Orange Lutheran

The Orange Lutheran High School boys' basketball team defeated Maranatha in Olympic League play at LaSalle High School in Sierra Madre Monday, 80-75.

Jim Kunau was named football coach at Orange Lutheran, the school announced Tuesday. Kunau, who coached the varsity receivers and defensive backs last season, replaces Tim Taube, who resigned this spring.

Orange Lutheran, just a week away from playing its first game in the super tough Trinity League, sent a message Friday night that it has the baseball skills and talent to be a title contender after coming away with a 12-3 victory over previously unbeaten La Puente Bishop Amat in the championship game of the Lerner bracket of the Newport Elks tournament. Lutheran (5-0) didn't beat any ordinary team. Bishop Amat (4-1), ranked No. 4 by The Times, had knocked off No. 5 Mission Viejo Capistrano Valley, No. 7 Santa Ana Mater Dei and No. 8 Palm Desert in the opening two weeks of the season.

Kent Dowding had a two-run double in the sixth inning and Orange Lutheran High School held off a Banning rally in the seventh for a 6-5 victory Friday in a first-round game of the Southern Section 2-A baseball playoffs. Dowding's double gave Orange Lutheran a 6-2 lead, but Banning cut the deficit with three runs in the seventh. Dowding (10-2) also struck out 11 in his complete-game victory. Todd Dudley had a two-run double in the third for Orange Lutheran.

John Malmquist has resigned after 11 seasons as Orange Lutheran baseball coach, it was announced Saturday. No replacement has been named. The Lancers went 183-90 under Malmquist, reaching the Southern Section playoffs 10 times from 1982-92.

There were strange happenings Monday on a baseball field in Orange County. First, there was a downpour that left the Placentia El Dorado High diamond full of puddles. Then came the most awkward of moments: high school players trying to figure out how to apply pine tar to their wood bats. "We're hoping it comes with umpire pregame instructions," Valencia West Ranch Coach Casey Burrill said. Orange Lutheran pitcher Andrew Thurman was bubbling with excitement before his team's game against West Ranch.

Orange Lutheran High School lost its last chance at a berth in the Southern Section 1-A playoffs by losing to Maranatha of Sierra Madre, 4-3, Saturday at Gahr High School. Saturday's game was a league playoff to decide which of the two teams tied for third place in the Olympic League would be its third representative in postseason play. Orange Lutheran trailed throughout the game, though designated hitter Chris Hunt went 2 for 3 with an RBI.

Orange Lutheran capitalized on three of its four interceptions en route to a 35-7 victory over Los Angeles Verbum Dei in a Southern Section Division X playoff game Friday at Downey Pius X High. The Lancers (8-2-1) will face Santa Barbara Bishop Diego in a second-round game next week. Jeff Renevier grabbed Orange Lutheran's first interception with 1 minute 18 seconds left in the first quarter.

First season: 1975. All-time record: 172-108-4 in 26 seasons. League history: Freelance, 1975; Arrowhead, 1975-83; Olympic, 1984-2000. League titles: Arrowhead, 1983; Olympic, 1994, '96, '98, '99, 2000. Playoff records: 19-11 in 12 appearances (Division X runner-up in 1994, '95). Great Teams A selection of top teams from Orange Lutheran football history: 1983--The season didn't begin auspiciously for Orange Lutheran, which lost three and tied one of its first five games.