Dallas Escobedo, St. Mary's
Photo by Frank Alcocer
Moving the softball pitching mound back from 40 to 43 feet has been surprisingly good for
Dallas Escobedo, the fire-balling right-hander from
St. Mary's (Phoenix, Ariz.).
“She seems to be getting so much stronger,” coach Bobby Pacheco said. “She’s always held back (in previous years). Her pitches move so much more at 43 than at 40. The bottom drops out. We were real excited for Dallas, but for our other pitchers, we just have to really bear down on defense.”
The 6-foot-1 senior - who has been her team’s ace for four years - obviously is thriving as evidenced by her performance last week while leading the Knights to the championship in the talent-laden, 42-team MaxPreps Tournament of Champions at Bullhead City (Ariz.).
She was phenomenal in the 12-inning finale, pitching a perfect game with 21 strikeouts. Junior shortstop Kiana Lomelli finally ended the marathon with a grand-slam home run in the 12th inning, giving the Knights a 4-0 victory over Los Alamitos (Calif.).
In the semifinals, she shut out another California school, Santa Margarita, 1-0. She had fanned 19 and yielded just one hit during a 2-0 victory over a third California school, Fountain Valley.
Overall Escobedo, who started the year with back-to-back 21-strikeout victories, went 6-0 in the tourney to earn Most Outstanding Player honors.
She has pitched all nine of her team’s games this year and has not given up a run in 68 innings. She has allowed just 10 hits – all singles – has struck out 154 and walked just seven.
The Arizona State University signee “was just as strong at the end as at the beginning,” Pacheco noted. “To have somebody fill her shoes (next year) is going to be very, very hard.”
* Fort Worth Christian (North Richland Hills, Texas) junior Kayla English struck out 21 during a 1-0 victory over Country Day in eight innings.
* Birdville (North Richland Hills, Texas) senior Randi Fentress fanned 16 during an 8-0 victory over Saginaw.
Record bid falls short
Bishop Luers (Fort Wayne, Ind.) superstar Deshaun Thomas scored 34 points, but his team was upset by Wabash Southwood, 70-68, during the first round of the Class 2A regional basketball tournament.
The 6-7 Ohio State University signee, who is expected to be named Indiana’s Mr. Basketball, capped his outstanding career with 3,018 points to finish No. 3 in state history. Marion Pierce (Lewisville) is one point ahead and legendary Damon Bailey (Bedford North Lawrence) still sits on top with 3,134.
* Another Indiana team fell short of its goals when No. 1-ranked Bloomington South (Bloomington, Ind.) was stunned by No. 12 Jeffersonville (Jeffersonville, Ind.), 58-56, in the Class 4A regional finale. South had won its last 49 games – one short of tying the state record – and had beaten Jeffersonville, 86-55, on Dec. 19. The Red Devils, who had not beaten South since 1981, took out No. 2-ranked New Albany the previous week.
* In a delayed Indiana Class 4A sectional finale, Merrillville (Merrillville, Ind.) defeated Valparaiso, 50-47, to give coach Jim East his 500th victory on the day of his 50th wedding anniversary.
* Patrick Simon, a 6-9 Washington State University signee, exploded for a record 48 points, but his Ephrata (Ephrata, Wash.) team still suffered a 77-62 loss to top-ranked Squalicum (Bellingham, Wash.) during Washington’s Class 2A state semifinals. He drilled 13-of-27 shots from the field and all 15 free throw attempts.
* David Boyd became’s the first boys basketball coach in Georgia history to win state titles at four different schools when he guided Milton (Alpharetta, Ga.) to a 56-46 victory over Atlanta Westlake for the Class AAAAA title.
* The Atlanta Tipoff Club has named 6-9 senior Jared Sullinger of Northland (Columbus, Ohio) the Naismith National Player of the Year and his father-coach, Satch Sullinger, as National Coach of the Year.
* Harrison Barnes, who led Ames to consecutive Iowa Class 4A state titles, has been named the Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year. The award is chosen by Wootten, a member of the Naismith Hall of Fame, and the sponsoring McDonald’s Corp.
* Pike (Indianapolis, Ind.) has fired its basketball coach, Phil Spoljaric, prompting Jeff Rabjohns of the Indianapolis Star to speculate that outstanding junior guard Marquis Teague might transfer to a prep school. As a senior, the younger brother of NBA guard Jeff Teague would be playing for his third coach in four years.
* Benedictine (Richmond, Va.) junior Michael Gbinije has made a commitment to Duke University, according to the Raleigh News & Observer. The 6-6 standout averaged 17.8 points and 6.0 rebounds this year.
Hoohuli scores 52 points
Kayla Hoohuli, a 5-8 junior, poured in 52 points as St. Marys (St. Marys, Pa.) defeated Hampton, 64-55, during a first-round PIAA Class AAA basketball game.
Hoohuli, who drilled six 3-pointers and 16-of-18 free throw attempts, leads all other Pennsylvania girls in scoring with a 29-point average, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. She also has had games of 46, 44 and 41 points.
* Boone County (Florence, Ky.) edged Bowling Green, 48-44, as 5-11 sophomore Sydney Moss had 28 points and 16 rebounds. Moss, who is the daughter of NFL star Randy Moss, is averaging 22.5 points and 10.6 rebounds and already is being highly recruited by major colleges.
* Bishop McGuinness (Kernersville, N.C.) defeated previously unbeaten Williamson, 55-46, to win its fifth consecutive North Carolina Class 1A state title. MVP Megan Buckland, a 6-0 junior point guard, scored 15 points before an injury to her left knee sidelined her for the final nine and one-half minutes.
* Kari Luttinen, a 5-10 junior, scored 40 points as Seattle Prep (Seattle, Wash.) defeated Kennedy Catholic, 75-60, to place fourth in Washington’s Class 3A state tournament.
* The Raleigh News & Observer reports that post player Keisha Gatling of Athens Drive (Raleigh, N.C.) is believed to have set a North Carolina record by drilling 189-of-255 field goal attempts this year for a sizzling .741 percentage. The national record is .764.
* Lancaster defeated Montross Lee, 62-53, in double overtime during Virginia’s Division 2 state semifinals as 5-11 Georgetown signee Andrea White had 29 points, 22 rebounds, seven steals and five assists.
* Jan Azar has come a long way from the first game she coached at Wesleyan (Norcross, Ga.), which resulted in a 99-12 humiliation. Wesleyan defeated Savannah Christian, 65-49, in the Class A finale to give her a state-record seventh title. Her 13-year record now stands at 321-75 as the school’s only coach. Six-foot sophomore forward Holli Wilkins, daughter of former NBA star Gerald Wilkins, led the way with 17 points.
* Chiney Ogwumike, a 6-3 senior from Cypress-Fairbanks (Cypress, Texas), has won Naismith and Morgan Wootten awards as National Girls Basketball Player of the Year. Sean Casey of the Peddie School (Hightstown, N.J.) has been named Naismith National Coach of the Year.
* Regina (South Euclid, Ohio) had to forfeit a sectional tournament victory due to an ineligible player, ending an opportunity to win its seventh Ohio Division III state title. Ranked No. 2 in the state, Regina is closing in June due to financial problems. During his 25-year career at two schools, coach Pat Diulus has notched nine state titles.
* One of the nation’s premier juniors, 6-3 Amber Henson of Sickles (Tampa, Fla.), has made a commitment to Duke University, according to the Tampa Tribune. The younger sister of John Henson, a freshman at the University of North Carolina, she averaged 22.1 points this year.
* The first annual Girls Capital Classic All-Star basketball game will be held on Thursday, March 25, at Trinity College in Washington, D.C. There will be a suburban game, followed by a district game.
Hatz runs 4:05.50 mile
Alex Hatz, a senior from Fayetteville-Manlius (Manlius, N.Y.), won the mile run in a blazing 4:05.50 during the Nike Indoor Nationals at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston, Mass. It ranks No. 3 all-time and is the fastest ever in a race featuring only high school runners, according to his coach, Bill Aris.
Aris pointed out that Hatz, who has signed with the University of Wisconsin, is just recovering from last summer’s kidney surgery, which knocked him out of the fall cross country campaign. Since then he also has overcome a case of shingles.
Emily Lipari (Roslyn, N.Y.) won the girls mile is 4:42.64, which is No. 4 all-time.
In the boys 5K, Kirubel Erassa (Grayson, Loganville, Ga.) captured the title in 14:19.82, which ranks No. 2 all-time. In the girls 5K, Lindsay Crevoiserat (Glastonbury, Conn.) won in 16:51.88, which is No. 3 all-time.
In one of the great races of the year, Footlocker national cross country champion Megan Goethals (Rochester, Mich.) nipped Emily Sisson (Parkway Central, Chesterfield, Mo.) at the finish line in a sizzling two-mile race. Goethals was timed in 10:10.14, while Sisson’s time was 10:10.21.
Gunnar Nixon (Santa Fe, Edmond, Okla.) won the pentathlon with a huge point total of 4,141 – No. 2 all-time and a national junior-class record. His efforts included the nation’s No. 1 high jump this season (7 feet, ½ inch).
* St. Pius (Atlanta, Ga.) junior Shelby Ashe set a national record in the 20-pound weight throw with a powerful heave of 65-4 ¼ during the National Scholastic Indoor Championships at the New York Armory. The record had been 62-2.
Bjugstad is Mr. Hockey
Blaine’s Nick Bjugstad has been named Minnesota’s Mr. Hockey. The 6-foot-5 center had 35 goals and 34 assists this year. Though a junior, he will graduate in the spring and attend the University of Minnesota. He is projected to be a first-round pick in the next NHL draft, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
* Edina upset No. 1-ranked Minnetonka, 4-2, to win Minnesota’s Class 2A state hockey crown. Minnetonka had outlasted Hill-Murray, 2-1, in a four-overtime marathon which ended at 12:19 a.m. and then had to play the title game later that day.
* University (Milwaukee, Wis.) freshman goalie Emily Wigdale made a Wisconsin state-tourney record 51 saves, but her team suffered a 2-0 loss to St. Croix Valley Fusion in the state semifinals.
Bellevue hires ex-NFL coaches
Former Seattle Seahawks head coach Jim Mora and assistant Chris Beake will be working in the outstanding Bellevue (Bellevue, Wash.) football program next fall. Beake will be the defensive coordinator, according to the Seattle Times, but Mora’s role has yet to be determined. Bellevue has won seven state titles in the last nine years.
* Oaks Christian (Westlake Village, Calif.) sophomore wide receiver Jordan Payton has made a commitment to the University of Southern California, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Peterson is perfect
Fontainebleau (Mandeville, La.) senior Logan Peterson pitched a perfect game with 16 strikeouts during a 3-0 baseball victory over East St. John.
* Sophomore third baseman Josh Heinz went 5-for-5 and drove in eight runs as West Ranch (Valencia, Calif.) routed Hueneme, 24-3.
* Bishop Amat (La Puente, Calif.) slugger Bernardo Zavala belted three home runs during a 7-2 victory over Santa Ana Mater Dei.
* Chino (Calif.) nipped Covina, 3-2, in eight innings to hand coach Bob Sheehan his 500th victory.
Potpourri
Jerry Winterton, one of the premier wrestling coaches in the country, has stepped down at Cary (N.C.). He compiled a superb 642-13 record with numerous state titles in 29 years. He twice has been named National High School Coach of the Year.
* Two of the nation’s leading lacrosse powers tangled last week. Haverford (Philadelphia, Pa.), ranked No. 14 in the nation by Inside LaCrosse Magazine, defeated No. 3-ranked St. Paul’s (Brooklandville, Md.), 13-9, behind junior Brendan McGrath’s four goals.
