College Tennis

Hancock/s protest upheld, loss to Cerritos turns into a win

The Hancock College women/s tennis team/s appeal was upheld, and the Bulldogs will play in the Southern California Regional Dual Team Tournament Final.

Hancock takes on the Cuesta-Grossmont winner for the regional title. The date, time and site are to be determined. Cuesta and Grossmont play at Irvine Valley College today. Grossmont is the defending state champion.

Hancock appealed its 5-4 loss to Cerritos in the second round of the regional on the basis that the Falcons did not play their lineup the way their ladder was listed. The California Community College Commission on Athletics (COA) upheld Hancock/s appeal. The match will go down in the books as a 5-4 Hancock win.

Hancock/s athletic department learned of the COA/s decision Wednesday night.

"Their alternate played at No. 4 singles, and they kept their bottom two players where they were," Hancock coach Ginny Barnett said in a phone interview from the Ojai Valley Tennis Club Tuesday night just after the match ended.

"They flip-flopped their No. 5 and No. 6 players," and that formed the base of the Bulldogs/ appeal. COA rules state that a player cannot play at a lower spot than he or she is listed on a team tennis ladder.

The official statement of closure, which State COA Commissioner of Athletics Joanne Fortunato released, according to a press release Hancock/s athletic department issued Wednesday evening, read:

"The Postconference Competition Committee met and reviewed all of the materials provided by Allan Hancock, Cerritos and Riverside Colleges.

"It was determined that Cerritos College violated COA Tennis Guide sections 6.3 B 3, 4, and 5. Therefore, the points awarded to the Number 4, 5 and 6 singles matches shall be awarded to Hancock College, resulting in a final score of Allan Hancock 5, Cerritos College 4."

The Bulldogs will participate in the COA State Southern Regional individual championships this weekend at Fullerton College. Hancock singles players Lori Valadez and Monica Krier, and the Bulldogs/ doubles teams of Valadez-Carlene Holst, Krier-Clairol Lozano and Carly Barnett-Amanda Urias all qualified.

Track & Field

Brown/s discus mark better than she knew

OCEANO 7 Stephanie Brown/s improvement last Saturday in her discus distance was even more significant than she first believed.

"I threw 59.19 meters," at a meet at La Jolla that day, she said by phone Wednesday night. "That/s 194-2 in feet." Brown had believed her toss was 192-5.

Brown/s best before last Saturday had been 189-9. Her 194-2 is the 20th best in the world among women discus throwers, according to the IAAF website. According to the list, her 194-2 moves her to third in the United States. She had been sixth.

The 194-2 put her 16th among individuals worldwide on the IAAF list.

Brown, who graduated from Arroyo Grande High and Cal Poly, has qualified for the United States Olympic Trials in the women/s shot put and discus.

Track & Field

Hershey/s Track & Field Meet

The City of Santa Maria Recreation and Parks Department will host the annual Hershey/s Track & Field Meet on Saturday, May 22 at Santa Maria High School, 901 South Broadway.

The event is free and is open to all girls and boys ages 9-14.

Youngsters will be allowed to compete in several track and field events.

Registration takes place at the Recreation and Parks Department by May 19.

For more information, please call 925-0951, ext. 260.

Baseball

Pitch, Hit and Run competition

The City of Santa Maria Recreation and Parks Department will host the Major League Baseball Pitch, Hit and Run Skills Competition on Saturday, May 1.

The event is free and is open to girls and boys ages 7-14.

It will be held at Elks Field, 600 South McClelland.

The top competitors will advance to the Oxnard Regional.

Registration takes place on site the day of the event.

For more information, please call 925-0951, ext. 260.

April 29, 2004