Pluimer, Riley Are Troy’s Downfall

Feeling it needed a victory Monday to secure a top-seeded position in the Southern Section playoffs, the San Clemente girls’ basketball team turned in its best performance this season with a 57-47 nonleague victory over host Fullerton Troy.

San Clemente (13-3), ranked No. 5 by The Times, ended a 31-game winning streak by the No. 3 Warriors (17-1) dating to last season’s 65-63 double-overtime loss to the Tritons. San Clemente has five consecutive victories over Troy dating to a 1999 playoff win that ended Troy’s 27-game winning streak.

Lindsey Pluimer led San Clemente with 26 points, 11 rebounds and six blocked shots, but “Lauren Riley killed us,” said Coach Kevin Kiernan, whose team won last season’s Division II state title.

Troy is ranked No. 6 in the state, three spots ahead of San Clemente.

Riley, a 6-foot-4 senior, scored 11 points and had 10 rebounds, four assists and three blocks, doing almost all her damage in the final 4:35 of the third quarter when 6-3 Pluimer left because of foul trouble with a 30-24 lead.

The Tritons, behind Riley, held a 40-35 lead when Pluimer returned in the fourth quarter to score 15 of her points.

“This gives us confidence going into a championship or semifinal type of game,” Coach Mary Mulligan said.

-- Martin Henderson

Football

Thomas Herring, a 6-6, 295-pound offensive lineman from Los Angeles Fremont, has committed to USC.

Quarterback Rocky Hinds, 6-4 and 215 pounds, of Playa del Rey St. Bernard still has another college visit scheduled but probably will join Herring, a Times’ All-Star, at USC.

Chet Sanders, a 6-1, 190-pound All-City Section safety from City champion Carson, committed to Washington. He had eight interceptions last season and was a Times’ All-Star selection.

UCLA gained commitments from receiver Marcus Everett of West Hills Chaminade and lineman Tony Lee of Gardena Serra.

Oregon State picked up commitments from linemen Adam Speer of Chaminade and Jon Ioane of Tustin.

Signing day is Feb. 4.

-- Eric Sondheimer

Boys’ Soccer

Rancho Cucamonga Coach Tim Wagner says his players need an attitude adjustment.

Not the kind where they need to show him more respect. But the kind where they need to realize that when you’re a highly ranked team, opponents are going to play their hearts out against you.

That’s what happened Friday, when Rancho Cucamonga, the top-ranked team in the Southland by The Times, was tied by unheralded Rancho Cucamonga Los Osos, 1-1, in a Baseline League game.

“Every team gets up to play us, but we don’t always get up for every team. That’s something we’re working on,” Wagner said.

-- John Ortega

Wrestling

Santa Monica’s Matt Ishler (215 pounds) was knocked unconscious 33 seconds into the second period of his second match Friday at the Five Counties Invitational at Fountain Valley.

After a 15-minute injury timeout, Ishler returned to pin Santa Ana’s Jonathan Moreno for his 19th pin in 20 matches this season.

Ishler then suffered his first defeat this season, 20-12, to top-seeded Brandon Halsey of Rancho Buena Vista. Halsey, who finished seventh at the state tournament last year, went on to win the 215-pound division at Five Counties.

After complaining of dizziness and a loss of vision and taste, Ishler was taken Friday night to Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center, where tests proved negative. He is questionable for a dual meet against Manhattan Beach Mira Costa on Thursday but expects to participate in the Laguna Hills tournament on Saturday.

“I don’t even remember finishing my match against Moreno. I don’t even remember wrestling [Halsey]. I just went on some kind of autopilot,” Ishler said.

-- Rafer Weigel