LJ b BB: Solises back

By Ed Piper

At the Vikings-Point Loma wrestling match late Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 16, I spotted Diego Solis of the La Jolla basketball team in the corner and went over to chat.

"I just had an ice bath," said the sophomore guard, just back to playing after three months of healing from a collarbone triple fracture Oct. 20 in football. "I didn't do it up to my shoulders--just here (gesturing at his middle chest)."

I made a comment about the Vikings facing powerhouse Mission Bay the next night at MBHS. I told Diego Alex Bell of Serra, wearing number five, had scored 30 points against the highly-ranked Buccaneers.

"Number five?" Solis asked. His ears perked up. He's a guard, like Bell. And La Jolla should be fairly motivated to play their best going to Mission Bay, one of the best teams in the county with the top-ranked individual player, Boogie Ellis. Just say "Boogie Ellis", and people nod in recognition of the high-scoring Duke commit. My son-in-law, who teaches at Kearny High, tells me about Boogie.

It was great to see, first, Diego, then, his older brother Gabe, get a few playing minutes Tuesday at Serra. The Vikings held Bell to 10 points in a 57-46 win. (See game story.) Coach Paul Baranowski, a wise veteran coach, inserted Diego in the second quarter, after the flow of the game had been established.

Then, he put Gabe in for Diego in the backcourt, as La Jolla, in its usual configuration, had three or more guards on the floor at one time.

Gabe, also, suffered a triple break in his clavicle in the same football game against Christian.

Soon, both brothers were on the court at the same time for a cameo in the second period.

"This morning Gabe was the one who was going to play, and Diego wasn't," said Bo Solis, their father, who sat in the stands at the Tierrasanta school for their season debut.

Three weeks ago, Diego said he was going to play "in three weeks", then his brother said, "We're going to play Jan. 22." But Dad, aware their orthopedic surgeon who performed their surgeries was going to release them without restrictions Jan. 15, said, "They're going to wait a week after that. Why? The doctor is releasing them to play. She even said they could play football.

"Why wait?"

Rightly or wrongly, the brothers wanted to be safe and prudent. They certainly didn't want to begin basketball play prematurely and suffer a re-break, as teammate Evan Brown did Nov. 30. (It's hard to explain to people that three players on the same team all suffered collarbone fractures.)

Sandy, Gabe and Diego's mom, said last Saturday, "We hope," with a smile and thumbs-up-type gesture on the boys' impending return.

Baranowski limited their play to those second-quarter cameos, not reinserting them in the second half. That was safe and prudent. The boys still get a shot at Mission Bay, then another powerhouse, St. Augustine, Sat., Jan. 19, at the Catholic school in North Park. Plus a playoff tilt hopefully awaits, following the Feb. 8 conclusion of Western League play.

I said to Diego and another student who was taking photos of wrestling for the yearbook, "Hopefully not a redo of last year's game at St. Augustine." That was a disaster, with the Vikings on the run, looking completely over-matched by early in the second quarter.

The additions of two returning players could help, augmenting the lineup led by seniors Behzad Hashemi, Nick Hulquist, and Jett Wilson.