Falcons, Tologs looking to move up

It appears the Crescenta Valley High girls' golf team has stockpiled the most depth in the program's 11-year history.

That's left Crescenta Valley Coach Lee Pope examining his options determining a starting lineup for the season.

"We are looking solid with the first four in our lineup, so that definitely puts us in the playoff picture," Pope said. "Our hopes are high and we are young, but I think we'll be strong the next few years."

The Falcons will bring back sophomore Jocelyn Chia, the reigning All-Area Girls' Golfer of the Year. Chia won or shared medalist honors in seven Pacific league matches last season. She placed third in the league individual final before reaching the CIF Southern Section Northern Individual Regional, the CIF Individual Final and Women's Southern California Golf Assn. Qualifying Tournament and finally the WSCGA Foundation Tournament.

Joining Chia will be seniors Amy Park and Yoojin Lee, junior Deborah Shin, sophomores Alice Yoon and Esther Yee and freshmen Audrey Chung, Rachel Kim and Julie Kim.

Expectations will likely be high for Chia and her teammates.

"I think we have a shot at a top-three finish in league and, with a little luck, top two," said Pope, who added the top four in his lineup will be Chia, Park, Shin and Chung. "Jocelyn continues to practice and she plays in a ton of tournaments throughout the year, making her solid in every aspect of her game.

"I think we are a program on the rise and I like our crop of incoming freshmen."

The Pacific League figures to be ultra-competitive this season with the addition of La Cañada, which spent its inaugural season taking part in freelance matches. Arcadia won the league championship last season and Burroughs and San Marino will have experienced teams.

"Arcadia and La Cañada are the two most solid teams and Burroughs is always good," said Pope, whose team finished fourth in league last season. "We look to be right there with them."

Flintridge Sacred Heart will look to rise in the Mission League after finishing sixth last season.

The Tologs return three-year varsity athlete Yu Jung Kim, the team's lone senior. Flintridge Sacred Heart will also return sophomores Katie Hartwig, Presley Maran and Raleigh Scharre.

Flintridge Sacred Heart Coach Bill Sanchez said the Tologs will strive for improvement when being tested in league.

"With Yu Jung and Katie, they'll try to shoot in the low 40s," Sanchez said. "We've got a pretty young team, so we are looking to stay positive and keep working hard."