Prep Preview and Report

Oops. . .CIF Scraps Releaguing Plan for O.C.--(10/22/97)

If you recall, the Orange County Register on October 7 reported that Mater Dei and Santa Margarita, two of the top high school athletic programs in Orange County, had previously agreed to compete as independents in most team sports for the 1998-2000 school years, as a part of a major redistricting of the Southern Section for Orange County planned to accomodate major changes in the ways schools competed through the year 2001.

Well, yesterday, the CIF Southern Section Council voted, 34-24, to scrap the entire plan which had been in the works since January. Instead the Council voted to support Esperanza High's appeal of its placement in the Sunset League, which had the effect of vetoing the entire proposal.

There are 72 leagues in the Southern Section, and there has to be approval by a majority to approve a releaguing proposal. The proposal which was defeated Tuesday had been approved in March by an executive committee after a series of meetings, and had recently been amended by compromise to place Mater Dei and Santa Margarita Highs as "independents" in several sports and granting Marina's request to remain in the Sunset and not join the Pacific Coast League. The effect of the releaguing proposal would have allowed public schools and private schools to compete together in league play, and would have reduced travel costs for some of the smaller private schools who up until now have had to travel great distances to play other private schools of similar enrollments.

It looks like the public-private school competition controversy was the galvanizing force in the defeat of the proposal. The Times O.C. edition today quoted Newport Harbor Principal Bob Boies, who represented Tustin High at previous releaguing meetings, as saying that Newport has one pressing concern as the process resumes. "Our primary objective is to make sure Santa Margarita (scheduled to leave the Sea View) stays in the South Coast League," Boies said. "That's the big issue as far as Newport Harbor is concerned. Other than that, nothing really matters much to our athletic program, though it will force us to scramble to get our schedules done once everything is settled."

Section Commissioner Dean Crowley was quoted by the Times as saying that the time span of the next releaguing proposal, and, to a certain extent, the placement and status of parochial powers Mater Dei and Santa Margarita, is now left to the discretion of county principals. "To a degree it does (change the two-year pilot program involving Mater Dei and Santa Margarita)," Crowley told the Times. "I expect to have an announcement in the next 10 days from the Catholic Athletic Association about how that all might work."

Oh well, back to the drawing board.

 

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