by Christopher Mohr

(San Diego) March 11 - If you like to watch basketball played above the rim, you would have enjoyed the matchup between the Hornets of Lincoln High School and the Cardinals of Hoover High School for the Division II section championship at Jenny Craig Pavilion Friday night. This battle between schools named after past U.S. presidents was a game that local high school hoops fans could not afford to miss.

Both teams' lineups featured athletic players that did not know the meaning of the term, 'vertically challenged'. Lincoln's starting lineup had an average height of 6'5", including 6'10" center Nathan Maxey. Hoover's lineup although not as tall, included 6'9" Angelo Chol.

by Christopher Mohr

(San Diego) March 5 - The Lady Wolfpack of West Hills High School captured their second straight girls Division II sectional basketball title Friday night with a 40-25 win over the Lady Wolverines from Westview High School (Rancho Penasquitos). The two teams faced off at the Jenny Craig Pavilion on the campus of USD, the site of all CIF San Diego Section championship basketball games throughout the weekend.

It became clear quickly that this was not going to be Westview's day when West Hills already had a double-digit lead before the Lady Wolverines could even get on the scoreboard. West Hills' stingy defense kept Westview in check as the Lady Wolverines were unable to generate much on offense or recover from the Lady Wolfpack's initial scoring surge. West Hills maintained their double-digit lead with a commanding 30-13 lead at halftime.

by Christopher Mohr

(San Diego) February 19 - A.J. Holloway drained a 16-foot jumper with five seconds left in the fourth quarter to give the host Marauders of Mira Mesa High School a thrilling, come from behind 46-45 upset win over the visiting Tigers of Morse High School Friday night. The shot capped off an incredible 17-4 run in the fourth quarter by the Marauders, who found themselves down 41-29 at the end of the third quarter.

Holloway described his game-winning shot: "When I came in the game, I told coach, 'I feel it! I feel it!' Coach put me in the game last second, had a great pass from my point guard, Jeff Bradley, I felt the shot, got underneath it, nothing but nylon!"

by Christopher Mohr

February 14, 2010 (Coronado) - The Christian High School Patriots boys basketball team from El Cajon learned quickly in Friday night's game that they would not get the same hospitable treatment that many visitors to the island receive.

The Islanders of Coronado High School, unlike their counterparts at the local hotels and resorts, were not very nice hosts and established early that this game would be physical and even bruising at times. Both teams combined for an unusually high total of 36 fouls. It was the kind of treatment that one might expect from the top two rivals of the Central League.
 

by Christopher Mohr

February 2, 2010 (La Mesa) - Last Friday's basketball game at Helix High School between the host Highlanders and the visiting Eagles of Granite Hills High School had its share of scoring runs by both teams. The only problem for Helix was that Granite Hills' scoring runs were longer in duration as the Eagles prevailed with a 64-55 win.

by Christopher Mohr

January 24, 2010 (Santee) - You cannot fault Santana High School's Lady Sultans basketball team for a lack of effort in last Tuesday night's game against the visiting Granite Hills Eagles. They overcame a huge deficit and came close to pulling off what would have been a monumental upset. In the end, effort wasn't enough to defeat a highly talented Granite Hills team as the Eagles squelched any hope of an upset late in the game, escaping with a 53-41 win.

by Christopher Mohr

(SAN DIEGO) December 15 - On a good day, it is difficult to beat Oceanside High School in a CIF championship football game. Prior to Friday's Division II championship game, the Pirates had appeared in 16 championship games and won 11 of them. They had also won the last five championship games, including three against Helix.

by Christopher Mohr

(RANCHO SAN DIEGO) November 27 - That's why they play the game. Such a statement is typical after a game like Friday night's playoff matchup between the visiting Highlanders of Helix High School and the host Norsemen of Valhalla High School.

As fans and self-proclaimed experts, we often play the game on paper, giving out predictions and speculation without regard to the fact that the game is played on a field. Most of the time we get away with it, but this wasn't one of those times.

(SAN DIEGO) - The following is a list football playoff pairings for CIF San Diego Section. We will update it with each round of the playoffs.

The team’s seeding, name and overall win-loss record are shown for each team. The top four teams in each division get a first round bye.

 by Christopher Mohr

(LA MESA) November 13th - Success can be simple, even in the game of football. For all the complexity the game provides with its playbooks, schemes and systems, sometimes all a team may really need to win is keep giving the ball to one of its best players.

Mt. Miguel Wins Overtime Period, Gains Tiebreaker Advantage for League and Playoffs

by Christopher Mohr

(RANCHO SAN DIEGO) October 30 - Tonight's football game at Steele Canyon High School between the host Cougars and the visiting Matadors from Mt. Miguel High School turned out to be a very exciting matchup between two Grossmont South league rivals. Both teams played to a 21-21 tie, but Mt. Miguel gained an advantage in terms of playoff seeding and league standing by winning an overtime period.

by Christopher Mohr

(SOLANA BEACH) September 26 - One of the most common sports cliches is that some opponents can't be stopped; they can only be contained. Anyone who defended Michael Jordan, pitched to Tony Gwynn or golfed against Tiger Woods knows the concept all too well. So do Santa Fe Christian's first three opponents this season.

by Christopher Mohr

(RANCHO SAN DIEGO) - This Friday, we head to Rancho San Diego to cover the home opener between the Steele Canyon Cougars and the visiting Eastlake Titans.

Steele Canyon (1-1) comes off a 2008 season where they finished 7-6, but won three out of their last four games, going deep in the playoffs. Only a loss to Valhalla kept the Cougars from making a December visit to Qualcomm Stadium.

by Christopher Mohr

September 10,2009 (El Cajon) - In the second Game of the Week, we're going to stay at Valhalla to see a couple of East County rivals square off. Grossmont makes a short drive south to face Valhalla Friday night.

by Christopher Mohr

Editor's Note:  Starting this week, East County Magazine will have a Game of the Week article covering a football game featuring at least one high school team from the area.