IN-HOUSE RIVALRY HART, VALENCIA CONTEST SPLITS FAMILIES, FRIENDS.

Byline: Lee Barnathan and Amy Raisin Staff Writers

SANTA CLARITA - High school football usually brings communities together but this title battle between archrivals Hart and Valencia, located just six miles apart, has divided the Santa Clarita Valley.

Fathers and daughters, mothers and sons, even neighbors are taking opposing sides. On one side are those loyal to the area's first school, Hart in Newhall, and on the other are fans of Valencia, which fielded its first varsity team only six years ago and has never won the hometown matchup.

Whether it's love for their alma mater or because of where they live or where their kids go to school, everybody seems to have a strong opinion about which school will have bragging rights.

Office chatter revolves around the big game Friday night for the Southern Section Division III high school football title. The division stretches from the Antelope Valley to the South Bay, but the championship will be settled by neighboring schools.

``You can tell who's for which school,'' said Kim Kurowski, the Santa Clarita Chamber of Commerce's executive vice president. ``They're the ones razzing each other, but it's a fun razz. Even in business meetings, people know.''

Hart, built during the Truman administration, is the favorite against upstart Valencia, which opened in 1993. Hart, the three-time defending champion, went 12-0 this season and has a 21-game winning streak; Valencia is 11-2.

It took the Hart Indians 36 years to reach a football final, while the Vikings already are in their second championship game - a point Valencia rooters freely make. Of course, when that's mentioned, Hart fans counter with their team's six titles and 7-0 overall record against the Vikings, including a 26-0 victory Oct. 19.

At City Hall, Valencia's director of associated students and soon-to-be Santa Clarita Mayor Frank Ferry has a friendly wager going with Councilman Cameron Smyth - a 1989 Hart grad. The loser must don the colors of the winning team and, at the first council meeting in January, recite the enemy's school song.

Smyth, an all-league wide receiver for the Indians, said he'll be a gentleman when Ferry is forced to carry out the loser's end of their bet.

``Look, a team like Valencia doesn't get to the CIF championship game without having some talented players. But the road to the championship goes through Hart,'' said Smyth. ``I'll try to let (Ferry) keep as much dignity as he can.''

With the football adversaries playing for the championship for the second time in three seasons, the trash talk is gaining momentum.

The Santa Clarita Valley's own version of the famed USC-UCLA rivalry, Friday's game has even pitted the students of Valencia High against their parents and older siblings, many still devoted to their Indians.

Amanda Morley, a Valencia sophomore, grew up under the red-and-black blanket of her parents' revered Indians - her mother, Christy, was a Hart cheerleader and her father, Bob, currently teaches history at the Newhall campus.

Morley's dad remembers his daughter's excitement when the Indians beat the Vikings for the 1999 championship. But that was before his daughter enrolled at Valencia and joined the volleyball team.

``She was raised on red, white and black,'' Bob said.

Amanda had Hart pompoms, Hart shirts, banners and a cheerleader's stand, he said. Just a couple of years later, however, her room boasts the Vikings' purple and gold.

When she headed out for the schools' volleyball match up, she wagered $10 with her dad, confident of a Vikings victory.

``It was kind of depressing when I had to come home after the game and he said, pay me $10.''

But after Valencia quarterback Colin Carey's gutsy showing over Palmdale last week, which clinched Valencia's place in the championship game, the 15-year-old is eager for a gridiron rematch.

Amanda insists her school will be ready, and she's not above escalating the in-house rivalry. Her mom suggested she taunt her dad with slogans written in shaving cream on his car.

``I can't wait,'' she said. ``On Friday, I'll be saying things I might have to take back.''

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Photo:

(color) Bob Morley, a teacher at Hart High School, squares off against daughter Amanda, a student at Valencia High, over Friday's game.

Tom Mendoza/Staff Photographer