Peninsula faces Harvard-Westlake, which has score to settle

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Peninsula has had precious little time to celebrate its first win of the season.

Less than 24 hours after its 12-6 victory over reigning Division II champion San Marino, the Panthers will be back on the court this afternoon to host a motivated Harvard-Westlake squad that is seeking revenge.

‘We didn’t come out of the gate very strong so it feels good to finally get a win,’ said Coach Mike Hoeger, whose team opened the season with losses to Mater Dei and Irvine University. ‘We upset Harvard-Westlake in the CIF semifinals last year, so they want to get us back. We’ll have to be ready for them.’

Harvard-Westlake is ranked No. 2 in Division I and boasts Stanford-bound Ryan Thacher, the top-ranked junior player in the country. Peninsula, ranked fifth in Division I, counters with Tyler Bowman and Jon Kazarian, who are both headed to UC Irvine. Bowman sat out the San Marino match to rest a sore wrist but is expected to return against the Wolverines.

Hoeger expertly stacked his doubles to beat Harvard-Westlake, 11-7, last year but may opt for a more balanced attack this time. ‘If our singles players can all win two out of three, we stand a good chance, but that makes us a little weaker in doubles,’ he said. ‘Hopefully, I can come up with the right combination.’

Hoeger thinks each of the current top-six ranked teams in Division I -- University, Harvard-Westlake, Santa Barbara, Mater Dei, Peninsula and Corona del Mar -- possesses the firepower to win the section title.

‘By the time the playoffs come along, everyone has a different lineup,’ he said. ‘A freshman can make an impact more so than in other sports. We were second last spring and before that we got to the semis four times, so maybe it’s our turn.’

-- Steve Galluzzo

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