LANGSTON JACKSON - SIGNING WEEK

Scott's choice to highlight signing day
By Derry Eads Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Darrell Scott may not be the only Ventura County athlete making a late commitment to a college football program. Rated as the No. 1 high school running back in the nation, the St. Bonaventure High senior is expected to announced his choice of schools — either Texas or Colorado — during a nationally televised broadcast today from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on ESPNU from the ESPN Zone in Anaheim (noon-2:30 on ESPN2). The NCAA's national letter of intent signing period begins today. Scott rushed for more than 7,500 yards and scored 98 touchdowns in his career and helped lead two programs — St. Bonaventure and Moorpark — to three consecutive CIF championship game appearances.
More than a dozen area players will gather today at the Clarion Palm Garden Hotel in Thousand Oaks for the Ventura County Football Coaches Association's signing day luncheon. Several high school seniors, most notably Simi Valley running back Langston Jackson and St. Bonaventure linebacker Ryan Panapa, were on waiting lists of a number of schools as late as Tuesday.
Westlake and Oaks Christian have three players with verbal commitments. All-state kicker Jordan Mannisto of Westlake has committed to Houston. Teammates Cooper Shockley and Tommy Doupe are expected to sign with Navy and Cornell, respectively. Christopher Potter (Boise State), Trace Biskin (Arizona) and Chris Owusu (Stanford) of Oaks Christian aligned with their colleges early in the recruiting process. Biskin won't be the only area football player headed to Arizona. The Pacific-10 school has also received a commitment from St. Bonaventure offensive lineman Vaughn Dotsy. After making a verbal commitment to Arizona, Oak Park's Sean Westgate switched to UCLA last month.

Others expected to sign today are: Moorpark quarterback Adam Barry (Wyoming); Pacifica linebacker Masi Tuitama (Brigham Young); Rio Mesa fullback Ina Liaina (San Jose State); Moorpark defensive lineman Casey Blum (Tulane); Agoura quarterback Doug Shumway and Rio Mesa linebacker Quentin Greenlaw (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo); and Oak Park lineman Dustin Geyer (San Diego).

PLAYOFFS, SIMI VALLEY vs THOUSAND OAKS & WESTLAKE RECAP

SOUTHERN SECTION BOYS' BASKETBALL PLAYOFFS DIVISION I-AA
Wild-card games, Wednesday, 7:30 p.m.
A--#15 St. John Bosco (Trinity 4) at Long Beach Jordan (Moore 4)B--Lawndale (Pioneer 4) at Servite (Trinity 6)C--Alemany (Mission T6) at Dana Hills (South Coast T4)D--Orange Lutheran (Trinity 5) at Paramount (San Gabriel Valley 5)E--El Segundo (Pioneer T5) at Westlake (Marmonte T3)F--Downey (San Gabriel Valley 4) at Artesia (Suburban 4)

SIMI VALLEY ON YOUTUBE.COM

First round, Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Chaminade (Mission 5) at #1 Dominguez (San Gabriel Valley 1)Winner wild-card A at La Mirada (Suburban 2) Mission Viejo (South Coast 3) at #10 Thousand Oaks (Marmonte 2) #9 San Juan Capistrano Serra (Trinity 3) at Compton Centennial (Pioneer T2) Cerritos (Suburban 3) at #5 Santa Margarita (Trinity 2) Agoura (Marmonte T3) at #11 Loyola (Mission 1) #13 Gahr (San Gabriel Valley 3) at Tesoro (South Coast 2) Verbum Dei (Mission 4) at #4 Compton (Moore 1) Winner wild-card B at #3 Simi Valley (Marmonte 1) Crespi (Mission 3) at #8 Long Beach Wilson (Moore T2) Torrance (Pioneer T2) at #12 Lynwood (San Gabriel Valley 2) Winner wild-card C at #6 Mayfair (Suburban 1) Winner wild-card D at #7 Capistrano Valley (South Coast 1) #16 Long Beach Poly (Moore T2) at North Torrance (Pioneer 1) Winner wild-card E at #14 Harvard-Westlake (Mission 2) Winner wild-card F at #2 Mater Dei (Trinity 1)

Notes: Second round, Feb. 19; quarterfinals, Feb. 22; semifinals, Feb. 26. Championship, Mar. 1 at Honda Center (Anaheim).



Simi Valley's Lorne Jackson from austin knoblauch on Vimeo.

Lorne on Youtube.com

Simi Valley shows no mercy, pours it on against Lancers
It's not how you start but how you finish, and the Simi Valley boys' basketball team knows this all too well after opening Wednesday's showdown against visiting Thousand Oaks sluggishly. The Pioneers, however, closed out the game with a flurry, thoroughly defeating the Lancers, 66-56, to clinch the Marmonte League championship.
"It didn't matter if we started out the game slow, there was no way we were going to let them come into our house and win this game,'' Simi Valley senior Lorne Jackson said. "We knew if we kept working hard, kept playing our game, we'd get back into it. Once we got rolling, they figured out we were no joke.''
The Lancers opened up a 17-10 lead at the end of the first quarter behind the steady play of Michael Shelton and Michael Whalen. The Pioneers, ranked No. 8 by The Times, responded. Paul Williams came off the bench and scored seven points over a four-plus minute stretch and Jackson added five points of his own to give Simi Valley a 29-27 lead at halftime.
Thousand Oaks didn't put up much of a fight in the third quarter, or the fourth quarter, for that matter. Jackson and Michael Meza scored at will, finishing with 20 points each as the Pioneers extended the lead to as many as 18 points with just more than five minutes to play. After that, league title talk ran rampant throughout Tom Harmon Gym. "We finished things off with a bang,'' Meza said. "All season our focus has been winning league. To do it here at home, in front of our fans, against Thousand Oaks, the way we did.... It's a great feeling. It's the only way to go out.''

Simi Valley 66, Thousand Oaks 56

Lorne Jackson and Michael Meza each scored 20 points in the home victory for Times No. 8 Simi Valley (24-1, 13-0). Michael Whalen had 15 points for Thousand Oaks (19-6, 12-1).


Boys' basketball: Simi Valley overcomes sluggish start to lead at half
Well, I sure didn't expect to see Simi Valley come out flat at home against Thousand Oaks, but low and behold, the Pioneers did. They've committed numerous turnovers, missed several shots from the perimeter -- the chants of airball have been frequent -- and are trailing, 17-10, at the end of the first eight minutes of play.
To their credit, the Lancers have been sharp, particularly point guard Michael Shelton, who's been able to break the Pioneers' press with relative ease. His counterpart, Lorne Jackson, didn't score for the first six minutes and finished with three points in the quarter. The senior came alive before halftime though. Jackson converted a layup to give Simi Valley its first lead of the game, 24-23, with 1:59 left in the second quarter. Next time down the floor, he drained a three-pointer. Teammate Paul Williams added seven points in five-plus minutes to give the Pioneers a 29-27 at the half.
--Sean Ceglinsky

DAILY NEWS
Simi Valley turns it around to win Marmonte title
By Jahmal Corner, Special to the Daily News
Article Last Updated: 02/06/2008 10:49:06 PM PST

SIMI VALLEY - Thousand Oaks lost the momentum, and Simi Valley found it.
The Pioneers rebounded from a slow start before imposing their will and wrapping up the Marmonte League championship with a 66-56 home victory over the Lancers on Wednesday night.
Lorne Jackson finished with 20 points, seven rebounds and five steals. But he was far from satisfied with his team's performance.
"We have to start with more intensity," Jackson said. "We weren't playing our game, but we still were up by two at halftime. We just had to come out and play our game."
Simi Valley (24-1, 13-0) came out of halftime with an 18-5 run to take control. It was a stretch in which Jackson seemed to be everywhere at once. He found teammate Mike Meza with a pass for an easy two points, then made a timely 3-pointer. Meza had 20 points for Simi Valley.
Michael Whalen scored 19 points for Thousand Oaks (18-7, 11-2), which got off to a promising start before going cold. Simi Valley fell behind 19-10 in the first quarter, but then got untracked, as the Pioneers loosened up Thousand Oaks' zone defense by hitting several outside shots.
Junior guard Brad Lewis, who finished with 13 points, got into a rhythm and buried three shots from the perimeter. When Jackson added a 3-pointer, Simi Valley capped a 17-4 run that gave it a 27-23 advantage with 1:30 left in the half.

Simi Valley clinches Marmonte crown
By Natalie Jay Correspondent

Thursday February 7, 2008

With the Marmonte League title on the line, the Thousand Oaks High boys' basketball team came out firing on the road against Simi Valley on Wednesday night before succumbing 66-56 to the Pioneers. The victory gives Simi Valley (24-1, 13-0) the league title outright.
The Lancers opened the game with a quick, aggressive attack that seemed to overwhelm the sluggish Pioneers, giving Thousand Oaks a 17-10 lead after the first quarter.
Then senior guard Lorne Jackson took over. His team never looked back. A Jackson field goal put Simi Valley ahead for the first time with two minutes remaining in the first half. He followed with a steal on the ensuing Lancers possession, capped off by a 3-pointer to build a 27-23 lead.
Thousand Oaks' Ian Douglass responded with a trey of his own, but a Jackson assist to Mike Meza closed the quarter and the Pioneers never relinquished the lead.
Through the first half, usual Simi Valley standouts Meza and Jackson had posted nine and eight points, respectively. Both would finish with 20 after a second half punctuated by Jackson's effectiveness in every phase of the game.
"I just knew my team needed me," said Jackson, who also grabbed seven rebounds, distributed four assists and nabbed five steals — all team-highs. "I needed to play better than I did in the first half." Simi Valley coach Christian Aurand, fresh from the customary water cooler bath in celebration of the league title, echoed his player's assessment. "When Lorne is aggressive offensively, that's what we need him to do. He wasn't very aggressive in the first half."
Once Jackson turned up the intensity, his team followed.
"I picked it up and the team flowed off me," Jackson said. A victory at Royal on Friday night would make this Pioneers squad the first Marmonte League team to go undefeated in league play since 2002. Thousand Oaks, led by Michael Whalen's 15 points, fell to 18-7, 11-2.

SIMI VALLEY vs WESTLAKE - GRUDGE MATCH!

Golden opportunity awaits Westlake on Friday

Opportunities like this don’t come around very often, not for the Westlake boys’ basketball team. Friday night’s Marmonte League game offers this group a chance to do something few teams have this season: Defeat Simi Valley, a program that’s lost one game thus far and is ranked No. 7 by The Times.
Confidence should not be a problem for the Warriors. They did, after all, only lost by two-points in the first meeting in early January. Playing on the road, in a hostile environment, certainly doesn’t help the cause for the first-place Pioneers, who could be ripe for an upset.
It’s not as if Westlake played a soft schedule either. It has quality victories over Chaminade and Oxnard to go along with a couple of hard-fought losses to Harvard-Westlake and Santa Clara. But ultimately, those experiences could end up being the difference between making a statement with a victory, or not.
--Sean Ceglinsky

No. 8 Simi Valley (21-1, 10-0) at Westlake (14-8, 6-4), 7:30 p.m. -- My blogging colleague, Sean Ceglinsky, already gave you the scoop on this one. And, as long as my Ford Focus doesn't decide to make an unscheduled pit stop along the 101, I'll be a-bloggin' in Westlake tonight.-- Austin Knoblauch

Westlake vs. Simi Valley game should be great, once it gets started
Thankfully, my Focus made it out here to Westlake tonight, but I'm not out of the woods just yet. My wireless card isn't very happy with the confines of the Warriors' gymnasium and my reception keeps going in and out. So, these updates could become sparse once the game actually starts (J.V. game didn't end until 7:39).
But enough about my equipment issues -- what about the game? Well, last time these teams played it was a scoring fest, with Simi Valley coming out ahead, 88-86.
Lorne Jackson and the rest of the Pioneers have got to be considered the favorites in this one, too, but I keep waiting for Simi Valley to have a bad game. I guess I''m having a little difficulty believing a team even as talented as the Pioneers can go undefeated in the Marmonte League.
As for Westlake, I know they'll keep up on the score sheet. The Warriors' eight losses have come by an average of less than eight points, and you just know how badly they want a victory over the Pioneers on their home court.
-- Austin Knoblauch
Meza scores 22 points by halftime
So far, Simi Valley hasn't made its Marmonte League showdown with host Westlake very intriguing. Thanks to 22 points by senior forward Mike Meza and a 23-7 run in the second quarter, the Pioneers, ranked No. 8 by The Times, lead Westlake, 50-29, at halftime.
Westlake is getting worked down low by Meza, Spencer Feist and Lorne Jackson. By my count, the trio has combined for all but six of the Pioneers' first-half points -- that's just awesome.
The only thing keeping the Warriors kind of in the game is its perimeter shooting. Adam Kolodney has three three-pointers and T.J. Hennessy also has had some good shots from the outside, but nearly all of it came in the first quarter.
If the Warriors don't find a way to stop Meza in the second half, they're going to suffer their biggest defeat of the season.
-- Austin Knoblauch

Varsity Times Insider -->
Simi Valley blows out Westlake, 93-58
At the end of the third quarter, there was a mini exodus of fans from the Westlake gymnasium and I contemplated leaving with them.
But my blogging responsibilities forced me to sit through all of Simi Valley's dominating 93-58 victory Friday night. Don't get me wrong, it was great seeing Mike Meza and Lorne Jackson do their thing, but I probably should have gone to the Harvard-Westlake at Loyola game instead.
Oh well, at least now I know who's definitely the best team in the Marmonte League.
I'll have more on this blowout soon.
-- Austin Knoblauch

Simi Valley 93, Westlake 58
Mike Meza's 26 points, Lorne Jackson's 22 and Brad Lewis' 20 powered Simi Valley (22-1, 11-0), ranked No. 8 by The Times. Matt Mazarei had 18 points and Adam Kolodney added 12 points for host Westlake (14-9, 6-5).

VC Preps
SIMI VALLEY 93, WESTLAKE 58
At Westlake
Highlights: Simi Valley — Michael Meza registered team-highs with 26 points and 10 rebounds. Lorne Jackson tallied 22 points, eight assists and six steals. Brad Lewis added 20 points. Westlake — Matt Mazarei scored a team-high 18 points and Adam Kolodney hit four 3-pointers for 12 points.
Records:
Simi Valley 22-1, 11-0 Marmonte League; Westlake 14-9, 6-5.

September 05, 2007

Jackson doesn't mind dealing with the out of town fans

There were a few out-of-town guests who came to see Simi Valley senior guard Lorne Jackson strut his stuff on Friday, and I know they didn't leave disappointed.
About a half dozen or so recruiters had the opportunity to see the Simi Valley standout score 22 points in the Pioneers' 93-58 victory over Westlake on Friday, and judging by their post-game conversations with Jackson, I'm sure they were pleased with what they saw.
I'll let Jackson tell you all about it in this interview:

As for Westlake, Coach Tom Donohue was understandably a little bummed things didn't go the Warriors' way. A couple of three-pointers by Adam Kolodney and an 18-point night by Matt Mazarei were the only Westlake highlights of this much-anticipated duel. Here's a quick audio interview with Donohue:

MARMONTE
With five regular-season games remaining, Simi Valley (20-1) is eight wins shy of the school single-season record of 28 (1999-2000).

DAILY NEWS TOP 10
BOYS
1. Taft (18-3)
2. Campbell Hall (19-5)
3. Simi Valley (21-1)
4. Renaissance Academy (21-2)
5. Crespi (17-7)
6. Harvard-Westlake (18-6)
7. Valencia (17-6)
8. Saugus (19-4)
9. Lancaster (17-6)
10. Thousand Oaks (15-6)
OTHERS: Cleveland 16-6; North Hollywood 18-6; Oak Park 15-6; Oaks Christian 19-4; Sylmar 13-8; Van Nuys 10-15.

SIMI VALLEY VS ROYAL & AGOURA

MARMONTE LEAGUE
Local roundup: Jan. 31
SIMI VALLEY 73, AGOURA 67
At Agoura
Highlights: — Michael Maza led the team in scoring with 20 points. Brad Lewis scored 14 points. Agoura — Doug Shumway scored 17 points. Michael Hatch scored 15 points.
Records: Simi Valley 21-1, 10-0 Marmonte League; Agoura 13-9, 6-4.

Simi Valley - Meza 20 pts; Jackson 15 pts; Lewis 14 pts; Cox 11 pts Agoura - Shumway 17 pts, Hatch 14 pts, 16 rbs; Graf 11 pts

Local roundup: Jan. 29
SIMI VALLEY 80 ROYAL 40

HIGHLIGHTS - Mike Meza's 20 points and Lorne Jackson's 17 sparked host Simi Valley (20-1, 9-0). Royal fell to 3-18, 0-9.




Simi Valley star climbing school, county career lists
By Derry Eads Monday, January 28, 2008

The Star's rankings
1. Simi Valley (20-1)
Comment: Pioneers have scored 80 or more points in a game 12 times.
Last week: Defeated Royal.
2. Thousand Oaks (15-6)
Comment: Last five games have been decided by five points or less.
Last week: Defeated Newbury Park.
3. Ventura (16-7)
Comment: James Ennis has scored 20 or more points nine times.
Last week: Defeated Santa Barbara.
4. Oak Park (15-5)
Comment: Last two wins have been over ranked teams.
Last week: Defeated Santa Clara.
5. Oxnard (14-8)
Comment: Yellowjackets have clinched share of league title.
Last week: Defeated Camarillo and Pacifica.
Upcoming: Wednesday: Simi Valley at Agoura, Moorpark at Thousand Oaks, Camarillo at Rio Mesa, Carpinteria at Oak Park. Friday: Buena vs. Ventura at Ventura College, Calabasas at Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley at Westlake, Oaks Christian at Santa Clara, Fillmore at St. Bonaventure.


Chasing records: Lorne Jackson of Simi Valley has moved up the ladder on several county and school career lists. With 274 career steals, Jackson has passed Wendell Nunnery, who had 264 thefts for Hueneme from 1990 to 1993, into second place on the all-county list. Newbury Park's Daniel Bobick holds the record with 315.

Jackson needs 18 assists to become only the 12th county player with 400 or more career assists. The senior is sixth on Simi Valley's career points list with 1,309.
© 2008 Ventura County Star



DAILY NEWS
Simi Valley cracks Fab 50 National rankings

With its lone loss of the season an 84-83 setback Dec. 29 to No. 21 Dominguez of Compton (19-2) in the final of the MaxPreps Holiday Classic in San Diego, the Simi Valley boys' basketball team finally cracked the Rivals.com national Fab 50 poll, making its debut at No. 50.
Taft of Woodland Hills (18-3) moved up one spot to No. 20. The Toreadors play at 7 tonight at West Valley League rival Cleveland of Reseda (17-6).
Simi Valley (21-1), which has won eight in a row, plays at 7:30 tonight at Westlake (14-8) in a Marmonte League showdown. The Pioneers overcame a 23-point, third-quarter deficit in the teams' first meeting Jan. 7, before prevailing 88-86 in overtime.
Campbell Hall of North Hollywood (19-5) was ranked until last week, but fell out of the poll following a double-overtime loss Jan. 19 to No. 22 South Atlanta at Pauley Pavilion

To see the full Fab 50 national rankings, click below:
Rivals.com Fab 50 National Rankings
1 St. Anthony Jersey City NJ 15-0 2 Duncanville Duncanville TX 28-13 Yates Houston TX 21-2 4 St. Benedict's HS Newark NJ 17-1 5 Oak Hill Academy Mouth Of Wilson VA 21-3 6 Chester Chester PA 19-1 7 Rice New York NY 13-2 8 St. Patrick Elizabeth NJ 15-2 9 LeFlore Mobile Al 24-2 10 Mater Dei Santa Ana CA 23-011 St. Raymond's Bronx NY 14-2 12 Moeller Cincinnati OH 17-1 13 Norcross Norcross GA 18-1 14 Saginaw Saginaw MI 15-1 15 Simeon Chicago IL 18-2 16 Wheeler Marietta GA 20-2 17 Joel E. Ferris Spokane WA 16-0 18 Archbishop Mitty San Jose CA 18-1 19 Word Of God Christian Academy Raleigh NC 19-1 20 Taft Woodland Hills CA 18-3 21 Dominguez Compton CA 18-2 22 South Atlanta Atlanta GA 20-1 23 Abraham Lincoln Brooklyn NY 13-2 24 Benedictine School Richmond VA 20-3 25 Montrose Christian Rockville MD 13-226 Oregon City Oregon City OR 15-1 27 Santa Margarita Rancho Santa Margarita CA 21-2 28 Fairfax Los Angeles CA 17-329 Westchester Los Angeles CA 20-330 North Crowley Fort Worth TX 27-1 31 Lone Peak Highland UT 13-23 2 McClymonds Oakland CA 20-0 33 Homewood Flossmoor Flossmoor IL 15-1 34 Eisenhower Decatur IL 19-0 35 Gonzaga Silver Spring MD 20-1 36 Peabody Alexandria LA 31-0 37 New Albany New Albany IN 16-0 38 Ridgeway Memphis TN 18-1 39 Bryan Station Lexington KY 19-1 40 Whitney Young Chicago IL 18-3 41 Klein Forest Houston TX 24-2 42 Hopkins Minnetonka MN 15-0 43 Putnam City Oklahoma City OK 15-1 44 Dillard Ft Lauderdale FL 18-1 45 Montverde Academy Montverde FL 23-4 46 Mt St Josephs Baltimore MD 20-2 47 Starkville Starkville MS 20-1 48 Boyd Anderson Lauderdale Lakes FL 20-1 49 Marshall Metropolitan Chicago IL 18-3 50 Simi Valley Simi Valley CA 21-1

Sports
February 1, 2008
SVHS hoops team ranked ninth in state

The Simi Valley High boys' basketball team is one of the best squads in California, according to the latest rankings by CalHiSports.com.

The Pioneers (21-1 overall, 10-0 in the Marmonte League) were ranked No. 9 in the website's latest poll, released on Tuesday.

SVHS was No. 3 in the most recent CIFSouthern Section Division IIA coaches' poll. The Pioneers play at Westlake tonight.
"WE THREE AGREE!"