The San Bernardino County Sun from San Bernardino, California • Page 33

rrlcla.v, fe'pU'inlx'r 7, I'JKf Fonufiil day lit 0M'ii Defending champion Jimmy Connors ended Iho upset string of John Lloyd in tho quarterfinals of tho U.S. Open, and top-seeded John McEnroe also advanced to tho semifinals by beating Gcno Mayer. Story, C-3. SlpdDIHtS Tho Sun San Bernardino, California Scoreboard Market Business Dodgers go a long way, 18 innings, lo lose lo Braves By STKVK DII-BIXK Sun MkI Wiilrf U)S ANGELES This opine tingling battle for third place in the National U-aguc West has gotten w) exciting that the Dodgers and Braves almost hate to mh each In li f) IliU 7y corner Gregg Patton game come loan end. Thursday's almost didn't.

In 18 long, grueling, treaty innings, the Atlanta Braves finally managed to defeat the Dodgers. 32. in a game that ill be memorable only for lis longevity. It was the longest game of the year for both teams. It matched the longest game of the season.

A Iodger Stadium rowd of UW was on hand for the Mart. A hearty crowd of. oh. ma) he was Mill around this morning when mighty Handy Johnson opened the IHih inning wiih a solo home run off Ijrry While, who had Marted the night before, to end the thrilling suspense. It was only Johnson's fourth home run of the year.

It was the longest game the Dodgers had played since that little limning job against the Cubs two years ago. It Listed a tidy 5 hours, two minutes and took a combined players. 24 Dodgers. Wasted, long ago. were a pair of pretty good starting pitching erformances by Fernando Yalcnucla and the Braves' Kick Mahler.

Yalenuela went 10 innings, allowing two runs on nine hits and one walk, while striking out five. Mahler lasted an inning more, giving up his two runs also on nine hits and two walks, with six strikeouts. 'n iin IL-i. -a'f tf nS yfe X'- Vi -Vi s- 'V- 4, I Make a wish and blow out the Friars COLTON Happy Birthday. Ilobin I.ukcn.

And this Is what you cot to contemplate on your 30th birthday, on tho eve of your first-ever game as i high school football head coach: You itet to follow in the foot-Heps of Don Markham. one of the most successful coaches in the county, who rebuilt the Cotton program a decade ago and turned it Into a Citrus Ik-It League power, taking the team to three CIF championship games. That's your first present, with a bow on It. For your next gift, your opening game Saturday night at Servile just the thing for a debuting coach, to go against the Friars. CIF two time defending Big Five champions.

And from me. here's your blindfold and cigarette. Actually, for a guy who ought to feel like he's sitting on football's equivalent of death row, Lu-ken seems to be faring quite well. No ordering a last meal. A smile.

No last minute conversion to the Church of the Holy Eternity. A confident word. "I'm looking forward to starting a new decade with a challenge." said Luken. sitting in the stands at Colton High School this past eek as his Yellow jackets took the field for an evening workout. "I'm really excited." Luken.

who played collegiately at Iowa and previously coached in Orange County, spent the last four years in Colton, at Markham's side. One of the things that helped convince him he was ready to take the head job was his ability to silently guess plays along with The I'at Zac hry took over for Valentiela in the 1 1th and held the Braves scoreless on two hits for four innings. (Please see Dodgers, -2 Prep teams get hot start to '84 season By PAL'L OBERJl'ERGE Sun Sporij Editor The weather may be better suited for beachballs than footballs, but that won't keep athletes from San Bernardino County schools from rushing headlong into the prep football season beginning tonight. Many junior varsity and freshman contests were moved up to Thursday night to avoid playing them this afternoon, when temperatures are expected to be in the 100s throughout the county. By 7:30 tonight, when most varsity contests are scheduled to begin, temperatures should still be a more-than-balrny 90 degrees.

Action is likely to be hot and heavy on the field, many county schools face rugged season openers. That is partic ularly true of Citrus Belt League schools. Colton takes on two-time defending (JSC tailback Fred Crutcher is healthy again after two years of knee trouble. TBse Bneat's for CrMtdhter ties lop (JSC tailback, but Knight's coining on in a rush Football 1981 "Football 1984." a special section previewing to coming season, appears today in The Sun. Produced by The Sun sports and photo staffs, the annual section includes prospects and predictions for local high school and college teams, the Rams, Raiders and the rest of the NFL, and USC, UCLA and the Pa-cific-10.

Also included this year is a special feature detailing the history of high school quarterbacks in the San Bernardino area. Tollner had given the magazine a written promise. Tollner himself has been talking about how Knight has been "even better than we expected," and ill play "more than we'd originally planned." About the only place Crutcher can turn for solace is the preseason depth chart, which lists him No.l and junior Zeph Lee No.2 heading into the Trojans' season opener tomorrow afternoon against Utah State at the Coliseum. Knight is No.3 and closing fast. "I've seen the mag-mimKmmmmmmmmmm azines, I've heard what By MIKE DAVIS Sun Sports Writer LOS ANGELES The season hasn't even started yet, and already everybody is waiting for Knight to fall on poor Fred Crutcher.

Fred Crutcher would just as soon keep everybody waiting for another year or two. Crutcher is the starting tailback at USC. That used to be considered an honor; this year it's more like a burden. For while Crutcher is attempting wmmmmmHmmmmmm CIF Big Five champion Servite in a Saturday night game; San Gorgo-nio faces Damien, which shocked powerful Edison on the first week a year ago; Redlands travels to Monrovia to face a school that was 11-1 last season, and Rubidoux of Riverside County travels to face Big Five runnerup Bishop Amat. Other games involving county CBL 'm self-motivated.

I don't need anyone 'I else to push me. (Knight) looks real aood. but he's new and he has to to run through opposing defenses with the ball tucked under one arm, he'll be using the other to fend off the onslaught of freshman sensation Ryan Knight. people are saying. Crutcher said in an interview.

"That stuff's been going on all summer. I'm not going to let it bother me or put pressure on me. I'm confident in myself. I just want to play, teams find Fontana home against er home against former CBL rival Garey and Eisenhow Chaffey. prove himself like anyone else coming out of high Fred Crutcher It seems to be a foregone conclusion that Crutcher will be able to do this for only so long.

Skeptics wonder if his left knee, in which he tore ligaments two years ago, will hold up. Everyone who's seen him run in fall camp insists he's 100 percent again after being slowed by the after-effects of the injury last season, but the questions will persist until he starts proving it in games. That's if he gets the chance. Sports Illustrated, in its football preview issue, stated flatly that Knight, the prep all-American from Rubidoux High School, "will be starting by the third game," as though head coach Ted run well, and whatever happens, happens." You'd think Crutcher would warrant a little more respect than he's been getting. He is, after all, a returning starter, a redshirt junior entering his fourth year in the program.

Two years ago, people were comparing his attacking, slashing running style to that of Anthony Davis and Heisman Trophy-winner Charles White. That, however, was before the knee injury that changed the course of Crutcher's career. It happened against Oklahoma, in the third game of the 1982 season, (Please see Crutcher, C-6) Games involving San Andreas League teams have defending champion Cajon at Moreno Valley; San Bernardino at home against Hemet; Apple Valley at Palm Springs, now a CBL school; Victor Valley at Palmdale; Barstow at Burroughs-Ridgecrest, and Hesperia home at Victorville's Ray Moore Stadium against Desert for the first game in the history of the new High Desert school. There are three intracounty matchups tonight in addition to Ike-Chaffey. Yucaipa travels to north San Bernardino to meet Aquinas; Needles makes the long trip from the Colorado River to the Morongo Basin to (Please see Preps, C-5) Great One during the game.

"I figure I was right about 70-80 percent of the time," said Luken. Luken will use Markham's trademark run-until-they-croak offense, but he's hardly a Mark-ham clone. "I have tremendous respect for Markham. He took a school with 1,500 kids and made it competitive with much larger schools," said Luken. "I learned some tricks of the trade from him but I've added some of my ow For one thing, if the Yellow-jackets thought Markham was big on weightlifting, Luken is an iron-pumping zealot.

"I'm a devout believer in weights," said Luken. "I started lifting in high school. I still lift with the kids. I think that's a motivating factor for them. They need someone to look up to, like a big brother." Whoa, like a big brother? Markham would have Luken running laps for such a breach of the coach's code.

"That's my personality," Luken said. "It's what I'm comfortable with. "Markham stood out there like a field general, demanding respect. But I get it too. "I've read a lot about (a big brother) approach and I've read that it can hurt.

But I've seen the positive sides of it. I'm confident it will work for me." Luken admits he's had a few restless nights "reviewing situations, thinking about the games, the crowds," but he's no basket case. "I think I lost more sleep when I first got the job," he said. "(But) I've gotten lots of help. I'm not working in a no-man's land." The high expectations won't bury him.

"I know they expect a winner here," said Luken. "I'll be trying to create a dynasty, just like Markham. If I fail, I'll be fired tomorrow. "But you have to keep it in perspective and have fun on the job. If you can't laugh, you'll have a coronary overnight." As for tonight, Luken will blow out his 30 candles, then make a wish no doubt, one he'll be shaping himself.

Stark steps down as Chaffey HS football coach others claimed that an administrator was blocking a grade change that would restore Patterson to the team. Stark's contention that the school administration has not adequately supported Chaffey's athletic program in general and the football program in particular. Pressure from "outside'' school, district and CIF officialdom to act against Stark. The newspaper was vague as to the source of this pressure. Stark, 55, was entering his 21st year as head coach and his 26th year of coaching at Chaffey.

His teams went 99-94-1, winning league championships in 1968 and 1979 and sharing titles in four other years. However, his team went 1-9 in 1982 and forfeited its only win last year because of an ineligible player. Reno, 39, has coached Chaffey's sophomore team for 12 years and has been the varsity baseball coach for the last five vears. leave of absence. Stark, who also was at the meeting, declined to respond to the offer, and sealed the decision Thursday in confirming his resignation.

The Daily Report's account of the booster meeting detailed several factors leading to Stark's decision, including: Classroom workload. Stark, a teacher for 32 years, and Stine apparently had been unable to reach agreement on lightening Stark's duties, which included preparation for the two subjects he taught as well as his coaching duties. Stark also did volunteer work in a weight-training program for students cut from Chaffey athletic teams. Stine, at the booster meeting, said he had been unable to accommodate Stark with a lighter schedule. Stark insisted that other schools pay a teacher to run their weight programs.

A controversy over the academic eligibility of tight end Pat Patterson. Stark and there," he was quoted as saying. "It's crazy." Chaffey principal Dr. David O. Stine said Reno had been chosen as interim head coach Wednesday afternoon after discussions with the rest of Chaffey's coaching staff.

He said they all had agreed to stay on under Reno. A chain of events leading to Stark's departure apparently began Tuesday, when Stark told Stine that he intended to resign as football coach and requested a year's leave of absence, citing "medical reasons." Football practice was called off for Tuesday, three days before tonight's game with Eisenhower. Wednesday afternoon, Stine made the decision to place Reno in the head coaching position. But that night, in a meeting of the Chaffey Booster Club, Stine told boosters that the door still was open for Stark to coach, provided he withdrew his request for a Chaffey High School football coach Ray Stark, who had the longest tenure of any active coach in San Bernardino County this season, has stepped down as head coach of the Tigers, according to the Ontario Daily Report. Sophomore football coach Jim Reno was named as interim replacement for Stark, the newspaper reported Thursday.

He will coach the team in its season opener tonight at Eisenhower HS. The coaching change ended two days of turmoil over Stark's future among Chaffey administrators and athletic boosters, in a crisis apparently stemming from Stark's distress over problems related to both coaching and teaching. Stark, who also teaches mathematics and drafting, told the Daily Report that he had applied for a leave of absence, but did not specify whether it was from teaching or from coaching. "I initiated it, and they took it from.