LJ BB 44, Mission Bay 63

La Jolla whittled Mission Bay's 15-point first quarter lead down to nine at halftime, but things gradually got away from the Vikings as they suffered a 63-44 defeat in the Buccaneers' home gym before a quiet crowd in Western League boys basketball play Tues., Jan. 20.

The small, nearly silent crowd following the three-day Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday weekend and school holiday Monday reflected the Vikings' limited firepower, as they played without their leading scorer, Reed Farley, who sprained his ankle during the win at Bishop's Fri., Jan. 16.

Zach Duffy and Mark Rawdin each had eight points for La Jolla. Ladd Castellano added seven.

For the Bucs, ranked number six in San Diego by MaxPreps, with only a loss to St. Augustine this season, 6'4" guard Justin Moore stood out with 26 points. The junior also had eight assists, three steals, and four rebounds as he created numerous problems for the visitors. 

La Jolla got the Buc lead down to 14 at the end of the third quarter, 49-35, after it ballooned to 20 points. But then Mission Bay went on a run, punctuated by a resounding one-handed slam by 6'9" Armstrong Ojunkwu, and led 56-35.

At one point of frustration in the second half, LJHS Coach Paul Baranowski said, "Why is it so hard to come ready to play?"

Farley, sporting a leg splint and walking on crutches, said he thought he would be out "two or three weeks". "I'm just trying to stay off," he said.

The Vikings host University City in a girls-boys varsity doubleheader Fri., Jan. 23, the boys at approximately 7:30 p.m. following the girls at 6 p.m.

Copyright 2015 Ed Piper

LJ FB: All-league honors

Quarterback Collin Rugg and receivers Brandon Bonham and Carlton O'Neal were named First Team All-Western League in offensive honors for the Viking football team.

The three seniors were key players in Coach Jason Carter's explosive spread offense which has basically rewritten every team and individual record in La Jolla High football history the past two years.

Receiver Trenton Fudge and lineman Stefan Stojic received Second Team honors, as did
Mateo Jimenez, Rugg's center.

Rugg was named MVP in the recent senior all-star game played in East County. O'Neal was one of his targets in the game, coached by the entire LJHS coaching staff. Bonham had the misfortune of playing for the opposing side, which did not put the ball in the air frequently.


Copyright 2015 Ed Piper

LJ g VB: All-league honors

Vikings' Madeleine Gates powers a spike against

Clairemont in Scripps Ranch tourney Oct. 3.
Behind her in #3 libero jersey is Amanda Polcyn.

(Photo by Ed Piper)

Middle hitter-blocker Madeleine Gates finally got the recognition she deserved, garnering First Team All-Western League volleyball honors in selections by the league's coaches.

Fellow middle hitter-blocker Emma Willis and defensive specialist Amanda Polcyn were named to the All-League Second Team.

Gates, a junior opting to play only volleyball this year, dominated the net as a sophomore in 2013-14 with an outstanding kill percentage. But in the way newer, lesser-known players have to build up a resume, she didn't receive league honors. This year the honors arrived.

Willis, a senior and like Gates 6'2", worked hard and accepted a full-ride athletic scholarship to play at the University of Denver next year.

Polcyn also decided to concentrate on volleyball only this year, after she and Gates were key players for the Viking basketball team that went to the CIF title game in March 2014.

Gates, a dominant player on the basketball court her sophomore year as well, averaging 11.9 points and 11.7 rebounds a game, failed to receive any CIF honors in basketball last year. In one game, she pulled down 22 rebounds.

Polcyn recently explained her decision to forgo basketball this year and focus only on volleyball, "Last year I played on a club volleyball team that didn't travel, and it was hard to play (high school) basketball and do homework as well. I figured if it was that hard being on a non-travel team, it would be that much harder on a team that travels."

Gates and Polcyn play year-round on club volleyball teams, in addition to playing on the La Jolla High volleyball team. Their schedules are wearying.


Copyright 2015 Ed Piper

LJ BB 53, Bishop's 52

Guard Tony Coan battles for ball

in opening minutes.

(Photo by Ed Piper)

The La Jolla High boys basketball team won in dramatic fashion Fri., Jan. 16, over the Vikings' crosstown archrival, Bishop's, in a non-league game played before loud student body cheering sections from each school.

After trailing by small margins most of the game, the Vikings' Reed Farley slammed a two-handed dunk home with 50.1 seconds remaining on the clock, putting La Jolla in the lead, 51-50. Soon after the dunk, he began writhing in pain on the court. Apparently, he sprained his ankle when he was pushed by teammate Ladd Castellano in a sort of "Attaboy" after the big play, and he landed on a teammate's foot. He had to be removed from the game.

The La Jolla student cheering section, all the while standing and situated right in front of the Vikings' basket, erupted at Farley's slam to a new decibel level.

With Reed holding his right leg and grimacing on the LJHS bench, his teammates battled the final 50 seconds and stopped a last-second effort by the Knights to secure the win. 

Dan Farley, his father, texted the following morning in response to a question, "We (are) treating (it) as sprained right ankle. Right now he (is) icing and watching Duke game."

Following Farley's go-ahead bucket, Bishop's guard Eric Yu scored with 36 seconds left for a 52-51 lead. With 18.6 seconds on the clock, Castellano followed up a miss by Morgan Albers to give La Jolla the lead back, 53-52. That was the final margin.

Said Castellano, still pumped up after the game, of Farley's dunk, "That was literally the play of the game."

Vikings cheerleaders help pump it up in

raucous moments of fourth quarter

at Bishop's. (Photo by Ed Piper)

After the final buzzer sounded, the hundreds of La Jolla High students in the stands streamed down to the floor, posing a challenge for officials to keep them off the court surface, though they were well-behaved. Students formed a human tunnel on the baseline and sideline that all the Viking players except Farley walked through on two feet.

Then, with help and hopping, the 6'4" guard, a bag of ice taped to his right ankle, made his way through most of the human arch. Finally, students swarmed around the now-smiling Reed and lifted him on their shoulders in celebration.

The home scoreboard operator quickly shut off the scoreboard to delete the Vikings' winning score.

LJHS Coach Paul Baranowski told his players after a final huddle, "Don't show them (home fans) up by celebrating too much."

Castellano and Farley shared team-high scoring honors with 13 points each in a two-prong attack. Alex Pitrofsky pulled down eight rebounds, as did Castellano and Farley. Pitrofsky added two blocks.

On his basket for the win, Castellano said, "I saw Morgan drive baseline. He's (my defender) guarding me baseline. So I went in and laid it up."

The two teams were tied for the last time at 48-all with 4:42 left in the game. The Vikings led at the end of three quarters, 44-43, after trailing most of the time following a 15-14 lead late in the first quarter. They never trailed by more than five points in the scrappy, close-fought game.

 

Vikes' Eddie Parker drives baseline on Knights'

Eric Yu. (Photo by Ed Piper)

Free throw shooting was an Achilles heel for the red and black, making only 10 of 20.

Albers was particularly effective early. "I would see Reed was getting doubled. I would slip off the screen (and score)," he said. Morgan contributed seven points, hit three of four free throws, and grabbed four rebounds.

Said the Vikings' 6'2" wing of the win over their rivals, "We haven't beaten Bishop's a lot. On JV's, they beat us when I was a freshman."

The two student cheering sections, seated at opposite ends on the same sideline, buffered by a "demilitarized zone" of  parents and other fans between them, swapped chants throughout the game. After a Bishop's player committed a violation, La Jolla students chanted in chorus, "You can't do that." Bishop's students threw it back at them after a Viking violation later in the game.

The inevitable "Daddy's money" came from the LJHS sector with 1:01 left in the game, as Knight forward Justin Woodley, fouled by Albers, struggled in missing both free throws with Bishop's in the lead, 50-49.

The toga-draped Bishop's students rode Farley hard with "Airball, airball" after he threw up a three that missed everything in the first quarter. The resounding chant from the crowd right next to the Vikings' first-half basket seemed to affect him as he missed one of two free throws for a 15-14 Vikings lead, again one of two free throws with LJHS behind, 17-16.

La Jolla High students finished the night with chants of "We own LJ" as they began to move down the sideline toward the exits.

The challenge Reed is facing now is that he is a known quantity and targeted by rival defenses, following a freshman year in which he was the new kid on the block. The Vikings' other main offensive threat is Castellano. These are the two on the team who can create their own shot. Baranowski has been making adjustments that try to open up options for Farley to score.

Most of the game, Farley brought the ball down court and set up the offense. Later, Castellano took some of those duties. Another configuration, used in the tournaments in December to good result, positions Farley on the right wing for high-flying pyrotechnics like his slam dunk.

Baranowski went with Pitrofsky as a big man for 21 minutes, Mark Rawdin logging 13. The 6'6" Pitrofsky scored off an inbounds play under the basket from Castellano early in the third quarter. A short time later, he took a feed from Farley to send the Vikings up 37-35, then followed that with a block under the Bishop's backboard at the other end.

Guard Zach Duffy, coming off the bench behind Tony Coan after starting several games, launched a three-pointer to tie at 33-all in the third stanza. Earlier, he recorded a block, continued his nice rebounding for a guard, and had an assist to Pitrofsky for a score.

5'6" sub Gaynor Blackmon showed a new aggressiveness in driving into the lane multiple times and was rewarded with free throw opportunities, though he wasn't able to capitalize.

Eddie Parker opened scoring in the ballgame when his defender became more concerned with what was going on in the rest of La Jolla's offense. The 6'2" guard slipped in on the baseline from the right wing and laid the ball up unmolested for an early and what turned out to be a rare 2-0 lead.

The Vikings play at Mission Bay Tues., Jan. 20, following the three-day weekend with the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Monday. Mission Bay trounced UC by 40 points.


Copyright 2015 Ed Piper

LJ BB 49, St. Augustine 82

Ladd Castellano was in a zone in the early going

against the talented Saints. (Photo by Ed Piper)

La Jolla fans would have liked it differently, but St. Augustine's boys basketball team, ranked number five by MaxPreps in San Diego, was as good as advertised. After a initial threat, when the Vikes overcame a 9-0 lead to go ahead 17-15, the Saints sent in swarm-after-swarm in their 10-player rotation and mercilessly routed the hosts, 82-49, Tues., Jan. 13.

The Saints, under long-time and respected Coach Mike Haupt, played four sophomores and a junior in one of their core line-ups, which is pretty scary considering their youth and the prospect that "they are just beginning to jell," as one observer put it.

La Jolla was coming off a heartening win over Lincoln on Lincoln's home court Fri., Jan. 9. You might have thought that that would be a confidence-builder that could take Coach Paul Baranowski's crew to the next rung. Instead, maybe the Vikings got up too much for the Hornets and either let down from that high or didn't have enough left in the tank to face the storming Saints. LJHS had also played a thriller to beat Scripps Ranch Tues., Jan. 6, so maybe it was too much to ask of them to keep a fine edge for St. Augustine.

Guard Ladd Castellano was a force determined through the first 12 minutes, and it made a difference for the first eight. LJHS went ahead by two with 32 seconds remaining in the first quarter on the senior's jumper from the right elbow to wipe out the 9-0 lead the Saints took in the initial minutes.

Earlier, the 6'2" guard nailed a beautiful three to bring the Vikings within three, 13-10. Then straight away he sank another one from the opposite side of three-point range, putting La Jolla close at 15-13.

Starting the second quarter, Ladd gave more of the same: a field goal, then another on a driving basket. He had said after the win over Scripps Ranch a week earlier, "Attacking the basket gets my outside shooting going. I work inside to outside." He was being effective, yet after the driving basket his team still trailed 24-21 and they were done for, as it turned out.

The Saints didn't tolerate any more playing around, and they certainly weren't going to allow even a moral victory by their opponents on this evening. Haupt kept the throttle on, and there was no let-up as St. Augustine outscored the Vikings 33-12 following La Jolla's brief lead late in the opening stanza.

Viking cheerleaders strike poses in their first

game appearance since football in November.

It was their first basketball game under new

advisor Mia Kelley. (Photo by Ed Piper)

Early in the third quarter, following a 16-point halftime lead, St. Augustine led by 22, 51-29, and things only deteriorated from there for the red and black.

Mark Rawdin had a block early in the second quarter. He followed a miss to score a bit later. He willingly tangled with the young and talented St. Augustine big men.

But Haupt had thoroughly studied game film, as his guards never left La Jolla's Reed Farley alone, one of Lincoln's mistakes. Reed couldn't really get started offensively, and he had plenty on his hands handling the ball and moving the offense against the Saints' enveloping defense. He blocked a shot in the third quarter right in front of the backboard.

A bright spot was the insertion of Grant Miller into the game in the fourth quarter, after a month-plus recovery from a concussion sustained in football.

Another was the appearance of the Viking cheer squad for the first time under newly-named advisor Mia Kelley. The cheerleaders performed a solid halftime routine before the crowd made up of good-sized contingents from both schools.

The Western League is shaping up as a pretty tough league, even with the Vikings looking stronger this year. St. Augustine has beaten Mission Bay, which has some notable talent, as well as Cathedral Catholic. The La Jollans are going to have to have their heads screwed on right when they face both those teams.


Copyright 2015 Ed Piper

LJ g soccer 3, Bishop's 0

In a rivalry grudge match on the Lady Knights' artificial pitch, the La Jolla girls soccer team clubbed Bishop's with three goals in the second half to take the tussle, 3-0, Fri., Jan. 9.

There was an added intensity to the girls' play, one could sense, due to the crosstown rivalry. A relatively large weekday crowd filled the stands on the northern side of the field.

The two teams played to a nil-nil halftime score, with time of possession appearing to be roughly equal, though Bishop's might have tipped the balance.

LJHS coach Kristin Jones' squad is still preparing for league play, having just come back from a two-week layoff during winter vacation.


Copyright 2015 Ed Piper

LJ g BB 21, Lincoln 29

Junior forward Paulina Cardenas grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds and senior guard Sarah Tajran swiped five steals with six rebounds, but La Jolla dropped a 29-21 basketball decision despite holding even with host Lincoln at halftime Fri., Jan. 9.

Said senior captain Jenna Harmeyer of Cardenas' and Tajran's contributions, "They helped us keep possession of the ball, which allowed us to have a close game."

Forward Satori Roberson blocked five shots and added eight rebounds in a topsy-turvy tussle with the Hornets that saw scrums of girls scrambling for loose balls and unpredictable traveling calls and non-foul calls by the officials in the opener of a Friday night girls/boys varsity doubleheader.

La Jolla went down 9-4 at the end of the first quarter, but fought its way back to knot the score at 13-13 by halftime.

The Vikings then got out-scored 10-2 in a slugfest third quarter, which ended up being the difference in the game result.

Freshman Rebecca Saul, tenacious on defense as she sticks like glue to the player she is guarding, sank two free throws in capable fashion during the final period. She also had a field goal, five rebounds, and an assist.

Newcomer Melisa Conroy had eight boards. Harmeyer, the Vikings' main ballhandler, recorded a statistical line of five rebounds, two steals, one assist, and four points.

Kate Miller, returning for her second year on varsity as a sophomore, looks athletic and much more comfortable out on the court since her freshman year as she has gained more playing experience. Miller didn't score, but she did have three rebounds and played aggressive defense.

Harmeyer, Tajran, and Roberson serve as team captains for the Vikings.


Copyright 2015 Ed Piper