orange lutheran

The Times’ preseason top 25 high school football rankings for 2026:

1. ST. JOHN BOSCO: Braves have few weaknesses but must prove they can win in the rain after last season’s first-round playoff debacle to Orange Lutheran.

2. CORONA CENTENNIAL: The offense is going to be balanced and explosive with quarterback Jaden Jefferson the trigger man and Quentin Hale his partner in battle.

3. SIERRA CANYON: Trailblazers have the offensive linemen and running back to run the ball and the defensive linemen to attack quarterbacks.

4. SANTA MARGARITA: Eagles won’t be ready to start the season dominating with too many young players but beware by season’s end.

5. ORANGE LUTHERAN: There’s already signs the Ray Fenton coaching formula is working with lots of talent on both sides of the ball.

6. MISSION VIEJO: Diablos have their best offensive line in years, giving coach Chad Johnson lots of options.

7. MATER DEI: Depth is gone but there’s enough talent to be very good on their best day.

8. SAN CLEMENTE: Just trust Jaxson Rex to do anything and everything for improved Tritons.

9. CHAPARRAL: There’s a crazy amount of offensive firepower ready to be unleashed.

10. RANCHO CUCAMONGA: They play tough, hard-nosed football.

11. EDISON: Quarterback Sam Thomson’s fourth year as starter sets the stage for big Chargers season.

12. CREAN LUTHERAN: If the Saints’ many transfers get eligible, quarterback Caden Jones should flourish.

13. GARDENA SERRA: With five starters back on the offensive line and the arrival of RB AJ McBean, Cavaliers are ready to play smashmouth football.

14. CHAMINADE: There’s speed and size surrounding sophomore quarterback Jeremy Mellalieu.

15. SERVITE: New coach Rick Garretson has a history of building top teams with speed, which Friars have plenty.

16. JSERRA: Lions will be competitive in nonleague games but Trinity League remains formidable challenge.

17. DAMIEN: USC commit Gavin Williams is the definition of the word elite on defense and offense.

18. PALOS VERDES: Ryan Rakowski is back for fourth year as starting quarterback and is a proven winner.

19. OXNARD PACIFICA: Quarterback Taylor Lee is back with lots of skill-position players.

20. LOYOLA: If Cubs can get production at the quarterback position, they can surprise teams.

21. BISHOP AMAT: Still one of the toughest teams to beat on their home field.

22. WESTLAKE: The scoreboard operator will deserve extra pay trying to keep up with Warriors’ scoring barrages.

23. CARSON: Best in the City Section looking to beat some Southern Section teams with improved line play.

24. CORONA DEL MAR: Should have excellent passing attack if the line can provide protection.

25. TUSTIN: Lots of individual talent but can they get breakthrough win against a top opponent?

Katie Stith, the softball coach at JSerra High, can finally take a bow and become the most famous Stith in the family — at least for a couple weeks.

Imagine being the daughter of legendary club softball coach Mike Stith (OC Batbusters), then going into coaching. Katie did just that and has earned the spotlight after guiding JSerra to its first Southern Section Division 1 championship.

She has been selected The Times’ coach of the year for 2026.

It was her eighth season, and if you want to play in Division 1 in Southern California, you have to go through the gauntlet of powerhouses, from Norco to Orange Lutheran to Murrieta Mesa.

JSerra navigated a difficult regular-season schedule, then avoided upsets in the playoffs. The team finished 25-8 and had wins over Norco, La Mirada, Oaks Christian, Orange Lutheran and Garden Grove Pacifica — all prominent programs.

She was able to rely on pitcher Liliana Escobar and catcher Annabel Raftery in those pressure-packed moments from the first game to the last.

There’s no denying that Loyola’s lacrosse program is best in Southern California and could be that way for years to come with the number of elite young players participating.

On Saturday night, the Cubs (16-3) won their latest Southern Section Division 1 championship with a 14-6 win over Santa Margarita. The Cubs have won three title since the sport was adopted as a championship event in the Southern Section. Defense has been Loyola’s strength all season.

Senior defenders Chase Hellie and Everett Rolph and junior goalkeeper William Russo led one of the best defenses in program history under coach Jimmy Borell.

Senior Cash Ginsberg finished with five goals and junior North Carolina commit Tripp King finished with two goals.

Orange Lutheran won Division 2 boys over Edison and Windward won Division 3.

In girls Division 1, Mira Costa upset top-seeded Santa Margarita 12-6.

It’s now official. You can call Chatsworth a 12-time City Section volleyball champion after the Chancellors won the Open Division championship on Saturday night, knocking off West Valley League rival Granada Hills 24-26, 25-21, 25-14, 25-18.

Noa Beauregard led Chatsworth with 14 kills and Grant Chang had 13.

Coach Sina Aghassy got his team to settle down and dominate the Highlanders after their first-set defeat. The two teams had split their league matches.

Both schools will move on to the state tournament next week, with pairings announced on Sunday.

Baseball

Sylmar 4, Chatsworth 3: The No. 1-seeded Spartans survived a three-run seventh inning by Chatsworth to advance to the City Section Division I semifinals against Verdugo Hills on Wednesday at Stengel Field. Tim Sepulveda had two hits.

Verdugo Hills 8, Sun Valley Poly 2: Jered Smith hit a grand slam in the sixth inning to help the Dons reach the City Division I semifinals.

Taft 11, Cleveland 0: The Toreadors advanced to the Division I semifinal behind Sebastian Gamez, who threw the shutout. Nate Swinson had two hits and two RBIs.

Venice 7, Palisades 6: The Gondoliers earned a match against Taft in the Division I semifinals. Darius Basco’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the seventh won it. Miguel Medina threw three scoreless innings of relief.

Softball

La Habra 6, Murrieta Mesa 4: Rylee Gruener hit a grand slam during a five-run inning to enable La Habra to eliminate top-seeded Murrieta Mesa in the Division I playoffs. Alyssa Hernandez added three hits.

Orange Lutheran 17, Chino Hills 14: In a wild Division 1 playoff game, Sierra Nichols and Madelyn Armendariz each had four hits for Orange Lutheran, with Armendariz getting three doubles. Nichols, Rylee Silva and Eliza Johnson hit home runs. Brett Lambrecht had five RBIs for Chino Hills.

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 8, Oaks Christian 5: The Mission League champions advanced behind freshman pitcher Ainsley Jenkins, who came in and provided three innings of three-hit relief pitching. Nadia Ledon, Keira Luderer and Ellayne Tellez-Perez hit home runs.

Norco 8, Riverside Poly 2: The No. 2-seeded Cougars were led by Savannah Gonzalez, who had three hits, including a home run. Coral Williams struck out 13. Camryn May and Sadie Burroughs also had three hits.

A look at The Times’ top 25 high school baseball rankings for the Southland after the final week of the regular season:

Rk. School (Rec.); Comment; ranking last week

1. NORCO (24-3); vs. Maranatha in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 1

2. HARVARD-WESTLAKE (23-5); vs. La Mirada in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 2

3. ST. JOHN BOSCO (22-5); vs. Cypress in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 3

4. ORANGE LUTHERAN (23-4); vs. Corona Santiago in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 4

5. HUNTINGTON BEACH (21-6-1); at Temecula Valley in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 5

6. CORONA (21-6); vs. Etiwanda in D1 playoffs, Tuesday 6

7. SIERRA CANYON (23-5); vs. Oaks Christian in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 7

8. SHERMAN OAKS NOTRE DAME (20-8); vs. Ayala in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 8

9. AYALA (23-3); at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 9

10. CYPRESS (21-7); at St. John Bosco in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 10

11. LA MIRADA (22-6); at Harvard-Westlake in D1 playoffs, Tuesday;11

12. OAKS CHRISTIAN (22-6); at Sierra Canyon in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 12

13 GAHR (17-10-1); vs. El Segundo in D2 playoffs, Thursday; 13

14. NEWPORT HARBOR (19-9); vs. Trabuco Hills in D2 playoffs, Thursday; 14

15. CORONA SANTIAGO (18-10); at Orange Lutheran in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 15

16. TEMECULA VALLEY (24-4); vs. Huntington Beach in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; 18

17. VILLA PARK (19-8-1); vs. Elsinore in D2 playoffs, Thursday; 22

18. ETIWANDA (20-7); at Corona in Division 1 playoffs, Tuesday; 23

19. ROYAL (23-3-1); vs. El Modeina in D2 playoffs, Thursday; 16

20. AQUINAS (19-9); vs. Dana Hills in D2 playoffs, Thursday; 17

21. SANTA MARGARITA (15-13); at Rancho Christian in D2 playoffs, Thursday; 19

22. BISHOP ALEMANY (17-11); vs. Mission Viejo in D2 playoffs, Thursday; 20

23. MARANATHA (23-5); at Norco in D1 playoffs, Tuesday; NR

24. WESTLAKE (18-8); vs. Alta Loma in D2 playoffs, Thursday 24

25. GANESHA (21-3-1); at Linfield Christian in D2 playoffs, Thursday; 25

A look at The Times’ top 25 high school baseball rankings for the Southland after the 11th week of the season:

Rk. School (Rec.); Comment; ranking last week

1. NORCO (23-3); Cougars are Big VIII League champions; 1

2. HARVARD-WESTLAKE (21-5); James Tronstein has reached eight home runs; 2

3. ST. JOHN BOSCO (22-5); Trinity League champions are starting to peak; 3

4. ORANGE LUTHERAN (20-4); Gary Morse, Cooper Sides are good one-two pitching duo; 4

5. HUNTINGTON BEACH (20-6-1); Complete game from Jared Grindlinger shows he’s playoff ready; 5

6. CORONA (19-6); Second-place finish in Big VIII League; 6

7. SIERRA CANYON (21-5); Sophomore Theo Swafford has come on strong as a hitter; 7

8. SHERMAN OAKS NOTRE DAME (18-8); Knights clinched Mission League playoff spot; 8

9. AYALA (22-2); Palomares League champions; 9

10. CYPRESS (20-6); Crestview League champions; 10

11. LA MIRADA (21-6); Gateway League champions;11

12. OAKS CHRISTIAN (21-6); Co-Marmonte League champions; 13

13 GAHR (16-9-1); Bryce Morrison hitting .453; 15

14. NEWPORT HARBOR (19-9); Got a win vs. Huntington Beach; 17

15. CORONA SANTIAGO (18-10); Swept Corona Centennial to finish third in Big VIII League; 18

16. ROYAL (21-3-1); One-game lead in Coastal Canyon League; 12

17. AQUINAS (19-8); Ambassador League champions; 19

18. TEMECULA VALLEY (23-4); UCLA commit Taden Krogsgaard is coming through; 23

19. SANTA MARGARITA (15-13); Lost three games to JSerra; 14

20. BISHOP ALEMANY (17-9); Finish with two-game series vs. Sierra Canyon; 16

21. MATER DEI (13-11); Monarchs have three-game series vs. Orange Lutheran; 20

22. VILLA PARK (17-8-1); Second place in Crestview League; 21

23. ETIWANDA (17-7); Baseline League champions; NR

24. WESTLAKE (18-8); Shared Marmonte League title with Oaks Christian; 24

25. GANESHA (19-2-1); Have three games this week; 25