Costa Mesa

COSTA MESA ? The anxiety was understandable. Both teams figured to have it in Thursday?s Orange Coast League baseball game between Laguna Beach High and Costa Mesa. After all, the winner would be in sole possession of first place in league with the first round down. But, to Laguna Beach Coach Jeff Sears, it appeared that the host Mustangs did a better job of handing that anxiety. It showed in the Mustangs? better at-bats, which they used to earn a 6-1 win that bounced the Breakers to second place.

The Laguna Beach High girls' soccer team, a squad that has the luxury of getting contributions for every member of its 19-player roster, has been on a roll in its last three matches. Since playing Costa Mesa to a 1-1 tie in its Orange Coast League opener on Jan. 11, Laguna has been impressive in posting three-straight shutout victories. The victims have been Estancia (3-0) and both Calvary Chapel and Costa Mesa have lost to the Breakers by a score of 2-0. The win over Costa Mesa came Tuesday.

Mike Sciacca In one final push before it settles into the thick of the Pacific Coast League race, the Laguna Beach High School boys' volleyball team defeated Costa Mesa in four games at Dugger Gymnasium. The Breakers won the match, 25-13, 23-25, 25-23, 25-13. "I think we came in really focused in that first game and played steady volleyball," Laguna coach Lance Stewart said. "But we got away from that in the second and third games and Costa Mesa got on a little roll and started to gain some confidence.

Things have gone pretty much as expected in the opening week of the Orange Coast League boys' volleyball season. Namely, Laguna Beach was considered beforehand to be the team to beat and so far, has proven such is the case. In two league matches so far, neither Costa Mesa nor Estancia had any luck against Laguna. In last Friday's league opener, the Breakers were pushed in the second game by Costa Mesa but still earned a sweep of the host Mustangs, 25-12, 28-26, 25-17.

The boys' volleyball series between Laguna Beach and Costa Mesa has been a lopsided affair throughout the years and Tuesday's Orange Coast League matchup between the host Breakers and Mustangs continued that pattern. Laguna flexed its domination at Costa Mesa's expense again, sweeping the Mustangs, 25-12, 25-16, 25-10, at Dugger Gymnasium. The Breakers played well in many aspects of the match, jumping out to leads in all three games and rolled to victory in each instance. Laguna improved to 48-1 all-time versus Costa Mesa.

A halftime challenge led to a second-half explosion Tuesday by the Laguna Beach High boys' basketball team in its Orange Coast League encounter with visiting Costa Mesa. Breakers Coach Bret Fleming said he didn't yell at his players, who started out lethargic and went on to trail the Mustangs, 28-22, at the half. Instead, Fleming simply laid out his challenge. "They were waiting for someone to step up and I just told them, that it was up to them to do it," he said. "I thought we came out real tentative and weren't aggressive on offense or defense.

It has been a trying preseason for the Laguna Beach High boys? basketball team. The Breakers have just one senior, Adam Selevan, and he?s been in and out of the lineup with a back injury. Now comes the Orange Coast League portion of the schedule, where the defending-champion Breakers travel to Costa Mesa at 7 tonight. ?It?s been a real slow process getting him back where he could play,? Coach Bret Fleming said. ?He?s been a really good leader for us, both vocally and by example.

LAGUNA BEACH — Three big innings will beat one big inning every time. In Orange Coast League play, it’s the Laguna Beach High baseball team that has now come out on the short end of the numbers game twice now. Visiting Costa Mesa scored three runs in the first inning, three in the second and six in the fifth Thursday afternoon. That was enough to earn a 12-4 victory. Laguna Beach, which gave up 15 runs to Calvary Chapel last week, fell to 2-2 in league play.

The Laguna Beach High track and field team split its final Orange Coast League dual meet of the season Wednesday at home against Costa Mesa. The boys won. 88-22, but the girls suffered their first league loss of the year, 77-57. Coach Scott Wittkop said this came despite a near record-breaking performance by the girls? 4x100 team of Alex DeGarmo, Christina Gardilicic, Sabina Seyster and Jessie Good Man. They finished in 50.3 seconds, just three-tenths off the school record set in 1974.

There are still a few more chapters that the Laguna Beach High football team has to complete in the 2008 season. The thing is, the Breakers control their story?s destiny and can pen any ending they?d like. Tonight, Laguna ends one chapter as the regular season and Orange Coast League schedule comes to an end when it takes on Costa Mesa at 7 p.m. at Estancia High. But it?s just not any game. It?s a championship showdown. The winner of tonight?s contest will emerge as the outright league champion.

A man has been arrested on suspicion of using fraudulent credit card information at hotels and resorts in Laguna Beach, Costa Mesa and Dana Point. Harold Eric Larson, 36, of Orange was arrested April 12 at the Costa Mesa Marriott, where detectives seized documents, hotel booking information and $32,000 worth of cashier's checks from 39 different accounts. Larson is facing charges of burglary, identity theft, grand theft and credit card fraud, said Laguna Beach police Sgt. Robert Rahaeuser.

The Laguna Beach track and field boys' and girls' teams picked up Orange Coast League victories last week by defeating visiting Costa Mesa. The Laguna girls won, 79-33, while the boys' team won, 95-27. Laguna girls' event winners were: Tessa Hopper (100 meters); Marina Paul (800 meters); Darby Winson (100 and 300 hurdles); Carlee Ressler (1,600 meters); Audrey Rodriguez (3,200 meters); Marlee Grosher (long jump); Janie Crawford (triple jump). Laguna boys' event winners were: Tyler Nichols (800 meters)

Having had a week to prepare for the final leg of the regular season, the Laguna Beach High baseball team gets into the meat of its Orange Coast League schedule next week, beginning with an important two-game swing with Estancia. Starting Tuesday, the Breakers have eight league games left, two each against Estancia, Calvary Chapel, Godinez and Saddleback. They finished up their three-game league series with Costa Mesa just before the start of spring break. Laguna scored a 10-9 victory over visiting Costa Mesa in a wild contest April 5 that featured 26 hits.

The Laguna Beach boys' basketball team has Costa Mesa's number. In fact, the Breakers have dialed up just about everyone in the Orange Coast League during the past six seasons. Laguna captured its sixth consecutive OCL championship Tuesday by overcoming slow-paced Godinez, 52-44, at Dugger Gym. The win put the Breakers at 8-1 in league and ran their overall record to 15-10. They finished out the regular season with a home game Thursday () against Saddleback. The score wasn't available at press time.

More than 1,000 pounds of clay is being tossed across a Costa Mesa artist's studio against a wooden amalgamation of nails and wire, eventually taking the shape of a woman's figure. Alrik Yuill, 33, is busy sculpting his latest piece, "In Bloom: The Girl and the Music. " On Saturday, the Costa Mesa native and Laguna College of Art + Design graduate will be showing the "in progress" state of his piece at his studio on Placentia Avenue. Much like his work, Yuill stands out. His denim jacket is spray painted with the words "space" and "time" on the back.

A chance to further distance itself from the rest of its Orange Coast League foes eluded the Laguna Beach boys' basketball team, but all is not lost for the Breakers. Laguna held the lead on Estancia for all but the final 34 seconds Wednesday, and those few, precious seconds turned out to be the Breakers' downfall. A basket by Robert Sullivan with 34 seconds left put the Eagles into the lead, and the host team had to sweat out a missed layup by the Breakers in the final seconds to emerge with a 41-40 victory.

It's been a week full of exams for the Laguna Beach High boys' basketball team. On Wednesday, the Breakers passed another Orange Coast League test. Laguna wrapped up the first round of league play at Saddleback and pulled away during the final three quarters to earn a 66-40 victory over the Roadrunners. The 26-point triumph put the defending-champion Breakers at 5-0 in league and upped their overall record to 12-9. Most important, it kept them alone in first place. Saddleback is at the opposite end of the league at 0-5. "It was a 26-point win, but we were a little lackluster," Laguna Coach Bret Fleming said.

For many, the last few days before Christmas might be spent putting the final touches on gifts. However, to countless others around the country, it's a time of stress as families count their paychecks, hoping to have enough to buy each child at least one gift for the holidays. David Wilson, a Laguna Beach resident for 30 years and the owner of South Coast Toyota in Costa Mesa and Toyota of Orange, recently solved the woes of tens, if not hundreds, of families when he decided to pay off 260 layaways at the Kmart in Costa Mesa last weekend.

A league championship may be out of reach, but the Laguna Beach football team still has plenty to play for. At 7 p.m. Friday, the Breakers close out both Orange Coast League and regular-season play against Saddleback at Segerstrom High in Santa Ana. The Breakers already are assured a CIF playoff berth and can wrap up sole possession of third place in the league standings with a victory over the Roadrunners. "To me, I've been trying to sell the fact to the kids that it's important to finish strong," Laguna Coach Mike Churchill said.

The Orange Coast League football race is entering its most intriguing point of the season, one that will determine the league champion. Laguna Beach has a chance Friday to stay in title contention when it hosts Costa Mesa at Guyer Field. Kickoff is 7 p.m. It's a crucial game for both teams. For the Breakers, a victory will keep them in no worse than second place in the standings. For the Mustangs, a win would allow them to maintain no worse than a share of the league lead heading into a Nov. 11 showdown with an Estancia team that entered the week tied for first place with the Mustangs.