Shadowlands

Looking back, 5 years ago this week:

* Corona del Mar High defeats Newport Harbor in games in a Sea

View League girls tennis match, 84-76, to maintain its No. 1 ranking

in Orange County. The Sea Kings (12-0, 5-0 in the Sea View League)

are also ranked atop the CIF Southern Section Division I, but Newport

makes it interesting as Brooke Taylor defeats Nadia Vaughan in a

tiebreak to tie the ninth set. CdM’s Nina Vaughan and sophomore

Caylan Leslie help the Sea Kings build a 4-2 lead after the first

round, but Harbor (12-4, 3-2, and No. 5 in the county and No. 4 in

CIF Division I) rebounds in the second round with victories by Erica

Nelson in singles and all three of its doubles teams. Newport’s Audra

Adams and Kristen Case knock off CdM’s Courtney Tenerelli and Ruchika

Budhraja, 6-3, to tie the match at 6-6, but Tenerelli and Budhraja

come back with a win over Newport’s No. 2 doubles team. CdM Coach Tim

Mang says, “That’s the worst tennis we’ve played all year.”

* After a pep talk from Coach Scott Taylor, the Costa Mesa boys

water polo team scores four fourth-period goals to defeat visiting

Esperanza, 12-9, in a nonleague match that improves Mesa, ranked No.

1 in CIF Division II, to 15-3. The Mustangs’ defense clamps down on

the Aztecs in the second half as seniors Todd Hylton and Hunter

Taylor score goals in the final two minutes to seal the win. Taylor

joins Kris Montgomery with three goals apiece with Hylton and Alex

Soria adding two goals each. Coach Taylor has these words, “We need

to come ready to play. We’re up and down, sometimes we’re there and

other times we’re out to lunch.”

* Estancia’s Alberto Munoz cruises to a fifth-place finish in

16:35 to lead Estancia’s boys cross country team to victory in the

small schools division of the Clovis Invitational in Fresno. The

Eagles score 85 points behind Manuel Orozco (11th, 16:44), Tony

Magana (17th, 17:00), Juan Sanchez (20th, 17:05) and Junior Labastida

(17:32). Jose Juarez and Silvio Aldrete also finish for Estancia.

Coach Charlie Appel’s girls team takes sixth as senior Sarah Hall

claims first in 20:14 while Carmen Gamboa, Janet Bonales, Vanessa

Stephens and Ana Perez also score. Cynthia Campos also finishes for

Estancia.

Looking back, 10 years ago this week:

* October 14th proves a successful day for two Newport-Mesa high

school boys water polo teams as Corona del Mar and Costa Mesa both

post wins. Mesa’s Sam Grayeli powers in seven goals and J.R. Porter

adds four as the Mustangs pound visiting Laguna Hills, 18-2, in a

Pacific Coast League matchup. Chris Avitia scores twice from the

goalie position for his first two goals of the season. The Sea Kings

deadlock visiting Tustin, 5-5, at halftime of a Sea View League match

before scoring nine goals in the final two quarters to claim a 14-7

decision. The Sea Kings’ Brad Harrington scores six goals to go along

with Colby Grant’s four to lead CdM (9-4, 4-0 in league).

* Coach Lance Stewart’s Corona del Mar girls volleyball team, led

by Jennifer Stroffe, Kim Coleman, Kristen Campbell, Allison

Englebrecht, Lori Newcomer and Caitlin Pickart, catapult to No. 1 in

the nation as ranked by USA Today. Andrea Susson, Hilleary Kehrli,

Jenny Hoover, Megan Upham, Tori Hartling, Noelle Resare and Krista

Wooten also contribute to the CdM juggernaut (18-0) which jumps from

its No. 2 spot with Burris of Muncie, Ind. (30-0) falling to No. 3,

behind No. 2 Albuquerque West Mesa (14-0).

* In a 65-19 thrashing of Pacific Coast League rival Laguna

Beach, Costa Mesa High running back Binh Tran breaks the school’s

single-season rushing mark with 333 yards on 33 carries. Tran has now

gained 1,258 yards, and caps his night with a 49-yard burst to set up

the Mustangs’ last touchdown. Mesa finishes with 511 total rushing yards. The Mustangs lead at halftime, 21-13, but Mesa breaks out in a

big way in the second half as Matt Harber steps in front of an Artist

receiver to pick off quarterback Patrick Wood’s pass, returning it 35

yards to the Artists’ 36. Harber’s pick is one of six by Mesa (3-3)

in the second half (the Mustangs finish with seven). Bryan

Luxembourger intercepts on the ensuing Laguna Beach possession,

setting up Josh Peca’s third touchdown run. Laguna Beach Coach Mike

Barron charges Mesa Coach Myron Miller with running up the score.

Miller says, “I simply did my job. If he (Barron) was interested in

keeping the score down, he wouldn’t have had his kid put the ball in

the air.”