California
California girls volleyball high school Top 20 rankings (10/1/2024)
They say that after a busy vacation, you need a vacation. And that’s the story in California volleyball. After a wild weekend at the Durango Fall Classic in Las Vegas in which there were upsets and fierce battles galore, many top teams who traveled to Nevada had a quiet week.
That led to few blockbuster showdowns and minimal change in the SBLive/High School on SI California Top 20 girls volleyball rankings.
There were some big headlines, nevertheless.
Mira Costa-Manhattan Beach took down Redondo Union-Redondo Beach in a big Bay League battle. Sierra Canyon-Chatsworth also had a huge victory, knocking off Marymount-Los Angeles in five sets.
And in two of the best leagues outside southern California, Clovis upended Clovis North-Fresno in Tri-River Athletic Conference play and Carondelet-Concord dispatched Foothill-Pleasanton in an East Bay Athletic League matchup.
Check out also the very cool night match below on Campbell Hall’s football field in a match with No. 2 Sierra Canyon. STORY/VIDEO
(Records through Sept. 29)
1. Mater Dei-Santa Ana (Southern Section, 22-3, last week No. 1 ranking)
Monarchs traveled south and topped Santa Margarita Christian-Rancho Santa Margarita in four sets, with the key being a third-set win at deuce. Scores were 18-25, 25-20, 27-25, 25-13.
2. Sierra Canyon (SS, 21-2 LW No. 3)
Trailblazers beat the Marymount Sailors 20-25, 25-20, 20-25, 28-26, 15-12 behind Hanna McGinest’s 17 kills.
3. Marymount (SS, 21-4, LW No. 2)
Marymount holds third place over Costa due to head-to-head win in Vegas. In loss to Sierra Canyon, junior Sammy Destler ripped 21 kills and sophomore Makenna Barnes added 16 kills.
4. Mira Costa (SS, 17-5, LW No. 4)
Mustangs beat Redondo Union-Redondo Beach in four sets on September 26. Wisconsin-bound Audrey Flanagan dominated with 27 kills and a .362 attack percentage.
5. Cathedral Catholic-San Diego (San Diego Section, 26-3, LW No. 6)
Cathedral Catholic will regroup after finishing 13th in the Durango Classic. The Dons are still the top team in San Diego. Libero Maya Evens is committed to Notre Dame.
6. Redondo Union (SS, 11-3, LW No. 5)
Sea Hawks fell to Costa but will look to regroup from a 2-2 Bay League start in the second half of league play. Watch out for RU in the rematches.
7. Murrieta Valley-Murrieta (SS, 17-6, LW No. 7)
In a match with the most amazing turns of momentum, the Nighthawks beat Vista Murrieta-Murrieta 25-6, 20-25, 26-28, 25-17, 15-10.
8. Los Alamitos (SS, 22-4, LW No. 8)
Griffins beat Newport Harbor-Newport Beach 24-26, 25-17, 25-20, 15-25, 15-11. Sunset-Surf League is competitive, with Huntington Beach still on top at 8-0 and Los Al at 7-1.
9. Torrey Pines (SDS, 13-4, LW No. 9)
TPHS dropped Westview-San Diego 25-16, 18-25, 25-16, 25-15 behind 16 kills from sophomore Jaycee Mack and 13 from Finley Krystkowiak.
10. Palos Verdes-Palos Verdes Estates (SS, 12-5, LW 10)
Second turn of the Bay League schedule has the Sea Kings at Redondo Union on October 2 and hosting Mira Costa on October 8.
11. Branson-Ross (North Coast Section, 14-5, LW No. 12)
Bulls have wins over Archbishop Mitty-San Jose, St. Francis-Mountain View, Torrey Pines and Marin Catholic-Kentfield. Big battle coming at Redwood-Larkspur on October 9.
12. Santa Margarita Catholic-Rancho Santa Margarita (SS, 14-6, LW No. 14)
Santa Margarita defeated JSerra Catholic-San Juan Capistrano 25-17, 25-27, 25-19, 22-25, 15-10 behind 25 kills from Ireland Real and 21 from Memphis Burnett. The Eagles then fell to Mater Dei as Monarchs beat them 19-25, 25-20, 27-25, 25-12. Close third set indicates they were nearly up two sets to one on powerhouse MD.
13. St. Francis (Central Coast Section, 10-3, LW No. 15)
Lancers won at St. Ignatius-San Francisco 25-21, 25-22, 23-25, 25-23 to grab hold of the West
Catholic Athletic League lead.
14. Huntington Beach (SS, 27-3, LW No. 16)
Oilers lead Sunset-Surf League and have big battles coming in that loop, including a visit to Newport Harbor on October 8 and a home contest against Los Alamitos two days later.
15. Carondelet (NCS, 15-4, LW not ranked)
Cougars have surged to the top of the East Bay Athletic League with five-set wins over San Ramon Valley-Danville and Foothill-Pleasanton. Meena Kasirajan leads the attack. Sophia Hylen sets and is a great defensive force.
17. St. Mary’s-Stockton (San Joaquin Section, 13-4, LW No. 17)
Rams beat Folsom 24-26, 25-21, 15-11 to win the Christine Craft Tournament at Oak Ridge. Mckenna McIntosh leads with 4.1 kills per set.
18. Archbishop Mitty (CCS, 11-5, LW No. 18)
Kacie Caoili and Leyna Nguyen driving the Monarchs’ bus in light of injuries to top players, including Makenna Crosson, Maya Baker and Isabella Romero.
19. Clovis North (Central Section, 29-3, LW No. 11)
The Broncos lost a TRAC battle to rival Clovis 25-22, 25-20, 25-23.
20. San Marcos (SDS, 23-4, LW No. 12)
The Knights lost a tourney final to San Dieguito Academy-San Diego 25-21, 17-25, 15-13.
Comments, questions or opinions? Email gordon.kass@gmail.com
Rapper was stabbed 16 times by fellow inmate in May 2025 while 10-year sentence in Megan Thee Stallion shooting case
Tory Lanez has filed a $100 million lawsuit against the California Department of Corrections stemming from a May 2025 incident where the rapper was stabbed in prison.
Lanez — born Daystar Peterson and currently serving a 10-year sentence after being found guilty in the Megan Thee Stallion shooting case — also sued the warden and guards at the California Correctional Institute in Tehachapi, where the rapper was stabbed 16 times in an “unprovoked life-threatening attack” by another inmate, the lawsuit states.
Peterson was hospitalized following the May 2025 incident, suffering a collapsed lung among stab wounds to his back, torso, and head.
According to the Associated Press, the lawsuit criticized the Department of Corrections for housing Peterson with fellow inmate and alleged attacker Santino Casio, who was serving a life sentence for second-degree murder. “The choice to house Casio with Peterson was known or should have been a known danger,” the lawsuit said, adding that Tory Lanez’ “high-profile celebrity status” made him a target.
The lawsuit also said that prison guards were slow to respond to the shanking, and didn’t employ flash grenades or other measures to halt Casio’s attack.; Casio was not charged for stabbing Peterson, the Associated Press notes.
Lanez, who following his hospitalization was transferred to San Luis Obispo County’s California Men’s Colony, also alleges in the lawsuit that he never received his possessions from the California Correctional Institute in Tehachapi, including songbooks filled with lyrics to his unreleased music.
Lanez is serving a 10-year prison sentence for shooting Megan Thee Stallion in the foot during a confrontation in the summer of 2020. He was eventually convicted on several firearms charges, including assault with a firearm, in December 2022. In November 2025, his appeal was denied by a three-judge panel, and the 10-year sentence was upheld.
From one crackdown on hospice fraud to another.
A few weeks ago, the FBI arrested multiple people in Southern California that were accused of defrauding the government for millions of dollars.
In a more recent announcement last Thursday, California’s State Attorney General Rob Bonta held a press conference to announce a fraud bust of their own.
“Operation Skip Trace uncovered and ended a hospice fraud scheme that defrauded Medi-Cal of $267 million,” Bonta said. “So just to be clear, a quarter billion dollars over funds that are paid for by California taxpayers, funds that are meant to provide care to Californians in need. It is unacceptable. It is illegal and we will not stand for it.”
The operation saw a total of 21 suspects charged as a result and dismantled a major hospice fraud scheme, with two handguns and over $750 thousand in cash seized as well.
According to the state’s attorney general, this is just one of the many cases over the years the state has cracked down on.
“This is just the latest example of the California DOJ’s longstanding ongoing and successful efforts to combat hospice and medical fraud,” Bonta said. “We have been doing this work for years. We’ve been doing it successfully before certain people in this country decided to think about it for the first time. We will continue to do this work. Heads down, sleeves rolled up, important investigative work, prosecutorial work.”
He added to that by taking a shot at the Trump Administration’s latest fraud operations.
“While healthcare fraud might be President Trump’s shiny new political talking point, the California DOJ has been going after healthcare fraud since 1979,” Bonta said. “For decades, Trump is late to the party. Protecting taxpayer dollars and protecting programs sick and vulnerable Californians rely on have been our priority for nearly five decades.”
Governor Gavin Newsom also spoke out about this latest crackdown while taking a shot of his own at President Trump.
In a post to “X” the Governor’s Press Office wrote in part quote…
“California has been cracking down on hospice fraud long before Trump gutted oversight and pardoned the architect of the biggest health care fraud scheme in U.S. history.”
State Republicans have responded to this latest announcement from Attorney General Bonta, calling for a special session to demand accountability from the Governor on widespread fraud.
California
Xavier Becerra surges in poll after Eric Swalwell drops out of California governor’s race
A new poll shows a major shift in the California governor’s race after former Rep. Eric Swalwell, who was once a frontrunner, dropped out of the election following several allegations of sexual misconduct.
“This definitely throws this race into even more volatility, creates a huge vacuum,” Pomona College politics professor Sara Sadhwani said.
According to the new numbers, Xavier Becerra, the former state attorney general and Health and Human Services Secretary under President Biden, is surging in popularity.
In Emerson College’s Inside California Politics poll, Becerra is now polling at 10%, a seven-point jump since March.
Republican Steve Hilton remains in the lead with 17%, followed by Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco at 14%.
Among Democrats, billionaire Tom Steyer leads the pack with 14%, followed by Becerra and former Rep. Katie Porter at 10% each. San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan sits at 5%.
The poll showed that 23% of voters remain undecided.
“Xavier Becerra should be the happiest of them all because he’s the biggest move in this survey,” said Zev Yaroslavsky, director at UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs.
Emerson College conducted the poll right after Swalwell dropped out of the race and President Trump endorsed Hilton.
“I believe over time, because Trump has endorsed Hilton for the governorship, that Hilton will continue to edge up and Bianco by definition will have to go down,” Yaroslavsky said.
Last weekend, the California GOP held its convention, and, similar to the Democrats, the party did not make an endorsement. However, Bianco received the most votes from the GOP delegates.
“We’re extremely happy with how it came out,” Bianco said. “There was a lot of effort put in by my opponent. Hundreds of thousands of dollars to try and win this election.
With the large number of undecided voters, Yaroslavky believes that the race is still in the air.
“It’s still early,” Yaroslavsky said. “It’s a little less than seven weeks before the election. The ballots go out at the beginning of next month. People, at least 30%, still haven’t made up their mind.”
In the state’s primary system, only the top two vote-getters in the June primary will advance to the November general election.
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