Sports Briefs: Downey volleyball earns No. 2 seed

DOWNEY - The Downey High School boys' volleyball team finished their regular season with an overall record of 17-7 and league record of 5-3.The Vikings earned the No. 2 entry from the San Gabriel Valley League after defeating Gahr in the second round of league play. Warren (18-7, 8-0) earned the No. 1 seed and Gahr (15-6, 5-3) earned the No. 3 entry. Downey opened up the C.I.F. Division III playoffs at home Tuesday night by defeating Santa Ana (8-9) in straight sets 25-16, 25-13 and 25-21. Downey won a coin flip after the game on Tuesday night and as a result, hosted top seeded Camarillo last night (scores unavailable at press time). Coach Rand said he is pleased with his team's hard work and maintains that "our success is based upon good kids working hard." * The Downey High School girls' softball team currently has an overall record of 18-10 and a league record of 6-3. The Lady Vikings defeated Dominguez on Tuesday and hosted the Lynwood Lady Knights yesterday (score unavailable at press time). The Lady Vikings are currently ranked 19th in the C.I.F. Division III poll and will now await the playoff bracket draw this weekend to see who and where they will play. The Lady Vikings are locked into the San Gabriel Valley League number three entry and will open the playoffs on the road. Warren is locked into the No. 1 entry from the San Gabriel Valley League and will host a first round playoff game. Paramount is the No. 2 seed and may get a home game to start the playoffs. Coach Karzen and his team are excited about the playoffs and are looking forward to making a nice run. The Lady Vikings are currently riding a four game win streak as the playoffs approach. * The Warren High School girls' softball team are the 2013 San Gabriel Valley League champions. The Bears finished league play at Gahr yesterday (score unavailable at press time). Pending the highly probable win yesterday, the Bears will finish the regular season with an overall record of 20-7 and a league record of 9-1. The Bears will be the No. 1 entry from the S.G.V.L., Paramount (8-2) will be the No. 2 seed and Downey (7-3) will be the No. 3 entry. The San Gabriel Valley League has been very competitive in softball this year. Paramount raced out to an early league lead by defeating both Downey 3-2 on 4/16 and Warren 5-4 in 14 innings on 4/18 in first round games. Warren defeated Downey in two tight one-run games 9-8 on 4/9 and 3-2 on 4/25. Downey and Warren both defeated Paramount in the second round of league play (Downey) 6-3 on 5/2 and (Warren) 7-2 on Tuesday. The C.I.F. Division III playoff bracket will be revealed this weekend and the Bears will host a first round game. Paramount may get a first round game and Downey will travel. Coach Mary Starksen said she is very pleased with how well her team has played down the stretch and the improvement they have made each day. Warren has won or shared the San Gabriel Valley League title for five consecutive years. Downey and Warren shared last year's title with the same 9-1 records. Things will certainly heat up once the playoffs start.

********** Published: May 9, 2013 - Volume 12 - Issue 04