AUSSIE A VALENCIA HOPEFUL.

Byline: GERRY GITTELSON

Terence Anwee, a promising basketball player from Australia, has joined Valencia High's team, and he figures to be an intriguing prospect. The 6-foot senior has shown great determination during workouts, and he could push for a starting spot once official practice begins Nov. 11.

``Terence is not a foreign exchange student. He's living here, and we really like him,'' Valencia High co-coach Greg Hayes said. ``He plays with great intensity and effort. He's a competitor, and we think he's going to help us.''

The point guard position is wide open for the Vikings (21-7 in 2005-06) because four-year veteran Erick Sevilla has graduated. John Otavka, a returning off-guard, averaged 4.7 points last year but is a top player, based on a solid summer.

Meanwhile, Hart's basketball team hopes to rebound from an off-year, finishing just 13-14 after advancing to the state tournament one season earlier. There's a good chance the Indians will be a lot better, based on the return of key players Brian Kimble, Michael Montgomery and Marcus Molozik, along with promising newcomers Levi Wenrick, Brad Wyche and Joe Inemer.

``We're still going to be pretty young, but we're shaping. I like us a lot,'' Hart High coach Tom Kelly said. ``The JV team won 22 games last year, and the core of that team is moving up. We're going to be solid.''

Canyon's football team is high on offensive lineman Justin Wallace, a junior who came through with three pancake blocks in his first start in a 41-25 victory Friday over rival Hart.

``Justin was one of our players of the game. He had a great game,'' Canyon High coach Harry Welch said.

Wallace is a cousin of fellow starting offensive lineman A.J. Wallerstein.

It was quite a college weekend for Hart football alums Ryan Wolfe, Cody Kase, Dan Howell, Matt Moore and Sean Norton. Wolfe, a true freshman who is UNLV's top receiver, had nine receptions for 176 yards and two TDs, including a 74-yarder, in a 39-36 loss to New Mexico 7/8 a head-to-head matchup against Kase, a starting linebacker. Kase returned an interception for a touchdown, which was the difference in the game.

Moore, an Oregon State quarterback, went head-to-head with Howell, a Washington linebacker, in a 27-17 victory over the Huskies. Moore passed for 308 yards and a touchdown, and Howell totaled six tackles.

And in his first significant action, Norton, a freshman quarterback at Fresno State, completed 14 of 21 passes for 225 yards and three touchdowns, including a 75-yarder, in a 68-37 loss to Hawaii.

In other football news involving former locals, ex-College of the Canyons receivers Tyrell Smith and Ramon Perry are enjoying solid seasons at Minnesota State and West Texas A & M. Smith has 36 receptions and three TDs, and he's averaging 13.8 yards on punt returns, including a 94-yard touchdown. Perry, who played at San Fernando High, has 39 receptions, and he's averaging 13.3 yards on punt returns.

Pro wrestling fans got their money's worth during a Battle Ground event at American Legion Hall in Newhall on Saturday, as a tag-team main event featuring local favorite Bo Cooper turned into a staged melee that spilled out into the parking lot 7/8 then returned to the ring for the finish.

The next Battle Ground show in Newhall is Nov. 4.

And finally, someone should do away with the silly high-school football rule that disallows kickoffs to be returned out the end zone. Yes, it's fair to reward the kicker for distance, but what's more exciting than a 100-yard touchdown return?