Warriors

Newport Harbor High's girls basketball team didn't have a quarter where it scored in double figures and host Woodbridge High ran the Sailors out of the gym Thursday night, 69-25, in a Sea View League game. "Our girls were afraid of that red and gold, they just weren't ready to play (Thursday)," said Newport assistant Mike Kilkenny. "(Woodbridge) is very good at running the floor and they got a lot of second, third and fourth shots on an offensive set."

Chris Yemma With assistant coaches pacing both sidelines, the Newport Harbor High girls soccer team encountered a side of Woodbridge that hasn't been seen yet. It just happened to be the Sailors dumb luck that they ran into Woodbridge on a night when the Warriors played their best soccer all season. Under the floodlights at Alton Park, just across the street from Woodbridge High, Newport fell to the Warriors, 3-0, in a Sea View League game on a night when Woodbridge was playing like it was in the spotlight.

HUNTINGTON BEACH ? A little game-plan tinkering, never-wavering confidence and continued growth kept Sage Hill School a second-half team and undefeated in the Academy League. Senior running back Don Ayres brought the confidence, never doubting the youthful line that planted in three-point stances in front of him. In the second half, the line, made up entirely of first-year starters, showed it can fuel the offense like its predecessors did. And, Lightning Coach Tom Monarch changed the blocking scheme to allow for 154 yards rushing for Ayres and a 21-0 advantage in scoring in the second half, leading to Sage Hill's 35-21 league victory over Brethren Christian at Ocean View High Saturday.

The Vanguard University women's basketball team upset host Westmont College, ranked No. 24 in the NAIA, 64-62, Saturday to move into a third-place tie with the Warriors in the Golden State Athletic Conference. Debbie Candelaria made two free throws with 26 seconds left to give the Lions (12-8, 9-5 in the GSAC) a 63-62 lead. Westmont (14-8, 9-5) had a chance to take the lead, but the shot did not fall for the Warriors and Erin Edmiston sank one free throw with a second left to seal the win for Vanguard.

Richard Dunn NEWPORT BEACH - The long wait is finally over. Newport Harbor High's girls soccer team can stake claim to victory over Woodbridge's Warriors, the defending Sea View League champions. "This is the first time we've beaten them in five years," Newport Harbor Coach Jason Sorrell said, after his team's dominating 2-0 league win over the Warriors under the lights Thursday at Newport Harbor. The Sailors tied Woodbridge last year and another time in 1999, when senior standouts Amy Ross and Tory Manchester were freshmen.

Barry Faulkner IRVINE - Some Newport Harbor High boys basketball fans showed up dressed for a barbecue Friday night at Woodbridge High. But it was the host Warriors who flame broiled the nylon nets during the pivotal stages of this battle for first place in the Sea View League. Woodbridge hit its first six third-quarter field-goal attempts to expand a five-point halftime cushion to a 14-point bulge, then held off a furious Harbor rally to claim a 65-51 verdict.

Richard Dunn LONG BEACH - You get spoiled winning, and playing on nice football fields. And, while Saturday night's nonleague encounter against host Brethren Christian High of Huntington Beach was played on something other than a field of dreams (St. Anthony's Clark Field), at least Coach Jerry Howell's Costa Mesa Mustangs could be remembered for a few things after their 55-14 victory. Among them: A multi-tiered rushing attack with Alvin Nguyen (154 yards on 10 carries)

Tony Altobelli TORRANCE - Orange Coast College's football team wraps up its season tonight in Torrance against El Camino with an opportunity to accomplish a lot of "firsts" for the Bucs and their players. A win for the Pirates (4-5, 2-2 in conference) over El Camino would be the first since 1973 over El Camino and would snap an 11-game losing streak to the Warriors. "We haven't beaten them since I've been here," Coach Mike Taylor said. "We've come close a couple of times, including a bowl game in 1990, but we haven't been able to knock them off."

Bryce Alderton By the time Sage Hill High's defense showed a six-man front early in the second half to try stopping Saddleback Valley Christian tailback Brian Harbin the deficit was too much to overcome in nonleague football Friday afternoon. The turnover bug had already bitten the Lightning four times on two fumbles and two interceptions, one returned for a 30-yard touchdown on the game's second play, and Sage Hill dropped their its consecutive game at Sage Hill High, 39-6, to the Warriors.

MEN’S SOCCER Westmont 3, Vanguard 2 COSTA MESA — The third-seeded Lions nearly overcame a 3-0 deficit, but were upset by the sixth-seeded Warriors in the first round of the Golden State Athletic Conference Tournament Wednesday. Westmont (8-6-2), which was sixth in the GSAC at 4-4-2, scored all of its goals in the first half. Vanguard’s Tom Culver scored two goals, both coming on penalty kicks. He netted his first goal in the 59th minute and his scond in the 67th.

CORONA DEL MAR - Max Stone is the kind of basketball player who can come off the bench and drain a three-pointer on his first shot. That is exactly what the junior did Tuesday, as he opened the second quarter for Corona del Mar High with a three. Coach Ryan Schachter calls Stone his best outside threat, so he expects Stone to shoot whenever he is open. Stone passed up quality looks in the second, third and fourth quarters, only to frustrate his coach. Schachter needed someone to stop Woodbridge's fourth-quarter run, which gave the visitors their first lead since the opening quarter.

Woodbridge High has developed a reputation of success in cross country, but this season both the boys' and girl's teams are exceeding the expectations of many, including those of their coach. Warriors Coach George Varvas believes in his team and knows each of his runner's capabilities. But even he had to pinch himself after the Pacific Coast League finals at Irvine Regional Park Nov. 4. Woodbridge not only swept both the boys' and girls' team titles, but they set school records with their times - the boys running the three-mile course in a combined 76 minutes, 3 seconds and the girls in 86:28.

SANTA ANA - As a follow-up to its acclaimed 2008 "Terra Cotta Warriors" exhibition, the Bowers Museum on Saturday will open an entirely new one covering a much broader sweep of ancient Chinese history. The museum plans to display artifacts that date back to as many as 2,300 years ago and have never before been seen in Orange County. The "Warriors, Tombs and Temples: China's Enduring Legacy" exiibition comprises some 150 artifacts unearthed from tombs of rulers from three imperial dynasties, which were concentrated in and around the city of Xi'an, in modern day Shaanxi Province: The Qin Dynasty (221 - 206 BCE)

Last November, the story of a Marine who ran from Florida to Texas carrying the American flag to raise awareness for the Wounded Warrior Project touched me. The WWP is a nonprofit that helps physically and psychologically injured soldiers readjust to their civilian lives back home. The Marine's story was a calling for me to participate. Later, while driving down Coast Highway in Corona Del Mar, I felt guilty for how wonderful life is for all of us here and how often we forget about the sacrifices that our soldiers and Marines make for us. The day-to-day issues that we may struggle with are trivial in comparison with what our servicemen and women struggle with after ending their tours of duty.

BOYS' BASKETBALL Newport Harbor 51, Woodbridge 48 IRVINE — Senior center Cody Caldwell had 18 points and 11 rebounds as the Sailors outlasted the Warriors in the nonleague game Wednesday at Woodbridge High. Senior guard Carter Fortier added 10 points for Newport Harbor (7-7). The Sailors open Sunset League play at 7 p.m. Friday, at Marina. Garden Grove 48, Costa Mesa 36 COSTA MESA — Andrew Albers scored 13 points for the Mustangs in the nonleague game Wednesday.

NEWPORT BEACH — Coach Kristen Case creates a motto each season for her Newport Harbor High girls' tennis team. This year's motto, displayed on a blue rubber wrist bracelet, reads: "Dominate and Defend 2010" as well as "We are Beast. " The first part of the motto is a reference to the quest for a third straight Sunset League title. The second part is a phrase Case implements to inspire toughness in her players. But it's an atmosphere of positivity that Case, in her fourth season at the helm, has created that permeates even deeper with the players.

IRVINE — If members and supporters of the UC Irvine men’s basketball program think they are tired of losing, they have nothing on the program’s new head coach. Russ Turner, introduced Friday as the seventh coach in the relatively uneventful 45-year history of the UCI program, said he is extremely motivated to create success with the Anteaters. Part of that motivation, he said, comes from the frustration forged by his six seasons as an NBA assistant coach for the Golden State Warriors.

Russell Turner, 39, a Golden State Warriors assistant for the past six seasons, has been named the new coach for the UC Irvine men's basketball team, the school announced today. He takes over for Pat Douglass, whose contract was not renewed at the end of the season. As expected Turner has ties to Stanford University, where UCI athletic director Mike Izzi worked before coming to the Anteaters. Prior to Golden State, Turner spent 11 seasons as a college assistant coach, working at three programs, including Stanford and Wake Forest.

NEWPORT COAST — Sage Hill School junior midfielder Colton Gyulay says the Lightning need to close out games, especially in the CIF Southern Section Division VII playoffs. His goal in the 23rd minute helped that cause, as the Lightning beat Saddleback Valley Christian, 2-1 in the second round Tuesda. Gyulay’s goal gave Sage Hill (19-8-2) a 2-0 lead. “Scoring the goal provided some cushion and took some pressure off,” Gyulay said. Playing at home also helped the Lightning, which at one time thought it would be playing at SVC because of a ball violation.

The Sage Hill School boys’ soccer team received some good news Monday. The Lightning (19-8-2) won’t be playing on the road today for their CIF Southern Southern Section Division VII second-round game against Saddleback Valley Christian. The game is at Sage Hill at 5 p.m. Initially, the CIF Southern Section ruled that the Lightning violated CIF rule 2400, Article 240, for not using a Spalding ball in last year’s playoffs. But Sage Hill’s Dean of School Life Jon Poffenberger, the former athletic director, called the CIF Southern Section office Monday morning to point out the error.