Grant Gordon
Editor's Note: The following is a recap of the 2004 local sports
scene from the summer and fall seasons:
SUMMER
BASEBALL
While vacant of any prep sports action, the summer didn't pass
without highlights provided by local high school stars.
The San Gabriel Valley Babe Ruth All-Star team, coached by
Crescenta Valley High's Phil Torres, defeated Worcester, Mass. in
August as the 16-19 division team won the World Series. Leading the
way was a cast of eight locals, highlighted by Glendale Community
College's Bill Spottiswood, who was named most outstanding player of
the tournament.
GCC's Blake Gailen, St. Francis' Brian Farris and CV's Trevor Bell
were also steady performers, making the all-tournament team.
It wasn't the only diamond highlight during the dog days of
summer.
The Crescenta Valley Major baseball team advanced to the Division
3 Tournament, while the Glendale Big League softball team advanced
all the way to the Western Regional.
The biggest baseball highlight of the summer came, ironically, in
Houston.
It was the sight of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in
which 1989 St. Francis graduate Mark Loretta had been selected to
play for the National League.
The San Diego Padre second baseman went one for two in the game
and on the season, led his team with a .335 average to go with 208
hits, 108 runs scored and 76 RBIs.
OLYMPICS
On, perhaps, an even larger scale, the Summer Olympics in Athens
also provided local flavor.
Welterweight boxer Vanes Martirosyan of Glendale faired the best,
as he advanced to the round of 16 while representing the United
States of America.
Peter Wells, a 1992 La Canada graduate, and Brian Goorjian, a 1971
Crescenta Valley grad, were also part of the festivities. Wells,
representing the U.S., finished 28th out of 34 sailors in the men's
mistral competition. Goorjian coached the Australian men's basketball
team to a 2-4 record and a ninth-place finish.
FALL
On the field and court, the area's autumn will likely be
remembered most for two semifinal berths -- that of the Tologs'
girls' volleyball team and the Golden Knights' football team. But the
greatest accomplishment came at the legs of the Rebels' boys'
cross-country team.
The Rebels bested runner-up Woodcrest Christian by a commanding
82-115 tally at Fresno's Woodward Park as Flintridge Prep won its
fourth state championship since 1998, a week after claiming a CIF
Division V title.
Coach Ingrid Herskind's squad was led by Tom McLean, who finished
fourth in the state race.
