Robinson, a 6-foot-1 sophomore, scored 19 points and
grabbed 13 rebounds against Jefferson, which suffered
its first loss in 35 decisions.
It was the fourth NJCAA national championship for Central
Arizona of Coolidge, which defeated Middle Georgia 83-66,
Shelton State (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) 78-58, and Kaskaskia
(Centralia, Ill.), 89-54.
Robinson averaged 15 points and 11.2 rebounds in the
championship tournament.
Top o' of the mound O'Sullivan: 7 shutout innings
for first collegiate victory
That combination was a perfect fit for San Diego State
freshman right-hander RYAN O’SULLIVAN, who picked
up his first collegiate victory as the Aztecs blanked
Kansas 1-0 Tuesday (Mar. 17) night at Tony Gwynn Stadium.
Making his fourth collegiate start, O’Sullivan
turned in his best performance of the season as he allowed
just three hits over 7 innings with a walk and a strikeout.
After giving up a pair of hits in the 1st, O’Sullivan
– a Valhalla high graduate – settled in and
retired 12 batters in a row from the 2nd through 5th
frames before giving up a leadoff single in the 6th.
His excellence was rewarded with a victory as he evened
his season record at 1-1.
The Aztecs improved to 12-6, while Kansas fell to 10-6.
Buffalo's Terese Diaz
BUFFALO, N.Y. (3-17-09) – Former Helix High standout
TERESE
DIAZ made her opening week in college a successful
one. The Bulls freshman was a Mid-American Conference
honorable mention selection for pitcher of the week
honors after posting a 2-0 mark at the K-Club Classic
at Kennesaw State.
The frosh right-hander picked up complete-game wins
over Drexel and Memphis, striking out 19 in 16 innings
of work. At the plate, she batted .286 and knocked in
a pair of runs.
Memphis' Kimmie Hayden
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The playing career for former
Valhalla High standout KIMMIE
HAYDEN may be over, but not her softball career.
After leading the Tigers in batting (a .311 average
– third-highest in school history) as a junior
for the Tigers in 2008, surgeries on both shoulders
ended her stint as a 3-year starting catcher.
However, while Memphis was kind enough to keep her
on scholarship for her senior year – afterall,
she set more than a dozen school records in three seasons
with the Tigers – Hayden is now serving as an assistant
coach at crosstown Christian Brothers University, an
NCAA Division II program. The Lady Bucs are off to a
10-6 start, the school's best this decade.
Jodie Schmehr
Taylor Kelly
Seattle's Jodie Schmehr
LOS ANGELES – Former Valhalla High standout JODIE
SCHMEHR helped advance Seattle University to the title
game of last week's Marriott L.A. Westside Classic at
Loyola Marymount's Smith Field.
Schmehr, the RedHawks' starting second baseman as a
freshman, helped straighten Seattle's ship following
a 2-6 start by winning a season-high 3 straight ballgames
at the event. Included was a 2-game sweep of Utah Valley,
as Schmehr scored three runs in the series, then she
turned a key double play in the 6th inning during a
victory over St. Mary's.
Although Seattle lost to host Loyola Marymount in the
finale, the freshman still collected two of the Hawks'
six hits.
Seattle will join St. Mary's and Loyola Marymount in
the new Pacific Coast Softball Conference in 2010.
Cal's Taylor Kelly
HONOLULU – Former Santana High standout TAYLOR
KELLY is helping Cal remain in the NCAA national
rankings. The Golden Bears (21-4) are ranked 9th nationally
after sweeping all four games at the Chevron Spring
Fling Tournament, hosted by the University of Hawai'i
on Mar. 11-14.
Serving as the starting shortstop, Kelly has started
every game but one, posting a solid .264 batting average.
Included was one of three 1st-inning home runs slugged
by the Bears against Wisconsin at the tournament, her
second of the season. Cal also defeated Memphis, St.
John's and the host Rainbow Wahine.
Baggett, a freshman first baseman, batted a cool .714
in tournament victories over William Wood University,
9-5, and Rogers State, 4-3 in 8 innings. In the second
game, the Vikings avenged a season-opening loss to the
Hillcats in a battle of the two remaining undefeated teams
in the tournament, as Baggett
homered, then drove in the game-winning run in extra
innings.
Baggett started the week with a power surge in a non-conference
contest, pumping out a pair of home runs and accounting
for all of her team's RBI in a 4-0 pasting of Ottawa University.
For the week, Baggett's hot hitting (7-for-10, 8 RBI,
1.700 slugging pct.) has lifted Missouri Valley's Vikings
(7-5) to 5 straight victories after starting 2-5 out of
the gate.
At West Hills, Baggett finished third among East County
batters with a .457 average as a senior in 2008, gaining
a first-team berth on the All-East County team.
Spears found firm footing at Poway High as a junior
and senior, and finally locked in at Grossmont College
last year as a sophomore. At present Spears, a junior
shortstop, is tearing it up at Southern Nazarene University.
Spears is batting at a .600 clip (27-for-45) for the
Crimson Storm, an NAIA team that boasts a 13-1 record.
He was named Sooner Athletic Conference Player of the
Week for Feb. 16-21, when he hit .667 (12-for-18) with
12 runs, two doubles, a triple, four home runs and 12
RBI.
Thomas topps the list, keying an early rally
with a towering 2-run homer and also slugging
a double, powering Kingsville to an 11-3 triumph
over East Central University in a Lone Star Conference
contest at Nolan Ryan Field.
Clifton Thomas (2) gets
congratulated following his tape-measure
home run
to help defeat East Central University. (TA&M-K photo)
Thomas' double came in the 1st, scoring on a
basehit by Philip Johnson. An inning later, Thomas
hit his homer to straightaway centerfield for
a 5-0 lead. In the third, Luis Diaz (Cypress College)
hit a sacrifice fly, followed by an RBI triple
by Will Mettlach.
Later, Thomas Miller (Western Nevada CC) slugged
a lead home in the 5th for a 7-0 lead.
For the contest, Thomas scored three runs and
drove in a pair for the defending conference champions.
He ranks second on the ballclub in extra-base
hits, while leading the conference with a perfect
5-for-5 in stolen base attempts.
Thomas earned First Team all-East County honors
as a junior and senior. He was named First Team
all-San Diego during his senior year. He set an
East County record for stolen bases in a season
(50) and led the county in batting average. He
was drafted in the 46th round by the Texas Rangers
in 2006.
In addition, Thomas earned First Team all-East
County and all-San Diego honors in football as
a senior with 92 pass receptions.
Franey, who equaled her season high, also grabbed four
rebounds. The junior seems to be flourishing in a new
role -- and so have the Gauchos. Following a 3-6 start,
UCSB (9-6) has captured six consecutive games while
Franey's playing time continues to rise for the defending
Big West Conference champions.
"There are certain benchmark games to see where
you are, and I thought tonight was one of those times
that I was able to sit back and watch our offense a
little bit and realize `They're getting it, they're
getting it,'" said UCSB head coach Lindsay Gottlieb.
Franey shot 3-for-5 from the floor, including a 3-point
goal, as the Gauchos shot a season-high 47.9 percent.
The history major now ranks fourth on the team in scoring,
aiding by her 81.6 percent shooting from the foul line.
Molzen, a senior majoring in health and nutrition,
has started in 41 of WSU's last 45 games over the past
two seasons, becoming one of the Pac 10's top defenders.
This season, she is averaging 8.0 points and a team-leading
5.8 rebounds per outing.
Molzen was a three-time All-East County first-team
selection.
The 6-foot-3, 315-pound Sutton, formerly of West Hills
High, led an offensive line that helped SAU average
27.2 points and 380.7 yards of total offense per game
this season.
St. Ambrose won its third straight Mid-States Football
Association Midwest League title, and led the 2008 MWL
selections with five first-team players. Included was
wide receiver Michael Hayward, who was named the league's
Player of the Year.
The defending
NCAA Division III
champs end the
Bearcats' season
by handing WU
(11-1) its lone
setback of 2008.
Arlin Taylor led
WU: 11 tackles.
Former Steele Canyon High standouts
Arlin Taylor
(left), Luis Guerra and Scott Perlin now compete
for
undefeated Willamette University (10-0) in Oregon.
The Bearcats host Occidental in their playoff
opener. (Photos courtesy of Willamette media relations)
And the Bearcats, undefeated in the regular season
at 10-0, have a boatload of East County talent on their
roster, which also helped them capture the Northwest
Conference crown and gain a No. 6 national ranking.
Willamette is one position behind defending national
champion Wisc.-Whitewater.
Among the locals succeeding in southern Oregon include
a trio of Steele Canyon High products: sophomore guard
LUIS GUERRA, sophomore defensive back ARLIN TAYLOR,
and freshman running back SCOTT PERLIN,
Taylor, who plays at strong safety, was tabbed to the
All-NWC first team, along with five other Bearcats
defenders.
Taylor ranked fourth on the team during the regular
season with 45 total tackles. He earned 21 unassisted
tackles and was credited with 24 assists. He forced
two fumbles and recovered three fumbles for the Bearcats.
He also intercepted one pass and returned it 18 yards
for a touchdown against Cal Lutheran in a 31-17 win
on Sept. 13.
Taylor has not missed a game in his two seasons with
Willamette.
Guerra made the All-NWC team as an honorable mention
selection. His efforts have helped WU average 398.5
total yards per game, with at least 400 yards in six
games, including each of the last five games. Guerra
and the rest of the line also have allowed the Bearcats
to complete 58.4 percent of their passes this fall.
Perlin played in just two games in his first season,
yet did register a special teams tackle against Lewis
& Clark.
Cougars help Willamette into D-3 national rankings
Fresh off a 31-23 upset of rival Southern Oregon ,
the Bearcats are rated 25th in the nation according
to D3Football.com,
while picking up several votes to rank among the honorable
mention in the regular NCAA listings.
Willamette features a trio of Steele Canyon High products
in sophomore strong safety ARLIN TAYLOR, sophomore offensive
guard LUIS GUERRA, and freshman fullback SCOTT PERLIN.
Taylor finished fourth on the team in tackles against
Southern Oregon, as Willamette scored 14 unanswered
points in the fourth quarter to rally past the Raiders.
Meanwhile, Guerra starts on the right side of the Bearcats'
O-line, while Perlin is on special teams.
Willamette makes its final Southern California appearance
this week, meeting University of La Verne at 1 p.m.
Saturday (Sept. 27)..
Schiller, a 6-foot-6, 300-pound center, earned NSIC
North Division All-Conference honors as a member
of the University of Minnesota-Crookston (2-9).
As a Vaqueros senior, Schiller – one of the top
pass protectors in the Grossmont North League –
was named to the All-GNL first team and to the All-East
County second team in 2007.
Other East County players on the Golden Eagles roster
include: OL Dominic LaRussa (West Hills), WRs Anthony
Conti and Garrett Jarvis (El Capitan), and RB Ben Wilkins
(El Capitan).
Aztecs quarterback Ryan Lindley
(left);
Colorado State Rams at San Diego State Aztecs (Slideshow by Tori Mills)
The 5-foot-10, 190-pound junior leads the Tigers
(3-3) in all-purpose running (155.5 ypg) and tops
his team in kickoff returns (24.1 avg on 18 chances).
To boot, he’s Ouachita’s No. 2 receiver
(32-327 yards, two TDs). Young was a key member
of the El Cajon Valley squad that reached the
Division II section finals against Oceanside in
2005. He also helped the Griffins reach the SoCal
semifinals as a freshman a year later.
Dale leads the eight-team Dakota Athletic Conference
in all-purpose running (178.4 ypg) and in scoring
(76 points, 12 TDs, 4 PATs). A 5-foot-9, 165-pound
freshman, Dale also heads the Hardrockers (4-1)
in rushing (76-548, 10 TDs).
Dale earned DAC Player of the Week honors on
Sept. 22 against Dakota State.
Lindley established MWC and SDSU records for most passing
yards (433) and touchdowns (four) by a freshman in a
45-17 triumph over Idaho. He is the first frosh to capture
the award since 2006. His passing rating of 198.87 is
the high among all qualifying frosh, ranking 18th overall.
The Aztecs (1-3) travel to Fort Worth, Texas, to meet
TCU in their conference opener on Saturday. Kickoff
is at 3 p.m. PT.
Lindley not blamed for embarrassing Aztecs loss Pair of school frosh passing records not enough
to avoid last-second 29-26 failure to Cal Poly
Lindley, an all-state performer for El Capitan in 2006,
established a pair of school records for passing yardage
and touchdowns by an SDSU quarterback in his freshman
debut. However, Cal Poly bounced back on a 20-yard field
goal by Andrew Gardner on the game's final play to secure
another shocker over the Aztecs, 29-27, Saturday (Aug.
30) at Qualcomm Stadium.
The victory was the Mustangs' second over San Diego
State in three seasons.
Following a slow start in the first quarter, Lindley
settled in and tossed for records of 352 yards and three
touchdowns. He completed 27-of-45 passes.
"I think I was just rushing a little bit in the
first quarter," Lindley explained. "Probably
at the end of the first quarter I felt like the whole
offense was clicking. The (offensive) line was picking
up stuff very well all game. I think that everybody
just got in a groove. Then we kind of kicked it up.
We just need to go that extra yard, that extra inch
to get what we need in the next game."
Just think how well the former Vaqueros standout could've
done with some assistance from his teammates. Lindley
was intercepted twice, both times on tipped passes off
the hands of his receivers. The Aztecs also dropped
no less than a half-dozen passes.
Lindley, in his first collegiate appearance, refused
to point fingers.
"Any one play could've turned this thing around
and it obviously did for them unfortunately," said
Lindley. "There were a couple of good plays where
we would build momentum and build momentum, then all
of the sudden we slipped up. It happens, but I feel
extremely confident that we can turn it around next
week."
Cal Poly led throughout by taking advance of five San
Diego State turnovers. Meanwhile, the Aztecs defense
was burned for 480 total yards.
Lindley led the comeback with TD tosses to Brand Sullivan
(16 yards), Robert Wallace (30) and Vincent Brown (23),
then he directed a 77-yard scoring drive to finally
give the Aztecs the lead at 27-26 with 6:51 remaining
on a 5-yard TD rush by Sullivan. SDSU failed on a 2-point
conversion attempt to leave the door open for the Mustangs,
who capped a 9-play, 63-yard drive with Gardner's second
field goal of the contest at the gun.
“The silver lining in there was Ryan Lindley,"
said head coach CHUCK LONG. "He really threw the
ball well after a rough start. He really came on and
showed a lot."
Up next for San Diego State (0-1) is a nationally televised
contest at Notre Dame on Sept. 6. The Aztecs return
home to meet Idaho on Sept. 27.
Grossmont HS alum Khalid Waters
records his first collegiate TD on this 11-yard
run to give Midland Lutheran an early 7-0 lead. (Midland Lutheran courtesy photo) DOUBLE-CLICK TO ENLARGE
Midland Lutheran honored Larry
the Cable Guy
with his own team jersey, then the Warriors beat
Doane, 27-26, on a 2-point PAT with 1:06 left. (Midland Lutheran College courtesy photo)
Aided by the efforts of running back KHALID WATERS
(Grossmont HS) and safety BRANDON BROWN (Steele Canyon),
the Warriors are ranked 23rd nationally after nipping
Doane College (Neb.), 27-26, last Saturday. MLC scored
a touchdown with 1:06 to play, then completed a
2-point conversion for the dramatic victory at Memorial
Field.
Stand-up comedian Larry the Cable Guy was in attendance
to make sure the Warriors "Get'r Done." Waters
did by finishing the contest with 109 all-purpose yards,
scoring the game's opening touchdown on an 11-yard rush.
Meanwhile, Brown was the Warriors' second-leading tackler,
which included a shared quarterback sack.
For their efforts, both freshmen are expected to gain
their first starts of the season this Saturday, when
Midland Lutheran, which is celebrating its 125th anniversary,
travels to Sioux City, Iowa, to meet Briar Cliff University.
O’Sullivan, a 10th round draft pick of the San
Francisco Giants last June, turned down the professional
team’s offer to accept a baseball scholarship to
SDSU.
“We put a number (desired signing bonus) out there
at the beginning of the summer,” O’Sullivan
said. “The Giants finally made an offer close to
what we wanted a day or so before the final signing
date. But by then my feelings had changed.”
O’Sullivan shunned the Giants and instead will
play shortstop and occasionally pitch for the Aztecs
for a minimum of the next three years.
“Shortstop is my first love,” said O’Sullivan,
who noted the Giants drafted him as a pitcher. “I
want to get myself known as an everyday player. I want
to work on getting stronger . . . perfecting my game.
I’ll be able to do that at SDSU.”
O’Sullivan spent the majority of his summer playing
wood bat baseball in the Northwoods League. He hammered
five homers and logged 24 RBI in 146 at-bats.
“I don’t regret my decision to choose college
over pro ball at this time in my life,” he said.
“I feel in my heart that I made the right decision.”
He’ll look into his pro future some time before
June 2012.
O’Sullivan enjoys banner night
Special to East County Sports.com
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (8-4-08) — Valhalla High’s
RYAN O’SULLIVAN put together one of the best statistical
lines of any Northwoods Collegiate League (NWL) player
this summer in the Eau Claire Express’ 19-0 destruction
of the Madison Mallards on Sunday (Aug. 3).
It started with a three-run home run in the 1st inning,
O'Sullivan's fourth consecutive game with a homer. He
added three more hits, all doubles, in his next four
at-bats to go with a walk in his other plate appearance.
Overall, O'Sullivan finished 4-for-5 with six RBI and
three runs scored.
O’Sullivan topped off the evening by tossing three
innings and allowing just two hits while striking out
three. O'Sullivan, a 10th round draft pick of the San
Francisco Giants, is an incoming freshman to San Diego
State University.
El Cap’s Conti has crisp debut for Golden Eagles Receiver joins four East County products at Minn.-Crookston
The lone bright spot for the team was provided by ANTHONY
(A.J.) CONTI of El Capitan High, who reeled in six passes
for 52 yards and kicked two conversions.
In addition to Conti, El Capitan grad JEFF SCHILLER
started at center and West Hills product DOMINIC LaRUSSA
started at left guard for the Golden Eagles. GARRETT
JARVIS, a wide receiver/tight end out of El Capitan,
and former Vaqueros running back BEN WILKINS are also
on scholarship to Minnesota–Crookston but did not
play in the opener.
Clinton Snyder on Bronko Nagurski watch list Award Honors College Football's Top Defensive Player
Clinton Snyder (Stanford photos)
Special to East County Sports.com
STANFORD (7-7-08) – Former Monte Vista High standout
and Stanford outside linebacker CLINTON
SNYDER has been included on the watch list for the
2008 Bronko Nagurski Award, which goes to the best defensive
player in college football. There are 88 candidates nationwide
nominated for the award, which is sponsored by the Charlotte
Touchdown Club.
The Football Writers Association of America All-America
Committee selects the Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner
from the association's 11-man All-America defensive
team in November. The watch list was developed by the
FWAA All-America committee with the help of schools
and conferences.
Snyder, who earned second team All-Pac-10 Conference
honors last season, ranks as Stanford's active career
leader in tackles (179), sacks (10.0), fumbles forced
(7) and is tied for first in fumbles recovered (3) and
tackles for loss (18). He ranked among the Pac-10 leaders
in virtually every defensive category in 2007, including
fumbles forced, tackles for loss, fumble recoveries,
sacks and tackles.
As a senior at Monte Vista, Snyder was the East County
Sports.com Defensive Player of the Year in 2004. He
was also a first-team tight end in the East County Sports.com
selections.
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy has been presented since
1993 and is awarded in memory of the legendary Nagurski,
a former All-America lineman at Minnesota in 1927-29
who went on to star for the Chicago Bears in the 1930s.
Stanford linebacker
Clinton Snyder (Stanford Univ. photo)
In
Thursday's (Aug. 28) NCAA opener, former Monte
Vista standout CLINTON SNYDER, now a starting
linebacker for Stanford, helped lead the
Cardinal over visiting Oregon, 36-28,
placing Stanford as the early leader in the
Pacific 10.
"It's more than a landmark. It's a great step
for us that we need as a program to show people that
we're not the old Stanford," said Snyder, one of
three Cardinal defenders with 10 tackles. "I didn't
know how it would feel. We haven't done this in a long
time."
Under the leadership of former University of San Diego
head coach JIM HARBAUGH, the rebuilding process seemed
headed for a long, bumpy road following embarrassing
Pac-10 Conference losses to UCLA (45-17), Oregon (55-31)
and Arizona State (41-3) -- all at home -- earlier in
the season.
Perhaps playing on the road is the ticket for the Cardinal,
which snapped USC’s 35-game home winning streak.
Oh yeah, the last time the Trojans were toppled in the
Coliseum was at the hands of Stanford in 2001. That
was USC coach Pete Carroll’s first year as the
Trojans' head man.
"It's incredible. We came into this game with
only a win against a WAC team ( San Jose State ), and
we weren't performing like we knew we could," added
the 6-foot-4, 230-pound Snyder, Stanford’s top
returning tackler from a year ago. "This game,
we came out and ground it out, and performed the way
the Stanford Cardinal needs to perform in the future."
The youthful Cardinal committed mistake-after-mistake,
but switching to Tavita Pritchard at quarterback last
week against Arizona State seemed to be the catalyst,
as the offense took giants steps forward while Snyder
& Co. held the line on defense.
"All the little mistakes we were making in the
other games didn't happen," noted Snyder, a redshirt
sophomore. "We got some good breaks on defense
with all the turnovers. It's a game of turnovers. Whoever
wins the turnover battle usually wins the game."
Snyder, the 2004 East County Defensive Player of the
Year who set a Grossmont Conference record of 44 sacks,
went on to say:
"We got those turnovers on defense and helped
the offense out by giving the offense good field position,
and they made good adjustments. They moved the ball
down the field and scored some points for us, and we
came out on top."
Snyder, who made 61 tackles for losses during his Monte
Vista career, came through with several of those key
plays. He forced a fumble which led to a turnover, then
he registered one of three sacks on Trojans quarterback
J.D. Booty late in the 4th quarter which led to Stanford
getting the ball back for its game-winning drive.
The Cardinal offense rebounded with the game-winning
touchdown in the final 2:50. Included was a 4th-down
reception by Richard Sherman to the USC-9, then Pritchard
found Mark Bradford on the left-side of the endzone
with 49 seconds remaining for another 4th-down conversion.
"We said focus and finish, which is what we've
been saying all year,” Snyder said. “Focus
and finish is a big thing for us. That's what we stress,
finishing in the fourth quarter. We went out there and
got a good stop on defense."
USC, ranked No. 1 in one major poll and No. 2 in the
other, had one last chance, but Booty's bomb was intercepted
by Bo McNally.
"Just to see Bo catch that ball and slide down
there knowing that the game is over and we had won the
game is just great," said Snyder, who now has 117
tackles in five games this season. “It's awesome;
it's a dream. This is a great win for the program."
