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1B Sports Lady Warriors win Liberty Classic Mercy Lady Warriors The Mercy Lady Warriors won the Liberty Classic basketball tournament over the weekend in Redding. Mercy knocked off Hamilton 35-26 in the championship behind a dominate performance by Jessica Curl. Curl finished with 27 points, 26 rebounds, four blocks and two steals. Michelle Jaramillo had a strong defensive game and forced 10 Hamilton turnovers. "It's great to see different players stepping up in the effort at different times," coach Steve Shellabarger said. "It was (Julia) Misslin in one game, (Marissa) Starman in one and Curl and Jaramillo in another. It's a pretty great group of girls." Curl was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, while Starman, Misslin and Jaramillo were named to the All-Tournament team. Mercy defeated Trinity 35-31 in the semifinals. Curl had 16 points and 20 rebounds in the win and Starman had 13 points and eight rebounds. Mercy opened up the tournament with a 58-28 win over the hosts Liberty Christian. Starman had 20 points. Curl scored 15 points and collected 15 rebounds. Misslin had a career high 12 points. The Lady Warriors improved to 9-2 on the sea- Castillo named All-American Courtesy photo The Mercy Lady Warriors pose with the Liberty Classic championship trophy. son. Los Molinos Lady Bulldogs The Lady Bulldogs claimed the consolation championship at the Liberty Classic. Los Molinos lost to Hamilton 56-35 in the first round despite 18 points from Clarivel Castillo. Castillo shot 10-for-11 from the free throw line. She also collected 14 rebounds. Katie Morgan had nine points. Los Molinos rebounded to beat host Liberty Christian 59-28 in the loser's bracket. Castillo outscored the Lady Patriots by herself, finishing the game with 30 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks. Crystal Sanchez had 10 points and five blocks. Kaitlyn Seaman had six points, six steals and three blocks. Hannah Rogers made five steals. Los Molinos beat Wilton Christian 64-59 in the consolation championship. The Lady Bulldogs outscored Wilton Christian 21-11 in the fourth quarter. Castillo had 32 points, 20 rebounds, five steals and five blocks. Morgan had 18 points and nine rebounds. Sanchez scored nine points. Justine Yarbrough pulled down 11 rebounds. Seaman provided four assists and had six steals. Mercy Warriors The Mercy boys beat Greenville 65-58 at the Liberty Classic. Four Warriors reached double-digits in points. Teddy Ranberg had 18 points. Adil Syed and William Gentry each finished with 13 points and Reid Gardner had 12. Gardner was named to the All-Tournament team. 49ers must hit the road for playoffs SANTA CLARA (AP) — That familiar ''Quest for Six'' slogan has reemerged. The San Francisco 49ers have acknowledged for months that the road back to the Super Bowl to chase a sixth championship would be a daunting one. Now, they have to hit the road, literally — a different path than San Francisco had the past two seasons as NFC West champions with a first-round bye and hosting home games. The No. 5 seed Niners (12-4) are riding some important momentum with a six-game winning streak. They head for the bitter cold of Green Bay to play Sunday against the Packers (8-7-1), who have lost the past three meetings in what has become quite a rivalry. Coach Jim Harbaugh isn't ready to call it so yet, however, only that this is a matchup with a talented football team he respects. ''In terms of a challenge, our guys know the challenge,'' Harbaugh said Monday. ''Being in the playoffs is a chance at the ultimate chance. I don't know if there's a different way to speak about the ballgame, the approach is that we're going to be playing at Lambeau Field next Sunday.'' The 49ers' recent run of success against Green Bay includes a 45-31 NFC divisional playoff victory last January at Candlestick Park in which Colin Kaepernick rushed for a quarterback playoff-record 181 yards in a sensational postseason debut. San Francisco also beat Green Bay in each of the past two season openers, 30-22 at Lambeau Field in 2012 and 34-28 this past September at Candlestick to kick off the stadium's farewell year. While the 49ers can learn plenty from those games, the Niners are most concerned with improving in several areas while stay- Tuesday December 31, 2013 Daily News file photo Clarivel Castillo received another honor for her banner senior season at Los Molinos. LOS MOLINOS — During her season season Clarivel Castillo helped bring Los Molinos its first section title in volleyball. Now she's garnering national accolades of her own. MaxPreps has named Castillo to its 2013 Volleyball Small Schools All-American 2nd Team. Castillo racked up 627 kills, 67 aces, 97 blocks and 612 digs leading the Lady Bulldogs to a 39-9 record, the Division-V Northern Section championship and a berth in the state playoffs. Castillo's 5.3 kills per game was tied for the 13th best in California. Last year Castillo became the first Lady Bulldog to make the All-State team. 5 NFL coaches already fired (AP) — It didn't take long. Barely 12 hours after the NFL's regular season ended, five head coaches were unemployed. Fired on Monday were Washington's Mike Shanahan, Detroit's Jim Schwartz, Minnesota's Leslie Frazier and Tampa Bay's Greg Schiano. The Cleveland Browns didn't even wait that long, dismissing Rob Chudzinski on Sunday night after just one season on the job. One coach allegedly on the hot seat was retained: Rex Ryan, who has one more year on his contract, is staying with the New York Jets after a surprising 8-8 record in his fifth season at the helm. Penn State's Bill O'Brien seems to be the hottest candidate and has interviewed for Houston's vacancy. The Texans (2-14) released coach Gary Kubiak late in the season. NFL at a glance AFC West AP photo Colin Kaepernick talks with offensive linemen Alex Boone, Jonathan Goodwin and Mike Iupati during the second half of Sunday's game. ing on this nice roll. ''I've noticed in this league everyone bases it on your last four quarters of play, that's very much how you're playing at the moment,'' Harbaugh said. ''That will be judged this week. I like our team very much in the regard that they're a very competitive group. They're fiery competitors.'' Kaepernick might already have the slight mental edge. He got the best of linebacker Clay Matthews in the last meeting. After Matthews said leading up to the game that the Packers spent a large portion of their offseason working to stop Kaepernick and the read option, he lost his cool with a late, out-of-bounds hit on the third-year quarterback in the second quarter back in September. Afterward, Kaepernick offered this parting shot: ''If intimidation is your game plan, I hope you have a better one.'' ''Green Bay is a completely different team than the team we saw in Week 1, as we are,'' wide receiv- er Anquan Boldin said. ''For us, we would like to carry that momentum. We are in a six-game winning streak.'' And if the 49ers get through the wild-card round they could be headed to the Pacific Northwest for another highly anticipated date with the nemesis Seattle Seahawks, who grabbed the division crown away from the bay this year. ''I think we are showing fight,'' linebacker NaVorro Bowman said. ''None of the games are going to be easy. The scenarios are going to be tight and a lot of teams had a chance to be in the playoffs. So as a team we are showing fight, we are showing grit, we are staying focused. Teams are going to make plays but the teams that prevail through adversity and not let things distract them, those are the great teams and we are doing that right now.'' While Harbaugh hadn't yet spoken to big brother, John, whose Ravens beat the Niners 34-31 in the Super Bowl then missed the playoffs, he understands how fleeting these opportunities can be. ''I think we all understand the wonderful opportunity we have to be in the playoffs. We take it very seriously,'' Harbaugh said. The 49ers insist the chill factor won't be a factor at all. ''It's the Super Bowl on the line, coldness goes out the window,'' Bowman said. ''You want to be great. You want to be remembered. These are the games that you are remembered in — the teams that fought no matter the temperature or situation. We're prepared. This team is going to Green Bay — we've done it before.'' Notes: CB Carlos Rogers was scheduled for an MRI exam on his injured right hamstring, sustained in the fourth quarter Sunday. The 49ers re-signed CB Perrish Cox after he was cut Friday by the Seahawks. Harbaugh said the move was planned before Rogers got hurt. ... If Rogers is out, Eric Wright would take on a larger role. NFC West W L T Pct y-Denver 13 3 0 .813 x-Kansas City 11 5 0 .688 x-Chargers 9 7 0 .563 RAIDERS 4 12 0 .250 East W L T Pct y-New Eng. 12 4 0 .750 N.Y. Jets 8 8 0 .500 Miami 8 8 0 .500 Buffalo 6 10 0 .375 South W L T Pct y-Indy 11 5 0 .688 Tennessee 7 9 0 .438 Jacksonville 4 12 0 .250 Houston 2 14 0 .125 North W L T Pct y-Cincinnati 11 5 0 .688 Pittsburgh 8 8 0 .500 Baltimore 8 8 0 .500 Cleveland 4 12 0 .250 ________________________________ x-clinched playoff spot y-clinched division Week 17 results Denver 34, Oakland 14 San Francisco 23, Arizona 20 Carolina 21, Atlanta 20 Cincinnati 34, Baltimore 17 Green Bay 33, Chicago 28 Indianapolis 30, Jacksonville 10 Minnesota 14, Detroit 13 New England 34, Buffalo 20 New Orleans 42, Tampa Bay 17 N.Y. Giants 20, Washington 6 N.Y. Jets 20, Miami 7 Philadelphia 24, Dallas 22 Pittsburgh 20, Cleveland 7 San Diego 27, Kansas City 24, OT Seattle 27, St. Louis 9 Tennessee 16, Houston 10 y-Seattle x-49ERS Arizona St. Louis East W 13 12 10 7 L 3 4 6 9 T 0 0 0 0 Pct .813 .750 .625 .438 W L T Pct y-Phila. 10 6 0 .625 Dallas 8 8 0 .500 N.Y. Giants 7 9 0 .438 Washington 3 13 0 .188 South W L T Pct y-Carolina 12 4 0 .750 x-N. Orleans 11 5 0 .688 Atlanta 4 12 0 .250 Tampa Bay 4 12 0 .250 North W L T Pct y-Green Bay 8 7 1 .531 Chicago 8 8 0 .500 Detroit 7 9 0 .438 Minnesota 5 10 1 .344 ________________________________ Wild-card Playoffs Saturday's games Kansas City at Indianapolis, 1:35 p.m. (NBC) New Orleans at Philadelphia, 5:10 p.m. (NBC) Sunday's games San Francisco at Green Bay, 1:40 p.m. (FOX) San Diego at Cincinnati, 10:05 a.m. (CBS) Divisional Playoffs Saturday, Jan. 11 Lowest NFC seed at Seattle, 1:35 p.m. (FOX) Highest AFC seed at New England, 5:15 p.m. (CBS) Sunday, Jan. 12 Highest NFC seed at Carolina, 10:05 a.m. (FOX) Lowest AFC seed at Denver, 1:40 p.m. (CBS) Tehama Tracker Today's schedule ADVOCARE V100 BOWL at Shreveport, La. Arizona vs. Boston College, 9:30 a.m. SUN BOWL at El Paso, Texas Virginia Tech vs. UCLA, 11 a.m. LIBERTY BOWL at Memphis, Tenn. Rice vs. Mississippi State, 1 p.m. CHICK-FIL-A BOWL at Atlanta Texas A&M vs. Duke, 5 p.m. NBA Golden State at Orlando, 2 p.m. Sacramento at Houston, 4 p.m. NHL San Jose at Anaheim, 5 p.m. Sports on TV COLLEGE FOOTBALL • 9:30 a.m., ESPN — AdvoCare V100 Bowl, Arizona vs. Boston College, at Shreveport, La. • 11 a.m., CBS — Sun Bowl, Virginia Tech vs. UCLA, at El Paso, Texas • 1 p.m., ESPN — Liberty Bowl, Rice vs. Mississippi St., at Memphis, Tenn. • 5 p.m., ESPN — Chick-fil-A Bowl, Duke vs. Texas A&M, at Atlanta MEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL • 9 a.m., FS1 — St. John's at Xavier • 10 a.m., ESPN2 — Ohio St. at Purdue • 11:30 a.m., FS1 — Seton Hall at Providence • Noon, ESPN2 — Indiana at Illinois • Noon, FSN — George Washington at Kansas St. • 2 p.m., ESPN2 — Louisville at UCF • 2 p.m., FS1 — DePaul at Georgetown • 4 p.m., ESPN2 — Memphis at South Florida • 4:30 p.m., FS1 — Villanova at Butler • 6 p.m., ESPN2 — UConn at Houston • 7 p.m., FS1 — Marquette at Creighton NBA • 2 p.m., CSNB — Golden State at Orlando • 4 p.m., CSNC — Sacramento at Houston NHL • 5 p.m., CSNC — San Jose at Anaheim WINTER SPORTS • 3 p.m., NBCSN — Olympic trials, speed skating: men's and women's 1500 long track, at Kearns, Utah