Newport Harbor Edges Foothill in Water Polo

The difference between the Newport Harbor and Santa Ana Foothill girls’ water polo teams is so slight this season that four quarters wasn’t enough to separate them Wednesday.

Newport Harbor finally came away with a 10-8 overtime victory at Tustin High, gaining the edge in the Sea View League race and, just as important, the battle to determine the top-seeded team for next month’s Southern Section Division I playoffs.

The victory also helped Newport Harbor quickly ease the memory of its 9-8 loss to Foothill four days earlier in the final of the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions. The loss ended a 20-game winning streak for the Sailors (14-1).

Neither team scored in the last 3 minutes 35 seconds of regulation or the first three minutes of overtime. Foothill (12-3) started the second half of overtime with a man advantage, but the opportunity was negated when Newport Harbor’s Leah Robertson won the sprint. Kally Lucas scored her fifth goal of the game on the possession to give the Sailors a 9-8 lead.

Lucas then stole a pass on Foothill’s next possession and assisted on Robertson’s goal for a 10-8 lead with 2:03 left. Grace Reynolds scored three goals to lead Foothill before fouling out before Robertson’s final score.

Dan Arritt

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Basketball

Jason Hill, a Cal State Northridge-bound guard, scored 20 points and had 13 rebounds and five assists to help Reseda Cleveland, ranked No. 21 in the Southland by The Times, upset eighth-ranked Woodland Hills Taft, 63-50, in a West Valley League opener at Cleveland.

Cleveland (10-4), which came within two points of beating sixth-ranked Los Angeles Fremont last week, took advantage of Taft’s foul trouble. Calvin Haynes, who was averaging 21 points a game for Taft (10-4), had to sit out more than 12 minutes because of foul trouble and was limited to 13 points.

Andre Murray had 13 points and Deandre Myles had 12 for Cleveland.

Reinforcing its hold on first place in the Marmonte League, No. 12 Calabasas (15-3, 5-0) received 26 points from Drew Housman in picking up a 73-54 victory at Thousand Oaks (12-5, 2-3). Housman scored 12 points in the third quarter, when he helped Calabasas extend a 12-point halftime lead to 22 points.

Redmond Parker scored 11 points and Mark Einhorn had 10 for the Coyotes, who are trying to win the school’s first league title in basketball.

Eric Sondheimer

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Football

Larry Toner, who recently completed his 16th season as football coach at Anaheim Servite, has accepted a new administrative position at the school, officials announced this week.

Toner will become the director of freshman formation at the all-boys parochial school, a role that will put him in charge of implementing the school’s education model for incoming freshmen.

Toner, 65, compiled a 102-77-2 record at the school and led the Friars to consecutive Southern Section Division V championship games in 1994 and ’95. He served as a teacher and assistant football and basketball coach at Servite from 1970 to ’85. After four years at Beaverton (Ore.) Jesuit High, he returned to Servite in 1989.

The school has not begun a search for Toner’s replacement, said Frank Talarico, vice president of advancement at Servite.

-- Dan Arritt