Prep notebook: Section girls soccer power Buchanan names new coach

Kevin Botterill has been handed the keys to the Ferrari of Central Section girls soccer.

And the Leeds, England, native is well aware of the expectations that come with becoming the director of girls soccer at Buchanan, which has won nine of the past 10 Division I championships.

“It’s going to be a challenge to try and live up to the success they’ve had in the past, and hopefully go beyond that,” Botterill said. “But that’s something I’m looking forward to and excited about.”

Botterill brings 12 years of college coaching experience to the Bears, including a four-year stint as an assistant at Fresno State, where he worked primarily with goalkeepers while also having a hand in recruiting and scouting. He left the Bulldogs after the 2012 season in part to spend more time with young sons Aiden and Jack, and to help launch the CenCal Cosmos girls soccer club.

Botterill, who played college soccer in England for Durham University, was previously the two-year lead assistant at Murray State, a four-year head coach at NCAA Division II Oakland City and two-year graduate assistant at Division III Wesley, where he earned his master’s. He’s coached for California Odyssey, leading a team of girls born in 1995 to the 2012 U.S. Club National Championship.

“He’s known as one of the best female club coaches in our area, if not the best,” Buchanan Athletic Director James Gambrell said. “We always want to continue to hire the best out there, and we definitely feel like we’ve hit a home run with Kevin.”

Botterill takes over for Orlando Ramirez, who went 78-17-9 with four section titles in four seasons. Ramirez, who also assists his father, Jaime, with the Fresno Pacific men’s team, resigned for personal reasons in April.

Section shut out at SoCal golf

Clovis West freshman Tyler Gardner, Buchanan’s Evan Peterson and Centennial’s Tyler Burnes tied for 21st to highlight Central Section performances at the CIF Southern California Boys Golf Regional.

Gardner, Peterson and Burnes, at 2-over 74, were seven strokes behind champion Norman Xiong of Temescal Canyon-Lake Elsinore at Brookside Golf Club in Pasadena.

Only the top three teams and top nine individuals not attached to one of those qualifying teams advance to the CIF State Championships on June 3 at Poppy Hills Golf Course in Pebble Beach.

Torrey Pines won the team title at 362, followed by Loyola-Los Angeles (368) and Westlake-Westlake Village (376). Clovis West was sixth at 384 and Bullard 10th at 429.

Clovis West’s Zach Mikus and Peter Kuest and Hanford’s Lane Pulliam tied for 41st in the individual competition at 76 and Fresno Christian’s Michael Cliff for 51st with a 77.

Bears, Broncos boys swept in volleyball regional

Buchanan and Clovis North were bounced on the road by top seeds in the semifinals of Southern California Regional boys volleyball.

Fifth-seeded Buchanan lost 25-20, 25-15, 25-22 in Division I to No. 1 Huntington Beach, top ranked nationally and winner of 103 consecutive matches in three seasons. Section champion Buchanan closed at 31-7.

Clovis North, seeded fifth in D-II, lost 25-15, 25-17, 25-20 at top-seeded Corona del Mar-Newport Beach.

Bakersfield relay DQ reversed

The disqualification of the Bakersfield boys 1,600 relay team from Saturday’s Central Section Masters Track and Field Championships has been overturned, according to the Bakersfield Californian.

The Drillers, who were given the DQ when an official ruled one of their runners took his uniform top off before exiting the stadium, now officially place fourth in 3:24.54.

The reversal does not affect individual state qualifiers or Buchanan’s team title.

The CIF State Track and Field Championships are set for June 5-6 at Buchanan’s Veterans Memorial Stadium.

This story was originally published May 28, 2015 at 9:48 PM with the headline "Prep notebook: Section girls soccer power Buchanan names new coach."