Dillon Baxter Wins Silver Pigskin
In a year filled with deserving candidates, Mission Bay superstar Dillon Baxter took home the hardware. The Buccaneers QB and future USC Trojan was announced as the 11th winner of the KUSI Silver Pigskin, awarded each year to the top high school football player in San Diego Section.
Baxter led Mission Bay to a 13-0 record and a D-IV San Diego Section championship, setting the all-time section single-season rushing record in the process. Baxter carried 261 times for 2,974 rushing yards and 50 touchdowns, while throwing for 1,922 yards and 25 more touchdowns.
Baxter beat out Escondido’s Ricky Seale, LCC’s Kenny Stills, Eastlake’s Tony Jefferson, Scripps Ranch’s Brennan Clay, and Valhalla’s Pete Thomas for the yearly honor (all pictured above).
After the announcement, Baxter spoke with 619 Sports about the honor, his future at USC, and the challenge of potentially matching up with Oklahoma and their three new San Diego stars in the future:
Boys Basketball: 20th Annual MaxPreps Holiday Classic Preivew
The 20th Annual MaxPreps Holiday Classic is taking place in Torrey Pines this year from December 26-30th. As all years prior, the tournament promises top teams and coaches from around the country. Every year, nearly 20,000 fans turn out for the tournament as well as many college coaches and recruiters to see the best young basketball talent. Brackets for teams have been broken into National Division, American Division, Governors Division, Mayors Division and Senators Division.
Among the players to watch out for at the tournament are power forward Jvonte Brooks, shooting guard Troy Leaf and point guard Kalob Hatcher. Together they have gotten Foothill Christians to a hot 6-0 start on the season. Each member of this trio is averaging twenty points or more and Jvonte is hauling in over 15 rebounds a contest, while Kalob is impressively dishing out over 8 assist per game. Troy has recently committed to the University of California, Santa Barbara after drawing interest from schools such as SDSU, Washington State, Nevada, Portland, SMU and UNLV ever since his freshman year. Also be on the lookout for Chen Cai, a 6’8 junior forward from Maranatha Christian, who is averaging 25.7 points, 16.7 rebounds and 4 blocks per game. Coming straight from the Torrey Pine Falcons (5-0) is Nick Kerr, a 6’3 junior guard, averaging over 25 points per game and shooting an astounding 43% from beyond the arc.
Making a trip all the way from New Jersey are the St. Patrick Celtics, ranked No.1 in the nation by MaxPreps and No.2 by rivals. The Celtics will be lead by two top 100 prospects in combo guard Kyrie Irving and small forward Julian Washburn. Kyrie recently completed his letter of intent during the early signing period to become a Duke Blue Devil. Competition from out of state will continue to heat up as the Mesa Jackrabbits, ranked No.1 in Arizona and No. 75 nationally by MaxPreps, come to town to try and stake their claim at the title. They’ll have to contend with the Taft Toreadors of Los Angeles who are lead by De Andre Daniels and Bryce Jones. The Toreadors are nationally ranked No.18 by MaxPreps and No.31 by Rivals. Center Greg Leslie bring his Chaparral Pumas in with a perfect 9-0 record on the year and are looking to take down the top contenders.
Seventy five teams are going to be on hand and each one is out to prove that they’re better than the rest. With the exceptional level of talent in this year’s tournament, fans are guaranteed exciting match-ups and plenty of surprises. For a full list of match-ups and locations please visit http://www.torreypinesbasketball.com/ .
Male Student Athlete of the Week: Devin Taverna
Sport: Football Positions: WR / FS Height: 6’1” Weight: 185 Class: 2010 School: Oceanside High School Oceanside, CA
The Oceanside Pirates struggled to find any production on offense in the CIF San Diego Section DII Championship game, so they turned to their defense and Devin Taverna. Taverna single-handily secured Oceanside’s sixth straight division title. The 6’1 senior free safety recorded two interceptions, one returned for a 47-yard touchdown, and recovered a fumble in the end zone for another touchdown. Oceanside coach John Carroll took notice telling the North County Times, “thank God our defense and special teams came to play.” With the victory the Pirates have now won a remarkable 38 games in a row and will face San Jose Bellarmine Prep in the state D1 game this Friday at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA. Regardless of how the Pirates fair in the state playoffs, they can look back at this game as the day Devin Taverna rallied his team from certain defeat and willed his team to victory. Visit Devin’s SportsForce profile to learn more about this star athlete.
Scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com
Oceanside, Francis Parker Earn State Bowl Nods
by Craig at 619Sports.net
CIF San Diego Section will send two schools to next weekend’s State Bowl games at the Home Depot Center, as both Oceanside and Francis Parker have earned trips to Carson. The bowl matchups were announced by the CIF earlier this afternoon.
Francis Parker will represent Southern California in the Small Schools division, taking on the Modesto Christian Crusaders at 4pm on Friday. Oceanside was named as the SoCal Division I representative, they will battle Bellarmine Prep Bells at 8pm on Friday night.
–Courtesy 619Sports.net
San Diego Section CIF Division III and Division IV Football Championships
D- III: Cathedral On Top Again
Cathedral Catholic and Point Loma battled it out in what proved be a closer match than years prior considering the Dons blowout win against the Pointers in the 2007 CIF Championship , beating them 41-3. The Pointers able to lead the Dons in the second half through the third quarter with a score of 14-6, but that is where the lead would end. The Dons finally gained momentum with a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter, however, their attempt at a 2 point conversion pass was knocked down.
After the defense held, Cathedral got the ball back at its own 36 with 5:19 remaining. On 3rd-and-9, Cathedral Catholic coach, Sean Doyle, sent in word to go for the downs. Dons QB, Max Brewer called a slant-and-go for WR Chance Early, who was lined up in single coverage split to the left against Point Loma’s Davis Callejon. The slant move drew in Callejon and allowed Early to get a half-step behind his coverage.
Brewer delivered a perfect throw, running back Early made the catch, then broke free of Callejon’s tackle at the 35-yard-line. The rest was clear sailing to the end zone and a third-straight Section championship.
D-IV Final: Baxter Scores 7 TDs in 48-17 Rout of Valley Center
Baxter, in a performance for the ages, rushed for 384 yards and seven touchdowns as the top-seeded Mission Bay Bucaneers (13-0) ran past Valley Center 48-17 in Chula Vista. Baxter, who already owns the state scoring record, came within 40 yards of the single-game San Diego section rushing record, held by Kenneth James Jr. of Mt. Carmel, who ran for 424 yards against Westview earlier this year.
His first carry of the night went for 34 yards, but that was just a warmup. On his final carry of the first half, Baxter broke a 92-yard scoring run. On his first carry of the third quarter, it was Dillon Baxter for 87 yards and another score. A 46 yard scoring romp on 4th down sealed the deal in the final quarter.
Baxter’s take on the game:
It was a special night for Mission Bay coach Willie Matson, who saw 30 years of hard work rewarded with his first CIF title:
Baxter said he fulfilled a promise by delivering a title plaque to Matson before he left for USC:
Jaguars head coach Rob Gilster had nothing but praise for his great running back:
But in the end, both coaches could only watch and admire the individual brilliance of Dillon Baxter, who will surely go on to great things at USC in the next four years. From the opposing sideline, Gilster could only grit his teeth after missed tackles and long Baxter runs:
Meanwhile, Baxter’s high school career can now be compared to the greats who have preceded him, such as Marcus Allen and Reggie Bush. Has there ever been a more dominant player in the section than Baxter? Matson said simply that Baxter was the best player he had ever coached:
San Diego Section CIF Division I and Division II Football Championships
D-I: Eastlake Holds Off Vista 21-14
Twelve seconds remained and Vista stood but 15 yards away from the tying score in the D-1 CIF championship game against Eastlake. Down 21-0 in the 3rd quarter, the Panthers clawed their way back into the game; both teams’ entire seasons boiled down to these final seconds. QB Christian Gallardi snapped the ball, rolled to his left, and tossed it towards the end zone. Qualcomm Stadium was silent as the entire crowd held their collective breaths.
With a tremendous leaping grab, Daniel Johnson intercepted his third pass of the game to secure the D-1 CIF Championship for Eastlake High School (11-0-2). The Titan’s 21-14 victory over Vista High School (10-3) brought Eastlake the school’s first ever CIF title.
Eastlake RB Tony Jefferson:
Eastlake head coach John McFadden:
D-II Final: Oceanside Opens Championship Six-Pack
The Oceanside Pirates took advantage of sloppy play from the Helix Highlanders to win the DII San Diego Section CIF Championship 26-10. The win extended their own record to six straight CIF Championships dating back to 2004.
Helix came into Friday’s game after stunning Valhalla and Scripps Ranch the previous two weeks. The Highlanders started the game as well as they could have hoped. After a tremendous kickoff return from star DB Jimmy Pruitt, the Helix offense drove the ball 56 yards culminating in a 10-yard touchdown pass from sophomore QB Brandon Lewis.
But as Quentis Clark told 619 Sports after the game, this team knew they would bounce back. While admitting that they were not used to being down early, Clark reiterated that the team never lost its swagger that had led to a perfect record in 2009. With a sixth straight title, Oceanside is in a class all by themselves.
Oceanside head coach John Carroll:
Helix head coach Troy Starr:
Oceanside quarterback Quentis Clark:
Oceanside linebacker Jake Fely:
Oceanside linebacker Sam Niu:
Female Student Athlete of the Week: Megan McClurg
Positions: Guard Height: 5’6” Class: 2011 School: Torrey Pines High School San Diego, CA
Torrey Pines High School is counting their blessings for the addition of Megan McClurg to their varsity girls basketball team. The first year varsity player shot, rebounded, and stole her way to a victory for the Falcons in La Jolla Country Day School’s 7th Annual Girl’s Basketball Sweet Sixteen Invitational. The 5’6 junior guard finished with 14 points on 55% shooting including 2-3 from the 3 point arc. McClurg also had 5 rebounds and 2 steals, including a highlight steal and length-of-the-court layup late in the 3rd quarter which saw Torrey Pines outscore Our Lady of Peace 16-6. McClurg and her Falcons hope to continue their stellar play as the 2009-10 girl’s basketball season starts to pick up steam.
Visit Megan’s SportsForce profile for more statistics and details
Highlight video and scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for College Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com
Male Student Athlete of the Week: Sam Hoekstra
Positions: RB / DB Height: 5’10” Weight: 170 Class: 2010 School: Santa Fe Christian High School Solana Beach, CA
Sam Hoekstra may have played his last game for Santa Fe Christian, but he went out with a performance to remember. Hoekstra rushed an exceptional athlete with speed and quickness rushed for 313 yards and 4 touchdowns on only 13 carries for a mind-boggling 24-yard per carry average in a losing effort against Mission Hills last Friday. Hoekstra finished his senior year with over 2,000 all-purpose yards and 24 touchdowns.
Visit Sam’s SportsForce profile for more statistics and details
Scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com
Newport Harbor Overpowers University City in Raven Tipoff Classic Championship
The Championship game of the Raven Tipoff Classic in San Diego, CA featured the University City Centurions versus the Newport Harbor Sailors in an exciting rematch from earlier in the tournament. During the previous meeting the Centurions won in overtime on a fade away buzzer beater by Jordan Johnson that brought the crowd to their feet.
Early championship game action showed that both teams are still in early season form and looking to work out some kinks before the start of league play. There were many turnovers and passes that sailed out of bounds in the first two quarters of play. Though much of the scoring went back and forth, the Centurions led 24-21 over the Sailors at halftime.
Newport Harbor head coach, Larry Hirst, must have said something inspirational to his team during halftime because the Sailors came out firing on all cylinders, going on a 7-2 run to start the half and forcing the Centurions to take a quick timeout. A few minutes into the quarter Jordan Johnson drove down the middle for a layup, but went down hard on his back and was called for a charge. The star from the previous meeting was taken out of the game to be looked at by a medical trainer for the majority of the third quarter.
At the end of the third quarter, when the game clock was practically dead even with the shot clock, the Sailors made a costly turnover. With seven ticks left on the clock, the Centurions managed to get the ball to Alex Catton who nailed a 3 point shot that put them within four.
Newport Harbor played the fourth quarter with a ridiculous amount of energy on both sides of the ball. Taking the lead after halftime gave the Sailors momentum and they never looked back, resulting in a 68-55 victory over the Centurions. Chad Seeber had a number of steals and good defensive stops to give the Sailors extra possessions. Chris Anderson was a force offensively, scoring in double digits for the final quarter and lead all scorers with 19 points.
Notable Performances:
University City: Cerone Ramcharan 17pts, Joe Gordon 10pts
Newport Harbor: Chris Anderson 19pts, Ethan Ayers 15pts, Chad Seeber 13pts
CIF Playoffs D-I: Jefferson’s 3 TDs carry Eastlake to Qualcomm
by Kyle Englehart for 619Sports.net
The Titans of Eastlake battled the Escondido Cougars in a heated CIF semifinal match-up Friday night in Chula Vista. Standing in each other’s path towards a CIF championship appearance, the two teams fought to for a chance to play at the “Q.”
The ball found its way into Tony Jefferson’s hands most of the night and the Eastlake Titans (10-0-2) defeated the Cougars of Escondido (8-3-1) 35-14. The win sends the Titans to the D-1 final against Vista under the bright lights of Qualcomm Stadium.
Jefferson (23 carries, 217 yards) continued upon his fantastic 2009 campaign scoring three touchdowns on offense and making big plays on the defense; including a spectacular leaping interception in the end-zone.
Yet it was the Titans that got off to an extremely slow start. The team found their 1st first-down with 1:02 left in the first quarter, and trailed Escondido with under a minute left in the first half.
Escondido’s Ricky Seale, who has more touchdowns this season (35) than the Cougars had passing yards tonight (21), was not a factor in the game. Seale had 12 first-half carries for 42 yards. On the final play of the half, he was tackled out of bounds and never returned to the game. Seale injured his left knee and was on crutches after the game.
“We knew Ricky Seale was the main factor of this game,” said Jefferson post-game. “In the second half he didn’t come back in and we took full advantage of it.”
Without the running threat of Seale, Escondido was forced to throw the ball in the 2nd half. Two quick interceptions in the 3rd quarter resulted in Jefferson TD runs and the Titans would never look back.
A 69 yard TD run by RB Daniel Diaz made the score 28-7 in the final quarter and a stingy defense and clock munching running attack finished the game out with no difficulties.
“We’ve been in some close games they just keep on fighting, there is absolutely no give-up in them,” said Titan head coach John McFadden
The victory at Stan Canaris Stadium was the last of Tony Jefferson and the Eastlake seniors’ high school careers. Jefferson, who is graduating early and starting college this spring, is still deciding upon USC or Oklahoma.
“This is a very emotional and fun time for me,” said Jefferson. “I’m having a lot of fun right now.”
The excitement will only continue as Eastlake travels to Qualcomm Stadium next Friday, December 11. There they will face the Panthers from Vista High School (10-2) for the Division 1 CIF Championship.
Vista comes into the bout scorching after upsetting top ranked La Costa Canyon. The Panthers demolished the Mavericks 47-7 on LCC’s home turf.
But don’t overlook the Titans. They are riding a ten game winning streak and are scoring 38.7 points per game during that time, while allowing only 9.2.
–Courtesy 619Sports.net
