Game blogging: No.2 Westlake Village Oaks Christian at Mission Hills Alemany

With the observations solely confined to a summer seven-on-seven scrimmage void of running plays, Oaks Christian Coach Bill Redell still noticed the capabilities of Alemany senior running back Malcolm Marable.

“They got speed, quickness and a running back who can catch the football,” Redell said. “You can tell how quick he is.”

And that was only a glimpse. He’ll see the complete picture tonight at 7:30 when the Lions visit Alemany, a matchup that will be aired on Prime Ticket.

The Oregon-State bound Marable ran for 1,655 yards and 23 touchdowns last season, plays at free safety and as Coach Dean Herrington told The Times’ Ben Bolch, is "probably the most underrated football player in Southern California.”

Marable is expected to have a showdown with Oaks Christian running back Malcolm Jones. He is coming off a junior season in which he had 34 touchdowns and averaged 10.1 yards per game.

What kind of offense should we expect from the Lions, the defending Northwest Division champions and victors of 21 consecutive games?

North Texas middle school football player dies day after practicing in heat

A 13-year-old middle-school football player in Vernon, Texas, died the morning after practicing in triple-digit heat, the Associated Press reports.

Officials said a toxicology report will determine if the cause of death was heat-related, but foul play has been ruled out. The boy was pronounced dead at a hospital Tuesday.

Vernon schools Superintendent Tom Woody told the AP that practice lasted about an hour Monday afternoon. The temperature was about 105 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

-- Mark Medina

Study: Football injuries more common in the middle of games

Injuries in high school football happen most frequently during the middle of games, according to a study by the Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital.

The study examined data obtained from the 2006 National High School Sports Injury Surveillance Study, and found that 54% of injuries occur during the middle of a game. The end of the game, including overtime, and its beginning accounted for 30% and 16% of injuries, respectively.

Though injuries are not as frequent at the beginning of games, the study found that injuries are the most severe in the beginning and middle of games.

-- Mark Medina

Dana Hills can make claim to No. 1 more than anyone else

Dana Hills won more Southern Section team titles than anyone else during the 2008-09 school year, with the Dolphins capturing four championships in Division I: girls' tennis, boys' and girls' cross-country and boys' track.

Cerritos, Gardena Serra, Sultana and Thousand Oaks tied for second with three team titles apiece.

--Ben Bolch

Media: Who owns the rights to high school athletic events?

A federal court case stemming from a Wisconsin newspaper's decision to run a live Webcast of a football playoff game is pitting the oldest state athletic association in the country against the oldest newspaper association.

At issue are the rights to high school athletic events, and it appears a Madison, Wis., judge will have the final say. The case is scheduled to go to trial Feb. 8 and is expected to be monitored closely by other high school athletic associations around the country.

The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Assn. contends that The-Post Crescent of Appleton, Wis., broke its media policies when it Webcast a state quarterfinal playoff game in November. The WIAA says it owns the rights to the Web stream because it organizes, supervises and sponsors tournaments.

The Wisconsin Newspaper Assn. contends that the WIAA does not own the rights to events.

"They don't own a commodity to sell, market or otherwise control," Don Craven, an attorney who helped the Illinois Press Assn. settle a photo rights issue in 2007, told Associated Press. "They should put on a very nice tournament and get out of the news business."

--Ben Bolch

Softball: Saturday scores

SOUTHERN SECTION
MOJAVE RIVER LEAGUE
Rim of the World 4, Serrano 2

INTERSECTIONAL
Palisades 11, Malibu 6

TOURNAMENTS
EL SEGUNDO TOURNAMENT
El Segundo 3, Santa Monica 0 (championship)
Placentia Valencia 7, Bishop Montgomery 1 (third)
San Pedro 6, Westchester 4 (fifth)
Marymount 1, Wilmington Banning 0 (seventh)
West Torrance 2, Mary Star 1 (ninth)
Culver City 9, Gardena Serra 5 (11th)

Baseball: Friday scores

CITY
EAST VALLEY LEAGUE
Verdugo Hills 23, Van Nuys 1

VALLEY MISSION LEAGUE
Granada Hills Kennedy 16, Reseda 0
Sylmar 6, Monroe 5

WEST VALLEY LEAGUE
Chatswoirth 13, Taft 2
Cleveland 13, Birmingham 2
El Camino Real 6, Granada Hills 0

SOUTHERN SECTION
ACADEMY LEAGUE
Capistrano Valley Christian 11, Whitney 3
Oxford Academy 10, St. Margaret's 5
Sage Hill 9, Brethren Christian 2

AGAPE LEAGUE
Hesperia Christian 18, Lancaster Bethel Christian 2
Victor Valley Christian 4, Apple Valley Christian 1

ALMONT LEAGUE
Bell Gardens 2, Montebello 0
Schurr 5, San Gabriel 4

Softball: Wednesday scores

CITY
EAST VALLEY LEAGUE
Grant 13, Verdugo Hills 2

WEST VALLEY LEAGUE
Chatsworth 11, Birmingham 5
El Camino Real 20, Cleveland 6

WESTERN LEAGUE
Westchester 15, Los Angeles University 1

SOUTHERN SECTION
BAY LEAGUE
Palos Verdes 30, Leuzinger 0
Peninsula 6, Mira Costa 4
Redondo 8, West Torrance 3

Softball: Monday scores

SOUTHERN SECTION
COAST VALLEY LEAGUE
Santa Maria Valley Christian 6, Shandon 3

DEL REY LEAGUE
Lakewood St. Joseph 5, Bishop Amat 2

MISSION LEAGUE
Flintridge Sacred Heart 4, Alemany 3

NONLEAGUE
Ramona Convent 14, Providence 0
Valley View 2, Miller 1

TOURNAMENTS
LAS VEGAS CENTENNIAL TOURNAMENT
Pool Play

Indiana girl sues for chance to play baseball

The Indiana High School Athletic Assn. doesn't allow girls to try out for the high school baseball team if their school has a softball team, so 14-year-old Logan Young has filed a federal lawsuit  after she was prohibited from trying out for the baseball team at Bloomington South High.

"In this day and age, a girl should have the opportunity to participate on an equal footing with the boys in high school sports, and the IHSAA precludes that," Tae Sture, one of the family's attorneys, said Monday.

-- Eric Sondheimer