Crespi High School

Crespi Carmelite High School announced Thursday that David Doyle, who previously served as the top administrator at Notre Dame High School, will be its new principal. Doyle, 35, who has been working at Crespi this year as an academic counselor, will begin his new duties in June. He will replace Father Frederick Tillotson, who has been principal since 1990. "I am really pleased to be Crespi's new principal. I think this a great opportunity," Doyle said Thursday.

When Troy Thomas was in his first year coaching football at Encino Crespi in 2001, a student came into his tiny office and said, "I want to play bagpipes for you." "He shut the door and starts playing," Thomas said. "I got chills." So started Crespi's tradition of having a bagpiper lead the team onto the field. Thomas brought the same idea with him to Anaheim Servite, which means Friday's 4:30 p.m.

My daughter Laurel recently graduated with honors from Montclair Preparatory School, an academically oriented high school. She had a grade-point average of 4.0. Her SAT score was 1,230. I read that Russell White of Crespi High School recently graduated. He had a grade-point average of 2.3. After various attempts, he had less than a 700 on his SAT scores. Laurel was rejected by the University of California, Berkeley. Russell was accepted by the University of California, Berkeley.

The Los Angeles Archdiocese and a Roman Catholic religious order have agreed to pay $10 million to seven people, including two who said they were sexually molested by clergy at an Encino school. The case involved Dominic Savino, 67, a Carmelite priest who spent many years as a teacher and administrator at Crespi Carmelite High School. Also named as a defendant was former Crespi Principal John Knoernschild and two other members of the order not associated with the school.

I would like to respond to the article on cheating in high school that appeared Nov. 13. As dean of students at Crespi High School, I am in agreement that cheating is on the rise, but I differ from many of those interviewed who throw up their hands and say there is little that can be done to stem the tide. I also disagree with the Dean of Students from Taft High School who said his job is not to punish students who are caught cheating. I believe our responsibility in this regard is twofold.

Sparked by senior guard Brian Capp's game-high 29 points, Crespi High School opened Del Rey League play by beating crosstown rival Notre Dame, 69-56, in front of a capacity crowd at Crespi Wednesday night. Notre Dame led, 33-32, at the half but the Celts took command at the beginning of the fourth quarter after outscoring the Knights, 20-8, in the third. "Notre Dame surprised us," Crespi Coach Paul Muff said. "We haven't given up 33 points in a half all season.

The game wasn't decided until the final 10 seconds, but Crespi High School's 45-38 victory over Servite in Friday night's Big Five Conference quarterfinal game at Glover Stadium came down to what most people thought it would. A Brown and White issue. Crespi's Russell White, arguably the best running back in the state, and Servite's Derek Brown, who proved not to be very far behind, ran wild in the game. Together they combined for 470 yards rushing and scored seven touchdowns.

A priest has been dismissed from his position as president of an Encino Catholic boys school after allegations that he sexually abused two students and several other minors more than two decades ago, officials said Friday. The Rev. Dominic Savino was ousted from the presidency of Crespi Carmelite High School and from acting as a priest by the Order of Carmelites, which operates the school, after it learned of allegations of sexual abuse.

The Los Angeles Archdiocese and a Roman Catholic religious order have agreed to pay $10 million to seven people, including two who said they were sexually molested by clergy at an Encino school. The case involved Dominic Savino, 67, a Carmelite priest who spent many years as a teacher and administrator at Crespi Carmelite High School. Also named as a defendant was former Crespi Principal John Knoernschild and two other members of the order not associated with the school.

Every so often, rumors circulate around Crespi Carmelite High School that the San Fernando Valley's only Catholic boys school is going coed. "Not going to happen," said Father John Knoernschild, school president. At an 11 a.m. Mass and barbecue today, the school's staff, students, parents and alumni say they're celebrating not only Crespi's 40th anniversary but also its commitment to single-sex education.

The unmistakable sign that LeBron James was going to pass up college and proceed directly into the NBA came when his mother bought him a $50,000 Hummer for his 18th birthday. Those searching for clues to whether Encino Crespi pitcher-shortstop Trevor Plouffe might turn down a scholarship to USC to accept a lucrative signing bonus from a major league team can't conclude anything from the car Plouffe is driving.

To fully grasp what it means to be part of Encino Crespi High's resurgence in football under Coach Troy Thomas, one must comprehend the significance of earning a locker in "the room." It is a smelly, dank, moldy place in the heart of a cramped locker room, and yet there is nowhere the 30 young men afforded membership would rather be. Most members of the exclusive fraternity wear shoulder pads and carry helmets; one wears a kilt and carries bagpipes.

When Trevor Plouffe steps into the batter's box, the anticipation and excitement begins to build. He's like a wizard preparing to wave a magic bat. Everyone thinks something special is about to happen. It's the same feeling when Plouffe is pitching. He's neither unhittable nor unbeatable, but at his best, he exudes the aura of a teenager who belongs at a different level. "We want him now," said one college baseball coach.

A priest has been dismissed from his position as president of an Encino Catholic boys school after allegations that he sexually abused two students and several other minors more than two decades ago, officials said Friday. The Rev. Dominic Savino was ousted from the presidency of Crespi Carmelite High School and from acting as a priest by the Order of Carmelites, which operates the school, after it learned of allegations of sexual abuse.

As he walked off baseball fields this season, Dale Legaspi of Crespi High could have granted interviews after every game . . . to Dale Legaspi. It might have been surreal, but not far-fetched. Legaspi, who is headed for USC on an academic scholarship to major in communications, was sports editor of the Crespi student newspaper and editor of the school's yearbook. Which, combined with the baseball schedule and other responsibilities, was a huge burden for Legaspi.

Russell White, who led Crespi High to the 1986 Southern Section Division I football championship and became an All-Pacific 10 Conference running back at California, has been hired to coach running backs for the Celts. White, who works as a probation officer, was a high school teammate of new Crespi Coach Troy Thomas.

A mangled mess of twisted steel and broken glass--formerly a gray 1983 Toyota Corolla 2-door--was towed into the parking lot at Crespi Carmelite High School early Wednesday. One year ago, the vehicle crashed into several parked cars in the Valley in a possible alcohol-related accident, said Santiago Rosales, traffic safety officer of the Los Angeles Police Department's Valley Traffic Division.

Crespi High School's basketball team, which has no starter taller than 6-3, must hit its outside shots to win games in the Del Rey League. Last Wednesday against Loyola, the Celts had their worst shooting night of the season and lost. Friday night before a jam-packed crowd at Crespi, the Celts nailed 60% of their shots, most from 15 feet and beyond, and defeated the Alemany Indians, 70-67.

Sometimes the best move is no move at all. Just ask Andrew Moore of Crespi High, who was the talk of Valley basketball last spring when word leaked that he might be transferring. "I was pretty frustrated the way things were going," he said. "I wanted to check things out." Dissension resulted in a sixth-place finish for Crespi in the seven-team Mission League. Moore didn't want to endure another year of bickering and turmoil.

As starting free safety for the NFC East-champion New York Giants, Shaun Williams is a lean, lethal hitting machine at 6 feet 2 and 215 pounds. But that's not how Tim Lins, former Crespi High coach, remembers him in the fall of 1992, Williams' junior year. Lins said Williams could do only two pull-ups, which made him weaker than some of Lins' physical education students. "That's not true, that's not true, that's not true," Williams said, laughing. "I think I got up to five."