Soccer can be a quirky game. It is one of the few sports where one team can totally dominate the other and still come away with an unfortunate result. A lucky shot here, a carom there and the better team loses. The antidote to being unlucky is to so totally dominate the opposition that you don’t allow them a shot on goal for the entire length of an 80-minute game, playing suffocating defense, and scoring twice yourself.

The CHS Girls Soccer Team took the latter course in their 2-0 victory over Ramona in the finals of the Vaquero Tournament played at Grossmont High School last week. Sophomore Kelly Walsh scored in the 21^st minute of the first half on an assist from Rachel Poe, which became the tournament winning goal. Walsh scored an insurance goal in the 15^th minute of the second half on an assist from Ashley Copp to complete the scoring. "Kelly’s two goals in the final were a great pick-me-up for the team," said Head Coach Miles Ramirez.

The first 15 minutes of the game, played in brisk weather conditions on and artificial turf field, featured a tactical battle between the two clubs, played primarily at midfield. Then Coronado took over the flow of the game and started winning virtually all of the 50-50 balls with their speed and quickness. With 20 minutes remaining in the contest, Ramirez substituted five players en masse and Coronado still dominated play. At that point it was time to salute the Sanyo blimp that flew overhead, sack the water bottles, collect the trophy and head home.

Earlier in the week during the Vaquero Tournament’s final pool play game, Coronado defeated La Jolla 2-0 on single goals from Sasha Vido and Copp and then won the Semi-Final game 3-1 over Point Loma on two goals from Vido and one from Marissa Nagler. Adding in the finals victory over Ramona, Coronado’s record is now 13-0-1 and includes tournament titles in the Barons Tournament and now the Vaquero Tournament.

An indication of the talent depth of the Islanders squad was apparent last week as senior sweeper Maureen Mulvey was injured by collisions in both the Christian and Mission Hills games, but is expected to return for the continuation of Western League play next week. With Mulvey not available, Coach Ramirez moved Copp, who had been averaging a goal a game entering last week’s play, to sweeper and brought Rosie Harris up from the JV to help at the position.

Copp played the first half of the semis and finals in the defensive backfield then turned the position over to Harris for the second half of both contests, allowing Copp to move forward and concentrate on offense. "She was really nervous," said Ramirez of the freshman sweeper Harris. "But Rosie did a good job."

"The defenders are playing flawlessly right now," added Ramirez. "A team with no shots on goal in an entire game rarely happens. You can see how stingy our defense is. We don’t give them much room when they have the ball." The Copp/Harris combo added to Alex Vido, Kendall Caldwell, and Greer Goebels and anchored by senior goalie Jamie Klages, yielded only two goals in the five tournament games. It’s tough to get lucky on a score when you can’t get the ball near the net.

The Islanders return to action Wed. Jan. 5 when they host La Jolla in a Western League contest, followed by a home game Friday Jan. 7 against OLP. Both games start at 3:15 pm." Ramirez previewed the coming conference contests by saying, "we’ve got a tough schedule coming and the girls realize they will have to battle in those games."

Heading into the Christmas break, the Islander Boys Basketball Team had a home game against San Dieguito, which Head Coach Sandy Dillon correctly predicted in last week’s Nado Natterings, were "two teams that are pretty evenly matched." Indeed they were as the game-winning shot came on a 35-foot three-pointer by sophomore Chas Marks as the final gun went off, propelling the Islanders to a 44-41 victory.

Coronado had control of the game at halftime, leading 23-16, but San Dieguito outscored the Islanders 11-7 in the third quarter to get back in striking range. With just over 4 minutes remaining in the game, San Dieguito took a 35-32 lead, their first since late in the first quarter. The teams traded baskets for the next several minutes, but a three-pointer at the 1:44 mark gave the Mustangs a 41-38 lead.

A key defensive rebound by Marks with 30 seconds remaining, eventually led to a clutch 3-pointer by fellow sophomore Ryan Guard eight seconds later, to tie the game. San Dieguito then missed the front end of a one-and-one free throw opportunity, followed by a critically important defensive rebound for Jonathan Smith with 1.4 seconds remaining on the game clock. A quick Islander time out set the stage for Marks.

Guard made the inbounds pass to Marks, who turned and fired in one motion. His shot was followed in short order by the buzzer, the swish of the ball through the net to win the game and a mob scene on the floor. Marks and his Coronado teammates were joined by CHS students from the stands and the joyous celebration mamboed its way up and down the gym floor for several minutes.

"When he came after the ball," said Dillon of Marks, "I was watching his feet. He got his feet set so he could give it a shot. It was obviously a big confidence booster. For a team this inexperienced to be 5-2 is pretty good"

Several Islanders contributed to the eventual victory celebration, including Smith who finished the game with six points, 12 rebounds and four assists. Adam Munns played big with a double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds. Bryan Reed added four points and eight rebounds, Guard finished with seven points and four assists, while Marks added nine points and five rebounds.

Dillon acknowledged the role Adam Munns had in the victory. "He played very hard. He’s undersized for where he has to play (forward/center), but he gets away with it because he jumps so high. He had his best game so far this season."

The only negative note sounded during the game was that Brad Munns, Adam’s twin brother, sustained a sprained ligament on the inside of his foot. "He was in pretty good shape at the end of the week," Dillon said.

In the days following the victory, the team practiced hard and Dillon was pleased with the results. "We spent all day Wednesday and Thursday practicing jump stop layups. Their work ethic the two days before Christmas was very, very good. The kid who is really pleasing to have in practice is Blake Spitzer. He rebounds, blocks out and knows how to get open without having the ball. He creates space for himself."

A reminder that Tuesday afternoon at 1:30 pm, Coronado plays Preuss Academy to tip off the Coronado Christmas Tournament. They play Lutheran at 7:30 pm Tuesday evening. Wednesday the Islanders play Pacific Hills from the Los Angeles area at 7:30 pm. Thursday night Coronado plays Julian at 8 pm. The four tournament teams will play each other throughout the day Tuesday through Thursday. Plenty of high school basketball action is yours for a modest admission fee. Bring some extra money and eat at the snack bar, where the net proceeds benefit the Islander Boys Basketball Team.

Although he would never claim it himself, credit CHS Girls Varsity Basketball Head Coach Toler Goodwin with a fine coaching effort in Coronado’s 48-26 home loss to Valley Center last week. The Islanders battled for the entire 32 minutes, against a more physically talented team, before seeing their record fall to 4-7.

"As a collective group we played really hard," said Goodwin of his team. "Every one of our kids competed. Amanda Marks (senior sister of Chas of Boys Basketball fame) played really well. She definitely let the big girl know she was there every time."

Valley Center’s 6-2 post player had a considerable size advantage over Marks, who fouled out of the contest with five points and four rebounds. Senior back-up center Anna Moore contributed four points and six rebounds in a nice effort.

Junior Jessica Davis-Ricci led the Islander attack with 10 points, while her sophomore backcourt running mate Brooke Becky added six points, five rebounds and three assists. Senior Ashley Depfer tied Moore for team-high rebounding honors with six.

"We missed Farrell Pompa," said Goodwin of his junior forward, who was unable to attend the game due to a family obligation. "She would have added another body to counter balance them on defense. We still have to concentrate on making the best of every possession on offense."

This week the Islanders compete in the Montgomery Tournament and play Hilltop Monday at 3:30 pm, Point Loma Tuesday, Montgomery Wednesday at 3:30 pm and conclude the tournament Thursday, with the opponent and time to be determined. At press time, Tuesday’s starting time against Point Loma was still up in the air. Originally scheduled for 7 pm, Goodwin was attempting to move the tip-off to an earlier time, which would allow the Islanders to see Alexis Castro (CHS ’04) and her Vermont Catamounts team compete against USD at 6 pm.

Congratulations to three Islander fall sports participants who were recently recognized by the San Diego Union-Tribune as All-San Diego Section award winners. Junior Jesse Farquhar was named to the Water Polo First Team, while junior Sean Castillo was named to the Second Team. Senior Jake Ruzevick was recognized as the winner of the Division IV cross country title.

The CHS Sailing Team dinner and auction is slated for Thursday, Jan. 27 from 5:30 to 8 pm at the Coronado Yacht Club. Dinner tickets to the dinner are $15 each for adults and $5 each for children.

The family-style pasta dinner is served by the team members. Other events during the evening include a live and a silent auction for items donated by local merchants, as well as cash raffles.

The proceeds from the banquet benefit the CHS Sailing Team, which is not funded by the school district, and covers such costs as regatta entry fees, boat maintenance, sails, travel expenses and stipends for the coaches.

For more information regarding the event, to purchase tickets, or to donate a prize for an auction or a raffle, please contact Karen Paquin at 435-0643.

It’s difficult to win on the road in professional sports, a fact that is especially true in the National Football League. Despite facing fellow American Football Conference division-winning Indianapolis on the road, the San Diego Chargers came within one poorly executed special teams play on their part, from defeating the Colts Sunday, before losing 34-31 in overtime.

Colt quarterback Peyton Manning is having the best statistical season ever for an NFL quarterback and yet Charger signal caller Drew Brees more than held his own statistically against Manning. Brees was 21-31 (.677) passing for 290 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Manning was 27-44 (.614) for 383 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Brees was consistent throughout the contest, while Manning spent most of the first three quarters of the game totally out of synch with his receivers.

But great athletes make great plays and Manning brought the Colts back, with considerable assistance from Dominic Rhodes and his 88-yard kick-off return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. The play forced the air out of the Chargers’ proverbial balloon, allowing the Colts to re-establish their momentum and earn the victory.

Frankly the Chargers are better than anybody thought they would be prior to the season and superior to the level I thought they had achieved as recently as last week. Like their Head Coach Marty Schottenheimer, the Chargers don’t take any plays off and compete hard. Their Achilles heel is that their talent level is still a shade below that of major Super Bowl contenders Philadelphia, New England, and Pittsburgh.

I can count on one hand the number of NFL games I have watched from kick-off until the final gun in the past 5 years and this was a contest that glued me to the screen for the duration. With an 11-4 record, and their loss total equaling the number of games I thought they would win this season, the Chargers have experienced a great turn-around season. Let’s hope the momentum they have established this year will carry them well into the playoffs and serve as the foundation for several consecutive winning seasons.