Soccer

Laguna Beach?s girls? soccer team remained undefeated through the first five matches of the season after the Breakers settled for a 1-1 tie against visiting University on Tuesday at Guyer Field. Both teams had opportunities to win the hard-fought game, but neither could come away with the victory. Laguna?s tough defense, led by senior Holden Penney, turned away repeated attacks from University?s quick forwards. Goalie Lura Hills had 12 saves and several times streaked out to the 18-yard line to stop the attack.

A recreational soccer camp for community youth ages 4 to 13 will be held Dec. 22 to 24 at the Laguna Beach High soccer field. The three-day camp, which runs from 9 a.m. to noon, is $100 per camper. The cost includes a T-shirt, player evaluation and competitive play in a fun environment. ?Kids will have a lot of fun learning various skills and taking part in drills,? Laguna Beach High boys? soccer coach Patrick Coyne said. ?It should be a great time.? For information, e-mail paddyjoecoyne@hotmail.

The Laguna Beach High girls? soccer program is looking forward to an exciting season. So says Coach Bill Rolfing, whose squad will face a competitive schedule full of nonleague and tournament challenges in the coming months. Laguna lost 13 players to graduation in June but has a solid nucleus of seven key players back who have plenty of experience at both the prep and club levels. The returnees include senior defenders Holden Penney and Maddy Arteburn and senior goalie Lura Hills.

Local youth can develop soccer skills in the off-season by playing indoor soccer at the Laguna Beach Boys & Girls Club. The five-week season of indoor soccer, which began Sunday, is open to players in the Under-8, -10 and -12 divisions and is under the direction of Laguna Beach High boys? soccer Coach Patrick Coyne. For more information, visit the www.patrickcoynesocceracademy.com or call (949) 350-5239. Special team rates are available. The Laguna Beach Boys & Girls Club is located at 1085 Laguna Canyon Road in Laguna Beach.

Laguna Beach High boys’ soccer Coach Patrick Coyne will begin instruction Monday of a boys’ soccer camp at Laguna Beach High’s Guyer Field. The camp is open to boys ages 4 to 14, and the cost is $125 per player. The registration fee includes player evaluation, certificate and a Laguna Beach High camp T-shirt. Players will be divided on the field according to age group. The camp runs from 9 to 11:30 a.m. daily through July 11. “For the younger players, there will be a lot of grass-roots development with a big emphasis on fun,” Coyne said.

DINOSAUR CHICAS The Laguna Beach Dinosaur Chicas soccer team picked up one loss and one win over the weekend. Laguna Niguel handed them their first loss of the season in a close 1-0 battle at Moulton Meadows Field on Saturday. The Chica?s tough defense by Natalie Belyea, Nadia Demilly-Otteson and Hailey Ferguson held visiting Niguel to a scoreless 0-0 tie until the fourth quarter. Midfielders Victoria Bush and Jamie Duncan fought to control the center of the field and pass to the forwards, but a break-away late in the match led to Niguel?

Oh-so-close. Again. For the second-straight year, the Laguna Beach girls? soccer team missed making the CIF-Southern Section playoffs by a single game. Costa Mesa captured its sixth-straight league championship by winning its second-consecutive Orange Coast League title. Estancia finished in second-place, followed by Laguna Beach then fourth-place Calvary Chapel. The battle for second place came down to the Laguna-Estancia match on Feb. 7, the final day of the regular season.

A win away from postseason play. That was the distance the Laguna Beach girls? soccer team faced between Tuesday and Thursday as the Orange Coast League race and the regular season came to an end. Laguna, which was edged 2-1 by Costa Mesa on Tuesday, had its CIF Southern Section playoff hopes hang in the balance when it took on host Estancia Thursday. That score wasn?t available at press time. A win by the Breakers would secure a second-place league finish and give the program its first playoff berth in eight years, Coach Bill Rofling said.

It took a converted penalty kick in the final 10 minutes of Wednesday?s Orange Coast League showdown between Laguna Beach and Estancia to determine the 2008 league champion. And that kick belonged to the Eagles. Senior Danny Martinez scored on the penalty kick to give Estancia a 2-1 victory that denied Laguna its first Orange Coast League title. Instead, the Eagles have won each of the two titles since the league was formed at the start of the 2006-07 school year. Estancia finished league play 7-2. Both of its losses came at the hands of Laguna.