Bellarmine-Jefferson High School - Athletics

Athletics

Bell-Jeff offers 14 varsity sports. The girls compete in the Santa Cruz League of the CIF Southern Section in six sports while the boys compete in the Santa Fe League of CIF-SS in eight sports. * Athletics Website

Cross Country

The Cross Country teams are arguably the most successful programs on campus. The girls team has won its league championship seven times since 2000, most recently during the 2008 season, and is a consistent challenger in the CIF-SS Division V. Both teams will proudly host the 40th annual Bellarmine-Jefferson Cross Country Invitational this September at Griffith Park. The Invitational is one of the largest and longest-running invitationals in Southern California.

Basketball

The most popular sport at Bell-Jeff has had it greatest success in the past decade and a half. The boys team has made the CIF-SS playoffs six consecutive years and had California's state leader in scoring in 1998 in Ruben Douglas. Douglas went on to lead the NCAA in scoring as a senior at the University of New Mexico and now plays professional basketball in Europe. This past season the Guards won their first league championship in 14 years, capturing the 2011 Santa Fe League Championship. The Lady Guards proudly own the school's only two sectional championships, winning the CIF-SS title during the 1996-1997 season and most recently during the 2008-2009 campaign. The 2008-2009 team went on to win the Southern California regional championship and then on March 20, 2009 defeated Pinewood Prep, 55-47, at Arco Arena in Sacramento to win the school's first California State Championship. The state championship also is the first ever for any Burbank area high school in a team sport. In addition, the team has appeared in the CIF-SS title game two times, losing both in 2003 and 2008. The Girls team also won the Nike Tournament of Champions in the Grey Division in 2008 and placed 3rd in 2009. Since winning the CIF and State titles in 2009, the Lady Guards advanced to the CIF Semi-Finals for three consecutive seasons, 2010-2012. During the 2012 season Rishonda Napier was named the LA Daily News player of the year and was nominated as a McDonald's All-American.

Football

The football team returns to play its 2012 home games at newly constructed Memorial Field on the campus of John Burroughs, after playing its 2011 home games at North Hollywood HS. Despite the school's small student population, the football team is consistently ranked in the top-ten of CIF-SS's Northeast Division. The team has won four league championships in its history - 1954, 2000, 2004, and most recently 2007. The 2008 team won the schools' 1st CIF playoff game since 1954, before falling in the CIF Quarterfinals. The Guards Head Coach, David Machuca, a Burbank HS grad and former assistant at Chaminade is in his first year at the school in 2012.

Volleyball

Both teams play their home games in Keating Memorial Gymnasium (nicknamed "The Guard House") on campus. The girls team recently won its 5th consecutive Santa Cruz League Championship in the fall of 2010. Since moving to the Santa Cruz League in 2006, the Lady Guards have compiled a 39-1 record, including their current streak of 36 consecutive league matches. In 2009, the team advanced all the way to the CIF-SS Division IVA Championship game for the first time in school history. The Lady Guards had advanced to the CIF Quarterfinals in 1993 and 2008 and got all the way to the CIF Championship game in 2009 before falling in the title game. During the 2010 season the girls lost in the CIF Semi-Finals, before falling in the Quarterfinals in 2011 - both years to the eventual division champion. The boys team also has fared well in recent years, qualifying for the CIF-SS Division V playoffs three consecutive years and advancing all the way to the CIF Quarterfinals in 2007.

Baseball/Softball

The baseball team plays its home games at Burbank's Brace Park and competes in CIF-SS Division V. The team ended an almost twenty-year drought by winning the Santa Fe League Championship in 2005. The team qualified for the CIF-SS playoffs for nine consecutive years from 2003-2011 before placing fourth in league in 2012. The softball team competes at Burbank's Gross Park and has qualified for the CIF-SS playoffs in each of the last six seasons, winning its first playoff game since 1994 in 2008. The softball team has developed into one of the finest in the area. The Lady Guards have won three consecutive Santa Cruz League Championships from 2010-2012 (going undefeated in league during that time) and have advanced to two consecutive CIF-SS Championship games, losing to Pomona Catholic in 2011 and again in 2012.