Kenny Hale, one of the last surviving members of San Diego State’s 1940-41 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics basketball championship team, passed away at age 90.

A 1938 San Diego High graduate, Hale eventually went into coaching and had winning records at Hoover and Mission Bay.

Led by superstar Bill McColl, Hoover was 20-8 in Hale’s first season as coach and second in the Coast League in 1947-48.

Hale’s last team at Hoover was 23-3 in 1951-52 and won the City Prep League with an 11-1 record.

Hoover’s overall record under Hale was 76-45, with other years of 9-11, 10-16, and 14-7.

Kenny took over the new Mission Bay program in 1954-55 and built a winner before retiring from coaching after the 1957-58 campaign and going into administration.  Hale later  was principal at Horace Mann Junior High.

Hale’s record with the Buccaneers was 53-45.  They were 8-16 and 10-16 in the first two seasons and then got rolling with successive seasons of 17-7 and 18-6.

The Buccaneers won the prestigious, 32-team San Diego Kiwanis Tournament in 1956-57 and 1957-58.  They tied for second in the City Prep League in each of the last two seasons.

John Carroll got some good news the day before his Oceanside Pirates were to meet Carlsbad for what would be the title-deciding game in the Avocado League.

Coach John McFadden of Eastlake called Carroll and told the Oceanside mentor that Eastlake had used an ineligible player in the 23-19, season-opening victory over the Pirates.

Instead of an 8-1 record, the Pirates were 9-0 the next night after they defeated Carlsbad, 17-7, in the annual battle of North County titans at Swede Krcmar Field, named after the  Lancers’ first coach.

Carlsbad was ranked No. 1 in the County and had come into the game with an 8-0 record.

The forfeit “is a win on paper, but that’s all it is,” said Carroll, downplaying the Dreaded Administrative Glitch regarding Eastlake eligibility protocol. Carroll had his eye on  another target, a seventh trip to the big stadium in Mission Valley.

OCEANSIDE  ON MOVE

Oceanside clinched the league championship the next week with a 32-0 triumph over cross-town rival El Camino.

The Pirates’ momentum was snowballing.

Oceanside rolled through the playoffs, defeating Steele Canyon, 34-10, Castle Park, 52-14, and Helix, 27-10 for the Division II championship.

NORTH COUNTY CLOUT

Oceanside, Torrey Pines, Vista, Valley Center, and Santa Fe Christian were champions in Divisions I, II, III, and IV, a four-of-a-kind winner by teams located  North of the Ted Williams Parkway, also known as State Highway 56.

Torrey Pines, which shared its crown with Vista, generally was recognized as part of this group because of its league affiliation, but was located within the San Diego City Limits.

The combined record of the four squads was 46-4-4.

Oceanside was 13-0 with a fifth championship in John Carroll’s 16 years, all coming in the last nine seasons.

Vista (10-2-1) and Torrey Pines (10-2-1) played to a 14-14 tie for the D-I title, and Valley Center (11-0-2) outlasted Brawley 39-33 for the D-III championship.

SHIFTING SANDS

Three of eight playoff semifinals venues were changed days before the games.

Monte Vista (11-0), the top-seeded D-III squad, was to meet Valley Center (9-0-2) at Escondido High.  The Monarchs appealed for a more centrally located site and were granted a switch to Serra High.

Advantage, Monarchs?  Hardly. Valley Center, forced to travel an additional 25 miles from its location fairly close to Escondido, took it out on Monte Vista and surprised the Monarchs 24-22.

Helix (9-2) and Grossmont (8-3), blood enemies for more than 50 years, agreed that they didn’t want to play at Serra, Grossmont going even further by acquiescing to meet the Highlanders on Helix’s turf, which for years also was Grossmont’s.

COACHES AGREE

In this case, both coaches, David Napoleon of Grossmont and Donnie Van Hook of Helix, preferred to play on the Highlanders’ artificial layout after playing all of their home games on an ersatz surface.

Helix won 23-17 in overtime to advance to the D-II finals for the fifth season in a row.

The playing field was not affected by rainy weather which persisted throughout the game, although Helix missed a 20-yard field goal attempt as regulation play ended. The Highlanders stopped Grossmont on the first possession of the overtime, then scored for the victory.

RIDE SHORTENED FOR BLYTHE

Palo Verde Valley of Blythe (9-1), sitting in the furthest reach of the San Diego Section, got a break when its matchup with Horizon (6-4), was moved from La Jolla to El Centro Central.

The trip ticket for the Riverside County team was downsized from about 225 miles to slightly more than 100 and Horizon’s was lengthened from about 10 miles to 120.

Coach George Dagnino’s squad prevailed over the Panthers 40-27, thus guaranteeing at least one 200-miles-plus junket for the Yellowjackets, to Qualcomm Stadium, where they were beaten by Santa Fe Christian in the D-IV finals, 20-12.

BLYTHE, BRAWLEY BREAKTHROUGH

With Palo Verde Valley and Brawley, the Imperial Valley League, which joined the San Diego Section in 2000, was represented in the Qualcomm Stadium championships for the first time.

Palo Verde Valley, Brawley, Calexico, El Centro Southwest, and El Centro Central followed Holtville, Calipatria, Imperial, and Winterhaven San Pasqual, which took on the San Diego designation in 1980.

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

St. Augustine and University of San Diego High…Uni or University to most locals…were playing for the last time.

Not exactly, but Uni was leaving its campus near the University of San Diego and moving to an opulent, new facility in Carmel Valley and beginning in 2005 would be known as Cathedral Catholic.

Marketing-oriented officials at both schools were calling it “The Final Showdown” and the 9,759 sold tickets guaranteed an overflow crowd at Southwestern College.

The Dons shot down their parochial school rivals 45-34. Junior running back Demetrius Sumler, who rushed for 224 yards in 30 carries and scored three touchdowns, summed up his feelings to Steve Brand of The San Diego Union:

“I expect Cathedral versus St. Augustine to be just as intense,” said Sumler.  “I try to just do my job, whatever it takes, and not think about who we’re playing.

“But this was St. Augustine, so it means a little more.”

DÉJÀ VU

Oceanside,  gradually moving up after losing its opener (before Eastlake forfeited to the Pirates) and its preseason No. 1 ranking, won the battle of State Highway 78 over top-ranked Vista,17-15, on Sergio Valdez’ 38-yard field goal with 33 seconds remaining.

Valdez had toed the winning kick in the Pirates’ 27-24 win over their old North County rival in 2003.

“I would have preferred that we would have blown them out,” said Valdez.

LONGHORNS HAVE THEIR CORRAL

“We have realized our dream,” said Rancho Buena Vista athletic director Dave Whiddon as he surveyed a crowd of 5,000, which helped dedicate the Longhorns’ new, campus stadium.

RBV teams’ home games had been at neighboring Vista since the school opened in 1986.

The visiting Colton Yellowjackets spoiled the inaugural, 30-14.

TORRES REGROUP

Coach Jeff Hutzler’s La Jolla Country Day squad shook off a discouraging, opening-game loss to Canoga Park Faith Baptist to win 11 in a row and earn the San Diego Section 8-Man championship.

The Torreys and Faith were tied at the end of three quarters but a 24-point fourth quarter gave the Contenders, the top-ranked Southern Section squad, a 38-14 victory.

PARKER RALLIES

A Johnny Unitas-Joe Montana replay?

Francis Parker quarterback Matt Morrison connected on five passes in a row on a 68-yard drive that ended with Ian Yoder’s 21-yard field goal with 18 seconds remaining, lifting the Lancers to a 10-7 win over Calexico Vincent Memorial.

HAUSER MOVES TO MISSION HILLS

Chris Hauser, 34-14 in five seasons and with a 2001 championship at Vista, moved to the new Mission Hills High in San Marcos. Without a senior class, the Grizzlies started 10 sophomores in their first game, a 21-0 loss to Madison, and began a 1-10 learning experience.

As a welcome (?) to Hauser, the field sprinklers went off during the game at Madison.  District officials finally figured out a way to shut off the water.

SUCCESS FOLLOWS OTAY’S FIRST COACH

Gene Alim, 98-23-3 in twelve seasons and with two championships at Sweetwater, returned to the sidelines for the first time since 1994 and led the first-year Otay Ranch Mustangs to a 8-2 record.

GIVE ME AN H…GIVE ME A T…

H-Town Christian opened in Paradise Hills, coached by Frank Henry, former Patrick Henry athlete with coaching experience at Utah, San Diego City College, Laguna Beach, and Horizon.

The Lions would be on the football scene for three seasons.  Henry, who also served as principal, was succeeded by Ray Toilolo in 2005 and the campus moved to the Encanto community, competing in the Pacific League.

BURKE CONCISE

Discussing Torrey Pines’ victory over Castle Park, coach Ed Burke (“Defense won it for us”) kept his counsel regarding  play of the Falcons’  special teams after Torrey trailed 4-0 at halftime—yes, 4-0—before overcoming Castle Park 24-4.

It was one of the more unusual coaching nights for Burke, who won 243 games in a legendary career at King City, Taft Union, Torrey Pines, and San Dieguito.

The Falcons’ kicking teams were in for some additional work and pointed observations the next week from the veteran mentor, who looked on peevishly when a low snap and botched punt resulted in a second quarter safety that put the Trojans in front 2-0.

Burke’s jaw dropped a few minutes later after a high snap botched another punt and stunningly resulted in two more points for Castle Park.

TIGERS’ MERRY-GO-ROUND

Morse released head coach Mike Moran in July, eight months after the Tigers finished the 2003 campaign with a 1-9 record. Moran’s replacement, Stewart Roper, was replaced after 13 days because of problems with his job application.

Robert Savage was named interim coach, then was joined by co-coach Tony Valencia, a school district veteran of almost 40 years who had been hired as Morse’s athletic director.

Savage was 1-1 as the sole head coach but was not a credentialed teacher.  Valencia’s addition would allow a head coach to be available to students during the academic day.

Morse topped Kearny 38-0 in the first game with co-head coaches and posted a 6-5 record overall and earned their first playoff berth since 1998.

FORFEITS OKAY WITH COACHES

Hilltop, 1-9 with three forfeits for using an ineligible player, was in the D-II playoffs.  El Cajon Valley, 4-6 and “clean”, was out.

Coaches doing the seeding correctly  followed existing criteria and were essentially unconcerned about forfeits, according to Bill McLaughlin, San Diego Section assistant commissioner.

“Letting a team that is one and nine with three forfeits into the playoffs is sending the wrong message,” said El Cajon Valley coach Joe Hubarth.

Hubarth said he didn’t address the Hilltop situation when he made his team’s presentation to the coaches’ committee because he didn’t think Hilltop was in the conversation.

“It was shocking,” said Hubarth.  “If they were 6-4 and dropped to 4-6, sure, but not 1-9.”

San Pasqual sent the Lancers home early, winning the first-round game, 31-7.

TRUE GRID

Quarterback  Jason Forcier, who resided in Carlsbad and was an Amtrak veteran, commuting to  Mater Dei in Santa Ana, transferred to St. Augustine…Forcier passed for 35 touchdowns and 2,641 yards in a 7-5 season…Oceanside defeated Marian Catholic, 34-12, in Week 2, ending the Crusaders’ 27-game winning streak,  third longest in San Diego Section history…Jack Neumeier, who coached John Elway at Granada Hills High and, after retirement, moved to Fallbrook and helped turn the Warriors into an offensive powerhouse in the 1980s, passed away at age 86 at his home in Camarillo…eight different Helix running backs rushed for a combined 403 yards as new coach Donnie Van Hook celebrated his first game with a 47-0 victory over Patrick Henry…not to be outdone, St. Augustine rushed for 419 yards in a 33-13 victory over El Capitan in its opener…Hoover rushed for 477 yards in a 59-0 win over Army-Navy…Bonita Vista’s well-traveled Barons  scored the final 14 points to win at  Linganore of Frederick, Maryland,  27-21…the Barons played La Jolla in Havana, Cuba, in  2003…Oscar Fernandez kicked a 19-yard field goal as time expired and Clairemont surprised Mission Bay, 13-10…with five seconds remaining Chris Schearing of Madison kicked a 40-yard field goal to give the Warhawks a neighborhood bragging rights win over Clairemont, 23-20…Silver Strand rivals Coronado and Mar Vista battled for the Adrian Taufausau Trophy, named after the Coronado quarterback who died in 1996…the Islanders honored their fallen graduate with a 47-7 victory…Serra lost its first four games and was outscored 206-52, then won five in a row and made the playoffs, finishing 5-6…La Jolla Country Day’s first-ever night game at home resulted in a 62-20, eight-man victory over Tri-City Christian…the Torreys won  the eight-man title, defeating San Pasqual Academy, 53-12….

San Diego Section athletes in both genders stepped up in the Saturday finals of last week’s state track and field championships.

The college-like campus at Clovis’ Buchanan  High was a wonderful venue for the 95th Boys’ championship and 40th Girls’ meet and drew more than 17,000 persons over two days.

Saturday’s finals began under a late-afternoon sun, in heat that reached 100 degrees, and after many from the local contingent of 90 entries were  eliminated  in Friday’s trials.

My Saturday favorites:

1–Hannah Labrie-Smith, Cathedral Catholic.  She revealed a strong competitive edge when the sophomore battled back from a potentially disastrous mid-race crisis.

Leading coming into the homestretch turn, Labrie-Smith was thrown off stride when she struck a hurdle and fell back to fifth place.  Composing herself, Hannah knocked off two runners near the finish line  and nudged into third place in :42.58, after coming within 1/10 of a second of Gale Devers’ 1984 Section record of :42.26 on Friday.

2–Poway’s 4×400 relay team.  San Diego teams almost never post a good time in this event before the Section finals or, more often,  the state trials.  Maybe it’s because coaches are trying to win dual meets and enter their best runners in multiple events each week.

Poway was sixth in  a very strong field but its time of 3:15.78 was almost six seconds better than what it was running a month ago.  The Titans overcame a terrible pass on the first exchange.  They had virtually lost contact with the field halfway into the second lap but rallied and finished with the 13th best 4×400 in Section history.

3–Alex Grigoriev, Rancho Bernardo.  At one point Grigoriev was running in 11th place but he didn’t panic, climbing the hill to third  with a career best  of 1:51.61, No. 8 all-time in  the section.

4– Dotun Ogundeji, Madison.  I feel that winning a state championship is not always the ultimate. Ogundeji has to feel good about himself.

An unheralded junior, Ogundeji was the only local athlete to qualify for two finals events.

A two-way lineman on Madison’s 2012 State III championship football team, Dotun added more than a foot to his previous best, coming in at  58-11 3/4 for sixth in the shotput and was out of the money in the discus but still managed an excellent 175-2.

5–Melissa Mongiovi, West Hills.  She let the field get too far ahead but blazed a finish that got Mongiovi a fifth-place medal.  Melissa’s 54.70 400 meters is No. 7 all-time in San Diego and she has two more years and enough time to get over the habit of  having too much left at the finish.

6–Brenden Song, West Hills.  The San Diego Section’s only gold medalist, Song won the discus by three inches at 188-8 after finishing second in 2012 and third in Friday’s trials.

7–All of the others who got to Saturday and earned medals or came up with personal bests.

Includes State Meet, May 31-June 1.

BOYS

100—(Fully automatic) Brown (Valhalla) 10.76, Smith (Mount Miguel) 10.80, Ardis (La Costa Canyon) 10.81 (10.70w), S. Pater (Mt. Carmel) 10.83, Molton (Hilltop) 10.84, Doan (StA) 11.07 (10.84w, Lucas (Poway) 10.85 (10.78w), Lewis (San Marcos) 10.88, Le (Scripps Ranch) 10.93, McNair (Morse) 10.94, Mayberry (Francis Parker) 10.94.  Southern California & State–Muhammad (Sherman Oaks Notre Dame), 10.22aw.

200—Ardis (La Costa Canyon) 21.35, Lucas (Poway) 21.55, Lewis (San Marcos) 21.95, Molton (Hilltop) 21.96, S. Pater (Mt. Carmel) 22.03, Gross (Poway) 22.05, Brown (Valhalla) 22.09, Morgan (St. Augustine) 21.9, Doan (St. Augustine)  22.18, Gibson (Olympic) 22.20, Ricks (Valley Center) 22.20, Thomas (Scripps Ranch) 22.20. Southern California & State–Muhammad (Sherman Oaks Notre Dame) 20.73.

400—Thomas (Scripps Ranch) 47.82, Howard (Steele Canyon) 48.65, Grigoriev (Rancho Bernardo) 49.54, Gronotte (Westview) 49.63, Dehaven (Granite Hills) 49.67, Smith (Eastlake) 49.88, Ozenbaugh (Poway) 49.89, Johnson (Helix) 49.91. Southern California & State–Kurtz (Etiwanda) 46.53.

800—Grigoriev (Rancho Bernardo) 1:51.61 (Section #8 all-time), Gronotte (Westview) 1:53.13, Senese (Mt. Carmel) 1:53.67, Hernandez (Helix) 1:53.98, Lawson (Cathedral) 1:54.23, Alvarado (Sweetwater) 1:55.69, Soto (El Cajon Valley) 1:55.76, Freeman (Carlsbad) 1:56.06, Snow (Carlsbad) 1:56.07, Greer (VC) 1:56.23. Southern California—Thompson (Riverside Sherman Indian), 1:51.76.  State–Hamilton (Oakland Bishop O’Dowd) 1:50.19.

1600–Freeman (Carlsbad), 4:11.89, Fahy (La Costa Canyon) 4:13.88, Braude (Torrey Pines), 4:15.12, Ryan (Westview) 4:15.89, Sindel (Mt. Carmel) 4:16.30, Sweet (Point Loma) 4:17.02, Morton (Mt. Carmel) 4:18.16, A. Masayesva (Serra) 4:18.40, Jafek (Torrey Pines) 4:18.53, Schaefer (Carlsbad) 4:19.01. Southern California—Tamagno (Brea-Olinda), 4:09.43.  State— Haney (Bakersfield Stockdale), 4:06.91.

3200—Freeman (Carlsbad) 8:52.65, Fahy (La Costa Canyon) 9:02.61, Braude (Torrey Pines) 9:05.26, Schaefer (Carlsbad) 9:11.09, Martin (Carlsbad) 9:11.55, Riley (Ramona) 9:17.31, Gomez (El Capitan) 9:20.16, A. Masayesva (Serra) 9:21.33, Bourke (Cathedral) 9:21.44, Lepe (Monte Vista) 9:21.99. Southern California–Gonzalez (El Toro), 8:54.01. State–Haney, 8:48.58.

110HH—(Fully automatic) Hartinger (San  Pasqual) 14.39, James (Granite Hills) 14.60, Washington (El Camino) 14.63, Zebold (Cathedral) 14.70 (14.44w), Nelson (Del Norte) 14.78, Kenney (Carlsbad) 14.80, Battig (Mira Mesa) 14.92, Trieu (Mira Mesa) 15.01, LaChica (Mt. Carmel) 15.20, French (Poway) 15.23 . Southern California—Sicard (Gardena Serra), 13.92aw.  State—Morris (Concord De La Salle), 13.90.

300IH— Howard (Steele Canyon) 37.65, Washington (El Camino) 38.0,  Hartinger (San Pasqual) 38.44,  Nelson (Del Norte) 38.61, James (Granute Hills) 38.6 (38.89), Zebold (Cathedral) 38.93, French (Poway) 38.96, Hernandez (Castle Park) 39.19, Wilson (Orange Glen) 39.36, Riley (Rancho Bernardo) 39.47. Southern California & State–Sicard, 37.06.

4x100R—Poway 42.05, Steele Canyon 42.15, Mt. Carmel 42.38, Helix 42.39, Granite Hills 42.73, Oceanside 42.82, Olympian 42.85, Eastlake 43.00, Monte Vista 43.07, University City 43.12.  Southern California & State–Gardena Serra, 40.73a.

4x400R—Poway 3:15.78, Mt. Carmel 3:19.27, Steele Canyon 3:20.44, Westview 3:22.04, Rancho Bernardo 3:22.11, Granite Hills 3:22.37, Helix 3:22.40, Valley Center 3:24.35, Olympian 3:24.42, Del Norte 3:24.46. Southern California & State–Gardena Serra, 3:10.59.

HJ— Bush (Poway) 6-7, Rush-Dunigan (Point Loma ) 6-6, Pritchett (University Center) 6-6, Pavlovics (Rancho Bernardo) 6-5 ½, Williams (Mission Hills) 6-5, Patmon (Patrick Henry) 6-5, Benson (Point Loma) 6-5, Hilliard (Rancho Buena Vista) 6-5, Five at 6-3. Southern California & State–Howell (Antelope Center), 7-0.

PV— *K. Pater (Mt. Carmel) 16-6, Law (Otay Ranch) 16-0, Bush (Poway) 15-4, Elder (Escondido) 15-3, Poole (Poway) 14-4, Drammissi (El Capitan) 14-4, Wagenveld (Calvin Christian) 14-4, Miller (Patrick Henry) 14-2, Ash (Valhalla) 14-2, Holstrom (Rancho Bernardo) 14-2. Southern California & State–K. Pater.

LJ—Rush-Dunigan (Point Loma) 24-3 ½, Simpson (University City) 23-6 ½, Nasser (Sweetwater) 23-2 ½, LeBlanc (University City) 23-1, Walker (Mount Miguel) 22-9, Adair (Rancho Bernardo) 22-7 1/2, Carter (Serra) 22-7, Holder (Oceanside) 22-6, Nelson (Del Norte) 22-6, Miller (Oceanside) 22-3 ½. S. Pater (Mt. Carmel) 22-10w. Southern California & State–Jackson (Gardena Serra), 25-0.

TJ—Dodds (Oceanside) 48-8, Esteban (Otay Ranch) 46-4 ¾ (47-6w), Simpson (University City) 46-3, Jackson (Mount Miguel) 46-1 3/4, Rush-Dunigan (Point Loma) 45-10, Boulware (Eastlake) 45-7 ¾, Wilson (Granite Hills) 45-5 ¼, Tuff (Steele Canyon) 45-3 ½, M. Holder (Oceanside) 45-3, Carter (Serra) 45-2. Southern California— Spencer (Hesperia Sultana) 50-0 1/4w. State—Moore (Castro Valley), 50-11 ¼.

SP—Ogundeji (Madison) 58-11 ¾,  Higuera (Sweetwater) 55-2 ½, Santos (Imperial) 54-7 ¾, Braddock (East) 53-9 1/2, Hendrickson (San Pasqual) 52-11, Maneval (Torrey Pines) 52-8 ¼,  Wyatt (Helix) 52-4, Quessenberry (La Costa Canyon) 51-10, Newman (El Camino) 51-8, Barker (Rancho Bernardo) 51-7. Southern California & State–Ponzio (Temecula Great Oak), 66-2 1/2.

DT—Song (West Hills) 194-4, Ogundeji (Madison) 179-10, Newman (El Camino) 178-2, Maffei (Escondido) 166-4, Navarrete (University City) 160-9, Savage (Morse) 159-8, Hampton (Helix) 155-1, Braddock (Eastlake) 154-7, Barker (Rancho Bernardo) 152-4, Wyatt (Helix) 152-0. Southern California & State–Song.

GIRLS

100—(Fully automatic) (Mission Hills) 11.85, Johnson (Cathedral) 12.14, Labrie-Smith (Cathedral)12.12 (11.97w), Rehm (San Pasqual) 12.23, Zlatic (La Jolla) 12.30, Gillon (Hilltop) 12.36, Hernandez (Mt. Carmel) 12.40, Lawson (Eastlake) 12.41, Patterson (Rancho Bernardo) 12.41, Three at 12.43. Southern California & State–Washington (Long Beach Poly), 11.22aw.

200—Acolatse (Mission Hills) 24.30, Mongiovi (West Hills) 24.44, Johnson (Cathedral) 24.61, Zlatic (La Jolla) 24.78, Hernandez (Mt. Carmel) 24.80, Gonzalez (Mater Dei) 24.83, LiDrazzah (Olympian) 25.23, Burrell (Chula Vista) 25.24, Lawson (Eastlake) 25.26, Carrillo (Steele Canyon) 25.1, Labrie-Smith (Cathedral) 25.40 (25.00w). Southern California & State–Washington, 23.18.

400—Mongiovi (West Hills) 54.70 (Section #7 all-time), Armitage (Clairemont) 55.58, Lopez (Carlsbad) 55.98, Hernandez (Mt. Carmel) 56.28, Smith (Eastlake) 56.44, Zlatic (La Jolla) 56.55, Leonard (San Pasqual) 57.47, Bell (Morse) 57.52, Schroeder (Bonita Vista) 57.77, Garces (Eastlake) 57.85. Southern California—Ezumah (Gardena Serra), 54.15.  State–Dorner (Rancho Cordova) 53.00.

800—Gillespie (Otay Ranch) 2:10.70 (Section #9 all-time), Sammer (Rancho Bernardo) 2:12.28, Harbison (Westview) 2:13.85, Miller (Pacific Ridge) 2:15.14, Seamans (Torrey Pines) 2:15.28, Charles (Canyon Crest) 2:16.0, DeBrosse (El Camino) 2:16.13, Bernd (Canyon Crest) 2:16.26, Shade (Patrick Henry) 2:16.32, Fierro (San Dieguito) 2:16.39. Southern California–Huebner (La Quinta) 2:11.94.  State—Smith (Clovis North), 2:08.39.

1600—Emma Abrahamson (La Costa Canyon) 4:51.33, Bernd (Canyon Crest) 4:54.19, Sorensen (Torrey Pines) 4:56.74c, Charles (Canyon Crest) 4:57.70, Seay (Mt. Carmel) 4:57.90, Lawson (La Costa Canyon) 4:58.68, Ellie Abrahamson (La Costa Canyon) 4:59.44, Kay (Patrick Henry) 5:00.88, Miller (Pacific Ridge) 5:00.92c, O’Connell (Torrey Pines) 5:01.07. Southern California–Smith (Newport Beach Newport Harbor), 4:49.61.  State–Maxwell (San Lorenzo Valley), 4:43.01.

3200—Emma Abrahamson (La Costa Canyon) 10:36.01, Lawson (La Costa Canyon) 10:44.00, O’Connell (Torrey Pines) 10:44.24, Sorensen (Torrey Pines) 10:45.48, Seay (Mt. Carmel) 10:45.91, *Miller (Carlsbad) 10.54.75, Ellie Abrahamson (La Costa Canyon) 10:57.94, Bosler (La Costa Canyon) 10:59.08, Sanborn (Cathedral) 10:59.85, Ortlieb (San Pasqual) 11:06.59. Southern California & State–Baxter (Simi Valley), 10:06.74.

100IH—(Fully automatic) Labrie-Smith (Cathedral) 14.39, Hancock (La Jolla) 14.64, Johnson (Cathedral) 14.64, Rehm (San Pasqual) 14.78, Lyons-Walker (Morse) 14.80, Chang (Otay Ranch) 14.92, Johnson (Poway) 15.09w, Young (Serra) 15.16, Magdalena (Olympic) 15.20, Murray (Poway) 15.21. Southern California–Graham (Corona Roosevelt), 13.79sw.  State–Baxter (Castro Valley), 13.43.

300IH—Labrie-Smith (Cathedral) 42.27 (Section #2 all-time), Hancock (La Jolla) 42.59, Lyons-Walker (Morse) 43.80, Rehm (San Pasqual) 43.99, Garcia (Rancho Bernardo) 43.91, Johnson (Cathedral) 44.08, Van (Steele Canyon) 44.66, Spencer (San Diego) 44.83, Young (Serra) 45.57, Bell (Morse) 45.5. Southern California & State–Miller (Temecula Great Oak), 41.02.

4x100R–Cathedral 47.77; Mission Hills 48.34; Morse 48.45, Rancho Bernardo 48.64, Eastlake 48.66, University City 48.73, La Costa Canyon 48.81, Poway 48.84, San Pasqual 49.13, Olympian 49.16. Southern California & State–Long Beach Poly, 44.93.

4x400R— La Jolla 3:53.98, Carlsbad 3:54.91, Bonita Vista 3:55.40, Rancho Bernardo 3:56.23, Del Norte 3:58.81, Mt. Carmel 3:59.10, Cathedral Catholic 3:59.57, West Hills 4:00.57, University City 4:00.70, Eastlake 4:01.26. Southern California–Long Beach Poly, 3:43.62.  State—San Jose Piedmont Hills, 3:41.14.

HJ—Curry (University City) 5-9, Callahan (Coronado) 5-6 ½, Slack (Vista) 5-6, Rowlett (Carlsbad) 5-5, Yates (Rancho Buena Vista) 5-4, Smith (Coronado) 5-3, Gorman (Rancho Bernardo) 5-3, Vanderhoff (Valhalla) 5-3, Eight at 5-2. Southern California & State—McCoy (Fontana Miller), 6-0 ¾.

PV—Tolda (Cathedral) 12-0, Farr (Patrick Henry) 11-9, Lian (Rancho Bernardo) 11-6, Bartsch (Coronado) 11-5, *Jackson (Ramona) 11-3, Madigan (Scripps Ranch) 11-0, Moss (Otay Ranch) 10-6, Fox (Valhalla) 10-6, Girley (Carlsbad) 10-6, Six at 10-3. Southern California & State–Merritt (Rancho Santa Margarita), 13-8.

LJ—Zlatic (La Jolla) 19-0 ¾, T. Dozier (Mount Miguel) 18-7, Cromer (University City) 18-2, Staab (Scripps Ranch) 18-0, Hopson (Coronado) 17-8, Kennedy (Serra) 17-7 ¼, Van (Steele Canyon) 17-6 ¾, Rackley (La Costa Canyon) 17-6 ¼, Muhammad (La Jolla Country Day) 17-6, Slack (Vista) 17-5 ½. Southern California & State–Corrin (Studio City  Harvard-Westlake), 20-11.

TJ—Cole (Del Norte) 38-1 ¾, Van (Steele Canyon) 38-0, Kennedy (Serra) 37-6 ½, Muhammad (La Jolla Country Day) 37-4, Madsen (Carlsbad) 37-3 ½, Noiseaux (Eastlake) 37-2, Haselhuhn (Carlsbad) 36-8 ¾, Nash (Calvin Christian) 36-6 ¾, Mathis (Scripps Ranch) 36-2 ¼, Garcia (Sweetwater) 36-0 ½. Southern California–Tolliver (Inglewood St. Mary’s), 40-1 1/2.  State–Wallace (Castro Valley), 42-4.

SP—Ward (Hoover) 43-2 ½, Sierra (El Capitan) 42-3, Walker (Rancho Bernardo) 41-6 1/2, Tausaga (Mount Miguel) 40-2, Cheadle (Escondido) 39-8, Mohamed (Imperial) 38-9, Osby (Escondido) 38-5, Helgeson (El Camino) 38-4, Ellis (Westview) 38-2 ¼, S. Dozier (Steele Canyon) 38-2. Southern California & State–Scarvelis (Goleta Dos Pueblos), 51-11.

DISCUS–Smith (Helix) 136-10, Osby (Escondido) 129-11, S. Dozier (Steele Canyon) 128-4, Haury (Scripps Ranch) 128-4, Jackson (Francis Parker) 125-1, Sierra (El Capitan) 122-3, Anderson (Rancho Buena Vista) 122-3, Panebianco (Helix) 121-0, Helgesen (El Camino) 120-0, Nofadgi (Hoover) 118-3. Southern California–Jacobs (Arroyo Grande), 163-11.  State–Okwelogu (Clovis West), 173-09.

CLOVIS—Twenty-one of San Diego’s 90 entries qualified yesterday for this evening’s 95^th State track-and-field championships at Buchanan High.

In arguably a mediocre season for the San Diego Section, a strong season finish is possible.

The state meet is the event in which winning is not always more important than improving on a personal best or setting a section record. The trials were satisfying enough.

Sophomore Hannah Labrie-Smith of Cathedral Catholic had the third-fastest effort in the 300-meter hurdles but her time of :42.27 was one-tenth of a second off Gail Devers’ section record.

Labrie-Smith should draw a good lane assignment tonight as she challenges one of the oldest records in the books, set in 1984 by Sweetwater’s future Olympic hurdles champion.

The meet was more than two hours old before Labrie-Smith became the first San Diego Section entry to record a season best.  She bettered her 100-meter time with a nonqualifying, wind-okay :12.2.

Alex Grigoriev of Rancho Bernardo is positioned for a run in the 800 meters.  He finished strongly in his heat, running career best of 1:51.90, second fastest qualifying time behind the 1:51.6 of Bakersfield Ridgeview’s Ivan Gonzalez.

Otay Ranch’s Carina Gillespie ran 2:11.10 for the second fastest girls 800.

Christian Freeman of Carlsbad dropped out of 1,600 to devote to the 3,200 tonight.  He has the fastest qualifying time going in, 9:03.51.

Poway’s boys 4×400 relay team is in a loaded field and seeded only ninth tonight, but the Titans ran 3:17.43, an improvement of almost four seconds in the last month.  They’ll probably have go well under 3:17 to earn a medal.

Other  possibilities include Brendan Song in the discus and Sydney Rush-Dunigan in the long jump.  Song’s 194-4 is the best throw in the state this year but the West Hills senior hasn’t hit that mark since April and was fourth in qualifying yesterday at 184-1.

Point Loma’s Rush-Dunigan, seemingly always struggling to find a good launch point, overcame five consecutive fouls (including three last week in the section meet) and reached 24-0 ½ to qualify third on the final jump of the competition.

Madison’s Doton Ogundeji was the only double qualifier, eighth in the discus at 173-6 and 10^th in the shot put at 56-11 ¾.

BOYS

100– Muhmmad (Sherman Oaks Notre Dame), 10.40. (nonqualifier) Ardis (La Costa Canyon), 10.86. Doan (St. Augustine), 10.90. Lucas (Poway), 10.90.

200— Muhammad (Sherman Oaks Notre Dame).  9.  Ardis (La Costa Canyon), 21.66. (nonqualifier) Lucas (Poway), 21.75.  Lewis (San Marcos), 22.41.

400— Parish (Etiwanda), 47.16.  (nonqualifier) Thomas (Scripps Ranch), 48.44.  DeHaven (Granite Hills), 50.43. Ozenbaugh (Poway), DQ, false start.

800— Gonzalez (Bakersfield Ridgeview), 1:51.60.  2—Grigoriev (Rancho Bernardo), 1:51.91.  (nonqualifier) Hernandez (Helix), 1:54.07.  Senese (Mt. Carmel), 1:54.94.

1600— Haney (Bakersfield Stockdale), 4:13.05. (nonqualifier) Morton (Mt. Carmel), 4:21.70.  Sweet (Point Loma), 4:22.47.  Sindel (Mt. Carmel), 4:24.12.

110HH— Morris (Concord de la Salle) :13.92.  (nonqualifier) Hartinger (San Pasqual) 14.46. Nelson (Del Norte) 14.87. Kenney (Carlsbad), 14.99.

300IH– Sicard (Gardena Serra), 37.30.  7–Howard (Steele Canyon),  37.99. (nonqualifier) Nelson (Del-Norte), 38.88. Hartinger (San Pasqual), 39.79.

4×100 Relay– Gardena Serra, 41.01.  (nonqualifer) Granite Hills, 42.47; Mt. Carmel, 42.84. Helix, 43.06 DQ, lane violation.

4×400 Relay— Gardena Serra, 3:13.68.   9. Poway, 3:17.43.  (nonqualfier) Mt. Carmel, 3:20.31, DQ, lane violation.  Steele Canyon 3:20.55.

HJ—Started at 6-5.  Eleven qualified at 6-7.  (nonqualifier) Williams (Mission Hills), no height.  Benson (Point Loma), NH.  Bush (Poway), NH.

PV—Started at 14-6.  Twelve cleared 15-5  3/4, including Law (Otay Ranch).  (nonqualifier) Bush Poway (14-6).  K. Pater (Mt. Carmel), no height.

LJ— Jackson (Gardena  Serra), 24-7 ¼.  3–Rush-Dunigan (Point Loma), 24-0 ½.  10—Adair (Rancho Bernardo), 22-11.  (nonqualifier) S. Pater (Mt. Carmel), 19-5.

TJ— Moore (Castro Valley), 49-0 1/4.  (nonqualifier) Jackson (Mount Miguel), 45-2 ¾.  Dodds (Oceanside), 43-8 ¾.  Tuff (Steele Canyon), 42-5 ¼.

SP– Patterson  (Encino Crespi), 62-8. 10.  Ogundeji (Madison), 56-11 ¾.  (nonqualifier) Braddock (Eastlake), 53-2.  Santos (Imperial), 53-2.

DISCUS– Taylor (Newport Beach Newport Harbor), 189-11. 4—Song, West Hills, 184-1.  8—Ogundeji (Madison), 173-6. (nonqualifier) Savage (Morse). 151-2.

GIRLS

100— Washington (L.B. Poly), 11.48.  (nonqualifier) Acolatse (Mission Hills), 11.98.  Labrie-Smith (Cathedral), 12.12.  Lawson (Eastlake), 12.22.

200—Washington (L.B. Poly) 23.39.  (nonqualifier) Mongiovi (West Hills), 24.97.  Johnson (Cathedral), 24.91.   Zlatic (La Jolla), 25.27.

400– Dorner (Rancho Cordova Cordova),  53.12.  7. Mongiovi (West Hills),  55.61.  (nonqualifier) Hernandez (Mt. Carmel),  56.69.  Armitage (Clairemont),  57.57.

800— Smith (Clovis North), 2:10.63.  2. Gillespie (Otay Ranch), 2:11.10.  9.  Sammer (Rancho Bernardo), 2:12.28. (nonqualifier) Harbison (Westview), 2:14.54.

1600– Hiltz (Aptos),  4:50.7. (nonqualifier) Emma Abrahamson (La Costa Canyon), 4:58.06.  Bernd (Canyon Crest), 5:01.6.  Ellie Abrahamson (La Costa Canyon), 5:12.65.

100IH— Wallace (Castro Valley), 13.49. (nonqualifier)  Labrie-Smith (Cathedral), 14.46.  Johnson (Cathedral), 14.70.  Hancock (La Jolla), 14.85.

300LH— Miller (Temecula Great Oak), 41.60.    3. Labrie-Smith (Cathedral), 42.27 (Section No. 2 all-time).  8.  Hancock (La Jolla), 43.17.  (nonqualifier) Lyons-Walker (Morse), 44.37.

4X100 Relay– L.B. Poly, 45.57.  Nonqualifier—Cathedral, 48.06.  Morse, 48.59. Mission Hills, 50.77.

4×1600  Relay– Piedmont Hills, 3:44.47.   (nonqualifier) Carlsbad, 3:54.04.  La Jolla, 3:55.37.   Bonita Vista, 3:57.94.

HJ—Twelve  cleared 5-6.  (nonqualifier) Curry (University City), 5-3 ¾.  Rowlett (Carlsbad), 5-3 ¾.  Yates (Rancho Buena Vista), no height.

PV—Eleven cleared 11-10, including Tolda (Cathedral).  (nonqualifier) Farr (Patrick Henry), 11 4 ¼.  Jackson (Ramona), no height.

LJ—Corrin (N. Hollywood Harvard-Westlake), 20-8.  8.  Zlatic (La Jolla), 18-4 ¾. (nonqualifier) Dozier (Mount Miguel), 17-2 ¾. Muhammad (L.J. Country Day), 15-5.

TJ– Wallace (Castro Valley), 40-10 ¾.  10—Cole (Del Norte), 38.0 ½.  (nonqualifier) Noiseaux (Eastlake). 35-9 ½. Van (Steele Canyon), 35-8.

SP—Scarvelis (Goleta Dos Pueblos), 51-11.  8.  Ward (Hoover),  41-11 ¾.  9.  Walker (Rancho Bernardo), 41-6 ½.  (nonqualifier) Sierra (El Capitan), 38-10 ¾.

DISCUS—(leading qualifier) Okwelogu (Clovis West), 170-6.  9—Smith (Helix), 136-10.  (nonqualifier)  Osby (Escondido), 124-3.  Zaybree (Scripps Ranch), 121-5.

Pat Shea, a starting right guard on the San Diego Chargers’ 1963 American Football League championship team and a legendary Mission Bay High athlete,  passed away in Encinitas recently at age 73.

Shea won the 1958 CIF Southern Section heavyweight wrestling championship for the Buccaneers and was  the ’58 City Prep League track championships shot put winner with a best of 55 feet, 9 1/4 inches.  At that time Shea’s mark was the third best ever by a city schools athlete.

Shea played in the annual Breitbard Foundation College Prep All-Star game featuring players from San Diego County versus Los Angeles City and was a lineman at San Diego Junior College  before moving on to the University of Southern California.

Shea recalled his days with the Chargers and at Mission Bay in classmate Bill Swank’s acclaimed book about the beach-area school, “Gold Leather Helmets – Black Hightop Shoes”:

“When I think about coaches at Mission Bay, I think about coach (Chuck) Coover,” said Shea.  “I loved him.  He was quiet, but he also paid special attention to me.  He saw something in me.”

Shea remembered Don Donnelly as his favorite classroom teacher and the difficulty of matching wrestling holds with coach Walt Romanowski.

“Romanowski tied me up,” Shea told Swank.  “I outweighed him and I didn’t know how he did it.  Romanowski and Coover were guys you wanted to please.”

Shea was known as a rough and tumble figure in his younger days in Pacific Beach and the coastal communities.  He was the second Shea to attend the new Mission Bay High, which opened in 1953.

Pat followed Bob Shea, who  was a starter on early Buccaneers basketball teams in 1954-55 and ’55-56 and went on to a career as a life guard and administrator.

Pat Shea played at San Diego Junior College for two seasons and two years at the University of Southern California.  He made the Chargers as a rookie free agent in 1962 and concluded his career with the Chargers in 1965.

Chargers line coach Joe Madro was particularly fond of Shea.  The taskmaster Madro usually addressed Pat by Shea’s middle name, Beardsley, and appreciated Shea’s toughness and competitive spirit.

Shea said that he appreciated Chargers coach Sid Gillman but did not like general manager Gillman.  “I liked him,” Shea remembered, “until I had to negotiate a contract with him.”