Big year for the Breakers

Mike Sciacca

Change might be the perfect word to describe the 2002-03 athletic

year at Laguna Beach High.

It came in the form of a few Breaker teams moving up the ranks in

CIF-Southern Section divisional competition.

It came in the form of a fall season that went beyond the normal

10 weeks of play for one team.

It came in the form of record-setting performances that saw Laguna

athletes move to the top of the list in different sports statistics.

A big change came, too, when the school’s athletic teams,

previously known as the “Artists,” became the “Breakers.,”

“I think that overall, the kids did a wonderful job of competing

with character and honor,” Laguna Beach Athletic Director Mario

Morales said. “We had some teams move up in division play due to CIF

realignment and I thought they handled the change very well.”

There were plenty of highlights throughout the year.

The girls’ tennis team moved up four divisions to compete at the

Division I level this past fall. The Breakers, who had won four

consecutive Division V titles, took the move in stride and advanced

to the Division I semifinal round.

The boys’ water polo team also jumped to Division I and advanced

to the quarterfinal round of the playoffs, where the Breakers lost to

eventual champion Long Beach Wilson.

Laguna’s boys’ cross country team also had a big fall as it

advanced to the CIF Finals meet.

Some of the top individual performances in the fall included

freshman Clare Rietsch winning the Pacific Coast League girls’

singles tennis title and senior Brendan Bowler winning the PCL boys’

cross-country final.

There was big news coming off the gridiron as Laguna football

returned to the CIF-SS playoffs for the first time since the 1987

season.

The Breakers earned an at-large bid to the Division IX playoffs

and gave eventual division champion La Habra a tough battle in a

first-round loss.

The football season included a few superlatives as senior running

back Donnelle Darling became the school’s career leader in four

categories: rushing, carries, touchdowns and scoring. Junior

quarterback Alex Wilson set a single-game school record for most

passing yards -- 333 -- in a game against Calvary Chapel and senior

lineman Clayton Caron was named to the All-CIF Division IX team.

“We had a fine season,” football coach Dave Holland said. “I

thought we played one of our better games of the season in that loss

to La Habra. We stood up against the eventual champions. We had

several players turn in great seasons and all the kids should be

proud of what they accomplished.”

After the New Year, the notable performances didn’t stop.

The girls’ water polo team made it all the way to the Division II

semifinals behind a balanced squad. Senior Annie Preble, the PCL’s

scoring leader, set county and school records for goals scored in a

season.

During the swim season, the boys’ 200 medley relay teams of Shawn

Pfendler, Bret Burge, Bryan Earley and Dustin Caris, and a second

team of Pfendler, Earley, Caries and Nolan Plant set school records.

Pfendler also set two new school records in the 100-yard

backstroke and the 200-yard individual medley relay.

The boys’ volleyball team reached the Division II quarterfinal

round for the seventh consecutive year before being eliminated by

eventual champion Valencia.

Morales says the feat he’s most proud of, though, is Laguna

Beach’s athletics program being honored with the Pacific Coast

League’s Sportsmanship Award for the 2002-03 school year.

“The award is a reflection of our athletes and coaches,” he said.

“They displayed great sportsmanship during competition this school

year.”