academy league preview

The Academy League has been slightly reconfigured this year in anticipation of a complete releaguing process in a year. Fairmont Prep and St. Michael's Prep have left the league to join the new San Joaquin League (which features a number of small, D-VA schools, some of which were formerly freelance, i.e., not members of any league, including Acaciawood, Connolly, Fairmont Prep, Saddleback Valley Christian, St. Michaels' Prep and Tarbut v' Torah, mostly from Orange County).

The Academy League picks up Brethren Christian, Oxford Academy, and Sage Hill, a new school which is just competing for the first year in varsity sports. The league should once again be dominated by Calvary Chapel Downey, the defending CIF-SS Division V-AA Section Champions (the previous season, CCD was runner-up to LB St. Anthony). We're not aware of any key or "marquee-quality" players on any of the other teams in the league besides the established names at CCD like Tim Drisdom, who has committed to Utah or Jonathan James, Cameron Grider, or up-and-coming young player Ralph Miley. In other words, from where we're sitting right now, it looks to us like CCD will once again take the league title . . . but then you never know. We have little information on some of these teams, but where we do have it, we've posted it. Schedules and partial rosters listed below, in order of league finish from last season, where applicable.

Update 11/27/01: The Long Beach Press Telegram's "Prep Sports" section (also a website) featured it's boys' basketball prep previews today and yesterday (11/26 & 11/27), and among the leagues and teams featured was a brief rundown by staff writers James Melroy and Ted Kian on the Academy League as a whole. It's not much different from our view (above), but it does provide a closer look at a few of the teams where we were lacking information (er, sort of):

Academy League	Academy League Schedules
Calvary Chapel, Downey--8-0, 22-4 (1st) "Grizzlies" Returning players should include: Tim Drisdom 6'-4" Sr. G (committed to Utah) Patrick Fitzgerald 6'-3" Jr. G David Grace 6'-4" Sr. G Cameron Grider 6'-3" Sr. F Jonathon James 5'-11" Sr. G Matt Henderson 6'-5" Sr. F Ralph Miley 6'-0" So. G Andrew Mackvanderham 6'-3" Sr. F Daniel Or 6'-0" Sr. G Deshon Shuler 5'-10" Sr. G The defending CIF-SS V-AA champions graduated only 3 seniors from last year, and the core of the team returns. We do want to dispel one rumor we've heard, and that is that St. Anthony's guard Lauren Brown 6'-1" Sr. PG, has apparently NOT transferred to CCD, despite rumors to the contray (our info comes from CCD coach Mark Berokoff, and he ought to know). CCD will, in our view, continue to dominate the league, and the only unknown right now is how they will do against bigger and stronger competition, particularly if the CIF makes the playoff revisions and moves CCD into IV-A as is expected. CCD's schedule is certainly ambitious outside of league competition. One note: The CIF schedule shows CCD playing Mater Dei on Nov. 28, and according to Coach Berokoff, that game was planned, but Mater Dei later found out that they were committed the same day to the "Glendora Triple Crown Challenge", a one-day series of three consecutive games, in which MD is scheduled to play Claremont (now that's a great matchup!). As a result, CCD may have an open game. CCD will also play at the Las Vegas Holiday Prep Classic, and we'd expect to see them in the Gold Bracket, the toughest of the 4 separate 16 team brackets given the talent on the team this year.	Calvary Chapel/Downey Coach: Mark Berokoff N 28 @ Mater Dei (NOTE: Not scheduled) D 5-8 @ Glendora Tourn 10-14 @ Calvary Chapel/D Tourn 15 Dorsey (Cal. Best Invitational) 18 @ Calvary Chapel/SA 20-22 @ Las Vegas,NV Tourn J 02 @ Bishop Montgomery 08 @ Sage Hill 11 St Margaret’s 15 @ Oxford Academy 18 Brethren Christian 19 Chadwick 22 @ Capistrano Valley Chr 25 Sage Hill 29 @ St Margaret’s F 01 Oxford Academy 05 @ Brethren Christian 07 Capistrano Valley Chr
St. Margaret's--6-2, 14-10 (2nd) "Tartans" St. Margaret's graduatged 6 seniors from an 11 man roster, and unless they have some really good players coming up from their JV team or some outstanding transfers, it will be difficult to duplicate their 6-2 league finish. Here's who should be on the roster: Scott Boeckmann 5'-11" Sr. G Paul Janczyk 6'-4" So. G/F Scott McEwan 6'-2" Sr. G John Chrispens 6'-3" Jr. F/G Scott Janczyk 6'-3" Sr. C	St. Margaret’s Coach: Todd Johnson N 27 @ Orangewood Academy D 6-8 @ La Jolla Co Tourn 12 Whittier Christian 14 TBA 19 St Anthony 26-29 @ St Anthony Tourn J 04 @ Oxford Academy 05 Eastside Christian 08 @ Brethren Christian 11 @ Calvary Chapel/D 15 Sage Hill 18 Capistrano Valley Chr 25 Brethren Christian 29 Calvary Chapel/D F 01 @ Sage Hill 05 @ Capistrano Valley Chr 07 Oxford Academy
*Fairmont Prep--2-5, 12-7 (4th)**	See new San Joaquin League for schedule
Capistrano Valley Christian--3-5, 11-9 (3rd) "Eagles" CVC graduated 6 seniors from last year's roster, close to half the team from last season, so this will be a rebuilding year of sorts. CVC's returning players should include: Matt Wild 6'-1" Jr. G Sean Reynolds 5'-10" Jr. G Ross Skinner 6'-2"Jr. G Alex Yuhasz 5'-11" Jr. G Scott Huband 6'-2" Jr. F Katsu Durst 6'-2" Jr. G Jeff Lewis 6'-4' Jr. F Jon Wardwell 6'-2" Jr. F	Capistrano Valley Christian Coach: TBA N 27 @ Fairmont 29 Calvary Chapel/M D 01 @ Linfield 5-8 @ La Jolla Co Tourn 11 @ Tri-City Christian 14 @ Whittier Christian 20 Baptist Christian/H J 08 Oxford Academy 11 @ Sage Hill 15 Brethren Christian 18 @ St Margaret’s 22 Calvary Chapel/D 24 @ Oxford Academy 29 Sage Hill F 01 @ Brethren Christian 05 St Margaret’s 07 @ *Calvary Chapel/D
Sage Hill--New school as of 2001-2002 season We have no roster information at this time.	Sage Hill Coach: Gordon Mc Neil N 26-30 @ Garden Grove Tourn D 05 Garden Grove 10-14 Tarbut V’Torah Tourn 18 Tesoro 20 Saddleback Valley Chr 21 Century J 04 Whitney 08 Calvary Chapel/D 11 Capistrano Valley Chr 15 @ St Margaret’s 17 Oxford Academy 22 @ Brethren Christian 25 @ Calvary Chapel/D 29 @ Capistrano Valley Chr F 01 St Margaret’s 04 @ Oxford Academy 07 Brethren Christian
Brethren Christian--new to league No roster information available.	Brethren Christian Coach: Jon Bahnsen N-27/D-1 Brethren Tourn D 02 Delphi Academy 07 Grace Brethren 18-20 @ Oaks Christian Tourn 27-29 @ Valley Chr/Sm Tourn J 04 Oaks Christian 08 St Margaret’s 11 Oxford Academy 12 @ Whittier Christian 15 @ Capistrano Valley Chr 18 @ Calvary Chapel/D 22 Sage Hill 25 @ St Margaret’s 30 @ Oxford Academy F 01 Capistrano Valley Chr 05 Calvary Chapel/D 07 @ Sage Hill
Oxford Academy roster information not available	Oxford Academy Coach: David Clifton N-26/D-1 @ BC Hooptime Invite 03 Fairmont Prep 04 Tarbut V’Torah 12 Century (JV) 14 @ Acaciawood Prep 17-22 @ Garden Grove Tourn J 03 @ Orangewood Academy 04 St Margaret’s 08 @ Capistrano Valley Chr 11 @ Brethren Christian 16 Calvary Chapel/D 17 @ Sage Hill 25 Capistrano Valley Chr 30 Brethren Christian F 01 @ Calvary Chapel/D 04 Sage Hill 07 @ St Margaret’s