Athlete of the Week: Munger’s return lifts CdM to first

After Blake Munger played his fourth straight match for the Corona del Mar High boys’ soccer team, Coach George Larsen gave him a little ribbing on Tuesday.

“Come here, you trouble maker,” Larsen called out for Munger. “You’re going to get interviewed, and not for good reasons.

“What’s that, four goals, five assists and a red card since you’ve come back?”

Munger laughed.

“I almost threw the game away,” said Munger, who then put on his reporter hat and asked himself, “How does it feel?”

Munger could breathe a sigh of relief. He sat on the bench for the final 10 minutes of the host Sea Kings’ 1-0 win against Beckman, and not by design.

In a showdown for first place in the Pacific Coast League, Munger picked up his second yellow card in the 70th minute. He exited and CdM played a man down the rest of the way.

There was a time — the first three league matches — Munger wasn’t available to play for the Sea Kings. The first day back from the holiday break Munger said he pulled his right quadriceps while training with the team.

The Sea Kings lost one of the three contests without Munger. They haven’t suffered a setback in league since Munger’s return.

Munger, a winger and midfielder, has come back from his injury with a bang, scoring four goals and assisting on five others. In his first match in the New Year, Munger produced three goals and an assist in a 6-0 win at Irvine on Jan. 21. Last week, in road wins against Northwood and Woodbridge, he totaled three assists and a goal.

Munger, who leads CdM with nine goals and seven assists, delivered his latest point against Beckman. He used his head to flick the ball to Kyle Mabwa, who found himself in a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper early in the first half.

“If he doesn’t finish,” Munger said, “then he’s not like looking good.”

Mabwa put it away with his left foot in the 14th minute, and CdM avenged its 2-1 loss to Beckman at Tustin High on Jan. 12.

Mabwa is one of those players who saw more action when Munger went down before league play. The sophomore has impressed Larsen.

“Kyle was really thrown into the starting role early and he’s gotten a lot of minutes, and he keeps growing and growing and getting better each time,” Larsen said. “To have Kyle and Blake on the field [against Beckman was key] because they were the two that created the goal.”

The Sea Kings missed Munger during Thursday’s match. He was out because of his two yellow cards on Tuesday.

Without Munger, CdM still blanked the Trojans, 1-0, remaining atop the league by improving to 7-1-0. The result by the Sea Kings clinched one of the league’s three automatic berths into the CIF Southern Section Division 3 playoffs.

Munger and CdM fell short of reaching the postseason last season. The team failed to make it for the first time under Larsen, who took over the program in 2009-10.

Two matches remain and Munger hopes to help the Sea Kings (15-2-1 overall), ranked No. 9 in the Division 3 poll, claim their second league title in three seasons. Next week CdM plays host to Northwood and Irvine.

“It’s my last season and that’s kind of scary,” Munger said.

Not much scares Munger, a three-year varsity player. On the same day the referee sent Munger off the field twice, he learned that for the first time in high school he didn’t earn an A in a class.

Munger said he got a B in Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition.

“It was a pretty tough class. I was at a 90% before the final,” said Munger, adding that the B dropped his overall grade-point average at CdM to 4.4. “It just shows how soccer is an analogy for the real world. There [are] setbacks. It’s like a goal against you. You can’t win every game, 5-0. It’s just something to learn from. It’s not that big of a deal. Just use it as an experience. Maybe I should’ve worked harder. Maybe I should’ve done some other things. I’m not letting it get to me too much.”

Munger said he and his family values academics more than athletics. He has a younger brother, Chase, who is a talented sophomore soccer player at Sage Hill.

“Even on our wall [at home], we have like a chalkboard and we keep track of our high school goals,” Munger said. “I always taunt him with mine, and he looks at his. He’s playing center back. He still scores. I’m really proud of him.”

The Munger brothers could’ve been teammates. The oldest said he almost didn’t come to CdM for high school.

“There was a moment when I was being convinced of [attending Sage Hill], but I decided ultimately to go to CdM,” Munger said. “My older brother [Wade] went here [and graduated in 2014]. I was born a Sea King.”

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Blake Munger

Born: Oct. 19, 1997

Hometown: Newport Beach

Height: 5-foot-11

Weight: 139 pounds

Sport: Soccer

Year: Senior

Coach: George Larsen

Favorite food: Pesto

Favorite movie: “The Notebook”

Favorite athletic moment: Playing for CdM.

Week in review: Munger recorded one goal and three assists, helping the Sea Kings to road wins against Northwood and Woodbridge in Pacific Coast League play.