Newport Harbor, CdM flag football teams notch statement Sunset League wins
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The Newport Harbor and Corona del Mar high school girls’ flag football teams each made statements in their own ways on Wednesday.
The Sailors displayed an airtight defense in a 25-6 home win over Edison to open Sunset League play, showing they could again be favorites to win their fourth straight league crown after sharing the title with Huntington Beach last year.
CdM, last year’s CIF Southern Section Division 2 champion, showed it should also be in that discussion. The Sea Kings hung on for a 20-18 home win over the always tough Oilers.
Newport Harbor junior quarterback Scarlett Guyser threw touchdown passes to three different receivers — junior Skylie Cid, freshman Emma Yokoi and junior Jocelyn DeTemple — and ran for another against Edison.
The Sailors have now beaten the Chargers twice this season. They were 3-1 against Edison last year, suffering an upset loss to the Chargers in the opening round of the Division 1 playoffs.
DeTemple and Guyser had interceptions on defense for Newport Harbor (7-1) on Wednesday. The Sailors showed well against Edison and its tricky offense, which relies on pitches and has multiple players — primarily Maddie Phung and Sadie Olivares — who can throw the ball.
“I thought they played fantastic,” Sailors coach Jason Guyser said. “We hang our hat on defense, and — except when we played [top-ranked] JSerra — we’ve yet to give up more than a touchdown. The team played really solid, and Edison’s actually got a really good defense too. If you look at their games, the only time that they’ve given up points is when they’ve played JSerra and us … For us to come out and score 25 against an Edison team that’s shutting people down, I thought we did a great job.”
Cid and Yokoi both showcased their speed in scoring the game’s two touchdowns in the first half, from 21 and 20 yards, respectively.
Yards after the catch are valuable in flag football.
“Two explosive playmakers, and that’s what you want, right?” the Sailors coach said. “You don’t want to have to rely on every time having to hit a deep shot. You want to have people who can turn a 5-yard pass into a 40-yard pass, or whatever it may end up being. You want someone who’s elusive and agile, and both of them are fast, and they can cut. They’re a playmaker’s dream.”
Yokoi is part of a promising Newport freshman class that includes Jordan Sanders (two quarterback sacks) and Sammy Palmer, who is currently playing receiver but is also a standout quarterback.
“I think they’re amazing,” DeTemple said. “Sammy, Emma and Jordan are all amazing players. I’m super-excited to see them grow. They’re already flowing so well with the team, and coach Guyser is doing a great job making sure they’re adapting from the club game to the high school game.”
Down 13-0 at halftime, Edison, led in receptions by sophomore Addie Bond, put together its longest drive to start the second half. But that ended with a fourth-and-goal interception in the end zone by Scarlett Guyser.
Edison, which is now 6-3 overall and 1-1 in league, scored its lone touchdown on a 2-yard pass from Phung to Bond.
Cid, who missed both the playoff loss last year and the first matchup with Edison this season, was happy to contribute.
“The first game [in league] is always the most nerve racking,” she said. “We definitely want to start off with a good start.”
CdM hangs on for big win over Huntington Beach
Corona del Mar, meanwhile, feels like it has been a bit overlooked in the league race. That should change after the Sea Kings improved to 8-1 overall and 2-0 in league with their big win over Huntington Beach.
Junior quarterback Addi Stern had a pair of touchdown passes on offense and was also a terror as a rusher on defense, with three sacks, seven deflections and also an interception.
It was a performance that had CdM head coach Theo Rokos comparing her to the late NFL defensive end star Reggie White.
“I was really hype at rusher,” Stern said. “I feel like once I get myself hyped up at the beginning, it’s all in my head as just confidence for the rest of the game.”
Junior receiver AnnaSofia Dickens contributed two touchdown catches, one from Stern and one from freshman Charlotte Ring.
“We really talked about the entire week just how much we wanted this win, how much the warmups matter and how much watching film mattered,” Dickens said. “I think we won because the team was so prepared.”
Corona del Mar took a 20-12 lead midway through the fourth quarter on Stern’s 1-yard touchdown pass to Mia Balabanian. The hosts also converted the extra point, on a pass to junior center Hudson Radic.
Huntington Beach, which fell to 4-2 overall and 1-1 in league, scored on a 5-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Roxie Shaia to Kayden Foley with 1:56 remaining. The Oilers elected to go for two points from the 10-yard line, in an effort to tie the score, but an illegal block on Stern ended that try.
After an unsuccessful onside kick, CdM was unable to stall the clock entirely. Huntington Beach got the ball back with 1:20 left at its own 3-yard line, but couldn’t move the ball down the field.
“We feel like we’re in that upper, elite group, but like I told the girls, we’ve got to prove it,” Rokos said. “Last year, we didn’t prove it in these big games, so it was nice to kind of turn the corner. We feel like we’re headed up to that spot.”
Senior Brooke Morris, one of four CdM team captains, put it more simply.
“If we can beat Huntington, we can beat anybody,” she said.
Newport Harbor and CdM meet twice during league in Battle of the Bay rivalry games that could loom large, Sept. 14 at CdM and Oct. 7 at Newport Harbor.
Senior Shelby Nguyen caught a pair of touchdown passes from Shaia on Wednesday night for Huntington Beach.
“We shot ourselves in the foot early … and it led to a bad punt from us, which gave unbelievable field position to them,” Huntington Beach coach Zack Pannell said. “When you start your first drive like that, it’s always an uphill battle. Same thing in the second half. When you have two halves of bad play early, it’s going to lead to a tough loss.”
