Avoiding Back-to-Back Losses Is Corso’s Plan Against Loyola

Everyone else might be calling it a grudge match, but Harvard-Westlake High water polo Coach Rich Corso said today’s Mission League game against Loyola is just another game.

Loyola handed the Wolverines a 5-4 overtime loss last season, just the second Mission League loss for Harvard-Westlake in nine years.

Between the final regulation period and overtime, Cynthia Holmes, a parent of a Loyola player, pushed Corso into the pool while he argued a goal-nullifying call.

Corso, who sustained what he termed “significant” injuries to his lower back and spinal cord, sued Holmes.

The criminal case was dismissed and the civil suit has yet to go to trial.

“The way I’m approaching it is that was last year,” Corso said. “Last year we did not take Loyola seriously enough, now we take them very seriously.”

Corso, while he said he doesn’t expect any other incidents, offered some advice to those who might have any funny ideas.

“Players should play, coaches should coach and parents should sit in the stands and be fans.”

FOOTBALL

Movin’ on up: With a season-ending knee injury to senior quarterback Braden Fien, Royal Coach Gene Uebelhardt will be forced to speed up the development of sophomore Jon Palacios. Palacios was moved up to varsity last week after completing 17 of 30 passes for 330 yards and four touchdowns in a sophomore win over Agoura. He’s now competing for the varsity job with junior quarterback Dustin Cruz.

Life on the other side: Reseda quarterback Skyler McKnight came through with quite a performance as an outside linebacker last week in a 27-20 win over Grant. He made eight individual tackles in the fourth quarter alone. “He was really a dynamic force,” Reseda Coach Joel Schaeffer said.

Mark it: When Emmanuel Evans rushed for 353 yards in a 34-33 loss to Chatsworth on Friday, he broke the school single-game record set by Marcel Sellers, who ran for 247 yards against Verdugo Hills in 1987.

Day dreams: Kennedy is 0-2 in day games, but Coach Bob Francola has found one benefit in playing early.

After losing 22-14 to El Camino Real, Francola and offensive coordinator Fred Grimes watched Taft play San Fernando last Friday night. Kennedy plays Taft on Friday and San Fernando in three weeks.

“I’m just having fun watching [Taft Coach] Troy [Starr] run around going crazy,” Francola said.

Achilles’ shoulder: Last Friday, in their first football game of the season, Harvard-Westlake seniors Brent Pantell and Mike Ingram shouldered significant parts of the Wolverines’ load in a Mission League loss at Serra.

Pantell, a starter at tight end and safety last season, twice dislocated a shoulder and after missing the final two games, underwent surgery last winter. In August, Pantell dislocated the shoulder again while hitting a tackling dummy. But against Serra he caught five passes for 40 yards while wearing a brace that allows him to raise only one arm over his head.

Harvard-Westlake Coach Dave Bennett said there is a strong chance Pantell could dislocate his shoulder again, but that the player’s dedication has earned him the chance to continue playing.

“I’m holding my breath every play he’s out there but he’s determined,” Bennett said.

Ingram started at linebacker as a sophomore and junior before injuring a shoulder last season and not coming out for the team in August. But he returned two weeks ago and started against Serra.

“Rusty is a good word for both of them right now,” Bennett said. “But they’ve got to help us down the stretch.”

BASKETBALL

Bold prediction: Fillmore boys’ basketball Coach Harry Burns said he believes his team will win the Tri-Valley League this season, despite its 14-43 record the past three years.

The Flashes are 4-20 in league play during that time. This summer they finished 10th in a 53-team tournament in San Diego and won the Bishop Diego tournament, beating Newbury Park and Montclair Prep.

The presence of nine seniors, led by standout swingman Jesus Jasso, also encourages Burns, who begins his fourth season next month.

“These guys are basketball players only and we’ve kept them together from their freshman year on,” Burns said. “We have a real shot for the league title. It’s either this year or never.”