Category: Sports

  • Fourth Quater Heartbreak

    Fourth Quater Heartbreak

    Long​ ​Beach​ ​Poly​ ​football​ ​played ​Mission​ ​Viejo​​ ​on​ ​Friday,​ ​September​ ​15, ​at​ ​Veterans​ ​Stadium. The Poly football team was adorned in their all black uniforms and the Poly fans supported them by wearing black as well.

    The​ ​Jackrabbits​ ​lost​ ​12-7.​ ​Poly​ ​now​ ​has​ ​a​ ​2-1-0​ ​overall​ ​record this season and ​Mission Viejo​ ​now​ ​has​ ​a​ ​4-0-0​ ​overall​ ​record. When​ ​asked​ ​his​ ​thoughts​ ​on​ ​the​ ​game​, senior ​Raymond Graham said,​ ​“We had the game in our hands and we let them take the momentum of the game.”

    During the first quarter, Poly defense held it down and blocked any advances towards the end zone.​ In the second quarter the Jackrabbits were not as successful and Mission Viejo scored the first touchdown of the game. Poly came back refreshed after halftime and Graham scored a touchdown for the Jackrabbits, making the score 7-6. In the midst of the fourth quarter Mission Viejo grabbed control of the game via a pick 6 and didn’t let go, despite Poly’s valiant efforts.

    This​ ​was​ ​Poly’s​ third​game​ ​this​ ​season.​ ​They​ ​had​ ​a​ ​game​ ​on​ ​August​ ​25​ ​against​ ​Los​ ​Alamitos. Poly​ ​won​ ​the​ ​game​ ​28-10.​ The ​Jackrabbits​ ​also​ ​had​ ​a​ ​game​ ​September​ ​1​ ​versus​ ​Narbonne.​ ​The game​ ​took​ ​Place​ ​At​ ​El​ ​Camino​ ​college.​ ​Poly​ ​won​ ​again​ ​(14-10).

    The​ ​game​ ​was​ ​for also a part of the​ ​Touchdowns​ ​Against​ ​Cancer.​ ​Touchdowns​ ​against​ ​cancer​ ​is​ ​a​ ​way​ ​to​ ​raise money​ ​to​ ​help​ ​fight​ ​childhood​ ​cancer.​ ​High​ ​school​ ​football​ ​team’s​ ​across​ ​America​ ​participate​ ​in this​, all​​ ​September.​ ​$16​ ​is​ ​pledged​ ​per​ ​touchdown, and all​ ​the​ ​money​ ​raised​ ​goes​ ​towards​ ​St. Jude​ ​Children’s​ ​Research​ ​Hospital.​ ​So​ ​far​ ​530​ ​touchdowns​ ​have​ ​been​ ​scored and​ ​$74,488 has been​ ​raised.​ ​Touchdowns​ ​against​ ​cancer​ ​was​ ​created​ ​by​ ​MaxPreps, Pledge​ ​It​ ​and​ ​St.​ ​Jude​ ​Children’s​ ​Research​ ​Hospital. ​ Long​ ​Beach​ ​Poly​ ​also​ ​has​ ​two​ ​upcoming​ ​games​ ​this​ ​month against Millikan and Wilson. Poly will be playing Millikan at Millikan on September 22 and is expected to be a good game due to their similar season statistics of two wins and one loss. Poly will play Wilson September 29 at Veterans Stadium.

    The​ ​first​ ​upcoming​ ​game​ ​is​ ​against​ ​Millikan,​ ​and​ ​it’s​ ​Poly’s​ ​first​ ​conference​ ​game​ ​this​ ​season. Poly​ ​is​ ​away​ ​and​ ​it​ ​is​ ​expected​ ​to​ ​be​ ​a​ ​good​ ​game​ ​based​ ​on​ ​both​ ​the​ ​teams​ ​similar​ ​season stats.​ ​When​ ​asked​ ​their​ ​thoughts​ ​on​ ​the​ ​upcoming​ ​game​, Junior​ ​Ulises​ ​Godoy​ ​said​ ​“Look good,​ ​feel​ ​good,​ ​play​ ​good.”​ The​ ​second upcoming​ ​game​ ​is​ ​against​ ​Wilson.​ ​Wilson’s​ ​record​ ​is​ ​1-3.​ Poly​ ​is​ ​expected​ ​to​ ​take​ ​1st​ ​place​ ​in Moore ​league​ ​again​ ​this​ ​season.

  • Long Beach High School Hockey

    Long Beach High School Hockey

    Long Beach Prep High School Hockey is a team made up of high school students who play  hockey. There is a JV and varsity team. In spring they play under the LA Kings and in the summer they play under the Anaheim Ducks.

    Hockey is starting to be a popular sport in Long Beach. Long Beach Prep gives high school students who play hockey  a chance to play other cities and represent Long Beach. Some of the other cities they play include El Segundo, Venice, Redondo Beach and Wiseburn.

     
    The coaches are Adam Stanovich, Austin Stanovich , and Matthew Dove. They teach hockey players new skills and help them become better players overall. The coaches have a passion for the sport and prepare players to play at a higher level. When asked what his thoughts were on the coaches, forward Josh Ribeiro said, “They know what they’re talking about.” The coaches are very experienced. When asked how do you feel about playing on Long Beach Prep defender Adin Keiter said, “I’ve been on the team for two years now (four seasons), and I feel that I’ve been able to develop my skill on a team that’s suitable for my skill level. When I started, I was only playing hockey for a couple months, so LB has been about 80% of my career.”

     
    Keiter also has a passion for the sport like many of the players on the team. Former JV goalie Steven Fitzer  said he “likes the fun environment and the competitiveness” of playing on Long Beach Prep. Fitzer also said, “I love the pressure and the non stop action” of being goalie. Many players say Long Beach Prep Hockey is like a family.

     
    The Hockey players are not only athletes, but scholars and many of them want to achieve a higher education and play in college. When asked how does it feel to be a part of Long Prep, forward Natalie Compton said,  “I feel like I am a part of a family and I get to hang out with people from other schools so it’s cool. It’s more of a normal high school experience than my school is so I think I need the experiences that come with being on the team.”

     
    Long Beach Prep is like one big family and a great part of the Long Beach community. It is also a great team to just watch. Long Beach Prep always appreciates if anyone comes out and supports the team in their upcoming summer season. So come out and support Long Beach high school hockey.

  • Softball Takes Easy Win

    Softball Takes Easy Win

    The Long Beach Poly softball team made a comeback with a 3-4 record after facing Cabrillo last Thursday March 16, resulting in a win for the jackrabbits. the score was 11-0 which is a mercy, a mercy rule is when a team is up by 10 before the 5th inning.

    The team played well and were working together, on the defense and the offense. The jackrabbits bats were starting to come alive, when 3 year varsity player, Evelyn Sablan hit a game changing 3 run Homerun. Which sparked a hitting streak Evelyn states after hitting the home run, “I had to work on my swing this game and as soon as I saw that pitch I knew I had to take the best hack I could at it.”

    After the home run the jackrabbits began to hit the ball like crazy to bring the game to 8-0. When senior Jaclyn Pangelinan got up to bat eager to hit, she states, “ After being hit by a pitch my first two at bats, I was eager to do more for my team. So when she gave me my pitch I swung with a purpose and it worked.” This resulted in an inside the park solo home run, bringing the jackrabbits even more alive than they already were.

    Cabrillo wasn’t ready for the jackrabbits. Although it was a good game, they still have to face Jordan on Tuesday March 21 in preparation for their rival Wilson on Thursday March 23. As Wilson being the rivals it will be an exciting game. In past years both teams have shared their share of wins and loses, with two good teams facing each other on the field it will be a good game, but the jackrabbits are ready to face their rivals with no problem.

    Devin Linares
    Senior Jaclyn Pangelinan preparing for a hit before she scores another home run for her team.

  • WAS IT THE REFS?

    On Wednesday, March 18, Poly’s girls basketball team lost the CIF State SoCal Regional Open Division Championship game against Clovis West. Although the scoreboard at the end of the game said 53-44, there were many things to be said about the game itself.

    In an interview with Gazette Sports, Coach Carl Buggs commented he “would never blame refs for a loss, but they shot 35 free throws, we shot 11.” Clovis West received 23 fouls in comparison to Poly’s 15, and though the difference may seem insignificant, the free throws added up to make a big difference. Of Poly’s 11 free throws they were only able to score three, while Clovis made 28 free throws to account for over half of their final score.

    Stephen Dachman
    After taking a dissapointing loss, the lady jackrabbits line up to shake hands with Clovis West.

    It may be downgrading to blame the refs for a game, but this just might be the case for this one. Oddly enough, the refs seemed to make the worst calls at the most clutch and momentous occasions. The crowd reacted with boos, and Poly was never able to catch fire.

    In the beginning of the game, the Lady Jackrabbits started off with a turnover and were not able to pick up their energy for the rest of the game. However, the team had a difficult time regaining momentum. Senior forward Kathryn Headspeth commented, “Nobody had energy from the start. The bench didn’t have energy. The people on the court didn’t. Sometimes there was, but it died off.”

    Similar moments have happened in sports, such as the Conference Finals in 2002 with the Sacramento Kings and the Los Angeles Lakers. With an astounding lineup in both teams, the series seemed to be a playoff series for the ages. In the 4th quarter of game six, the Lakers shot 27 free throws while the Kings shot nine. The Lakers took the victory and ended up with the NBA championship, but many people today still believe that the series was rigged.

    Much like the Sacramento Kings, the Lady Jackrabbits may have took a loss that they did not deserve. Due to these calls, the fans for Poly’s team can no longer witness history. Although the Lady Jackrabbits were not able to leave it all on the floor, it can be easily said that everyone knows their potential and that they deserved a fair game.

  • Spirit Leaders Perform Well at CSULB Competition

    Spirit Leaders Perform Well at CSULB Competition

    On February 26, 2017, Poly Spirit Leaders took part in a competition at CSULB. Song, Cheer Stunt Group, and Mascot competed in their divisions respectively. The small, but mighty Song team consisted of sophomore Kennedy Cofield and juniors Becca Gutierrez and Megan Villaverde. The Stunt Group was seniors Ashley Applewhite and Maggie Dines, sophomores Raelynn Rios and Joanna Rowden, and freshman Ayona Young. The mascots competing this competition were sophomores Coco Sanabria and Thaili Sweet.

    In order to prepare for their competition, Cofield said, “Song drilled the dance over and over again full out with strong arms and facials.”

    Cheer’s Dines said, “We were at practice every single day for at least two hours. We would run and then stunt for the rest of practice to build up our endurance and make sure that at competition, when we weren’t tired, we could hit the routine. Every time something got hard or the group started to get frustrated with each other, we reminded ourselves that we are capable of making this routine and that we just needed to keep a positive attitude and keep encouraging each other no matter what happened.”

    Song performed their competition routine again. The theme for the song portion was “Teamwork,” so the song mix for the routine had to reflect that. “High School Musical”, “Everything is Awesome,” and Lorde’s “Team” were included.  The routine was choreographed by Cynthia Negrete and her daughter Marissa Negrete. Their fast-paced dance and cheerful facials expressions kept the audience intrigued. Villaverde said, “I’m proud of song for pulling through and getting second even though we were all sick.”

    The Mascots also did their routine with Sweet as the second bunny. The Mascot routine has to have a storyline that is conveyed to the audience and gets the audience participating in supporting their team. The theme was “Create a Lover,” and Jonathan Rabbit was a mad scientist who decided to make his own perfect lover. It had songs including, “Somebody to Love” by Queen.

  • Badminton Defeats Major Competitors

    On March 2 Poly’s Badminton team defeated Cabrillo High School in close contest advancing to 2-0 on the season. The final score of the game was 12-9. The Jackrabbits are off to a incredible start this year winning against the two best teams in Moore league, Lakewood and Cabrillo. “Lakewood and Cabrillo are the schools to reckon with, the beginning of our season is a quick baptism by fire,” said Coach Steven Meckna.

    There was an intense nailbiter at Cabrillo for the Poly squad. In one of the first matches of the night,senior Eric Shu, the team captain, suffered a leg cramp. Even with this injury, he “managed to win three out of his four matches, even though being partly disabled, a very heroic effort that night from Eric,” said Coach Meckna.

    Shu described what helped him overcome the injury, “My teammates, they motivate me, so I really wanted to motive them back.” It was a group effort win against such a tough Cabrillo squad.

    Junior Fei Law said, “We’re more determined to fight and win and improve each other.”

    As senior Cassandra Mullen put it. “There isn’t one person who’s like picking everyone up, we all pick each other up.” The Jackrabbits next game is against Compton High School, then they have a bye week, and then are off to face Jordan at Jordan High School.

  • Girls Basketball Wins 120th CIF Championship

    Girls Basketball Wins 120th CIF Championship

    On Saturday March 4, Poly’s girl basketball team once again won the CIF Southern Section Open Division girls basketball championship.

    This marked the 120th CIF title for the School. The girls hadn’t won the CIF crown since

    2010. This was also the first Open Division title that the program has won.

    This was not a typical game for the Jackrabbits as they headed into halftime down 36-32. Most of the season the Jackrabbits steamrolled their opponents, but were ready to make adjustments when

    necessary. “When it’s money time, it’s money time, and that’s when you need your big three.”

    said coach Buggs.

    Ayanna Clark, Jasmine Jones, and Danae Miller lead the Jackrabbits in scoring on the

    night. Clark had 20 points, Jones had 14 and Miller had 12.

    For years, the girls basketball team has maintained a strong reputation. With countless CIF Championships, it seems that the program will only go on up from this point.

  • Swim Starts Off Strong

    Poly’s swimming season has started. There was a girls swim meet against Los Alamitos and Marina,  which in they lost by a small margin. The thing with those swim meets is that they were D1 teams which made it harder because they were faster. This made good turnouts to the girls swim team with the fact that they can get an idea of the future of the season.
    The biggest competition so far is with Wilson High School since the Bruins have been maintained a 44 year winning streak in the boys swim meets. Boys varsity swim team is hopefully going to kill it this season because the boys have the capability of beating Wilson from all their hard work and effort.

    Most of the good swimmers have gotten a head start on this sport, having played five years old, such as Isabella Magalong a senior student member in the girls swim team, and Leilani Davila, a former member of the swim team. Many think that swim should actually be considered an individual sport but our swim team has a different opinion about that. As Magalong states, ”Before high school swim I would participate in club swimming, which in the time I saw it as an individual sport, but now I see it as a group sport,and as a team everyone has an aspect and each get points and have it as an accumulative effort.”

  • Track Goes to New York

    Poly’s boys and girls track and field athletes are heading to New Balance Indoor Nationals at the Armory Track in New York this weekend, March 10-12. The athletes will compete in a variety of events against schools from other states. Junior Ariyonna Augustine will be competing in the 60 meter dash and 200 meter dash. Last year Augustine won CIF-SS Division 1 championship in the 100 and the 200 meter dash.

    Augustine said she is scared of the competition but “confident” and wanting to “out everything on the track.” Her goal is to get a personal record, faster than 6.4 seconds in the 60 meter dash.

    When asked about their upcoming meet in New York, sophomore Jaelyn Predium felt “very excited” and glad to go somewhere she has never been before. Jaelyn will be competing in the 60 meter dash emerging elite.     The other track and field athletes that will be attending this New Balance indoor meeting will be Zhane Smith in the girls long jump and triple jump, Zion Bowens and Aaron Shampklin in the 60 meter championship series, De’Varriea Oleas in the 60 meter hurdles, and Tariq Harness and DeAngelo Chester in the 60 meter emerging elite. Poly will be also represented by girls 4×800 and distance medley relay teams.

  • Baseball Takes Tough Loss

    Poly baseball played an away tournament March 3 hosted by Los Alamitos. They lost 8-7, but it was an overall good game.
    Junior Mike Mauai was selected Player of the Game. When asked about his thoughts on the game, junior outfielder Nolan Brown said, “It’s a good game to see where we are as a team.”
    Players were prepared for the game but did not come out with the win. Junior center fielder EJ Andrews said he prepared for the game by, “taking practice very seriously, working on my defense, and hitting.”
    The coach was preparing the team by working a lot on defense.
    Brown said coach was preparing them by “working on a lot of drills, and defense. Defense has been a big emphasis throughout the season.”
    Their defensive practice is showing in the games but their offense is not quite good enough.
    Andrews’ thoughts on the coach are that “he brings a lot of enthusiasm to the sport, he gets us pumped up for the game. His favorite saying is ‘practice makes perfect.’”
    All of the players practice every day. Senior catcher AJ Renteria said he prepares for games by “hitting every day, working out everyday, practicing hard everyday, [and] no days off.”
    The Poly Jackrabbits also played a home neutral tournament game against the Loara Saxons. Unfortunately, the Jackrabbits lost by a score of 2-1, but their good defense showed. Senior Jake Creamer was selected Player of the Game. The Jackrabbits have only played a few games, and now hold a 2-2 record. Poly is now third in the Moore League.

  • Softball Starts Off Rough

    Softball Starts Off Rough

     

    The Long Beach Poly softball team has started their season with a rough stretch with a 2-4 record. Against Tustin High School Poly won 8-2 and unfortunately St. Anthonys beat us in a 7-1 loss this past weekend.
    3 year varsity player and returning shortstop  Evelyn Sablan said, “our defense did a good job, we hit the ball hard but it wasn’t the outcome we were looking for.” The girls have been playing well but some teams are better than others, but that’s not a problem for our Lady Jackrabbits they are ready to face the Moore League teams and hope to win Moore League.
    Their next game is not until March 25 which gives the team time to practice harder and improve on their communication skills. Returning catcher, senior Crystal Cepeda says, “I’m looking forward to playing with the team after taking a year off and enjoying my last year playing softball as a senior.”
    Another key point is that the team needs to work together as two year returning varsity catcher Alexis Durand said “I’m looking forward to everyone playing together as a team, I think we can be better than last year if we put in enough hard work we can succeed.” The team has a lot of potential this upcoming season after moving players up from junior varsity. “There is a lot more talent on the team, which should lead to a Moore League title,” said senior Jaclyn Pangelinan.

  • Basketball’s Journey through CIF

    Basketball’s Journey through CIF

    Game of the Year: Long Beach Poly vs. Chino Hills

     

    After defeating Bishop Alemany on Friday, February 17, the Long Beach Poly Boy’s Basketball team was scheduled to play the popular Chino Hills.

    The Chino Hills Huskies are the number one ranked high school basketball team in MaxPreps, and are also even more famous for members of the team called the Ball Brothers. These are three actual brothers: Lonzo, Liangelo, and LaMelo Ball. Senior Liangelo Ball and sophomore Lamelo Ball are famous on Youtube channels such as Ballislife or BallerVisions which features basketball mixtapes for the best high school phenomenons in the nation.

    The team also features three other less known yet still great players, such as sophomore

    Onyeka Okongwu and senior Elizjah Scott who are cousins with the ball brothers. The key players on the Chino Hills team all stand over 6 foot, with Okongwu being the tallest at 6’9”. This puts Poly at a height disadvantage, and the rest of the factors also make them the underdog in the matchup.

    Poly certainly knew they came in as the underdog, and certainly had an immeasurable pressure coming in. With over 2,500 tickets sold, fans sitting in the stairways of the stands and even standing on the rails, it could be seen that people expected a lot from both of the teams.

    Starting from the tip-off, Poly fought their way through the whole game. For most of the first quarter, they stayed in the lead, capped off by a near half-court shot by junior Darryl Polk at the end of the first.

    Senior Zafir Williams’s layup is denied by Chino Hills sophomore Onyeka Okongwu.

    However, Chino Hills slowly started to pull away with the victory after the first quarter ended. Although sophomore Lamelo Ball was held scoreless, big men Scott and Okongwu always found a way to get the

    rebounds to either push the ball up court or put the ball back in the hoop. The two bigs combined for 17 offensive rebounds and combined for 51 points.

    Senior Zafir Williams continued to fight, and ended with 31 points and 16 rebounds. This didn’t prove to be enough, and with Poly missing easy layups and rebounds, they ended the night with a loss of 98-74. Poly will continue on to play Corona Centennial in the consolation bracket, and Chino Hills will go on to play Mater Dei in the CIF semifinals.

    Boys vs. Alemany

    Long Beach Poly Jackrabbits played a non-league playoff game hosted by the Alemany Warriors on Friday, February 17, at 7 P.M. This game was part of the CIF Southern Section 2017 Boys Basketball Championship – Open Division. The Jackrabbits defeated the Warriors with a score of 66-48. Poly dominated most of the game.

    In the first quarter they scored 17-6, in the second quarter they scored 18-7, in the third quarter they scored 18-21, and in the fourth quarter they scored 13-14. This upgraded the Jackrabbits overall record to 22-6 and the Warriors 24-4, and both teams still have 12-0 league records. Long Beach Poly ranks 83 Nationally, 19 in California, 11 in the Southern Section, 17 in Division 1, and 11 in Division 1AA.

    Girls vs. Alemany

    On Saturday, February 18, the girls basketball team defeated the visiting Brea Olinda, 61-33. It was a closely contested contest, until the second quarter where the Jackrabbits went on a 15-4 run.

    The scoring for the Jackrabbits was lead by senior Ayanna Clark who scored 15 points and also snagged 13 rebounds on the night. This win marks number 500 for Coach Carl Buggs. Coach Buggs was as cool as a cucumber the whole game, even when Poly entered the 2nd quarter tied. “There was no adjust- ments to make, you work all year so that in that moment you know who you are, just play Poly basketball,” said Coach Buggs.