Week. In 10 games, Slaughter had 30 solo tackles and 27 assists, with 14 tacklesfor loss (64 yards), and five and one-half sacks for 36 yards. He also picked off a pass and returned it 28 yards, broke up a pass and defensed two.


Before Upper Iowa Slaughter starred at Allan Hancock College.





Slaughter joins Kansas City Royals pitcher Dannt Duffy, Penn State cornerback Lydell Sargeant, LHS wrestler Masson Blow, Nevada running back Vai Taua and University of Mary point guard Geoff West among the nominees for Lompoc Locker Room Male Athlete of the Year 2008. Nominations will be received through Wednesday. E-mail YOUR nominations to pressboxprod@verizon.net. by December 10. Results will be announced by Lompoc Locker Room's Blue Ribbon Panel beginning December 20. Nominees in all four categories (male, female, coach and team) may be seen in the right hand column below our sponsors.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Duffy Nominated to Repeat as AOY




KC Royal Phenom Won This Poll Last Year






DANNY DUFFY of the Kansas City Royals pro baseball organization has been nominated as Lompoc Locker Room's Athlete of the Year in 2008. This is the same category he won in a year earlier.




Duffy posted a sparkling 8-4 record, a 2.20 ERA and whopping strikeout total of 102 in 2008 at Burlington, Iowa of the Midwest League. His showing led the Royals to name him Burlington’s 'Pitcher of the Year.’



In Duffy’s final performance with the Bees he gave up none (zero) earned runs. The performance capped a 10-game streak in which he went 5-1 and posted a tiny earned run average of 1.14.



In September, just 14 months after graduating from Cabrillo, Duffy was invited to Kansas City to sign autographs. Royals brass say they plan to send him to Wilmington of the fast Carolina League in 2009.



Duffy joins Penn State cornerback Lydell Sargeant, LHS wrestler Masson Blow, Nevada running back Vai Taua and University of Mary point guard Geoff West among the nominees for Lompoc Locker Room Male Athlete of the Year 2008. Nominations will be received through Wednesday. E-mail YOUR nominations to pressboxprod@verizon.net. by December 10. Results will be announced by Lompoc Locker Room's Blue Ribbon Panel beginning December 20. Nominees in all four categories (male, female, coach and team) may be seen in the right hand column below our sponsors.

Friday, December 5, 2008

Geoff West Nominated Athlete of the Year '08



Playmaker in Northern Sun Conference Hoops






As a junior in 2007-8 GEOFF WEST started all 27 games for the University of Mary (Bismarck, North Dakota). The playmaker led the team with 60 assists and 30 steals. In addition he finished second on the team, by slim margins, in minutes (733, fourteen behind the leader) and points (271, six points behind). He was even fourth on the team in blocks with seven.




West began the '08-'09 season blazing. He leads the team in scoring at 15.8 per game.


West joins Penn State cornerback Lydell Sargeant, LHS wrestler Masson Blow, and Nevada running back Vai Taua among the nominees for Lompoc Locker Room Male Athlete of the Year 2008. Nominations will be received through Wednesday. E-mail YOUR nominations to pressboxprod@verizon.net. by December 10. Results will be announced by Lompoc Locker Room's Blue Ribbon Panel beginning December 20. Nominees in all four categories (male, female, coach and team) may be seen in the right hand column below our sponsors.

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Jim Allen Nominated Coach of the Year 2008


His Braves Won LPL Title



Lompoc High baseball coach JIM ALLEN, mentor of the Los Padres League champions last spring, has been nominated Lompoc Locker Room's 2008 Coach of the Year.



Allen fed his team tough competition in out-of-town tournaments and as a result the club posted a lackluster 13-14 overall record. But Allen's objective was met-- the team improved over the season to win the LPL with a 9-3 mark. The Braves won five of their last six league games.



The team was a well-balanced crew with the #2 hitter in the league (Dalton Rouleau .400), the #3 home run hitter (Brandon Alonzo 5), the #4 and #5 RBI men (Scott Aguailar 24 and Rouleau 23), the #2 baserunner (Chris Mallory 20 stolen bases) and the #4 strikeout pitcher (Cody Berryman 47 K's).



The Braves under Allen also won the LPL in 2005 and 2006. Allen coaches the Santa Maria Packers in the summertime, hence the photo above.



Allen joins Corey McIntyre of Cabrillo's league champion girls water polo team on the nomination list. Nominations will remain open until December 10. E-mail your nominations to pressboxprod@verizon.net .Results will be announced by Lompoc Locker Room's Blue Ribbon Panel beginning December 20. Nominations to date are listed in the right-hand column below ouir sponsors.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Chelsea Cassulo Nominated AOY 2008


Chelsea Cassulo, Lompoc High's basketball and track star, and Hancock College hoopster, has been nominated for Lompoc Locker Room's Athlete of the Year.




Cassulo was named last May the North County Female Athlete of the Year by the North County Athletic Round Table.




At the Santa Barbara County Track & Field meet she tied the meet record in the shot put at 42'-6." She also won the discus (119-08) and finished eighth in the 100.




Earlier she was named to the Santa Barbara News-Press all-county basketball team. This month she joined the Hancock College basketball team.


Chelsea joins San Diego State water polo star Becca Ur on the Lompoc Locker Room Female Athlete of the Year nomination list. Nominations will remain open through December 10 so YOU have time to nominate your favorite. Just e-mail to pressboxprod@verizon.net. The list of nominees so far appears in the right hand column below our advertisers.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Lydell Sargeant Nominated Athlete of 2008


AND SECOND TEAM ALL-BIG TEN



LYDELL SARGEANT, the Penn State cornerback from Cabrillo, has been nominated by Lompoc Locker Room correspondent Scott Kennedy for consideration as the LLR Athlete of the Year. Sargeant starred all season as the Nittany Lions won the Big Ten title.


The senior cornerback picked off two key passes against Wisconsin and one, to end the game, against Ohio State, the latter the first Lion victory at Columbus in decades. Against Michigan State in the victory which clinched the Big Ten championship Sargeant made three tackles and an interception.


Sargeant was named to the Big Ten All-Conference second team by conference media. In the classroom he finished four years of classes six months early and graduates this month. Best of all Sargeant is the first Lompocan ever to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated.


He joins onetime Cabrillo teammate Vai Taua and Lompoc High wrestler/runner Masson Blow on the list of male nominees. On the female side Becca Ur, San Diego State water polo star, has been nominated. Cabrillo's 2008 girls water polo team and its coach Corey McIntyre have also been named.


Nominees will be accepted through December 10. Winners will be announced by the Locker Room's Blue Ribbon Panel beginning on December 20. Nominate your favorite by e-mailing pressboxprod@verizon.net

Monday, December 1, 2008

Vai Taua Nominated LLR Athlete of the Year


ALL-WAC TOO



Nevada running back VAI TAUA, named today to the WAC all-league first team, has also been nominated Lompoc Locker Room's Male Athlete of the Year for 2008. Photo here is by David B. Parker.





In his 12-game season Taua carried the ball 213 times for 1420 net yards and a 6.7 yard per carry average. He posted 14 touchdowns and made one run for 79 yards. He averaged 118.3 yards per game.

He also hauled in 29 passes for 226 yards for a 7.8 yard average per catch. He scored two TD's on passes. His longest reception was a 54-yarder

One of his biggest games came against Fresno State. He rushed 28 times for 263 yards (longest was 57, his average 9.4) and a touchdown. It was his first 200-yard performance of the season and the sixth-highest rushing total in school history. Taua started the season as the third-stringer yet after 10 games had topped the 100-yard mark seven times.

In his finale against Louisiana Tech the 2006 Cabrillo graduate scored the Wolfpack's winning touchdown with 3:15 to play on a 22- yard ramble. Nevada won 35-31.

Taua is one of only two underclassmen named to the WAC all-league first team.

Taua joins MASSON BLOW on the Lompoc Locker Room Male Athlete list of nominees. If YOU have a nominee for male, female, coach or team of the year, e-mail them quickly to pressboxprod@verizon.net. Nominations close December 10. Last year's male athlete of 2007 was pro baseball's DANNY DUFFY. Like last year the winner and the other top finishers will be named by a Blue Ribbon Panel of Lompoc sports observers beginning on December 20.

Sunday, November 30, 2008

McIntyre, CHS Girl Poloists Nominated Team of '08



McIntyre and CHS Girls Polo Nominated to Repeat


Coach Corey McIntyre's Cabrillo Conquistadores girls water polo team was not expected to do much in 2008. This after losing their three top stars from their CIF title team of '07.

Uhhhhh, wrong.



The Conqs reloaded and copped yet another Los Padres League championship in February and punctuated their charge with a crushing 19-2 victory over second place St. Joseph in the title game.



For their accomplishments the Conqs have been nominated as 2008 Team of the Year and McIntyre as Coach of the Year in the annual Lompoc Locker Room end-of-the-year poll.


They could create a dynasty. McIntyre and his team won both categories in 2007.


They are the first nominees for 2008. YOU can nominate by sending your nominees to pressboxprod@verizon.net before December 10.


In other categories Masson Blow and Becca Ur have already been nominated.

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Becca Ur Nominated Athlete of the Year 2008



BECCA UR, two-time co-captain of the San Diego State women's water polo team, has been nominated Lompoc Locker Room's Female Athlete of the Year for 2008.
The utility player leaves The Mesa ranked among San Diego State's career leaders in ejections drawn (second, 250) and assists (eighth, 83).
In her final three seasons, Ur made 111 consecutive starts, including 38 during the 2008 campaign in which she posted a team-best 59 assists and 54 steals.
Ur also became the first Aztec poloist to ever receive superior academic honors four years in a row with a GPA of 3.69 in biology.
She also earned academic all-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation honors and was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District VIII women's at-large second team earlier in the year.
Nominations will remain open through December 10. Last year's co-winners were Ur's sister Sarah who tied with Lompoc High soccer star Jani Carmona. Send your nominations to pressboxprod@verizon.net

Friday, November 28, 2008

Masson Blow Nominated '08 Athlete of the Year


MASSON BLOW, Lompoc's first CIF wrestling champion in 24 years, has been nominated for Lompoc Locker Room's Athlete of the Year poll.


Blow, who wrestled at 152 pounds for Lompoc High, was named the North County Athletic Round Table’s North County Male Athlete of the Year. In wrestling he qualified for the state wrestling meet by finishing fourth among 30 at the CIF-Southern Section Masters Tournament. Earlier he had won the Los Padres League title and won the first CIF wrestling title by a Lompocan since Mike Villalobos in 1984.


He returned to action in the spring with the Brave track team.


Blow is now a student and wrestler at Cal Poly.
The Athlete of the Year poll will receive nominations for Male Athlete of 2008, Female Athlete of 2008, Team of the Year and Coach of the Year through December 10. Get YOUR NOMINATIONS IN SOON to pressboxprod@verizon.net.
Winners in 2007 were baseball's Danny Duffy, Cabrillo coach Corey McIntyre, the Cabrillo CIF champion girls water polo team which McIntyre coached, and Sarah Ur of that team who tied with LHS soccer star Jani Carmona.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Alumni Report - Part II *** Updated***

Alumni Update : Part II

Soccer
Katie McIntosh #14
A difficult 2008 season came to an end for the Chico State women’s soccer program with a 2-0 loss to Sonoma State on Sunday at Trione Fields in Santa Rosa. It followed a scoreless tie at Arcata versus Humbolt State. Katie had her second shot on goal in the finale - but it was one of 4 saves by Sonoma State .

A starting Wildcat defender in all 20 games with over 1800 minutes played, senior Katie McIntosh had three assists and two shots - both on goal, but neither scored. Her last assist was Sept 4 vs St. Martin's.

The loss concludes a very frustrating season for the Wildcats at 7-10-3, 3-8-3 in the CCAA. With five, one-goal losses and three scoreless ties this season, the Wildcats were just a few breaks away from posting their seventh-straight winning season.

Amanda Murray #20
The Cal St Dominguez Hills womens soccer team, beat Cal Poly- Pomona 3-1 and lost to Cal State - San Bernadino 3-1 to finish the regular season 12-8, 9-5 CCAA.

They then entered the CCAA Tournament at UC San Diego as the #4 seed- taking on #1 Sonoma State.

They won that one 2-0, with the reward being a chance to play the host Tritons, whom they had lost to twice this season on Triton Field. It didn't go well - a 3-1 loss had them hoping that their #5 Far-West Region ranking and their win over #6 Sonoma would be enough to get them into the NCAA Div.-II Tournament.


It was. They were placed in the Far West Regional against San Francisco St - the winner taking on powerhouse Western Washington. A 2-1 victory left them looking for revenge against the 12th-ranked (NCAA) WW Vikings. The 2-0 loss to Western earlier this year was the Toro's first.

Sadly, it was not to be. The Vikings prevailed 1-0 after surviving an 8 shot onslaught by the Toros in the last 6 plus minutes of the game. It was just the fourth time they had been shutout this year and the second time by Western Washington. CSUDH concludes their season at 14-10 (9-5 CCAA).

Amanda, a junior transfer from Hancock, had 68 minutes in 3 appearances this season.

AHC - Men
Apart from a 2-0 win over Canyons on Oct 3rd and a 2-2 tie against Citrus on Nov. 4th, the Allan Hancock College men's soccer team could not get any traction in Western State Conference games, the latest a 5-0 loss to powerhouse SBCC in the final. Hancock finished 4-18-1, 1-12-1 WSC.

Juan Benivides (LHS) and Massimo Beeson (CHS) played for the Bulldogs, but no individual information is currently available.

Cross-country

Michael Coe
The Cabrillo product has been struggling with injuries this season, and had run in only 1 of their first 5 events. He finished 36th in the NCAA Prelim Blue Race with a time of 24:16 for the 8K course. That was the second fastest time for the Cal Golden Bears and helped pace them to an 8th place finish.

After sitting out the Bronco Invitational, where the GB's finished 8th of 14 teams, Coe competed in the Pac-10 finals on Oct. 31st. His 8K time of 24:22 was third on the team and 21st overall. The Bears took third in the tough 8 team field.

On 15 Nov. 08, the real competition started - the NCAA West regionals. Michael finished 17th, in a time of 29:34 for the 10K distance, just ahead of teammate Mark Matusak. He was second on the team and set a PR for the distance.

Four of the top 5 teams at the regionals were from the PAC-10. Oregon won, and was followed by Stanford, Portland, Cal, and Washington. Cal's fourth place finish propels them to the NCAA Finals for the second consecutive year and only the second time in their history.

AHC
The Bulldogs were led, as usual, at the SoCal Championship Meet in Bakersfield by Lompoc Valley athletes. The womens squad finished 24th out of 27 teams (196 runners) in the 5K race, and the men did not score because they only had two runners in the men's 4 mile race (202 runners). - both CHS alums. Several runners set collegiate personal bests. The valley runners took both the tops spots for Hancock.

Individual Results[Time/Finish/Score]:
Oscar Torres 21:18.61 61/-
Miguel Ortiz 23:05.33 164/-
Ariana Fabing 20:07.28 65/60 Prev Best CT -21:16.50
Duania Evans 23:22.23 169/153 Best CT ?
Not Running : Terri Ladja, Nick Gilligan


Basketball

University of Mary
The West brothers, Geoff (#5) a 5-11 senior guard from CHS via Santa Rosa JC, and Jason (#12) a 5-11 sophomore guard from CHS, are both expected to get some significant playing time for the Bismarck, ND based Marauders.
Geoff started all 27 games last year, finishing second on the team, by slim margins, in minutes (733, 14 behind) and points (27.1, 0.6 points behind). He led the team with 60 assists, 30 steals, and was fourth with 7 blocks. Jason played in 23 games - averaging 11.1 points and 7-13 shooting from behind the arc.

After exhibition contests versus North Dakota St. and Montana St., they start the regular season tonight in Seattle, WA against St. Martins.

****Unfortunately, it was not to be. As the school reported-

Geoff West scored a career-high 34 but that wasn’t enough as the University of Mary lost its season opener 106-82 at Saint Martin’s University.
Behind West’s impressive outburst that included making nine three-pointers in 12 attempts, the Marauders built a 44-43 lead at intermission. The Saints exploded for 63 second half points, including a 14-1 run after the two teams found themselves tied at 60-60.
For the game, the senior guard from Lompoc, CA, hit
12-of-17 shots from the field and made one of two free throws. West also added two steals.
They stay in Seattle for the Seattle Pacific Tournament this weekend.
They are slated to play Seattle Pacific and Western Wasington.

Others
Joel Smith, a 6-4 guard from LHS, will play his senior season at Chaminade University where he is working on his Master's Degree. The Silverswords lost an exhibition game to Hawai'i on Nov. 7th 80-63. It is their lone tune-up before opening the Maui Invitational on the 24th versus #1 ranked North Carolina.

Chelsea Cassulo, a 5-8 freshman forward from LHS, is the lone valley player on the AHC Womens Basketball team this year. The Bulldogs opened with a 79-70 loss to Reedley on Veteran's Day, and dropped games to East LA (77-64) and Bakersfield (86-72) at their Tournament last weekend. They hope to pick up a win tonight vs. the College of Sequoias.

Quick Notes
Danny Duffy, one of the top prospects in the Kansas City Royals organisation, has been spreading some of his good fortune around. In addition to stuff for the folks (natch), he has also sprung for new uniforms for the Cabrillo baseball team - check 'em out this spring.

Napoleon Kaufman, who was in town for the Big Game, had some interesting things to say about some of his former haunts - namely the University of Washington and the Oaklawn, er, Oakland Raiders. He talked with the crew at halftime of the game, so check the schedule for the re-broadcasts.

Bryce Luken , now stationed at El Segundo AFB, also stopped by to talk about the AFA and Lompoc football. ---- el stato