Russell Shaw

Built at a cost of $176 million, Los Angeles West Adams Prep opened in 2007 with some of the best athletic facilities in the Los Angeles Unified School District. There is an all-weather football field, an all-weather track, a weight room, fitness center, swimming pool, two gymnasiums and lighted baseball and softball diamonds. By the 2010-11 sports season, the football, basketball, baseball, girls' volleyball, soccer and water polo teams all made the City Section playoffs. "We had a lot of young, motivated, hard-working coaches," said Rick Mathiesen, who was the athletic director and softball coach.

The Avengers left little to chance on Friday night. They scored on every possession except their last, which they used to run out the clock and secure a 62-55 victory over the Detroit Fury before 11,125 at Staples Center. The victory improved the Avengers' record to 6-4 and kept alive their drive for one of eight playoff spots. Los Angeles plays at Chicago on April 25. They have six games remaining. "We'd like to win them all, but we've got to win four," Avenger Coach Ed Hodgkiss said.

For the second time this season, the Avengers erased a 20-point deficit against defending ArenaBowl champion San Jose. But on Saturday night, it was all for naught. San Jose regrouped after blowing its first-quarter lead and held on for a 47-43 victory before 15,407 at HP Pavilion to win its fourth consecutive Western Division title. San Jose (12-4) also earned the top-seeded position for the Arena League playoffs and will have the home-field advantage that goes along with it.

Kevin Ingram was good from start to finish Saturday in the Avengers' 62-55 victory over the Las Vegas Gladiators. Ingram scored the Avengers' first three touchdowns on two pass receptions and a run, then ensured a second consecutive road win by batting down Clint Dolezel's short pass into the end zone on the game's final play. With defensive specialist Damen Wheeler out because of a leg injury, Ingram played nearly every snap at wide receiver and defensive back.

As expected, Fullerton's defense had a great deal of trouble stopping El Camino in a Mission Conference game Saturday night at Titan Stadium. Quarterback Steve Sarkisian threw for 409 yards and four touchdowns as El Camino won, 28-10. The Warriors are ranked 15th in the nation by the J.C. Grid-Wire. The surprise was how much trouble Fullerton had scoring against the El Camino defense. The Hornets were coming off a 39-39 tie against Mt. San Antonio.

Even in victory, No. 6 Michigan didn't look so hot. And Notre Dame? Well, the Irish played their most inspiring game under new Coach Bob Davie, but the Wolverines won, 21-14, on Saturday, sending Notre Dame (1-3) to its first three-game losing streak in 12 years. Michigan (3-0), outplayed in the first half, struck for two touchdowns in the first 5:39 of the second half and survived three fourth-quarter fumbles for the narrow victory.

Morningside High quarterback Stais Boseman sprained his left ankle on the third play of the game and was upstaged by Inglewood senior quarterback Leandrew Childs, who led the Sentinels to a 20-19 upset Saturday at Coleman Stadium in Inglewood. Childs, a transfer from Leuzinger, rushed for 157 yards in 17 carries with one touchdown and passed for 61 yards and another TD. Childs came through for the Sentinels on three fourth-down plays.

It was a game that both schools will be talking about for years to come. In a contest that was as bizarre as it was exciting, Locke High outlasted Belmont, 43-40, in a City Section 4-A Division first-round playoff game Friday night at Belmont. "After a while, I thought whichever team had the ball last would win the game," Locke Coach E.C. Robinson said. "We couldn't stop them on offense and they couldn't stop us."

As the Arena Football League's reigning offensive player of the year, Chris Jackson anticipated unusual schemes to stop him this season. But man-to-man coverage was not one of them. The expansion Austin Wranglers tried to play Jackson straight up last weekend and the veteran offensive specialist burned them for 11 receptions and a franchise-record seven touchdowns in an 81-70 victory at Staples Center.

Scott Dreisbach, obviously a little rusty, still has a flair for the dramatic. Dreisbach, who led Michigan to a 4-0 record before a thumb injury ended his season in 1995, had a 72-yard touchdown run Saturday as the No. 12 Wolverines defeated Illinois, 20-8. The opener for both teams drew 105,992 fans, Michigan's 130th consecutive home crowd in six figures. Michigan's veteran defense also lived up to its reputation, coming up with a big goal-line stand in the third quarter.