By Dave Krider
MaxPreps.com
Shades of Sandy Koufax! Similar to the former Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers great, California baseball pitcher Michael Fagan is left-handed and he strikes out nearly every batter in sight. Only a sophomore, Fagan notched an amazing 21 strikeouts as the San Diego Jewish Academy throttled Midway Baptist, 5-0.
Fagan allowed no hits, but did walk four during the seven-inning gem. His 21 strikeouts tied the San Diego Section record originally set by Terry O’Dell of Victory Christian in 1987. He currently has a 2-0 record with 44 strikeouts in 19 2/3 innings. He was named Citrus West League Pitcher of the Year as a freshman.
Boys Basketball Notes
* South Dakota basketball fans won’t soon forget Louie Krogman, a 6-foot-1 senior guard from White River. The University of South Dakota signee poured in a record 45 points as the Tigers defeated Langford, 66-50, before a crowd of 8,113 to win their first Class B state championship since 1955. A starter since eighth grade, he also set the state career scoring record with 3,515 points. Matthew Bartlett, a 6-5 junior, grabbed 18 rebounds.
* Chester’s veteran coach, Fred Pickett, retired in a blaze of glory as his Clippers defeated Norristown, 81-77, for their third consecutive and sixth overall Pennsylvania Class AAAA state championship. In 13 years, Pickett compiled a 331-80 record. His final team finished 33-1 with a 24-game winning streak. Bullet-quick senior point guard Karon Burton led the champs with 24 points and seven assists. Junior guard Khalif Wyatt paced Norristown (32-2) with 28 points – 19 in the fourth quarter.
* Terrelle Pryor added to his already enormous legend in Pennsylvania when he sparked Jeannette to the Class AA state title with a 76-72 victory over Philadelphia’s Strawberry Mansion. Pryor had 23 points, eight rebounds, five blocks, four assists and four steals. He completed his storied career with 2,285 points. The big-time football quarterback also announced that he will make his college decision this week.
* In Colorado, Denver East nipped Highlands Ranch ThunderRidge, 62-59, in overtime to win the Class 5A state title. It marked the 598th victory and eighth state championship for veteran East coach Rudy Carey…Saginaw drilled a record 12 three-pointers en route to a 90-71 victory over Detroit Pershing for back-to-back Michigan Class A state titles. Michigan State recruit Draymond Green had 21 points and 19 rebounds, but game honors went to teammate Mike Green, who had 29 points, including six threes.
* Newark won its first Ohio Division I state title since 1943 with a 65-52 victory over Lakewood St. Edward before a crowd of 12,465 at Ohio State University. Neither team was ranked in the final state poll. Greg Avery, a 6-4 senior swingman, paced the champs with 33 points on brilliant 14-of-18 shooting, 11 rebounds, four steals and three assists.
* The brighter the lights, the more outstanding the performance by Lance Stephenson. The brilliant 6-5 junior had 27 points and eight rebounds in 25 minutes as Brooklyn Lincoln routed city foe Boys & Girls, 88-57, at Madison Square Garden to win its third consecutive (sixth in seven years) New York City PSAL championship…Meanwhile, in upstate New York, Jamesville-DeWitt ended Peekskill’s 37-game winning streak and hopes of claiming four consecutive Class A state titles with a 74-55 semifinal triumph. Supersub Alshawn Hymes, a 6-2 junior, scored 23 points and 6-10 senior Nick Pascale added 14 points to go with 17 rebounds.
* Indiana’s No. 1-ranked team, New Albany, suffered its first loss, 51-41, against unranked Brownsburg in the Class 4A semistate. Gordon Hayward, a 6-8 senior headed for Butler University, did the most damage with 24 points and 16 rebounds. Twin-tower teammate Julian Mavunga, another 6-8 senior, who has signed with Miami of Ohio, had only nine points and nine rebounds due to foul trouble. New Albany made just 6-of-19 free throws.
* Indiana’s favorite for Mr. Basketball, Tyler Zeller, sparked Washington to a 73-69 triumph over Batesville in the Class 3A semistate. The 7-foot University of North Carolina signee scored 30 of his 38 points in the second half, including the first 12 to start the fourth quarter. Seth Coy, a 6-11 senior, supported Zeller with 10 points and 13 rebounds…Batesville coach Mel Siefert retired with a 15-year record of 261-97.
* Indiana’s No. 1-ranked sophomore, DeShaun Thomas, sparked Fort Wayne Bishop Luers to the Class 2A semistate crown with an 83-70 victory over Topeka Westview. The 6-7 superstar notched 35 points and 16 rebounds. Six-foot-one freshman Evan Blackmon – nephew of coach James Blackmon – added 19 points. One week earlier Thomas exploded for a school-record 48 points during a 94-81 overtime victory against Wabash Northfield as Luers won its first-ever regional.
* Turning to Tennessee, Ken Torry poured in 48 points as Memphis Mitchell defeated Chattanooga Howard, 87-61, in the Class AA state semifinals. Torry, a 6-2 senior, came off the bench after three minutes had elapsed in the first quarter and shot 19-for-30 from the field. His 48 points were just two shy of matching the state-tournament record, his 22 third-quarter points were just one short of tying another record and his 19 field goals did tie the existing record.
* Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) edged Bishop O’Connell (Arlington, Va.), 49-43, to win the 48th annual Alhambra Catholic Invitational at Frostburg State University. Cameron Johnson led the champs with 15 points and tourney MVP Ian Hummer added nine points, 10 rebounds and three blocks. Gonzaga completed a 34-1 season and avenged its only loss by beating DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) in their second meeting.
* A major transfer is taking place that will change the landscape in Kentucky. Dakotah Euton, a very talented 6-8 sophomore, is leaving Ashland Rose Hill Christian for Georgetown Scott County due to his father’s job change. Euton, who already has committed to the University of Kentucky, averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds this year.
* Toledo Libbey star William Buford (6-5) has been chosen as Ohio’s Mr. Basketball. It’s an especially big honor this year, because he beat out the likes of 7-1 B.J. Mullens (Canal Winchester) and 6-9 Yancy Gates (Cincinnati Withrow)…Matt Gatens has been named Mr. Iowa Basketball. The 6-4 University of Iowa recruit averaged 22.1 points and 6.1 rebounds while leading Iowa City to the Class 4A state title. He also set a school career scoring record with 1,928 points.
* Jeronne Maymon has been selected as Wisconsin’s Player of the Year. The 6-5 junior averaged 19.7 points and 10.7 rebounds for Madison Memorial’s Division I state runner-up…Delaware’s Player of the Year honors went to Nafis Richardson, a 6-2 senior guard who averaged 21.7 points for Newark Hodgson Vo-Tech.
* Ball State University has received a commitment from Jarrod Jones, a 6-8 senior from Michigan City, Ind. The 17-year-old Jones, who also considered Northwestern, averaged 14 points and eight rebounds this year…Tommy Kurth, a junior guard from Penn (Mishawaka, Ind.), has made a commitment to Valparaiso University. The 6-1 Kurth, from an athletic family that goes back several generations, averaged 15.5 points this year…Penn State has received a commitment from Chris Babb, a 6-5 senior who averaged 31.3 points and 8.0 rebounds this year at Oakridge in Arlington, Texas.
Girls Basketball Notes
* Nneka Ogwumike has been named Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year. The 6-2 senior led Cypress Cy-Fair to its first Texas Class 5A state championship and will take her 3.8 GPA to Stanford University in the fall…Rachael Hencke, a 6-1 senior from Grafton, has been named Miss Basketball in Wisconsin. The Miami of Ohio recruit, who has a 3.94 GPA, averaged 18.9 points, 10.0 rebounds and 3.3 blocks for a 24-1 team.
* Shenise Johnson is having a monster year and has been rewarded by being named Miss New York Basketball. The 5-11 senior forward, who is committed to the University of Miami (Fla.), dominated with 35 points and a career-high 30 rebounds as Rush-Henrietta defeated North Babylon, 59-54, to win its third consecutive Class AA state title. She drilled 9-of-16 from the field and 17-of-21 from the free throw line while earning MVP honors for the third year in a row.
* Wilmington Ursuline Academy superstar Elena Delle Donne has been named Delaware Player of the Year for the third time. It also marked the fifth straight year that the 6-5 Delle Donne has made first-team All-State…South Bend Washington junior guard Skylar Diggins led the state of Indiana in scoring with a 29.5 average. She also averaged 7.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 3.2 steals for the Class 4A state runner-up Panthers. The 5-9 superstar, who has a 3.87 GPA, has scored 2,036 points in three years.
* Indianola Gentry finished the year with a tremendous 80-game winning streak. The Rams, who won Mississippi’s Class 4A state title, nipped 5A champion Jackson Murrah, 80-75, in double overtime to capture the Grand Slam Championship. Sophomore guard Brizannai Washington led the champs with a career-high 36 points. Murrah, which had been ranked higher nationally, finished with a 32-2 record.
* New York’s dominant team in recent years, Murry Bergtraum (New York City), raised its winning streak to 51 games with an 85-47 rout of city foe Manhattan Center at Madison Square Garden to capture its 10th consecutive PSAL championship. Krystal Parnell, a 5-5 senior guard, led the champs with 19 points and 10 assists. Shakeya Leary, a 6-3 senior headed for Syracuse University, grabbed 12 rebounds.
* Once-beaten Tamaqua Marian Catholic edged Mount Alvernia, 40-34, to win the Pennsylvania Class A state title as 6-4 senior Rachel Connely dominated with 19 points, 16 rebounds and 11 blocks. She will attend James Madison University…Junior Brittany Chambers poured in a tourney-record 47 points as Jordan upset Crookston, 79-74, during Minnesota’s Class 2A state semifinals. She shot 16-for-27 from the field, 14-for-16 from the free throw line, had 12 rebounds and four steals.
* Beverly Hills Detroit Country Day won a Michigan-record ninth state title – all since 1989 – when it defeated Detroit Community, 46-40, for the Class B crown. The Yellowjackets finished with a 25-1 record. Their only loss was to out-of-state foe Ben Davis (Indianapolis, Ind.). Coach Frank Orlando now has a record of 555-96 in 28 seasons.
Track Notes
* Southeast Raleigh (Raleigh, N.C.) junior Wayne Davis tied the national record with a sizzling 7.62 clocking in the 60-meter hurdles during the 10th annual Nike Indoor Nationals at Landover, Md…Judge Memorial (Ogden, Utah) senior Luke Puskedra ran the No. 5 all-time two-mile (8:49.58), with Colby Lowe of Carroll (Southlake, Texas) right on his heels in 8:50.79.
* A freshman emerging on the national scene, Chelsey Sveinsson of Greenhill (Addison, Texas), doubled with wins in the 800 meters (2:11.52) and the mile (meet-record 4:49.37)…Top field-event performances were by juniors Marquise Goodwin of Rowlett (Garland, Texas), 24-9 in the long jump; and Erik Kynard of Rogers (Toledo, Ohio), 7-00.25 in the high jump…Ryann Krais, a senior from Methacton (Norristown, Pa.), won the pentathlon for the third straight year with a meet-record 3,823 points.
* At the same time, the 25th National Scholastic Indoor Championships were being held at the Armory in New York City. Morristown, N.J., sensation Nick Vena continued to re-set his own national freshman shot put record with a heave of 66-07.25… D’Angelo Cherry of Mount Zion (Decatur, Ga.) was timed in a national-record 6.14 seconds for the 55-meter dash during the 60-meter preliminaries.
* Conor McCullough of Chaminade (West Hills, Calif.) set the national weight-throw record at 87-10.75…Nico Weiler of Los Gatos (Calif.) cleared 17-00.75 in the pole vault…Senior Charles White of Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village, Colo.) ran the mile in 4:11.77…Christian Taylor of Sandy Creek (Tyrone, Ga.) and Vashti Thomas of Mt. Pleasant (San Jose, Calif.) each became the meet’s first-ever triple winners. Taylor, a junior, won the 400-meter dash in 47.42, the triple jump with 51-3 and the long jump with 25-6.75 (No. 5 all-time). Thomas won the 60-meter hurdles in 8.35, the long jump at 19-6 and the triple jump at 41-3.25.
Meanwhile, German Fernandez of Riverbank, Calif., won the 3200-meter run in a sizzling 8:53.60 at the WAC/TVL Challenge in Patterson, Calif. He lapped the entire field at least once while turning in the season’s best time in the nation this year. Earlier in the day he had run the 1600 meters in 4:21.18 and the 800 meters in 1:58.40. He closed with a 53.9 anchor leg on the 4 by 4 relay. It was a monster day, to say the least!
Softball Notes
* Pembroke Pines Charter (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) nipped Sheldon (Sacramento, Calif.), 1-0, to win the first annual Nike Faster to First Classic at Huntington Beach, Calif. The Jaguars won five straight games in the power-packed tournament, raising their season record to 16-0. Kennedy (LaPalma, Calif.), which entered the tourney ranked No. 1 in the nation, was nipped by Ayala (Chino Hills, Calif.), 4-3, in 10 innings in the first round…El Toro (Lake Forest, Calif.) edged California powerhouse Valencia, 1-0, to snap a 35-game winning streak.
* Kennedy (Granada Hills, Calif.) won six games last week, sparked by the hitting of junior Ruby Herrera and the pitching of junior right-hander Julieanne Martinez. Herrera belted a pair of grand-slam home runs, while Martinez struck out 55 and allowed just one unearned run in 31 innings…Sahuaro (Tucson, Ariz.) pitcher Sam White struck out 15 during a 5-0, no-hit victory against city foe Marana.
* Kenzie Fowler is back and fans of Canyon del Oro (Tucson, Ariz.) couldn’t be happier. The brilliant junior pitcher still is recovering from near-fatal blood clots in her shoulder and near her heart, but she looked mighty healthy to Sierra Vista Buena hitters during a 1-0, eight-inning victory. The right-handed flame-thrower struck out 18, yielded one hit and – for good measure – drove in the winning run.
Wrestling Notes
* The U.S. All-Stars defeated the Pennsylvania All-Stars, 28-12, during the 34th Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic at the University of Pittsburgh. It marked the seventh consecutive victory and 10th in the last 12 years for the powerful U.S. team. Easton, Pa., superstar Jordan Oliver (175-5) nipped four-time Colorado state champion Tyler Graff of Loveland (167-1), 3-1, in overtime and was named Pennsylvania’s Outstanding Wrestler. Oliver is ranked No. 1 in the nation and Graff No. 2 at 130 pounds.
* Amateur Wrestling News has crowned Graham of St. Paris, Ohio, as the national high school wrestling team champion for 2007-08. The rest of the top five in order are: Blair Academy (Blairstown, N.J.), Apple Valley (Minn.), Waverly-Shell Rock (Waverly, Iowa) and St. Edward (Lakewood, Ohio)…North Gwinnett (Suwanee, Ga.) has hired one of Georgia’s premier coaches, Phil Daniel, who led Ringgold to six state championships since 1994.
Hockey Notes
* Reading struck a huge blow for Massachusetts public schools when it blanked Malden Catholic, 3-0, to win the Super 8 state championship. Reading (25-1) is the first public school to win the tournament in its 18-year history. It also is the first public school to win the largest-class in the state since Hudson in 1978. The Rockets featured a brilliant senior line of center Michael Lozzi, right wing Pat Kiley and left wing Rob Toczylowski, plus junior goalie Jeff Wyer, who stopped 23 shots in the title clash.
* Lynn St. Mary’s defeated Wakefield, 7-1, to win the Massachusetts girls Division I state championship. St. Mary’s compiled a perfect 25-0 record and is the state’s first unbeaten hockey team since the West Roxbury Catholic Memorial boys were perfect in 1998.
Football Notes
* The University of West Virginia has received a commitment from one of the nation’s top wide receivers, Logan Heastie of Great Bridge (Chesapeake, Va.). The 6-3, 195-pound junior caught 58 passes last fall for 1,067 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also had offers from the likes of Southern California, Florida, Penn State, Tennessee and Alabama.
* Adaris Bellamy, a junior running back from Dunedin, Fla., has made a commitment to the University of South Florida. Last fall the 5-10, 214-pounder ran for 1,950 yards and 22 touchdowns…Todd Golper has pledged to UCLA. The junior linebacker made a team-high 122 tackles last fall for Arcadia, Calif.
Potpourri
* Valparaiso scored a state-record 114.225 points while winning the Indiana gymnastics championship. The Vikings also set state records with their 17th event title and eight in all-around. In addition, they tied Fort Wayne Homestead’s state record with their sixth team title. Junior Kellie Kidd was this year’s all-around champion with 38.6 points.
* Andover junior Nick D’Innocenzo broke Massachusetts state swimming records with a 1:50.67 clocking in the 200-yard individual medley and 57.26 in the 100-yard breaststroke. The first record had stood since 1999 and the second since 1989…Jason Cook from Amherst Pelham raised his own state record with an outstanding diving total of 622.05 points.
