Joseph Boo
It seems sudden, but the 1999 fall season has ended for frosh-soph
and junior varsity sports. Here are some names to remember from this
year.
Football: Remember how Ohio State's Orlando Pace dominated on the
offensive line enough to become a Heisman Trophy finalist in 1997? Well,
Costa Mesa High's Andrew Carich had that type of season for a 7-3
Mustangs football team, producing pancakes like IHOP.
The beneficiaries of Carich's blocking were Jason Hurley and Kaeola
Aswega. Aswega led the team in yards, but Hurley's powerful running and
blocking might lead to playing time on next year's varsity squad.
As good as Costa Mesa was, Corona del Mar beat the Mustangs in the last
game of the season to win the Pacific Coast League championship. The Sea
Kings have a good running back, too, in Keith Long, whose speed and
receiving skills were problematic for the Mustangs in a 28-6 CdM win.
And quarterback Jonathan Hubbard looked like a veteran in the Costa Mesa
game.
The biggest testament to CdM's talent, though, was a 20-6 drubbing of a
very good Newport Harbor.
The Sailors' leader is in quarterback Michael McDonald. Like his father,
former USC signal caller Paul McDonald, Michael has shown poise in the
pocket.
For Estancia, brothers Brian and Alan Rayner were the most consistent
freshmen linemen.
Girls Volleyball: Yeah, the loss of April Ross and Krista Dill to
graduation will hurt next year, but Newport Harbor's girls volleyball
program will still be loaded. The most towering talent, literally, is 6-2
freshman middle blocker Kristen McClune, who has been imposing on the JV
level. She and freshman outside hitter Claire Allen have been added to
the varsity team for the playoffs.
Boys Water Polo: CdM's boys water polo team had a season to remember. The
Sea Kings won the prestigious Charger Cup this year, as well as the Grey
Lunde Tournament to finish the season 24-1.
Talent abounds, but the most promising is two-meter man Artie Dorr. Dorr
has simply been a force on the inside. He has been so impressive he spent
half the season with the varsity team, scoring goals in the S&G Water
Polo Cup.
Newport Harbor's JV team has two sophomores, Brian Pentz and Caine
Littrell, who should make a mark on the varsity team next year. Littrell
had a Wilt Chamberlain-like season, scoring 64 goals for a team that lost
two game all year.
Cross Country: Freshmen have made an unusually large impact on the
varsity programs. Estancia's No. 1 varsity runner, Humberto Rojas, has
