Evans Returns To Help Tutor Area Pitchers

It has been nearly four years since Nancy Evans pitched her final game for Hoover High. But Evans, who now pitches for defending NCAA champion Arizona, continues to leave her imprint on the Valley.

Evans has found time to work with Hoover freshman Cori Herbert and Chaminade sophomore Maureen LeCocq, two of the region’s best young pitchers.

Both entered the week with 15-7 records, Herbert sporting a 0.69 earned-run average and LeCocq checking in at 0.89.

Herbert has led the Tornadoes to the Pacific League championship and the No. 1 seeding in the playoffs. LeCocq helped the Eagles clinch second place in the Mission League.

“Nancy was impressed with Maureen,” said Chaminade Coach Steve Harrington, who will coach Evans on a traveling team this summer. “She said the kid has a lot of poise. Maureen throws a lot of her pitches the same way as Nancy. The kid is way ahead of her time.”

Hungry Wolves: Welcome back, Harvard-Westlake.

The Wolverines, the only one of 96 teams with a first-round bye in the Southern Section boys’ volleyball playoffs, had 11 days of inaction between their regular-season finale and a second-round date Tuesday with Bell-Jeff.

The result wasn’t pretty for Bell-Jeff. The Wolverines, seeded No. 3 in Division III, won in three games.

“We’ve been bored to death just practicing,” said Coach Jess Quiroz, whose Wolverines were granted the bye because they were in the only regional with seven teams.

“They were getting quite antsy. They want to play.”

The Wolverines host Providence in the quarterfinals today.

Progressing well: Two of the more intriguing high school baseball prospects in the area attend Kilpatrick, a Malibu probation camp for juvenile offenders. Kilpatrick is 17-3 and won the Alpha League championship behind Ronald Martinez and Jason Viramontes.

Martinez, a 6-foot-1 pitcher-shortstop, is batting .649 and is projected to play third base in college or the professional ranks. Viramontes, a 6-3 first baseman, is batting .500.

Both are being recruited by Rio Hondo and East L.A. colleges, and major league scouts have watched them with interest.

“They have a long way to go, on the field and in the classroom, but they have made a lot of progress,” said Coach Mike Garner, who played in the Dodger organization. “A lot of people want to see them succeed.”

Problems: After his latest faux pas, Taft High tennis player Golan Sassoon will look back on his high-school career and see one missed opportunity after another.

Sassoon, a senior who was projected to be the top singles player among City Section players from the region, missed most of the past two seasons because he was academically ineligible.

He qualified in time for the City singles tournament and beat Marshall’s Rogel Seruea, 6-0, 6-0, in last Thursday’s first round but has since been disqualified because he skipped school that day.

Yanov stars: Rio Mesa High sophomore Keith Yanov will look back at this year when it’s over and wonder what he will have to do next year for an encore.

Yanov has competed for four Channel League championship varsity teams in cross-country, soccer, baseball and track and field. He also carries a 4.0 grade-point average in an academic load that includes honors courses.

Honors: Kim Taylor, an incoming freshman at Chaminade, and Sara Leibowitz, a freshman at La Reina, have been named to the western regional pool in the American Youth Soccer Association’s under 15 division.

The players will vie with 24 other pool candidates to make the final 21-player cut for the regional team, which will be determined in July.

Tom Haight of Highland has been named boys’ volleyball player of the year in the Golden League.

Canyon High setter Keith Stires was named boys’ volleyball player of the year in the Foothill League.