Fall Championship Round-up!

As the new Commissioner of Athletics, this is the first opportunity I have had to witness and participate in the planning and implementation of the championship events held every year by the CIF Southern Section. I must say that I have been very impressed by all the work that is accomplished by so few individuals. Our Assistant Commissioners, Jerry DeFabiis, Mike Middlebrook, Kristine Palle, Rich Shearer, and Thom Simmons do a fantastic job of planning and coordinating all elements of these events. There are two other groups of individuals who I must recognize for their time, dedication, and expertise in making our tournaments and championship run so smoothly, they are our Sport Advisory Committee Members and our Program Coordinators.

The Advisory Committee members for each sport not only help make decisions related to regular season rankings, rules interpretations, and championship event proceedings, but most are also at each event helping to make it run as smoothly and professionally as possible. They share a sense of pride in making our events memorable experiences for our athletes and coaches. Our events would not run nearly as smooth without their assistance.

The true backbone of our event planning and implementation, however, is a result of the pride and passion our Program Coordinators have for their sports. They work independently on their own sports but also work collaboratively in so many ways to make sure the details are covered; the communication is timely, and the information provided is accurate. These ladies spend many late-night hours along with many weekends, to ensure schools have what they need, when they need it and that all the smaller details of each event are taken care of. Much appreciation goes out to Brenda Bomgaars, Sharon Hodge, Lisa McInerney, Tamara Towgood, and Kristine Trost for all their energy and efforts made on behalf of the Southern Section student athletes.

Cross Country
On Saturday, Nov. 18, the CIFSS-Ford Championship Finals in Cross Country took place at Mt. San Antonio College. Rain had already soaked the course the Wednesday prior and there was a forecast for rain on Saturday morning. With this information in hand, the decision was made to have the races take place on their established rain course instead of the normal route Mt. SAC is so famous
for. As it turned out, there was barely a rain drop to be had but the day was a huge success none-the-less. The course weaved around the athletics area a couple of times before finishing on the track in front of large crowds that still showed to watch the races. It was a fast course with many personal bests being set for the three-mile distance. The fastest times of the day were run by Sadie Engelhardt of Ventura (D2) who ran a time of 15:26.8 and Evan Noonan from Dana Hills (D3) with a time of 13:56.0. VERY impressive times!!!

Girls Golf
The CIFSS-Ford Girls Team Golf Championships were played on October 30 and 31 with Santa Margarita winning the Division 1 title. Crean Lutheran (D2), North Torrance (D3), and Fairmont Prep (D4) won championships in their respective divisions. The SCGA Team Qualifier and Individual Championship was held on Nov. 2, at the Morongo Golf Club @ Tukwet Canyon. Leigh Chien (Santa Margarita), Jasmine Koo (Cerritos), and Laruen Lee (Mater Dei) finished first through third in the Individual competition with Santa Margarita, Peninsula, Northwood and Walnut qualifying for the SCGA Team Competition. Santa Margarita went on to win both the CIF/SCGA Southern State Regional Championship as well as the CIF State Title which was held at Poppy Hills in Monterey. Congratulations to Santa Margarita on a tremendous season!

Football
CIFSS-Ford Football Champions were crowned on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 24 and 25. The Division 1 game between Mater Dei and St. John Bosco was played at the historic LA Memorial Coliseum which provided a great experience for all in attendance. The Monarchs avenged an earlier loss to the Braves by beating St. John Bosco 35 – 7.

Here is some data regarding the teams who won Football championships this year:
– By League Placement: Three League Champions, Five – 2nd place teams, Three – 3rd place teams,
Three at-large teams.

– By Seed: Two – #1 Seeds, Three – #2 Seeds, One – #3 Seed, One – #4 seed, Two – #5 seeds, One – #8
seed, Three – #13 seeds, and One – #15 seed.

– Public/Private: Four – Private School Champions (D1, D3, D9, D13) and Ten – Public School Champions
(D2, D4, D5, D6, D7, D8, D10, D11, D12, D14)

– Year three of Same Year Data Playoff Groupings in Football reinforced what we have seen in the first
two years: If your team makes the playoffs, regardless of league placement, you will play with similar teams and the games throughout the tournament will be much more competitive than in years past.

Girls Tennis
Friday, Nov. 10 was when the best Tennis Teams in the section faced off in their respective Divisions. This year’s event took place at two different locations with the Claremont Club hosting Divisions 2 through 6 and Pomona-Pitzer hosting the Open Division and Division 1. Both the Open and Division 1 had stellar competition with both matches ending in a tie at 9 sets apiece with the tie breaker coming down to games. Aliso Niguel overcame Los Osos to win the Division 1 title winning on games 71-64. Ann Kato from Aliso Niguel and Shukar Parikh from Los Osos played a tremendous Set that seemed to last over an hour in which Ann Kato came from behind and ended up being the victor and helped decide the match. The Open Division was even closer with the Westlake Warriors defeating the Mater Dei Monarchs with game scores of 82-80. What a tremendous day for tennis! The Individual Girls Tennis Championships finished on Thursday, November 30th with Daniela Borruel from Sunny Hills winning her second individual title and the team of Haley Tran and Chloe Vu of Mater Dei winning the doubles championship.

Girls’ Volleyball
Girl’s Volleyball completed its season on Nov. 4 with the top 4 divisions playing their championship games at Cerritos College and Divisions 5 through 9 playing at their home sites. The winner of our Division 1 Championship was Mater Dei High School who not only went on to win the State Open Division Championship, but was also recognized as the Number 1 team in the nation. Some interesting data regarding our Volleyball Champions includes the fact that five of the nine division titles were won by public schools and four were won by private schools. Also, our records show that we had six first-time CIF SS Ford Volleyball Champions this year! They are: JSerra (D2), Temple City (D5), Glendale (D6), California Academy for Mathematics and Science (D7), Temecula Prep (D8), and Moreno Valley (D9). Congratulations to all of you!!!!

Boys’ Water Polo
The Boy’s Water Polo Championships were held for the first time at the new aquatics complex at Mt. San Antonio College on Saturday, November 11th. The new facility has tremendous seating capacity and allows for the pool deck to remain clear throughout the day. Look forward to the girls playing there as well along with our Swim Championships in the Spring. Seven division titles were contested on the 11th with JSerra defeating Newport Harbor 16 -10 to win the Open Division. I personally was fortunate to witness an outstanding match between San Marcos and Dos Pueblos at Dos Pueblos High School. There were hundreds of people in the crowd rooting for the local rivals. That night, San Marcos prevailed 9-6 to win the Division 2 title in what was one of the best Water Polo game atmospheres I have ever experienced.

In Closing
I hope everyone has a great end to their first semester and that your holidays are restful and spent with loved ones. Good luck this winter and here is to a prosperous 2024.

Mike West, Commissioner of Athletics, CIF-Souther Section