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EL SEGUNDO HERALD July 4, 2019 Page 5
School Spotlight
Sports
Wiseburn Board Doubles Up as
District Enjoys the Summer Break
By Duane Plank
Last week the Wiseburn School Board met
not only at 7 p.m. on Tuesday evening, but
also gathered at 7:30 a.m. on Friday to address
various concerns. The Tuesday evening
meeting was bereft of special presentations.
Action items passed by the Board included
approval of a portable classroom to be installed
at Peter Burnett Elementary School;
the renewal of a contract with Wiseburn
Unified School District’s law firm to retain
services for the upcoming school year; an
agreement to continue working with Charter
School Management Corporation to continue
its support of the CALPADS program; an
agreement with All City Management Services
that will continue to provide the District with
three crossing guards who will work to ensure
student and employee safety on the streets;
and continuation of the agreement, now in its
fifth year, to have food service management
company Chartwells supply District meals.
Superintendent Dr. Blake Silvers noted
that the third crossing guard had been added
midway through the 2018/19 school year at
the corner of 135th Street and Isis, which he
termed “a big thoroughfare.” He said that
adding an additional crossing guard was a
“big plus for us,” noting it was the “best
option that we had.”
Personnel items approved on Tuesday
included a new job description for longtime
District administrator Dr. Mary Ring;
authorization for Julie Walker to become
the District Elementary Mental Health Clinician;
and a promotion for Juan de Anza
Elementary’s Susan Castellanos to ascend to
the position of school secretary.
Ring, whose new title is Assistant Superintendent
of Psychological and Student
Services, emailed that she “will continue
to work tirelessly as a cabinet member in
both Wiseburn and Da Vinci schools to aid
at-risk youth, build specialized programs, and
support staff and families.” Silvers effusively
praised the work of Ring and added, prior
to the meeting, that the experienced Castellano
was “a perfect fit for the job” at Anza
Elementary.
The Friday morning meeting, which lasted
about an hour, featured the members passing
the District’s Local Control and Accountability
Plan (LCAP) as well as approving
the 2019/20 financial budget. The LCAP is a
revolving three-year plan that is state-mandated
to describe the goals, actions, services, and
expenditures to “support positive outcomes
that address state and local priorities.”
District Chief Business Official Dave Wilson
emailed about some of the highlights of
the 2018/19 school year, including that the
District will end up with a net increase to the
general fund; was able to provide a 2.5 percent
salary increase to certificated and classified
staff; invested in technology by spending
more than $200,000 in student devices,
teacher laptops and tech infrastructure; and
established a new special education program
-- the Success Learning Center -- that strives
to educate students who are not typically in
a traditional school setting.
Wilson spoke in detail to Board members
at the Friday morning meeting. He gave an
“in the weeds” presentation that was greatly
appreciated by the Board members, who are
tasked with increasing and spending District
funding. Wilson’s presentation took place the
day after freshman California Governor Gavin
Newsom signed off on his first California
budget, in which he earmarked more than
$103.4 billion be directed towards California
K-12 classrooms and programs. Wiseburn
filed a “positive certification” at both mandated
interim financial reports during the
2018/19 school year. That means that the
District is confident it will be able to meet
its financial obligations for the current and
two subsequent fiscal years.
Board members asked about the always
rising costs of District employee benefits packages,
with Wilson noting that more than 80
Catching Up on Sports in El Segundo
By Gregg McMullin
With El Segundo High School’s success
as baseball, softball and swim teams won
league titles in the spring, one additional
squad was celebrated for a special achievement.
The girls lacrosse team earned the
program’s first league title after upsetting
nationally ranked Downey on a tiebreaking
goal by Grace Bonney. Bonney recovered
the ball and scored after a blocked shot by
Morgan Wood. Wood had tied the game with
under a minute left with her sixth goal and
Bonney scored the game-winner with seconds
remaining to pull off the upset.
Seven players received all-league honors
including Wood, who was named Offensive
Player of the Year for the second consecutive
year. Abi Layne, the Eagles’ leading scorer,
repeated as a first team selection. Three
freshmen, including Sydnee-Anne Moeller
and Kat Luetgens, were selected to the All-
Defensive team and Faith Desemone was
selected to the second team. Bonney and
Scarlett Long were selected to the second
team on defense. Seniors Tia Valentino and
Belle Pirsztuk were team co-captains for
the Eagles’ most successful season to date.
Babe Ruth All-Stars
in Action this Weekend
The 13-15 all-stars begin their journey at the
five-team state tournament at Kendall Field in
El Segundo Girls Softball
Qualifies for State Tourney
By Theodore Mayer
The June 21 weekend was another success
for the Gundo Girls 12u and 14u teams as
both qualified for the July 5-7 State “B”
Tournament in Lancaster (highest level of
USA Softball recreation softball). The 12u
team continued its outstanding play by finishing
as the runner-up in the 10-team District
Tournament, losing two heartbreaking extra
inning games to rival Torrance.
Targeting more success, the 12u girls decided
to tune up for the 100-plus-degree heat in
Lancaster by playing this past weekend
in the 35th annual Freedom Tournament
in Escondido. This is known as one of
the best invitational summer tournaments.
Among the 12-team field, it boasted eight squads
competing in the upcoming State Tournament.
The Gundo Girls powered through pool play,
winning all three games by a decisive 27-1
margin. Sunday’s elimination games proved to
be a battle, as in their way to a championship
arguably stood the division’s top teams.
First up was a Torrance team that came
into the tournament with a 22-1 record on the
season (its only loss coming in the season’s
first tournament against the Gundo Girls).
Down by two runs in the final inning, hits by
Dallas Silva, Sienna Mayer, Peyton Jackson
and Charli Pages led to a dramatic, walk-off
6-5 win. In the semifinals, Haley Wantz delivered
a six-inning gem by defeating (3-1) a
gamely Penasquitos team that had just upset
a four-loss Scripps Ranch team.
Next up in the finals was powerhouse
Bonita Valley (two losses in 32 contests on
the season). Bonita Valley as a league boasts
four all-star teams and over 90 girls in the
12u division, so it was quite impressive for
a team with a third of that size go toe to
toe. The Gundo Girls executed some timely
hitting and behind four strong innings on the
mound by Taylor Peacock were ahead 5-3.
Unfortunately the game got away from the
Gundo Girls late, so they once again settled
for runner-up status.
With a 21-7-2 record and five runner-up
finishes in five tournaments (Penasquitos,
Camarillo, Laguna Niguel, Escondido and
LA South Bay districts), the 12u Gundo
Girls are poised to make some noise in this
weekend’s State Tournament. Check the
league website (ElSegundoGirlsSoftball.com)
for more information on the State draw and
upcoming game times (which are set to begin
Friday July 5). For those hardcore fans, you
can follow the El Segundo ESGS All Stars
12u team on the GameChanger App. •
WUSD
Herald Publications will be Closed on Thursday, July 4.
Enjoy the day with your family and friends.
Pictured (R-L): some of ESHS’s Ocean League CIF lacrosse honorees: Abi Layne, ‘Kat’ Luetgens, Morgan Wood, Sydnee-Anne Moeller
and Faith Desemone. Photo by Giselle Murphy.
See Sports in El Segundo, page 11
See WUSD, page 9