Brandon Pate Memorial

On Monday afternoon, the Lompoc boys golf team joined with the Cabrillo team and with friends and family members to remember teammate Brandon Pate who died in a traffic accident last summer. A tree was planted in his honor just north of the 10th tee at La Purisima Golf Course. The team also presented game shirts for the Lompoc- Cabrillo match-up to Mr. and Mrs. Pate. As noted in a previous post, the team also has remembered Brandon on each of the game shirts worn this season. The gathering was briefly addressed by coach Chris Adams and then by Brandon's father.

Cabrillo coach Craig Knowles and Lompoc AD Jesse Davis
Coach Adams










---el stato

Church Returns; Aztecs Stay Hot; Dotzler on TV

mlb spring training

He's Baaaaaack

RYAN CHURCH returned to the New York Mets from his week of concussion recovery on Saturday. The concussion resulted from the play shown in the photo here when he collided with first baseman Marlon Anderson.

Church made his comeback one to remember with a ringing 2-for-2 day. He is now batting .308, the highest spring training average of any of the Mets’ expected regular season starters.

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College Women's Water Polo

Aztecs Keep on Blazing

In Irvine Friday the No. 6-ranked San Diego State women’s water polo team edged UC Irvine 6-5. Senior goalkeeper HEATHER FENSKE anchored a stellar defensive effort with 12 saves in front of the cage. It was her sixth game with double digit saves.

Then Sunday in San Diego the Aztecs downed UCSB 10-8 as San Diego took an early 5-0 lead. Junior Anna Gonzales notched her team-leading 40th goal on the Aztecs' opening possession then SDSU struck again on its next trip down the pool. Jenna Schuster got elevation on a pass from senior co-captain BECCA UR and tipped the ball into the net during a 6-5 opportunity. Fenske notched four saves. Her total is now 147, her average 8.2 per game. The Aztecs are now 16-2 on the season and 3-1 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.

UCSB had lost on Saturday as well, this by 6-5 to San Jose State, but freshman KATHRYN NELSON netted her third college goal. Her score came in the fourth quarter and chopped the Spartan lead to a single goal. The Gauchos are now 4-12 overall and 0-6 in conference.

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College basketball

Huskies Slip in 2OT

Washington State nipped Washington in double overtime Saturday 76-73. Barring an unlikely invitation to postseason play the defeat ends the Huskies’ season at 16-15 and 7-11 in the PAC-10. Junior JOEL SMITH saw only three minutes of action. Of 31 games Joel played in all of them and started 11. Most of his starts came early in the season. He averaged 14.8 minutes overall. He averaged 3.8 ppg and racked up 42.9% from beyond the arc.

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Sports TV

Dotzler to Appear on Lompoc Locker Room

Allan Hancock College's hard-hitting third-baseman COREY DOTZLER will appear on Lompoc Locker Room, the TV Show Monday at 5:30 p.m. on Comcast Channel 25.

Sticks and Balls !!

Cub great Ernie Banks was renowned for saying "lets play two". On Saturday, a bunch of local high schoolers took his advice. Seven teams, 3 softball and 4 baseball, each played double-headers. And it was a great day for it - the weather was excellent, and several of the games were nail-biters. One of the stars of the day was Cabrillo varsity softball player Adriana Segura (left), who pitched a complete game shut-out for the Conquistadors.

But first a quick note on Friday's lack of action - for those who don't know the Lompoc campus experienced a lock-down situation which wiped out the Friday schedule. The Lompoc / Cabrillo swim meet, and Lompoc softball (varsity and JV) games at Coast Union are being re-scheduled.

And now games that took place...

Softball

Cabrillo
Varsity: lost 3-2 to Nipomo, beat Santa Barbara 1-0.

The Cabrillo varsity squad completed play in their own tournament with an overall 3-1 record - good enough for 2nd place. Following easy wins last weekend against Carpenteria and Bishop Diego the Conquistadors faced tougher competition on day 2.

In the first game, the Conq's learned that pitching and defense, or the lack there-of, can make a big difference in a game. Two walks and two errors in the top of the first inning gave two runs to the Nipomo Titans. Cabrillo tied it up in the fifth with a pair of singles, a bunt sacrifice, and a wild pitch. They also were able to snuff out several Titan rallys in the middle innings, assisted in no small measure by center fielder Kelcie Pecyna's great running catches of wind-whipped balls in consecutive innings. But in the top of the seventh, two sacrifices moved a runner from first to third and she scored on a wild pitch. Cabrillo tried to mount a comeback, but was eventually shut down in the bottom of the inning by Nipomo pitcher Courtney Cline who pitched a complete game. Freshman Alyssa Abayari took the loss for Cabrillo even though they outhit the Titans 8-1.
In game two against Santa Barbara the roles were reversed somewhat. Sophomore pitcher Adrianna Segura took the one run her Cabrillo teammates pushed across in the first, and made it stand up until the sixth when they scored again. She threw a complete game, one hit, shutout for the win. In seven innings Segura struck out twelve and walked only two.

Tournament Results:

Day One (7 games)
Santa Maria 6-5 over Santa Ynez
Nipomo 5-3 over Santa Barbara
Cabrillo 12-0 over Carpenteria
Santa Barbara 13-3 over Bishop Diego
Santa Maria 8-2 over Carpenteria
Cabrillo 11-0 over Bishop Diego
Nipomo 9-1 over Santa Ynez

Day Two (7 games)
Santa Maria 9-6 over Bishop Diego
Santa Ynez 5-3 over Carpenteria
Nipomo 3-2 over Cabrillo
Cabrillo 2-0 over Santa Barbara
Nipomo 2-1 over Santa Maria
Santa Ynez 12-2 over Bishop Diego
Santa Barbara / Carpenteria
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Junior Varsity:

At the Arroyo Grande Tournament the Cabrillo JV put themselves back into contention for a title with two wins. After an opening 3-2 loss to SLO in the initial game last week, the coaches thought that the girls were a little anxious and were pressing too hard. So they tried to get them to relax. The result - three consecutive wins, 5-2 over Nipomo, 13-0 vs Pioneer Valley, and 3-2 against Righetti. Amanda Leake pitched all four games, and Cabrillo received good hitting from the top 6-7 places in the order.

Lompoc
The Braves varsity traveled to the Simi Valley tournament, and split two games - eking out a 9-8 win vs Lenore and falling to a very good (now 6-1) Pacifica team 8-1.

Baseball

Cabrillo Conq's "Galvan"-ized
Varsity: Won two vs Carpenteria 12-4 and 5-4 (12 innings)[Story]
After making quick work of Carpenteria in the opener, the Cabrillo baseball spent most of the afternoon game locked in a titanic struggle with the Warriors. Although both teams had numerous chances to pull out the win during the 12 inning affair, it was the Conquistadors who seemed to have an advantage. It was an advantage, however, that they had a hard time converting into points.
They had taken an early 1-0 lead, only to see it disappear into a 3-1 deficit. Then, in the bottom of the 6th, David Fraats hit a two-run triple to tie the game at three all. Unfortunately, they were unable to get Fraats home and thus began their woes. They had scoring opportunites in every subsequent inning.
After the Warriors pushed a run across in the top of the 8th, they reponded with a Justin Boggs double, and an Aaron Naputi single that plated Boggs. Another single put runners on first and second with nobody out, but the Cabrillo bats went cold again.
Both teams continued to threaten, but without result, until the bottom of the twelfth inning when Deuce Galvan finally crushed a shot to right center that brought Fraats home from third.
Game one pitchers were Geary (5 inn.) and Anderson (the sixth) for Carpenteria. While Aaron Naputi started for Cabrillo and Tyson Ramsden relieved him in the 7th. In the second game, Cabrillo starter Brian Engler went seven, Justin Boggs relieved him for three, and Patrick Somers finished up. Warriors starter Casey Novesky also went seven innings, before Nathan Saito took over for the last five.

Junior Varsity: Won two at Carpenteria 19 - 4 and 13 - 3 (both 5 innings).
The JV team had a much easier time of it on the road as they hammered the warriors for 32 runs, and won both games under "mercy-rule" conditions. Both Joe Segura and Sean Greathead had homers and Cabrillo batters hit about a half dozen triples for new coach Buck Sharpe. Evan Aguilar started the first game on the mound before giving way to joe Segura for the fifth. Likewise, Sean Greathead pitched four innings in the the second game before Thomas White mopped up.

Cabrillo / Lompoc

Freshman: Lompoc won twice, a 12-11 nail-biter and a 7-1 cruise.

At Bodary Field in Lompoc, the Braves appeared to be running away with game one of the double-header. They had built a 12-6 lead going into the top of the seventh, mainly on the strenth of Jason Lashore's three run double in the bottom of the fourth, for a 7-3 margin, and the bottom of the fifth when they turned three singles, an error, and Christian Garcia's double into 4 runs. Cabrillo whittled down the 11-3 lead by massing several singles in the top of the sixth and scoring two runs. Lompoc, however , responed with a run in the bottom half of the inning. At the top of the seventh Cabrillo loaded the bases on a walk ,a single, and an error and the Conq's were off - using singles, errors, and sacrifices to cut the lead to a single run with a runner on third before their last out was used.
Mitchell Williams started on the mound for the Conq's, with Nate Lewis (5th) and Matt Rotundi (the sixth) each contributing an inning in relief.
Jamel Whitaker (down briefly from the varsity) opened for the Braves, and then gave way to Mr. Howard and Pat Hill .
In the second game, Lompoc prevailed 7-1, scoring three in the 1st, two in the fifth, and one each in the sixth and seventh. Adam Clark went three innings, and Patrick Hill four more for the Braves. Whitaker (triple,double), Drew Sapp, and David Berber all had good days at the plate for Lompoc. ----el stato

DeGeorgia To Head Bandits; Church Rests

DeGEORGIA RETURNS TO FOOTBALL

Remember JARROD DeGEORGIA? Quick, who was the quarterback of Lompoc High’s first CIF championship team in 1990? No, it was not NAPOLEON KAUFMAN. It was DeGeorgia.

And now the strong-armed gunslinger who went on to Wayne State and 12 years in pro football in Sweden and three different arena leagues, has become coach, offensive coordinator, and Director of Football Operations of the Sioux City Bandits of the United Indoor Football League. This is the team he took to the championship game in 2005.

Here’s the story from January in the Sioux City Journal.

Bob Scott has been impressed with the maturity of Jarrod DeGeorgia since he assumed the position of assistant head coach with the Sioux City Bandits in mid-December.Scott, the Bandits' general manager/managing partner, allowed DeGeorgia to grow on the job.

DeGeorgia signed players, organized training camps, made recommendations for assistant coaches and even sat in on a few meetings as Scott interviewed potential head coaching candidates.

During a press conference Thursday at the Tyson Events Center, Scott promoted DeGeorgia to head coach. DeGeorgia, who quarterbacked the club to the 2005 United Indoor Football championship game, introduced his three assistant coaches, Jason Walding, Mike Winklepleck and Andy Yost, as well as the latest player signings, offensive linemen Erv Strohbeen and Drew Lewis.

"We had reservations because of his lack of experience," said Scott. "J.D., on the field, was (like) a coach when he played for us. He has handled the job well and made decisions on players and coaches."I've watched him and I can tell you, he has been very mature. We believe he is ready to go and we believe he can do a good job."

"I'd like to thank Bob for his trust," said DeGeorgia, who becomes the 11th head coach in the nine-year history of the team, including Roger Jansen, Tom Luxford and Pat Arens, who were named interim head coaches following the resignation of Rich Britt one game into the 2007 season.

"We want to build stability," added DeGeorgia. "I live here. I'm not going anywhere. I've been around the game a long time. I told them I can do it and they nodded.

"There's some things I'm nervous about, but I have a lot of contacts I can talk to. Bob and Mark (Carley, assistant general manager) have been tremendous. Bob's door is always open. I've been there three weeks straight to pick his brain."

Scott's original intention was to hire a head coach to groom DeGeorgia into the position. Ten candidates were interviewed.

"The big concern was J.D. had a young family and no job," said Scott. DeGeorgia has since been employed with Bill Thompson State Family Insurance of Sioux City.

"You look at the teams in the UIF and the coaches are local," said the 6-4, 335-pound Strohbeen, the Bandits' center for eight seasons. "They stay here after the season, they're not here one year, then done. The number one thing he'll bring to us is leadership."When we were in the huddle and Jarrod brought the play in, nobody questioned it. I believe as a head coach, when he calls the play, he'll put players in the right position to make it happen. He will be a good coach."

DeGeorgia started out like an Atlas rocket.

In their only exhibition game the Bandits demolished the St. Joseph Ravens last Saturday (are you ready?) by a score of 121-0. Here’s more from the Journal.


The St. Joseph Ravens may never more want to venture indoors to play a football game. Sunday, at the Tyson Events Center, the Sioux City Bandits demolished the Missouri outdoor team in an exhibition game, 121-0. The Bandits scored 17 touchdowns in the mismatch, returning two of seven interceptions for touchdowns. Sioux City rushed for 127 yards and passed for 185 yards, while limiting the visitors to a negative 20 yards of total offense.St. Joseph plays in an eight-man outdoor semi-pro league. The Bandits open United Indoor Football league action tomorrow at Wichita.

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Church Still Buzzing

Church's bells no longer ringing: Ryan Church began taking motion-sickness medicine after his visit to the neurologist on Wednesday, and has since seen reduced symptoms from his Grade 2 concussion suffered last Saturday. He said that he still experienced bouts of dizziness early Thursday morning, but nothing more.

Only when Church remains free of symptoms for two consecutive days will doctors clear him to play-- from MLB.com

Thursday Update 6 March 2008

{UPDATED TO REFLECT LOCKDOWN CHANGES}
The Lompoc boys golf team have chosen a singular way to honor their former teammate Brandon "The DJ" Pate. Brandon who was killed in a car accident last June just a month short of his 17th birthday, was a starter on the Braves varsity squad last year as a sophomore. Each team member has a memorial embroidered on the sleeve of their uniform shirt (see photo). Also, before Monday's match with Cabrillo a short ceremony will be held adjacent to a tree planted on the La Purisima course in Brandon's honor.

Wed, 5 March

Lompoc Boys Golf
Varsity vs Nipomo Titans @ La Purisima GC [ Story ]. lost 400-486.

The guys had their best outing of the young season, bettering the score they posted on Tuesday by 16 strokes - but still lost handily 400-486. The Braves were led once again by three-year letterman Brent Van Dyke (photo), their only senior, who carded a round of 80 for fourth overall. The other Lompoc scorers under triple digits were the other returning lettermen, sophomore Brian Magann (91) and junior Alex Stone (98). The rest of the varsity consists of frosh Abie Luna (100) and " the Tylers", sophs Tyler Grossi (117) and Tyler Grossini (166). The scores by Magann and Luna were personal bests. Laboring under the "double par" competition rule, it was the first time everyone finished all 18 holes.

JV [No competition was held since there were too few players for scoring, but they did play the course.]

The five man JV team, with freshmen Carter Bovee (127), Nick Martinez (132), Nick Foster (131), and Zach Sleigh (130) was easily out-pointed by the Titans. The fifth member, junior Matt Zebley, a very recent convert to the game managed to beat the aforementioned rule and complete 9 holes for the first time ever.

The Braves take on Cabrillo on Monday (March 10th) at their home - La Purisima Golf Club

Thur, 6 March

LHS Baseball:
Varsity @ Pioneer Valley 3:30 pm. [ Story ] [Stats] lost 6-3.
The Braves squandered their opportunities on Thursday in a 6-3 loss. They received 12 free base runners courtesy of 7 walks and 5 hit batsmen, but they did not convert them into runs because they only had two hits on the day. They put more runs on the board than they had hits, and stranded six runners on base. Starter Ryan Bower went five innings and took the loss.

JV vs. Pioneer Valley 3:30 pm. won 9-6.
The JV on the other hand did what the varsity couldn't do - get clutch hitting. They had come out of the gates strong, scoring five runs in the second inning, but then cooled off, putting up only one more in the next four. The Panthers took advantage of the lull to take a 8-6 lead going into the bottom of the seventh. Lompoc then got some timely hitting, some help (passed ball, etc.) from PV, and tied it up. So when Nick Tatigue came to the plate, with two out and runners on, in the rapidly darkening dusk, the question was whether the Braves could finish the job or would the game be ruled a tie. The sophmore quickly provided the answer by rapping a looping liner to shallow right field for the game-winning RBI. Tatigue, the starting pitcher before being relieved by Pete Hernandez at the start of the sixth, went 4-5 with 5 RBI from the plate. Hernadez got the win. The Panthers left six men on base over the course of the game.

Frosh vs. Pioneer Valley 3:30 pm. lost 7-3.
The freshmen played the visiting Panthers even for much of the game. The problem was that "even" worked to their disadvantage because Lompoc needed to catch up. They gave up a quick five runs in the first inning en route to a 7-3 loss. Pitchers for the Braves were Dillon Morgan (3 innings), Adam Card (2), and Burluson (2).

CHS Baseball :
Varsity @ Paso Robles 6 pm. lost 3-1. [ Stats]
Not a good evening for the Conq's, as junior right-hander Zach Jones shutout the locals for five innings. He had five strikeout, and gave up only three hits and one walk. Paso Robles scored all the runs they would need on a two-run single in the first inning. Tony Elliot started, took the loss, and went four innings. Deuce Galvan pitched two scorless innings in relief.
JV & Frosh idle

LHS Swim vs Righetti @ COLAC 2:30.
Note: All Distances are in Yards.
Righetti frosh sensation Karen Hendrick (left, as she waits for the official to sign her time sheet) was clearly the star of the meet. She posted three CIF qualification or consideration times - two individually (1:04.05 in the 100 butterfly & 1:02.41 in the 100 backstroke) and the 400 freestyle relay (4:04.01) with her sister Julie Hendrick, Ellery White, and Shawna Weston.
[Complete Results for the LPL Pentathalon, Atascadero & Righetti meets will be posted by 5 pm Sunday 16 March]

Girls Varsity lost 54-116
The Henrick sisters also served on the winning 200 freestyle relay (1:53.08), and Julie won two individual events herself - the 200 IM (2:20.12) and 100 freestyle (59.95).

Lompoc placers were:
2nd 200 Medley Relay Team #1 (2:21.96)
[Kimly Xiong, Brooke Crouse, Carla Alvarado, Andrea Caballero]
2nd 200 Free Relay Team #1 (2:04.38)
[Kimly Xiong, Amanda King, Andrea Caballero, Shelby Carpenter]
2nd 400 Free Relay Team #2 (4:24.72)
[Katie, Candice , Anna, ????]
2nd 200 Free Shelby Carpenter (2:30.08)
2nd 200 IM Kimly Xiong (2:57.16)
2nd 50 Free Daniela Caballero (32.19)
3rd 200 IM Brooke Crouse (3:03.66)
3rd 100 Fly Amanda King (1:37.41)
3rd 100 Free Andrea Caballero (1:07.84)
3rd 100 Back Kimly Xiong (1:21.92)

Boys Varsity lost 33-122

3rd 200 Free Robert Menezes (2:16.61)
3rd 500 Free Carl Thacker (6:13.49)
3rd 200 IM Kyle Pickles (2:43.72)

Boys JV lost 33-74
Basically it came down to being a numbers game- LHS doesn't have them.
2nd 200 Medley Relay Team (2:32.34)
[Naem, Brandon, Josh, Ed]
2nd 200 Free Relay Team (2:13.71)
[Ed Pelkey, Josh Menezes, Naem Nameh, Brandon Bassett]
2nd 100 Back Naem Nameh (1:32.68)
2nd 200 Free Naem Nameh (2:47.41)
2nd 100 Free Josh Menezes (1:12.26)
3rd 50 Free Georges Hoebrechts (33.36)
3rd 100 Breast Brandon Bassett (1:44.77)

Girls JV lost 82-81.
Lost a two point lead in the last race.

1st 50 Free Stephanie Cardoza (41.46)
1st 50 Back Krystal H (46.43)
1st 50 Breast Alex Morgan (44.08)
1st 100 Free Krystal H (1:24.26)
1st 100 IM Alex Morgan (1:40.76)
2nd 50 Free Sarah Lozier (43.36)
2nd 50 Fly Bria Hamlin (46.47)
2nd 100 IM Bria Hamlin (1:45.55)
2nd 200 Free Relay Team #1 (2:41.69)
[Krystal , Alex Morgan, Bria Hamlin, Sarah Lozier]
2nd 200 Medley Relay Team #1
[Krystal Hutchins, Alex Morgan, Bria Hamlin, Stephanie ??]
3rd 50 Back Jenny Kosanke (51.22)
3rd 200 Free Amber O (2:53.54)
3rd 100 Free Stephanie Cardoza (1:38.68)
3rd 100 IM Kelly Rogers (1:53.58)
3rd 400 Free Relay Team #1 (6:57.28)
[Jenn, Brittany, Stephanie, Kellie]

LHS Boys Tennis
Varsity @ Templeton 2:30 pm won 14-4.
The Brave took their second lengthy road trip of the week, but this time returned victorious, defeating the Eagles 14-4. At #1 singles Alex Jensen once again cruised to three set wins, while #2 Robert Rodriguez and #3 Marco Pasallo won three and two sets respectively.

JV vs Templeton 3:30 pm lost 17-1
The Short-handed (no # 3 doubles) had a rough day at the Dave Bickmore Courts. Only the # 1 doubles (Devin Day / Carlos Diaz) pulled out a win, taking their third set 6-2.

CHS Boys Tennis
Varsity [0-3, 0-1] @ St. Joseph 3pm lost 17-1.
The Cabrillo problems began with singles - St Joe's are really good and they swept all nine sets, while loosing only nine games. Doubles, unfortunately for the Conq's, were not much different, but were where the best Cabrillo performance of the day was found. Jordan Daniels & Arjun Ayyar (doubles team #1) led the Knights #1 team 4-3 but couldn't put them away, eventually dropping the set 4-6. They also played the second set tough before falling 3-6, but rallied in the third round to win 6-4. Three players made their 08 varsity debuts- Ben Brady in singles and Casey Owen/ Jose Flores in doubles.

JV vs. St.Joseph won 11-7.
Cabrillo managed to keep the singles portion close winning four sets - two by Ryan Anderson and one each by Frankie Caldera and Alex Hibbs in his first action of the year. Cabrillo was assisted in doubles by St. Joseph being a doubles pair short resulting in three forfeits by the Knights. But the Conquistadors won it on the court with four more set wins, two by David Terrones / Jeff Rodriguez (in his first match of 08), while Calvin Hoffeld / Ricky Ruiz and Matt Stumreiter (also in his first action) / Dan Garmendia contributed one each.

CHS T/F with St Joseph @ Santa Ynez 3 pm.
[Full Results to come, if event was conducted - likely on Saturday]

Upcoming:
{Also "The Grid" Coming Soon}

Fri, 7 March {UPDATE: ALL EVENTS POSTPONED DUE TO LOCKDOWN}
Lompoc and Cabrillo swim teams tangle in the COLAC pool at 2:30 pm.
Lompoc Softball: Varsity @ Coast Union (CCT)
Lompoc Softball: JV @ Coast Union (CCT)

Sat, 8 March
Lompoc Softball: Varsity @ Simi Valley Trny [2]
Cabrillo Softball: Varsity @ Cabrillo Trny [2]
Cabrillo Softball: JV @ AG Trny [2]
Cabrillo Baseball: Varsity vs. Carpenteria [2]
Cabrillo Baseball: JV @ Carpenteria [2]
Cabrillo Baseball: Frosh @ Lompoc [2]
---- el stato

Corey Dotzler Athlete of the Week

Dotzler Starring at Hancock

With RYAN CHURCH still inactive due to a concussion he suffered Saturday in an outfield collision, the highest ranking Lompocan in baseball right now, at least the one who is playing games where they keep score, is Allan Hancock standout COREY DOTZLER (the baserunner in this photo by his grandfather.)

Dotzler went 2-for-3 with an RBI triple in the Bulldogs’ conference opener last week and followed up in a non-conference game with a 2-for-4 day with four RBIs.

To show he can run the bases, even if he was a catcher at Lompoc High two years ago, he scored four times.

For those performances he was named Male Athlete of the Week by the North County Athletic Round Table at its weekly meeting Monday. Then yesterday he doubled in the go-ahead run in a 4-3 victory over Moorpark.

We caught up with Dotzler today and asked how he liked playing third base instead of catching.

“I like it a lot. I only caught for two years, starting my junior year of high school, but infield I’ve been playing pretty much my whole life.” But he had always played shortstop, not third base, and yet at the beginning of the season it was his glove that won him a spot in the Bulldog starting lineup.

“My hitting wasn’t coming around but I was picking it pretty good at third. When my coach saw I could play there pretty well he just left me there.

Pitchers are tougher at the JC level, Dotzler said.

“You’ve got guys throwing a lot harder and spotting up a lot better. It’s a quicker pace. It’s not so laid back like in high school. It’s a lot better quality of baseball.”

Dotzler was blazing hot when the season began but then slumped.

“The last two weeks were pretty low. I was 0-for-4 one game, 0-for-3. I kind of struggled but my coach had some extra hitting for me. I stayed after practice a couple days and it got so I started hitting the ball again. Things have just been happening.”

They’ve been happening so well that Dotzler is batting in the clean up slot. Bulldog batting averages and RBI statistics are apparently a secret, so closely-guarded by the Dawg coaching staff that even Dotzler himself does not know his numbers. “I hope it’s over .300,” he shrugged.

Dotzler injured his knee in a freak accident in June 2006 so he did not play last season. Instead he spent time in the weight room and gained 15 pounds of muscle.

“After fracturing my kneecap thought maybe I wouldn’t play, but my dad kept pushing me and pushing me.”

Dotzler and the Bulldogs are glad he did.

The Bulldogs play tomorrow at 2 p.m. in a rematch with Moorpark, then visit Ventura Saturday before hosting Ventura on Tuesday.

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Minor league baseball

Chris White heads out

CHRIS WHITE will be heading out Sunday morning for Lakeland, Florida, the minor league camp of the Detroit Tigers. Spring Training starts on Monday. For the past two months Chris has been training at Sacramento City College where he played last spring.

The centerfielder was named Player of the Year by the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League Tigers. He hit safely in his final seven GCL games from Aug. 20-27, going 14-for-28 with a double, triple, two home runs, four RBIs and six runs scored.

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Duffy in Arizona

Lefthanded pitcher DANNY DUFFY already departed for Arizona and the Kansas City Royals minor league camp.

Spring Preview - Swimming, Track, & Golf

Cabrillo looks to continue its winning tradition set by swimmers like these CIF Champs from last year.

Today we preview swimming, track & field, and boys golf. Remember all rosters and schedules are subject to change. And away we go... [if Blogger starts behaving again]...

Swimming & Diving
Schedules: Lompoc Cabrillo

Cabrillo girls have won seven consecutive league championships, and the boys have won 4 of the last 5. Nuff said.

Lompoc
Rosters: Boys Girls
[Kevin Hicks (boys)]
[John McNutt/Jackie Jaenicke (girls)]
Lompoc's swim squads have three things in common - some talent, lots of inexperience, and lack of depth. On the boys team 14 of the 16 members are in either their 1st or 2nd season of high school competition. They are bolstered somewhat, however, by the addition of foreign exchange students Jacobo Setti (Italy) & Georges Hoebrechts (Belgium) and by Kyle Pickles and Ed Pelkey off the wrestling team. The girls (13 varsity, 18 JV) have several of the youngsters off of the very young Water Polo squad, that they hope will do well. These include Brooke Crouse, Kimly Hoang, Andrea King, Shelby Carpenter, & Erika Elenes.

The Braves stuck their collective toes in the water on Tuesday at Atascadero, and experienced Piranha like conditions. The girls lost 133 - 38, scoring 3rds in the relays and five individual events. Shelby Carpenter (200 Free/500 Free), and Kimly Hoang (200 IM/100 Back) each had two, and Andrea Caballero had one (100 Free).

At the LPL Pentathalon on Friday, Brooke Crouse was 5th in the girls junior / senior event (won by Paty Vogel of Germany, an exchange student at Santa Maria HS). On the boys side, Kyle Pickles was 5th) in the upperclassmen races, Michael Ostrander 5th and Tyler Emory 9th for the frosh / soph squad.

Lompoc hosted Paso Robles in place of the scheduled Righetti Warriors @ COLAC on Tuesday (4 March). The exact score was not readily available after the meet, but Paso won both the boys & girls contests by large margins.

Cabrillo
Rosters: Boys Girls (JV)
[Joel Jory (boys)]
[Scott Alvarez/Dave Riley (girls)]

The Cabrillo swim teams are once again large, deep, and fast. Coach Jory has 25 boys (8 seniors) out this year, while the girls have 27 (10 seniors) on varsity and another 31 on the JV. Many are veterans of the highly sucessful Cabrillo Water Polo units, especially on the girls team. Rachel Nelson, Ashlea Coski, the Huggins sisters, Michelle Buss, Daniela Alvarado, Maggie Carroll, Jessica Denton, Meghan Bradley, and the rest of the usual suspects are back to swamp the competition.

The Conq's hit the pool on Thursday against Righetti [story], the boys lost 94-76 while the girls won 103-67. On Friday at the LPL Pentathlon, Cabrillo dominated the field, but was unable to capture the top spots. The girls took 8 of the top 10 spots in both the "varsity" (sr/jr) and "JV" (so/fr) races. The boys were not far behind - taking 6 of 10 in the varsity competition and 4 of 10 in the JV.

Track & Field
Schedules: Lompoc Cabrillo

St. Joseph is the defending LPL champions - both boys and girls. Santa Ynez is usually good, Templeton is improving, and Cabrillo looks to be in the mix. Lompoc, Morro Bay, and Santa Maria round out the league.

Lompoc

Boys Roster
Girls Roster

Lompoc opened their season at the Paso Robles Invitational on Saturday. There was little to show for their trip to the 14-team tournament, except for two nice performances on the girls team. Jozza Ray cleared 5"4' in the High Jump, and Chelsea Cassulo had a 38' 6.5" effort in the Shot Put. They start LPL action by hosting St. Joseph on Thursday the 6th of March.

Cabrillo

Boys Roster
Girls Roster

Cabrillo likewise opened their season at the Paso Robles Invitational on Saturday, where the boys finished in 3rd with 55 points, eleven points back of the host Bearcats and 5 behind LPL foe Templeton. They were also just three points ahead of another LPL team - the St. Joseph Knights. In the girls meet, St. Joseph was 2nd (64 points) & Templeton was 5th (50 points) with both local squads down the list. Cabrillo travels to Santa Ynez on Thursday (6 March) to open LPL competition.


Boys Golf
Schedules: Lompoc Cabrillo

2007 LPL titlists Santa Ynez return everybody. Morro Bay & St. Joseph were in the race throughout the season, with Templeton not far behind.
Cabrillo and Lompoc had their momments, while Santa Maria struggled.
There is one major change in LPL procedure this year, the league dual meets will only be nine holes. The tournaments will remain at eightteen holes.

Lompoc [Chris Adams]

Roster

Last year, 1st year coach Chris Adams fielded a very young Braves squad. The top six consisted of three freshmen, two sophomores, and junior Brent Van Dyke. Some familiarity with both the game and the courses should help. Lompoc had planned to open last Monday @ Chalk Mountain against Atascadero, but the Greyhounds pulled out of the match. So they opened the season on Tuesday vs. Paso Robles (under new head coach Steve Hahn) @ Hunter Ranch. In the opener Lompoc shot a 502, a little higher than they were scoring at the end of last season, and quite a bit higher than the Bearcats 407. They next host Nipomo @ La Purisima on Wednesday. Hopefully, having the opening game jitters gone and the home cookin' will help.

Cabrillo [Craig Knowles, Don Cross]

Roster

In boys golf each team has six players and scores the top five. Cabrillo boys golf coach Craig Knowles has 17 players on the squad this season, so he has some decisions to make. Five players have already separated themselves from the pack and figure to constitute the core of the scoring group. They are seniors Terry Naughton & Jeff Martin, sophomore Chaz Whitmore, and freshmen Aaron Hay & Drew Langston. Naughton and Martin are the only two seniors on the team, while Whitmore was 7th in league last year.

On Thursday, the Conquistadores traveled Hunter Ranch to take on the Paso Robles Bearcats. Unfortunately, the teams were unable to complete the match - only finishing 15 of the 18 holes. The match was decided based on the front nine scores. Cabrillo scores included: Naughton-43, Martin- 51, Whitmore- 46, Hay & Langston - both 48. It was the first time many of the team had seen the Hunter Ranch course.

Cabrillo traveled to play Nipomo @ Monarch Dunes on Monday, and to Alisal to play Santa Ynez, SLO & Righetti on Tuesday.
The SLO Tigers won the event with a 409 score on the Ranch course, followed by Santa Ynez (412), Righetti (414), and Cabrillo (466). The Conq's scorers were Chaz Witmore (80), Drew Langston (89), Perry Naughton & Aaron Hay (both 97), and Mike Morgan (103).

Other Scores-
Coming soon: "The Grid"

Boys Tennis

Lompoc lost to a tough San Marcos squad on the road 14-4. Scoring points for the Braves were singles players Alex Jansen, who won all three of his sets (7-6, 6-1, 6-0), and Robert Rodriguez who won (6-2) versus a substitute for the Royals #1 player.

Cabrillo was also beaten 14-4 at home by Nipomo. While the Titans swept the doubles, Eric Wang managed to win two singles sets.

Softball/Baseball

Lompoc

Lompoc hosted Paso Robles in both sports on Tuesday, and it was a tale of missed opportunities in both games. The baseball team [story] lost 9-5, after giving up nine runs in the first four innings, and stranding eleven runners on base in the last four. The girls were in a scoreless tie going into the sixth inning when the starter, frosh Brianna Vickery, finally surrenderred two runs to a quite good Bearcat line-up. In the seventh, the Braves had a shot at pulling it out. Pitcher Michelle Moses gave up a walk with one out. A fielders choice then resulted in a runner on first and two out. The next batter doubled to left center, driving in a run and moving to third base on an overthrown ball. Unfortunately, the Braves rally died on the vine when the following batter struck out to end the game. The JV softball team also lost 5-1 to the Bearcats, although Coach Eva Luna cited the high quality of play by Mariah LaShore in the loss.

Cabrillo

Cabrillo also had problems converting scoring chances. Trailing Santa Barbara 5-2 in the bottom of the seventh, they got two runners on but Don's reliever Mason Radke (who got the win vs. Lompoc on Friday) closed out the Conq's. Santa Barbara had taken the lead when two Cabrillo errors helped give them two runs in the first inning. They then added a run each in the 3rd, 5th, & 7th innings. Cabrillo scored in the second on Deuce Galvan's solo homer. It was his first varity at-bat, he also doubled later in the game. They then manufactured one in the fourth. Zach Pecyna scored after singling, stealing second, advancing to third on a wild pitch, and coming home on a ground out fielders choice by Galvan. Aaron Naputi started on the mound for the Conquistadors, and was relieved by Brian Engler and Justin Boggs. ---- el stato

The first full weekend of spring

Unfortunately, a combination of factors (the forces of technology are allied against me) prevented the posting of part 2 of the spring preview. It will appear (hopefully) on Tuesday, because there was so much activity over the weekend that I wanted to catch you up on. As part of that preview I will include the results from Saturday's LPL swimming pentathalon and the Bearcat Rotary Track & Field Invitational- both local high schools participated in these events. So we start with ...

Baseball

Cabrillo coming off of a pair of scrimmages played an alumni team on Saturday, and will open at home against CIF Div II #7 ranked Santa Barbara on Tuesday. The real action though belongs to the Lompoc Braves. They played those same SB Dons on Friday, on route to a Saturday double-header at Coach Jim Allen's old school Rialto.

The Braves opened the season at Eddie Matthews Field with a bang, as Brandon Alonzo (shown above) parked the second pitch of the season over the outfield fence for a quick 1-0 lead. But Don's pitcher Mason Radke settled down after that, shutting out the Lompoc squad for the next five innings, while Santa Barbara built a 8-1 lead. They scored two runs each in four of the first five innings, and a solo run in the other (the 2nd). The Braves made it interesting , however, with a four run seventh powered by an Alonzo three-run homer after Kevin Erickson had doubled off reliever Zach Chavez, but the Dons held on to win 8-5. Radke, an All-Channel League hurler last season surrendered only three hits and one walk on 89 pitches in six innings. He recorded twelve strikeouts. Freshman Ryan Bower took the loss for the Braves, with relief work by Ritchie Hirzel and Dan Mallory.

The Braves split against Rialto losing 10-3 in the first game, but took the second (7-4) with a four run burst in the 7th inning. In the top half Chris Mallory took the loss, pitching three innings. Rudy Yruegas (4th & 5th inn.), and Daniel Dunaetz (the 6th) got their first varsity experience on the mound. Dan Mallory went 2-2 and Scotty Aguailar was 2-3 at the plate. Dalton Rouleau went the distance on the mound for the locals in game two.
The diminutive Brandon Alonzo got his third homer in as many games. Chris Mallory had a double, a triple, and scored two runs. And freshman Jamel Whitaker got his first varsity hit - a 2-run game-winning double in the 7th.

Softball

The Lompoc softball team also jumped straight into the fray, traveling to SLO on Friday to take on the Tigers, then did an about face and headed south to the Simi Valley Tournament for two games. Cabrillo meanwhile was hosting their own tournament on Saturday.

The Braves took advantage of SLO's inability to put hits together winning 7-2, even though they were outhit 11-7. Courtney Doza went 5 innings for the Braves and Brianna Vickery finished up. Dana Campitelli had two hits for Lompoc. At Simi, the Braves lost to a very good Buena team 9-2 with Paty Martinez throwing a complete game. The Bulldogs outhit the Braves 6-3, and both sides commited several errors. Next up was the Arroyo Grande Eagles and it was not lookin good for the locals until a five run rally in the fifth (and final) inning gave the Braves a 5-3 win. Jeana Carrillo led the way spending four innings on the mound and belting a double, to go along with a single and an RBI, at the plate. In JV action against SLO Catarina "Catachill" Chill was tagged with the complete game 6-3 loss, although she was not helped much by the five or so errors committed by the defense.

Cabrillo easily rolled past Carpenteria (12-0) and Bishop Diego (11-0) at the Conquistador Classic. Both KylieShea Aldridge and Alyssa Abayari posted complete mercy-rule shortened games on the hill. Coach Meeder was pleased that the girls maintained their intensity throughout both contests. In the first day of competition Cabrillo, Santa Maria, and Nipomo won both of their games, Santa Barbara was 1-1, and Santa Ynez, Carpenteria, and Bishop Diego were each winless at 0-2.


The Last of Winter

The Los Padres League released its All-LPL lists for the winter sports (except for wrestling). And, speaking of wrestling, Masson Blow finished up his high school grappler career in fine fashion going 3-2 at the state meet [bracket]. His two losses were to the wrestlers who finished 6th and 7th. The three sport standout now turn his attention to the track where he hopes to improve on his already impressive long jump & triple jump efforts from last year. He has also been fielding recruiting inquiries from various colleges seeking his services on the football field.

Upcoming Events

Monday 3 March:
Cabrillo boys golf @ Nipomo 1pm
Tuesday 4 March:
Cabrillo Baseball vs. Santa Barbara 3:15
Cabrillo Softball vs. Dos Pueblos 3pm
Cabrillo boys Tennis vs. Nipomo 3pm
Cabrillo boys Golf @ SY/Righetti 12pm
Lompoc Baseball vs. Paso Robles 3:30
Lompoc Softball vs. Paso Robles 4pm
Lompoc Swimming vs Righetti 3pm
Lompoc boys Tennis @ San Marcos 3pm
Lompoc boys Golf @ Paso Robles 1pm

--- el stato

Coe Wins Title, Church Hurt, College Hoops, Polo

COE WINS INDOOR TITLE


SEATTLE – MICHAEL COE won the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation indoor track title in the 3000 meters Sunday, posting a lifetime-best mark of 7:59.75 and provisionally qualified for the indoor national championships.

The race pitted 34 runners from Cal, Oregon, Stanford, Washington, Arizona State, UCLA, and Washington State. Second was Yoseph Gehbray of Californa at 8:02.68.

The Cal men's distance medley relay, consisting of senior Andres Perezchica, juniors Mark Matusak and Jake Hanson and Coe, also provisionally qualified for nationals with a time of 9:38.39. The relay placed fourth in the race.

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Major League Baseball Spring Training
CHURCH INJURED


RYAN CHURCH took Sunday off after a collision Saturday with first baseman Marlon Anderson during the Mets' 1-0 victory over the Dodgers at Vero Beach, Florida. MLB.com reported it like this--


The collision in shallow right field near the foul line in the fourth inning was quite nasty and left Church with a Class 2 concussion.

Anderson and Church, the right fielder, have thick bodies, and their impact was considerable. But given the potential for more serious injury, Mets manager Willie Randolph concluded, "We were pretty fortunate even though it looked a little ugly."

Anderson and Church were examined via CAT scans at a local hospital. Church was dazed and needed assistance from Randolph and trainer Mike Herbst as he walked off the field. Anderson walked off without assistance.

Church remained in the trainer's room, eyes closed, but emerged 10 minutes later. He preferred not to discuss the collision, a club spokesman said, because he still was groggy.

"He said he doesn't remember anything about anything," media relations vice president Jay Horwitz said.

Church suffered a cut inside his mouth and a sore jaw. He stayed home Sunday and didn’t even make the drive to the ballpark.

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College basketball
HUSKIES UPSET CAL

In Berkeley Saturday Washington staged an 87-84 victory over Cal to pass up the Golden Bears in the Pac-10 race. UW is now 7-10, California 6-10. JOEL SMITH scored two points in four minutes of playing time. The Huskies wrap up regular season play at Washington State on Saturday.

U-MARY ALL DONE


In Winona, Minnesota the University of Mary men’s basketball team saw its first appearance in Northern Sun post-season play end quickly as top-seeded and third-ranked Winona State tore apart the Marauders 77-50 Saturday night. Point guard GEOFF WEST scored eight points.
The Marauders end the 2008 season with a record of 8-20 overall while the Warriors improve to 30-1 this season.

West, a junior, scored 10 points per game to rank No. 2 on the squad. He led the team in steals. His brother JASON WEST, a freshman, played sparingly but ranked No. 2 in free throw percentage at .813 (13 of 16).

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College Women’s Water Polo
Aztecs Split


STANFORD, Calif. - Six different San Diego State Aztecs were able to find the back of the net against No. 2 Stanford, but it wasn't enough as the seventh-ranked San Diego State women's water polo team dropped its Mountain Pacific Sports Federation opener, 12-9, Saturday afternoon. The Scarlet and Black fell to 13-2 overall and 0-1 in the MPSF, while the Cardinal improved to 10-2 overall, 2-0 MPSF.

Becca Ur scored once while Heather Fenske had seven saves in goal for San Diego.

On Sunday at San Jose State however the Aztecs’ three-goal outburst in the fourth quarter lifted them to a 9-8 comeback victory over eighth-ranked San Jose State (8-8 overall, 1-3 MPSF). The Scarlet and Black improved to 14-2 overall and 1-1 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. Fenske recorded double-digit saves for the fifth time this season, as she turned away 10 shots.

Masson Champion of San Francisco

In the first day at the state wrestling meet in Bakersfield MASSON BLOW pinned San Francisco's No. 1 wrestler Demetric Strong. It took him 1:43 for the fall.

After two rounds Masson is the only Southern Section wrestler still alive in the championship bracket at 152. In his first match Masson outpointed Andew Tsarnas of Healdsburg 11-2.

Thirty-nine wrestlers began, but entering Saturday there were only 16 still in the running for the top two spots. Masson has his work cut out for him today. He draws the No. 1 seed in the state, Michael Kent of Vacaville.

Thanks to ARMANDO ROBLES for the photo here from the CIF-Southern Section Masters Meet.

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In baseball news RYAN CHURCH went 1-for-3 in spring training vs. the Cardinals and is now batting .286..... At Stanford in PAC-10 basketball the Cardinal nipped Washington 82-79 with JOEL SMITH playing his customary sixth man role for UW, but just for three minutes. The Huskies visit Cal today.