In an interview last week, current Long Beach Unified School District superintendent Chris Steinhauser and incoming LBUSD superintendent Jill Baker outlined the first stages of the LBUSD’s plan to return to school when the 2020-21 school year begins on September 1. “It’s closer to what has been known as school,” said Baker, who will take […]
Lakewood
Writing The Story of 2020’s Missing League, CIF Championships
With this week’s scheduled CIF Southern Section championships canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there will officially be a blank line across the record books. Before we close the book on 2019-20, we wanted to take a look at a few of the league and CIF-SS/State championships we expected to be covering this May–just because […]
Local Schools Bracing For Major Budget Cuts
Last week, California governor Gavin Newsom released his May Revision to the proposed budget for for the 2020-21 fiscal year. Because of a $54 billion deficit associated with revenue loss due to COVID-19 shutdowns, there are significant cuts to education, a harsh blow for the city of Long Beach, where the Long Beach Unified School […]
LBUSD Closed For Summer, Evaluating 2020-21 Sports Plans
The Long Beach Unified School District announced last week that in-person graduation ceremonies are officially off for the class of 2020, and that summer school and other programs will not take place on physical campuses this summer, with a few limited exceptions. There had been some hope of a delayed in-person graduation ceremony, but with […]
Feature: Tiedemann Brothers Staying Busy At Home
This was supposed to be a truly magical Spring for Tai and Ricky Tiedemann. Two of the six Tiedemann brothers, the sons of Rick and Mimi Tiedemann, both brothers were poised for big seasons on the diamond, Tai as a Minor Leaguer with big expectations in the Rangers’ organization, and Ricky as the senior ace […]
Lakewood’s Aiden Alegria’s Big Decision In Uncertain Times
Timing didn’t seem to be on Lakewood High cross country star Aiden Alegria’s side when COVID-19 concerns shut down the Long Beach Unified School District last month. Alegria had high hopes for his senior track season after he easily recorded personal bests in the one and two-mile races during training just days before the season was […]
PODCAST: Talking Baseball With Tai & Ricky Tiedemann
This week on the podcast Mike and JJ talk to the baseball player brothers Tai and Ricky Tiedemann. Tai also played football at Long Beach Poly, and is currently a minor league baseball player. Ricky is a senior at Lakewood and is about to get drafted. 08:30 Interview With The Brothers Tiedemann 28:00 Quarantine Recommendations […]
USA Soccer Developmental Academy Closure Changes Game
Long Beach youth soccer will be forever changed after the U.S. Soccer Federation terminated its nationwide developmental academy league this month because of the COVID-19 pandemic financial impact. “We know that suddenly discontinuing a program that has been with U.S. Soccer for many years is shocking, but these unprecedented times required taking action now,” the […]
LBUSD Steps Up Facilities Timelines During Shutdown
Schools are closed across the city of Long Beach, but the city’s largest landholder isn’t letting them sit idle. Anyone driving around town during the COVID-19 shutdown has probably noticed green construction tarps around several Long Beach Unified School District facilities. That’s because the district is using this rare time, when all of its campuses […]
PODCAST: Interview With CIF Southern Section Commissioner Rob Wigod
This week on the show we’re talking to CIF Southern Section commissioner Rob Wigod about how high school sports will be restarted and what that will look like. 01:00 “The 562 Classic” Is Back with 2012 Long Beach Poly Football vs. St. John Bosco 06:00 Interview With CIF Southern Section Commissioner Rob Wigod 44:20 Quarantine […]