Cif

For Mike Scott, water polo has been a constant since the fifth grade. That was when Scott abandoned soccer, volleyball and swimming in favor of the age group water polo program in La Cañada ? a decision neither he nor his twin brother Max ever regretted. Since then, Scott has spent many hours in the pool en route to the pinnacle of his high school polo career, this year?s CIF Southern Section Division III championship game. Playing against Montebello for the championship for the third year running, Scott scored twice in the first quarter and again in the third to help his team to an 11-8 win to secure the Spartans?

HARBOR CITY — Bellarmine- Jefferson High girls’ basketball Coach Bryan Camacho insists he didn’t have to give his team a Knute Rockne-type speech during halftime of his squad’s semifinal playoff game. With the locals trailing Chadwick after two quarters, the Guards might have expected an inspirational pep talk from their coach. However, Camacho just settled his group, told them to keep playing their intense brand of basketball and good things would come as a result.

Bulldog advances two rounds in CIF Tatevik Harutunyan of Burbank High advanced to the second round of the CIF Southern Section Individuals Tournament Friday at Whittier Narrows Tennis Center. Harutunyan, a junior, defeated Roxy Valverde, 6-0, 6-0, and lost to Christa Harddebeck of El Modena, 6-0, 6-0. ?A CIF win is a CIF win,? said Burbank Coach Loi Phan about Harutunyan. Burroughs alumni hoop games set Burroughs High is looking for former Indians players, male and female, to take part in the school?

Margeaux Gupilan, Junior, Guard, Bell-Jeff Earned All-CIF and All-Santa Cruz League first-team honors for the state-champion Guards. Averaged 14.1 points, 6.3 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 3.1 steals a game.   Courtney McCutchan, Junior, Forward, La Cañada All-Area Girls’ Volleyball Player of the Year was also an All-CIF and All-Rio Hondo League first-team pick for the Spartans after putting up a team-high 12.6 points and seven rebounds per game to go with 1.9 assists and 1.5 steals per contest.

TULLY TALK Bellarmine-Jefferson High girls' basketball Coach Bryan Camacho has an inimitable ability to look at the bright side of things. If you put a glass of water in front of Camacho and ask him if it is half empty or half full, he is likely to tell you, although the glass might be half empty now, with hard work, discipline and dedication, the glass could easily work its way to being half full. Camacho makes Richard Simmons look like a pessimist.

all-area poloLa Cañada junior 2-meter Devon Borisoff was the best player on a loaded Spartan team, leading them to a CIF Southern Section Division III championship.On what might have been the best team in school history, there was one player who clearly established himself as the best player. It wasn't two-time All-Area Player of the Year Jordan Thompson, nor standout hole/set Gamal Rady, both of whom tied for the team lead in goals scored. It wasn't senior Doug McNeese, who was a calming presence in the most heated of situations, nor was it sophomore Nathaniel Vail, who led the team in scoring in the biggest match of the season.

The way Christian Lawrence saw it, there weren't going to be any errors. A year after the La Cañada High boys' swim team had its CIF Southern Section Division II championship stripped for using an ineligible swimmer, Lawrence made sure the Spartans would take care of business in 2006. The Spartans did so in fine form, culminating with the program's first CIF crown on May 13 at Long Beach's Belmont Plaza pool. Lawrence played a large role in helping La Cañada reach its apex with a division-record 329 points.

Kenyatta Smith didn't have to wonder all that much to find the performance he deemed the worst game of his career. Smith, the towering center for the Flintridge Prep boys' basketball team, reflected back on a first-round playoff game last season. It was one in which he scored one point in the fourth-seeded Rebels' 46-44 upset loss to Santa Clara. Smith had hit rock bottom. It only proved to be temporarily. "I had a terrible feeling scoring one point and I could have made a difference and we could have won that game had I made a couple of more baskets," Smith said.