Sailors touch down

Bryce Alderton

Newport Harbor High’s football team returned to the glory days with

its sixth CIF title game appearance in Coach Jeff Brinkley’s 19-year

tenure, highlighting Sailor boys team athletic feats in 2004-05.

The Sailors finished 12-1-1, winning the Sea View League and

defeated El Dorado, Charter Oak and Mayfair in the Southern Section

Division VI playoffs before bowing out in the championship game to

Orange Lutheran, 35-6.

Senior running back Trevor Theriot, who will walk-on at UCLA, was

named CIF Division VI Co-Player of the Year after finishing with

1,328 rushing yards, while teammates Spencer Link, Kasey Peters,

Steve Joslin, Alex Orth, Thomas Martin and Saami Khalifian were all

selected to the All-CIF team.

Martin, a senior starting linebacker, was named Newport-Mesa

Defensive Player of the Year, while Peters, a senior quarterback,

garnered Newport-Mesa Offensive Player of the Year laurels.

The Sailors had their share of individual standouts who boosted

their respective teams.

Junior Bo Taylor powered his way, literally, to the CIF State

track and field meet in the shot put while junior Dan Furman anchored

the rejuvenation of Newport’s swim team. Senior Davis Pemstein capped

a memorable four years with a berth in the CIF Individual golf

tournament.

Taylor and Theriot placed 3-4 in the shot put at the Division II

finals to qualify for the Masters Meet. Taylor, who had also reached

the division finals in the discus, advanced to the CIF State meet,

where he finished seventh. He threw 57 feet, 6 1/2 inches in

Sacramento. His lifetime best is 59-5 1/2 .

Newport finished second in the league finals behind Taylor’s

victory in the shot put and second-place finishes by Theriot (shot

put), Kevin Williams (discus) and Kenny Rakestraw (3,200 meters).

Junior Clay Jorth (200-yard freestyle), Furman (50 free) and James

Jackson (100 backstroke) all won Sea View League individual titles in

keying Newport’s rise to the team league championship. Furman saved

his best for last, clocking a 21.18 to place second in the 50 free at

the Division I finals in May. Furman, along with Jorth, Telford

Cottam and Kyle Sherman, finished fifth at the Division I finals in

the 200 free relay.

Pemstein finished second by a stroke for the league individual

championship after shooting even-par 71 on the final day at San Luis

Rey Downs Golf Resort & Country Club in Bonsall. The Sailors finished

11th in the 21-team CIF Southern Section South Coast divisional

championships.

Pemstein continued to roll, shooting 4-over 76 at Seacliff Country

Club May 16 to earn one of 24 berths into the CIF individual

tournament at Canyon Country Club a week later, where he also shot

76. He missed qualifying for the CIF/Southern California Golf

Association tournament by two strokes.

Newport’s volleyball and water polo teams each reached the CIF

quarterfinals in their respective divisions while the basketball team

tallied its first playoff victory in three years.

Newport scored the most points in a game in six years with a 89-75

victory over University in a Division II-AA first-round basketball

contest. Senior Brett Perrine led the Tars that game with a

career-high 35 points.

Newport finished 17-10 after falling to Pasadena in the second

round.

Perrine, heading to UCLA for his volleyball skills, shifted from

basketball to volleyball, where he keyed the Sailors run to the CIF

Division I quarterfinals.

Newport rolled to its second straight undefeated season in the Sea

View League (10-0), in which it claimed back-to-back outright titles.

The Sailors then swept Huntington Beach and Capistrano Valley in

the first two rounds of the CIF playoffs before bowing out to

top-seeded Loyola in the quarterfinals. Newport finished 20-12 this

season.

Perrine was named Newport-Mesa Player of the Year.

In water polo, the Sailors finished second in league and defeated

Mission Viejo, 15-10, in the first round of the CIF Division I

playoffs.

Fourth-seeded Harvard-Westlake then ended Newport’s season with an

8-6 victory in the quarterfinals. Freshman Nate Castillo scored twice

against the Wolverines and joined junior teammate Clay Jorth as

All-CIF first-team honorees. Jorth was a repeat All-CIF selection.

In tennis, sophomore Jake Fleming finished second in the Sea View

League individual tournament while helping the Sailors to a

third-place finish in league and a berth in the Division I playoffs.

Newport fell to Redondo Union, 12-6, in the first round. Fleming

reached the second round of the CIF individual tournament, where he

bowed out to Corona del Mar’s Wesley Miller, the eventual runner-up.

Martin Bernard finished seventh overall in 15 minutes, 43 seconds

while teammate Kenny Rakestraw placed 13th in 15:54 at the league

cross country finals, helping Newport reach the CIF Southern Section

preliminaries.

In wrestling, junior Eddie Charcas came within one match of

advancing to the CIF Masters Meet in the 119-pound weight class.

Charcas pinned his first opponent at the CIF Inland Division finals,

but lost on points to his second opponent.

In baseball, the Sailors finished 8-17, 3-12 in league. Senior

Patrick Keehan led the team in hitting (.395), tallying 34 hits in 86

at-bats with 19 runs scored, nine doubles and 10 stolen bases.

Senior Greg Miner led the Sailors in RBIs (15) while blasting

three home runs, including two grand slams, en route to a .308

batting average.

Goalkeeper Carson Hedrick and midfielder David Manchester were

stalwarts for Newport’s soccer team.