St.com - Magazrne - tsest Fkslr Sclrool Atlrleflc tsrograms: i'he'l'op 5 - Wednesday May 1.. Page i of 2

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Here it is: The most setective ranking in all of sports. Of the more than 38,000 highschools in the U.5., fewer than one in a thousand made SI's list honoring schools with thenation's top athletic programs. Our criteria emphasized all-around excellence during thelast 10 years and included state titles won and college athletes produced. Meet the the Top

i^. LSFIG ffiEA.Ci.* pO{-Y Enrollment: 4,750

With apologies to USC, Long Beach poly has the most celebrated football program in SouthernCallfornia. Since L996 Poly has gone undefeated three times and won five championships in theferoclously competitlve California Interscholastlc Federation (CIF) Southern Section. In theschool's 1l0-year history four-dozen grads have gone on to the NFL, includlng elght who wereon opening week rosters In 2004. The track program is even more dominant than the footballsquad, with the boys' and girls' teams having won a combined seven state tltles slnce 1997.Polyis also a powerhouse in the country club games. The boys'golfteam went undefeated in theleague last year, and the boys'tennls team has been to the CIF section flnals two years in arow. Even the cross-country and badmlnton teams kick serlous butt, each havlno won threestraight league tltles.SX Extra: The Long Beach Poly story

" llFlitAT,{A (Hyattsville, rr4d.) Enrollment: 1,016

Best known for its nationally ranked basketball teams and former hoops coach Morgan Wootten,thls all-boys Catholic school just outslde Washington, D.C., has been nearly as successful infootball. The Stags have won 16 league tltles, and this year 17 players received Dlvision ischolarshlps. Though Wootten retired in 2002, DeMatha has remalned a basketball power. Itfinished this past season 29-2 and was ranked No. 9 by USA Today. Desplte lackluster facllitles-- the wrestling team practlces in an old auto warehouse, and the football team is forced to playgames at a nearby school -- DeMatha has been strong in most sports, and last year 39 of theschool's 180 graduating seniors received athletic scholarships.

3. S^&IruT TIfOF4AS AQUS|{AS (Fort Lauderdale) Enrollment: 2,138

With alums such as tennls great Chrls Evert, former Dallas Cowboys recelver Michael Irvin andOlympic 400-meter runner Sanya Richards, Salnt Thomas Aqulnas has long been thepreeminent program In Florida. In Fact, the Raiders were named the state's best sports programfor 19 of the past 20 years by the Florlda Athletlc Coaches Association. The school also has

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SI.com - Magazine - Best High school Athletic Prograns: The Top 5 - Wednesday May 1... Page 2 ot'2

hard-core hns: Last year they nlled 23 buses for the nearly six-hour trip to Gainesville for theClass 5A state championship football game. The school's best sport, however, is soccer. Theglrls' team was 29-3 thls season and won the state title, and the boys' and the girls'teamswere ranked No. 1 in the nation In '97 and '98.

4, PUn.}At-lOLt (Honolulu), Enrollment: 1,730

Never mind that the school's most accomplished student-athlete, rising star golfer Michelle Wie,

doesn't play on any of its teams. Punahou is the power of the Pacific. The Buff'n' Blue has won

318 state titles in 20 sports. Its strength is in boys' and girls' swimming and diving (with a

combined 80 state tltles), and boys' volleyball (at least 25 alums have won NCAA

championships, and eight are current AVP tour pros). Punahou also has a strong footballtraditlon: Its alums include Tennessee Titans offensive coordlnator Norm Chow, former New

England Patriots running back Mosi Tatupu and former Dallas Cowboys lineman Mark Tuinei.

s. Cl.{FR.RY cqEEH (Greenwood Village, Colo.), Enrollment: 3,653

While the Bruins have won 162 state titles in everything from pompons to football, they arebest known for their dominance in tennis, over a 28-year span, from t972to 2000, the boys'team won 316 consecutive dual matches, a national record for that sport. Cherry Creek is also a

power in girls' swimming, with 21 state titles. As a senior in 1991, five-time Olympic swimminggold medalist Amy Van Dyken won two individual state titles (she also won a pair as a junior)and helped the Bruins earn a state team championship. Another famous alum, Houston Astroscloser Brad Lidge, led Cherry Creek to a state baseball title as a senior an 1995.

Issue date: Mav 16, 2005

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SI Extra: 7he ${est sf tfte Tep 25

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o Eest Higlr S.hool Athletlc Prograrns

o A state-by-state Iook at ihe best prograrns

SI Extra: The Top 25

SX Extra: Why the No. 1 sctrool was picl(e d

SI Extra: The school wi'rh itre rnost future stars

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