Category: Sports

  • Lara Leaves Behind A Legacy

    [pullquote align=”right” speaker=”Senior, John “Juju” Smith”]It was an honor and experience playing for one of the best Poly coaches.[/pullquote]

    After thirteen years as Poly’s head football coach, Raul Lara announced his resignation on the Friday after the team’s last game.

    “[It was] a decision a lot of people didn’t know,” said athletic director Rob Shock.

    Over his tenure as head coach, Lara acquired five CIF Championships, more than any other coach in Poly history. These championships were in 2001, 2004, 2007, 2008, and most recently in 2012.

    Lara has had long standing ties with the Poly Jackrabbits. After playing football for Poly, he graduated in 1984 and enrolled at UC Santa Barbara. During his college years Lara volunteered as an assistant coach to the Jackrabbits.

    Coach Lara became head coach in 2001, and won a CIF title in his first year. Not only has he been the head coach for the Jackrabbits, but he also has had a full-time job as a probation officer in the Los Angeles County Juvenile Hall. Lara willingly put in many hours of work as a coach for a yearly stipend of around $5,000.

    Many of the seniors on this year’s football team have gotten to know Lara over their four years at Poly. Jason “Pops” Fao got to know him especially well because he was a four-year varsity starter.

    Not only did Lara win championships, but he also instilled values into his players, Lara encouraged them to be people of character.

    “He said to always remember where you came from,” said Fao.

    “He taught us to play together” said senior lineman Gasetoto “Gmac” Schuster

    Fao also said “I’m going to miss him. He was a good coach.”

    “It was an honor and experience playing for one of the best Poly coaches,” said senior receiver John “Juju” Smith

    Schuster said Lara was, “Like a father figure to me.”

    Defensive coordinator Jeff Turley will serve as the interim head coach for the time being.

    Athletic director Rob Shock is accepting applications for the vacant head coaching position until January 7, 2014. After that, the formal interview process will start.

  • Jackrabbits Take a Titanic Loss

    The Poly girls water polo team lost against the Tesoro Titans on Tuesday, December 10 with a score of 14-6. The first quarter kick started with a sprint win by sophomore Taylor Martin, but Tesoro stole the ball immediately after and scored. They scored again two minutes later. Fueled by envy that Tesoro was up by two, freshman Julia Mangandi received the ball from a lob pass by senior Courtney Hagle and scored. Within two minutes, freshman Bayla Forman scored, tying the score 2-2.

    The second quarter sprint was taken by Tesoro, but not for long. Although Martin lost the sprint, the Jackrabbits were able to steal the ball back and manage a shot from sophomore Carina Monaco. The rest of the quarter consisted of shots by Tesoro.

    “We knew this was a tough team to play against because they are very well-ranked. We also have a young team, but we have been improving each game,” said Coach Bill Brightenburg.

    The third quarter started with a sprint win by the Titans and ended with multiple goals by them as well. Poly’s defense during the third quarter was strong. Martin managed to steal the ball and score for Poly, leaving the score 13-4, Tesoro. Poly was down by nine going into the last quarter, and the girls tried their best to stay in the game. Tesoro won the opening sprint, but Mangandi scored again. She then proceeded to score another goal. The Titans were slowing down but managed to score a last shot. The game ended with a score of 14-6, Tesoro.

    “We tried our hardest, but I’m sad the score didn’t show it. Honestly, we need to  work on conditioning because Tesoro whipped our butts with the sprints,” said Mangandi.

    The girls played Marina high school on Tuesday and Huntington Beach but the specifics of this game could not be reported due to press time constraints. The girls will play Carlsbad this afternoon.

  • Football Gets Shut Down

    The Poly football team’s season ended in a semifinal appearance against Mater Dei on November 29. Poly fell to the Monarchs 30-0, on their home turf at Veteran’s Memorial Stadium.

    The Jackrabbits were wearing their gray uniforms, which were unveiled at last year’s semifinal appearance against St. John Bosco. Poly could not get any drives going in the first half. A rare sight for Jackrabbit fans was when Monarch running back Justin Allen had a 75-yard run and scored. This brought the score to 6-0. After some more stalled Poly drives, the Monarchs kept scoring, and eventually brought the score to 20-0 at halftime.

    After halftime, the Jackrabbits had some inspiration, coming from senior reciever Christian Pabico’s 48-yard catch. Unfortunately, this drive would stall on the next play, when Poly fumbled the ball, giving it back to the Monarchs. Senior reciever John “JuJu” Smith was in double coverage the entire game. During the game, Smith caught the ball three times for 14 yards gain. In the second half, Smith converted to the running back position, which seemed effective. But fumbles and stalled drives shot any chance of the Jackrabbits scoring. The closest the Jackrabbits got t scoring was a pass to Pabico in the end zone. In the end, the Jackrabbits lost 30-0.

    Although the Jackrabbits were shut out, the season’s end is a great time to remember the seniors that have helped this team over the years. Lineman Jason “Pops” Fao was a four year varsity starter, and helped keep the Jackrabbit’s playoff hopes alive during the Orange Lutheran game, when he sacked the Lancer quarterback in the final minutes. Alongside Fao for most of the time was Gasetoto “Gmac” Schuster, who played on the offensive and defensive lines. Saualii “Serge” Fao also played on the offensive and defensive lines. Another senior who helped create the strong lines was Drew Ho. Caleb Turner helped stop the opposing running games while playing at middle linebacker. In addition, Rodney “Bama” Shorter played at defensive end. Elijah Moody played at safety and defensive back. Demetric Woodard played at defensive back as well. Imani Mitchell started at defensive tackle. Quarterback Tai Tiedemann started at quarterback for two years, helping the Jackrabbits to a PAC-5 title last year. Though Christian Pabico was only at Poly for his senior year, he caught many sideline touchdown passes, and was named one of the Moore League’s offensive players of the year. John “Juju” Smith made many memorable plays for the Jackrabbits. Smith was named the Moore League Player of the Year.

    Despite many seniors leaving, there are still quite a few returners to next year’s team. The junior class is returning linebacker Omari Lyles, running backs Jeremy Calhoun and James Brooks, cornerbacks Iman “Biggie” Marshall and Justin Calhoun, defensive tackle Joseph Wicker, lineman Justin Canada and quarterback Josh Love. The sophomore class is also returning a few starters. Cornerbacks Micah Croom and Jackie Jones will be playing on next year’s team, with another year of expierence.

  • Girls Soccer Starts Season Off Strong

    Girls Soccer Starts Season Off Strong

    Girls soccer is staying strong through December, bouncing back from a big loss against Mater Dei on November 26. They have two wins, three ties, and only one loss since December 3. The team, overwhelmed with new players, is going strong and found its way to the championship round for the Aliso Cup Tournament.

    As part of the  Aliso Cup Tournament, the girls played two games on Saturday, December 14. Poly was able to come out with a 1-1 tie against Marina High School, and 1-0 victory over Royal High School. The girls first faced Marina, tying 1-1 after senior Hayley Brown netted an assisted goal from sophomore Hannah Deighton. Later, the girls went up against Royal High School. Junior Sydney Ellis scored the game’s only goal on fellow junior Sydney Rockett’s throw-in assist. With Ellis’ goal, the girls found their way to the championship round of the Aliso Cup President’s Bracket against the defending champions Upland High School.

    The girls faced Upland on Monday, December 16 and came out with a 1-1 tie and the Aliso Cup President Championship title.

    On December 12, Poly hosted Chino Hills in a 2-1 Aliso Cup loss. Neither Poly nor Chino Hills were able to score in the first half, but Lady Jackrabbits took the lead during the second half on an assisted goal by sophomore Elleni Bekele. Unfortunately, Chino Hills soon countered with two goals in the 46th and 61st minute, taking the game from Poly 2-1.

    “It was a good game. They were a stronger team, but we could have communicated better and put more pressure on them,” said De La Funete.

    On December 9, the girls got a thrilling 2-1 victory over Trabuco Hills, in their first game of the Aliso Cup Tournament. Poly was at a standstill in a 1-1 tie after sophomore Artrea William’s assisted goal in the 54th  minute. As the game came to a close, Junior Selena Cuara was able to come through with an unassisted goal at the 78th minute, pushing Poly to a 2-1 victory.

    On December 5, the girls visited Edison High School, but where not able to get past the Chargers, tying 0-0. Even though the girls were not able to score, they did not slack on their defense. Sophomore Tori Gonzales kept the defensive pressure throughout the game against the Chargers, with five shots on the goal. Both goalies, sophmore Kayala Rivas and senior Alexis De La Fuente, were able to stay strong with two saves each.

    “It was a tough game,” said Gonzales, “We had to keep the pressure to secure at least the tie.”

    In their first game of the month, the girls faced Downey High School on Tuesday, December 3. Poly started off shaky, with goalie Kayla Rivas giving up a goal in the first half. It seemed like a lost game for the Lady Jackrabbits, until junior Sydney Rockett scored on an assist by freshmen Sarah Pilster, tying the game 1-1 in the last three minutes.

    “We have great speed, and a great attitude,” said head coach Teresa Collins. “We just need to get the new girls varsity ready.”

    The girls had their first Moore League game against Cabrillo on December 18. They then played another Moore League game against Millikan the next day on December 19.

  • Soccer Kicks Off Preseason

    Girls soccer kicked off their preseason tying their scrimmage game 1-1 against Saint Joseph High School on Tuesday, November 19th.

    Even though the team played with only two varsity veterans, they were able to keep up with Saint Joseph, scoring a penalty kick during the first half and tying the game 1-1.Earned by sophomore Hannah Deighton, the penalty was an easy way to score and allowed senior captain Morgan McCullough to score a goal for Poly.

    “It was just a scrimmage game,” said head coach Teresa Collins, “This game just dictates what we do in practice, all leading us up to our first real preseason games.”

    This year, varsity soccer is short on experience, having lost fourteen girls from last season. This year’s roster features two starting freshman, eight sophomores, eight juniors and six seniors, but only nine of which are girls with varsity experience.

    “I’m looking forward to playing more games. with this team,” said McCullough, “the new varsity players outnumber the returners and I’m excited to see what this team is made of.”

    Last season, the Lady Jackrabbits where not able to clench the Moore League Championship losing the title to the Wilson Bruins, but this year they come back with the exact same goal – win Moore League and CIF.

    “It is my first season playing at varsity level. I am so glad to be part of this team and I’m excited for this season.” said sophomore Saorise Parkin.

  • Football: Not The Lancer’s Knight

    The Jackrabbits football team had a solid performance against the Lakewood Lancers on October 18, coming out on top, 39-0. This game was especially meaningful for the seniors on the team as it was Senior Night. Before the game, each senior ran down the middle of the field to the open arms of their parents and coaches.

    After the pre-game handshakes between the teams, it was time for business.

    Poly scored on their second possession of the game, with a touchdown pass from senior John “JuJu” Smith to senior receiver Christian Pabico, who dove into the end zone.

    The Jackrabbits’ offense was just getting started, as three minutes later, senior quarterback Tai Tiedemann threw a 43-yard pass to senior receiver Richard Mindoro on a quarterback scramble. The Jackrabbits went for a two-point conversion, completing it with a shovel pass from junior quarterback Josh Love to junior running back James Brooks.

    The Jackrabbits scored just 15 seconds later starting with junior defensive back Iman “Biggie” Marshall getting an interception on the very next play. The Poly offense scored in one play, with a touchdown pass from Love to Pabico.

    Wide receivers were the main scorers on the night; Pabico, Smith, and Mindoro were frequent targets for the quarterbacks.

    Poly scored once more early in the second quarter, this time from Tiedemann to Pabico, his third on the night.

    “This is the best night for receiving,” said Pabico.

    The Jackrabbits entered the second half, up 33-0.

    For the last score of the game, Tiedemann threw a short pass to junior tight end Gabe “Big Gabe” Rivera, who had no problem running it in.

    The defense was on point, forcing six sacks on the Lancer quarterbacks. Senior defensive lineman Rodney “Bama” Shorter summed up Poly’s defense: “Fantastic. Terrific. Awesome. Tremendous. Spectacular.”

    Smith also showed off his impressive hurdling skills, completely leaping over Lakewood’s Jarod Stevens. In the end, Poly won 39-0.

    Not only was this game Senior Night, but also this game was part of the Great American Rivalries series. Pabico won the award for Most Valuable Player, for scoring a total of three touchdowns, all in the first half of the game

    After the bye week, Poly will have an away against the Millikan Rams tomorrow.  Lastly, they will play the Wilson Bruins next Friday, November 8th before heading into post-season play.

  • Girls Tennis Does a Double Take

    [pullquote align=”left” speaker=”Shannon Dow”]We wanted to get this win for Poly since Wilson got Moore League Champs and Moore League Singles—it meant a lot for us to get this win.[/pullquote]

    Poly’s girls tennis team played and won against both CAMS and Cabrillo, but lost their chance at Moore League Champions on Thursday after they lost a close match against Wilson. The girls battled in a long five-day week, where they lost the individual Moore League singles first place medal, but were able to win the doubles first place, and move on to CIF.

    On Monday, October 14, the girls went up against CAMS’ newly founded tennis team. CAMS was able to put up a good fight, winning three matches, but they were not able to keep up with the power hitting Lady Jackrabbits who won, 13-5. On Tuesday October 15, the girls played their third game of the season against Cabrillo and just like the previous two, the girls were able to shut out the Jaguars with a 17-1 win.

    On Thursday, October 17, the girls met the Bruins at Wilson in yet another nail-biting match to fight for the Moore League championship title. It was a rough start for the Jackrabbits, trailing 3-7 at the end of the first round, but where able to come up to 9-7 lead. Unfortunately, the Bruins, who held the advantage in games, responded by winning the final two matches, tying the game 9-9. In the end, the Poly lost to Wilson by a slim margin of 5 games, coming out with a 77-65 loss in the game’s tiebreaker and third place in Moore League.

    “Even though Wilson won, I am very proud of every one on our team. I believe that we all played to the best of our abilities, keeping up a good fight and demonstrating our resilience throughout the entire match,” said junior Veronica Tan.

    From October 21st to the 25th, the girls were busy at El Dorado Park, fitting for individual Moore League titles. Monday and Tuesday were Moore League Semi-Finals for singles. Five girls attended, but sophomore Jasmine Roberts and junior Shannon Dow were the two to make it the furthest. Roberts went up against Wilson’s number one singles player and fought for first place, while Dow went up against Wilson’s number two singles player. Roberts lost her match (6-3, 6-4, 6-4) and Dow lost her match with a set score of 6-3, 6-3, 6-2. Consequently, teammates Dow and Roberts faced off for the third place medal last Friday.

    Moore League Semi-Finals for doubles was held on the 23rd and 24th. Again, many teams attended, but two teams exceeded the rest. The doubles teams of Dow and Roberts and seniors Daniella Gochuico and Rylie Borje were the only ones able to move on to finals on Friday. The team of Dow and Roberts faced off against Millikan’s team in a tough three setter and where able to get the win with a score of 6-3, 0-6, 6-3. On Thursday, both Poly teams faced each other in a tough match, but the dynamic duo of Dow and Roberts got the win over the seniors, with a set score of 7-6, 6-3. Both teams were able to advance onto Friday’s Finals, with Roberts and Dow fighting for the first place title, while Gochuico and Borje played for third place.

    After four long days, it all came down to Friday’s Moore League Finals. Teammates Roberts and Dow dashed it out for the singles’ third place medal. It was a close match, but Roberts was able to get the win over Dow, winning in her set 6-3, 6-2, 10-7 in a tiebreaker.

    Right after their singles match, both Roberts and Dow were to face Wilson’s number one doubles team for the Moore League Doubles crown.

    “It’s literally their best players against our best players,” said head coach Ricardo Montecinos.

    The Jackrabbit pair trailed 5-2 in the second set, but were able to come back and win an excruciating two hours match with a final score of 6-4, 7-6 and close off a successful five-day week.

    “We wanted to get this win for Poly since Wilson got Moore League Champs and Moore League Singles—it meant a lot for us to get this win,” said Dow.

    It was a long week for the Lady Jackrabbits, and even though they weren’t able to claim Moore League Champions, their doubles team of Dow and Roberts were able to get the doubles first place title and will go on to represent Moore League in CIF.

  • Cross Country: Woodbridge Invitational

    The girls cross country team made a strong showing at the Woodbridge Invitational at Estancia High School last Saturday. The Lady Jackrabbits finished fifth in the rated race and 19th out of 236 teams.

    Freshman Melissa Tanaka ran 17:39 to finish tenth set a record for the fastest time by a Poly runner at Woodbridge. Freshman Lauren Fillipow ran 17:56 to finish in 20th, and freshman Olivia Gleason ran 18:09 to finish in 33rd. However, the entire team ran fast, setting a team time record of 90:56. Even with the addition of younger runners, Coach Nate Bershtel is confident in the team’s running maturity.

    “All of the girls have around the same years of running experience. Instead of being the number four runner each race, they have the opportunity to be the number one runner at any given time,” said Coach Bershtel.

    The boys cross country team also made a strong showing at the Woodbridge Invitational. The jackrabbits finished 10th in the Sweepstakes race and 14th out of 237 teams. Freshman Colby Penn ran 15:00 to finish in 39th place, senior captain Zach Ponce ran 15:08 to finish in 55th place, and senior Christian “CVaq” Vazquez ran 15:23 to finish in 81st place.

    Coach Mike Fillipow was impressed with the depth the team displayed at Woodbridge. The top eight runners were within 35 seconds of each other at Woodbridge.

    “Last year, we had some problems with the large gap between our number four and number five runners. This year, we have a great pack,” said Coach Fillipow.

    Senior Christian Vazquez was content with the team’s performance, but insists there is still work to be done. “All in all, we made a good showing, and we can do even better. We’re going to stay consistent in our training, to give the fans a good showing,” said Vazquez. The boys will race in Moore League next Wednesday at El Dorado Park.

  • Jackrabbits Hop To Islands

    Poly’s boys water polo team and the girls volleyball team represented Long Beach in Hawaii at tournaments and bonded with their fellow teammates this last August.

    The boys water polo team spent a week on Oahu while competing at the Hawaii Invitational Water Polo Tournament in Oahu August 5 through 11. Overall, the Jackrabbits placed seventh in the tournament of 24 opposing teams with two wins and three losses.

    “There were a lot of good teams from all different places. A lot of our games were decided by one or two goals. We even ended up in a shoot-out to end the game. With a few of our players not being able to travel with us, other players were forced to step up their level of planning to fill the gaps,” said Horton.

    [pullquote align=”right” speaker=”Jessica Alberto”]Being in Hawaii not only helped us learn to become a better all around team, but also helped us to become closer as a family.[/pullquote]

    The team consisted of seniors Andrew Gutierrez, Ryan Rockenbach, Ryan Meyer, Brandon Nguyen, and Grant Horton, juniors Benjamin Nguyen, Ian Kwong, Trevor Parks, Alejandro Nieto, and Justin Jarvis, sophomore Spencer Steffen, and Poly alumnus Tristan Brightenburg.

    “The team bonding and experience was really worth the six hour plane trip there. It was fun. I would definitely do it again,” said Gutierrez.

    When they weren’t competing, the boys spent the day bonding over hikes around the island, surf sessions in Waikiki bay and beach adventures on the North Shore.

    “Spending a whole week in Hawaii with my team was a once in a lifetime experience.  Being surrounded by water was like paradise for us. If we weren’t in the pool then we were at the beach,” said junior Nguyen. “Not only was it fun, but it was also a great team bonding trip.  We are now an even closer family than we were before. Hawaii will always be the place to be.”

    Poly’s varsity girls volleyball team also traveled to Oahu over the summer to compete in the 31st annual Ann Kang Invitational Volleyball Tournament. The team placed sixth of 16 teams, securing its spot in the tournament’s Gold Champion bracket.

    The AKIVB Tournament took place over the weekend of August 15, though the girls stayed from the 14th through the 20th. Of the 16 teams participating, nine were local teams, and seven were from the mainland. Poly won three of their eight total matches, including a long awaited victory over Mira Costa.

    “Being in Hawaii not only helped us learn to become a better all around team, but also helped us to become closer as a family,” said senior captain Jessica Alberto.

    According to Alberto, by spending the week together, the team was able to come together and prepare for what will hopefully be a winning season for the girls.

    “Between the surf and the luau, us coaches really got a chance to bond in a way that was totally unrelated to volleyball, for once,” said head coach Leland McGrath.

    The boys have their first game against Cerritos High School on September 17 at Cerritos and the girls had their first game of the season against Newport Harbor last week but could not be reported on due to press time constraints.

  • Football: Preseason Begins With A Win

    Long Beach Poly football opened their 2013 season on August 30 with a win over the Crenshaw Cougars (28-15) where, for the first time, a girl scored for the varsity football team.

    Last year’s season was one with a questionable 1-3 preseason, as well as Poly’s worst loss in their long history. However, the team went back to basics and returned with yet another Moore League Championship, a CIF Championship, and State runner-ups by the end of the season. Poly started this season ranked 12th in the nation and 6th in the state.

    The opening kickoff by the Jackrabbits was sent high into the air and was recovered by Poly soon after Crenshaw fumbled. The following play by Crenshaw quickly intercepted it. Scoring early in the second quarter, Crenshaw put themselves on the board. Poly would come back to end the first half 8-7, Poly.

    Poly came out blazing hot as they scored in their first drive of the second half and would go up 15-7. This ended late in the third quarter as Crenshaw scored and gained the two-point conversion. Senior John “Juju” Smith was then put into the running back position to wake up the Poly offense. This move seemed to work as Smith allowed Poly to score soon after.

    “We had a slow start and it took us a while to get into rhythm. When the second half came, we began to feel a little more comfortable and started playing Poly football,” said senior quarterback Tai Tiedemann.

    The exclamation point of the night was junior Killian Turley kicking in the point after touchdown. K. Turley, daughter of defensive coordinator Jeff Turley, is the first girl in Poly’s 106-year history to ever score points for a varsity football team at Poly.

    “The best part about being on the team is that is that I am getting an opportunity to prove to everyone that with dedication and determination you can achieve any goal,” said K. Turley.

    Poly is currently ranked 7th in the nation and 3rd in the state and seeks to improve on last week’s game with an even stronger start and performance against the Servite Friars last Friday at 7 p.m. at Cerritos College.

    “We may have done well last year, but not winning State left us unsatisfied,” said Tiedemann. “Losing last year is our fuel to win this year.”

  • Cross Country: Bun Run for Funds

    Cross Country: Bun Run for Funds

    Poly’s boys and girls cross country teams held their 21st annual Bun Run Fundraiser last Saturday at Los Cerritos Park.

    It is the only fundraiser for the boys and girls cross country teams for the entire year and helps to raise money for races, team trips, and banquets.

    The event has evolved into a great social and athletic gathering both Poly families and the community. Roughly 600 people attended the event, 300 of which participated in the community race.

    “The course’s terrain has changed over the years, but I love it because it brings back a lot of memories,” said Principal Joe Carlson. Such memories include when Poly alumnus Ethan Durham took a wrong turn and continued running down the Pacific Coast Highway.

    Principal Carlson was the girls cross country coach during the first Bun Run in 1992 and has seen the event and the teams evolve and expand over the years.

    “It’s encouraging to see the Bun Run grow in support each year and to know that when we leave, it will continue to surpass expectation,” said four-year runner and senior Samantha Singal.

    When the first Bun Run was held at Recreation Park in Long Beach, there were only nine girls on the Poly cross country team and no community race was run.

    The cinnamon buns that were once given out to the runners and from which the event originally got its name have since been replaced by a parent-made pancake breakfast and a raffle that both the runners and the community enjoy after all the races have been run.

    “From a senior’s perspective, I could see that the freshman were a little jittery, but having the whole cross country family plus the community to support them, they were able to enjoy themselves and not worry too much about the times they ran,” said senior captain Kassey Garduque.