Releaguing saga a drain on school administrators

The releaguing situation continues to linger over the local high school sports scene like coastal fog in the summertime.

It is a drama that centers around the football programs at Calabasas and Oaks Christian, but it could drastically affect the Marmonte League, the TriCounties Athletic Association and nearly every school and sports team in the area.

At each step along the way there have been enough twists, turns and bumps to make magician Criss Angel woozy.

And nobody is quite certain when the madness will stop.

"We've had a year of meetings and proposals and decisions and appeals—and we're nowhere further along than we were a year ago," said Jim Benkert, Westlake athletic coordinator and varsity football coach.

"We have nothing accomplished."

The school hallways that have fallen silent for the summer merely represent the calm before the storm.

In October, the nine leagues in the CIF-Southern Section Northern Area will each cast votes for one of four releaguing options at Bishop Diego High in Santa Barbara.

At that time, the leagues should be set for the 2011-14 cycle—perhaps.

The four proposals on the docket are as follows:

•Oaks Christian, Grace Brethren, St. Bonaventure and Santa Clara move into a private school, four-team league for football only.

•Oaks Christian, currently in the TCAA's Tri-Valley League, switches with Calabasas, a Marmonte school, in all sports.

•Oaks Christian and Calabasas swap leagues for football only.

•Oaks Christian joins the Marmonte for all sports, which turns into a nine-school league. Calabasas remains in the Marmonte except for football, where it will compete in the TriValley. St. Bonaventure moves to the Channel League for all sports.

Marmonte athletic directors from Agoura, Calabasas, Moorpark, Newbury Park, Royal, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks and Westlake will try to reach a consensus during their next athletic directors' meeting on Sept. 2 at 10:45 a.m. at the Thousand Oaks Teen Center.

Each school's respective athletic leaders and principals will finalize their unified vote during a 7 a.m. breakfast on Sept. 8 at the Plug Nickel restaurant in Westlake Village.

The Marmonte will submit its vote to the CIF-Southern Section council meeting in October.

Calabasas Principal C.J. Foss sent a letter in May to the other Marmonte schools requesting the Coyotes' football team be moved out of the league.

"This wasn't well received" by the rest of the league, said Calabasas assistant principal Eric Anhalt.

"We want to make it clear that if we cannot get relief for our football program, we're prepared to compete in the Marmonte League for all sports," Anhalt said.

"In fact, it would be an honor. Our football team should not guide the direction of all sports at CHS."

Anhalt said Calabasas would support any proposition except the one which puts the school in the TCAA for all sports.

"Our biggest concern would be for student-athletes missing valuable class time," Anhalt said.

"It's not that we couldn't make it work (in the TCAA). It's just not ideal. It is certainly something that we could do if we had to, but it's not the direction we want to go."

Calabasas officials enjoy participating in the Marmonte, which Anhalt called the "premier league in Southern California."

Calabasas athletic director and newly appointed football coach Larry Edwards thinks the Coyote football team can compete in the Marmonte despite being 247 alltime in league games.

"We've certainly had hard times in football," Edwards said. "We hope to get back to a competitive level. I think we're heading back there.

"My only concern is getting more kids interested in playing and to get the numbers up, and then I think we'll get right in the mix."

Oaks Christian wants to play football in the Marmonte while participating in the Tri-Valley for all other sports.

Athletic director Jan Hethcock said Oaks Christian would suffer if all its athletic teams participated with Marmonte schools.

"Look at the numbers for cross country, track and swimming. We wouldn't even stand a chance," Hethcock said.

"We cannot field these teams in the Marmonte League and do justice to our kids."

Benkert said he has reservations about Oaks Christian joining the Marmonte for football only.

"If they want to be in the Marmonte, they should come in for all sports. If you're coming, come for everything and we'll embrace you," said Benkert, who is adamantly opposed to creating a "fractured" Marmonte.

The Westlake coach and administrator personally feels that Calabasas should stay, if it desires.

"I wouldn't make any changes," Benkert said. "We are a public-school league with eight schools. It's not broken. I know Calabasas has had problems in football the last few years. If you look around, other Marmonte schools have problems in different sports. It happens.

"We have great relationships with each other. If we have issues, we talk to each other and work it out. . . . In a perfect world, I personally would keep it status quo."

Agoura athletic director Jason Rosenthal said schools must keep their priorities straight when voting on releaguing.

"We really have to do what's best for the kids," Rosenthal said.

"If Calabasas has enough kids to participate in football in our league, I say leave them in. If they don't have enough kids or safety is an issue, we have to move them and do what's best for the kids. . . .

"I don't think we need to punish any kids for our own personal feelings."

Rosenthal said he, too, is cautious about Oaks Christian joining the Marmonte.

"If they wanted to build a new football field, someone could write a check tomorrow. It would take us years to get something done," Rosenthal said.

"Each league has one vote. We have to sit down and weigh the pluses and minuses of each proposal and figure out what's best."

Moorpark football coach Tim Lins said he anticipates Oaks Christian will join the Marmonte.

"It seems inevitable that Oaks Christian will be in. We'll have to see," Lins said.

"We're a big proponent of (OCHS) being in for all sports across the board, like every other school in the league. We feel like that would be the best fit."

Oaks Christian is strongly opposed to the private school league which would pit the Lions and St. Bonaventure against significantly smaller programs in Grace Brethren and Santa Clara.

Hethcock called the proposition "ludicrous."

Grace Brethren athletic director Matt Cooper said the Lancers strongly oppose the creation of a four-team league.

"To us, it's kind of ridiculous," Cooper said. "It fits none of the criteria CIF has for releaguing, specifically regarding competitive equity.

"We support the option that either Oaks Christian and Calabasas switch everything or Oaks Christian switching in football only, and in that order."

No administrator the Acorn spoke with could confirm if October's vote would finalize the Northern Area releaguing for 2011-14 or if more appeals are forthcoming.

"It's been frustrating," Rosenthal said. "It's been a twoyear process, and we've got nothing out of it. At this point, let's figure it out and get it done."

When the dust finally settles, whether it's in October, January or in another four years, not every school will be satisfied.

"I don't think there's a proposal on the docket that will make everybody happy," Benkert said. "I just don't see it."