Player Arrested In Confrontation With Spectator At High School Basketball Game

SANTA CLARITA (CBSLA.com) — A 17-year-old basketball player from Golden Valley High School was arrested in the aftermath of a brawl after a game at West Ranch High School, authorities said.

Deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department assigned to security at the game Tuesday arrested the teen they believe ran into the stands to hit another 17-year-old.

Video from a sportswriter for a local newspaper shows deputies trying to calm things down after a confrontation.

Newhall Signal staff writer Mason Nesbitt said the home crowd had hurled boos and taunts toward the player during the game, but "it didn't appear to be anything inappropriate or out of the norm for a high school basketball game."

Authorities said the spectator believed to have been struck had cuts to his face but didn't need to go to a hospital. Two girls also were caught in the melee but were not seriously injured.

Ninth-grader Ethan Doty was on campus for Lacrosse practice at the time when he saw sheriff's cars rushing to the gym. His father says the arrest has been a reminder to stay cool.

"Sometimes, bite your tongue and let it go," Brent Doty said.

The Sheriff's Department says the teen was released to his parents.

The school district says administrators at both schools are working to figure out what started the fight.