Crescenta Valley

BURBANK - Ahead late, the Burbank High football team could afford to trade touchdowns with Crescenta Valley in the second half of Friday night's Pacific League game and the Bulldogs certainly gave as good as they got, and then some, in their 38-21 win at Memorial Field. “We didn't dwell on what they did,” Burbank Coach Hector Valencia said. “We just said, 'OK we've got to take care of our business now and it showed.' They definitely pounded the ball on us, but we were bending and didn't break too much.” James Williams' 59-yard touchdown run, which capped off a 168-yard rushing night for the sophomore back, gave Burbank (5-2, 4-0 in league)

BURROUGHS VS. MUIR •WHEN : 7 p.m. Friday. •WHERE : Muir High. •RECORDS : The Indians are 2-4, 2-1 in the Pacific League; the Mustangs are 3-3, 3-0. •LAST WEEK : Burroughs defeated Crescenta Valley, 20-16; Muir defeated Glendale, 37-0. •OUTLOOK : The Indians were able to come through with a win last week to keep their hopes of winning a fourth straight league championship alive. However, Burroughs might be facing the toughest league opponent this season in Muir.

LA CRESCENTA - It was a battle for second place in the Pacific League when the Crescenta Valley High and Burbank girls' tennis teams met Thursday afternoon. With Arcadia already running away with the league, the Falcons and Bulldogs have been able to distance themselves from the remainder of the other squads in league. The winner Thursday would have the inside track for the league runner-up spot mid-way through the league campaign. Bolstered by a singles sweep, Burbank took a big step in that direction with a 13-5 victory at Crescenta Valley.

LA CRESCENTA — Sidney Ortega had plenty on her mind when the ball left her finger tips in the waning seconds of overtime. The Burroughs High girls' basketball player wasn't sure what the end result would be after taking arguably her biggest shot thus far this season. Ortega got the positive result she wanted, as she made a game-winning three-pointer with 2.6 seconds remaining in overtime to lift visiting Burroughs to a 49-46 Pacific League victory against Crescenta Valley on Monday.

NORTHEAST GLENDALE - With the additional time spent in the batting cage, it's no wonder why the members of the Crescenta Valley 9-10 All-Star baseball team are prepared and confident when they step into the batter's box during a game. Nearly each day, all 13 of the Crescenta Valley players spend about 20 minutes apiece perfecting their swings in the cage. It's paved the way for success during the postseason. Crescenta Valley pounded out 13 hits Tuesday afternoon en route to a 14-1 victory against Burbank in the District 16 Tournament championship game at Babe Herman Field.

ARCADIA - On the surface, Thursday afternoon's Pacific League cross-country championships appeared little more than a large Arcadia High celebration. After all, the Apaches won both the boys' and girls' team titles and claimed each race's individual crown at Arcadia County Park. PHOTOS: Pacific League cross country final   Yet, quite a few local teams made noise, both surprisingly and expectedly, led by the Burbank boys and Crescenta Valley girls, who finished second in their respective races, while the Crescenta Valley and Burroughs boys and the Burbank and Hoover girls all earned spots to the CIF Southern Section divisional preliminaries at Mt. San Antonio College on Nov. 16. Maybe no team made a bigger splash than did the Division I fifth-ranked Bulldog boys, who appear to be surging and demonstrated their prowess by knocking off seventh-ranked Crescenta Valley for the first time this season, 47-63, for second place in league.

LA CRESCENTA — In 2006, its first season in the Pacific League, the success enjoyed by the Burroughs’ High girls’ volleyball team was a pleasant surprise. Welcoming almost all of their starters back, the Indians entered 2007 Pacific League play poised to surpass the accomplishments of last season, in which they went 15-9, placed third in league and reached the quarterfinals of the CIF playoffs for the first time in 20 years. With a 25-11, 25-22, 25-17 victory on Thursday against host Crescenta Valley, last year’s fourth-place team in league, the Indians ran their league record to 4-0 and are quickly emerging as one of the top teams in the Pacific League.

GLENDALE ? It was a Little League game, but coaches, fans and players didn't forget that it was a all-star championship contest. Tuesday's 9-10-year-old softball game between Crescenta Valley and Jewel City/Foothill/Burbank prompted coaches to exchange heated words with each other, fans to get upset at each other and players to bring out the best in each other. In the end, Crescenta Valley walked away with another title, as it defeated Burbank, 5-4, to win the District 16 crown for a second consecutive year at Scholl Canyon Field.

BURBANK — While its dominance temporarily wavered midway through Friday's Pacific League match, the Burroughs High boys' volleyball team regrouped in plenty of time to keep Crescenta Valley from getting close to an upset on the road. And although the Falcons made a strong run at getting back in the match after coming alive down the stretch in the second game, the Indians rediscovered their intensity in the third game to finish off their 25-13, 25-21, 25-17 sweep just as solidly as they began.

BURBANK - All four area boys' golf teams had something at stake Tuesday leading into the Pacific League prelims at De Bell Golf Club. Each team looked to send at least one athlete to the league's individual tournament. Three of the squads aimed to clinch spots in the CIF Southern Section Northern Team Divisional. Each left De Bell pleased, as Burbank, Crescenta Valley and Burroughs qualified for the playoffs and nine area players moved on to Wednesday's individual final, which will also include a pair of Glendale athletes.

LA CRESCENTA - For quite some time, the Burroughs High and Crescenta Valley boys' volleyball teams had been eager to meet up with the goal of gaining the upper hand in the hunt for the Pacific League championship. The Indians and Falcons met Friday night in the first of two head-to-head contests, with each squad undefeated in league. Thanks to a big effort from Tristan Martin, the Indians are the only unbeaten team standing in league. Martin finished with a team-high 11 kills and Ryan Van Loo contributed 29 assists to power visiting Burroughs to a 25-21, 25-22, 25-18 victory in front of a loud crowd.

BURBANK - Thus far in the Pacific League season, the Burbank High softball team, seen as the favorite by most to repeat as league champion, has run roughshod over some overmatched competition. PHOTOS: Burbank vs. Crescenta Valley girls' league softball On Thursday afternoon, the Bulldogs faced their most arduous opposition yet, but behind a stellar effort in the circle from junior pitcher Caitlyn Brooks and some early offense, Burbank still looked impressive in a 3-0 win over Crescenta Valley at McCambridge Park.

BOYS' TRACK AND FIELD Burroughs in Pacific League tri-meet: The Indians kept their league title aspirations alive by defeating both Crescenta Valley and Muir on Wednesday afternoon. The Indians improved to 4-0 after knocking off the Mustangs, 128-7, and the Falcons, 85-51. Perhaps the highlight of the meet came when Indians pole vaulter Matt Schwartz set a school record with a vault of 15 feet, which was secured on his second attempt at the height. “I'm always looking for a personal record and I was actually hoping to get 15-6,” said Schwartz, who bested his previous personal best mark of 14-8.

Jake Anderson, Soph., Midfielder, St. Francis Provided stellar play in the middle all season, finishing with six goals and eight assists. Earned spot on All-Mission League first-team. Michael Conrad, Senior, Defender, Burroughs Was the driving force on the Pacific League's No. 1 defensive unit that held league opponents to just 11 goals in 14 matches. Was an all-league first-team selection. Daniel Eng, Senior, Defender, Crescenta Valley The second-team All-Pacific League selection helped steady the Falcons defensive unit.

BOYS' TENNIS Burbank 13, Pasadena 5 : The Bulldogs evened their season and league record at 1-1 with the Pacific League victory Thursday at home. Burbank received a singles sweep, as Kevin Orellana, Michael Kundibekian and Reed Bruner won all three of their matches. Crescenta Valley 15, Burroughs 3 : The Indians, the defending Pacific League champions, fell to 0-2 in league and on the season with the setback Thursday at home. Arcadia 13, Burbank 3 : The Bulldogs opened Pacific League play with a loss Tuesday on the road.

Burroughs High girls' water polo Coach Michael Singhanate knows the task facing his team will be a daunting one. But as has been the case all season, he is hoping this recent challenge will provide another learning experience for his players. Burroughs was able to garner the fourth and final automatic postseason berth from the Pacific League and, as its reward; it will travel to face top-seeded Riverside Poly. The Indians will open the CIF Southern Section Division V playoffs by heading to face the Bears, the Inland Valley League champion and overall No. 1 seed in the tournament Wednesday.

Burroughs High girls' water polo was able to garner the fourth and final automatic postseason berth from the Pacific League and, as its reward, it will travel to face top-seeded Riverside Poly. The Indians will open the CIF Southern Section Division V playoffs by heading to face Riverside Poly, the Inland Valley League champion and overall No. 1 seed in the tournament on Wednesday. Riverside Poly was the runner-up in last season's championship voyage, losing to Crescenta Valley.

WHITTIER - While most teams would probably still be basking in the glory after winning a league championship, the members of the Crescenta Valley High girls' water polo team went right back to the pool looking to fine tune some areas of their game Friday. After capturing the Pacific League championship for the fifth season in a row on Thursday, Crescenta Valley enjoyed a brief celebration before making the trek to meet host La Serna in a nonleague match Friday. Crescenta Valley passed its final regular-season test before beginning defense of its CIF Southern Section Division V crown, as Ashley Taylor collected a team-high four goals and Elissa Arnold added two goals and four steals to earn a 10-5 victory.

BURBANK - The Burbank High and Burroughs girls' soccer teams entered their Pacific League contest with a sense of security. The security came with knowing that both squads had already secured spots in the CIF Southern Section playoffs. However, there was much more at stake for the Bulldogs, who could lock down a second-place league finish with a win over their cross-town rivals. PHOTOS: Burroughs vs. Burbank girls' soccer   Earning that victory was never in question, as Burbank scored early and never let Burroughs mount any semblance of an offensive attack.

BURBANK - The only thing standing in the way of a perfect Pacific League season for the Burroughs High girls' basketball team was one opponent. PHOTOS: Burroughs vs. Burbank league girls' basketball However, that opponent was cross-town rival Burbank, which narrowly lost to the Indians by one point in the teams' first meeting in January. But there was no late-game heroics needed by Burroughs on Thursday, as it secured that perfect campaign by defeating the Bulldogs on its home floor, 58-47, in the final game of the regular season.