WINTER SPORTS UPDATE
WRESTLING (3-2)
Breakers Advance to D-4 Dual Match Quarterfinals
The Breakers represented the Sunset Wave league in the Dual Match D-4 CIF playoffs held last Saturday, Jan. 27, at Chino High School. The Breakers defeated Indio 50-30 in the first round before losing to #1 seed Chino 72-6 later in the day in the quarterfinals.
The wrestling program at Laguna only dates back to 2018 and struggled to attract participants for the first few seasons. Last year, led by now-graduated Jeremy Kanter, the program won its first dual match and had its best showing in the CIF individuals leading into this year’s success.
Up next for the Wrestlers: Sunset Conference League Finals will be on Feb. 3 at Edison.
BOYS BASKETBALL (12-15, 1-4)
The Breakers saw their post-season chances dim with a string of defeats that came right down to the wire.
On Jan. 24, they lost at Newport Harbor 73-68, and on Friday, Jan. 26, they lost at Marina by a 57-55 score. Against the Tars (21-6), Dylan McEachern scored 28 points, including five three-point shots. He had 18 against the Vikings.
On Jan. 30, the squad lost to Corona del Mar 55-44 again with 18 points by Dylan McEachern.
McEachern’s Laguna career concluded in the final 2024 contest that played on Thursday against Huntington Beach.
Entering the game, Dylan has scored 567 points this season, good for #7 all-time single season scoring. He should finish the year #6 all-time, just behind Ron Lutz’s run in 1962.
GIRLS BASKETBALL (7-20, 1-3)
Laguna was competitive but could not close the gap in recent losses. Breaker dropped a 47-40 game at Huntington Beach on Jan. 25, 49-34 to Cerritos in a non-league game on Jan. 27, and another close 38-33 defeat at Newport Harbor on Jan. 29. The 2024 season concluded on Jan. 31 with Marina.
BOYS SOCCER (6-12-1, 3-2-0)
Andy Thomas’ squad surprised the league with a pair of wins to climb back into playoff contention. On Jan. 26, they edged league champs Huntington Beach 3-2 at Guyer Field with goals by Julian Riechel and two from Max Garner. This past Monday, the Breakers blasted Marina 4-0 behind two goals from Riechel, a score from Garner and a goal by Dan Attenborough. Laguna needed to beat or tie Fountain Valley (2-4, 8-10) this past Wednesday for a post-season spot. Soccer post-season playoff brackets will be posted on Saturday, and if they qualify, Laguna will be in D-5.
GIRLS SOCCER (8-7-2, 1-3-1)
The Breakers appear to be headed for third place in the Sunset Wave League and may miss the playoffs this season. The squad lost at Edison 3-0 on Jan. 25 but battled Corona del Mar (4-0-1, 12-6-2) to a 0-0 tie on Jan. 29 at the Sea Queen’s field. The regular season concluded on Jan. 31 with Fountain Valley. Soccer CIF pairings will be announced Saturday, and Laguna still has a chance for an at-large bid. The Breakers are in D-3 this season.
GIRLS WATER POLO (16-11, 5-1 – Sunset Surf Co-Champions)
Breakers easily defeated Los Alamitos 16-9 this past Tuesday at the Griffin’s pool to capture their fourth Sunset crown in six seasons in the ultra-competitive league. Overall, the Breakers are 106-18 in 27 seasons of league competition with 18 titles won or shared.
Against Los Alamitos, Laguna jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead as goalkeeper Sienna Jumani has five assists on goals counter plays as Laguna led 10-3 by the intermission. Presley Jones finished with five goals and three assists, Ava Knepper had four goals and two assists, while Brooke Schneider provided two scores and three assists. Laguna now leads the all-time series 26-8.
Last weekend, the Breakers finished fifth in the Newport Invite, featuring six of the top seven teams in the Southern Section and San Diego’s top team.
Laguna opened play on Thursday, Jan. 25, defeating Carlsbad (San Diego CIF #3) 15-8 as the entire roster participated, including the JV starters. On Friday, they battled but lost to #2 Foothill 13-10 as the Knights pulled away in the final period as Laguna had lost Knepper and Kara Carver to fouls for the final stretch.
That evening, the Breakers lost to host Newport 10-6. Foothill edged Newport for the eventual tournament crown.
On Saturday, the Breakers defeated Bishop’s 16-11 and blasted SSCIF #7 Oaks Christian 20-12.
Playoff pairings will be released on Saturday, Feb. 3, at 9 a.m. at cifss.org. Open Division. Breakers should be seeded 6th in the Open Division (top of seven water polo playoff divisions) and will most likely face Mater Dei on Thursday, Feb. 8, at the Monarch’s pool.
Knepper became the 10th Laguna player to score at least 100 goals in the season. Her career total of 242 goals ranks ninth all-time for Laguna. Makenzie Fischer (2012-15) holds the career record with 456 goals.
Statistical Leaders [27 games]
Goals: 100 – Ava Knepper, 79 – Kara Carver, 56 – Presley Jones, 40 – Emerson Hensley
Assists: 55 – Presley Jones, 45 – Kara Carver, 39 – Brooke Schneider, 37 – Ava Knepper
Steals: 47 – Kara Carver, 39 – Ava Knepper, 26 – Presley Jones, 25 – Brooke Schneider, 22 Emerson Hensley
Drawn Exclusions: 50 – Emerson Hensley. 38 – Ava Knepper, 30 – Kara Carver, 17 – Presley Jones
Saves: 186 – Siena Jumani
Have a note/question on Laguna sports/correction/update? E-mail Frank at [email protected].
Looking for the 2023-24 High School schedules and scores? Check Laguna Beach High School on Max Preps.
