Twists of fate ... er, ankles

Palos Verdes senior tailback Robert Gregorio and St. John Bosco junior receiver Will Shamburger each left their teams' games with right-ankle injuries during the third quarter Friday night.

Shamburger was helped off the field of the Braves' game against Servite with a sprained ankle and spent the rest of the night perched atop a sideline medical table, his foot and lower leg wrapped in ice bags.

He could not help the Braves in their 31-13 Trinity League loss to Servite, but Shamburger still hopes to play in the team's next game against Santa Margarita.

Taft promises to show up against Birmingham

After a dispiriting 21-point loss to Banning on Sept. 28, Taft Coach Matt Kerstetter rallied his team with a simple plan: Make the season-ending game against Birmingham meaningful.

To do that, Taft had to get on a roll. The Toreadors (7-2, 4-0)  have won five games in a row, including Friday's 28-12 victory over Chatsworth. So Taft and Birmingham (8-1, 4-0) will decide the West Valley League champion this week.

Kerstetter doesn't minimize the challenge Taft has in hosting the Patriots. "I've told people all season [Birmingham] is the best City team I have seen in my seven years here," he said. "They've rolled up every City team they've played. I swear they are the high school version of the New England Patriots.

"Offensively and defensively we have to minimize our mistakes to be in the game. This is the first taste many of our kids will get of the Birmingham rivalry game. We'll try to approach it like every other game. But I know it's asking a lot to think some of our kids won't get caught up in that."

-- Mike Terry

-- Image from www.taftfootball.com

Congrats to St. John Bosco cross-country

During halftime of the football team between St. John Bosco and Servite on Friday night, the Braves' boys' cross-country team was recognized with an announcement that it had won the Trinity League championship earlier that day.

It was safe to say there was no sophomore jinx. Really. Four of the Braves' top six runners are sophomores. They have stepped in nicely to fill a void left by the graduation of three of St. John Bosco's top five from last year's team that won the Southern Section Division II championship.

The Braves' latest league title run was led by Mario Flores and Carlos Martinez, sophomores returning from last year's team who finished third and fifth, respectively, in Friday's meet at Central Park in Huntington Beach. These guys, it seems, don't just set the pace. They're setting a standard. And the Braves lived up to it.

-- Lauren Peterson

-- Image from www.littleextrasdiecuts.com

The Bulldog Way, The Ayala Code

The Bulldog Way: It's how you treat people.

The Ayala Code: It's the way Ayala plays. The last part of the code is to finish strong.

"And we've been finishing our games," Ayala Coach Tom Inglima said.

Their finishing touch came up short against Glendora on Friday, as the Bulldogs lost, 24-17. But the loss doesn't lessen the accomplishments of the season, Inglima said.

"This kids are disappointed right now, but I'm not at all. I'm very proud of the way they played," he added.

Palos Verdes builds its case in the Bay League

Palos Verdes is establishing itself as a force in the Bay League.

The Sea Kings are tied for first place with Redondo after a 35-16 victory over the visiting Sea Hawks on Friday night. Check out the Daily Breeze account of how it happened.

Palos Verdes (6-2-1, 3-1) has won six of its last seven games to move to the top of the league standings after beating 2005 league co-champion Mira Costa, 2006 champion West Torrance and this year's co-leader Redondo in the last three weeks since a 9-7 loss to Leuzinger.

Next week, the Sea Kings get a shot at 2004 league champion and 2005 co-champion Peninsula (4-5, 2-2).

-- Lauren Peterson

Unbeaten, untied...unnoticed?

For an example of the direct correlation between a team's strength of schedule and its rankings and recognition -- or lack thereof -- just look at Redlands East Valley and Culver City.

Redlands East Valley (9-0) is a top-five team in the Southland and the state. Has been almost all season, thanks to early victories over Riverside North and Dominguez, currently ranked No. 12 and No. 14, respectively, in the Southland by The Times, along with decisions over well-regarded Colton and Miller.

Culver City (9-0) beat all the teams it should have, and responded to anticipated challenges from Crenshaw, Redondo and Santa Monica along the way, but all their opponents are unranked by The Times, and the Centaurs just climbed into our top 25 last week.

Carson vs. Banningm -- once again, with feeling

The Banning-Carson rivalry game always has meaning no matter where the teams are in the standings.

But Thursday's season finale at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach has the added spice of the Marine League title being on the line. Banning (8-1, 3-1) is the last team that can derail Carson (7-2, 4-0) in league play. But if Carson wins, rest assured the Colts will expect a No. 2 seeding (or no worse than a No. 3) when the City playoff berths are decided upon next Saturday.

Have Garfield Bulldogs dug a hole they can't climb out of?

In the span of two weeks, Garfield (6-3, 3-2) has gone from looking like an Invitational Division title contender to looking like a team in trouble.

Take nothing away from Roosevelt (5-4, 2-3), which outplayed Garfield on Friday to earn a 23-15 victory in the 73rd East L.A. Classic. But in the last two weeks, both Jordan and Roosevelt have reduced the Bulldogs to a one-dimensional running team on offense. And if the Bulldogs can't run, they struggle trying to pass.

On defense, Garfield has been unable to stop the pass. Jordan quarterback James Boyd threw for 283 yards on Oct. 26, and Roosevelt quarterback Jesse Diaz passed for 286 yards on Friday.

A loss isn't always a bad thing, really

So we were talking Friday night in the press box at Santa Ana Stadium after Orange Lutheran's impressive 31-12 victory over Mater Dei. It was mentioned that losses aren't always a bad thing for a football team. And that's true. A loss can often point a team in the right direction, show what it needs to work on, and pay huge dividends down the road. 

Lutheran last season had its Servite. An overtime loss, and then the Lancers went on to win the Pac-5 championship and Division II state bowl game in impressive fashion.

No bad back here

Morgan Fennell struggled earlier this season with back spasms and stiffness that caused him to miss one game and sit out part of another one, but Friday he proved strong enough to help carry Long Beach Poly to a victory over previously unbeaten Compton. Here's the Long Beach Press-Telegram story.

Poly Coach Raul Lara has been high on Fennell all season, and against Compton the junior quarterback showed why with an efficient performance in which he completed 12 of 14 passes for 170 yards and two touchdowns.

After seeing Fennell sit out, and watching the Jackrabbits' early-season struggles on offense, it's got to be gratifying for all concerned to have a breakout performance in a big game.

- Lauren Peterson