Coaches ready for first year

Mike Sciacca

Greg Weiss certainly knows his way around a tennis court, and Andrew

Priest knows what it takes to be successful in the pool.

Both will apply their knowledge and coaching skills this spring

when they lead the boys’ tennis and swim teams, respectively, at

Laguna Beach High.

The 2004 season will mark the first high school head coaching

experience for both.

Although new to the school, Weiss has taught tennis in the city of

Laguna Beach for the past 10 years.

His first Breakers edition is comprised of 11 returners from last

year, eight seniors and three juniors, among that number.

Senior Kyle Paxson is considered to be Laguna’s top doubles player

and senior Eric Tran is solid in both singles and doubles, Weiss

said.

The other returners are seniors Dieter Schmitz, Michael Codini,

Jeremy McKiernan, Riley McMahon and Jaime Conteres, and juniors Chris

Gourdal, Ryland Harris and Seth Bernard.

Weiss said that Schmitz has shown great improvement in his singles

play from last year.

“I have a good bunch of guys on this team,” Weiss said. “We have

three solid players in Eric, Kyle and Dieter. The rest of the team is

all about even and many guys are still fighting for position, and we

are still trying to find our solid starting lineup.”

Laguna began its season Tuesday and returns to the court Monday to

host Whitney.

The Laguna swim team visits Trabuco Hills Tuesday for its first

meet of the year.

Andrew Priest became head coach of the program last November.

The 25-year-old, whose specialty was the 100- and

200-breaststroke, swam on scholarship at Western Kentucky University

and moved out to California in February 2003 to train for the Olympic

Trials.

He trained up until last October, when an injury forced him to

“re-access things,” which led to his retirement from competitive

swimming.

Among key swimmers returning for the Breakers this year are Dustin

Caris, Shawn Pfendler and Bret Burge, each a member of Laguna’s

CIF-qualifying 200-yard medley relay team in 2003.

Caris also qualified for CIF last year in the 50-freestyle.

Priest was a full-time assistant coach for the Novaquatics before

taking over the Laguna post.

He said there are 40 total swimmers out for the boys’ and girls’

teams.

“Coaching high school is a lot different than club coaching,

although there are some similarities, too,” Priest said. “My biggest

challenge has been working with kids who not only swim, but play

water polo, as well.

“I am performing my role as coach in ways that will not only

benefit them as swimmers, but help them better their skills to make

them better polo players.”

Priest said one goal he’d like to accomplish is to strike a

balance between the Laguna swim and water polo programs -- “to make

them as successful, if not more successful, than in past years,” he

said.

“It’s still really early to tell how this team will come

together,” Priest said. “I’ll know more after the first week of the

season.

“We’re looking for some freshmen and sophomores to make an impact

but also, we’re expecting a lot from upperclassmen. The seniors and

juniors need to be role models for this team.”

The perks to coaching at Laguna so far, Priest said, have been the

chance to work with a strong support system, and the school’s ocean

view location.

His assistant coaches are Rick McKee, the boys’ and girls’ water

polo coach at the school, and Jen Andrews.

“It’s been fun, so far,” he said. “I have a great athletic

director and some really great and enthusiastic assistant coaches.

“I’m a guy who came to California by way of Tennessee and

Kentucky, and to come to work every day and be at a pool deck that

offers a look out to the Pacific Ocean, well, that’s incredible.”