The first big game between the CIF-Metro Conference’s Mesa League roller hockey teams took place Tuesday, Dec. 12, at the Castle Park High School rink when the Castle Park Trojans collided with the Eastlake Titans in a match-up of unbeaten teams.
Both squads entered the high profile contest with 3-0 records to face off the 2017-18 season.
The game took an interesting turn when Castle Park took early leads of 1-0 and 2-1 on goals by returner Martin Mari. One began to wonder if the underdog Trojans were poised to pull off an upset victory.
Castle Park won last season’s South Bay League championship but have since moved up to compete in the higher tier Mesa League this season. The Trojans proved they belonged in their new surroundings by defeating resident Mesa League power Otay Ranch, 7-2, in a game played last Thursday (Dec. 7).
But the Trojans could not bend steel against the defending league champion Titans, who stormed back to prevail 15-5 in Tuesday’s high profile encounter.
“We worked hard that first period and did a good job (facing adversity),” EHS first-year coach Rick Haislip said after the game.
Make no mistake, however, the Titans were challenged in the early going of Tuesday’s game.
Eastlake tied the score on goals by returners Luke Killeen and Will Hamilton, both of whom are experienced ice hockey players. Killeen made the score 1-1 and Hamilton made the score 2-2.
The Titans took a 3-2 lead on a goal by Killeen, assisted by Hamilton. But Castle Park fought back to tie the game, 3-3, on a goal by Jesus Gonzalez.
From there, Eastlake firmly placed its stamp on the game by scoring 11 unanswered goals.
The Titans used a pair of Killeen tallies to lead 5-3 at the end of the first period. Eastlake went up 11-3 at the end of the second period.
Hamilton (eight goals, one assist) and Killeen (six goals, one assist) combined to score 14 of the team’s 15 goals. Marco Macias had the other tally.
Mari finished with a hat trick for Castle Park while Eleazar Cruz, the school’s quarterback during the football season, collected a goal and assist.
Eastlake’s goaltending tandem of Aryn Gregory and Elian Ramirez combined to post the win after opening the season with three consecutive shutout victories (14-0 over Bonita Vista, 11-0 over Hilltop and 17-0 over Southwest).
Through two weeks of play, the Titans are the only Sweetwater district team to remain undefeated, now sporting a 4-0 record, 3-0 in Mesa League play.
“We started playing like we were taught, we started playing the box, moving in as a unit rather than dumping it in, starting to play the triangle,” Hamilton said. “We do have a lot like of really good people on the team. Even though we were missing some of our best players, we were still able to move the puck and score.”
Braden Mayer paced the Titans with five goals in the win over Hilltop while Killeen (three goals, one assist) and Hamilton (one goal, three assists) each collected four points.
Jake Powell led Eastlake with seven points (four goals, three assists) in the win over Southwest while Killeen recorded six points (five goals, one assist). Kevin Eagles collected three goals and one assist while Macias had three goals. Percilla Mayer aslo scored one goal.
The Titans scored four shorthanded goals in the game.
“We have a lot of talented players and we’re starting to work together as a team,” Haislip explained. “We’re continuing to focus on that team aspect because we’re going to be playing against some great teams coming up. We’re looking forward to the competition. We’re trying to mesh everyone together to be a really great force together, to do some special things this season. We’re really looking forward to it.”
Killeen tops Eastlake in season scoring with 18 goals and five assists for 23 points, followed by Hamilton with 12 goals and six assists for 18 points. Braden Mayer has nine goals and two assists for 11 points while Powell has four goals and four assists for eight points. Eagles has six goals and one assist for seven points while Macias has four goals to his credit. Jonathan McCormick has two goals while Nathan Prosapio has two assists. Percilla Mayer has scored one goal.
Castle Park faced off the season with a 10-2 non-league win over Mar Vista on Dec. 1 and then won its Mesa League debut with a 13-2 win over Bonita Vista on Dec. 5.
Cruz paced the Trojans with five goals and two assists in the win over Chula Vista while Mari collected three goals and three assists.
Mari had a breakout game with eight goals and one assist in the victory against Bonita Vista while Cruz netted a hat trick. Nick Stark led the Barons with one goal and one assist.
Castle Park improved to 2-0 in Mesa League play with its ensuing win over Otay Ranch on Dec. 7. The Trojans built a 7-0 lead on the Mustangs.
Mari keyed Castle Park with four goals while Cruz scored two goals. Brenna Mireles scored the Trojans’ final goal.
Paul Chavez scored both goals for Otay Ranch. Both tallies came in the final two minutes of the game.
The secret to Castle Park’s success to start the season has been the dedication of the team’s players, according to Jose Mendoza, who earned accolades as the 2016-17 CIF/Metro Coach of the Year.
“The kids have been working hard, they practice hard, they’ve got that can-do attitude, so it’s all a credit to them, and the team cohesion,” the CPHS coach explained. “Like I tell the kids, if we stop their opportunities and we create ours we have a good opportunity of out-shooting them or out-scoring them. That’s the goal every game.”
Mari leads Castle Park in season scoring with 18 goals and three assists for 21 points, followed by Cruz with 11 goals and three assists for 14 points. Gonzalez has collected three goals and one assist while Aldo Chavira has two goals.
In other games on Dec. 12, Hilltop defeated Sweetwater, 10-0, in non-league play behind five goals from Trevor Fune and shutout goaltending from Jacob Lopez while Otay Ranch defeated Bonita Vista by forfeit in a regularly scheduled Mesa League encounter.
Hilltop, fielding a roster heavy on underclassmen (eight sophomores, one freshman and one junior), improved to 2-2 on the season (1-2 in Mesa League play).
The Lancers defeated Bonita Vista, 5-2, on Dec. 7 to collect their first win of the season. Fune scored all five goals for Hilltop while Stark scored both Bonita Vista goals. The game was tied, 2-2, before Hilltop finished the game with the last three goals.
Following the forfeit loss to Otay Ranch, the Barons dropped to 0-4 on the season (all in league play).
The Mustangs defeated Southwest, 11-0, in a non-league game on Dec. 5 as Chavez led racked up six goals and two assists. Otay Ranch improved to 3-1 (2-1 in Mesa League play) with Tuesday’s forfeit win over Bonita Vista.
Chavez leads the Mustangs in season scoring with nine goals and three assists for 12 points, followed by Sean Devaney with five goals and two assists.
Patrick Henry 9, Poway Titans 6
In a North County League game played Monday (Dec. 11) at Skate San Diego in El Cajon, Patrick Henry rolled past Poway, 9-6, as Tyler Daniel and Matt Voegel each collected hat tricks for the victorious Patriots, who improved to 2-3 in league play.
The Titans remained winless on the season at 0-5.
Through five games, Voegel leads Patrick Henry in scoring with 14 points (10 goals, four assists) while Matt Russell has collected 11 points (seven goals, four assists). Daniel has contributed six points (four goals, two assists) while Ruben Allen has scored four goals.
South Bay League: Raiders tip Spartans in early showdown as defense reigns
The schedule for the five teams in the South Bay League has been light to start the season. The Southwest Raiders are 1-0 in league play after defeating Chula Vista, 1-0, in a defensive-minded contest on Dec. 6.
Pedro Crespo scored the only goal of that game while Johanna Sartar recorded the shutout victory in her first game. The game was the second for Chula Vista, which previously had defeated San Ysidro, 11-2, on Dec. 1.
Mar Vista has played two league games, defeating San Ysidro, 7-0, on Dec. 6 and dropping a tight 2-1 contest to Chula Vista on Dec. 8.
Sweetwater edged San Ysidro, 2-0, in a Dec. 8 match-up to start 1-0 in league play. Cesar Salazar and David Segura were credited with goals for the Red Devils.
Chula Vista, off to a 2-1 start on the season, is led in scoring by Adrian Hernandez with six goals and two assists while Lucio Gutierrez has tacked on five goals and two assists.
Hernandez had a big season debut with six goals and one assist in the win over San Ysidro while Gutierrez collected five goals in the game. Gutierrez scored both goals in the win over Mar Vista.
Spartan goaltender Gio Cimmino had a big showing with 20 saves in the narrow loss to Southwest; he was credited with 15 saves in the win over Mar Vista.
All three players will be counted on to lead a young team.
“About half the team is new, about half returners,” new CVHS head coach Caroline Talavera said. “They’re learning and communicating between each other on the playing court. That’s something I’m excited about. I’m looking forward to watching them make further progress as the season develops.”
Development — that’s the goal for just about every team, regardless of its experience level.
First-year San Ysidro has steadily improved over the course of its first three games while being out-scored 20-0.
The Cougars gave a strong effort in the game against Sweetwater and retained possession in the Red Devil end for a stretch of four minutes, twice coming close to notching the first goal in school history.
“We came close to scoring,” SYHS Adrian Rodriguez said. “We pulled the goalie to try to score but we came close.”
While the Cougars are a young team, the squad’s mentor needs little introduction locally. Rodriguez turned in a stellar career at Otay Ranch High School, played internationally in club roller hockey and returned to guide his alma mater behind the bench.
“All players are beginners, have never skated or played in a game,” Rodriguez admitted. “But they are working on skating and their hockey mentality has improved. They have worked very hard and are excited for the season.”
Mesa League Standings
(Through Dec. 12)
League/Overall
Eastlake Titans 3-0, 4-0
Castle Park Trojans 2-1, 3-1
Otay Ranch Mustangs 2-1, 3-1
Hilltop Lancers 1-2, 2-2
Bonita Vista Barons 0-4, 0-4
South Bay League Standings
(Through Dec. 12)
League/Overall
Southwest Raiders 1-0, 1-2
Sweetwater Red Devils 1-0, 1-2
Chula Vista Spartans 2-1, 2-1
Mar Vista Mariners 1-1, 1-2
San Ysidro Cougars 0-3, 0-3
CIF/Metro Conference Scoreboard
Mesa League
Thursday, Nov. 30
Eastlake 14, Bonita Vista 1
Otay Ranch 11, Hilltop 2
Tuesday, Dec. 5
Eastlake 11, Hilltop 0
Castle Park 13, Bonita Vista 2
Thursday, Dec. 7
Hilltop 5, Bonita Vista 2
Castle Park 7, Otay Ranch 2
Tuesday, Dec. 12
Eastlake 15, Castle Park 5
Otay Ranch defeated Bonita Vista by forfeit
South Bay League
Friday, Dec. 1
Chula Vista 11, San Ysidro 0
Sweetwater vs. Southwest, postponed
Wednesday, Dec. 6
Southwest 1, Chula Vista 0
Mar Vista 7, San Ysidro 0
Friday, Dec. 8
Chula Vista 2, Mar Vista 1
Sweetwater 2, San Ysidro 0
Non-League
Friday, Dec. 1
Castle Park 10, Mar Vista 2
Tuesday, Dec. 5
Otay Ranch 11, Southwest 0
Wednesday, Dec. 6
Scripps Ranch 10, Sweetwater 0 (mercy rule)
Friday, Dec. 8
Eastlake 17, Southwest 0
Tuesday, Dec. 12
Hilltop 10, Sweetwater 0 (mercy rule)
CIF-Metro Conference Scoring Leaders
Sweetwater district teams
(Through Dec. 12)
Luke Killeen (Eastlake) 18 goals, 5 assists – 23 points
Martin Mari (Castle Park) 18 goals, 3 assists – 21 points
Will Hamilton (Eastlake) 12 goals, 6 assists – 18 points
Eleazar Cruz (Castle Park) 11 goals, 3 assists – 14 points
Paul Chavez (Otay Ranch) 9 goals, 3 assists – 12 points
Trevor Fune (Hilltop) 10 goals, 1 assist – 11 points
Braden Mayer (Eastlake) 9 goals, 2 assists – 11 points
Adrian Hernandez (Chula Vista) 6 goals, 2 assists – 8 points
Jake Powell (Eastlake) 4 goals, 4 assists – 8 points
Kevin Eagles (Eastlake) 6 goals, 1 assist – 7 points
Sean Devaney (Otay Ranch) 5 goals, 2 assists – 7 points
Lucio Gutierrez (Chula Vista) 5 goals, 2 assists – 7 points
Casey Prenatt (Otay Ranch) 3 goals, 2 assists – 5 points
Jacinto Montalvan (Hilltop) 3 goals, 2 assists
Marco Macias (Eastlake) 4 goals, 0 assists – 4 points
Nick Stark (Bonita Vista) 3 goals, 1 assist – 4 points
Jesus Gonzalez (Castle Park) 3 goals, 1 assist – 4 points
Donovan Lazo (Otay Ranch) 3 goals, 0 assists – 3 points
Sebastian Silva (Otay Ranch) 2 goals, 0 assists – 2 points
Jonathan McCormick (Eastlake) 2 goals, 0 assists – 2 points
Aldo Chavira (Castle Park) 2 goals, 0 assists – 2 points
Nathan Prosapio (Eastlake) 0 goals, 2 assists – 2 points
