El Monte

GLENDALE — The following are odds and ends from the local sports scene .   MITICHYAN HEADLINES UPCOMING MMA CARD Glendale’s Roman Mitichyan will make his return to mixed martial arts competition on Jan. 29, as he headlines a California Xtreme Fighting card filled with Armenian talent. Mitichyan (9-2), who last fought on April 2 in a second-round technical-knockout loss to George Sotiropoulos at an Ultimate Fighting Championship card, will return to competition at the El Monte Expo Center in the CXF event.

EL MONTE ? In dominant fashion, the rise of two up-and-coming Glendale-based fighters continued late Thursday night. Sako ?The Chainsaw? Chivitchyan ripped through Frank Baldival, and Ando Dermenjyan beat the clock to beat Andrew Patlan, as both secured first-round tapouts via rear-naked choke at a California Xtreme Fighting card in the El Monte Expo Center. ?We planned to take [their opponents] down and finish them and we did,? said Romik Kalantaryan, who cornered both fighters and trains them both at Glendale?

SOUTHEAST GLENDALE - Before the season began, Albert Chamagua had his role clearly defined - carry the offensive workload. Chamagua, a senior forward on the Glendale High boys' soccer team, wasted little time carrying out the responsibility Monday. Chamagua provided the early spark, as he scored in the fifth minute to help host Glendale begin its season with a 2-1 nonleague win against South El Monte. "I like the pressure," said Chamagua, who finished with four shots on goal.

GLENDALE — Oleg Simonyan has already shifted his attention toward next season. After the experience the Hoover High sophomore singles player encountered while competing at the CIF Individual Tournament on Friday, it's the outlook Simonyan took away from his individual postseason debut. Simonyan earned a spot in Friday's competition at Whittier Narrows Tennis Center in South El Monte after advancing to the Pacific League finals. He received a first-round bye before falling, 6-0, 6-0, to Maximilian Hawkins of Chadwick in a second-round match.

Andrea Kevakian and Karen Ataian arrived Friday morning at Whittier Narrows Tennis Center in South El Monte battle tested and ready to compete in the CIF Individuals Tournament. Kevakian of Flintridge Prep and Ataian of Crescenta Valley High looked to extend their stellar seasons going in the prestigious event. Unfortunately for the duo, their respective seasons ended on the first day of the competition. Kevakian fell in the third round and Ataian was eliminated in the second round.

GLENDALE — During a perhaps surprising run to the Pacific League finals, Hoover High's Oleg Simonyan proved himself to be one of the top players in his league and the area. On Friday, he'll get his chance to prove himself against the best that the CIF has to offer in the CIF Individuals Tournament. "I'm happy for him," said Tornadoes Coach Julie Hoppe of Simonyan earning a spot in the CIF tournament. "He worked hard to get there. He kept improving throughout the season. "It's always great when you have a kid who wants it and works hard.

If anyone worried James Ellroy might dumb down the salty language laced throughout his crime novels for an appearance at Glendale Community College this week, they wouldn't have been disappointed. Within 90 seconds of taking the stage, the author of "L.A. Confidential" and "The Black Dahlia" had referenced sex, drugs and physical anatomy, a warm-up for the searing commentary on liberals and hipsters that was to follow. It was a refreshingly unabashed articulation of a unique worldview that has produced one of the most distinctive voices on the local literary scene.

LOS ANGELES -- The Crescenta Valley-Foothill Junior All-Star softball team used nearly perfect pitching coupled with a late offensive surge to propel them to a 10-2 victory over South El Monte in the second round of the Southern California Division III Junior Softball Tournament on Kent D. Mace Field at the Carl E. Nielson Youth Park in Westchester Sunday afternoon. Crescenta Valley-Foothill held South El Monte without a base runner until the first pitch of the bottom of the seventh inning, when Jasmine Cabrera hit a single off of relief pitcher Adela Alatraca to break up the perfect game bid. Alex Howard started in the circle for CVFH and threw four perfect innings while striking out seven.

BOYS' TENNIS Division II 1. Palm Desert 2. Fullerton Troy 3. Arcadia 4. San Marino 5. Fullerton Sunny Hills 6. Anaheim Canyon 7. Oxnard 8. Diamond Bar 9. CRESCENTA VALLEY 10. Burbank SOFTBALL Division IV 1. Ventura Buena 2. Goleta Dos Pueblos 3. Westlake Village Oaks Christian 4. Lompoc 5. Lompoc Cabrillo 6. LA CANADA 7. Sherman Oaks Notre...