Laguna Beach High

LAGUNA BEACH - You might say the Laguna Beach High boys' water polo team made a statement Tuesday. What made the Breakers' statement impressive was that it was straightforward and emphatic. The Breakers sent a message to the rest of CIF Southern Section Division III: it you want to win the 2011 division title, you'll have to go through the defending champions. Top-ranked Laguna fended off its latest challenge Tuesday as it took control of second-ranked Damien from start to finish, and polished off the Spartans, 10-5, at the Laguna pool.

Talk about running roughshod. The start to the 2011 prep football season couldn't have gotten off to a better start for Laguna Beach High and first-year Coach Mike Churchill. A 55-7 victory Sept. 9 against Webb of Claremont contained plenty of superlatives that could set the tone for the Breakers the remainder of the year. All the Breakers did was wreak havoc on the school's football record book. The marks that fell or were tied were: • Most rushing yards in a single game: (579; old record: 443 set in 2009)

Hamilton wins crown Teague Hamilton of Laguna Beach won his first 18-and-under boys' tennis tournament Monday in Upland. Hamilton, who will enter his junior year at Laguna Beach High next month, was unseeded after the initial rounds of the tournament. He went on to sweep to wins over the Nos. 1, 2 and 3 seeds. He defeated top-seed Tomas E. Aranguiz (6-1, 6-1) in the semifinals. In late-July, Hamilton and Taylor Nederlander, who also will be a junior at Laguna Beach, were selected by the Southern California Tennis Assn.

The Laguna Beach Water Polo Club's 12-and-Under girls' team captured a silver medal Sunday at the USA Water Polo Junior Olympics in Orange County. It was the second consecutive silver medal won by the 12U girls at the tournament. Laguna also was runner-up to the 12U girls' title in 2010. Laguna, led by Sophia Lucas and Angelique Begay, went undefeated in the first two days of the tournament. The team opened the tournament with a 12-5 victory over Davis and 14-5 win over Santa Barbara Water Polo Club "B. " Wins over Los Alamitos (17-8)

Sitting at Starbucks and facing Main Beach, Kevin Staight couldn't be farther from the Middle East, a region he's called home off and on for the last eight years. On June 12, the 28-year-old Laguna native donned a cap and gown as the first graduate to earn a degree in Arabic from UC San Diego. In the fall, he plans to study international business in New York University's MBA program. But he didn't care much for school while growing up in Laguna. Straight graduated from Laguna Beach High in 2000 with a 2.9 GPA and a lack of confidence after college rejections filled his mailbox.

Those who gave a record $300,000 in scholarships and financial awards to Laguna Beach High School's graduating class received recognition at the Honors Convocation. Laguna Beach Scholarship Foundation members, educators and past scholarship recipients praised the generosity of the donors at a pre-convocation reception and dinner June 10. "This reception is about you — our donors and presenters," said Marsha Aronoff, outgoing president of the foundation. "There would be no awards ceremony without you. The scholarships we give tonight, through your generosity, recognize the potential in these students and give them opportunities they might not otherwise have.

When Taylor Pitz and Chris Paul heard their names called out toward the end of Laguna Beach High's General Athletic Boosters All Sport Banquet on Tuesday, both said it was unexpected. Pitz — who starred on the surf team — and Paul — who book-ended a record-setting senior year in football l and baseball — finished the night, and their prep careers at Laguna Beach High, by being presented with the school's Female and Male Athlete of the Year honors for the 2010-11 school year.

Team Sportsworld capped off a championship season May 26 by defeating Morgan Stanley, 16-10, in the Laguna Beach Little league AAA tournament championship game at Riddle Field. Sportsworld won both the regular season and postseason titles in the division. Sportsworld enters the District 55 Tournament of Champions with a 18-1 record and a has a first-round bye. The team will put its 12-game winning streak on the line at 3 p.m. Saturday at Riddle Field against the winner of a first-round game between Saddleback and Northwood.

LAGUNA BEACH — It had been 11 years since the Laguna Beach High baseball program last hosted a CIF game when the Breakers took on Indio Thursday in the opening round of the Southern Section Division 4 playoffs. Wanting to put on a good show in front of the home crowd and make the most of just their third overall home postseason game in their history, the Breakers did just that. They rallied early from a run down to knock off the visiting Rajahs, 5-2,at Skipper Carrillo Field.