State Stat Stars of the Week

This is the cover illustration from the seventh edition of the Cal-Hi Sports State Record Book. Fresno Christian’s Jenna Weimer has qualified for the book for outing in softball.

As has been customary for many years, we collect the state stat stars in support of the Cal-Hi Sports State Record Book & Almanac. The book has been published seven times (the most recent, though, was 2009) and is as official as a state record book can be since no other exists. To report a State Stat Star of the Week of your own, please email details to markjtennis@gmail.com.

Note: Many baseball, softball, boys and girls basketball state record updates are part of our Gold Club membership. To join our Gold Club today, please CLICK HERE.

(Mostly for games played March 18-March 22 but including some from this week; thanks to CIF Central Section historian Bob Barnett for continued contributions to this feature and to the state record book.)

BOYS BASKETBALL

Stanley Johnson (Mater Dei, Santa Ana)
The Monarchs had some close calls to reach the CIF Open Division state championship game, including a 67-64 win in double overtime against Etiwanda in the SoCal Open Division semifinals, and they needed every one of Super Stanley’s 38 points and 14 rebounds. He is averaging 25 points and eight rebounds per game and hopes to conclude his prep career on Saturday with a fourth straight CIF state title.

Michael Oguine (Chaminade, West Hills)
He is just a junior so there is plenty of time for him to make more memories, but his performance in the CIF SoCal Division III finals will be one no one will be forgetting as he scored 18 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter and hit a long 3-pointer as time expired for a 53-52 win over Santa Margarita. Oguine is usually not Chaminade’s leading scorer, either. That is normally UCSB-bound Jack Williams.

Elijah Stewart (Westchester, Los Angeles)
With a trip to the CIF SoCal Open Division finals on the line, Stewart fired in 30 points during a 76-67 win over Redondo of Redondo Beach.

Tyler Dorsey had a 30-point game last week for St. John Bosco. Photo: Ronnie Flores.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Cheyenne Greenhouse (Canyon Springs, Moreno Valley)
With a trip to the CIF Division I state championship on the line, this San Diego State-bound standout scored a game-high 27 points as the Cougars defeated Alemany of Mission Hills 66-51.

Devin Stanback (Chaminade, West Hills)
Scoring 27 points and grabbing nine rebounds, Stanback was just shy of a double-double during the Eagles’ 67-50 win over West Torrance in the CIF SoCal Division II championship game. Stanback comes from one of the top basketball families in recent San Fernando Valley history.

BASEBALL

Cameron Bondy (Laguna Hills)
An easy choice to lead off the baseball section this week is Bondy. He pitched a complete game during a 2-1 win over Centennial of Compton with 16 strikeouts while at the plate he went a perfect 3-for-3 with the game-winning RBI.

Andrew Najeeb-Brush (Wilcox, Santa Clara)
With no room for error, he didn’t allow a hit and stuck out 11 during a 1-0 win over Palo Alto in SCVAL De Anza Division action. Najeeb-Brush followed up his no-hitter with two hitless innings to get a save during a 7-3 win over Palo Alto.

A.J. Dean (Wilson, Long Beach)
In a game that saw both teams get outstanding pitching performances, Dean pitched eight scoreless innings during a 1-0 win in 12 innings over Agoura. Max Cauble eventually got the game-winning walk-off single for the Bruins.

Chris Bencoma (El Diamante, Visalia)
He threw a seven-inning no-hitter with 13 strikeouts, including five of the last six batters in the game, to lead the Miners past city rival Mt. Whitney.

Brandon Ponticelli (Alemany, Mission Hills)
Getting the nod to start in their Mission League opener at Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks, he pitched a complete game shutout while striking out 12 and allowing just two hits during a 2-0 win.

Jack Owen (JSerra Catholic, San Juan Capistrano)
Despite being just a freshman, Owen got the start in the Lions’ game at Angel Stadium last week against Servite of Anaheim and pitched six scoreless innings. He struck out eight before his team scored a run in the 7th inning for a 1-0 win over the Friars.

Nick Sprengel (El Dorado, Placentia)
Facing off against undefeated Esperanza of Anaheim, he handed the Aztecs their first loss of the season with 12 strikeouts in a 6-0 win by the Golden Hawks. Sprengel also is just a junior so watch out for him the rest of this season and next.

Tommy Palomera (Chatsworth)
It’s hard to imagine a freshman starting off his high school career much better then this youngster (or JSerra’s Jack Owen) as he pitched five no-hit innings during a 10-1 win over La Salle in the championship game of the Babe Herman tournament. For the season, Palomera has thrown 19 scoreless innings.

Scott Hurst (Bishop Amat, La Puente)
Putting a hurt on the baseball, he had a big bases-loaded clearing double in the eighth inning and finished with five runs batted in during the Lancers’ 6-3 win over San Fernando.

Kris Bubic (Archbishop Mitty, San Jose)
Striking out 11, he allowed just one run during 5 2/3 innings of a 5-1 win over Bellarmine Prep of San Jose. Bellarmine started the season 8-0, which makes the outing more impressive.

Jakson Simonsgaard (Thousand Oaks)
Guarding against any runs being scored while he is on the mound, Jakson had six strikeouts in a 3-0 win over Westlake and had yet to allow an earned run in 21 innings so far this season.

SOFTBALL

Jenna Weimer (Fresno Christian)
In a day to remember, Weimer set a state record by hitting four triples, scored four times, and had three RBI in a 15-2 non-league win over Avenal.  Jenna also pitched all seven innings on a two-hitter and tied a Central Section record by striking out 20 batters for a seven-inning game.

Falepolima Aviu (Rancho Buena Vista, Vista)
One of the state’s leading home run hitters so far this season, she had her biggest game last week as she hit three home runs and drove in seven runs during a 9-5 win over Granite Hills of El Cajon. She has had a four-game and a three-game streak with home runs and now has a total of 10 long balls for the Longhorns.

Kaylee Gemmell (Beaumont)
Putting up a gem of a performance with her bat during a 17-9 win over Temecula Valley, she hit two doubles along with a home run while driving in eight runs.

Natalie Calderas (Jurupa Hills, Fontana)
With over 100 strikeouts already this season while in the circle, she had her biggest strikeout performance so far last week during a 2-1 10-inning win over Don Lugo of Chino. In that game, Calderas struck out 22 batters.

Renee Ortega (Liberty, Madera Ranchos)
It was a big day at the plate for Ortega in a double-header against Morro Bay. First, she connected for a grand slam, double and seven RBI in a 15-1 win.  Renee them came back in the second game with two hits, a homer and three runs scored in a 14-3 win.

Brynne Fitzpatrick (Valley Christian, San Jose)
As the top strikeout pitcher in the state from those that report stats to MaxPreps, she struck out 16 while pitching her first no-hitter of the season during a 4-0 win over Los Gatos. On the season, she has a reported 124 strikeouts, which includes a season-best 20 during a 5-0 win over Gilroy.

Holly Azevedo (Pioneer, San Jose)
In three games last week for the Mustangs, Azevedo struck out 34 batters and gave up three hits. In one of those games, she tossed a no-hitter in a 3-0 victory against Santa Teresa of San Jose.

Kassidy Simons (Moorpark)
Named as the Girls Athlete of the Week by the Ventura County Star, she had two three-run home runs and drove in seven runs during a 20-4 win over Thousand Oaks. It was her second game this season with two home runs and seven RBI. Simons also now has seven homers and 27 RBI on the year.

Caitlyn Emberson (Taft)
She went 3-for-4 in hits at the plate with a double and seven RBI in a 22-0 win over Bakersfield Christian. Teammate Arizona Pilgrim also had a fine game pitching during the week, as she had 15 strikeouts in a 10-5 triumph against Monache of Porterville.

Kendall Kapitzke (Tehachapi)
Already with two multi-homer games, she added a third last week as she homered twice and drove in four runs during a 11-0 win over Delano. On the year, she has eight home runs with 22 runs batted in.

Brianna Tautalafua (Carson)
Despite opponents trying to avoid giving this junior much to hit, she has now homered in five straight games. Her latest blast came in a 20-8 loss to FAB 50 nationally ranked North of Torrance.

Johanna Grauer (Amador Valley, Pleasanton)
Through 41.1 innings so far this season, the UCLA-bound Grauer has yet to allow an earned run. She struck out 13 and allowed just two hits during a 8-0 win last week over San Ramon Valley of Danville. She’s allowed just 11 hits this season and has had double digit strikeout totals in all six of her starts.

Paul Muyskens is the Stockton office assistant editor for Cal-Hi Sports and can be seen around town also working for the Stockton Ports and University of the Pacific. Mark Tennis is the co-founder and publisher of CalHiSports.com. He can be reached at markjtennis@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow Paul and Mark on Twitter: @CalHiSports