Los Alamitos

Newport Harbor High's girls tennis team fell, 11-7, in nonleague play to one of Orange County's best tennis squads, Los Alamitos. The Sailors lost five of six sets in the opening round, and could not overcome the deficit. "I was impressed with our girls," said Sailor Coach Fletcher Olson. "After we dropped far behind in the first set, the girls really turned it around in the second and third sets." Newport won five of nine doubles sets. Melissa Chinn and Alex McIntosh had the most impressive match, rallying from 4-5 to a 7-5 victory in their opening match.

HUNTINGTON BEACH — The Marina High boys’ basketball team was in an unfamiliar position, with a chance to knock off defending league champion Los Alamitos with a basket. Shooting the three-ball, though? Plenty familiar for Vikings senior Dane Okuda. Okuda buried a three-pointer from the left wing with two seconds left Friday night, the winning basket as the Vikings stunned the Griffins, 67-66. “I thought [senior point guard Tyler James] was going to take it and he just passed it,” Okuda said.

The final week of the prep football season has one Huntington Beach school competing for a coveted league championship. Tonight at 7 p.m., Edison and Los Alamitos square off at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach, and the winner of that game will earn no worse than a share of the Sunset League championship. The Chargers-Griffins showdown is just one of two games involving Surf City teams tonight. Also at 7 p.m., Huntington Beach plays host to Foothill in Sea View League action.

It's jockeying time on the football field. With league races entering the halfway point this week, four local teams will be looking to get back into championship contention. Marina starts the week's local action by taking to the road tonight, while Edison, Huntington Beach and Ocean View go under the lights Friday. Tonight's game: Marina (1-6, 0-2) vs. Los Alamitos (6-1, 2-0) (at Veterans Stadium, 7 p.m.) Los Alamitos gets the favorite's nod in this one, as the Sunset League enters its third week of competition.

The Huntington Beach Oilers could not turn the corner in two tight games that opened Tuesday's CIF-Southern Section Division I second-round boys' volleyball playoff match against Los Alamitos, and the visiting Oilers went on to suffer a 25-20, 25-22, 25-17 season-ending loss. Oilers Coach Rocky Ciarelli said it was a combination of things that led to his team's downfall. "I'd say one of our biggest issues was ball control," he said. "That kind of hurt us. Our passing was OK but not great.

All along, Edison baseball coach Steve Lambright has said his young squad needed a boost in the confidence department. His team got that shot in a big way March 20. Los Alamitos, not only the top-ranked team in CIF Division I and Orange County but also the state, came to Edison sporting a 9-1 record and four-game winning streak that took them to the title of the prestigious Loara Tournament and a 2-0 start in Sunset League play. That streak came to an end, though, when the visiting Griffins were handed a 4-0 shutout loss by the Chargers.

Marina was looking for its first Sunset League win of the 2008 boys? basketball race Monday when it took on Los Alamitos, and the Vikings nearly pulled off the upset at the expense of the league-leading Griffins. Playing what Assistant Coach Andy Meyer called one of the ?most complete all-around games we have played in a while,? Marina came close to knocking off Los Al but eventually dropped a 76-73 decision on the road. The Vikings hung tough with the Griffins throughout the contest, trailed by seven with barely more than a minute to play yet rallied to have a shot at winning in the final seconds.

It is just one of several big games still left on the Sunset League schedule, but tonight’s showdown between Edison and Los Alamitos will have a big bearing on who could win the 2008 championship. It might even determine the eventual Sunset winner. “It’s a huge game,” said Edison Coach Dave White, whose Chargers are the homecoming opponent for the Griffins. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. at Veterans Stadium. To put it into perspective, Los Alamitos is undefeated at 6-0 and Edison comes in at 5-1, its only loss coming in nonleague play to Servite.

The first round of the Sunset League boys? basketball race came to a close Monday when Marina played host to Los Alamitos and had all the makings of a true showdown: the game pitted a Vikings team that had won nine straight against a Griffins team that was riding a 17-game win streak, with the winner taking over sole possession of first place in the standings. Marina Coach Rogers Holmes said his squad would have to take care of the ?little details? and play a solid game in order to beat the No. 5-ranked team in Division I-AA.

HUNTINGTON BEACH — With the vaunted Edison High football team offense held in check for much of the game, the Chargers needed a spark. They got not one, but several, from their defense and special teams in a 27-10 Sunset League victory over Los Alamitos on Friday night at Huntington Beach High. There was Luke Eddy popping the receiver, Steven Malone scooping up the fumble and taking it to the house. There was Jeff Trojan blocking a Los Alamitos field goal, and Eddy doing the honors this time and returning it for six. There was Wade Houston not only tackling the quarterback in the end zone, but alertly stripping the ball, popping it into the air and recovering the fumble for another touchdown.

They're baaaack . Huntington Beach, once a longtime resident of the Sunset League before moving to the Sea View League when several Orange County leagues went through realignment four years ago, is once again part of the Sunset Six. The Oilers replace Esperanza, which moved to the Century League. "We're glad to be back," fourth-year Oilers Coach Eric Lo said. "We can't wait to get started. " Lo and his Oilers enter the fall with high hopes, anticipating that a great run to end the 2009 season, coupled with a solid work ethic during the offseason, will translate to a successful 2010 campaign.

YOUR WEEKEND FRIDAY: Alternative rock band Secret Garden performs a free show from 7 to 9 p.m. at Bella Terra Mall. The event is part of the Summer Concert Series at Bella Terra. SATURDAY: A memorial ceremony (pictured) for the victims of the 9/11 attacks is at 6 p.m. at Pier Plaza, Main Street and Pacific Coast Highway, Huntington Beach. For more information, call (714) 536-3855. SUNDAY: Local surf bands The Fabulous Nomads and The Mighty Surf Lords perform free shows from 1 to 4 p.m. at Huntington Beach International Surfing Museum, 411 Olive Ave. For more information, visit http://www.

Edison featured twice on TV The CIF Southern Section has joined forces with Fox Sports Prime Ticket and Fox Sports West to present the High School Football Game of the Week for the 2010 regular season. Edison is featured in two of the telecasts in the 10-game schedule. The Chargers' Sept. 24 nonleague game at Cerritos College against Servite will be televised at 7:30 p.m. on Prime Ticket and their Nov. 11 Sunset League game against Los Alamitos at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach also will be televised at 7:30 p.m. by Prime Ticket.

Name: Kathleen Iverson Age: 60 years Birthplace: Westminster (actually St. Joseph's Hospital in Orange, there was no hospital closer then) Residence: 8441 Sterling Way,  Westminster Occupation: retired science and math teacher Education: bachelor's degree in chemistry, master's degree chemistry teaching certificate from Cal State Fullerton Experience as an educator: I taught at Westminster High School for more than 30 years.

Over the last 10 years, the Edison High football program has enjoyed plenty of success, winning or sharing five consecutive Sunset League titles and reaching the CIF Pac-5 Division championship game on three occasions. The Chargers' most recent trip to the title game came last December, but as they ready themselves for the start of the 2010 season, a majority of that 13-1 team has moved on. Dave White enters his 25th year as head coach of his alma mater with the task of having to construct a team that welcomes back just three starters.

The Huntington Beach Water Polo 16-Under girls' team placed fifth in its division at the USA Water Polo S&R Sport 2010 Junior Olympics, held Aug. 5 through 8 at various sites in the Los Angeles area. The event was held in the Los Angeles area for the first time in the 41-year history of the national tournament. Anchored by Alys Williams (Edison High), Yoshi Andersen (Laguna Beach High) and goalie Savanna Smith (Los Alamitos High), the team went 5-1 in the tournament. Huntington won its first four games against Clovis, Los Angeles Water Polo, Santa Barbara B, and Trojan (Los Angeles)

Brenna and Blair Boies are sisters who do a lot together. Whether it be hanging out, helping each other out, or kicking the ball around on the soccer field, the sisters are close. Both are former soccer standouts at Edison High who are now playing college ball. Both play outside midfield and even though they are playing at separate schools, they remain in the same state. They even wear the same jersey number: seven. For one of the two, that number will prove lucky come Saturday.

The Battle at the Beach passing tournament title was won by La Habra High. The Highlanders on Saturday capped a 6-0 day by holding off Centennial of Corona, 25-24, to win the 12th annual tournament hosted by Edison. La Habra quarterback Cody Clements, who committed last week to Washington State, hit receiver Mark Yackey late in the game for what turned out to be the winning points. The Highlanders secured the title only when safety Anthony Baca broke up a two-point conversion pass at the end of the game.

The Ocean View High baseball program added a few more laurels to its championship season Monday when two members of its Golden West League and Division 3 title-winning team were named to the 2010 All CIF Southern Section Baseball Teams. Senior Blake Walker shared the Division 3 Player of the Year award in a division that also honored the Seahawks' Shane Borowski as Coach of the Year. Walker was one of several local athletes to be named All-CIF in baseball, softball and boys' volleyball.