Coach Doug Failla’s 2010 varsity tennis team got off to a strong start as the Dawgs beat Serra and Mission Hills in the friendly confines of Riviera Oaks Resort.
   The Bulldogs beat Serra 11-7 in their season opener on the strength of their doubles play. The doubles teams took all nine sets for 9 team points. Number one singles player, Cameron Ruland, won two sets to ensure the victory.
   John Shupe and Tyler McDonald manned the number one doubles spot and delivered with three team points as they went 6-2, 6-0 and 6-0.
   Chris Bowersox and Liam Swan also took three sets with scores of 6-0, 6-1 and 6-1. Daniel Streeter and Chris Page finished the doubles sweep with scores of 6-2, 6-2 and 6-0.
   In singles action, Ruland posted scores of 6-7 (6-8), 6-2 and 6-1 to earn the points that it took to win the match. Tyler Davidson went 2-6, 4-6 and 5-7. Garrett Hatch posted scores of 0-6, 2-6 and 0-6.

   Ramona High School’s girls swim team began the 2010 season with a 95-75 win over Valhalla March 5 at the Norsemen’s pool.
   The meet was also the first for Jolyn Yanez as Ramona’s official head coach. Yanez had been Ramona’s junior varsity coach for six years and substituted for varsity coach Stacey Dusseault last year when Dusseault’s second child was born.  Dusseault will be focusing on her children, now 3 years old and 10 months old, this season, although she has not ruled out the possibility of returning to coaching duties in the future.
   “It’s kind of an exciting opportunity,” Yanez said of taking over as the varsity coach.

   In the CIF Division II playoff quarterfinal match March 1 between Ramona High School and Orange Glen High School at Orange Glen, the Patriots took a 2-0 halftime lead but had to fend off a second-half Ramona surge to seal a 2-1 victory.
   “The way we played in the last 40 minutes, I was so proud of the boys,” said Ramona coach Michael Jordan. “The last 40 minutes were fantastic.”
   Ramona had advanced to the quarterfinals with a 1-0 win on the road Feb. 24 at Southwest High School.  The game at Orange Glen was originally scheduled for Feb. 27, but after the Bulldogs arrived at the Patriots’ field subsequent rainfall made the pitch unsuitable for play and the match was rescheduled for Monday, March 1. 
   “We finally were able to get that game in,” Jordan said.
Orange Glen had won the Valley League and was seeded first in the Division II playoffs. 

   We have all heard all of the clichés. “Take the money and run.” “Show me the money!” James Meador heard those clichés but used his education to make a rational decision.
   Meador had an excellent athletic career at Ramona High School. He quarterbacked the varsity football team and was a four-year letterman in baseball. He also hit the books as hard as he hit the baseball (.500 plus hitter his junior and senior seasons) and had good grades and SAT scores. Fine athletic and academic institutions (UCLA, Long Beach State, Arizona State and USD) recruited him to continue his education and baseball career. He chose USD.
   It took him a little time to adjust to the college and the college game, but, when he did, he did so with big numbers. He helped the Toreros win the regular-season West Coast Conference (WCC) Championship and a school best number four national ranking his frosh season. He led the Toreros in hitting with a .374 batting average and hits as a sophomore.

   Ramona High School’s softball team will return 11 letter winners and welcome five players up from the junior varsity and freshman on the 2010 roster.
   Junior Lexi Slater is the top returner to the squad. Slater has earned two varsity letters and been all Valley League twice. She led the team in almost every offensive category last season as she posted big numbers on the way to earning first team All Valley League at shortstop and second team All North County.
   Slater hit a phenomenal .452, drove in 24 runs and hit two home runs. She had a .519 on base percentage and stole five bases.
   Four seniors return for the 2010 season.
   Courtney Fick earned all Valley League second team honors as a catcher last season. She hit .310, drove in 15 runs and slammed four home runs.

   The Bulldog baseball team doesn’t rebuild. It reloads. The Dawgs battled injuries in 2009 and still posted a 17-11 record. They were 8-4 in the Valley League.
   Pitching is what the game is about and the Dawgs will return their ace from 2009. Senior Cody Willingham went 8-3 with a 3.09 ERA. He posted 15 appearances, logged 77 innings, struck out 87 batters and was first team All Valley League and the Valley League Pitcher of the Year. The southpaw will be attending University of California Irvine next season.
   Senior Brady Wilson earned second team Valley League honors as a slugging second baseman. He hit a solid .376 with 11 RBIs from his leadoff spot in the batting order, and he also played shortstop last season.
   Alex “Smiley” Willeford returns for his fourth varsity campaign. The senior lefthanded hitting catcher hit .360, drove in 34 runs and hit three home runs. He earned honorable mention All Valley League last season.

   Coach Jerry Patenaude is looking forward to the Ramona High School golf season.
   “Last year we were 18-2 and 12-0 in the Valley League,” he said. “We finished second in Division II in the CIF. This year we will rely on our senior leadership and their experience. This group is hands down the most talented group overall that I have coached in my three seasons. Most have varsity experience and all are capable of shooting low scores on any given day.”
   Patenaude’s five seniors are: Drew Massey, Josh Haynes, Glendon Barnum, Corey Warren and Tyler Harvey. Massey and Haynes are co-captains.
   Last year, Massey’s average score was 38.1. He was first team All Valley League and took third in the Valley League Tournament.
   Haynes averaged 39.1 last season and was first team all league. He will attend the University of La Verne next season and play golf.

   Ramona made the most of its last season in the Valley League in winter sports. Every winter team placed at least one member on the Valley League first team.          Wrestling led the honors as three grapplers earned first team All Valley League.
   In wrestling, no vote is involved. It goes by the results on the mat. Spaso Ilich (132), Brodie Chenowth (154) and Devin Rhodes (173) had the best records in their weight class and earned first team honors. Marshal Thrasher (217) earned a spot on the second team.
   Senior Kellie Schoepp was selected first team All Valley League in girls basketball and was a finalist for the Player of the Year in the league. Schoepp led the Lady Dawgs in scoring (231), points per game (9.6), assists (43), rebounds per game (7.2). Schoepp had 173 rebounds on the season despite missing four complete games and parts of others with injuries.

   Ramona High School wrestling coach Steve Koch’s main goal this season has been to improve every week. His team reached that goal.
   The unranked underdog Bulldogs entered the Masters Wrestling Meet as one of the 75 teams that sent wrestlers to the meet. They finished in seventh place and are sending two wrestlers to the State Meet. The Bulldogs finished higher than Mt. Carmel, the Valley League champion. Mt. Carmel beat Ramona in the first league meet.
   “We not only improved every week, we matured as a team and finished seventh in the county (actually two counties),” said Koch. “We were young and the core of this team is returning next season. This team has the potential to be as good as the 2002 team that sent five wrestlers to the State Meet.”
   Junior Brodie Chenowth won the Masters Championship in the 154-pound division. Chenowth is only the third Bulldog grappler to win a Masters title. Tony Sotello and Eric Parker were the previous Masters champs from Ramona.