DATE: JUNE 21, 2002

MEDIA CONTACT: RAMONA VARGAS, COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST
(213) 989-2154 - CALL (323) 377-5432 FROM 6/10/02 TO 6/24/02

WWW.LAJCC.ORG
350 S. Bixel Street, Suite 100
Los Angeles, CA 90017
Phone: 888-52-LAWSG

2002 LA Watts Summer Games Enters Second Weekend with
Exciting Finals Line-Up for June 22 & 23

LOS ANGELES - The exciting first weekend of the 35th Annual L.A. Watts Summer Games set the tone for this weekend's finals in boys and girls basketball, soccer, tennis, football, boys water polo, boys volleyball, baseball, and softball. This finals weekend's schedule also includes the 450 person wrestling tournament, as well as the track and field and cheerleading competitions.

The boys and girls basketball tournaments reached the final 16 with a winner from each of the 16 high school host sites. Boys and girls teams will continue on at Bell High School in the quarter- and semi-finals. Finals will be held at LA Southwest College on June 23 as part of the action packed finals day.
Girls volleyball concluded on June 15 with South High School claiming the championship. Second place was taken by Arcadia High School, and third place ended in a tie between Taft High School and San Pedro High School. Lauren McLaughlin of South High School was named most valuable player and Taylor Burras of Taft High School went home with the Sportsmanship Award.

Alhambra, Huntington Park, La Quinta and Lynwood will compete for third place in the baseball tournament on June 22, while Carson, Tustin, Arlington and Edison battle for the championship on June 23 at L.A. Southwest College.

Football is set for heated competition with Inglewood, Locke, Dominguez and Crenshaw in the lineup for the weekend. The quarterfinals for the boys and girls soccer tournaments, sponsored by UTLA (United Teachers Los Angeles), will be held at Cerritos College and Gahr High School.

The L.A. Watts Summer Games is the largest high school athletic competition in the nation with more than 7,000 participants. The Games draw 420 high school teams from 116 California communities and are organized by 3 full-time staff and thousands of volunteers. The Games will return to L.A. Southwest College, Cerritos College, Bell High School on June 22. Finals Day will be held at L.A. Southwest College on June 23, featuring awards ceremonies, entertainment, prizes, a special appearance by Al Downing, former pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and performances by the L.A. Sparks cheerleaders.

The Games were founded by the Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce and are free and open to the public. Call 888-52-LAWSG or visit www.lajcc.org for more information and detailed schedules.
Media Notes: detailed schedule for June 22 to follow.

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