THE TIMES 1993 FALL ALL-COUNTY TEAMS : Stout’s Play Put El Toro in Control

LAKE FOREST — Late in the first quarter of the Southern Section Division I water polo title game last month, El Toro was floundering badly.

The Chargers, who had won 21 consecutive playoff games, were trailing Corona del Mar, 5-1, and appeared to be on the brink of being embarrassed at Belmont Plaza in Long Beach.

But with about 10 seconds left in the quarter, an El Toro player poked the ball away from a Sea King and El Toro senior Brandon Stout got control of the ball, turned and launched a three-quarter pool shot into the left corner of the goal.

“That’s the mark of a competitor,” El Toro Coach Don Stoll said. “He probably more than anyone else was aware of the clock. He makes the steal, takes two strokes and seeing the clock is less than five, takes the ball up and scores.”

Stout’s description of the play is more concise.

“I just picked it up and shot,” Stout said.

It was Stout’s only goal of the game, but without it the Chargers would not have sent the game into overtime. And without it Stout wouldn’t have been able to make the pass to Brent Stoll, who scored in sudden death to give El Toro its fifth section title in six seasons.

Corona del Mar was one of the few teams that could control Stout. But the power of El Toro, which scored seven consecutive goals in the second half against the Sea Kings, was its balance. Bill Pinciroli scored 89 goals; Stout had 88; Brent Stoll 60, and four others had at least 20.

Still, Don Stoll said Stout, who had 72 assists and 72 steals this season and finished as the second-leading scorer in school history, was the Chargers’ top threat.

“When we’re in trouble, Stout is the guy we go to,” Stoll said. “He’s probably the best left-handed polo player in the whole section,” Stoll said. “If you have to stop El Toro you have to stop several people, but he’s the No. 1 guy.

“He has one of the most feared shots. He generates a lot of power for such a small body.”

Stout, a 5-foot-10, 160-pound two-meter man who has been playing with many of his teammates for 10 years, said the team never panicked in the final.

“A lot of teams would have quit after getting that far behind,” he said. “But we weren’t ready to give up. Our coach told us to just have fun in the second half and forget about all the set plays, and I guess that’s what turned it around.”