CIF-SS Large Enrollment Division
Preview:
Sea View League 2001-02--(Oct. 6, 2001)
| SEA VIEW LEAGUE Aliso Niguel Irvine Laguna Hills Newport Harbor Woodbridge |
The Sea View League has been through a few changes in the last few years. In 1999, the league was reconfigured and El Toro, Corona del Mar and Santa Margarita were moved to other leagues, and Santa Margarita and Mater Dei (as well as St. John Bosco and Servite) formed the all-Catholic Serra League. The thought was that travel would be easier for those team newly placed in the reconfigured Sea View League, and that competitive equity would be improved among the public schools in the area. Whether the goal has been met is something that only time will tell. Last year, four of the five league members went to the playoffs. The biggest shock was the upset in the first round of Woodbridge, which many thought to be better than a one-and-out team. In contrast, Newport Harbor, which wasn't as highly regarded, made it to the quarterfinals in the same division as Woodbridge. How will the teams do this year? Who knows. In fact, we don't even have accurate information for two of the teams (Irvine and Laguna Hills), but from what we do know, it looks like Woodbridge and Newport Harbor will again battle for dominance. Here's what we know, which isn't a lot right now:
Updated from 11/25/01: The OC Register published their league preview and we've included the info from those capsule team reviews. The paper also noted how the league's coaches had predicted the order of finish: No. 1 Newport Harbor, No. 2 Woodbridge, No. 3 Laguna Hills, No. 4 Irvine, No. 5 Aliso Niguel.
| Sea View League Rosters | Sea View League Schedules |
| Woodbridge The Woodbridge Warriors finished 22-5 overall and 8-0 in league in 2000-2001. This year, in post season play, they'll likely be in Division II-AA with teams like Mater Dei, Corona Centennial, Anaheim Canyon, Claremont, and Villa Park. Last year the team was in Division I-A, and after a successful league run, Woodbridge was upset in the first game by Arlington, which had snuck into the playoffs as a wild-card entry (and it was a great run for Arlington as they made to the quarterfinals). For Woodbridge it was a disappointing end to what had been a promising season, with a lot of talent on the roster. The Warriors carried the maximum limit of 15 players, including 9 seniors, who have since graduated. Gone this year are Tashaan Forehan-Kelly who averaged 13.2 ppg and Danny Lambert who averaged 16.2 ppg. But there will still be some offense left, as Patrick Haddan (6'-1" Sr. PG), who averagedf 10 ppg, will return. Haddan is a legitimate D-I college prospect, and he's receiving recruiting attention from both west coast and east coast schools. The Warriors will likely also return several other players with varsity experience including Cole Edmondson (6'-0" Sr. G), Chris Boldig (6'-5Jr. F/C), Mike Moeller (6'-3" Jr. F), Sandeep Hingorni (5'-10" sr. G), Marcus Banks (6'-1" Sr. F) and David Burgess (6'-9" So. C), the brother of former Duke and current Utah player Chris Burgess. Woodbridge has won one State title previously, but that was 14 years ago, in 1987. They will again contend for a league title, but will be definitely challenged by Newport Harbor, which ought to be as athletic and which will also have size. Updated 11/25/01: The Orange County Register published their Sea View League preview today. Here's the information from that preview: Coach: John Halagan (10th year, 155-96) Returners: Newcomers to watch: Outlook: Haddan, the Warriors' lone returning starter, is arguably the league's best poijnt guard. Burgess and Boldig hope to be a strong post tandem for the two-time defending champihjon Warriors, who are 15-1 in the league the past two years.
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Woodbridge Coach: John Halagan N-26/D-1 @ JW North Tourn |
| Newport Harbor Thanks to the LA Times' Barry Faulkner, we now have a complete roster for the 2001-02 season: 3 Jon Vandersloot 6-3 Sr. G The Sailors were 21-7 overall and 5-3 in league last season, and competing in the the I-A playoffs, made it to the quarterfinals, beating Santa Fe (Del Rio League) in the first round, San Andreas League champion San Bernardino Pacific in the second round, and ultimately losing to Villa Park in the quarters. This season, they will be in Division II-A, a large change in divisions, and a big change in the level of competition, which ought to actually be a bit tougher in post-season play. The Sailors had five seniors on last year's roster, including starters Aaron Yarnal and Steve Young, but they will return the bulk of their offensive production, including Tony Melum (6'-6" Sr. F) who averaged 18.6 ppg and who is receiving some Division I college attention from the Patriot League and Ivy schools. Also returning should be Jamie Diefenbach (6'-7" So. F), as well as Chase Cameron (5'-10" Jr. G), Greg Perrine (6'-0" Sr. G), Erik Peterson (6'-3" Sr. F), and Nedim Pajevic (6'-8" Jr. F). Will probably be the team most likely to challenge Woodbridge for a league title. Updated 11/25/01: The Orange County Register published their Sea View League preview today. Here's the information from that preview: Coach: Larry Hirst (7th year, 122-61) Returners: Tony Melum 6'-6" Sr. F (19.8 ppg,
5.2 rpg) Newcomers to watch: Outlook: The Sailor's return four starters, led by Division I prospect Melum. Three-year starter Perrine, however, suffered a knee injury in the summer and could miss the season. Newport Harbor also has great size. League coaches believe the Sailors can dethrone two-time defending champion Woodbridge. Update 11/27/01: The LA Times' local Daily Pilot newspaper published a team preview for Newport Harbor, written by sportswriter Barry Faulkner, and in addition to the complete roster shown above, it also had some great insights not featured in the Register's capsule preview. Here are some excerpts (the original can be found at this link, at least for a while.) Boys baskteball:
Sailors heavily equipped ". . . entering his seventh season at the Sailors' helm, [coach] Hirst counted on . . . Greg Perrine, who was to be finishing a three-year stint at . . . [point guard]. But when Perrine blew out an ACL late in the summer schedule, Hirst was left scrambling..."Since Greg got hurt, we had to spend all fall going through what we did a year ago -- the growing pains of everyone learning how to play with one another." Despite the devastating loss of Perrine, a second-team All-Sea View League performer last year who still has a chance to return to the court later this season, Hirst has a team most coaches would hastily trade theirs in for. Tony Melum, a 6-foot-6 senior who was first-team All-CIF Southern Section Division I last year, after averaging 18.5 points and 9.9 rebounds, will lead the way. A gifted offensive player who, at times, carried the Sailors last season (e.g. 32 points and 17 rebounds in 72-69 overtime win over Pacific in the second round of the CIF Division I-A playoffs), Hirst believes Melum will need to make those around him better for the Sailors to reach their ultimate postseason destination. Melum is being recruited by several West Coast Conference and Ivy League programs, according to Hirst, and there are few players in Orange County with more raw talent. Though Melum plays above the rim, the presence of 6-8 junior Nedim Pajevic and 6-8 sophomore Jamie Diefenbach could free him up to face the basket more this season. "Depending on what lineup we're using, (Melum) could play anywhere from a two guard to the post," Hirst said. Erik Peterson, a 6-3 senior, is a returning starter who averaged 6.8 points per game last season. Hirst expects more on the offensive end this year from his defensive stopper. "Erik does all the little things well, all the intangibles," Hirst said. Junior guard Chase Cameron is another nonsenior who picked up plenty of varsity seasoning last year playing behind Newport-Mesa District Player of the Year Aaron Yarnal. Hirst said Cameron is projected to start in the backcourt alongside sophomore point guard Andre Pinesett. Pinesett, who played last season on the Mater Dei freshman team, is a playmaker whom Hirst terms "a very good shooter for a sophomore." Pajevic (2.6 ppg last year), earned a few starts as a sophomore and his continued development may eventually land him a college scholarship, said Hirst, who praised his midrange shooting ability. Diefenbach will likely come off the bench and could help lead Hirst, a man-to-man disciple, to experiment more heavily with zone defenses. Drew Melgar, a 6-0 senior up from the junior varsity, will also spearhead a bench that will eventually include seniors Jon Vandersloot, Jim Rothwell and Lu Castillo, who are currently helping the football team make a run at a CIF title. Hirst said senior Ben Boyd and juniors Chad Rorden and Nic Glassic should also provide depth, while seniors Collin Tully, Dane Lovier and Ross Fortier round out the 17-man roster. A beefed-up schedule that includes an early January trip to Alaska, will help prepare the Tars for another postseason run. But it could hinder their quest for another 20-win season. "The success of our season will be determined more by whether we win league and by how far we go in CIF, as opposed to a win-loss record," said Hirst, who considers defending champion Woodbridge the team to beat in the Sea View League. "
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Newport
Harbor Coach: Larry Hirst N 27 Hunington Beach |
| Laguna Hills Laguna Hills finished 17-11 overall and 3-5 in league last season. The Hawks were in II-AA last season, and made it to the playoffs as the No. 3 team from the league, drawing cross-county rival Brea Olinda in the first round. Laguna Hills managed to make it to the second round, but then drew Pasadena and were eliminated. This year, if the reconfiguration takes place, they'll be in Division II-A. We don't know much else right now about the team, and don't have a roster, so if someone out there can send us some info, it would be greatly appreciated, and we'll be happy to update this ASAP. They do have a website on MyScore.com, but it seems to be devoted right now to fall sports, especially football. There's room for basketball info, so let's hope the folks at Laguna Hills HS actually use it. Updated 11/25/01: The Orange County Register published their Sea View League preview today. Here's the information from that preview: Coach: Dave Brown (13th year, 174-127) Returners: Newcomers to watch: Outlook: The Hawks return three starters (Dimick, Donat and Vollenhals) but don't have much size in a league that has plenty of it. Brown, who picked up his 500th coaching victory (including Fountain Valley wins) last season, will stress defense.
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Laguna
Hills Coach: Dave Brown N-26/D-1 @ Mission Viejo Tourn |
| Aliso Niguel Aliso Niguel finished 15-12 overall, 3-5 in league play last season, but they're hoping to do better. Of course, we have to ask, "Why should we try to preview this team when they've got a very good website of their own?" And the answer is, that there's more on the official site than we could ever hope to say, so we'll just direct you there for additional info on how they'll do this year. As for last season, the Wolverines were in I-AA last season, making it to the playoffs as an "at large" entry from the league (by virtue of the 11-win rule, since only three teams from this league of 5 teams get automatic entries), but they lost in the first round to Montebello. They lost 8 players to graduation, including their two leading scorers, Brandon Sievers and Zach Zanoli, both of whom averaged 17 ppg each, and were worthy of consideration for All-CIF (but apparently weren't selected by the powers that be on that committee). If the reconfiguration of playoff divisions takes place as we keep hearing it will, they'll be in the new Division I-A. They will be young, but with a good summer of playing together and fall conditioning, this could be a team which will challenge for a league title. Updated 11/25/01: The Orange County Register published their Sea View League preview today. Here's the information from that preview: Coach: Paul Wachenheim (3rd year, 27-26) Returners: Newcomers to watch: Parham Nematollah 6'-3" Sr. G Outlook: The Wolverines have talent and some size but are inexperienced. Aliso Niguel surprised Ocean View and Newport harbor last season and hopes to contend for a plyoff spot again.
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Aliso
Niguel Coach: Paul Wachenheim N-26/D-1 @ Buena Park Tourn |
| Irvine Irvine finished 1-7 in league, and 10-16, and thus didn't
make the playoffs, since 11 wins were required for entry into post-season play. If
they get lucky this year, they'll be in Division I-A. We don't have a roster
for the Vaqueros, and there was very little player info on them available last season in
published reports and stats, so we can't tell you who will be playing for the Vaqueros
this season, but they do have a team
website (as part of the school's official site), and one look at their team photo
gives you some indication of why last year's bunch only managed one game in league
competition (Just kidding). Evidently they didn't want to list the roster online either
(or if it's there, we couldn't find it). Okay, okay...it's just high school basketball,
and at least they look like they're having fun! Updated 11/25/01: The Orange County Register published their Sea View League preview today. Here's the information from that preview: Coach: Mark Decker (3rd year, 16-36) Returners: Newcomers to watch: Outlook: Bright (Loara), Crawley (Artesia), Hafeman (Portland area) and Kanis (Woodbridge two years ago) are transfers. Kanis has some potential but needs some work, Decker said. Crawley is very quick. The Vagueros can win if they come together.
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Irvine Coach: Mark Decker N 28 @ Laguna Beach |
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