Local prep teams, athletes highlight 2024

By Joe Snyder

As the year 2024 ended at midnight on Wednesday, several local teams and athletes had outstanding showings.

It began with the boys’ and girls’ basketball season, led by the Gardena High girls’ basketball team which captured the CIF-Los Angeles City Section Division IV championship by routing South L.A. Fremont 54-12 in late February at El Camino College.

The Lady Panthers did it with a very young team, led by junior Lauren Tobin-Williams. Tobin-Williams, however, is not playing in her senior season for personal reasons. Gardena returns the rest of the team, including seniors Saniya Kenyes, Sanachya Hubbard and Isabella Sanchez but is off to a 4-8 start due to a rigid preseason schedule that includes some good CIF-Southern Section teams. At the San Pedro Tournament, Gardena showed improvement by sweeping three CIF-L.A. City teams in Bravo (47-22 on Dec. 18), South Gate South East (31-28 on Dec. 19) and Hollywood Bernstein (37-24 on Dec. 20) before falling to Compton Dominguez (56-35) on Dec. 21. 

Gardena lost in the first round of the Southern California Regional Division V playoffs to host La Mirada 55-35 last season.

Serra High’s boys’ basketball team, under head coach Bernard McCrumby’s final season, finished fourth in the rigid Del Rey League, but made the CIF-Southern Section Division IIIAA semifinals before falling to Ventura St. Bonaventure 77-74. The Cavaliers managed to make the Southern California Regional playoffs but lost in the first round to host Thousand Oaks 73-53. Serra was led by sophomore Maximo Adams, a junior who is now at Sierra Canyon in Chatsworth.

Shortly after the season last spring, McCrumby stepped down and is currently head coach at one of Serra’s top Del Rey rivals in Playa del Rey St. Bernard. In June, he was replaced by Derrick Taylor, but, in a few weeks, Taylor stepped down and by September, the Cavaliers went with De John Frazier. The Cavaliers are currently 7-3 winning their first two games of the South Pasadena Tournament over Hollywood 81-40 last Thursday and Sylmar 69-64 on Friday.

North Torrance High’s girls’ basketball team swept the Pioneer League at 12-0. The Lady Saxons lost in the CIF-Southern Section Division I quarterfinals to Corona Santiago.

North is currently 7-4 and moved, along with cross town rival West, in the Bay League with the likes of current league power Redondo and Manhattan Beach Mira Costa. 

The Saxon boys, who made the CIF-Division VAA finals in the 2022-23 season, were tri-Pioneer League champions. They were eliminated in the CIF-Southern Section Division IIIA quarterfinals by Irvine Woodbridge. North is rebuilding some but displays a 7-7 record after opening the South Pasadena Tournament with a 58-29 rout of Pasadena Muir last Thursday.

Gardena High’s boys’ basketball team won the Marine League title but was eliminated in the CIF-Los Angeles City Section Division I playoffs by Fairfax. This year, the lesser experienced Panthers are 5-8 after going 1-3 in the Faith Baptist Tournament but winning the final game over Littlerock 34-29.

Track and field highlighted the spring and, of course, it was Serra, behind CIF-Southern Section Division IV and California state qualifiers in sprinter Mia Flowers and hurdler Otis “Tre” Harrison. 

Gardena had a CIF-L.A. City Section champion in the 110-meter-high hurdles in Jaelin Sparks, timing 39.51. 

Serra High’s football team was hoping for big things after, in late June, winning the highly prestigious St. John Bosco Passing Tournament by stunning national power and the host Braves 22-7.

In the real season with its linemen and full football uniforms, the Cavaliers finished the season at 9-3 after getting upset by host Yorba Linda 24-20 in the CIF-Southern Section Division II quarterfinals after being then playoffs’ No. 3 seed. Serra finished second behind Division I team Chatsworth Sierra Canyon in the Mission League, losing its regular season finale to the Trailblazers at home 21-20. The Cavaliers continued to have several players sign at NCAA Division I universities.

Perhaps the big happening was that four Marine League football teams — Gardena, Wilmington Banning, Carson and San Pedro, opted to boycott and forfeit league games to Harbor City Narbonne, due to a rash of reported recruiting violations. In a season marred by a combined total of seven forfeits (four wins and three losses), the Gauchos entered the CIF-L.A. City Section Open Division playoffs and went on to rout Marine rival San Pedro 75-31 for the championship on Nov. 29. A week later with numerous players ineligible to play, Narbonne finally met its match in a 37-20 loss to host and CIF-Southern Section Division IV Southern California Regional Division IIAA Bowl championship to host Pacifica High in Oxnard. Narbonne was plagued by numerous mistakes by its special teams in the loss. The Gauchos will be ineligible for postseason next fall.

Gardena finished only fourth, just ahead of Banning, in the Marine League but played in the L.A. City Section Open Division where it lost to host Birmingham 42-19 on Nov. 15 in Lake Balboa. For the Patriots, it was their 48^th consecutive win against an L.A. City school but they had their streak ended by Narbonne 28-7 a week later.

For the second straight time, North Torrance won the Pioneer League at 5-0 including impressive wins over second place Redondo and third place Torrance, led by all-around player Jake Silverman. The Saxons were led by co-Pioneer League Players of the Year in sophomore brothers, quarterback Boogie and wide receiver Kingston Anetema. North was moved up to CIF-Southern Section Division III and found it too difficult in a 24-0 first round loss to host and eventual Southern Section and CIF-State Division IA champion Edison High in Huntington Beach.

The Tartars also lost in the first round of the CIF-Southern Section Division V playoffs to host Summit 37-7 on Nov. 8 in Fontana. Palos Verdes went on to win the division over Santa Ana Foothill and the CIF-State Division IIA title over Twelve Bridges from the Sacramento area. 

Redondo lost in the Southern Section Division IV quarterfinals to host St. Bonaventure 34-20 on Nov. 15 at Ventura College.

Currently, boys’ and girls’ basketball, boys’ and girls’ soccer, and boys’ and girls’ wrestling are here. We will see how our local teams are doing.

I want to wish you all a Happy New Year.