Sailors gearing up for CIF semifinals

Rick Devereux

The Newport Harbor High football team was bogged down in a defensive

battle against Charter Oak in the quarterfinals of the CIF Southern

Section Division VI playoffs.

The Sailors (11-0-1) scored a fourth-quarter touchdown to earn the

14-7 victory and advance to the semifinals against Mayfair (11-1)

Friday at Cerritos College at 7:30 p.m.

The contest against the Chargers might prove to be an ample

preview of the game against the Monsoons, who’s lone loss was to

Division I Lakewood.

“[Charter Oak] was absolutely one of the more physical teams we

have faced all year,” Coach Jeff Brinkley said. “They had been

playing good defense all year, so we knew it was going to be a

battle.”

Mayfair is eerily similar to Charter Oak in the fact that both

have stingy defenses and quick-strike offenses.

“[Mayfair] may even have more speed than what we saw [against

Charter Oak],” Brinkley said. “It’s the same situation where we don’t

want to give up the big plays on defense. We want to force them to

drive the length of the field to get a score.”

Against the Chargers, Newport accomplished that goal for most of

the game. The second-seeded Sailors allowed two plays gain 15 or more

yards, but one was an 87-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter.

“Newport is know for being fundamentally sound on defense,”

Mayfair Coach Mike Fitch said. “They are very well-coached. They

don’t make a lot of mistakes. Even little things like jumping

offsides or late hits. That is a sign of a well-coached team.”

Mayfair, the No. 3 seed, is more than capable of breaking off a

big play for a touchdown. The Suburban League champions have scored

on a 43-yard pass, a 54-yard pass, an 80-yard pass and a 95-yard

kickoff return in the first two games of the playoffs.

“They are very athletic,” Brinkley said. “They are the same type

of athletes [as Charter Oak]. Very big and very fast.”

The Monsoons averaged 25.9 points in the regular season and scored

50 points in the playoffs. Defensively, Mayfair was one of the top

teams in the division allowing 7.8 points per contest with five

shutouts. Opponents have scored more than twice that in the playoffs,

averaging 16.5 points.

“Defensively, they move around and are very quick to the ball,”

Brinkley said. “It’s going to be a big challenge for our offense to

move the ball and put points up on the board.”

The Newport defense has been just as dominating as Mayfair’s.

During the regular season opposing teams averaged 9.5 points. In the

playoffs the opposition has averaged 8.5.

Newport Harbor, which averaged more than 32 points during the

regular season, has scored 49 points in the playoffs. Receiver Alex

Orth has been the main scoring threat in the playoffs, catching all

four touchdown passes quarterback Kasey Peters has thrown. He also

returned an interception for a score in the opening round win over El

Dorado.

Running back Trevor Theriot has rushed for more than 100 yards in

seven games, including his 133-yard performance against Charter Oak.

“We’re going to have to tackle with a lot of numbers,” Fitch said.

“I don’t think we can tackle their running back with just one

player.”

Fitch said the team that wins the turnover battle will most likely

be the team that wins the game.

“I don’t think either team has an advantage,” he said. “I think

the whole game will hinge on miscues and which team executes well,

which team holds on to the ball and which team has the least amount

of penalties.”

Brinkley had similar thoughts.

“We need to execute on offense and play our type of game on

defense,” he said. “We’re pleased to still be playing.”

The winner will play in the final Dec. 11 at Angel Stadium at 2

p.m. They will face the winner of Saturday’s Orange Lutheran-Villa

Park semifinal.

Villa Park, the No. 4 seed, has scored more points (86) and

allowed fewer points (13) than any other team in the division. The

Spartans (11-1) have won 10 straight games, with their lone loss

coming at the hands of Valencia of Placentia in Week 2.

Orange Lutheran, the No. 1 seed, had the top scoring defense in

the division during the regular season allowing 7.4 points per game.

The Lancers scored 42 points in each playoff game and have allowed 21

total points. Only three teams have managed to score in the double

digits on Orange Lutheran -- Mater Dei (21), Loara (14) and La Mirada

(14).