Goals still the same for Laguna

If one thing is certain, the Laguna Beach High boys’ water polo team will be a well-conditioned unit in 2008.

The Breakers swam 7,000 yards on the opening day of practice Wednesday, the first day of “two-a-days” that will run through Aug. 29. They got little sympathy from second-year Coach Ethan Damato, a graduate of the school who knows the rigors of such sessions.

Damato knew the drill back in his day, where he left Laguna Beach High in 2000 as first-team all-league and first-team All-CIF.

“I know exactly what they’re going through,” he said. “If anything, this is going to be a close team by the end of the season.”

Damato, who shared coaching duties last year with Chad Beeler, has a solid nucleus returning from last year’s 20-7 season that included a trip to the quarterfinal round of the Division II playoffs. It was the first time in five years that a Laguna team had advanced past the first round of the playoffs, he said.

But, he pointed out, the team is still in search of a “go-to guy” this fall.

Last year, Pierre Masson, co-MVP of the Orange Coast League, and Nathan McConnell, a first-team all-league member, carried much of the load for Laguna

“I think that this is a very talented team and it’s an incredibly hard-working group,” Damato said. “We lack some experience and we’re going to struggle to find out who our leader is. We’re still looking for that one guy to step up and take that role or, it can be by committee.”

A core of talented athletes make up the better portion of this year’s squad. Included in that group are returning all-league players in seniors Victor Alcone (first-team attacker) and Brett Thompson (two-meter defender) and juniors David Brunner (attacker) and Robert Chew (attacker), the latter three second-team picks.

Another player Damato considers to be a returnee is Preston Head. Now a senior, Head, an attacker, started the first three games for Laguna a year ago before mononucleosis sidelined him the remainder of the season. Another returnee is junior two-meter defender Robbie Quelmalz.

Damato is excited about the addition of two freshmen who will have an immediate impact on the program, Nolan McConnell and Erick Henrikson. McConnell is a two-time All-American at the Junior Olympics level and Henrikson was named as an All-American at this year’s Junior Olympics in Irvine that wrapped earlier this month.

Henrikson, Damato said, will start in goal.

“It’s definitely a great freshman class,” he said.

This year, Laguna is moving down from Division II to Division III status in the CIF Southern Section. Despite the change, the goals the Breakers set remain the same.

“Our goals are to win league and get to the semifinals or finals in CIF,” Damato said. “I don’t think those are too lofty of expectations.”

The nonleague schedule will be challenging. In addition to taking on several Division I and Division II teams “” such as Newport Harbor and Villa Park, Montebello and Redlands “” the top two teams in Division III have been added to the Laguna schedule. The Breakers, two-time defending Orange Coast League champions, begin their quest for a third straight title on Oct. 1 against Estancia.

Laguna hasn’t lost a league game in the two years that the league has been in existence.

“It’s a difficult schedule, but I feel that it will allow us to be battle-tested by the time the playoffs roll around,” said Damato, who has Trevor Lyle, another Laguna graduate(Class of 2002) and All-CIF player, as an assistant coach. “Last year, we had our hands full with Sage Hill in league play and I expect them to be tough again. We’re certainly not going to take anyone lightly in league.

“We have an incredibly tough, tough group this year. It’s a quick team and a good defensive team. We have a lot of good attackers and we’re good on the counterattack. This team has the makings to be a very good team.”

MIKE SCIACCA covers sports. He can be reached at (949) 494-4321 or by e-mail at michael.sciacca@latimes.com.