Flintridge Sacred

Grant Gordon The only thing certain about a 15-year-old La Canada Flintridge girl's recent death is that it has hit the community hard. Marisa Lupica died suddenly and mysteriously Saturday morning. Her teachers and classmates learned about the Flintridge Sacred Heart sophomore's death Monday. "We started the day on Monday with a beautiful prayer service," Flintridge Sacred Heart Vice Principal Katy Sadler said. "[After that, there was] little in the way of school."

Grant Gordon Not until the final point touched the floor was Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy Coach Nancy Tinkham able to breath easy. "It was definitely a sigh of relief tonight," said the Tologs' girls' volleyball coach. Nobody expected visiting Mayfield High to give the host Tologs much of a battle on Tuesday night in the opening round of the CIF Southern Section Division IVAA playoffs, but, in the end, Flintridge Sacred Heart was happy to survive.

Erik Boal In order to accomplish the goal of winning CIF Southern Section girls' volleyball titles in three consecutive decades, Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy must beat the team that has ended its postseason run the past three years. The second-seeded Tologs (20-4) will face top-seeded L.A. Marymount (28-4) in the Division IVAA final at 7 tonight at Cypress College Gym I with their sights set on capturing the program's first CIF crown since 1997 and the fifth in school history.

Army Pfc. Joseph M. Freeman, son of Helen and Albert Ramirez of Tujunga, has graduated from basic infantry training at Fort Benning in Columbus, Ga. He received his associate degree in 2001 from Glendale Career College. Vahag Vartanian, son of Khachik and Juliet Vartanian of Glendale, has graduated from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md. The graduate received a medical degree and was commissioned to the rank of captain with a minimum seven-year active duty service commitment.

Scott Melesky Opponents of the Glendale Big League All-Star Softball team probably don't want any part of pitcher Meghann Muirhead this summer. Her 2-0 record and 0.00 earned-run average during the Little League Division 3 Tournament are just some of the reasons why. The left-hander has been able to put up impressive numbers thanks to a diverse array of pitches, which includes a biting curveball and a tricky change-up. But things didn't always seem this easy for the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy senior.

TODAY COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD  Glendale Community College in Ben Brown Invitational at Cal State Fullerton, 10 a.m.   COLLEGE BASEBALL  Bakersfield College vs. Glendale Community College at Stengel Field, 1 p.m.   TRACK AND FIELD  Crescenta Valley at Canyon Invitational, TBA  Glendale in Santa Clarita Invitational, TBA   BASEBALL ...

Edgar Melik-Stepanyan Holy Family girls' basketball Coach Matthan Jackson didn't hide from the fact his team doesn't run much of an offensive set. It's no secret that the Gaels like to play a fast-paced game that relies on forcing turnovers to create easy baskets. But when Holy Family faces a patient team that executes an offense and plays steady defense, Jackson's team runs straight into the ground. Such was the case Thursday night against host Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy.

Erik Boal GLENDALE -- Many of them have traveled all over Southern California and, in some cases, as far as the southeastern United States. They've won league crowns, prestigious invitationals and age-group national titles. But as impressive as the resumes are for a number of local divers, none of that will matter when today's competition commences. Because for three hours and 11 dives, nine local athletes will have to put forth their best efforts on either the one- or three-meter springboard at the CIF Southern Section final in order to distance themselves from the competition.

From Staff Reports A most productive practice: Ted Grissom didn't like the direction his La Canada High girls' volleyball team was headed. And neither did his players. After wins against CIF Southern Section ranked opponents San Pedro Mary Star of the Sea and Redondo Union -- along with a hard-fought, four-game loss to national-power Long Beach Wilson -- to open the season, the Spartans (4-3) were swept by Long Beach Millikan and Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, which prompted a much-needed team discussion during Wednesday's practice.

Charles Rich On a scale from 1 to 10, the members of the La Canada High girls' cross-country team will look to be a 10. That's in attempting to record a 10th consecutive undefeated Rio Hondo League title this season. Don't bother counting them out of the picture because the Spartans appear primed to accomplish that feat. Don't get La Canada Coach Tony Haynes wrong. There will be enough pressure packed squarely on the shoulders of his squad. "It's an incredible streak that we are on," said Haynes, who was replaced by Andy DiConti last year after Haynes coached the previous eight seasons.

The following are odds and ends from the local sports scene. FOUR TOLGS NET POSTSEASON AWARDS A quartet of Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy softball players recently received All-Mission League accolades. Sumner Hanula and Kelly Jacobs were named to the first team, while Kaitlin Powers and Stasia McGregor received nods to the second team after the Tologs finished 11-12-1 and 3-7 in league for fourth place. Hanula, a senior shortstop, supplied plenty of power for Flintridge Sacred Heart.

GIRLS' SWIMMING Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy at CIF Southern Section Division I prelims: Kirsten Vose put herself in a good position to win her first CIF title Thursday at Riverside City College. The sophomore won both her preliminary races in the 200-yard individual medley and 100 breaststroke in respective times of 2:03.47 and 1:03.27. The Division I finals will take place Saturday at 5 p.m. with the top nine finishers in each race Thursday swimming in championship races Saturday and the 10th to 18th swimmers taking part in a consolation final.

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.

VALLEY GLEN - After proving to be the best team in the Mission League by winning its second league crown in a row, the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy swimming squad was out for individual glory at the Mission League Finals. All together, the Tologs won six of 11 league titles, set five new school and three new meet records, including a league record, Tuesday at L.A. Valley College. Sacred Heart's Kirsten Vose had the finest showing, as she won four league titles and had a hand in all three meet records.

LOS ANGELES - Steve Bergen let his Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy swim team know he isn't the sharing type before its final Mission League dual meet of the season. While Sacred Heart had earned itself a share of the league title with a win over Alemany Tuesday, the Tologs coach told the team in a pre-meet, pump-up speech that he intended to be the sole champion - just like last year - on Thursday. It turned out the Tologs needed little motivation against a considerably smaller Chaminade squad, as they won nine of 11 events and had two of the top-three finishers in all eight of the individual events for a 117-40 victory over Chaminade at Loyola High.

LOS ANGELES - When the Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy swimming team took its seat atop the Mission League back last year, it did so with depth. It takes a different approach this year for the Tologs, who relied on their stars of Kirsten Vose, Katie Altmayer, Emily Balog and Kate Herrill to deliver a 99-84 victory over host Harvard-Westlake in a league dual meet Tuesday at Loyola High. That foursome started the meet with a win and CIF Southern Section Division I postseason consideration time in the 200-yard medley of 1 minute, 54.39 seconds and at least one member of that group had a hand in all nine of the Tologs' wins on the day. Flintrdge Sacred Heart won just five events in a 99-77 win over Harvard Westlake last season.

ARCADIA - While there were no local victories to boast of at Saturday's 46th annual Arcadia Track and Field Invitational, there were still a few standout efforts. Crescenta Valley High led the way, as the Falcons picked up a couple of bronze medals in different relay competitions. The Falcons boys' distance medley squad picked up the program's first third-place finish in the race that begins with a 1,200-meter run, followed by 400- and 800-meter legs, and concluding with a 1,600-meter distance run. Crescenta Valley's order began with junior Nick Beatty, followed by senior Alex Damla and juniors Matt Manalo and Gabe Collison.

At the conclusion of the Mission League girls' soccer season, Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy came up one goal short of sharing the league crown. Though the Tologs were forced to settle for second, Flintridge Sacred Heart was bestowed the league's highest individual honor. Tologs senior defender Kayla Mills was recently voted the Mission League Most Valuable Player, while senior midfielder Sarah Teegarden was the Mission League Defensive MVP. Joining their fellow Tologs on the all-league honor roll were seniors Savannah Viola and Krista Meaglia and sophomore Hanna Armendariz, who were first-team selections, while seniors Kendall Sandoval and Hailey James, along with junior Dani Garcia, received second-team acclaim.