Orange-Laguna Hills Rivalry Resumes

Somewhere in the equipment room at Orange High School is a pair of scissors that represents the boys’ soccer rivalry between Orange and Laguna Hills.

When the teams play for the Southern Section 2-A championship at 8 tonight at Gahr High School in Cerritos, the story likely will be told again.

In 1986, after the Pacific Coast League was formed, an Orange soccer player said that if the Panthers lost a league match, the entire team would get flat-top haircuts. The quote appeared in the school’s newspaper and soon word reached the players at Laguna Hills.

“I was the newspaper adviser at Laguna Hills, so I received a copy of the Orange paper,” Laguna Hills Coach Scott Johnson said. “Needless to say, I took it to practice with me that day.”

The first time the teams played, Laguna Hills won, 3-0. Afterward, the Hawk players presented the Orange team with an oversized pair of yellow scissors. The Panthers, true to their word, all got flat-tops.

The teams have been rivals, friendly ones anyway, ever since.

“The story gets passed down every year,” said Orange Coach Ed Carrillo, who was an assistant that season. “We even have two players this season whose brothers were on that team.”

Top-seeded Orange (20-0-3) has defeated Laguna Hills (23-5) in all three matches between the schools this season. However, Carrillo said word has reached him that Johnson claimed the Panthers scored a few cheap goals in those matches.

“Yeah, they got a couple of cheesy goals on us,” Johnson said. “In the first game, one of our players knocked one in for them. In the second game, one of our guys tried to clear the ball and missed. They had a shot right in front of the net. We’ve helped them.

Said Carrillo: “Cheesy huh? Well, it’s got to be in the back of their minds that we beat them three times this season. And we beat them for the summer league championship last July. They have to wonder at this point if they can beat us.”

Laguna Hills is led by forward Brian Slayback, who broke the school record for goals in a season during the semifinals against Cypress. Slayback has 24 goals, one more than Brian Fleming scored in 1986-87. He also has 17 assists.

Slayback scored Laguna Hills’ only goal in the three losses. Orange goalie Tres Martin has shut out Laguna Hills twice.

“Martin has said some things that has gotten our kids fired up,” Johnson said. “He said no one can beat him in the air. If we get a high goal, our kids will go wild.”

The Hawks have been preparing for Martin, a 6-foot-3, 225-pound senior. During Thursday’s practice, one of the Laguna Hills’ players taped two photos of Martin in the goal.

“Anyone who hit Martin’s picture with a shot,” Johnson said, “didn’t have to run as much in practice.”

Orange has continued to dominate in the playoffs despite losing defenseman Justin Zayas, the league’s most valuable player. Zayas was declared academically ineligible before the playoffs.

Forward Rick Heimer has 17 goals, including five in the playoffs.