Westchester High School should be one of the top softball programs in the City Section this spring.
Don’t think college programs haven’t noticed.

No less than three Comets signed national letters of intent recently and a couple more may in the days ahead.

All-City shortstop Leesa Harris has signed with Cal State Fullerton, first baseman/outfielder Lea Stinson with Howard and infielder/pitcher Shanel Tolbert with Bethune-Cookman. Harris is also a two-time All-Wave Newspapers selection.

Harris, a three-time All-Western League pick who is projected as an outfielder at the college level, batted .582 with six home runs, 30 RBIs and 27 stolen bases for the league champion Comets. Her 77 stolen bases in 79 attempts are a school record.
She hit .560 as a sophomore and .506 as a freshman.

“When Leesa arrives, we will have one of the fastest outfields we have had in years,” Titans coach Michelle Gromacki said. “Our main goal was to increase speed on this team and Leesa’s middle name is that, ‘speed.’ Once she’s on, she  will steal.”

Bethune-Cookman coach Chris Cochran sings the praises of Tolbert.

“Shanel will provide an additional arm for our pitching staff,” Cochran said. “We will have two senior pitchers in spring 2011 and Shanel will compliment both. She also plays middle infield and hits.”

Pitcher Breea Jamerson and Arianna Smith are other Comets who are also being recruited but have yet to decide.

Crenshaw shortstop Loren Williams has signed with Rutgers.

A two-time All-City selection, Williams batted .582 with six home runs, 30 RBIs and 27 stolen bases for the Cougars last year. She was 9-7 with a 3.36 ERA as a pitcher.

Her sister, Alia, is a freshman at Alabama State following an illustrious career at Crenshaw.

Basketball signings
Cathedral High School’s Frankie Eteuati and Serra’s Jordan Mitchell, a pair of 6-foot-9 forwards, have signed national letters of intent to play basketball at Cal State Northridge.

Eteuati and Mitchell will enter Northridge in the fall of 2010.

Eteuati is currently averaging more than 19 points per game in helping lead Cathedral to a record of 11-4. Last year, he averaged 13 points, eight rebounds and two blocks per game last year for the Phantoms.

He ranks 117th on ESPN.com’s list of small forwards. Fresno State, Nevada, Eastern Washington, Montana State and George Washington were also on the list of schools he considered.

“I’m ecstatic, proud and also honored to have a chance to coach Frankie,” Northridge coach Bobby Braswell said. “He’s the son of one of my former players at Long Beach State and never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine coaching one of my former player’s sons.
“He’s very skilled at 6-foot-9. He will have a chance to play on the perimeter and can also get down on the blocks and post up for us. He’s got a great skill set, has a great upside and we think he’s already equipped to play at the Division I level. As he gets bigger and stronger, that will make him that much better.”

Eteuati is also an outstanding volleyball player. Last year, he was among the league’s top players in kills and blocks in helping Cathedral to the CIF Southern Section playoffs for the 12th time in the last 13 years.
Braswell is also excited about he potential of Mitchell.

“We think he’s a young man who has a tremendous upside and a bright future at his size,” the Matadors coach said. “One of the things you learn in basketball is ‘you can’t teach size’ and Jordan has great length, works extremely hard and is committed to getting better. As he continues to grow, and gets bigger and stronger, we think he can become a big-time force both defensively and offensively for us.”
Serra is off to a 12-1 starter and a ranking of No. 6 in the state behind the play of Mitchell.