Stewart’s Spirit Plays On

Newport Harbor High won a Southern Section football title last year, but there weren’t any Sailors in the Orange County North-South All-Star game Friday.

Not physically, anyway.

Andre Stewart, who died May 14 in a car accident, was there in spirit.

“He’s in the game with me,” said Santa Margarita running back Jimmy Herzog, who wrote Stewart’s number, 2, on the back of his helmet. “A lot of guys are thinking about him.”

Stewart was the only Newport Harbor player who agreed to participate in the game, according to Scott Orloff, who coached the South team that lost to the North, 13-7. Lineman Blair Jones and defensive back Billy Clayton turned down the opportunity before Stewart’s death.

Jones accepted a scholarship to play at USC and Clayton accepted a volleyball scholarship to Stanford.

The Brea Lions Club, the host organization, presented Stewart’s mother, Sonja William, with what would have been her son’s game jersey.

* Esperanza wide receiver Ryan Murray, who leaves this month for Penn to attend the Wharton School of Business and play football, had an all-star game to remember.

“This is definitely one of the biggest games I’ve ever played,” said Murray, who caught five passes for 69 yards. “It meant the world to me.”

He played like it, wowing the crowd twice, with a one-handed sideline catch, and with an over-the-shoulder grab while being pulled down from behind.

* Los Alamitos kicker Chris Kluwe has been a good luck charm for all-star teams this summer. The UCLA-bound player connected on a last-second, game-winning 50-yard field goal that lifted California over Texas in the Shrine Game in June, then made two more field goals that proved to be the difference in the North’s victory over the South on Friday.

Kluwe gets a chance to complete the hat trick at 7 p.m. Saturday when he plays for a California team that takes on Florida in the first-ever CaliFlorida All-Star Game at the Rose Bowl.

Kluwe is joined on the California roster by Mater Dei defensive back Matt Grootegoed (USC), Servite offensive lineman Joe McGuire (Servite) and Santa Margarita wide receiver Chris Rix (Santa Margarita).

NICE GESTURE

Rix’s family sponsored one child to participate in former Ram quarterback Vince Ferragamo’s football camp this summer in the name of Stewart and Scotty Lang of Fountain Valley, county football players who died this year.

Stewart’s and Lang’s parents will be honorary captains for Saturday’s CaliFlorida All-Star Game.

BANNER YEAR

Foothill, the Southern Section softball champion in Division I, had three players named to the 2000 Louisville Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Assn. High School All-American team last week.

“We’ve never had more than one All-American in a year, and this year we have three first teamers--that’s pretty impressive,” said Coach Joe Gonzalez, whose past first-team selections were Michelle Churnock, Lauren Bauer twice, and Jaime Clark.

In addition to junior pitcher Courtney Fossatti, junior second baseman Erin Mobley, and freshman outfielder Caitlin Lowe, the Knights also had one player named to the second team, sophomore outfielder Autumn Champion. The team’s only senior starter, outfielder Amber Dragomir, was a second-team Western Region selection.

BAROMETER TIME

The San Diego Classic is traditionally the key high school girls’ basketball tournament of the summer and is scouted by many college coaches. This year, there are 240 varsity teams participating in an upper and lower varsity division, and another 48 junior varsity teams. Pool play is Thursday and Friday, and bracket play is Saturday and Sunday. The best games will be at UC San Diego.

The 112-team 3-A tournament, featuring the best varsity teams, includes Troy, Brea Olinda, Irvine, Rosary, San Clemente, Woodbridge, Capistrano Valley, Westminster and Pacifica.

“If you do well in that tournament, it’s a positive indicator and it’s a good way to wrap up your summer,” said Laguna Hills Coach Jim Martin, whose team finished second in the varsity 2-A division last year, then went on to post upsets over two seeded teams in the Southern Section playoffs and win the county’s only title, in Division II-A.

Brea Olinda, which won the Division II state title last season, finished seventh in last year’s tournament without post players Chelsea Trotter and Jill Trader.

“It’s a lot of games in a short period of time, and the competition level is extremely high,” said Brea’s associate head coach, Roger Anderson. “You learn how the players play in big games.”

A SILVER LINING

Laura Kroneberger of Los Alamitos, Becky Green of Marina and Kristina Baum of La Habra were members of the Cal Jr. Volleyball Club’s 16-S team that won a silver medal at the recent Junior Nationals in Louisville, Ky.

The 18-E team, which included Fountain Valley graduate Liz Hudson of San Jose State, Jenny Habben of La Habra, Amy Sarkaria of Villa Park and Sara Kroneberger of Los Alamitos, finished fifth. Hudson earned 18-Club All-American honors.

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Staff writer Ben Bolch contributed to this report.

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