Alverno

SOUTHWEST GLENDALE — With first place on the line, getting swept was the last thing on the minds of the Holy Family volleyball team. It became a reality and, along with it, the chance to win a Horizon League championship greatly diminished. Quite simply, Holy Family never found a rhythm during a 25-19, 25-18, 25-17 league loss to visiting Alverno on Tuesday afternoon at Pacific Park Community Center. Alverno (9-2, 5-0 in league) grabbed a stranglehold on first place by completing the two-match season sweep against Holy Family (11-3, 3-2)

SOUTHEAST GLENDALE — With three matches left in the regular season, it’s difficult for first-year Holy Family volleyball Coach Michael Godoy to make an accurate assessment of his team. It’s quite possible that the Gaels will qualify for the CIF playoffs in November, something they did last season. With a mixture of some returning players and a few with little-to-no varsity experience, it’s almost a crapshoot as to what Godoy can expect to see each match.

SOUTHWEST GLENDALE — In between the second and third games of their Horizon League match against Alverno on Tuesday afternoon, the members of the Holy Family volleyball team didn't show any signs of distress. After losing a pair of close games, the Gaels listened carefully to Coach Robert Bringas' instructions on how they might be able to mount a comeback and seize control of first place. They didn't miss a beat the remainder of the way. Holy Family received 50 digs from Alicia Marquez and Ashlee Sandoval added 13 kills and 21 digs to help Holy Family net a 27-29, 21-25, 25-19, 25-19, 15-12 win at Pacific Park Community Center.

NORTHWEST GLENDALE — Even after falling behind, two games to none, to Alverno on Wednesday, the Hoover High girls' volleyball team didn't get discouraged. If anything, based on how those two games unfolded, their confidence only grew. "The first two games were pretty much our warm-up, we have to get into the game," Tornadoes junior middle blocker Elizabeth Dardov said. "We weren't very discouraged. We knew that we could do it, because we knew we were the better team.

LA CAÑADA FLINTRIDGE — The Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy girls' basketball team missed a plethora of shots in Thursday's opening-round game of the CIF Southern Section Division 5-AA playoffs. "I missed [some] shots," Tolog guard Olivia Warner admitted. "But it was all right," she added with a smile. It was "all right" because the Tologs knew they had a sizeable advantage in the post and a stifling defense. Sacred Heart dominated the boards, collecting 32 offensive rebounds and forcing 25 turnovers to easily come away with a 57-32 victory against Alverno at Sacred Heart, though Alverno was technically the home team.

PASADENA - Something had to give when the Holy Family High and Alverno girls' basketball teams met Thursday night without a win between the two squads. It didn't look good for Holy Family starting out, but the Gaels bounced back and used a lot of double teams to force 28 turnovers and pull out a 28-21 victory. It may have taken a while for the victory to come, but it was perfect timing for the Gaels (1-12) in their Horizon League opener against Alverno at Foothill Community Church.

SOUTHEAST GLENDALE — The Holy Family girls' volleyball team bid a fond farewell to its senior players during a brief ceremony preceding its match against Alverno at the Glendale YMCA Thursday evening. Once the opening whistle blew, however, the Gaels made it clear they weren't yet ready to disappear into the offseason. Seniors Joanne Lacson and Jasmin Viray stepped up with big games, leading a complete team effort to topple the Horizon League leading Jaguars 25-16, 25-17, 25-19.

LA CAÑADA - Potent play from its pitching and defense lifted the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy softball team to a nonleague win over visiting Alverno on Wednesday afternoon. The Tologs, winners of six of seven to start the season, received a stellar pitching performance from Hannah Zika, who went the distance, giving up just four hits and one walk, while striking out five batters to lead Flintridge Sacred Heart to a 4-0 home victory over the Jaguars. Zika was aided by the defense behind her that didn't commit an error and allowed only one Alverno runner into scoring position.

LA CAÑADA FLINTRIDGE ? The chilly air wasn?t the only thing that left the members of the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy softball team cold. The Tologs had a difficult time swinging their bats in a season-opening 3-0 nonleague home loss to Alverno on Friday afternoon. Alverno senior pitcher Michelle Escamilla struck out 13 and limited the Tologs to one hit. Flintridge Sacred Heart, which finished fourth in the Mission League, couldn?t get first-year Coach Kirk Nishiyama a win in his debut.

PASADENA — For as long and furiously as the Holy Family volleyball team battled just to force a fifth game in Thursday’s Horizon League season opener against Alverno at Foothill Community Church, control of the deciding stanza was ripped from its grasp rather quickly. In a foot race to 15 points, the Jaguars were already a third of the way home before the Gaels even took their first serve and the head start was too much to make up, as Holy Family suffered a 25-14, 25-27, 25-15, 18-25, 15-7 defeat.

LA CAÑADA - Potent play from its pitching and defense lifted the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy softball team to a nonleague win over visiting Alverno on Wednesday afternoon. The Tologs, winners of six of seven to start the season, received a stellar pitching performance from Hannah Zika, who went the distance, giving up just four hits and one walk, while striking out five batters to lead Flintridge Sacred Heart to a 4-0 home victory over the Jaguars. Zika was aided by the defense behind her that didn't commit an error and allowed only one Alverno runner into scoring position.

GIRLS' WATER POLO Crescenta Valley 15, Burroughs 0: Visiting Crescenta Valley (9-3) began defense of its Pacific League championship Wednesday with an impressive shutout victory. Elissa Arnold finished with seven goals for the Falcons, who got five from Audrey Taylor. GIRLS' SOCCER Alemany 2, Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy 0: The Tologs dropped their Mission League opener on the road Wednesday. FSHA (6-3-1) gave up a pair of second-half goals. San Marino 4, Crescenta Valley 0: The Falcons lost a nonleague match Wednesday to fall to 1-5. Alverno 6, Holy Family 0: The host Gaels (0-3)

LA CRESCENTA - With the elite Woodbridge Invitational taking place Saturday night and the team's first Pacific League Meet less than 10 days away, Wednesday afternoon's six-team cross-country meet at Crescenta Valley Park took on a different meaning for the Crescenta Valley High boys' and girls' squads. The Falcons chose to focus on depth and team-building as the squad ran a primarily young and junior varsity-laden crew in both varsity races with some positive results versus competition consisting of Canyon Country Canyon, Saugus, Bishop Amat, La Sierra and Alverno.

SOFTBALL Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy 11, Louisville 1 (five innings): The host Tologs picked up a Mission League victory Thursday. The games was called after five innings because of the 10-run mercy rule. Flintridge Sacred Heart improved to 10-11-2 and 1-7 in league. San Gabriel Mission 8, Holy Family 2: The Gaels fell Thursday in an Horizon League road contest. Holy Family dropped to 6-13 and 3-4 in league with one league game remaining Tuesday at Alverno. The Gaels are in third place in league.

LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE - For the first time in several seasons, the Flintridge Prep girls' volleyball team appears to be stocked with plenty of talent. It's got Flintridge Prep Coach Sean Beattie excited about the possibilities of his team faring well, not only this season but beyond. “It's a great young core that we have here, probably the best since around 2008,” said Beattie, whose team began its season Thursday afternoon with a convincing 25-7, 25-21, 25-6 nonleague home victory against Holy Family.

SOUTHEAST GLENDALE - For the past several weeks, the members of the Glendale High girls' volleyball team have practiced inside the school's steamy gymnasium and have grown accustomed to the environment with little to no air conditioning available. On Wednesday afternoon, Glendale found out what it's like to participate in a match in similar sweltering conditions. To complicate matters, Glendale had the arduous task of competing against Alverno's Jessica Hamilton. Hamilton finished with a match-high 34 kills to lead Alverno to a 25-21, 25-16, 17-25, 25-14 nonleague win against Glendale in a season-opening contest for both squads.

During the past 15 seasons, the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy volleyball program has built a storied tradition, evidenced by a pair of CIF Southern Section championships in 1996 and 1997 and consistently challenging for Mission League championships. It's something Ernest Banaag recognized from afar while shaping the Mayfield volleyball team into a perennial CIF champion. Banaag pined to become the head coach at Sacred Heart if the position ever became available. It did after last season, leading to Banaag applying for the job and filling the role.

SIERRA MADRE - For a team featuring six seniors in the starting lineup, Holy Family softball Coach Greg Ziomek didn't like what he saw from the Gaels during a key Horizon League contest Thursday. Much to Ziomek's surprise, the Gaels committed four errors in a 9-0 loss against host Alverno. Holy Family came into the game tied for second with Alverno in league behind defending league champion San Gabriel Mission. A victory by the Gaels in the first of two head-to-head meetings with the Jaguars would have boosted the Gaels' confidence.

SOUTHWEST GLENDALE - All of those losses that piled up throughout December and into early January are now a distant memory for the members of the Holy Family basketball team. Since the start of Horizon League play, the Gaels have turned around their fortunes. On Tuesday night, the Gaels found another way to win despite surrendering an eight-point lead in the fourth quarter before going overtime against the defending league champion. Holy Family turned to a sophomore guard to keep the Gaels heading down the right path.

PASADENA - Something had to give when the Holy Family High and Alverno girls' basketball teams met Thursday night without a win between the two squads. It didn't look good for Holy Family starting out, but the Gaels bounced back and used a lot of double teams to force 28 turnovers and pull out a 28-21 victory. It may have taken a while for the victory to come, but it was perfect timing for the Gaels (1-12) in their Horizon League opener against Alverno at Foothill Community Church.