1992-93: The Prep Year In Review : Season’s Close Finishes Kept Fans Riveted

The memories from a high school sports season are limited only by the number of people taking it all in. The members of The Times Orange County prep sports staff have provided the commentaries on these two pages about the people, events and issues that made the greatestimpression on them in the last 10 months.

They’re foot-stomping, nail-biting, heart-stopping, gut-wrenching games.

They’re the kind of games you watch with your hands covering your face, allowing for a few peeks.

When all is said and done, you’ll look in the mirror to find 10 new gray hairs the next morning, compliments of your local high school (fill in the blank) football, basketball, soccer game from the previous day.

They are, if you’re family or friend, the closest games you’ll never want to see. If you’re a purist, they are what sport is all about.

Orange County had its fair share of photo finishes for the 1992-93 school year, so without further ado, we bring you some of the season’s best finishes, each played under an invisible banner that read, “try to match this.”

Happy Tackle: After a slew of spectacular defensive plays, Valencia one-upped itself Dec. 11 in the Southern Section Division VI football championship game against Duarte. Sophomore reserve defensive end Bryan Cork stopped Duarte quarterback Greg Ainsworth for a two-yard loss on fourth down at the Valencia 45 with 1 minute 56 seconds left, preserving the Tigers’ 23-15 lead and giving Valencia its second consecutive title and third in six years.

Triple Overtime: The only element that could have topped this Jan. 8 thriller was if two local teams had been involved. On opening night of the Orange County Challenge, the Capistrano Valley girls’ basketball team took Del Campo to three overtimes before finishing off the Northern California visitors. The Cougars finally won, 89-87.

110% Plus: Magnolia High guard Frank Henderson, declaring himself 100% effective, took over in the final minute of the Division II-A boys’ basketball playoff game against Katella. Henderson hit a layup, tipped in a missed shot and ran out the clock as Magnolia rallied from an 11-point second-half deficit, including a six-point margin in the final two minutes 25 seconds, for a 70-69 victory.

The Shot II: Nicole Erickson does it again for Brea-Olinda. The junior guard sank a 12-foot jump shot with 3.5 seconds remaining to lift the Ladycats to a 42-41 victory over Fair Oaks Bella Vista March 19 in Oakland. It was the Ladycats’ third consecutive State championship and their fourth in five tries. It was the second time during the playoffs that Erickson had worked last-minute wonders, and the second time in a State final that she pulled the winning basket from her magic hat.

Up All Night: The Southern Section Division I boys’ volleyball championship would probably still be going on if Capistrano Valley and Huntington Beach had their way. In the end, Huntington Beach had its way, a 14-16, 15-12, 3-15, 15-7, 15-13 victory that took three hours. Huntington Beach was down 2-1 in games, 7-2 in the fourth, when it scored 13 consecutive points to force the deciding fifth game.

Tight Squeeze: In the bottom of the seventh inning of the Southern Section Division III baseball championship at Anaheim Stadium June 9, Ryan Winmill, who later said he lived by the squeeze, laid down the perfect bunt that gave the Tillers a 3-2 victory over La Quinta.

One game, perhaps the most eagerly awaited of the year in the county, wasn’t really close. It was just plain wild.

Mud Bowl I: Before an overflow crowd of 8,000 at Valencia High Oct. 30, two unbeaten teams, Empire League rivals Los Alamitos and Esperanza, battled in a game remembered for its laundry quotient as well as its football. Tim Carey, Orange County’s top-ranked quarterback, threw for 150 yards and three touchdowns as he led Los Alamitos to a 34-14 victory over Esperanza in a game that resembled a mud wrestling contest. A game between the schools’ junior varsities earlier in the day had turned the field into a sloppy mess, but officials refused to change the venue, which resulted in the slogfest.