Sailors bring back the bell

Steve Virgen

For the past year, the Newport Harbor High boys soccer team had a

hunger to fulfill, a thirst to quench. Well, the Sailors could have

rubbed their bellies in satisfaction after this one.

The Tars, who lost to Corona del Mar at Newport last year, exacted

revenge with a 3-0 victory over their Back Bay rivals on the Sea

Kings’ field Wednesday. Senior Matt Tracy scored twice and senior

Joel Walker added a goal and an assist.

During this past off-season, the Sailors vowed to win back the

bell trophy, the perpetual award given to the winner of the Back Bay

boys soccer matchup. Last year CdM won, 3-1, and immediately after

the game, Danny Whitaker took the bell from the Sailors’ sideline and

the Sea Kings cheered in victory as they ended Newport’s two-year

possession of the bell.

This year, however, Walker ran over to CdM’s sideline and sprinted

away with the bell, which was the main prop in a team picture moments

later.

“After they beat us last year and grabbed that bell, they grabbed

a piece of my heart,” Walker said.

Walker scored in the 12th minute. Will Guzman’s corner kick

bounced through the CdM defense and Walker took advantage of the Sea

King breakdown.

Toward the end of the first half, the Sea Kings nearly scored when

Chris Ringstrom had a breakaway opportunity. But Newport senior

goalie Taylor Carver came up with the big save. Last week at the

Trabuco Hills tournament, which the Sailors (7-3) and CdM competed

in, Carver told the Sea Kings they would not score on him.

Wednesday was the first time CdM (5-2-4) was shut out this season.

“We wanted it so bad,” Newport Coach Ryan Hernandez said. “We lost

last year on our field and CdM was cheering and ringing the bell. We

knew that payback would have been really sweet this year. And, it

was. It was beautiful. We set our goals before the season and this

was one of them. We got to cheer this year and they didn’t.”

Hernandez also said the Sailors intensified their style of play in

the second half and that led to two goals. In the 43rd minute, Tracy

got a piece of senior Skyler Taugher’s corner kick and the ball,

which was misplayed by the CdM defense, slowly bounced in the goal.

Tracy found the net again in the 66th minute, finishing on a

breakaway on an accurate pass from Walker. For the most part, the

game was evenly played, but the Sailors grabbed control by scoring.

“Newport Harbor deserved to win; they were more effective,” said

CdM Coach Pat Callaghan who also noted his team has not fulfilled its

potential thus far. “This gives us a good opportunity to see we still

have some serious weaknesses and some work to do.”