Sports

HEARTBREAKING LOSS

The disappointment in the voice of Santa Monica College Coach Robert Taylor was understandable after he watched his football team lose a big second-half lead Saturday in a 28-27 loss to rival West Los Angeles.

But Taylor said there was something to be learned from the game, in which the previously undefeated Corsairs held a seemingly comfortable 25-7 advantage in the third quarter.

“We learned a valuable lesson that you can’t let down,” Taylor said. “You have to play hard for four quarters. It’s going to serve as a wake-up call. I hope everyone heard the call and it’s ringing in our ears.”

The coach was particularly upset because he thinks the Corsairs (2-1) are a better team than West L.A., which entered the game with an 0-3 record.

“The real truth is our football players lowered their standard of play to our opponents’ level of play,” Taylor said. “We made a tremendous amount of mistakes that we normally don’t make and it cost us a victory.”

On the bright side, he thinks the loss will serve to inspire Santa Monica when it plays struggling Glendale (1-2). The Western State Conference game is at 7 p.m. Saturday at Santa Monica.

It is also the first of five consecutive home games for Santa Monica, which played its first three on the road.

“All things considered, I guess you can’t be too disappointed about things,” Taylor said. “We went out with a young football team and played three games on the road and we lost one. But now we have five in a row at home and we’re looking forward to it.”

As for West L.A., the Oilers hope to carry the momentum from the victory over their rival into a Western State Conference game against struggling Pierce (0-3) at 7 p.m. Saturday in Woodland Hills.

GETTING IT TOGETHER

When his football team went 0-2 to start the season, Beverly Hills Coach Carter Paysinger could have easily been discouraged.

After all, the team’s defense was looking downright ugly. In their first two games, the Normans gave up 96 points.

But Paysinger realized there were mitigating circumstances behind the team’s difficulty. For one, Beverly Hills was missing four starters for its season opener and three the following week.

With the team’s health improving, the Normans have won two games in a row in impressive fashion and appear fit to challenge powerful Ocean League rival Mira Costa (4-0) at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Manhattan Beach.

“The kids have played well all year, and now we’re finally putting it together on both sides of the ball,” Paysinger said. “The first two weeks were like any year. You’re feeling out your team’s strengths and weaknesses and seeing where you need to go.”

Beverly Hills is still missing two starters, but Paysinger said the team’s continuity and confidence have returned after back-to-back wins over West Torrance (38-14) and Morningside (36-27). The offense has been sharp all along; the Normans average 32.5 points behind quarterback Chris Wallace and running back Aaron Kogan.

“We’re improving every week and we’re getting to the level where we think we should be,” he said.

Have they improved enough to play a team such as Mira Costa, defending Southern Section Division VII champion?

“We know they’re a very good football team,” Paysinger said. “When you win 17 of your last 18 games, that speaks for itself. But we feel we can compete with them. We feel good about our football team.”

READY TO TEE IT UP

Two weeks after the start of its season, Pepperdine finally has a men’s golf coach.

Cody Barden, a teaching professional at the Tournament Players Club at Sawgrass in Ponte Verde Beach, Fla., for the past three years, has been hired to coach the Waves.

Barden, 25, succeeds Kurt Schuette, who resigned July 29 to accept a similar position at USC. Schuette guided Pepperdine into the NCAA West Regionals the past three seasons, and the Waves earned their first berth in the NCAA championships in 1993.

Pepperdine Athletic Director Wayne Wright, who has been the team’s interim coach, is confident the success will continue under Barden.

“Kurt Schuette did a tremendous job of building the program and developing a national reputation for Pepperdine golf,” he said. “Cody’s extensive golf background and skills will keep the momentum of our program moving in a positive direction.”

Barden, a graduate of Arizona, earned his PGA card in 1992 and has played on the Florida mini-tour circuit.

He will take over a Pepperdine squad that was ranked No. 29 in a preseason national poll by GolfWorld. The Waves opened their 1994-95 season by finishing in a tie for sixth place at the Washington Husky Golf Classic two weeks ago.

MOWING THEM DOWN

Four standouts from the Beverly Hills Lawn Bowling Club will compete against many of the best in the nation in the 1994 United States Lawn Bowling Championships that begin Saturday and run through Wednesday at Sun City, Fla.

Topping the list are Anne Barber and Heather Stewart, who will compete in the women’s pairs division. They finished second in the division at the 1993 U.S. Championships.

Barber, considered among the top players in the U.S., has won two national titles in the past. She won pairs titles at the 1992 U.S. Championships and the 1993 National Open, both times with a different partner.

Two others representing the Beverly Hills club are not strangers to national competition. Joe Siegman, who will compete in the men’s pairs division, won the pairs title at the 1993 National Open. Richard Simon will compete in men’s singles after qualifying for the U.S. Championships in pairs in 1987 and 1988.

The four participants from the Beverly Hills club will represent the Southwest, one of seven regions competing in the national event. The Beverly Hills club will also play host to a tournament Sunday at Roxbury Park Lawn Bowling Greens, 401 S. Roxbury Drive.

MISCELLANY

Tyler Murphy, a 6-foot-3 point guard who averaged in double figures in scoring last season at St. Monica High, has transferred to Notre Dame in Sherman Oaks.

Murphy’s strongest asset may be his free-throw shooting, having made more than 90% of his attempts last season.

Former All-City guard Sam Crawford from Westchester High has signed a free agent contract with the NBA’s Seattle Supersonics. After graduating from Westchester, Crawford went on to star at Moorpark College and New Mexico State.