Chris YemmaAs far as good days go,...

Chris Yemma

As far as good days go, Monday was about a five for the Corona del

Mar High girls soccer team.

Five goals, that is. The Sea Kings defeated Santa Ana Valley, 3-0,

in the morning game, then topped Tustin, 2-0, in the afternoon to

advance to the semifinals of the Irvine tournament today at Irvine

High.

If CdM (4-6) defeats Irvine today at 10 a.m., the Sea Kings

advance to the final Wednesday at 5 p.m. A loss to Irvine would send

CdM to the third-place game today at 1:30 p.m.

But even if the team loses to Irvine, a turning point has been

reached in CdM’s season. The Sea Kings have won their last three

games, including a 2-1 triumph over Back Bay rival Newport Harbor

Thursday.

“We’re coming off the big game against Newport that was a momentum

shifter,” Sea Kings’ Coach Bryan Middleton said. “Obviously Newport’s

a good program. The teams we played today were also good programs,

but not the caliber of teams we were playing in the preseason.”

After starting their season 1-5 against numerous teams ranked in

the CIF Southern Section, a schedule Middleton hopes will pay off

later in the season, the Sea Kings have rallied to come within two

wins of .500.

A big part of that is due to Monday’s performance. It was also a

day that boosted the team’s confidence, allowing the players to gel

more as a cohesive unit and not an individual group of players.

Five goals were scored, all by different players, in two games

that were heavily dominated by CdM.

“We’re coming together now and we’re starting to gel,” Middleton

said. “The girls are starting to get more set and get into the flow

of the season.”

In the early game against Santa Ana Valley, sophomores Alex

Tobiessen and Kaliegh Trider, as well as junior Jessica Mazura, all

scored goals to lead the Sea Kings. Two assists were made by junior

Kelly Morgan, one on a corner kick and one on a crossing pass.

Tustin (4-5-1) proved to be a little tougher, but not by much. CdM

took 29 shots, while the Tillers only managed to get four attempts at

senior goalie Katie Schiesser, who finished with three saves. The

ball consistently made its home on the Sea Kings’ side of midfield,

only crossing over on a few occasions.

The clinching goal was scored in the 59th minute by Morgan, who

sprinted with the ball down the left sideline, curled around the

Tustin defender and shot it from the side to give CdM a 2-0 lead.

Morgan was also in on the first score. Freshman Lexi Henson took a

Morgan corner kick that had bounced off a Tustin defender and fired

it from 15 yards out in the 34th minute, giving the Sea Kings the

lead just before halftime.

“We did pretty good, but the teams weren’t as good, as say,

Harbor,” Morgan said. “We had to play hard and get some goals, which

we haven’t got in a while. After Harbor, it just pumped us up and

we’re more of a team now.”

CdM had plenty of opportunities to score, as well. In the 50th

minute, Morgan lofted a corner kick to the middle and Trider headed

it just over the goal. Just a minute later, Morgan had a chance

inside the penalty box, but her shot sailed just left. But Morgan

didn’t miss her next opportunity, giving CdM a comfortable lead in

the 59th minute.

The Sea Kings have come together since the Newport Harbor game.

Seven goals have been scored on three opponents, while only one has

been allowed.

“Finally we are finishing the ball,” Middleton said. “Scoring

goals kills all evils. We weren’t scoring in those first few games.

If we had been finishing, we would have been in some of those games.

But we’re looking forward to league now.”

Irvine, though, should pose a bigger challenge for Corona del Mar,

as the Vaqueros (5-2-3) look to take the title in their own

tournament.

“We’ll definitely be challenged [today] against Irvine on the big

field,” Middleton said. “They’re a good program so it’s probably

going to be between us or them for who goes on to win the [final].”

Said Morgan: “[Irvine] is pretty good I heard. I know some people

on the team and they should be pretty good. But we’re pretty pumped

up.”

Today’s semifinal game will be played in Irvine High’s football

stadium, a larger field than what the teams have been playing on. The

larger field also includes synthetic turf, with which CdM has

experience, having lost to Costa Mesa earlier this season in a game

at Orange Coast College.