By Dave Krider
MaxPreps.com
Unheralded Crespi (Encino, Calif.) shocked a field loaded with nationally-ranked baseball teams to win the prestigious Anderson Bat National Classic at California State University-Fullerton. The Celtics went 4-0 during the tourney, including a convincing 7-2 championship-game triumph over talented Lutheran of Orange, Calif.
Crespi handed St. John’s (Washington, D.C.) its first loss in a semifinal game which did not end until 12:30 a.m., the day of the finals. St. John’s has nine seniors who have received college scholarships.
Right-hander E.C. McSweeney (4-1) gave up seven hits and struck out four in five innings to snap Lutheran’s 11-game winning streak. Ryan Hawthorne pitched the final two innings. Left-hander Aaron Gates suffered his first loss in five decisions. Crespi played great defense and was the beneficiary of five unearned runs.
Crespi catcher Jeremy Rodriguez was named the tourney’s Most Outstanding Player, while Lutheran’s fire-balling Gerrit Cole was named Most Outstanding Pitcher. Two days earlier Cole had gunned down 13 batters during a 16-0 rout of Yucaipa, Calif. Over two dozen scouts clocked the right-hander’s fastball consistently from 93 to 95 miles per hour. He walked one and yielded one hit in six innings. Oh, yes, and for good measure the 6-foot-3, 200-pound UCLA recruit belted a two-run homer over the center field fence!
Vista Murrieta (Murrieta, Calif.) outlasted West Linn, Ore., 7-6, in 11 innings. The game, which lasted three hours and 35 minutes, is believed to be the longest in the 19-year history of the tournament, which annually has been ranked at or near the top in the entire country. Rookie catcher Trent Garrison ended it with a dramatic home run.
Baseball Notes
* Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) used outfielders Seth Smith and Cory Hahn – a junior and sophomore, respectively – on the mound to defeat Valencia, 8-5, in the championship game of the Anaheim Lions Tournament. They combined for 12 strikeouts. Aaron Northcraft, a 6-4, 205-pound junior, supplied the power with a three-run homer.
* Fallbrook, Calif., senior Clark Murphy hammered four home runs during a 9-8 loss to Poway to tie the San Diego Section record set by Jim Tatum of Santee Santana in 1985. The 6-2, 195-pound left-handed hitter, who has signed with UCLA, drove in seven runs…Former Major Leaguer Al Leiter is the pitching coach for Pine Crest (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.). Leiter, who also does color commentary on television for 50 New York Yankees broadcasts, has three children in the Pine Crest school system.
* Though just a sophomore, Westlake (Westlake Village, Calif.) slugger Christian Yelich already is flashing Major League potential. The 6-4 left-handed hitter has belted four home runs, driven in 12 and is hitting .400 with a sizzling .800 slugging percentage in his first 11 games. As a freshman he batted .373. Yelich has a very selective eye at the plate and can play several positions.
* Turning to Washington, Woodinville junior left-hander Bret DeRooy struck out 19 during a 4-3 victory over Sammamish Eastlake. He gave up five hits and walked three…In Jacksonville, Fla., Eagle’s View Academy massacred Cedar Creek Christian, 55-0, in five innings. The Warriors, who used all players, collected 29 hits and benefited greatly from 15 Cedar Creek errors…Kansas City Bishop Ward, winner of the last five Class 4A state titles in Kansas, defeated city rival Piper, 8-3, for its state-record 43rd consecutive victory.
* LSU has received commitments from two outstanding Louisiana juniors. Zack Von Rosenberg, a pitcher-infielder from Zachary, has played on two consecutive state champions. The 6-4, 200-pound right-hander, who was the Class 4A All-State punter in football, has a 3-0 record this spring. Baton Rouge Parkview Baptist infielder Alex Edward is hitting .485 with five home runs, nine doubles and 32 runs batted in.
* Central Davidson (Lexington, N.C.) junior outfielder-pitcher Chaz Frank has made a commitment to the University of North Carolina. The 5-9, 160-pounder is hitting an even .500 with three home runs. He batted .388 as a freshman and .444 as a sophomore. He also is an outstanding defensive player and has good speed.
Boys Basketball Notes
* Even though standout junior Lance Stephenson sat out over nine minutes after being nailed for a technical foul, Brooklyn Lincoln raced past Flushing Holy Cross, 86-67, to notch its second consecutive New York State Federation Class AA Tournament of Champions. The Railsplitters shot 54 percent from the field and forged a commanding 41-27 advantage in rebounds.
Picking up the slack were Darwin Ellis with 20 points and four assists and Justin Greene with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Khalif Staten added 14 points on 6-of-6 from the field. The 6-5 Stephenson still had 16 points, 14 rebounds and four assists and was named tourney MVP. Sylven Landesberg, a 6-6 senior, drilled 15-of-18 free throws and scored 31 points in a losing effort.
* In Minnesota, Ellsworth defeated Minneapolis Minnesota Transitions, 81-63, to win its second consecutive Class A state title. The Panthers (31-2) held the Wolves to 28 percent shooting and received 31 points from 6-5 senior standout Cody Schilling, who set the state’s career scoring record with 3,428 points. He also had 10 rebounds and seven assists…Minnetonka overcame a 22-point deficit to defeat Mendota Heights Henry Sibley, 68-59, for the Class AA title.
* He may stand only 5-10, but Pawnee, Okla., senior Keiton Page led the nation in scoring this year with a prolific 44.4 average. The Oklahoma State recruit also set a national record for career three-point field goal percentage (minimum 400 attempts) with a superb .499. The previous record was .473 by Erik Kelly (Staples-Morley, Minn.) from 1994-97. His senior point total (1,287) set a new Oklahoma record.
* North Carolina’s Player of the Year honor was shared by Bo Ingram of state champion Kinston and Ty Walker of Wilmington New Hanover County. Ingram, a 6-5 senior, has not yet chosen a college. Wake Forest has landed the 7-foot Walker, who set state records with 235 blocked shots this year (8.1 average) and 543 during his career. He once blocked 18 shots in a single game…DeAngelo Casto, who sparked Spokane Ferris to the Class 4A state title, has been named Player of the Year in Washington.
* A pair of outstanding 6-8 New Jersey juniors have made commitments to Rutgers University. Austin Johnson averaged 22 points and 12 rebounds for Blairstown Blair Academy. Greg Echenique was overshadowed this year by All-American Samardo Samuels at Newark St. Benedict’s, but he will be a major force next year….Switching to Minnesota, Royce White, a talented 6-7 junior, has transferred from Minneapolis De La Salle to Minnetonka Hopkins…Temple University has received a commitment from 6-3 senior T.J. DiLeo, who averaged 23.9 points this year for Cinnaminson, N.J.
* One of Indiana’s premier coaches, Basil Mawbey of Walton Cass, has retired with a 38-year record of 659-246. His Connersville team won the 1983 state championship and his Cass team captured the Class 2A crown in 2003…In Illinois, Don Davidson, who started the program at Aurora Christian, has retired with a 37-year record of 631-377. He will continue as athletic director and help coach in the lower grades where seven of his grand children are enrolled…The 2009 McDonald’s All-American Game will be held on April 1 (no foolin’) at the University of Miami, Fla.
Girls Basketball Notes
* New York City’s Murry Bergtraum defeated Long Island power St. John The Baptist, 61-47, to win its second consecutive New York State Federation Class AA Tournament of Champions and run its winning streak to 53 games. Syracuse-bound Shakeya Leary – one of just two seniors on the team – led the way with 17 points. MVP honors went to 5-7 junior guard Shanee Williams, who had nine points and eight rebounds. Christine Huber, a 6-4 junior, led the losers with 12 points and 15 rebounds…Queens Christ the King won the Class A crown, 70-63, over Malone Franklin Academy as freshman Bria Smith poured in 32 points.
* Sarah Boothe, a 6-5 senior from Gurnee Warren Township, has been named Miss Basketball in Illinois. Boothe averaged 20.5 points, 11.2 rebounds and 4.1 blocks and is the tallest Miss Basketball in the 23-year history of the award. The Stanford recruit scored 2,038 points during her four-year career…In Kentucky, Miss Basketball honors went to Tia Gibbs, a 5-9 Vanderbilt recruit, who averaged 21.1 points and 7.1 rebounds for state champion Louisville Butler.
* Kernersville Bishop McGuinness standout Errin Thompson has been named North Carolina Player of the Year. The 6-3 junior averaged 14.7 points, 12.1 rebounds and 3.1 blocks while shooting 62 percent from the field as the Villains lived up to their nickname by notching their third Class A state title in a row…In Washington, Player of the Year honors were awarded to senior Ashley Corral of Prairie.
* Kelly Faris, one of Indiana’s top juniors, has chosen the University of Connecticut over Notre Dame. The 5-11 standout averaged 12 points, 8.3 rebounds and 5.2 assists this year for 27-1 Indianapolis Heritage Christian, which has won the last three Class 2A state titles.
Track, Cross Country Notes
* Five American teenagers were members of the USA teams which competed in the 36th IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh, Scotland. The American men placed sixth, with the title going to Kenya. German Fernandez (Riverbank, Calif.) placed 25th with a time of 24:15 for the 8K; Kevin Williams (D’Evelyn, Denver, Colo.) was 35th in 24:34; and Ben Johnson (Albuquerque, N.M., Academy) was 72nd in 25:37…In the women’s division, the USA finished 13th, with Ethiopia taking the title. Running for the Americans were Laurynne Chetelat (Davis, Calif.), who placed 29th in 21.19; and Emily Reese (Chamblee, Ga.), who finished 30th in 21:22.
* Shade Weygandt of Mansfield, Texas set a national junior class record by pole vaulting 13-9.5 during the Bobby Layne Invitational at the University of Texas-Arlington. She also holds national records for a freshman (12-9) and sophomore (13-7)…Another Texan, Southlake Carroll’s Colby Lowe ran a tremendous double at the Fossil Ridge Relays, clocking 4:12.44 in the 1600-meter run and 8:55.94 in the 3200.
* At the Mississippi State Bulldog Invitational, Starkville’s Tavarius Tate won the 400-meter dash – by three seconds – in a blazing 46.91 seconds…Texan Rynell Parsons (San Antonio Stevens) ran the 100-meter dash in 10.42 seconds in San Antonio, while another Texan, Angleton senior D.J. Monroe, clocked 10.46 in the Rice Bayou meet.
Football Notes
* A legend has left coaching in Connecticut. Bill Mignault, the state’s winningest coach with 321 victories, has retired after 42 years at Ledyard. The 78-year-old marvel has an overall record of 321-130-5 with state championships in 1986, 1991, 1993 and 2007. Last fall’s 21-14 Class M state-title victory over Berlin was engineered by his grandson, Marc, a quarterback who snared the winning touchdown pass on one of many trick plays used by the Colonels over the years. Mignault, who started the program, also has coached two sons, who later became his assistants, and two other grandsons.
* North Carolina’s loss is Georgia’s gain as Keith Wilkes is leaving the head coaching job at Winston-Salem Carver for one at Shiloh High in Snellville, Ga. Wilkes compiled a 139-62-1 record and won a pair of Class 3A state titles in 16 years at Carver…Over 90 quarterbacks – including Gatorade National Player of the Year Matt Barkley (Mater Dei, Santa Ana, Calif.) – from 32 states paid $600 each to take part in the two-day Steve Clarkson QB Academy at Glendale College in California. After helping to develop the likes of Matt Leinart and Ben Roethlisberger, Clarkson has been dubbed “The Dream Maker.”
* On the recruiting front, the University of North Carolina continues to sparkle with a commitment from 6-3, 190-pound quarterback Bryn Renner, who passed for 2,749 yards and 32 touchdowns as a junior at West Springfield in Springfield, Va…Quintin Hunter, a 6-2, 180-pound quarterback, has made a commitment to the University of Virginia. As a junior he passed for 2,065 yards and ran for 846 yards for Orange County in Orange, Va.
Gymnastics Notes
* Danell Leyva of Miami, Fla., won all-around gold in the Junior Division during the prestigious Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships in San Jose, Calif. Leyva, who is being home-schooled, totaled 89.400. USA prep teammates Glen Ishino (Santa Ana, Calif.) and John Orozco (Bronx, N.Y.) placed fourth and fifth, respectively, with scores of 87.500 and 86.900. Ishino later placed second on the horizontal bar (14.750), while Leyva was third in parallel bars.
* In the women’s Junior Division, Rebecca Bross (Plano, Texas) won all-around gold with a score of 61.050. Her efforts also helped spark the Americans to the team title with 245.275 points. Bross, who still is 14, is not old enough to try out for this year’s Olympics. Samantha Shapiro (Los Angeles, Calif.) placed second with 60.100. Bross later won three more golds – vault (15.025), balance beam (tie at 16.025) and floor exercise (15.500), while Shapiro won the uneven bars (15.450).
Wrestling Notes
* An estimated 2,500 athletes took part in the 19th annual NHSCA National High School Junior Wrestling Championships in Virginia Beach, Va. New Jersey won the Senior Division with 230 points. Ben Bennett of Rockford, Mich., won the 171-pound title and was named Most Outstanding Wrestler in the division.
The Junior Division was won by New York with 266.5 points. The Most Outstanding Wrestler was 112-pound champion Tyler Cox of Campbell County (Gillette, Wyo.). In the Sophomore Division, Pennsylvania took the title with 284.5 points. Individual honors went to 130-pound champion Mark Hartenstine of Easton, Pa. Pennsylvania also captured the Freshman Division with 215 points. The top individual was Travis Himmelman of Conifer, Colo, who claimed the 119-pound title.
Hockey Notes
* Even at age 78, Bill Belisle still has got it! The legendary coach guided Woonsocket Mount St. Charles to a 4-3 victory over two-time defending champion Warwick Bishop Hendricken to win Rhode Island’s Division I state title. It was his 39th title, but the first since 2003. His son and assistant coach, Dave Belisle, dedicated the game to him, producing some rare tears. Forward Leo Levesque scored the winning goal with 8:19 left and John Guay was named MVP for contributing two goals and four assists in the two-game series.
* Turning to Pennsylvania, Wyndmoor LaSalle shocked previously unbeaten Gibsonia Pine-Richland, 9-1, to win the PIHL Pennsylvania Cup Class AAA state championship. The winning Explorers (30-1-2) were led by Adam Schmidt with two goals and an assist; Adam Berkle, two goals; Conor Varley, three assists; and goalie Dan Pyne, 32 saves. Senior Reed Loney had the lone goal for the Rams (24-1)…Greater Latrobe nipped Berwyn Conestoga, 3-2, to win the Class AA crown as goalie Nick Loyacona made 32 saves.
Softball Notes
* In a battle of two Arizona defending state champions, Phoenix St. Mary’s blanked Tucson Canyon del Oro, 2-0, as Dallas Escobedo struck out 13, walked one and scattered four hits. Losing pitcher Kenzie Fowler, a junior committed to the University of Arizona, also struck out 13, walked one and collected three of her team’s four hits.
* Lexington Central Davidson junior Chelsea Leonard set a North Carolina state record with a streak of 132 consecutive scoreless innings. The 5-9 standout, who has committed to the University of Louisville, has an 8-0 record and has struck out 134 in 56 innings. Last year she tied the state record with 26 shutouts as she led the Spartans to the Class 2A state championship…North Davidson (Lexington, N.C.) coach Mike Lambros posted his 600th victory, 2-0, over Randleman. He has won three state titles and lost only 97 games in 28 years.
Potpourri
* Loyola-Blakefield, (Md.) ranked No. 1 in the nation by Inside Lacrosse Magazine, was upset by Haverford, Pa., 7-5, as Brendan McGrath and Kurt Watkinson each scored a pair of goals. Goalie Dan Wigrizer had 10 saves…John Grubb, who started the lacrosse program in 1977 at Pylesville North Harford, posted his 300th victory, 19-14, over Baltimore Perry Hall. Alex Poteet led the attack with a school-record eight goals.
* In a duel of nationally-ranked girls soccer teams, St. Thomas Aquinas (Overland Park, Kan.) nipped St. Teresa’s Academy (Kansas City, Mo.), 1-0, during the Missouri-Kansas Challenge. Senior Anna Alfonsin scored the lone goal on a first-half free kick. Senior goalie Veronica Holton recorded a well-earned shutout.
