Nado Natterings
A weekly column by David Axelson

Nado Natterings
by David Axelson, Chief Executive Officer
The Islander Sports Foundation

7 March 2007 Issue #9

Coronado High School’s Boys Soccer Team played a nearly flawless game Tuesday evening Feb. 27, as they won their CIF Division III semi-final over St. Augustine 1-0.

With 10:55 remaining in the first half, Christian Herrera connected on a left-footed shot from 20 yards out that found the back of the net. Soccer games that have only one score can be boring, but this contest was far from that. There was a constant up-and-down flow to the action.

Islander Head Coach Brian Hiatt-Aleu knew he had been a contributor to a classic contest. “I thought it was a big time game. It was really high quality, compared to some of the other playoff games I’ve seen or been a part of. Herrera had the goal of a lifetime. That could have been one of the plays of the year. He splits three or four guys, hits the shot and scores.”

Coronado defended their goal for the succeeding 51 minutes of action. Goalie Jeffery Bucklew went largely untested until 2:20 remained in the game. The Saints had a good scoring opportunity from a strong sideline throw-in that forced Bucklew to make a strong save on a shot from point-blank range. “That was a big-time save,” said Hiatt-Aleu. “Thank goodness he has the reflexes of a teenager. He was right there.” Bucklew, a junior, was credited with 15 shutouts this year, including five in Central League play.

Unfortunately, the quality of the officiating for the game did not match the high level of play. At the 21:25 mark, Islander Matt Ganyard was tackled in the penalty box, with possession of the ball, in scoring position. The result of the play was a very poor non-call by the official and action continued. Ganyard, who in the first half received a cut which would later take seven stitches to close, was tripped from behind with a direct path to the goal. It was an obvious penalty shot situation, except apparently to the person responsible for making the call.

At the conclusion of regulation time, there was seemingly a great deal of unwarranted injury time added. Hiatt-Aleu said it was more than four minutes, which allowed the Saints at least two additional scoring opportunities as they fought to tie the score.

Hiatt-Aleu elaborated on the game strategy behind the victory. “We frustrated them by attacking the keeping the ball on the attacking flanks on both sides. We were fine defensively as long as they didn’t receive the ball and turn on us. They never really got behind our defense. They didn’t create anything off of a free play. Their only scoring opportunities came off of throw-ins.”

But in the end, it was the inspired play of the Islanders that carried the day. “It was a great game to be a part of,” Hiatt-Aleu said of his team’s victory over the defending Division III champs. The Islander victory avenged a 2-1 loss to St. Augustine last year, also in the Division III Semi-finals. Although there are a lot of games to be played yet this season, the 2007 version of Coronado vs. St. Augustine Boys Soccer rematch will very likely be in the Top 5 games played by any Islander team this year.

Coronado is slated to play Cathedral Catholic in the CIF Division III Finals Saturday, March 3 at Mt. Carmel High School. Kick-off is at 4 pm. “If we play like we played Tuesday night, we can beat them. If we play with that energy and passion, we can win. Cathedral usually comes out extremely hard for the first 15 minutes of the game. They are a very good team. We’ll do our best.”

Additional Soccer Notes

Islander Nick Hamilton was named Player of the Year in the Central League for the 2006-07 season. Hamilton was joined on the All-Central League First Team by teammates Charlie Woods and Matt Ganyard. Earning Second Team recognition were Austin Speer, Christian Herrera and Jeffery Bucklew.

CIF Defending Champion Islander Baseball Squad Season Off and Running

For the first time in the 80+ year history of Coronado High School, the Islanders are the defending CIF champion in the sport of baseball. In addition, several members from last year’s championship squad return for another title run this year.

Among the players returning is Kyle Pokorny, considered to be the staff pitching ace, will also play shortstop when he is not on the mound. The versatile senior was the starting goalie on the CHS Boys Water Polo team this year.

Danny Cepin will move from third base to center field this season, where he will anchor the defensive outfield. The left-handed hitting Cepin, who has gained strength through and extensive off-season workout program, will also be the team’s leadoff hitter. Benson Lorden will return to right field and will hit fifth in the batting order.

Tucker Johnson will join Pokorny on the left side of the infield, holding down the hot corner when he isn’t on the mound. Jake McMahon will play second base and Kyle Couture will platoon at first base along with Tim Leary. Since both Couture and Leary also pitch, first base isn’t quite as crowded as it sounds.

One of the biggest defensive shifts is being made by Alex Rowan, who is roughly three weeks away from being the starting forward on the Islander basketball team. Rowan is taking over the team’s catching duties. If Thursday evening’s scrimmage against Central Union High School of El Centro provided a preview for the coming season, Rowan has good footwork, a quick release and a serviceable arm. Rowan threw out three Spartan base runners, handled balls in the dirt well, and held his ground protecting the plate on a couple of occasions.

Sharing time in left field will be Keith Englehart and Stephen Conrad, while CHS football’s starting quarterback Mason Mills will play a valuable utility role, often playing shortstop when Pokorny pitches or third base when Tucker Johnson is on the mound. Senior transfer student Alex Cordero will supply depth to the squad. Hard throwing right-hander Josh Fink will be the staff closer, although he may also draw some starting pitching assignments.

Head Coach Sam Ceci and his varsity staff of Assistant Coach Jerry Brown and Pitching Coach Chris Blanton know that the 2006-07 schedule facing the Islanders is one of the toughest in school history. Although Coronado remains in Division IV to defend their title, they have no games planned against divisional opponents during the regular season.

Coronado’s first three games include their season-opener against Westview, a San Diego County Top 10 finisher a year ago; followed by a road game with defending Western League champion University City; and their third game is a home tilt against Brawley High School, Wednesday at 3 pm. The Islanders first six games are all part of the Bully’s Tournament.

An indication of the strength of the program is that nearly 70 athletes tried out for the Varsity, JV and Freshman teams. Ceci and Company will keep 16 kids on the Varsity; JV Head Coach Blaze Smallwood, Bo Blumenthal and Chris Barbera will keep either 16 or 17; and the Freshman team coached by Scott Striffler, and his assistants Matt Fischer and Tom Kelleher will carry 17 or 18 players.

According to Ceci, the Western League will again be one of the toughest conferences in the county. “Point Loma, La Jolla, and Cathedral Catholic have all improved. University City is the defending champion and they 16 or 17 wins coming back from their pitching staff. Mission Bay is always good. Clairemont may be a little down this year.”

Once they march through the Western League schedule, Coronado will find some tough opponents waiting in the Division IV tournament. Ceci handicapped some of the teams the Islanders may face in the playoffs. “Francis Parker is loaded and La Jolla Country Day, Marian Catholic and Christian will all be good. Santa Fe Christian (the 2006 Division IV Runner-up) graduated a lot of their team and they will be down a little. Bishop’s will also be pretty good.”

Strand Field, located behind Silver Strand Elementary School, is in incredible shape for the season. One of the benefits of the beautiful playing conditions is that the Islanders will host eight games of the annual Lions Tournament, one of the largest such gatherings in the United States. In addition, one of the CIF Super Saturday playoff doubleheaders will be played at the field. Hosting contests of that level is a reflection of the hard work put in by Ceci, the coaching staff, players and parents to make the playing field one of the best in San Diego County.

The Islanders have proven they can remain competitive year after year. Two seasons ago they were the CIF Division III runners-up; last year they were victorious in Division IV. Even with their tough schedule, the Islanders should be competitive again in 2007.

Add Baseball

The CHS Baseball program staged their first annual (yes, that is a contradiction of terms, but we’ll grant them some literary license) Home Run Derby fundraiser a couple of weeks ago. Event organizers Bruce and Lauri Johnson, along with Rick and Vicki Fink staged the contest to earn money for improvements to the Islander Baseball Field.

Other people who contributed to the success of the event were Mickey Mikesell who cooked the Texas-style barbecue including ribs, chicken, cole slaw and beans; official scorer George Thorne; Terry Leary who ran the scoreboard; plus Erin Rowan and Lauri Johnson ran the sign in table and the snack bar.

On the field, the High School Division was won by Coronado’s own Tim Leary. Second place went to Miles Reagan and third place was won by Dan Leavitt, both from El Capitan High School. The Silver Slugger Division victor was Tom Kelleher; the Golden Slugger winner was John Drehner; and the Open Division champion was Blaze Smallwood.

Despite being held during intermittent rain, Bruce Johnson pronounced the event a success. “It was lots of fun and the food was awesome. We just might do another one right after the season is over. Stay tuned.”

CHS Sailing Team Qualifies for the Pacific Coast Championships

The CHS Sailing Team secured a spot in the Pacific Coast Championships to be held at the Olympic Sailing Course in Long Beach, April 21-22. Placing 15^th overall at the Cardinal Regatta hosted by Stanford, the CHSST can finish no worse than 12^th overall out of the 56 teams entered in the Pacific Coast region.

Sailing for Coronado at the Cardinal Regatta were the Varsity ‘A’ Team of Pike Harris and Nick Gomez-Hall, along with CoCo O’Brien as the alternate crew. The Varsity ‘B’ Team was Ryan Sullivan and Cragan Smith. The JV ‘A’ was Alex Wood and Hayley Eyer. The JV ‘B’ was Jessie Kephart and Karisa Chapa. The next event for the Islanders will be the Gaucho Regatta hosted by UC Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara Yacht Club on March 17-18.

These favorable results came on the heels of a very successful wine auction fundraiser held at the Coronado Yacht Club, which netted over $7,400. The funds will support equipment and boat replacement scheduled for this season.

Southswell Sports College Lacrosse Challenge Series Coming to Coronado

Some of the best college lacrosse teams in the country will be playing games on Niedermeyer Field in Coronado on Sunday, March 11 and Tuesday, March 13.

The first date will include a 5 pm game between Ithaca (NY) College and Whittier College. At 7 pm, the University of Texas at Austin will play Chapman University.

March 13, Ithaca College will return to play McDaniel College at 7 pm.

Ticket prices for both dates are: $6 for Adults and $4 for Children under 12 years of age. Admission is $3 for lacrosse players wearing their team jersey. Net proceeds from the games benefit the Coronado High School Boys Lacrosse program. All tickets may be purchased at the door on the evening of the event.