Crean Lutheran boys lacrosse loses to Santa Monica in OT in Division 3 final

• May 14, 2023

DOWNEY — The Crean Lutheran boys lacrosse team took a 13-game winning streak into the CIF Southern Section Division 3 championship game Saturday at Downey High.

The Saints had rolled through the playoffs, winning by scores of 15-3, 16-3, 14-6 and 18-7 to reach the finals.

But things were different Saturday, as they battled No. 1 seed Santa Monica in a tight contest from start to finish and eventually lost 9-8 in overtime.

Three minutes into the overtime period, senior attack Joaquin Nava had the ball behind the net and passed to a cutting Ozgood Hawkins, who scored the winning goal for Santa Monica (17-6).

Jordan Warners and AJ Bevacqua each scored twice for Crean Lutheran.

Saints sophomore Brody Wallace had two assists with a goal. One of his assists was to Bevacqua who scored as time expired in the first half to give the Saints a 4-3 lead.

“I love coaching these kids, it’s a tremendous group,” Crean Lutheran coach Will McMinn said. “They gave it everything they had and the chips didn’t fall.”

Hawkins, a sophomore, had seven points Saturday (four goals, three assists) to give him a team-high 117 points this season.

The story of the game was the excellent play of the two goalies: Luke Beteag of Crean Lutheran (21-3) and Jasper Ford of Santa Monica.

“He’s a great presence in the net and when the defense has a miscue, he’s there to stop it,” Santa Monica coach James Phelan said. “Their goalie (Beteag) was stopping us countless times and made some point blank saves. He played his butt off today.”

Beteag had 14 saves for the Saints and Ford had 16 for Santa Monica.

Nava had two goals for the Vikings and so did Noah Zucker.

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Photos: Early Saturday performers at Pasadena’s ‘Just Like Heaven’ festival

• May 14, 2023

Just Like Heaven festival returned to the grassy grounds of the golf course at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena on Saturday, May 13, gathering for a day 20 bands that got their start in the aughts.

Brookside at the Rose Bowl, as the golf course turned festival field is known, is truly a lovely setting for festivals such as Just Like Heaven and Cruel World, the ‘80s-focused fest that takes place here Saturday, May 20.

“I’d like to thank all the golfers for letting us have a festival here,” said Joseph Mount midway his band Metronomy’s set Saturday afternoon.

“I always had the impression golfers were uptight, stuffy,” the singer-guitarist of the English electronic dance-rock band continued. “But they’re cool aren’t they?”

Fans flocked to two different stages early in the day to catch sets by disparate bands from the American electronic rock band the Faint to the avant-garde Swedish rock of Fever Ray.

Later in the day bigger names including headliners the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, MGMT, M-83 and Empire of the Sun were set to close out the day.

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Santa Anita horse racing consensus picks, Sunday, May 14, 2023

• May 14, 2023

The consensus box of Santa Anita horse racing picks comes from handicappers Bob Mieszerski, Art Wilson, Terry Turrell and Eddie Wilson. Here are the picks for thoroughbred races on Sunday, May 14, 2023.

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Teagan O’Dell sets national record as Santa Margarita swimming sweeps CIF state titles

• May 14, 2023

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FRESNO — Neon orange nail polish. Pink-colored eye black. Earrings to complement her gold swim cap. And plenty of games and cheering with teammates.

Santa Margarita’s Teagan O’Dell came to the CIF State swimming championships ready to have fun, and of course, race fast.

For the 16-year-old, fun and racing work together like her stroke in the water.

And Saturday, that combination performed like never before.

The sophomore broke the national high school record of Olympian Torri Huske in the 200-yard individual medley by almost half-a-second to highlight the meet at Clovis West High.

Santa Margarita became the first school in the seven-year history of the meet to sweep the boys and girls team titles. It was the girls’ fourth consecutive crown and the first for the boys.

But when it came it individual performances, there was no doubt who ruled the pool.

“Teagan O’Dell is probably one of the most capable female athletes in Orange County history,” Northwood coach Alex Nieto said. “It’s nice to see her smiling.”

O’Dell paced Orange County’s swift fleet by also setting county and state records in the 50 freestyle and lowering her county and state records in the 100 backstroke.

She accomplished it all, she said, by focusing on having fun.

“At high school meets, I feel like cheering is more fun than swimming sometimes,” O’Dell said with a laugh. “When the team energy is there, everyone just improves. There’s a phrase, ‘When you’re having fun, (kids) swim fast.’ “

O’Dell became the fastest high school girl in history in the 200 IM. She completed her pursuit of the record by blazing a time of 1 minute, 53.38 seconds, breaking Huske’s 2021 record of 1:53.73 for Yorktown High in Virginia.

O’Dell started well in the butterfly leg but made her move on the 2020 Olympian’s record by splitting 26.94 in the backstroke and 33.61 in the breaststroke. She then pushed to the finish, splitting 27.45 in the freestyle.

Her final three splits were all faster than Huske’s last three splits.

“I wanted that record pretty bad,” said O’Dell, who challenged the mark last week at the CIF-SS Championships. “I honestly had no idea where I was at (time wise). … I didn’t at all want to second-guess myself so just put my head down and tried to go as fast as I could.”

O’Dell’s time broke the national age-group record for the 15-16 division by more than half-a-second. Her record-setting efforts were just starting.

She led off the 200 freestyle relay with a lifetime-best and meet-record 22.40, breaking Lindsey Engel’s 2013 county record in the 50 free of 22.53.

O’Dell capped her meet by winning the 100 backstroke in a state and county record of 50.96, which sliced almost two-tenths off her lifetime-best.

Santa Margarita had two other individual champions and won two relays en route to scoring 223 points, which outdistanced runner-up Campolindo (143).

Senior Asia Kozan won the 200 free with a season-best 1:46.02. Her sister, Justina, set the meet record in 2022.

Sophomore Gracyn Aquino claimed the 50 free in 22.84 and used her long and graceful stroke to anchor the 200 (1:30.90) and 400 (3:22.62) free relays to victories. The 200 free team of O’Dell, Chloe Stinson, Asia Kozan and Aquino broke the Eagles’ state record from prelims.

Santa Margarita’s boys began their record-setting pursuits Saturday by capturing the 200 medley relay in an Orange County and state record 1:29.01.

The team of Humberto Najera, Nathan Wu, Daniel Verdolaga and Ramon Jiang sliced about three-tenths of a second off their record from the section finals.

The Eagles didn’t win another relay or individual event but used their depth to score 202 points, which outdistanced runner-up Loyola at 168.5.

Najera placed second in the 200 IM (1:46.24) and 100 back (47.83).

“Just an amazing season for the kids,” Santa Margarita co-coach Rich Blanc said. “We told the guys a couple weeks ago, no matter what happens … this is the best team in school history but it’s nice to have a (state) title now to punctuate that.”

Northwood’s boys placed fourth with 125 points, best among SoCal public schools. The Timberwolves set school records in all three relays, including a time of 3:00.52 as it finished third in the 400.

San Juan Hills’ David Schmitt defended his title in the 100 butterfly by again outdueling Long Beach Poly’s Colin Geer. The Harvard-bound Schmitt touched in 46.49, just off his county record but about two-tenths of a second in front of the Michigan-bound Geer.

But it didn’t take setting a record to stand out Saturday.

Loyola star Rex Maurer sweep the 200 (1:33.84) and 500 (4:16.17) freestyles to cap his stellar career. He set the national record in the 500 free last week with a 4:12.70.

Mission Viejo’s Alexis Unter dropped more than 22 seconds from her entry time to win her heat of the girls Paralympic 100 free.

Villa Park freshman Lucy Flynn placed 14th in the 500 free (4:58.99), a consolation final she qualified for by winning a swim-off for during prelims Friday. Yes, she won a rare swim-off in the 500, and even lowered her time in the second race.

“That was intense,” Flynn said of the swim-off. “Today kind of hurt but yesterday, dropping two seconds within half an hour, was awesome.”

In the state diving competition Thursday, Cypress junior Isabella Chen won the girls 1-meter title with a state-record score of 546.95. She edged the record of 538.75 set by El Toro’s Savannah Stocker in 2019.

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El Dorado can’t overcome Hart’s advantages in boys volleyball Division 4 final

• May 14, 2023

NORWALK – El Dorado could not match its opponent’s size and power at the net Saturday when it took on Hart of Newhall in the CIF Southern Section Division 4 boys volleyball championship at Cerritos College.

Hart swept El Dorado in three sets, 25-19, 25-21, 25-19, as its outside hitters, 6-foot-7 senior Owen Douphner and 6-6 senior Hank Kaufman, were difference makers.

Douphner had a match-high 28 kills on 41 attempts and Kaufman had 13 kills.

El Dorado and Hart were in a CIF-SS boys volleyball final for the first time.

The Golden Hawks fell behind early in the first set. It quickly was a 4-0 Hart lead.

“We had a lot of nerves at the beginning,” said El Dorado coach Britney Brown. “It’s the first time ever in the history of our program to get here. They (the players) were a little excited.”

Hart built its first-set lead to 19-7. El Dorado settled down, with middle blocker Kaiden Gerard and outside hitter Max Smith leading the charge. The Golden Hawks couldn’t stop Douphner and Kaufman from drilling spikes, though, and Hart took the first set 25-19.

El Dorado twice had one-point leads in the second set and it was 17-17 later. Douphner again kept pounding kills including the set-winner as Hart won 25-21.

El Dorado kept battling in the third set, too, grabbing a 9-8 lead and later rallying to tie it 18-18, but could not reclaim the lead in a 25-22 match-ending loss.

It’s Owen Douphner again with the set-winner for Hart in a 25-21 victory. Hart leads El Dorado 2-0. pic.twitter.com/2gG4Wfz8sU

— Steve Fryer (@SteveFryer) May 13, 2023

The season continues for the Golden Hawks (19-15) and Hart (32-5) next week in the CIF Southern California Regional. The brackets for all four divisions will be announced Sunday.

El Dorado was led by Smith’s 11 kills. Gerard and Golden Hawks outside hitter Keaton Raymond had six kills each. Senior libero Oliver Toth had a team-high 14 digs.

Smith, Raymond and Gerard are juniors, as is setter Ryan Chia, which gives Brown optimism that the 2024 season could be as good as this season, or better.

“This is a team full of juniors,” said Brown, in her fifth year in charge of the team. “We’re coming back next year.”

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Capistrano Valley, Fullerton, Foothill, Irvine advance to CIF-SS softball finals

• May 14, 2023

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Capistrano Valley’s softball team is headed to the CIF-SS finals for the first time since 1979.

The Cougars overcame a fast start by Kennedy to roll to a 14-4 victory in the Division 3 semifinals at Capistrano Valley High on Saturday.

Kennedy (19-10) scored three runs in the first inning before the Cougars (24-6) seized control.

Siena Stickney sparked the Sea View League runner-up in the third inning with a three-run double with the bases loaded. The senior finished 3 for 4.

Amaya Bixler followed in the third by belting a go-ahead, three-run home run to cap a six-run outburst. The junior finished 2 for 3 with four RBIs.

Sophomore Samantha Kelly added two hits and three RBIs for the Cougars.

Madi McDonnell handled the pitching duties, firing a complete game with three strikeouts. Kennedy had 11 hits.

Capistrano Valley, led by first-year coach Melissa Roth, will play Santiago of Corona in the championship on May 19 or 20 at Deanna Manning Stadium in Irvine.

Santiago edged El Toro 5-4 in the other semifinal on Saturday.

In 1979, Capistrano Valley lost to Mayfair 3-2 in the Division 2-A final. Santiago Corona is a five-time section champion.

In other semifinals:

In Division 2:

Grand Terrace 10, Tesoro 3: Sophomore Summer Sanderson hit a two-out, two-run home run to help spark a late surge by visiting Grand Terrace (23-5), which scored eight runs in the finals three innings.

Grand Terrace plays Great Oak in the final.

Fullerton’s softball team defeated visiting Burroughs of Burbank 8-1 in the CIF-SS Division 4 semifinals on Saturday to reach the finals against Foothill. (Photo courtesy of Fullerton softball)

In Division 4:

Fullerton 8, Burroughs of Burbank 1: Freshman Malaya Majam-Finch fired a one-hitter with seven strikeouts and freshman Melia Vera and senior Hailee Nelson combined to drive in seven runs to lead the host Indians (23-6) to their first section final since 2006.

Fullerton will play Foothill in the final May 19 or 20. The Knights beat Santa Fe 4-0 in the other semifinal Saturday.

In Division 5:

Irvine 5, Santa Paula 4: Reese Villanueva went 4 for 4, including a go-ahead, two-run single with two outs in the sixth, as the top-seeded Vaqueros (21-10) rallied past the visiting Cardinal to reach their first section final since 1993.

Santa Paula led 4-1 in the sixth before Irvine scored four times in the bottom of the inning.

The Vaqueros will play Liberty of Winchester in the finals May 19 or 20. Liberty beat Northwood 6-3 in the other semifinal.

More results to come. Please check back.  

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Long-awaited trails open in Fullerton’s West Coyote Hills

• May 14, 2023

Fullerton residents on Saturday explored part of West Coyote Hills long inaccessible to visitors.

The city celebrated the opening of the first two miles of new trails planned through the 72-acre Robert Ward Nature Preserve, on the eastern edge of the 510-acre West Coyote Hills.

Chevron-Pacific Coast Homes completed the trails, which are being called the Initial Trails, as part of its agreements to develop portions of West Coyote Hills. More trails and an interpretive center are also planned in the future.

Since releasing its proposal years ago for building communities on about half of the 510-acre former oil field, Chevron has made the property available for purchase for preservation as open space. The city concentrated its efforts and secured enough grants and funding to acquire 24.1 acres on the east side of North Gilbert Street to preserve everything up to the nature preserve it has owned since the 1980s.

Saturday was also a celebration of the land acquisition.

“This welcome opening of the West Coyote Hills Trails has been a collaborative partnership between the city of Fullerton, advocacy groups and our local state representatives,” Mayor Fred Jung said in a statement.

The two miles of wide dirt paths feature wooden trail fencing, interpretive signs sharing the history and wildlife of the area and benches for taking breaks.

“It’s an awesome trail,” said 22-year resident Asghar Tavana at Saturday’s ceremony.

“The community has fought to save this open space for a very long time. Through the hard work and dedication of everyone involved, we finally have a beautiful new recreation area in the heart of north Orange County,” Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva, who helped secure funds, said in a statement.

Robert Hayden, of the group Open Coyote Hills, had a sneak peek of the trails while they were being constructed and said children are going to love a sculpture tucked away along one of the paths. It is of a shepherd and his dog, and Hayden said the pup is just the right size for a child looking to sit. Oh, and the dog’s name is Buzz.

Hayden said when you are in the preserve you often don’t see any of the homes nearby, which in urban Fullerton, “that’s pretty neat.”

Hayden and Open Coyote Hills have long been supporters of a housing development if it would also preserve and open up parts of West Coyote Hills to recreation. With the oil operations, residents haven’t had access to some of these areas since the city’s early days, he said.

Another group, Friends of Coyote Hills, is still trying to prevent any development of the rolling hills and is advocating for the purchase of the property on the western side of North Gilbert Street. The Rivers and Mountains Conservancy is taking proposals now for reviewing a recent appraisal of the fair market value of the remaining 480-plus acres.

“This exciting event validates our continuing work toward securing additional funding to acquire the remainder of the West Coyote Hills property and preserve it as accessible natural open space as well,” said Senator Josh Newman, who helped get the appraisal.

At the same time, as it has said it would be open to the acquisition of more property and has cooperated with the appraisal, Chevron is also moving forward with pursuing its development plan.

“Coyote Hills is really this oasis of open space,” said Angela Lindstrom with the Friends group. She called the couple miles of trails opened Saturday, “a good start. … It is really a great resource for all of this area.”

Whatever the future of the West Coyote Hills area, Hayden said, “this is the one thing that we will come together and celebrate, the opening of these trails.”

Staff photographer Mindy Schauer contributed to this report.

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See gift ideas for the kitchen and cooks who crave sustainability

• May 14, 2023

By KATIE WORKMAN (Associated Press)

This time of year can be a big gift-giving moment, with Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, graduations, weddings and more. And whatever the occasion, if the recipient enjoys spending time in the kitchen, then food and kitchen-related gifts are a natural place to start.

More and more of us are shopping and cooking with an eye toward sustainability and eco-consciousness. So here are some cooking gifts and tips that fit that bill:

You can start by doing a little homework on the company you’re purchasing from. That job has been done for you if the company has gotten a B Corp certification. It shows that a business is meeting high standards in supporting a variety of community and environmental markers, with measurable metrics. The certification lasts three years before needing to be renewed.

Another accreditation to look for is 1% for the Planet, which means the company has committed to donate 1% of annual sales to environmental causes, and is transparent in its efforts to operate sustainably. Climate Neutral is an organization that measure carbon accountability.

Beyond such designations, visit a company’s website and see what they have to say about their practices and how the product was made. Customers are increasingly demanding transparency and accountability in companies they buy from.

FOOD

Pantry staples like olive oil are a great present. Companies like Bona Furtuna are paying attention to nurturing their regions’ biodiversity. Their farm is fertilized entirely with organic matter, including compost created through the production of their olive oils. California Olive Ranch has committed to transparency and sustainable practices in both growing and packaging.

Brightland partners with small, family-run olive farms in California that grow without pesticides or chemicals and pay fair wages to farmworkers. The brand is helping to convert land use from water- and chemical-intensive crops to drought-resistant, low-impact olive production.

McEvoy Ranch has a wide range of flavor-infused olive oils and likewise aims to create a self-sufficient and balanced ecosystem. That includes tending orchards in accordance with organic regulations, and converting all ranch waste products, including spent olives, into compost that then nurtures the soil.

Buying meat and fish in a responsible way has become important to many of us. Luckily, there are companies like ButcherBox, which makes use of the whole animal. ButcherBox delivers grass-fed beef, free-range organic chicken, humanely raised pork and wild-caught seafood to your door. Crowd Cow, Porter Road and Good Chop are similar options, with no added hormones or antibiotics.

Awareness of how fragile our oceans have become has been heightened. Organizations like SeaChoice and the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch are good places to start investigating the sustainability of a particular kind of fish.

Think about buying a gift box or perhaps a monthly subscription to a company verified by one of these organizations. Vital Choice Wild Seafood & Organics says all its fish and shellfish are vetted and approved by a reputable third-party sustainability organization. Their orders are shipped with dry ice in corrugated cardboard boxes that are fitted with thermal liners made from recycled denim, which can then be recycled again. Offerings include a Wild Fish Monthly Subscription.

If you’d like to reduce food waste and also save money, consider another cool subscription gift: Misfits Market, which delivers produce and other healthy foods saved from going to waste.

How about a gift basket? Clif Family offers assortments of their small-production organic wines and specialty foods inspired by the flavors of Napa Valley, with a mission of bringing high quality with the lowest impact to the planet. Think honeys, wines, preserves and nuts. Frog Hollow Farm has lovely gift boxes filled with fresh fruits, sun-dried fruits, fruit spreads and more.

Or buy some pretty reusable jars and package up an assortment of granolas. Check out One Degree Organics from Canada (their motto is “all ingredients from farmers we know”) and Grandy Organics, made in small batches in a solar powered factory in Maine.

KITCHEN GOODS

There are companies producing beautiful and functional cookware and tabletop items with a focus on sustainability.

Tag Home Décor uses natural and sustainable materials in many of their products, such as a handwoven sustainable jute rug and upcycled, salvaged-cotton kitchen rug made on traditional pit looms. It cozies up a space and provides cushioning for a tired cook’s feet. They also have a hand-crafted, onyx-marble board made from natural stone.

Goodee works with artisans who exclusively use naturally occurring materials, and works to enable them to earn a sustainable living through their crafts. The company offers many items for cooking and dining, including lovely Oaxaca-made tumblers using locally sourced recycled glass and alternative energy. There’s also a beautiful pepper grinder made from sustainably sourced teak wood.

Loopy Products makes products from upcycled agricultural waste; their sustainable coffee mug, made with waste from coffee manufacturing, was a Global Innovation Award Finalist at the Inspired Home Show this year. Their coffee, flour and tea storage containers are an eco-friendly way to store staples.

For the cook who wants to compost, there’s the very affordable Bamboozle compost bin. The filtered lid helps to absorb any smells caused from off-gassing. It’s made from biodegradable bamboo fiber and dishwasher safe.

Need items for a little basket of eco-friendly items for a kitchen refresh? Consider botanically infused papers from The Fresh Glow Co,. which are designed to keep foods fresher longer, and are organic and compostable.

Everyone can use a spiffy new portable drink container. Klean Kanteen makes a ton of them, and the company a long-standing B Corp. and is certified by Climate Neutral (a carbon-accountability designation). Their products are made with 90% post-consumer recycled stainless steel, which results in a significant reduction in steel greenhouse gases.

Dish towels are always in short supply in an avid cook’s kitchen, and are a smart, reusable alternative to paper towels. Tag makes textured dish cloths in lots of colors, so you can add a bright spot to cleaning up. Atelier Saucier makes lovely table linens, all sustainably sourced, rescued or repurposed.

Material Kitchen’s reBoards are BPA-free cutting boards made of kitchen plastic scraps and renewable sugar cane. They come in a variety of beautiful colors.

Sustainability means different things to different people, but these days it’s easier than ever to shop with purpose and give gifts with meaning.

—-

Katie Workman, who writes frequently about food for The Associated Press, is a cookbook author and founder of TheMom100.com.

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