El Camino College The Union • May 1st, 2025

El Camino coach April Ross lands national coaching role with USA Volleyball ahead of LA Games

El Camino College beach volleyball coach and three-time Olympic medalist April Ross was named coach of USA Volleyball’s Beach National Teams, the organization announced Monday, April 28.
Ross, 42, who was hired at ECC last August, begins her new role on May 12 supporting Beach National Teams’ coaches in their professional development.
She will also work to enhance the training and performance of American athletes on the international level ahead of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.
“I’m looki...

El Camino College The Union • October 16th, 2024

New grade change policy in approval process

An update to El Camino College’s grade change policy was announced during an Academic Senate meeting on Oct. 15.
The policy is in the process of approval. The Academic Senate will vote on the proposal on Nov. 5.
Administrative Procedure 4231 allows a student to file a petition or request to change a grade to a faculty member and the dean of the office overseeing the class within 18 months after the original submission of the grade, and cannot be extended after that period.
The Vice President of...

El Camino College The Union • September 26th, 2024

Three-time Olympic medalist April Ross named coach of El Camino beach volleyball program

Three-time Olympic medalist and professional beach volleyball player April Ross has been hired to coach El Camino College’s beach volleyball program.
Ross will succeed LeValley Pattison who stepped down from coaching the beach team after eight seasons at the helm.
“I’m excited to continue to grow this program,” Ross said. “Not just compete, but guide the athletes here in their lives and help them succeed.”
She will become the second coach in the program’s eight-year history.
The former USC Troja...

El Camino College The Union • September 15th, 2024

Food trucks return to El Camino, offering a variety of dining options

After a four-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, food vendor trucks have returned to El Camino College, with about 22 trucks offering services to the campus community.
Food trucks made their way back onto campus on Aug. 26 after ECC authorized Pacific Dining, a food management company that has been overseeing Café Camino and El Cappuccino Café, to operate food trucks on May 20.
Terms of the new contract for Pacific Dining to oversee and operate food trucks began on July 1 and will run unti...

El Camino College The Union • September 13th, 2024

Tensions boil in Parking Lot C

Update: This story has been updated for accuracy and clarity. 
A physical altercation involving five people erupted on the third floor in Parking Lot C this afternoon, prompting a police response.
Officers received a disturbance call at about 1 p.m., which took two to three minutes to respond, according to Sergeant Francisco Esqueda of the El Camino College Police Department.
Upon arrival, a woman was seen lying on the ground of the parking lot and complained about shortness of breath.
“The offi...

El Camino College The Union • August 10th, 2024

Suicide unfolds in campus parking lot

Update: This story has been updated. 
A former El Camino College student is dead after jumping from the top of ECC’s Parking Lot H after stabbing his mother with a knife in a physically violent altercation that occurred on Friday afternoon.
In a statement released by ECC’s Office of Marketing and Communications on Friday night, the mother collapsed after running onto Redondo Beach Boulevard and was taken to Harbor UCLA Medical Center in critical condition. Officers attempted to save the man’s li...

El Camino College The Union • November 17th, 2023

Cars collide at intersection near El Camino

A car accident occurred at the intersection of Crenshaw and Manhattan Beach Boulevards on the morning of Thursday, Nov. 16.
A male driver in a Toyota sedan was traveling southbound on Crenshaw, while a female driver in a Honda sedan was turning left on Manhattan Beach. The cars collided shortly after 8 a.m.
The Honda sustained minor damage to the front right bumper, while the Toyota sustained moderate to severe damage to the front bumper.
There were no injuries reported and no passengers were in...

El Camino College The Union • May 18th, 2023

Zero-cost textbooks, more financial aid part of college’s new enrollment strategy

Vice President of Academic Affairs Carlos Lopez (left), Interim Vice President of Student Services Robin Dreizler and Executive director of Marketing and Communications Ann O’Brien lead the presentation on El Camino College’s new enrolment strategy plan during the Board of Trustees meeting on May 15. (Khoury Williams | The Union)

In an effort to increase student enrollment, changes to federal financial aid and zero-cost textbooks are part of El Camino College’s new enrollment strategy for the n...

El Camino College The Union • May 5th, 2023

Los Angeles Sparks to call El Camino College home for practices, events

Sparks players Joyner Holmes (left) and Reshanda Gray sign a set of basketballs during the Los Angeles Sparks’ media day press conference at the El Camino College gymnasium on Thursday, May 4. (Raphael Richardson | The Union)

El Camino College hosted the Los Angeles Sparks Annual Media Day event in the gymnasium on Thursday, May 4, which will be the Sparks’ new home for events and practices for the foreseeable future.

Eli Horowitz, the Sparks’ assistant general manager explained his decision t...

El Camino College The Union • April 14th, 2023

Longtime El Camino badminton and soccer coach dies at 70

Coach John Britton in Nov. 2017. Britton died Tuesday, April 11. He coached both men’s and women’s soccer as well as head coach for women’s badminton for 25 years at El Camino College. “He was a very faithful and loyal friend,” Administrative Assistant Linda Olsen said. (Jorge Villa | The Union)

Update: John Britton’s cause of death has been identified as a heart attack on Monday, May 1.

El Camino College badminton coach and former men’s and women’s soccer coach John Britton died on Tuesday, A...

El Camino College The Union • April 8th, 2023

Warriors baseball coach selected as Health Educator of the Year

A physical education instructor and baseball coach from El Camino College received the Health Educator of the Year Award from the California Community College Physical Education, Kinesiology, Dance Association, or CCCPKED.
Nate Fernley, now in his 16th season as the Warriors baseball coach, expressed gratitude for his nomination and selection for the award.
“It was an honor, and I am grateful that somebody thought that I added value to students in the college,” Fernley said. “Obviously, the awar...

El Camino College The Union • December 8th, 2022

El Camino’s athletic program boasts success with recruiting efforts

With one of the largest athletic departments of any two-year college in California, El Camino College is home to nearly 400 student-athletes competing in nearly two dozen sports.

The department’s success hinges on funding which, in part, comes from the Associated Students Organization (ASO).

For the 2022-2023 school year, the athletic department’s budget is $7.9 million, according to records obtained by The Union from the El Camino Community College District Athletic Department. The budget inc...

Daily Breeze • December 12th, 2025

L.A. Harbor College freshmen make an impact at state cross country meet

WILMINGTON – On a sunny Saturday morning at Fresno’s Woodward Park, L.A. Harbor College freshman Angelique “Angie” Morales toed the start line before her 5K race in the 3C2A cross country state championships.
A crack from the red coat’s starting pistol signaled the start of the race.
With a white headband over her head, Morales’ dark brown hair with highlights and tied in a ponytail swayed as she took off from the line. She pumped her arms while her eyes were fixed on a muddy cross country cours...

El Camino College The Union • May 16th, 2025

Beyond two shades of blue: leadership in uniform

On a Wednesday night at Makoto Kai Judo dojo in Norwalk, the clinking sounds of weights dropping onto the floor and hip-hop music can be heard on the right side of the room.
Then on the opposite side, a judo instructor standing at 5 feet, 10 inches tall in a blue gi uniform with a black and red belt tied around his waist steps onto the 2,500-square-foot mats, ready to teach a class of children and adults.
When he is not donning a gi, he wears another uniform with a badge pinned on the left side...

El Camino College The Union • November 19th, 2024

Serving up a new era: a coach on and off the court

On the sand courts at the Tokyo Olympics, the sound of Australia’s Mariafe Artacho del Solar’s hand slapping the ball during a serve echoes through the empty stadium.
With the American team needing just one point to win the women’s beach volleyball gold medal match, Artacho del Solar launches the ball into the net, giving victory to the Americans.
April Ross will never forget what happened next.
Roars of celebration erupt from the six-foot, one-inch tall Ross as she and her beach partner Alix Kl...

El Camino College The Union • May 17th, 2024

Eyeing a field of dreams: Softball standout sets sights on the Olympics

Anahi Pintado is eyeing down the pitcher.
It’s early in the Warriors’ game against Chaffey College, and Pintado, a 5-foot, 3-inch freshman catcher, is taking practice swings from the on-deck circle as she awaits her turn at bat.
Soon, it’s her turn to step up to the plate.
Pintado makes her way to the diamond as her name is announced through the loudspeakers at El Camino College’s softball field. Mariachi music plays over another loudspeaker.
With a bat in hand and helmet on her head, she stands...

El Camino College The Union • December 5th, 2023

Year 15 and counting: statistics professor continues to thrive in and out of the classroom

As a young child, Junko Forbes never thought she would teach mathematics. She wanted to be a music composer for films like how John Williams composed for the Star Wars and Harry Potter series or “Jurassic Park.”
Her passion for music began at age 3, playing the piano until she was 18. As a college student, she wanted to double major in music and mathematics.
On two occasions, she had light bulb moments that allowed her to put the pieces of her future together.
A future in teaching mathematics.
I...

El Camino College The Union • December 4th, 2023

Top 5 items found in the bags of student-athletes

Student-athletes don’t just carry around books, writing materials and laptops. They also carry items to keep up with items for training for their respective sports. Warrior Life interviewed El Camino College student-athletes to find out what they have in their training bags. Here are the top five items Warrior Life discovered!
1) Training shoes
For freshman Payton Garrison, an outside hitter and opposite hitter on the volleyball team, a pair of Nike’s Kyrie shoe line for the volleyball court is...

El Camino College The Union • June 1st, 2022

Football Coach Transcends the Game

El Camino football coach Kenneth Talanoa sits in the stands at Featherstone Field at the El Camino College campus in Torrance on Monday, May 16. Talanoa will be entering his 21st season as the defensive line coach. He has been a part of Warrior football not only as a coach, but also played for the late John Featherstone in the early 90s. Additionally, he was inducted into the El Camino football Hall of Fame and named to the 1990s All-Decade team. (Greg Fontanilla | Warrior Life)

If you’ve ever...

El Camino College The Union • January 26th, 2022

Olympian, father and grandfather makes an impact on El Camino community

George Stanich, 93, holds the bronze medal he won in the high jump at the London Olympics in 1948, at his Gardena residence on Monday, Nov. 1. Photo by Greg Fontanilla/The Union

George Stanich is an Olympic bronze medalist in the National Collegiate Athletic Association high jump, a University of California Los Angeles Hall of Famer. Playing under the legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden, George Stanich was Wooden’s first ever All-American selection, a longtime basketball coach at El Cam...

Daily Breeze • May 30th, 2026

Rolling Hills Prep baseball loses Division 9 championship game against Webb

FULLERTON – A season defined by adversity for the Rolling Hills Prep baseball team ended with a loss to Webb 12-6 in the CIF-SS Division 9 championship game Friday at Cal State Fullerton’s Goodwin Field.
The Huskies (11-12) had arrived at the game after going through a year marked by injuries and its limited access to baseball facilities.
“The past four years that I’ve been here, we’ve made it only to the first round (of the playoffs),” RHP pitcher Alex Hernandez said. “For us, just going out th...

Daily Breeze • February 18th, 2026

Serra boys basketball defeats Rancho Mirage for spot in Division 5 semifinals

GARDENA – After falling in the first round of CIF regional tournament two seasons ago and suffering through a  winless league schedule last season, the Serra boys basketball team reminded everyone Tuesday night why its resilience is unmatched.
In a fast-paced battle with Rancho Mirage, the Cavaliers overcame the Rattlers’ lead change in the third quarter. Small forward CJ Anyikwa’s efforts at the free-throw line helped lead them to a 65-49 win in the CIF-SS Division 5 quarterfinals.
Serra (19-13...

Daily Breeze • February 6th, 2026

Redondo Union wrestling defeats Heritage for CIF-SS Division 6 dual meet title

REDONDO BEACH – Earlier in the week, Redondo Union boys wrestling coach Brian Notch emphasized a team-first approach and asked his team to come out aggressive and chase the team score.
That’s eventually what happened for the Sea Hawks.
For the first time in the school’s history, the Sea Hawks walked off the mat Thursday night as CIF-SS Dual Meet champions. Led by the efforts of sophomore Bradley Pulvers and junior Joaquin Aranda, they engineered a come-from-behind victory, 35-32, over Heritage i...

Daily Breeze • January 23rd, 2026

El Camino College softball looking to continue momentum from last season

TORRANCE — After a historic season in 2025, El Camino College softball enters the new season with a young roster under 11th-year coach Jessica Rapoza.
A year ago the Warriors set a school record for wins in a season (39) and became the first team in program history to reach the final four at the 3C2A State Championship.
Rapoza also became the second softball coach to earn her 300th career win at the college. She now sits at 301 wins.
With six sophomores and 16 freshmen on the roster, coachabilit...

Daily Breeze • January 21st, 2026

Experienced roster leads El Camino College baseball into new season

The El Camino College baseball team will be returning to the diamond this season with much of the same roster that reached the 3C2A SoCal Super Regionals last season.
The Warriors finished third in the South Coast Conference and posted a 32-14 record in 2025, their most wins in a season since 2019 when they won 40 games.
Under third-year coach Grant Palmer, this year’s team will enter the season with a deeper roster of 39 players.
A key area of strength is on the mound.Sophomore Cameron O’Neil (...

Daily Breeze • January 20th, 2026

L.A. Harbor College baseball anchored by deep roster, looking to make push for playoffs

After a few seasons marked by a lack of depth, L.A. Harbor College baseball enters the upcoming season with a renewed focus under coach Marco Alvillar.
Now in his 25th season, Alvillar has emphasized building depth, particularly on the mound, on a 42-man roster that includes a mix of transfers, freshmen and returning sophomores after the team finished 8-29 last spring.
The Seahawks retained sophomore Cristian Hernandez (West Torrance High), an all-conference catcher, who said chemistry has playe...

Daily Breeze • November 23rd, 2025

Westchester girls flag football wins City Division III championship

LOS ANGELES — After the final whistle, one sideline went quiet and players had tears streaming from their eyes.
Opposite of the silence was a rising chorus of cheers that erupted as the 13th-seeded Westchester girls flag football team captured its first CIF LA City Section championship by toppling No. 2 Hawkins 37-32 in the Division III final Saturday at Garfield High.
“Today, it was just us trusting each other and trusting our game,” Westchester quarterback Kaylee Mitchell said, “because we sta...

Daily Breeze • November 22nd, 2025

Redondo Union football tops Loyola to reach first CIF-SS final since 1944

LOS ANGELES — For the Redondo Union football team, Friday’s CIF Southern Section Division 5 semifinal carried more than playoff stakes — it carried 81 years of history the program had not seen since Franklin D. Roosevelt was president.
Quarterback Cole Leinart showed his toughness after leaving the game with an ankle sprain during Redondo’s second possession of the first half, but returned to the field to lead his team to a 21-7 victory over Loyola to advance to the Sea Hawks’ first CIF champion...

Daily Breeze • November 15th, 2025

Carson football reaches City Open Division semifinals with win over King/Drew

CARSON — Under a curtain of rain, thuds of helmets and shoulder pads echoed across the field Friday night from the CIF LA City Section Open Division quarterfinals at Carson High.
It was the kind of night where every yard had to be earned. But even in wet conditions, the Carson football team, the No. 1 seed, showed no signs of slowing down at home, storming past No. 8 seed King/Drew, 27-2.
Carson (8-3) will host No. 5 Garfield in the semifinals Friday, Nov. 21. Garfield defeated Palisades 42-21 i...

Daily Breeze • November 8th, 2025

No. 4 seed Banning football upset by No. 13 Van Nuys in City playoffs

WILMINGTON — The fourth-seeded Banning football team was eliminated in the first round of the CIF L.A. City Section Division I playoffs, losing to No. 13 Van Nuys 36-15, Friday.
Van Nuys (10-1) combined an effective offense, led by quarterback Carlos Herrera, who rushed for 145 yards and four touchdowns, with a stingy defense that contained Banning’s running game and proved too much for the Pilots (5-6).
Herrera later sealed the victory with a 28-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
“Emotio...

Daily Breeze • October 31st, 2025

Redondo Union football heading into playoffs riding four-game winning streak

TORRANCE – If Redondo Union’s Football season ended after week three, no one would’ve guessed what came next.
Despite a rocky start to the 2025 campaign, Redondo flipped the script Thursday, clinching a postseason berth after surging past South Torrance 58-21 in a Pioneer League game.
Redondo’s offense powered through the Spartan defense in the first half – fueled by the legs of Christian Zeno, who recorded 41 rushing yards, 59 receiving yards, three touchdowns and Bo Ausmus, who scored twice.
“...

Daily Breeze • October 25th, 2025

Jason Lewis’ 3 TDs lead North Torrance football to win over South

TORRANCE – Earlier in the week, North Torrance football coach Todd Croce said he would need two of his running backs to step up for injured starter Jaydan Andrade in their bout with South Torrance.
Jason Lewis and Steven Sarabia did exactly that Friday night.
Lewis rushed for 60 yards and three touchdowns, while Sarabia scored scores as North overwhelmed South 48-14 in a Pioneer League game.
“We had a rough first half, but then we came out in the second half after a good speech by my boy, Luca (...

Daily Breeze • October 18th, 2025

Leuzinger football turns in dominant performance for win over Culver City

LAWNDALE – From kickoff to the final whistle, the Leuzinger football team made its message clear, explosive plays and sharp execution on offense and defense fueled another dominant Bay League win.
Despite not having two key players, a strong offensive and defensive performance from Leuzinger led the way to a 47-7 win over Culver City.
“It’s our first time without our quarterback, we just wanted to make them (Culver City) play our game, which is a physical game,” Leuzinger coach Jason Miller said...

Daily Breeze • September 27th, 2025

Leuzinger football retains Mayor’s Cup with rout of Hawthorne

HAWTHORNE —  For the 12th consecutive year, the Leuzinger football team has the Mayor’s Cup in the crosstown rivalry with Hawthorne.
In the Olympians’ 61-6 rout of the Cougars on Friday, Sinamone Hola contributed by scoring on a 25-yard touchdown run, a 46-yard punt return for a score and also recorded an interception.
“We came out strong, came in hyped,” Hola said. “You got to have fun before you play or everything’s going to go the wrong way.”
Leuzinger (3-1) jumped out to an early lead, with...

El Camino College The Union • April 28th, 2025

Mt. SAC, Cerritos, dominate SCC Championships, advance to postseason

The Mt. San Antonio College Mounties and Cerritos College Falcons dominated almost every track and field event during the South Coast Conference Championships on Saturday, April 26, at Long Beach City College’s Veterans Memorial Stadium.
Dropping to her knees and crying tears of joy after her race, Leila Champion of the Mounties lived up to her surname by capturing the conference title in the women’s 100-meter dash, recording a personal best of 11.97 seconds in the event.
“My training has been c...

El Camino College The Union • March 31st, 2025

Non-collegiate sprinters shine at Dave Shannon Invitational

The Dave Shannon track and field invitational at Murdock Stadium highlighted sprinters from non-collegiate organizations who dominated nearly every sprint event Saturday, March 29.
One of those clubs was Athlete.X, who secured a first place finish in the men’s 4×100-meter relay. The quartet featured Southern California native Khalfani Muhammad, Cody Bidlow and twins Justin and Brendan Fong.
Despite a delay in the baton exchange between Muhammad and Bidlow and the team running together for the fi...

El Camino College The Union • November 10th, 2024

Warriors football team execute comeback against Ventura, clinch National Northern League title

For the first time since 2018, the Warriors of El Camino clinched a National Northern League title and a playoff berth after overcoming a 21-point deficit over the Ventura Pirates at Featherstone Field.
The star of the show under the Saturday night lights was none other than Warriors running back Jaden Moore, who recorded 32 carries for 182 rushing yards, four touchdowns, averaging just under six yards per carry.
“I just felt it, I let the game come to me,” Moore said. “I aint rush nothing, some...

El Camino College The Union • May 21st, 2024

Hurdler clinches state title, longtime coach to retire

Looking to avenge his runner-up at the state championship in the men’s 110-meter hurdles last year, sophomore Anthony Taylor clinched the state title with a new personal best.

Taylor was among the four El Camino College qualifiers at the California Community College Athletic Association’s track and field state championship at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo on Saturday, May 18.

“Once I got off the last couple of hurdles, I knew I was going to separate from the pack,” Taylor said. “At the e

El Camino College The Union • May 23rd, 2024

Academy to the streets: Brazilian jiu-jitsu’s impact on law enforcement

During a sparring session simulating a street fight that starts standing up and later goes to the ground, I find myself on my back.
My training partner grabs both my legs and takes me down to the ground after driving his knee down to the mats while his shoulder drives into my chest.
I’m trying to get out of the bottom position while he drives his weight onto me from the top, preventing me from getting up.
I’m able to move my legs until he immobilizes one of them by holding onto the material of m...

El Camino College The Union • December 6th, 2023

How family dysfunction led me to an epiphany

I was 6 years old when my dad was driving in Old Torrance. I felt a thud. He accidentally struck a pedestrian. My mom, little brother and I were in the car. Mom checked on the woman who had been struck.
Luckily, the pedestrian survived.
Two decades later, I learned about the moment dad had experienced as he hit the woman crossing the street – his periphery narrowed.
He developed a blind spot in his eyesight due to a brain tumor he was not aware of and did not see the crossing pedestrian. Th...

El Camino College The Union • March 1st, 2023

How life and death led to my rediscovery of Brazilian jiu-jitsu

Dec. 28, 2020.
I was at home watching a documentary on Netflix about Aaron Hernandez, the former NFL star turned convicted murderer when I received a life-changing phone call from an unknown number at 4:47 p.m.
After exchanging pleasantries with a social worker on the other line, the next line of dialogue sent shockwaves through my body.
“I’m sorry to have to be the one to inform you, but your father passed away,” the social worker said on the other line. “He passed away on Dec. 19.”
My dad had...