2020: A coaching legend retires, athletes commit and new district stadium completed

Long-time Godinez High basketball coach Greg Coombs (middle) retired. (File photo: Fernando M. Donado, For OC Sports Zone)

While there haven’t been any competitive sports since March, a lot still happened the past 10 months in Orange County sports.

Here are some of the highlights:

—-After coaching high school boys basketball for 39 years in the Santa Ana Unified School District, Greg Coombs said he was ready for a change and grateful for the experiences he’s had.

Coombs, 63, announced he has stepped down as the Godinez High head coach after 10 years to spend more time with his family. He was also head coach for eight years at Santa Ana High School (the Saints did not have a varsity program in his first season) and for 21 years at Century High.

—Four Corona del Mar High School football players signed national letters of intent in December. Receiver Scott Giuliano signed with Harvard and Thomas Bouda, Jake Trachtman and Tommy Griffin signed with Cal Poly.

—Pacifica Christian High School basketball star Houston Mallette, supported by family, teammates and coaches, ended the suspense in November and announced he is headed to Pepperdine University in Malibu.

The 6-5 Mallette made it official during a ceremony in the school’s gymnasium.

Mallette earlier decommitted from his original choice at Penn State when Coach Pat Chambers resigned. He then narrowed his choices down to Peppperdine, Tulsa, Wake Forest and Loyola Chicago before deciding to join Coach Lorenzo Romar at Pepperdine.

In November, Mater Dei High School held a signing ceremony for 30 athletes, who wore masks during the ceremony. OC Sports Zone ran pictures of the athletes in groups of 10.

In November, University High School officials announced that five athletes had signed national letters of intent and provided pictures and profiles of the athletes.

—Tustin High School head baseball coach Charles Chatman, known for his ability to help his players on and off the field, received the Coach of Character Award from the Orange County Athletic Directors Association.

Chatman, the Tillers coach of nine years, was among the coaches honored by the association. Instead of the traditional awards program, coaches were honored on social media.

—Officials with the Orange Unified School District held a virtual grand opening in October for the new Fred Kelly Stadium, which serves as the home stadium for the El Modena, Orange, Canyon and Villa Park football teams.

The stadium is located at El Modena High School in Orange and will also be used for track and field and other events.

—Saddleback High School brought back a coaching legend to lead its football program when Glenn Campbell was named the Roadrunners’ new head coach.

—Talented Sunny Hills High School basketball player Emmanuel “Manny” Seddoh committed to play college basketball at Cal State Los Angeles.

The 6-4 forward was an All-Freeway League first-team selection last season and the Lancers’ team captain. He averaged 16.0 points and 11.9 rebounds during his senior year. 

—In September, three talented Orange County baseball players announced their commitments.

First, Jack Bunnell of Woodbridge announced he had committed to University of Washington.

Two days later, Brandon Luu of Northwood and Gavin Grahovac of Villa Park, who have played club baseball on the same team, announced they had committed to play for Arizona State University.

What made it especially significant and pretty remarkable is that both Luu and Grahovac are only sophomores and have three more years of high school eligibility.

—-In the fall, seniors on the Westminster High baseball team, which was on the verge of a big season before the coronavirus pandemic haulted play, were honored at the school.

“We did a drive through where we gave them their gifts, letters, bars and pins,” said Westminster Coach Craig Jones.

Jones described the event as “emotional.”

The squad was off to a 7-5 start and Jones said was the first winning season in almost a decade at Westminster.

––Edison High’s standout softball player Emma Mendoza made a verbal commitment to play college softball at Cal State Monterey Bay, according to her father Tom Mendoza.

Edison was off to a 7-1 start when the 2020 season was haulted because of the coronavirus pandemic. Mendoza had a batting average of .420.

Mendoza also plays for the SoCal A’s Marinakis/Jaquish under-16 National travel club team for Coach Kostas Marinakis.

—-Former Beckman High and UCLA pitching star James Kaprielian made his Major League debut in relief Sunday with the Oakland A’s in August and Patriots coach Kevin Lavalle was among those who were able enjoy the milestone moment watching on an app.

Kaprielian did not pitch in his first trip up with the A’s two weeks earlier, but after being called up from San Jose, he pitched two innings against the San Francisco Giants, allowing a home run to Brandon Crawford to start. Kaprielian, who was called upon in the seventh inning, finished strong, striking out one, allowing a hit with one hit batter and one walk in the A’s 15-3 victory. Oakland currently leads the American League West with a 16-6 record.

–—Bella Maceranka of Laguna Hills High School committed to compete in diving at University of South Dakota, where she received a scholarship.

“I have been talking to the coach for a while and he’s really nice and my family feels comfortable with him,” said Maceranka, who will be a senior at Laguna Hills in the fall. “And I’ve met the some of the team and they’re really funny and I feel like my personality would just mesh really well.”

—-Woodbridge High athletes Maddie Lyon and Riley Pittman, who have been friends since elementary school, capped their careers with top awards from the Pacific Coast League after stellar efforts in their respective sports.

Lyon, a track and field standout, received PCL female athlete of the year honors while Pittman, a water polo star, was named male athlete of the year. The two were among top athletes honored by the Orange County Athletic Directors Association.

—In July, Portola High School officials announced that football coach Peter Abe will also assume the duties of athletic director.

Abe, who has been the head football coach since the inception of the program, replaces Katie Levansailor, who took an assistant principal position within the district, accordng to Jeffrey Hernandez, assistant principal at Portola.

—In July, Ocean View High School officials announced that former two-time CIF coach of the year Rusty Van Cleave was named the new head varsity boys basketball coach at Ocean View High School.

“I’m grateful to have another chance to lead a program,” Van Cleave told OC Sports Zone Saturday, the same day that Athletic Director Tim Walsh made the announcement. “I think it’s a really good fit for a guy like me to come in and develop the kids that are there and the program and build on really what is one of the finest traditions in Orange County basketball at Ocean View High School.

—-Long-time Foothill High baseball coach Vince Brown announced in May he was stepping down as the Knights coach.

Brown has had an illustrious 24-year career in which he won 14 league titles, including nine crowns at Foothill where he coached for the past 15 years.

Brown’s final season was cut short when the coronavirus pandemic struck. At the time, Foothill was 8-2. When it was clear the season would not resume, Brown wrote a heartfelt message to his seniors.

Brown was later named pitching coach at Orange Lutheran.

—-Irvine Valley College sophomore Austin Carter, a former Sonora High star, committed to NCAA Division II Holy Names University in Oakland, IVC men’s head coach Jerry Hernandez announced.

Carter was a leader on and off the floor for the Lasers and one of the team’s hardest workers.

Carter, a 6-5 forward, was named second team all-Orange Empire Conference and led IVC to a nice run in the California Community College Athletic Asocciation So Cal. Playoffs. –IVC Athletics

––Golden West League baseball coaches, after a shortened season, released what they call the league’s “baseball dream team,” according to Segerstrom Athletic Director Nick Canzone.

—Long-time Orange County high school football coach Kurt Westling decided to put retirement off awhile.

Westling stepped down as Aliso Niguel’s head football coach after 10 years at the end of the season. But in April it was announced he was joining the staff at Crean Lutheran High School led by first-year coach Saints head football coach Rick Curtis.

—Woodbridge High’s star center Erika Maggard made it official in April and signed her national letter of intent to play basketball at Concordia University Irvine, according to Warrior Coach Keith Clarkson.

—-Standout Woodbridge High distance runner Sierra Shaver signed a letter of intent April with Cal State Monterey Bay to compete in cross country and track and field and continue her academic career after being offered by several schools.

Shaver was a four-year varsity runner at Woodbridge.

—-In April, twin sisters Bianca Ziemann and Rachael Ziemann were named co-head varsity girls basketball coaches at Crean Lutheran High school.

Bianca Ziemann, who was the interim head coach for the Saints this past season, will be co-head coach, director of girls basketball, and the assistant strength and conditioning coach. Rachael Ziemann becomes co-head coach after one year as interim assistant varsity coach for the Saints.

The two coaches led the Saints into the CIF finals for the second time in school history last season.

—-In March, Capo Valley Christian officials announced that Eric Preszler, who used to coach at the school, as its new head football coach and athletic director, replacing Rick Curtis who was named the head football coach at Crean Lutheran.

Preszler was an assistant head football coach, wide receivers coach, and kinesiology instructor the past three years at Saddleback College, officials said in a release.

(We will look back at the first two months later)

-Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com