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By Andre Byik sports@redbluffdailynews.com @TehamaSports on Twitter REDDING » After waiting 21 years for a shot at a title, second place doesn't seem so bad. Red Bluff High's girls basket - ball fell to the top-seeded En- terprise Hornets, 59-36, in the Northern Section CIF Division III championship game Friday night at Shasta College. The No. 3 Lady Spartans (19- 10), who were in the champion - ship round for the first time since 1993, faced a formidable foe in the Hornets (26-2). Enterprise is among the state's best girls basketball teams, and their sec - tion championship seemed more like a stepping stone than a sea- son goal. The Hornets quickly quelled any doubts of Friday night's out- come, jumping to an 18-4 lead af- ter the first quarter. The Hor- nets' Janae Gray sank four of PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL Lady Spartans fall in section title game Red Bluff takes second in 1st championship game appearance in 21 years Red Bluff High's Daisy Brose, right, reaches for the ball against Enterprise during the Northern Section CIF Division III girls basketball title game Friday night at Shasta College. By Greg Beacham The Associated Press LAS VEGAS » Joey Logano be- lieves two facts are abundantly clear after he emerged from the organized chaos of NASCAR's first three-round knockout qualifying session Friday with the pole position at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. This new qualifying system is a whole lot more interesting than the prior system. And nobody is quite sure what they're doing yet. "It gets crazy out there," said Logano, who earned his eighth career pole. "I think it's way cooler than old-style qual - ifying, don't get me wrong. It's awesome. ... We're all learning right now. It's all new to us, but we're having fun with it. I enjoy it. I think it's cool." The Penske Ford team has figured it out better than most. Logano won the pole for Sun - day's Las Vegas race with a qualifying lap at a track-record 193.28 mph, and he'll start on the front row next to teammate Brad Keselowski, who came in second at 193.099. The Penske drivers swept the top two spots for the sec - ond straight race, reversing their two-round qualifying fin- ish in Phoenix a week ago. Clint Bowyer finished third. NAScAR SPRINT cuP Logano wins Vegas pole in record speed Keselowski qualifies second with laps over 193 mph for Penske's Ford racing teams AP PHoto — ISAAC BREkkEN Joey Logano poses for photos aer winning the pole position Friday for Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race in Las Vegas. Terrence Ross scored 18 points to lead the Raptors to a 99-87 victory over the Sac- ramento Kings, spoiling Rudy Gay's return to Toronto. Gay had 15 points for the Kings, who acquired him Dec. 9. NBA ROuNDuP Raptors defeat Kings to spoil Gay's return FULL STORY ON PAGE b2 Corning freshman Gavin Nye lost his first match Friday at the CIF State Wrestling Championships in Bakersfield to Edison's kevin Vance. the tourney continues Saturday. WRESTLING Nye loses first match at CIF championship D6: Mercy High's girls basket- ball team faces Westwood at 11 a.m. today at Chico State. D4: Corning girls play West Valley at 2:15 p.m., and the boys face Gridley at 4:15 p.m. BASKETBALL PLAyOffS Mercy, Corning squads vie for titles in Chico Russia rallied support for a Crimean bid to secede from Ukraine, with Russia's top lawmaker assuring her Crimean counterpart that the region would be welcomed as "an absolutely equal subject." uKRAINE REGION Russia rallies support for Crimean secession FULL STORY ON b4 By Nick Woodard nwoodard@chicoer.com @nwoodard25 on Twitter chIcO » The room was quiet. Peo- ple slowly paced the rows filled with signed pieces of history. Then, almost instantly, the room came alive with fans — young and old — lining up for a shot at an autograph from a baseball great. J.T. Snow had entered the build - ing. The longtime San Francisco Giants first baseman was the fea- tured speaker at Chico Ameri- can Legion baseball's 17th annual Spring Fever dinner and fund- raiser at the Elks Lodge on Friday night. Six hundred people packed the event, which featured many silent auctions for autographed memo - rabilia and trip packages. Items signed by Tim Lincecum, Willie Mays and Aaron Rodgers were up for grabs, as well as trips to Ha - waii, Giants vs. Dodgers games and San Francisco 49ers tickets. This year's proceedings will produce an estimated $30,000 ac - cording to Tom Stevens, the direc- tor of the American Legion pro- gram and head coach of the Chico Nuts. He said every bit of it will go to helping the Chico American Le- gion program. "We're not a business; we're a family. Every nickel that's raised tonight goes right to the kids," Ste - vens said. "Once a year, this base- ball community comes together and helps this program." The event also featured a 16- year MLB veteran and six-time Gold Glove winner in Snow. The former Giant great was on his first trip up to Chico, and was happy to contribute to the event. "I've never been to Chico, but I've heard a lot about it and I know there's some huge Giants fans up here," Snow said. "It worked out. Any time it's with kids and base - ball, it's all good. I'm happy to do it." Before he made his way to the podium, Snow spent an hour sign - ing autographs for Giants fans of all ages. It was clear to him that there are some serious fans of the orange and black in Chico. "It's been a great reception," Snow said. "We had a little lun - cheon today, and I never realized how many Giants fans are in these parts of Northern California." One spectator for Snow's ap - pearance and the rest of the festiv- ities was Julie Schader, a 50-year- old caregiver. Her son has been playing Legion baseball for three years, and she makes it out to ev - ery event to support the team. "It's a great program, the coaches are really nice and good to the kids," Schader said. "I'm here supporting the team and be - ing there for the kids." As the night progressed, all eyes were on Snow. No big deal for the lefty, who played on Giants teams that made deep playoff runs to the World Series and NLCS. But despite the accolades, Snow made sure to keep the attention all on the kids. To him, the event was important to help keep kids busy and interested in baseball. "It helps kids chase their dreams," Snow said. "I did the same thing. I played summer base - ball in Southern California and did fundraisers to raise money for our team." Snow said supporting the pro - gram helps the kids with other things like their education and their own future careers. "It puts a smile on my face be - cause I was in these kids' shoes at one time," he said. "Playing sum- mer ball gave me something to look forward to. I had a dream of being a major league ballplayer. It's fun to see them keep going." Contact reporter Nick Woodard at 896-7779. LEGION fuNDRAISER Snow keys 17th Spring Fever event Former Giant speaks at American Legion dinner Red Bluff High's Abby Brown, right, surveys the floor against Enterprise during the Northern Section CIF Division III girls basketball title game Friday night at Shasta College. SPARTANS » PAGE 2 SPORTS » redbluffdailynews.com Saturday, March 8, 2014 » MoRE At FACEbOOK.COM/RbDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDbLUFFNEWS B1