Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and that maxim was never truer than Friday night when Coronado hosted San Marcos in the CIF Division IV Football Playoffs. The Islanders won the first and fourth quarters, while the Knights dominated the middle two frames. Coronado proved to the more resilient squad, prevailing in the end 27-21.

Coronado began the game against San Marcos, much like they finished against University City the week before to capture the Central League crown, in dominating fashion. A 44-yard run by tailback Kyle Brown helped set up a 21-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Mason Mills to Curtis Perkins.

The ensuing San Marcos possession was ended on a pass interception by Keith Englehart. The Coronado offense went three and out, but linebacker Ray San Giovanni made an acrobatic pass interception deep in Knight territory. Fullback Ray San Giovanni (same player, other side of the ball) scored three plays later on a six-yard plunge. The Islanders were on their way to a blowout and all was right with the world.

Well, not so fast. A Coronado turnover prompted San Marcos, which entered the game with a 0-10 record, to mount a 12-play, 6-mintue scoring drive. After an exchange of possessions, Coronado fumbled a punt deep in their end of the field with 54 seconds remaining in the half. Three plays later, and with no time remaining on the clock, the Knights evened the score at 14-all on a 14-yard touchdown pass.

To make matters worse, mid way through the third period the Knights scored on a 52-yard touchdown run to give San Marcos a 21-14 lead. The Knights, who have not won a game in the last two seasons, suddenly looked like the 2006 San Diego Chargers.

The following kickoff was recovered by San Marcos, but the Islander defense stiffened, allowing only eight yards on the four subsequent running plays.

Mills was a significant factor in Coronado regaining their offensive composure, as he found end Ryan Sidorski on a 21-yard pass. On the next play, a quarterback option, Mills sped 42 yards to the San Marcos 3-yard line, before being run out of bounds. Two plays later Mills scored on a short plunge and the score was tied 21-21.

After exchanging possessions and punts, Coronado took control with 5:03 remaining in the game. The 12-play drive which followed was highlighted by a 17-yard pass completion from Mills to Sidorski; a 23-yard pass from Mills to Stephen Conrad; a 14-yard pass to Englehart; and a brilliant 11-yard scramble by Mills. The drive was capped of by an 11-yard pass from Mills to Perkins with 33 seconds remaining in the game. The subsequent conversion attempt was wide of the mark, but Coronado held the lead for the first time in the second half of play 27-21.

San Marcos wouldn’t go down without a fight. A long kickoff return, and two completed passes later, and the Knights were on the Coronado 32 yard line with 14 seconds left on the clock. An incomplete pass was followed by a ‘Hail Mary’ pass into the end zone. Three Knight receivers were covered by three Islander defenders and the play resembled a large scale pinball game as the ball careened off of Knights and Islanders before falling harmlessly to the ground. Coronado emerged with the 27-21 victory and earned the right to face No. 2 ranked Santa Fe Christian in the Division IV quarterfinals.

"To play that poorly in a playoff game and win, I guess that’s a good thing," said Islander Head Coach Bud Mayfield. "They slowed down our running game. They were prepared and fired up. We still had nearly 300 yards of offense (127 passing, 150 rushing, 277 total yards). I saw a lot of their games and they gave it their best shot. They had nothing to lose and they were all excited. We’re a little spent, having played four emotional games in a row."

Mayfield lauded the defensive efforts of lineman Ben Thorne and linebacker Ryan Sidorski, but the Black Shirt emblematic of the Player of the Week will hang on the slight frame of sophomore Mason Mills. "He was the player of the game, without question. He kept drives alive and found receivers. People think of us as a tailback offense, but we have a passing game. We pull the passing plays out when we need them. The passing game saved us."

Mills was 8-16 passing and threw two touchdown passes. He was also the Islanders second leading rusher, gaining 41 net yards on the ground in seven attempts.

Kyle Brown gained 93 yards on 19 carries for the Islanders, which was off the pace of his past two 200-yard plus performances. Still it was a strong effort.

The SFC Eagles rely on their ground game and run out of a Winged T offense, according to Mayfield. "They area running team and they have one of the best backs in the county in Corbin Cutshaw. He has been starting for them since he was a sophomore. He runs hard and breaks tackles. We’ll have to tackle a lot harder this week."

Cutshaw is first in San Diego County in points scored (152) and ranks third in total rushing, having gained 1,436 yards through 10 games. SFC enters the game with an 8-2 record. Coronado is 9-2 after Friday’s playoff victory.

Kickoff is at 2 pm Friday afternoon at Santa Fe Christian, located at 838 Academy Drive, in Solana Beach. For MapQuest users, the zip code is 92075.

For the past couple of years, Coronado has fielded a Frosh/Soph Football Team. The 2006 squad, under the direction of Head Coach Tony Isabella, posted an 8-1 season, including an undefeated season against Central League opponents.

According to Isabella, the Islanders outscored their rivals 315-55. "The biggest win of the season according to the kids was our 28-14 victory over La Jolla," said Isabella. Other important wins for the program included a 48-0 whitewash of Serra and a victory over rival Madison.

"The highlight of the team was the play of our linemen on the offensive and defensive line. They were spectacular. Without them, nothing would get done."

Among the players who contributed to the success of the season and who are athletes to follow for the future are: quarterback Patrick Toomey, fullback Eric Amaro, tight end Chris Maskevich, offensive and defensive lineman Tyler Suggett, lineman Mario De Leon, all-purpose athlete Billy Garigen, and two-way performer Kodie Englehart.

Isabella also gave credit to his coaching staff of wide receivers and running backs coach Mark Davis and Quinn Renfro, who served as both Special Teams and Defensive coordinator.

CHS Head Cross Country Coach George Green checks in with a report on his squad’s efforts in the CIF meet held over the weekend. "Ben Enowitz and David Grimes made the Boys All-CIF Cross Country Team by finishing second and 10^th respectively at the CIF Championships last Saturday at Morley Field.

Ben and the defending champion Jesus Romo ran so close to each other that at one time their legs tangled and Ben briefly went down. At the finish, they were only six seconds apart. Ben’s time over the hilly 3.04-mile course was 17:24. David finished 10^th with a time of 18:24. Following him were Kevin Siefert (21^st), Jose Tijerina, Kramer De Laurentis, Turner Stanley and Cotter Stacy.

The hot, dusty conditions took a toll on many runners throughout the day. The pre-race favorite in the girls’ race, Sallie Privett, had not quite recovered from an illness earlier in the week and became dehydrated. She finished 22^nd in 19:55 over the 2.75-mile girls course, well over 2 minutes slower than she usually runs.

In contrast, teammate Adrianna Davies had one of her best days and made the All-CIF Team by finishing seventh in 18:52. She was followed by Helen Luppi and Brigid Twomey. Our other All-Central League freshman Coco O’Brien had a fever that morning and didn’t run.

Both Ben and Adrianna advanced to the State Meet in Fresno this coming Saturday."

After Coronado and their arch rivals from The Bishop’s School exchanged one goal victories 27 days apart in October, the CIF Division II semi-final Nov. 14^th figured to be a nail-biter. The Islanders started the scoring on an unassisted goal from Adam Ratcliffe with 3:35 remaining in the first quarter.

However, by the time Bishop’s scored the equalizer with 41 seconds remaining in the quarter, Coronado goalie Kyle O’Brien Pokorny had already recorded his fifth save, some of the spectacular variety. The Knights scored again 38 seconds later, which turned out to be the mid-point of their four-goal run. The Islander wouldn’t score until Sean Cook scored at the 2:34 mark of the second quarter. Bishop’s added another tally 90 seconds later to hold the 5-2 lead at intermission.

Less than a minute into the second half, Cook scored on a Jackson Crow-Mickle assist from eight meters out to get the Islander back into the game. Two Bishop’s goals in the last 1:21 of the third quarter and another at 5:07 of the fourth, gave the Knights an 8-3 lead. At that point, Bishop’s went into the water polo version of milking the clock, and completely lost their momentum. Jacob Smith scored on a Cook assist; Cook scored on a pass from Ratcliffe; and Smith scored again with 48.8 seconds remaining in the game. The final was 8-6. Bishop’s went on to defeat Santa Fe Christian 13-8 in the finals to earn their fifth consecutive Division II title. The Eagles were a surprise winner over No. 1 seed La Jolla in the other half of the bracket.

"You can’t take anything away from our opponents," said Islander Head Coach Randy Burgess. "We needed to play our best game to win. We had played well in the previous two games (against Bishop’s), but we didn’t play championship level water polo. That was unfortunate, but we’re not going to let the game over shadow the bigger picture. We walked away very disappointed in our loss, but also very proud of what we have accomplished. Looking back one year ago today, and Eric Clapper and Jacob Smith were the only two guys returning with a lot of varsity playing time. We had lost 10 seniors. Most people thought we would make the playoffs, but not the Final Four."

Pokorny was outstanding in goal, being credited with 13 saves in the game. An average or below average outing from the junior net minder would have yielded a hugely lopsided victory by Bishop’s, a fact not lost on Burgess. "Kyle saved his best water polo for the end of the year. He kept us in the game early and gave us a chance to be in the game. He was phenomenal. He played as well as I could have expected him to play. We had our chances in the game. It was not to be that night."

An important statistic in the game was the man-up attempts from both sides. Coronado was 2-6 when they had a man advantage due to a Bishop’s penalty, while Bishop’s converted on five of their six man-up opportunities.

Coronado completed their campaign with a 21-9 mark, in a sport where 20 wins is the benchmark for a strong season. "As a team we have to tip our hat to Bishop’s and enjoy the season we had," Burgess added. "We’re going to miss our four seniors. We were beaten by the best team in our division."

It’s the nature of prep sports that as one season concludes, another commences. Leading the way each year in the ‘winter season opening’ department is the Girls Varsity Basketball Team, as they host their annual Thanksgiving Tournament starting Friday. The Islanders will play San Dieguito at 1:40 pm and Chula Vista at 5 pm Friday. They compete against Imperial at noon and Ramona at 3:20 pm on Saturday.

The tournament concludes Saturday, Dec. 2 with games at 4 pm and 5:45 pm, with the matchups determined by the results of pool play. The other bracket includes Kearny, Our Lady of Peace, Chula Vista and Christian.

Islander Head Coach Toler Goodwin returns to battle this season with a mixture of two returning starters, a junior transfer from the state of Washington, four returning seniors and a bunch of talented sophomores. The two returning starters are both juniors in point guard Tiffany Depfer and post player Arrielle Luna. New to the program is junior shooting guard and two-sport star (basketball and lacrosse) Bria Phillips from Washington.

Returning seniors, who will help provide leadership to the team include Kelsey Branch, Emilie Waickwicz, Hallie Todaro, and Heidi Hofmockel. The four sophomores include small forwards/big guards Natalie Brooks and Melissa Humphrey and post players Angela Strohbeck and Emily Bell. The 11 players combine to form a squad with outstanding depth.

"We’ll be able to do a lot of things," said Goodwin regarding his team. "We will have some two guard sets. We can put Angela or Emily at the small forward and go big. They are good enough shooters that they can shoot from 15 feet and out. We can play four post players, who we can rotate in and play. We can play three of them at a time and go big, and still have the ball handling and shooting we need to give people trouble. We have shooters good enough to stretch the defense."

Goodwin has Ramona handicapped as the best team Coronado will face in their portion of the bracket. "Their leading scorer from a year ago (London Houchin) is playing at USD. They have had a good, solid program for the past 5 years. Usually they have size and decent guard play, but they will have to find some new offense as Houchin was averaging 25 points per game."

In the larger picture, the Central League race looks to be wide open with defending league champion Christian losing six of their top eight players. "Our only losses last year in league were to Christian," said Goodwin. "Crawford should be better with improved guard play. They are more athletic than they were. With Hoover, you never know. Madison was young last year. They are in their second year under a new head coach, so they will be better. Christian should be tough. If we do the things we’re supposed to do, we’ll be right there."

Andre Anderson and Robin Nixon return as the varsity assistant coaches. New to the program is JV Head Coach Tricia Lamb, who played at both Washington State and Cal State Fullerton.

"We’re looking forward to a good season," Goodwin summarized. The kids have worked really hard in the preseason. They were there everyday, five days a week to get themselves into shape to get ready for the season. We have a few more things in (offensive plays and defensive formations) and are a little further along than we were last year. We have six or seven kids who can lead us in scoring on any night. We have balance on the team. If we allow ourselves to let that be true, we have a chance to be good."

Here’s a concept for you, a fun fundraiser. Thursday, Dec. 7 at 7:30 pm, there will be a Gourmet Chocolate Tasting event at Coronado Middle School. The cost is $30 per person, with the proceeds going to the Islander Sports Foundation and Coronado Youth Softball. For ticket information, please call Mark McNary at 522-0200 or E-mail Mark at jmcnary@san.rr.com.

Evenly spaced between Thanksgiving and Christmas, what better way is there to satisfy your sweet tooth and contribute to worthy causes?

The CHS Girls Volleyball program held their post season banquet last week. The varsity awards as announced by Head Coach Christina Lahr included: Islander Sports Foundation Award for Integrity, Sportsmanship and Friendship – Katie Legidakes; Most Improved – Madison Boomer; Coach’s Awards – Kelsey Fitzgerald and Kori Fitzgerald (sisters); Most Valuable Player – Christy Mebust.

Mebust was named to the Eastern League First Team, while Karli Massie earned Second team honors. The Golden Ball Award for the best underclassman player was given to Kori Fitzgerald.

The JV Awards as announced by Head Coach Leilani Ahoon went to: Coach’s Awards – Mary Hogan and Lainey Mebust; Most Improved – Annie Wilson; and Co-MVP – Briana Baszak and Melissa Humphrey.

The Frosh-Soph Awards were presented by Kristie Spaulding and went to: Most Improved – Melissa Carambas; Coach’s Awards – Mercedes Hinton and Jessica Adair; and MVP – Meagan Moran.