Photos by Jim Cayer
Less than twelve hours after the senseless tragedy that took place on Ximeno after the Wilson/Poly football game, some of the city’s finest young athletes converged on the Wilson campus to compete for Long Beach’s All-City Middle School championships in football and girls’ volleyball. That young children can still spend Saturdays under the positive influence of their coaches on the fields and courts of this city is, we hope, a sign of continual renewal and hope in our city. As middle school sports coordinator and Moore League secretary Jim Lineberger said in forwarding this info, “We applaud all of our coaches who are teaching on a daily basis that team work, dedication, fairness, commitment, respect of opponent & citizenship are all good things that we strive for through the medium of sports and athletics.”
Those values were certainly on display on the football field Saturday morning, in the Division 1 matchup between Hoover and Stanford, and the Division 2 tilt between Cubberly and Lindsey.
Stanford qualified for the title game with a 34-13 win over Hamilton, and Hoover with a big defeat of DeMille. The Hoover Highlanders, behind the arm of Malik Cyphers, bounced out to a 6-0 lead over the Stanford Hawks….but the Hawks came right back on a Andrew Dossman to Haley McGinest TD bomb to notch it at 6-6 to end the first quarter. Hoover’s high-powered offense put it in gear to make it 20-6 at halftime, then extended the lead to 26-6 in the third quarter. The Hawks didn’t give up and were in the middle of a driving effort when Hoover’s Tyron Moody came up with a key interception to douse the Hawks’ hopes; final score Hoover 26, Stanford 6 to win the Division I Title.
In the Division 2 game, Cubberley had earned a spot with a 32-19 win over Franklin, and Lindsey defeated Tincher 31-7 to get into the championship.
The Cubberley Cubs bounced out to a 21-0 lead over the Lindsey Falcons behind the running & throwing of Cub QB Johnny Weeks. The Falcons, led by Mario Flakes, came back to make it 21-12 to start the 4th Quarter. However, in the end, the Cubs held sway to win the Division II Title, 27-12.
Division 1 Champion Hoover:
Team members from Hoover:
Front Row (L-R): LaBryce Howard, Curt Chea, Joe Alarcon, Noah Daniels, Kevin Walker; Middle Row (L-R): Jerome Biag, Jaylen Massengil, Malik Cyphers, Jose Solorzano, Chandler Leniu; Top Row (L-R): Coach Widman, Dawaun Lucas, Reggie Cooper, Jared Utupo, Caleb Turner (not pictured: Justin Canada, Juonathon Malone, Daevon Vigilant).
Division 1 Runner-Up Stanford:
Team members from Stanford:
Front Row (L-R): Franklin Leonard, David Rauda, Steven Castro, Andrew Schenker, Jayson Smith; Middle Row (L-R): Coach Maxson, Mickelle Amoranto, Andrew Dossman, Robert Cipriano, Robert Willis, Cameron Kojaku, Coach Kelly; Top Row (L-R): Grant Brown, Carson Malbrough, Haley McGinest, Bruce Yun, Dashawn Baines-Smith.
Division 2 Champion Cubberly:
Team members from Cubberly:
Front Row (L-R): Alex Castron, Tanner Meckes, Ian Shaw, Dominic Ruggio, Jacob Davison, Michael Hall, Konner Moses, Tyler Davidson; Middle Row (L-R): Andrew Shanholtzer, Tyson Clark, Johnny Weeks, Gage Morgan, Travis Limbocker; Top Row (L-R): Coach Ruggio, Coach Navia, Mitchell Guastella, Kyle Busacso, Cyrus Olinger, Sean Williams, Gabriel Rivera, Kyle Campbell, Coach Hill.
Division 2 Runner-Up Lindsey:
Team members from Lindsey:
Front Row (L-R): Alex Castron, Tanner Meckes, Ian Shaw, Dominic Ruggio, Jacob Davison, Michael Hall, Konner Moses, Tyler Davidson; Middle Row (L-R): Andrew Shanholtzer, Tyson Clark, Johnny Weeks, Gage Morgan, Travis Limbocker; Top Row (L-R): Coach Ruggio, Coach Navia, Mitchell Guastella, Kyle Busacso, Cyrus Olinger, Sean Williams, Gabriel Rivera, Kyle Campbell, Coach Hill.