A new win for Coast

Bryce Alderton

The dawning of a new era, in more ways than one, for the Orange Coast

College women’s soccer team began with Tuesday’s season opener

against visiting Mt. San Antonio, but ended with a result first-year

coach Matt Tutton could get quite used to.

Host OCC christened its revamped, regulation-sized field that

features cushioned synthetic grass with a 2-1 nonconference victory

in front of a crowd of nearly 100 spectators, most of whom arrived 20

minutes before the 3 p.m. kickoff for a dedication ceremony.

Barbara Bond, in her first year as OCC’s athletic director and the

school’s dean of physical education after coaching Coast’s women’s

soccer team the prior 22 seasons, addressed the fans for the pregame

ceremony and stayed to watch the Pirates secure the victory when

sophomore Lindsey Wood blasted a rebound to the left of diving Mt.

SAC goalkeeper Arlene Roman in the 84th minute.

The victory capped a postcard-type sunny Southern California

afternoon that began with Brazilian World Cup star Sissi booting the

ceremonial first kick into the left side of the net in front of

several current and former OCC dignitaries on hand.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better day,” said Tutton, who

assisted Pat Callaghan with the Corona del Mar High boys soccer team

that reached the CIF Southern Section Division II semifinals last

winter. Tutton was an assistant on the Irvine Valley College men’s

team the past three seasons.

“The expectations are high, but I’ve got a good group of girls who

prepared to do things their best and play under pressure with

everything surrounding the new facility and things of that nature.”

Sophomore Sarah Ronquillo, a starting forward who played her first

game for Coast in two years after recovering from knee surgery, said

she was in uniform by 11 a.m. eagerly awaiting kickoff on the new

surface, supported by a mixture of rubber and sand that is supposed

to create a softer cushion when players fall.

After the game, Ronquillo hailed the synthetic surface, or

FieldTurf, part of a field that is now regulation size (80 by 120

feet).

“The ball moves way faster and doesn’t dip to the ground. [The

field] is completely flat,” said Ronquillo, a second-team All-Orange

Empire Conference pick in 2002 when she scored 11 goals and added

five assists. “The pace of the game moves that much faster. It’s

softer, so you don’t get big scratch marks when you slide.”

Freshman midfielder Taryn Flamson, an All-Sea View League defender

for three seasons at Newport Harbor, had never played on a synthetic

surface resembling Coast’s, but after playing on it Tuesday, said

nothing quite compares.

“In a word, ‘perfect,’ ” Flamson said. “Never can you say you got

a bad bounce because [the field] is completely flat and huge.”

The larger field opened up the game, Flamson said, where players

sent lobs into the corners to teammates racing near the sidelines.

“We have quick girls like [freshman forward Elizabeth Terry] and

[Ronquillo] so if you send a big kick to the end line, no one can

catch them.”

Both Pirates’ goals came on counterattacks, including Terry’s

score to give the hosts a 1-0 lead 10 minutes into the contest.

Freshman Jill Cordova crossed to the top of the 18-yard box, but the ball skipped off freshman Christine Crosson and caromed to Terry,

who went upper left for the goal. Coast freshman goalkeeper and

Newport Harbor graduate Kara DeMille slid out to stop a breakaway by

Mt. SAC’s Valerie Carrere to start the counter that led to the goal.

DeMille finished with four saves on six Mt. SAC shots. The

Mounties’ Karla Morales cashed in on a rebound to tie the game at 1

in the 50th minute after DeMille slid to turn away a shot by Kelly

Anton.

Coast fired 14 shots on Roman, maintaining pressure throughout the

game.

“We used our speed to get behind the defenders and the girls made

smart decisions when they had to,” Tutton said. “We had just as many

chances with several different lineups. When we changed, we didn’t

lose much.”