Laguna wins battle of No. 1s
Laguna Beach High boys’ water polo, Jakob Colladay, Jack Dodson, Trent Sadler, Sebastian Jacobs, Cade Baldridge, Aki Andersen, Garret Hartley, Ethan Damato, Nolan Del Toro, Connor Hauer, Greyson Benson, Laguna Beach High girls’ golf, BellaRose Robinson, Leslie Dwight, Halle Redfearn, Anna Kunkel, Hannah Burnett, MaryKate Quellmalz, Hailey McCullough, Woodbridge Cross Country Classic, Cameron Zuziak, Scott Wittkop, Matt Neeve, Myron Ahle Lucky Lindy Invitational, Kirsten Landsiedel, Natalie Kimball, Pearl Shoemaker, Brenna Merchant, Janie Crawford, Allison Konno, Taylor Alvarez, Grant Barton, Drake Butler, Liam Corrigan, Mason Pitz, Penn Nielson, Carter Fraser, Laguna Beach girls’ volleyball, Sabrina Stillwell, Jamie Robbins, Raul Papaleo, Durango Fall Volleyball Classic, Kelly Keller, Bailey Jaeger, Malia Helms, Madeline Loomis, Ashley Fair, Natasha Keces, Kira Hamilton, Reyanna Henderson
Two teams with top rankings met Tuesday at Pomona Pitzer College in an early season boys’ water polo showdown.
In the end, it was Laguna Beach, the No. 1-ranked team in CIF Southern Section Division 3, taking down host Claremont, the top-rated team in Division 5, 13-9.
Laguna turned a 4-3 first-quarter lead into a 7-4 halftime advantage by holding the Wolf Pack to a single goal in the second quarter. The Breakers led, 11-7, through three quarters.
Jakob Colladay had four goals, an assist and five steals for the Breakers (4-2). Jack Dodson scored twice, had four assists and three steals, Trent Sadler and Sebastian Jacobs both scored twice with an assist and a steal, Cade Baldridge scored twice and had two steals, Aki Andersen scored once and goalie Garret Hartley had four saves, an assist and a steal.
“It’s always good to get a good win when you’re on the road against a quality opponent,” Laguna Coach Ethan Damato said. “We had some great moments and some really bad moments through the course of the game.
“As a team, we need to work on our consistency and find a way to play a complete game on both ends of the pool for four quarters.”
Tuesday’s match came three days after the Breakers took fourth place at the Santa Barbara Tournament.
They started the tournament by rallying from a three-goal deficit with three minutes to play against Lafayette (CA.) Acalanes to pull out a 13-12 overtime win. They got past Newport Harbor (No. 6, CIF-SS Division 1), 8-7, in the quarterfinals, but lost, 15-9, to Mater Dei (No. 2, Division 1).
In their final tourney game, the Breakers lost, 10-2, to Los Angeles Loyola (No. 3, Division 1).
Andersen scored the winning goal in sudden death against Acalanes. Against Newport Harbor, Laguna was down, 5-4, heading into the fourth quarter but outscored the Sailors, 4-2, to pull out an 8-7 win.
Baldridge, Nolan Del Toro and Connor Hauer each scored on a counter attack, with Greyson Benson picking up a key assist on Del Toro’s goal and Baldridge assisting Hauer’s score, and Dodson scoring off a set play with seven seconds left to put the Breakers up a goal.
“One of our goals as a team this year is to break in to the top four of the major tournaments, so I am extremely proud of what we accomplished as a team reaching that goal,” Damato said. “This is the first time we have made the top four of a major tournament since I have been at Laguna and our highest finish at Santa Barbara in the last four years.
“I’m really proud of our guys and the way they fought together through out the weekend. It was a really good weekend.”
The Breakers are back in action next Thursday when they begin play at the South Coast Tournament.
Girls’ Golf
Playing without two starters Tuesday, the Breakers were dealt a 259-171 loss by visiting Dana Hills at Ben Brown Golf Course (par 32).
BellaRose Robinson posted the low score (44) for Laguna (0-5). Other Laguna scores: Leslie Dwight (47), Halle Redfearn (48), Anna Kunkel (57), and Hannah Burnett (63).
Laguna’s top player, team co-captain MaryKate Quellmalz and No. 5 player, Hailey McCullough, did not play in the match.
Quellmalz shot a career-low 36 and took medalist honors in Laguna’s season opener Sept. 3 at Ben Brown.
In their previous match Sept. 9 at Aliso Viejo Country Club, Laguna lost, 236-185, to host Aliso Niguel. Quellmalz shot 42, Redfearn 46, Robinson 46, Dwight 53, and McCullough 61.
Defending Orange Coast League champion Laguna returns to the links next Wednesday for a 3 p.m. four-way match with league foes Costa Mesa, Estancia and Calvary Chapel at Mesa Linda Golf Course in Costa Mesa.
Cross-Country
The Breakers will run Friday and Saturday at the 34th annual Woodbridge Cross Country Classic at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine.
Laguna’s Cameron Zuziak has been invited to run in the Sweepstakes Race which is Saturday.
Laguna boys’ Coach Scott Wittkop said that Zuziak is the first Laguna runner since Matt Neeve in 2010 to receive an invitation to the Sweepstakes Race.
The Laguna teams were in Minnesota last week for the Myron Ahle Lucky Lindy Invitational at Little Falls Country Club. The Laguna girls won the team title and the boys’ team took second place.
“It was an amazing trip that gave us a true sense of the Midwest,” Wittkop said.
Girls’ team times at the Lucky Lindy Invitational: Kirsten Landsiedel, 15:30.9 (fifth-place overall); Natalie Kimball, 15:35.3 (10th); Pearl Shoemaker 15:53.2 (14th); Brenna Merchant, 15:55.6 (18th); Janie Crawford, 15:59 (21st); Allison Konno, 16:30.6 (37th); Taylor Alvarez, 16:37.5 (42nd). Total team time: 1:18:54.1.
Boys’ team times at the Lucky Lindy Invitational: Cameron Zuziak, 16:05.0 (fourth-place overall); Grant Barton, 17:05.1 (22nd); Drake Butler, 17:13.2 (27th); Liam Corrigan, 17:16.4 (30th); Mason Pitz, 17:17.6 (30th); Penn Nielson, 17:24.0 (34th); Carter Fraser, 17:51.9 (59th). Total team time: 1:24:57.3.
Girls’ Volleyball
The Breakers reached the Division 1 Silver Bracket playoffs of the Dave Mohs Tournament last weekend.
In pool play, Laguna dropped matches to Huntington Beach (26-24, 21-16) and Rancho Cucamonga (25-13, 27-25), and a win over El Dorado (25-14, 25-17) put the Breakers into the Silver Bracket playoffs. There, ML King edged the Breakers, 22-25, 25-21, 17-15. Sabrina Stillwell and Jamie Robbins led the Breakers’ offense at the tournament.
“We improved our game from Friday to Saturday and hopefully that will help us build some momentum for the Durango tournament in Vegas,” Laguna Coach Raul Papaleo said.
The Breakers (1-6) are in Las Vegas for the 64-team Durango Fall Classic which runs Friday and Saturday. They are the No. 2-seed behind defending tournament champion Torrey Pines in the four-team Pool 1 bracket.
“We play some tough teams in Las Vegas and right now we are just trying to make small improvements after a bad start of the season,” Papaleo said. “Las Vegas will set the tone for the rest of the season.”
Next week, Laguna hosts San Juan Hills for a 5:15 p.m. nonleague match Tuesday .
Girls’ Tennis
The Breakers, ranked third in CIF-SS Division 2, scored a 15-3 nonleague victory Sept. 22 over visiting Mater Dei.
Laguna earned a sweep through doubles play. At No. 1, Kelly Keller/Bailey Jaeger won, 6-3, 6-4, 6-3. At No. 2, Malia Helms/Madeline Loomis won 7-5, 6-2, 6-3, and at No. 3, Ashley Fair/Natasha Keces won, 6-0, 7-5, 6-2.
The Breakers also swept at the No. 2 singles line where Kira Hamilton won two sets, 6-3, 6-2, and Reyanna Henderson won a set, 6-4.
The Breakers visit El Toro Monday for a nonleague match, then begin their Orange Coast League title defense at 3 p.m. Tuesday at Costa Mesa.
CIF Weekly Rankings
Boys’ Water Polo: Laguna Beach (No. 1, Division 3)
Girls’ Tennis: Laguna Beach (No. 3, Division 2)
Girls’ Cross-Country: Laguna Beach (No. 2, Division 4)
Boys’ Cross-Country: Laguna Beach (No. 3, Division 4)
Twitter: @MikeSciacca