Releaguing: Mesa, Eagles ask out

Barry Faulkner

FOUNTAIN VALLEY - Principals from Costa Mesa and Estancia high

schools said Friday they want to leave the Pacific Coast League and enter

the Golden West League for a four-year cycle of athletic competition

beginning the fall of 2002.

Addressing representatives from 61 of the 63 schools that make up the

Orange County releaguing area, Mesa Principal Diana Carey and Estancia

Principal Tom Antal said their schools would be a better fit in a Golden

West League they hoped would include Santa Ana, Ocean View, Westminster

and Saddleback.

Friday’s releaguing meeting at Fountain Valley High was the first

opportunity for county schools to officially express preferences for the

releaguing process, which could be completed as soon as Feb. 15.

After hearing Friday which schools wish to change leagues and which

prefer the status quo, principals, or their designees, have until Feb. 2

to submit individual proposals outlining league alignments for all 63

schools.

Those proposals will be presented at a Feb. 7 releaguing meeting, also

at Fountain Valley, where a voting process will determine the top eight.

Counterproposals may then be submitted before Feb. 9 and voting and

discussion will be held at the Feb. 15 meeting, in hopes of producing a

final proposal to be submitted to the CIF Southern Section for approval.

If the process can not be completed by Feb. 15, a contingency meeting

is scheduled Feb. 27.

Carey cited geography and competitive equity (which, along with

enrollment, make up the three releaguing criteria outlined in the section

constitution) as reasons why the Mustangs are seeking the change. She

also said the Mesa’s demographics are more similar to schools in the

Golden West League.

Antal said the demographics of his school’s community have led to a

situation where many sports are “overmatched” in the Pacific Coast

League. He cited aquatic sports as an example.

Woodbridge High Principal Greg Cops, speaking for the Sea View League,

said it would prefer to add one member to become a six-school league.

Tustin, which a consensus of Golden West League schools believe should

be removed from that league, could be a candidate to join the Sea View.

Capistrano Unified’s Tesoro and Tustin Unified’s Beckman, opening next

fall and tentatively the fall of 2003, respectively, expressed a desire

to be placed in the PCL.

Calvary Chapel and Orange Lutheran, recently granted the right to be

leagued with county public schools, are also candidates to join the PCL.

Esperanza expressed a desire to leave the Sunset League and Athletic

Director Jim Patterson said, after the meeting, it would want to join

either the Century League or the Empire League.

Brea Olinda, Santa Ana Valley, Orange and Century said they would

prefer to leave their current leagues, while the Freeway, Garden Grove

and South Coast wish to remain as is.