Orange Coast Women Swimmers Finally May Have Hit the Wall

The Orange Empire Conference schedule shows San Diego Mesa traveling to Orange Coast for a swim meet Wednesday.

Normally, swim meets involving the OCC women’s team mean little more than extending what is believed to be the state’s longest winning streak in any sport.

The team has won 77 consecutive dual meets since 1982, the year Don Watson took over as coach. Watson’s only dual-meet loss was to San Diego Mesa, in his first meet as OCC coach.

But Watson figures there’s a chance it could happen again Wednesday, primarily because the Pirates don’t have any women divers competing this season, meaning they will be giving away up to 32 points every meet.

“Mesa has one of the two or three best programs in the state,” Watson said. “We might be able to outswim them by as many as 25 points, but not much more than that.”

Watson has been down on his team’s chances a few times in the past, only to see the Pirates respond with outstanding performances. OCC has won seven state women’s titles in the past eight seasons. Diablo Valley won in 1988.

OCC has already qualified five swimmers for the State meet April 30 through May 2 at Long Beach Belmont Plaza.

Sophomores Kristin Welch and Jennifer Shelden and freshman Michele Quigley have qualified in three events each. Welch qualified in the 50-, 100- and 200-meter freestyles, and Shelden has made it in the 50 and 100 backstroke events as well as the 50 freestyle.

In last year’s State meet, Shelden was third in the 50 backstroke and fifth in the 100 backstroke.

Quigley will compete in the 100 individual medley and the 100 and 200 freestyles. Meg Reilly has qualified in the 100 and 500 freestyles, and Leasia Schutter in the 50 and 100 breaststrokes.

Softball Race: Cypress and Orange Coast are setting the early pace in the Orange Empire Conference.

Both are 5-1 with a game remaining in the first round. Cypress (18-8) lost to Riverside, 3-1, in the opener but has since won five consecutive conference games, and beat OCC, 1-0. The Pirates are 15-5 overall.

Riverside (11-8, 4-2) is in third place, Fullerton (14-9, 3-3) and Saddleback (12-5, 3-3) are tied for fourth, Rancho Santiago (7-10, 2-3) is sixth, Golden West (6-14, 1-4) seventh and Irvine Valley (0-6, 0-6) eighth.

Shannon Ebert of OCC is the leading hitter at .451 (23 of 51). Tina Trujillo of Rancho Santiago is second at .450 (18 of 40).

Women’s Basketball Honors: Jennifer Harney of Saddleback was Orange County’s lone selection to the all-state team.

Harney a sophomore guard/forward from Esperanza High, has signed to attend Cal Poly Pomona. Jenny Sullivan, a sophomore center from Golden West, was an All-Southern California selection. Sullivan, from Ocean View High, has yet to select a four-year college.

Rachelle Johnson of San Diego Mesa, Cheri Hogg of Lassen and Inga Marciulionis of Merritt were the tri-players of the year.

Marciulionis is the wife of Golden State Warriors’ player Sarunas Marciulionis.

Men’s Basketball Honors: No one from Orange County made the all-state basketball team, but Ray Ankton of Saddleback and Bob Terry of Fullerton were honorable-mention picks.

Riverside’s Fred Haygood was the only player from the Orange Empire Conference selected to the first team. Haygood and Ankton were the co-most valuable players of the conference.

Mustapha Hoff of West Valley and Curtis Smith of Compton were the co-players of the year.

Community College Notes

Jeremy Sherman, a standout outfielder with Rancho Santiago the past two seasons, is a medical redshirt at UC Santa Barbara this season. Sherman was hitting .318 in the first 11 games but was hit by a pitch and suffered a broken hand. . . . Chris Johnson from Fullerton College is doing well at UCSB as a designated hitter and relief pitcher. He leads the team with six home runs and is 1-0. Johnson could have picked up his second victory Sunday, but Fullerton’s Craig Fairbrother hit a three-run home run in the ninth and the Titans won, 7-5.