Costa Mesa holds off Sage Hill
Costa Mesa High and Sage Hill are no longer in the same boys’ water polo league, but that didn’t stop the rivals from playing this year.
The programs kept the contest on the schedule, even though the Mustangs remained in the Orange Coast League and Sage Hill jumped to the sport’s newly created Academy League. There used to be a time when this game was always close, until Costa Mesa ran away with the previous four meetings in league, winning by an average of almost 10 goals per game.
Costa Mesa and Sage Hill turned back the clock on Wednesday. The Lightning gave Costa Mesa its best challenge in five years, jumping out to a three-goal lead in the first couple of minutes.
The Mustangs recovered, going into the break tied. Seventeen seconds into the second half, Costa Mesa took the lead on Caedmon Fisher’s goal and it hung on for a 12-10 nonleague victory at home.
Jacob Petersen led Costa Mesa with four goals, half of them coming on the six-on-five advantage. His final goal gave his team a 9-7 lead with 38 seconds left in the third quarter.
By the time Petersen picked up his third ejection and exited with 5:10 left to play, the Mustangs were up, 11-7, thanks to a late-third quarter goal by Augie Cunningham and an early fourth-quarter goal by Jorge Miranda.
The Lightning fought back, though. Sage Hill outscored the hosts, 3-1, in the final three minutes, but time ran out on the Lightning (6-5). Dustin Serrano, one of Costa Mesa’s co-coaches, wasn’t happy with how the Mustangs (6-6), ranked No. 10 in the CIF Southern Section Division 3 poll, started or finished.
“Today was a weird day for the kids,” Serrano said. “We have a very talented bunch out here and Sage Hill did take it quick and aggressive on us. It kind of caught us a little but off guard. We were confident in our boys. We weren’t very worried in the beginning. We didn’t want to panic.
“It’s not a league game any more. It wasn’t that big Sage Hill rivalry [like] when I went here. I think the kids definitely overlooked them a little bit.”
The early onslaught by the Lightning stunned the home fans. They are used to seeing Costa Mesa easily beat Sage Hill by scores of 14-5, 12-7, 18-8 and 20-5 in past years.
Eighty-one seconds in, Chris Wan found the back of the net for Sage Hill, and 42 seconds later Zane Drobenko’s backhanded shot from five meters out made it 2-0. Harry Miller’s skip shot from the left put the Lightning ahead, 3-0 with 4:48 remaining in the first quarter.
Three of Sage Hill’s first four shots beat goalie Ivan Shikhelman. Miranda finally put Costa Mesa on the scoreboard 2½ minutes in, as goalie Rachael Jaffe’s was unable to stop the shot.
The Mustangs eventually took a 5-4 lead with 3:40 to go before halftime. Petersen produced his third first-half goal, yet Miller’s lob a minute later knotted the score. That would be the last time it was even.
Fisher scored twice in the third quarter, and Tony Shin, Cunningham and Petersen each had one in the third. Fisher, Cunningham and Miranda finished with two goals apiece. Miranda added six steals and four assists, and Fisher had four assists and three steals.
Costa Mesa has another nonleague matchup on Thursday, when it plays host to Mission Viejo at 4 p.m. The Mustangs, who dropped their Orange Coast League opener last week at Laguna Beach, return to league action on Wednesday, a home date against Godinez.
Sage Hill is at the Servite Hank Vellekamp Tournament on Friday and Saturday, before it opens the Academy League against Crean Lutheran on Tuesday at University High. Sage Hill Coach Tom Norton is excited to start the new league. He has a gifted goal scorer in Wan. The senior finished with a game-high five goals at Costa Mesa, two more than Miller’s total.
While his team lost, Norton was happy to see the Mustangs again.
“It felt kind of good coming in and walking on the deck, knowing it’s not a league game,” Norton said. “The pressure is kind off [in] that aspect. It’s been a good rivalry.”
