Empire sports notes: Tommasi stars in SRJC water polo

Santa Rosa Junior College freshman Dominic Tommasi is extending the dominating performances he put up as a water polo player at Sonoma Valley High into his college career. The standout swimmer and polo player leads the 4-6 Bear Cubs with 30 goals and 71 assists on the season. The Bear Cubs are 0-2 in conference play. The team competes at American River today.

Alexander out of NLCS

The Los Angeles Dodgers do not have the services of lefty Scott Alexander for the National League Championship Series with the Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers lead the series 2-1. The Dodgers left Cardinal Newman and Sonoma State grad Alexander off the roster in favor of left-hander Julio Urias. Alexander appeared in 73 games for the Dodgers this season. His 3.65-ERA in 66 innings made the 28-year-old the club's most reliable left-handed reliever. He pitched in one game in the National League divisions series with the Braves, throwing a scoreless inning in Game 3. Alexander was traded from the Kansas City Royals to the Dodgers in January.

Vargas tops Ryan meet

Jonny Vargas did it again.

The Santa Rosa Junior College freshman, who prepped at Piner High, won the Pat Ryan Invitational on the Bear Cubs' home course at Spring Lake Saturday. Vargas finished the men's four-mile course in 20:23, ahead of second place finisher Caleb Llorin-Fernandez of Monterey Peninsula, who crossed the line in 20:29. The Bear Cubs men's team finished in fifth place. The women's team came in second behind Hartnell. Freshman Ana Palafox, who prepped at Vintage High, was again the Bear Cubs' fastest female competitor, finishing fifth on the 5K course in 19:47.

SSU volleyball update

Sonoma State junior Tate Battistini led all Seawolves in kills Saturday with 15 in Sonoma State volleyball's 3-1 loss to Dominguez Hills. Battistini prepped at St. Helena High. Emily Eaton, a redshirt freshman who played at Ukiah High, tallied 11 kills, second most on the team. The Seawolves won the first set 25-23, before dropping three in a row 25-19, 27-25 and 25-11. The Seawolves are 4-8 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. The team travels to Cal State San Marcos Friday.

JC's tackling machine

Sophomore Richie Hardwick is leading the Santa Rosa Junior College football team in tackles this season with 8.3 per game. The defensive back who prepped at Vintage High in Napa has started all six games this season while putting up strong numbers on defense. He has recorded two sacks and has one fumble recovery. His 36 solo tackles lead the team. The Bear Cubs are 4-2 overall and 0-1 in the Big 8 Conference. The Bear Cubs host Chabot College at 5 p.m. Saturday at Santa Rosa High School.