Tars

Roger Carlson We have Sea Kings, as in Corona del Mar; Eagles, as in Estancia; Mustangs, as in Costa Mesa, and Pirates, or Bucs (Buccaneers), for Orange Coast College. But for Newport Harbor High's Sailors ... well, the Long Gray Line is also filled with Tars, and for some reason, not just a few, but many, even who hail from Newport Harbor in these days approaching the third millennium, just don't get it. "What's a Tar?" once again graced my answering system today.

HUNTINGTON BEACH — This time the Newport Harbor High field hockey team did not leave much drama in winning its third straight Los Angeles Field Hockey Assn. Tournament of Champions title. The Sailors handled rival Huntington Beach, 2-0, beating the Oilers for the third straight time in the championship match. Newport won after a penalty-stroke shootout in 2008 and last year the Tars scored a 1-0 victory in the final. Thursday night was a different story, as senior Taylor Cordeiro scored in the first half off an assist from sophomore Jane Layton.

BOYS' VOLLEYBALL Orange County Championships HUNTINGTON BEACH — Newport Harbor advanced to Monday's Gold Division final after winning three matches Saturday, including a semifinal victory over Back Bay rival Corona del Mar at Edison High. The Sailors defeated the Sea Kings, 25-21, 25-19 behind 16 kills and five digs from Cody Caldwell. Rusty Sary had eight kills and four digs, Ian Sequeira dished up 24 assists and Max Richley had a team-high seven digs.

BOYS' WATER POLO Newport Harbor 11, The Bishop's 7 NEWPORT BEACH — Farrel South had five goals and three steals for the Sailors in the nonleague game Saturday. Preston Lee had two goals and two steals, Andrew Duhoux scored two goals and Chris Whitelegge made three saves for Newport Harbor, which ended the regular season at 23-4 and ranked No. 4 in the CIF Southern Section Division I coaches' poll. Playoff pairings will be released today at around 11 a.m. at http://www.

COSTA MESA - Long, lean and sometimes lenient when it comes to surrendering position inside, Estancia High senior Rashad Davis proved Saturday night that he might bend, but not break. The 6-foot-6 post player had eight of his 12 points in the fourth quarter to help the Eagles complete a comeback and defeat visiting Newport Harbor, 44-36, in a nonleague boys' basketball contest. Davis, who came in averaging 19.1 points and 15.3 rebounds per game, had four points and 11 rebounds through three quarters, after which his Eagles trailed, 31-26.

NEWPORT BEACH - Rudy Reyes began the celebration at home a tad early, yelling, "Yeaaaahhhh!" from just outside of his goal. The goalkeeper believed Newport Harbor High's match against Estancia was over when the referee blew his whistle. It wasn't, as the ref called a foul, but Reyes was really the one who ended the Eagles' undefeated start to the season. The senior stopped everything the Eagles kicked or headed his way, helping the Sailors shut out Estancia, 2-0, in a nonleague match on Wednesday.

Newport Harbor High sophomore Matt Carpenter has been named the Sunset League Rookie of the Year for baseball, and three other Newport Harbor players have earned first-team honors. Senior catcher Blake Davey, senior outfielder Dillan Freiberg and senior utility player Ryan Albert were all named first-team at their respective positions for Newport Harbor, which finished third in league and advanced to the playoffs for the first time since 1990. Carpenter, a first baseman and third baseman, batted .356 with eight home runs and 29 runs batted in for the Sailors; the 29 RBIs tied him for the team lead.

The Newport Harbor High field hockey team opens the Los Angeles Field Hockey Assn. Tournament of Champions today at 3 p.m. against visiting Marina at Harper Community Center. Coach Devon Kelly’s Sailors (18-5-2) beat Marina, 4-0, in early September. “We look pretty strong going into the postseason and I only have four seniors,” said Kelly, naming forward Samantha Hill, midfielder Katy Storch and stopper Claire Josephson. “The defending champion is Glendora and we tied [the Nitros]

NEWPORT BEACH — The Newport Harbor High baseball team clinched its first CIF playoff berth since 1990 by winning its Sunset League finale 6-1 against Edison Thursday at Newport Harbor. Newport Harbor’s win, coupled with Fountain Valley’s loss to Esperanza, meant both the Sailors and Barons finish 6-9 in league. However, the Sailors (16-10) earn the league’s third-place spot because they beat Fountain Valley in two out of three head-to-head meetings. Tars senior Jack Grace threw a complete-game two-hitter against the league champion Chargers, picking up his first victory of the season.

NEWPORT BEACH - The Newport Harbor softball team, with thoughts on former Harbor Coach Frank Talley, defeated University, 6-3, in nonleague action Thursday. Talley, who died early Thursday morning, made a strong impact on the Sailors. Said current Harbor Coach Jess Martinson, "The team was very quiet and sad, but went out and played to win -- the way he would have wanted." Tars pitcher Stephanie Ciralli earned her third win of the season as she struck out two batters and walked two in seven innings.

In Italy, of all places, True Tamplin thought about the Newport Harbor High boys' soccer team in late August. He hadn't played for the team the past two seasons. Maybe the program was on his mind because he was coming home soon. Maybe it was because he missed playing high school soccer. "I struggled with it and it was eating away at my brain," said Tamplin, who decided not to eat at all one day while in Florence with his family. "I fasted. I asked God, 'Do your plan.' The next day, I got an email from Coach Juan Mares.

NEWPORT BEACH - The Newport Harbor High softball team broke the program's 52-game losing streak in the Sunset League dating to 2007 with a 6-5 victory over Fountain Valley Thursday. Hattie Marshall, who pitched a complete game, went two for three and had three runs batted in. Lauren Gandi went two for four with an RBI. Breanna Lopez, who did not have a hit, reached base three times. * BOYS' TRACK AND FIELD Corona del Mar 113, Irvine 13 IRVINE - The Sea Kings dominated the Pacific Coast League meet with a first-place finish in every event Thursday at Irvine High.

The Newport-Mesa Tar Heels boys fifth-grade team capped off an exciting season by winning a 2013 All-Net national championship at Fullerton College Sunday. The Tar Heels went 5-0 over the weekend in the top division and beat rival Yorba Linda Pumas twice to win the title. After placing second in regular-season play and in All-Net Sectionals, the boys from Newport-Mesa willed their way to the championship. In pool play, the Tar Heels opened with the previously undefeated Pumas, who were 18-0 coming into the game and had beaten the Tar Heels three times during the season and playoffs.

NEWPORT BEACH - An old-timer showed up to watch the Newport Harbor High baseball team play at home on Saturday. A woman asked the former Sailor, Bob Nettles, if he needed a chair. He declined. The 83-year-old brought his own seat to the afternoon game. Nettles settled in and opened his program. Inside of it, there was a page dedicated to him, along with his teammates from the 1948 team. While he's not in the team photo, Nettles likes to point out he played on the Sailors' only baseball championship team.

NEWPORT BEACH - At first glance, Steve Astor doesn't look like the Steve Astor from his first season as the Newport Harbor High boys' volleyball coach. "That isn't the first time," Astor said he's gotten that response. Astor said he has dropped about 100 pounds since last season. The facial hair is gone, too. You have to do a double take to recognize the 28-year-old Astor. Another thing you had to do a double take on was the Sailors' first result of the season. While the coach looked good, his team didn't on Friday at home against Laguna Beach.

Kevin Rakestraw said he has seen the photo on Twitter. The photo isn't of the 7-foot center from Newport Harbor High. The photo just has his name written inside a large pizza box, with the words "Newport Sucks" in big letters and his last name in smaller letters just below. A player from the Edison boys' basketball team posted the photo on his Twitter account. The night before a game against Newport Harbor in late January, the tweet read "Team Dinner #rakestraw" followed by a link to the photo.

NEWPORT BEACH - The rivet-rattling roar of the home Newport Harbor High boys' basketball crowd was as resounding as the effort that inspired it Tuesday. But the collective groans of frustration down the stretch by Sailors' rooters served as a symphony of survival for top-seeded Westlake in the second round of the CIF Southern Section 2A playoffs. The underdog Sailors (14-14), coming off the program's first postseason victory in six seasons, nearly kept pace with the Warriors (24-4)

The Newport-Mesa Tar Heels, a boys' fifth-grade All-Net basketball team, have improved to 7-1 on the season by beating TH Hoops, Wilmington Wolverines, La Mirada Matadores and NM Ballers over the last four weeks. The wins have put the local boys on the top of the 32-team division. The Tar Heels have been led in scoring by the backcourt trio of John Humphreys (13.1 points per game, 2.25 steals per game), Cade Overfelt (7.75 ppg, 2.0 spg) and Jack Rettig (7.125 ppg, 3.25 assists per game, 2.25 spg)

NEWPORT BEACH - After two matches in the young season, the Corona del Mar High boys' soccer team searched for its first win. Coach George Larsen said the team lacked energy in both contests. In the third match on the schedule, Larsen expected a turnaround. The Battle of the Bay always seems to bring out the best in the Sea Kings under Larsen. The Sea Kings traveled to Newport Harbor on Wednesday and they ran away with a 3-0 win in the rivalry match. "We just seemed like we woke up in general and it translated into a well-played game," said Larsen, who has led CdM to a 3-0-1 record against the Sailors in his four seasons in charge of the Sea Kings.

NEWPORT BEACH - The past two weeks Newport Harbor High played its football games at Huntington Beach, always against some other school. The Sailors finally met Huntington Beach on the field on Friday, but on their home turf. Playing at Davidson Field made a difference in a key Sunset League game. Huntington Beach came to Newport Harbor undefeated in league play. The Oilers left with their first blemish as the Sailors came from behind to win, 20-17. The victory was a huge one for Newport Harbor (4-4, 2-1 in league)