All of the hard work pays off for Terrence Brown

No. 1 aspirations

The senior baseball players at Covina Northview can't wait until the season begins because they have so much they want to accomplish.

As a group, they are 71-10, going 21-0 as freshmen, 24-6 on varsity as sophomores and winning a Southern Section Division IV championship as juniors.

Shortstop Rich Pedroza is one of the best in Southern California. He signed with Cal State Fullerton and is closing in on 100 career hits. His older brothers, Sergio and Jaime, were standouts at Fullerton and UC Riverside, respectively.

Third baseman Ryan Arnold signed with Nevada Las Vegas. Northview is entered in the Anderson Bat National Classic on April 13-16, and Coach Darren Murphy has aspirations of finishing No. 1 in Southern California.

This Prince is ready to start

It's startling how former high school players can change in a year's time. I happened to run into former Encino Crespi quarterback Kevin Prince a week ago. In his senior year in 2007, he was listed at 6-3, 200 pounds. Now he's 222 pounds as a redshirt freshman at UCLA, and the word is he has a great chance to win the starting job this spring. He's big enough to inflict some hits too.

A look at 2010

James Escarcega, who keeps track of top football prospects in the San Gabriel Valley and Inland Empire, is already identifying top early offer candidates for the class of 2010.

His top prospects include linebacker Ronald Powell from Moreno Valley Rancho Verde (USC offer), running back Deontae Cooper from Perris Citrus Hill, running back Jordon James from Corona, receiver Kenneth Scott from Ontario Colony and running back Derrick Malone from Colton.

Rising freshman transfers

The second year of the CIF freshman transfer rule that allows students one free transfer before the start of their sophomore year continues to produce movement. Last year, there were 448 transfers reported from August through December in the Southern Section. This school year, there have been 568, a 27% increase. Those numbers will continue to increase as parents learn how to use the rule to their advantage.

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eric.sondheimer@latimes.com