Jones of La Canada High Cannot Be Outpointed

Becca Jones is La Canada High’s top scorer and rebounder, but off the court is where she’s really piling up points.

Jones, a senior, learned recently that she scored a perfect 1600 on her Scholastic Assessment Test, topping her score of 1590 on the PSAT she took last March.

“I was hoping for [a perfect score],” said Jones, an honors student with a 4.6 grade point average. “But I would have been really happy with anything over 1500.”

The only other student at La Canada who was perfect on the SAT is girls’ basketball manager Darrin Pollack, Jones’ friend since grade school.

Jones, who hasn’t had a grade lower than an A since the fifth grade, said her intelligence helps her on the court, where she averages 15.5 points and 10 rebounds per game.

“It comes in handy,” said Jones, who also throws the shot put for the La Canada track team. “Sports are 90% mental, but it’s a different kind of intelligence.”

Jones, a 5-foot-10 center, is a four-year starter in basketball and has been selected All-Rio Hondo League in each of the last three seasons. But Spartan Coach Dennis Ballard says her value to the team is far greater than in statistics.

“She’s like an assistant coach in the huddles,” he said. “She has the ability to look ahead seven or eight possessions in the game where I can only see three or four. The other players really respect her and she respects them.”

Staying alive: The playoffs seemingly began Wednesday for the Royal boys’ soccer team, which kept itself in the hunt for its seventh Marmonte League title in the past eight seasons with a 3-0 victory over Camarillo.

The victory moves the Highlanders (4-2 in league play) into third place behind Simi Valley (4-0-2) and Camarillo (4-1-2). It also heightens the drama for Royal’s match tonight at cross-town rival Simi Valley.

“We have to win every [league] game from here on in, really,” said Royal Coach Kevin Corley, whose team lost its league opener to Simi Valley, 1-0.

As always, Royal’s marked man will be standout forward Kendall Simmonds. But the Pioneers will also have to defend sophomore forward Jake Vansloten, who made his first varsity start Wednesday and scored two goals.

Ryans’ express: At least Royal boys’ basketball Coach Larry Wiksell doesn’t have much trouble remembering first names.

Four players on the Highlander roster are Ryan Dehihan, Ryan Booth, Ryan Tuttle and Ryan Neilsen.

“I’ve got nicknames for all of them,” Wiksell said. “Either that or I just call them by their last name. That works too.”

Numbing numbers: Chaminade girls’ soccer coach Mike Evans likes to keep track of his team’s statistics, but there are several numbers involving arch-rival Harvard-Westlake that make him wince.

The Eagles have lost 15 matches in three years under Evans and are 0-5-1 against Harvard-Westlake, 0-3 at home.

Chaminade (12-2-3, 2-1 in league play) lost, 3-2, to the Wolverines (9-2-1, 3-0) last Friday.