Charles Rich
Editor's note: The following is a review of the 2003 winter sports
season.
GLENDALE -- Some improbable runs spurred the interest of local
high school sports fans, who were kept warm during the chilly winter
months.
Plenty happened for the winter teams, which noticeably bridged the
gap from the end of the regular season to the beginning of the spring
season. Twenty of the 34 winter teams qualified for the CIF Southern
Section playoffs.
The biggest story came in boys' soccer. St. Francis shared the CIF
Southern Section Division II championship with Irvine Woodbridge,
which was ranked third in the nation according to Student Sports
Magazine, entering the division final. The Golden Knights had
previously won the Division III title in 1996 and the Division IV
crown in 2001.
The Flintridge Prep boys' basketball squad also advanced to the
Division IVA semifinals before losing to eventual champion L.A.
Verbum Dei.
So without further adieu, here's a detailed summary of the 2003
winter campaign.
BOYS' SOCCER
As they strode off the field after falling to Mission League rival
L.A. Loyola in a regular-season match in early February, a large
contingent of Loyola fans began chanting, "CIF, CIF, CIF" to their
heroes with the hope that the Cubs would win the CIF Southern Section
Division II championship in March.
It never materialized. To make matters worse for those fans, they
had to eat their words about a month later.
St. Francis (26-5-1) would go on to share the championship with
Irvine Woodbridge following a 1-1 deadlock March 8 at Cal State
Fullerton. The 2002-03 season might have been the best piece of
coaching that St. Francis Coach Glen Appels has done since taking
over the program in 1988.
Luke Postlewaite scored to give St. Francis a 1-0 lead. But
Irvine Woodbridge tied the match with about two minutes left in extra
time to forge the tie.
Some of the key players for the Golden Knights included Jeff
Fawcett, a sweeper who was named the News-Press All-Area Player of
the Year. Fawcett became the third consecutive St. Francis athlete to
win the Player of the Year award, joining Ryan Shaw (2001) and Daniel
Palandini (2002).
Jeff Buddenbohn, Pat Conway, Tashi Nakanishi, Robby Dow and
Branden Izumi also starred for St. Francis, which placed second in
the Mission League behind Loyola.
The only other area team to qualify for the postseason was La
Canada (12-5-3). Under the guidance of first-year Coach Rafael Moran,
the Spartans captured the Rio Hondo League championship before
