Page 6 April 17, 2014 Hawthorne Captures Centinela Title by Routing Lawndale, Leuzinger Hawthorne batter Mike Henderson swings at a pitch during last Friday’s non-league baseball rivalry against Leuzinger. The Cougars blanked the Olympians 10-0 in a five-inning mercy rule contest. Photos by Joe Snyder By Joe Snyder Last week, Hawthorne, Lawndale and Leuzinger baseball teams played each other to close out the so-called “Centinela Valley League.” After the Cougars’ five-inning mercy rule 10-0 win over the rival Olympians last Friday, Hawthorne came out on top with a 4-0 record against the two teams. Two days earlier at Hawthorne, the Cougars (9-4-1) downed the Cardinals 12-5. Leading 4-0 through two innings, the Cougars all but finished off Leuzinger (3- 11) with five runs in the bottom of the third inning. A two-run double by Andrew Banuelos and a run-scoring single from Chris Phelps highlighted the inning. Banuelos went all five innings, limiting Leuzinger to just one hit. With the bat, he had two doubles and drove in three runs. Most of Hawthorne’s runs came home on bases-loaded walks, including its 10th run in the bottom of the fifth that stopped the contest. Despite the wins, Cougar assistant coach J.C. Randolph feels that the players need Leuzinger pitcher Sergio Hernandez prepares to throw to a Hawthorne batter during last Friday’s non-league baseball rivalry. The Olympians were shut out by the Cougars 10-0. more focus. “We need to learn how to become disciplined,” Randolph said. On April 9, Steve Leyva had an RBI (run batted in) single and scored three runs. Max Riley was two for three with two RBIs. Banuelos scored two runs. For the Cardinals, George Escobedo went two for four with one RBI and two runs. Tyler Barsky was two for four. Leuzinger continued to struggle, failing to score a run in any of its three games last week. The Olympians were also swept by Lawndale with losses of 7-0 on April 8 at Leuzinger and 3-0 last Thursday at Lawndale. Despite last Thursday’s loss Edgar Gutierrez went the distance while allowing just three hits to the Cardinals, who took advantage of five Leuzinger errors. According to assistant coach Stewart Swiggen, the Olympians missed some opportunities. “Twice we had runners on third base with one out, but we could not get them around,” Swiggen said. “We missed squeezed bunts and our bats weren’t around.” After a long preseason due to a later Easter and the schools getting through their spring breaks, Leuzinger (0-4 against Centinela rivals) finally opens the Bay League at Redondo tonight at 6 p.m. The Olympians host the Sea Hawks (8-6 after a 12-8 Redondo Tournament win over Irvine Woodbridge last Saturday) Friday at 3:15 p.m. The Olympians then host last season’s Bay League champion and CIF-Southern Section Division III runner-up Mira Costa next Wednesday at 3:15 p.m. Hawthorne is 0-2 in the Ocean League after losses to Santa Monica (currently ranked sixth in the Southern Section Division III) on March 25 and 27 and hosted Animo Leadership from Inglewood on Wednesday. The Cougars return to Ocean action at Culver City next Tuesday at 3:15 p.m. Lawndale (4-6 overall and 2-2 in Centinela play) began the Pioneer League at home against North Torrance on Wednesday and visit the Saxons Friday at 3:15 p.m. The Cardinals are at South Torrance next Wednesday at the same time in league action. Stingrays Hand Environmental First Loss Environmental Charter High’s baseball team from Lawndale suffered its first loss to Gardena Pacific Lutheran 6-5 in Harbor League play last Thursday at the Henderson Youth Sports Complex in San Pedro. Cesar Lopez sparked the White Tigers by going three for five with two runs and one RBI. Environmental (9-1) hosts Ribet Academy from Los Angeles today at 4 p.m. at Roger Anderson Park. The Tigers are at home against Long Beach Zinsmeyer Academy next Tuesday at the same time. Cougars Play Spring Passing After going through several miserable seasons, Hawthorne High head football coach Donald Paysinger is having his players spend the spring and summer going through passing leagues, line and other football fundamental competitions. Last Friday, the Cougars hosted CIF-Los Angeles City Section Marine League power San Pedro in passing play. “We plan to play in about 25-30 passing games over the spring and summer,” Paysinger said. Hawthorne had some good showings against the Pirates behind the strong passing of quarterback Pablo Bernal, along with returning wide receivers D.J. Johnson and Josh Jacabo. Bernal and Jacabo will both be seniors, while Johnson will be a junior this fall. “We’re looking pretty good,” Paysinger said. “We do have a few players out for track and field and baseball. We’re lifting weights.” Paysinger feels that the line will be improved. Hawthorne also returns all-Ocean League running back Paris McDaniel, who will also be a senior in the fall. Among the fundamental invitationals the Cougars will be in over this summer will be a passing tournament and line competition at Arroyo Grande High in San Luis Obispo County. Starting in the 2014-15 school year, Hawthorne will be in the Ocean League with Centinela Valley High School District rival Lawndale and El Segundo (from the Pioneer League) and Beverly Hills, Culver City and Santa Monica. Inglewood and Morningside will move into the Bay League with Mira Costa, Palos Verdes, Peninsula and Redondo. Leuzinger will be in the Pioneer with Compton Centennial, North Torrance, South Torrance, Torrance and West Torrance (also up from the Bay with the Olympians). The Cougars begin the 2014 season at home against Lynwood on September 5. • Worst Season Ever? By Adam Serrao The Los Angeles Lakers have made history. That’s a sentence that all Laker fans are accustomed to hearing, what with their 16 championship trophies, 31 conference titles, 23 division titles and nine retired numbers. These Lakers, though…the Lakers that made history two Sunday nights ago when they played against their inner-stadium rivals, the Los Angeles Clippers, won’t be garnering any such honors this year. With a 120-97 blowout at the hands of the Clippers--the team’s fourth blowout in as many tries versus their neighbors this year--the Lakers matched a franchise record that, frankly, nobody can remember and nobody wants to remember. In taking their 52nd loss of the season, the Lakers repeated history in what only the 1974-’75 Lakers could equal, tying them for the worst record in franchise history. Such a horrific season only begs the question: is this the Lakers’ worst season ever? The Lakers’ worst season ever did not stop at 52 losses. The purple and gold had no problem racking up numbers 53 and 54 in the two games immediately after against Houston and Golden State respectively. The Lakers aren’t just losing. They are allowing epic performances to their opponents, such as the 49-point third quarter given up to the Rockets en route to a 145-point output. “We talk about schemes and different ways to play things,” Laker guard Jordan Farmar explained. “But it just seems like guys on other teams score too easily. It just comes down to heart. It comes down to pride. Guys have to want it.” Apparently, the Lakers have no heart, pride or want-to, because the 145-point output that Houston enjoyed wasn’t the only laughable defensive effort displayed this year. They’ve also given up over 130 points to the Denver Nuggets on two separate occasions, 132 points to the New Orleans Pelicans and another 134 points to the Rockets earlier this year. This year, the Lakers had allowed over 100 points on 62 different occasions (as of three games left in the regular season). With their 54th loss of the season against the Golden State Warriors, the Lakers pushed the cellar even further down in what has been the franchise’s worst statistical season in history. The ‘57-’58 Minneapolis Lakers lost 53 times in what was, at the time, only a 72-game season. The Lakers and their head coach Mike D’Antoni certainly wish that this season had only been 72 games long for a club that will miss the playoffs for just the third time since 1976. “It’s like Winston Churchill said,” remarked D’Antoni. “‘If you’re in hell, just keep your head down and keep going.’” There certainly aren’t any heads raised high on this year’s Lakers team, including that of their head coach, and the body language of the club doesn’t seem to insist that there is any glimmer of hope or shining light in what has been an otherwise completely tumultuous season. “You weather it because you weather it,” continued D’Antoni. “It’s not the greatest thing in the world, but you put your head down and keep going. It’s up to the franchise to decide what direction they want to go, and then you go with it. I’m okay with whatever. I’m just going to do the best job that I can do.” For a head coach that’s “okay with whatever,” it has certainly shown in the standings and in the effort that he has put into running the team this year. Apparently the “best job” that D’Antoni can do gets the Lakers their worst record in franchise history. The front office, as well as Laker fans everywhere, must be asking themselves if they want a coach who is so blasé about everything back in charge for next season or for any of the years to come. No final decision has been made on D’Antoni’s future, but the coach does have one year worth almost $4 million left on his contract with the Lakers. That hasn’t stopped the Lakers from cutting ties with coaches in the past (Mike Brown), but D’Antoni is extremely close to Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchack (who just received a contract extension) and may just be given one more year to head a team that remains in limbo during some of the worst times in franchise history. One bad season certainly doesn’t mean that the Los Angeles Lakers are destined for failure for the foreseeable future. Every team goes through ups and downs and like the old saying goes, it has to get worse before it gets better. Take the Clippers, for example. The Clippers have lost at least 52 games in a season 22 times since the team came into existence in the 1970-71 season. Even if the Lakers ended up losing out and dropping every game remaining in the season to finish with 57 losses on the year, all they have to do is look across the hallway to see that the Clippers have accomplished such a feat 13 times in their history. Sure, this year is bad. It’s the worst year ever for the Lakers, as a matter of fact. But in keeping things in perspective, it can’t get much worse from here. This turbulent Laker season will ultimately come to a close and the team will begin digging itself out of its tomb come the offseason. Eventually, sooner rather than later, this proud franchise of 16 championships will get back on track. Who knows, this year’s draft might one day even provide another jersey number to add to those retired by the team, hanging in the rafters. If you’re a Laker fan this year, all you can do now is hope. •
Lawndale 04_17_14
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