Laguna girls’ water polo continues to win

The top-ranked Laguna Beach High girls’ water polo team faced a key, early-season confrontation Saturday: a date with second-ranked Orange Lutheran.

The Breakers responded with a big finish at Santa Margarita High that led to another victory, a 5-2 triumph.

Laguna tied the score (2-2) with just over one minute remaining in the opening half, then took its first lead moments later by getting a quick defensive stop that led to a 2-on-1 fastbreak that led to what turned out to be the winning goal.

They shutout the Lancers over the final 2 1/2 quarters of the game. They held a 5-2 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Senior attacker Natalie Selin and freshman attacker Sophie Leggit each scored twice, sophomore attacker Sophia Lucas (three steals) scored once, and senior goalie Holly Parker recorded 13 saves.

“Orange Lutheran is a good team,” Laguna Coach Ethan Damato said. “They have a lot of talent, they play well together, they are physical and they are well-coached. They will be major factor in the [CIF Southern Section] division [1] this year.

“I was very proud of the way our girls played defensively both individually and as a unit. Holly [Parker] played great in the cage and we did a nice job on five-on-six. A lot of positives, but also many things we can improve on.”

Laguna met its second ranked opponent in a five-day span when it played a nonleague game Wednesday at Newport Harbor. The Breakers jumped out to a 4-2 first-quarter lead, 6-3 halftime advantage, shutout the ninth-ranked Sailors in the third quarter, and came away with a 12-5 win.

They are 5-0 overall, and stretched the program’s winning streak to 57 games.

The Breakers will compete in the Holiday Cup tournament which runs Tuesday and Wednesday next week and is co-hosted by Newport Harbor and Corona del Mar. They open against Rancho Bernardo at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Corona del Mar High pool.

Laguna has won the tournament the past two years.

“There’s a deep pool of teams, as always, and we are excited to get four good games under our belts,” Damato said. “We will take it one game at time and focus on getting better every game. I’m excited to see where we are at this point of the season.”

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Girls’ Soccer

The Breaker fell behind visiting Ocean View, 1-0, at halftime but came back in the second half for two goals to take a 2-1 nonleague victory Dec. 17 from the Seahawks at Guyer Field.

The teams met just three days earlier, and played to a 1-1 tie score at the Ocean View Winter Classic.

Making adjustments at the half, the Breakers (2-3-2) pulled into a 1-1 tie on a goal by sophomore forward Shea Skenderian with an assist going to senior midfielder Alyssa Pellow. They went ahead on a goal by junior forward Greer Jacobs, which was set up on an assist from sophomore midfielder Haylee Jarvis (corner kick).

Breakers senior goalie Kara Dunne-Dombrink made crucial saves in the closing minutes to secure the victory.

“The girls responded well in the second half to a physical, direct style of play from Ocean View,” Laguna Coach Bill Rolfing said. “The halftime adjustment created more width and possession with the ball into the attacking third. Alyssa Pellow and [sophomore defender] Alden Kramer did superb in the central-midfield while [junior defender] Emily Addis had another strong performance in central-defense. Emily is moving central and replacing All-Orange Coast League and co-captain senior defender Chiara Noppenberger, who is out with an injury.

“A come-from-behind win is always gratifying. The girls deserved the result with a concentrated effort by the entire squad. The team now heads to the desert for three days for three big matches and plenty of down time.”

The Breakers take their annual trip to the desert next week to face a trio of opponents in nonleague play. First up is an 11. a.m. game Monday at Xavier Prep, followed by a 10 a.m. game Tuesday at Rancho Mirage. Their three-game swing ends with an 11 a.m. match Wednesday at Shadow Hills.

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Boys’ Soccer

In their final game before heading into winter break, the Breakers were upended, 2-0, by visiting Tesoro Dec. 18 at Guyer Field.

The loss was the first of the season for Laguna which is 2-1-3.

“We never looked liked we were able to compete in this game,” Laguna Coach Dan Richards said. “The boys looked off the pace and a step behind in every aspect. “Tesoro thoroughly deserved the win and played well throughout. They looked much sharper and fresher than us, taking advantage of our errors.

“This should be a good learning experience for the boys, as we will need to recover quicker from tough matches during league season and be able to play consistently well in each matchup due to the strength of the Orange Coast League.”

The Breakers are idle until returning to the pitch Jan. 4 for a nonleague road game at Santiago.

“The winter break from games is definitely needed and gives us a good chance to recover and re-group before the New Year,” Richards said. “With this being our first defeat of the season and against a very strong team, it definitely isn’t the end of the world but does highlight areas we need to improve upon.

“Our nonleague schedule was always going to be hard and is designed to ensure we are battle tested for league, and also gauge where the squad is at currently. Having played six games in three weeks, all against teams from higher [CIF] divisions and with much bigger student bodies, to come away with only one defeat is still a great sign of the potential this group has.”

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Surfing

The Breakers picked up a team victory over El Toro Sunday in Event No. 2 of the Scholastic Surf Series at South Jetty in Oceanside.

Laguna was represented in each division final of the competition.

Four Breakers reached the finals of Boys’ Shortboard with Travis Booth taking the title. Zach Levine was second and his brother, Jake placed third, while Liam McCue took fourth.

Also claiming individual victories for the Breakers were Jameson Roller (Boys’ Longboard) and Anika Pitz (Girls’ Longboard). In Girls’ Shortboard, Claire Kelly and Destiny Thompson placed second and third, respectively. In the Bodyboard final, Spencer Davis finished second.

Laguna next will compete in a Scholastic Surf Series event Jan 24.