TRIO HEAD TO NEVADA.

Byline: GERRY GITTELSON

Quarterback Sean Norton, receiver Kevin Ciccone and linebacker Kevin Elledge of Hart High are heading to Reno this week to participate in a football camp at the University of Nevada.

All are being recruited by the Wolf Pack, and a scholarship offer could arise for some or all of them.

``The coaches want us to come. It's the week for juniors to visit colleges,'' said Norton, who passed for more than 4,000 yards and accounted for 35 touchdowns as a junior. ``I'd be really happy for Ciccone to get a scholarship because he's really a big-time player. Nobody has been able to cover him (in passing tournaments) all summer.''

--Carew on move? This could be big news among local football circles: There's a chance standout running back Ryen Carew from Sylmar High could transfer to a local school, according to a source.

Carew, considered one of the top players on the West Coast, rushed for more than 2,000 yards and scored 21 touchdowns as a junior. His father is as a restaurant manager in Santa Clarita, and the family might move to the neighborhood.

--Good move: Speaking of transfers, it's been three years since promising Valencia High football running back Kreig Peters transferred to Antelope Valley High. Peters, who rushed for more than 1,000 yards and also established himself as one of the area's top defensive backs as a junior at Antelope Valley last season, said Monday he transferred because the family moved - but that he could have remained at Valencia had he wanted. But remaining at Valencia would have meant waiting in line to carry the football because Peters was stuck behind star running back Charles Burnley, who graduated this year.

``That was part of it because I wouldn't have been able to do much at Valencia until this season. I wanted to play one year sooner,'' Peters said. ``But there was some regret, too, because the year I left, Valencia went to the championship game.''

Peters said he hasn't maintained most of the friendships he made at Valencia. But he said he saw Valencia head coach Brian Stiman at a football game last fall, and the two had a nice talk.

Meanwhile, Peters has developed into one of the area's prime prospects. He's being recruited by Fresno State, Colorado State and Nevada.

--Payne to start: In more football news, junior Nick Payne has won the starting quarterback job at Burroughs of Burbank, replacing returning senior starter Alex Phillips, who has moved to receiver. Payne, who played on the junior varsity last year, has a speedy receiver in Evan Gomez, who runs a 4.5 40-yard dash.

--Silver medalist: Former Hart baseball standout Chris Valaika earned a silver medal as part of the USA Junior National Team that finished second in the Pan Am Cup after losing to Cuba 8-4 in the championship game last Tuesday. Valaika hit a two-run double to give USA a one-run lead in the second inning. He was named to the all-tournament team.

By finishing second, the team qualifies for the IBAF World Junior Championships in Taiwan next summer.

--Softball squad practicing: In more Pan Am Games news, softball standouts Nicole Giordano (ex-Saugus) and Crystl Bustos (ex-Canyon) are in Florida preparing for the Pan Am Games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, beginning Aug. 5.

The Carribean excursion sounds glamorous but Giordano's mother, Hart High softball coach Cathy Giordano, said the women have been warned there's no air conditioning in their hotel rooms.

CAPTION(S):

photo

Photo:

Receiver Kevin Ciccone is among three Hart High footbal players who will participate in a camp in Reno, Nev., this week. They are being recruited by the University of Nevada.