Santa Margarita Allowed to Join a Public-School League : Southern Section: Executive committee approves Catholic school’s appeal, starting in 1992. But Mater Dei, Servite and Rosary are turned down.

In a surprise move, the Southern Section’s executive committee approved Santa Margarita High School’s appeal Wednesday to be included in a league with Orange County public schools for the 1992-94 seasons.

The committee, chaired by Corona del Mar Principal Tom Jacobson, voted, 12-4, to accept Santa Margarita, a Catholic high school in Rancho Santa Margarita, into the county’s geographic area.

The committee of superintendents, principals and athletic directors from throughout the section also voted, 10-6, to deny appeals by Mater Dei, Rosary and Servite to join the county’s public-school leagues.

The decision to allow Santa Margarita to join a public-school league reversed a decision this month by a releaguing committee. The decision opened the way for a Catholic school to play with county public schools in the same league for the first time.

The four private schools had made the request because of rising transportation costs incurred while competing against other private schools in Los Angeles, La Puente and Downey.

Currently, all private schools in Orange County compete against other private schools in what is termed the private geographic area, which crosses county lines.

“I’m hoping this is finally the end,” said Monsignor Michael Harris, Santa Margarita principal, who has lobbied for three years to be placed into the county area. “I don’t believe Orange County athletics will suffer because we’re now in, they’ll only get better. We want to be part of the solution, not the problem.”

Harris said he understood the concerns of public schools within the Santa Margarita areaand hoped to be placed in a league outside of the Saddleback Valley area beginning next season.

The county’s public schools were represented by presidents of the county’s nine public leagues, who were joined by about 20 other public school principals at the four-hour meeting.

James Fleming, superintendent of the Placentia Unified School District, was among the committee members who voted to deny the four schools’ placement in the county area, saying, “I’m voting against what 53 public high school administrators say won’t work, and with that feeling, it won’t work.

“But if the appeal passes, I hope we’re big enough to sit down and make it (placement of Santa Margarita) work.”

Frank Cano, Alhambra High principal, appealed to the committee’s sense of fair play when he voted to accept Santa Margarita’s appeal. Cano said he attended two of Santa Margarita’s football playoff games and was impressed with the school’s sportsmanship.

“One audience has failed to be heard throughout this issue and that’s the student-athletes,” Cano said. “Would they be so frightened of private schools playing public schools? I don’t think so.”

Mike Shanahan, Buena High principal, also voted to accept Santa Margarita’s appeal, saying, “It’s time to force the issue, and quit predicting what might happen.”

Public school administrators spent most of the afternoon expressing fears that private school teams will dominate athletic events against public schools because private schools have no boundaries from which to draw athletes.

“We’re not talking about small Catholic schools with small athletic programs,” said Bill Brand, Trabuco Hills principal. “Mater Dei and Servite have traditionally had two of the most successful sports programs in the Southern Section.”

Father Patrick Donovan of Servite said the school would appeal the decision at the general council meeting March 20. Lyle Porter, Mater Dei principal, said he would meet with his school’s administrators before making a decision on an appeal.

“What bothers me is that the committee came up with the criteria of geography for accepting Santa Margarita’s appeal, but excluded the other schools because they were closer in proximity to other private schools,” Porter said. “I thought geography was a reason for including schools in area placement, not excluding them.”

County public school administrators will likely appeal Santa Margarita’s victory Wednesday at the general council meeting, where representatives from every league in the section will convene.