Boys water polo: Sea Kings aim for third straight CIF Division II

title

Richard Dunn

BELMONT SHORE - As the swan song for Corona del Mar High boys water

polo coach John Vargas, the Sea Kings should have no trouble getting

fired up for tonight’s 8:15 clash with Esperanza in the CIF Southern

Section Division II championship game at Belmont Plaza Olympic Pool.

“It will be a little sentimental with it being my last game, but

there’s no better way to go out than to play in the CIF finals,” said

Vargas, who will take over as Stanford’s coach at the beginning of 2002.

Vargas, the Sea Kings’ coach since 1983 after an All-American playing

career at UC Irvine under Coach Ted Newland, will be seeking his seventh

CIF championship at the Sea Kings’ helm, while the school hopes to win

its 12th section title in the sport, which was launched by Newland.

Second-seeded Corona del Mar (23-3), ranked No. 1 in the Southern

California region by The Times for most of the season, has yet to be

challenged in the playoffs, outscoring three opponents, 51-10. CdM is

also hoping to win its third straight Division II title.

But the unseeded Aztecs (18-10) are enjoying a Cinderella run in the

postseason, having upset top-seeded Servite in the quarterfinals, 6-5,

and fourth-seeded Laguna Beach, 9-8, in overtime in the semifinals. CdM

and Esperanza have not faced each other this year.

“Esperanza is definitely on a high right now with (its) win over

Servite and win over Laguna Beach,” Vargas said. “(The Aztecs) are going

to be a real good team (tonight).”

Esperanza, the third-place team from the Sunset League, and the

Pacific Coast League champion Sea Kings will play tonight in the featured

time slot. The Division II final was originally scheduled for 6 p.m., but

section officials switched starting times Thursday.

“Usually (8:15 p.m.) is the Division I time,” Vargas said, “but I

really think that we’re so excited, we would do it any time. Even if it

was 6 o’clock in the morning, we’d be there.”

Vargas, who said he can’t remember the last time CdM played Esperanza,

will go with his customary starters in tonight’s championship clash, led

by 6-foot-4, 220-pound senior Michael March and juniors John Mann (6-4,

210) and Artie Dorr (6-foot, 230).

March, Mann and Dorr scored consecutive goals from two meters to open

the Sea Kings’ semifinal match against Los Alamitos, a 12-6 victory for CdM, which built a 9-1 halftime lead.

“That’s firepower right there,” Vargas said of his team’s opening

goals, while adding that his squad was highly motivated to play hard

following Servite’s defeat in the quarterfinals.

Seniors Bobby Messenger, Matt Meyer and Marcello Pantuliano and goalie

Sherwin Kim also start for CdM. Junior goalie Beau Stockstill usually

plays the second half.

CdM also defeated Cypress, 19-1, in the first round and Santa

Margarita, 20-3, in the quarterfinals.

Esperanza, led by senior Jameson Burmeister and goalie Barrett

Sheridan, has reached the CIF finals for the first time since 1994, when

the Aztecs beat Servite, 9-8, for the Division II crown.