BRIEFLY IN SPORTS

Braje, Gould win Surf City USA Marathon

Todd Braje of Salem, Ore., and Laura Gould of Sequim, Wash.,, ran to first-place finishes in the men’s and women’s divisions, respectively, at the 2008 Surf City USA Marathon Sunday.

Heavy rains and windy conditions dominated the 12th annual event. More than 12,000 runners from all 50 states and 15 other countries crossed the finish line. Four male runners broke the previous record time on the half-marathon course.

Braje won the men’s marathon by more than 15 minutes. Timothy Briggs of San Diego finished runner-up in a time of 2:49.15.

Gould ran a 3:10.43 and just beat out Leng Klukken of Huntington Beach to win the women’s marathon title.

Former NFL and UCLA quarterback Jay Schroeder ran the Surf City USA Marathon 5K in 35:21 and was part of the marathon’s third annual “Run for Mobility” which featured more than 300 runners who collectively raised more than $400,000 (more than 8,300 wheelchairs) for the Free Wheelchair Mission.

To date, the Surf City USA Marathon has raised more than $1 million, which equates to 20,000 wheelchairs for those in need.

? Oilers alumni volleyball game set for March

Longtime Huntington Beach High boys’ and girls’ volleyball coach Rocky Ciarelli will be involved with his final Huntington Beach alumni game when Oilers players past and present reunite for game action March 1.

The alumni game will be the last in a series that started in 1985.

At 4 p.m. that day, the first match is an alumni vs. alumni setup, followed at 6 p.m. by an alumni vs. the 2008 Oilers’ boys’ team.

Male and female alumni, as well as parents, are welcome to the event.

The program will host a post-event reception at 8:30 p.m. at Baci Restaurant in Huntington Beach.

For more information on the alumni game finale, contact Rocky Ciarelli at Rocky92646@yahoo.com.