Sailors’ win in cards

CORONA DEL MAR — By the time it was over, the pitch might as well have been orange.

Friday’s 11-card boys’ soccer game between Newport Harbor High and Corona del Mar was oddly peppered with penalties, even for an always-emotional meeting between the Back Bay rivals.

The Sea Kings (2-5-2) had nine cards, including two red cards, and Newport Harbor (2-4-1) had two yellow cards, as the Sailors won, 2-1.

“The [referee] was just handing out cards like lollipops,” said sophomore forward Dillan Freiberg, who kicked the game-winning goal in the 70th minute, a direct free kick from about 40 yards out. “A little foul, and then he’d give you a warning, and if he saw you do it again, automatic card. There was no doubt in his mind.”

It was the most penalty-heavy Battle of the Bay Sailors four-year varsity starter Garrett Heiser could remember.

“There were a lot of cards thrown out today, but that’s just what happens with different [referees],” Heiser said. “Previous years, there were not that many cards. We’ll get some here and there, ’cause it’s always a high intensity, rough game with the rivalry.”

Still, the general consensus was that the teams were dealing with a card-happy official, not that they were playing a particularly dirty game.

“It came off as a dirty game because of the refereeing, I think,” Newport Harbor Coach Ryan Hernandez said. “But they just wanted it real bad, and they were playing their hearts out.”

Corona del Mar assistant coach Brett Breman agreed. Breman was coaching Friday because head coach Pat Callaghan was assessed a red card Wednesday in the Sea Kings’ 2-0 win over Costa Mesa. Callaghan was carded for arguing with an official.

“We had a [referee] that was not completely on our side, but it was a fair game, somewhat,” Breman said.

Corona del Mar took an early 1-0 lead in the first half, but deflated after senior defender Nick Taylor was given a red card for violent conduct, forcing the Sea Kings to play one man down.

“He’s definitely one of our strongest players,” Breman said. “We were up, 1-0, at that point, and that was the switching point.”

Losing Taylor hurt, but Hernandez thought Callaghan’s absence affected the Sea Kings, too.

“It definitely didn’t help them that their coach wasn’t here,” Hernandez said. “Pat Callaghan’s a very good coach. It would have been a different game, and it’s a shame that sometimes referees change the game.”

Corona del Mar earned the second red card after Sea Kings senior forward Ryan Lanni got a second yellow card for slide tackling.

“We don’t even know what was going on,” senior Will Reichenstein said. “It was a rough game. There were some tackles. Some should have been cards, but there were times when we were even questioning why they were getting carded so much.”

The Sea Kings scored when sophomore forward Reed Williams won a battle with Newport Harbor goalkeeper Eric Guevera, who normally plays midfielder. Williams tried to kick the ball in, and Guevera stopped it, but bobbled the save. Williams scored on his second try, and kicked the ball in the net as it was coming out of Guevera’s hands.

“You can’t blame it on him,” Hernandez said. “He’s kind of a makeshift goalkeeper.”

The Sailors were still missing starting goalkeeper Kyle Evans, who injured his right knee earlier in the season. Without a clear backup goalkeeper in place, Guevera, Reichenstein, and senior Ben Swift have been trading off net-guarding duties.

Newport Harbor tied the game, 1-1, in the 65th minute, when Freiberg found Reichenstein on a throw-in.

Reichenstein split two CdM defenders, dribbled, and shot.

“I’ve been waiting four years just to score against CdM,” Reichenstein said.

Last season, the Sailors tied the Sea Kings, 1-1, but kept the bell because they’d won it the year before. “I was just waiting for this moment to be a senior and to beat them. I was just thinking to myself, I’m not going to get this chance again, so might as well just do it. We did it.”

SORAYA NADIA McDONALD may be reached at (714) 966-4613 or at soraya.mcdonald@latimes.com.