The San Ysidro High School roller hockey team skated to a 0-21 start-up season in 2017-18. The Cougars faced off the 2018-19 season with a 0-6 start.
But that cumulative 0-27 record changed significantly Wednesday evening (Jan. 16) at Castle Park High School’s outdoor rink as San Ysidro recorded its first win in school history after shading the Southwest Raiders, 2-1, in an overtime shootout.
“I’m very proud of them,” Cougars head coach Caroline Talavera said after the history-making game. “They played very well today. It’s a lot of fun to coach them.
“We have only two returning players from last season. The rest are new to the sport. This is something completely new to them but they’ve worked very hard to make progress.”
David Alatorre scored early in the first period to put San Ysidro ahead. It appeared that goal might hold up as the game-winner until Southwest’s Edward Arsman tied the game, 1-1, with just 2:01 left in the third period
The Raiders threatened in the waning seconds but the game ended in a tie and proceeded into a five-minute sudden-victory overtime period with both teams playing with three skaters
The Cougars had the best chance to score in the overtime period but neither team could dent the other’s net and the game proceeded to a shootout
The goaltenders of both teams made saves in the first round and did the same in the second round.
San Ysidro goaltender Kevin Villanueva stopped Southwest’s Arsman to open the third round while Cougar teammate Carlo Herrera buried his shot to make history for his team.
With the win, San Ysidro improved to 1-5 on the season in South Bay League play, 1-6 overall. With the loss, the Raiders dropped to 1-5 in South Bay League play, 1-7 overall.
San Ysidro is scheduled to play its next game Thursday, Jan. 17, at 7 p.m. against Bonita Vista, weather permitting.
In another South Bay League game on Wednesday:
Sweetwater 14, Mar Vista 1
The Red Devils improved to 6-0 in South Bay League play, 6-1 overall, by rolling past the Mariners, who dropped to 3-2 in South Bay League play, 3-3 overall.
Jose Lopez led Sweetwater with four goals and one assist while Irma Victoria notched a hat trick. David Segura and Isabel Iniguez each collected two goals and one assist. Cesar Salazar scored two goals while Briseth Barajas contributed one goal and one assist. Jocelyn Flores had two assists to round out scoring for the Red Devils, who built a 14-0 lead in the game.
Isaac Suarez scored the lone goal for Mar Vista.
Poway 6, Hilltop 2
Each team was driven by two-player dynamics in the non-league encounter: Trevor Fune and Kristen Lambertson for Mesa League leader Hilltop and Michael Little and Ian McGrath for Poway.
McGrath led all scorers on the playing court with three goals and one assist while Little, who was flying all over the surface, collected one assist.
The Titans scored the opening two goals of the game. Tanner Castle scored a shorthanded goal, assisted by Little, to put Poway ahead 1-0. McGrath then scored an unassisted goal to double the Titan lead to 2-0.
Hilltop’s Fune (goal) and Lambertson (assist) struck back to halve the Lancers’ deficit on the scoreboard to 2-1.
But Poway scored the next three goals to build a 5-1 lead early in the third period.
Fune scored a power play goal to trim the Titan advantage to 5-2, assisted by Lambertson.
But Carter Schrader closed out scoring in the contest with a power play goal.
The Titans, who are 2-5 in North County League play, improved to 4-5 overall with the win while Hilltop dropped to 7-2 on the season with the loss.
Northern exposure
Rancho Bernardo cruised to a 17-2 win over Cathedral Wednesday night. Ike Frankel led the Broncos (6-1 in North County League play) with six goals and two assists. Niklas Thomas followed with five goals and two assists while goaltender K.J. Luna de la Fuente blocked 10 of 12 shots.
Cathedral Catholic dropped to 0-8 on the season.
Scripps Ranch remained undefeated in conference play after defeating Westview, 6-3, on Wednesday. The Falcons improved to 9-0 as the conference’s lone unbeaten team.
Ben Ivey led Scripps Ranch in scoring with five points on four goals and one assist while Kyle Fraser and Cody Ayers also chipped in with goals
Bryce Mendoza had three unassisted goals to push Escondido Charter to a 4-1 win over Patrick Henry in another North County League game Wednesday at the Escondido Sports Center. Matt Russell scored the only goal for Patrick Henry, assisted by Tyler Daniel.
Russell had five goals and Ruben Allen had two goals and an assist in Monday’s 7-5 come-from-behind win over Poway in a game played at the Skate San Diego rink in El Cajon. Matthew Voegel had two assists and Aiden Elswick had one assist for the victorious Patriots.
Patrick Henry was trailing 5-2 before rallying with five unanswered goals to win 7-5.
Barons out-score Spartans, 9-6, to skate to first win of 2018-19 roller hockey season
The Bonita Vista Barons collected their first win of the season after winning a high-scoring match-up, 9-6, against the Chula Vista Spartans in a non-league game played Friday at the Castle Park High School outdoor rink.
The Spartans, last season’s South Bay League champions, tied the score, 2-2, to end the first period. But the Barons, off to a 0-6 start this season in Mesa League play, rallied with the next four goals to jump in front 6-2.
Adrian Ontiveros scored for Chula Vista to trim the Bonita Vista lead to 6-3. But Nick Stark and Ana Custodio countered for the Barons to extend their lead to 8-3.
The Spartans, who were playing with a field player in front of the net for the opening half of the game, scored back-to-back goals by Lucio Gutierrez and Carlos Espino to make the score 8-5.
But Stark scored again to make the score 9-5 before Ontiveros made the final 9-6.
Bonita Vista outscored Chula Vista 7-4 in the final two periods. Stark tallied four of those goals while adding two assists. Custodio scored three goals in the second period to complete the Barons’ two-player dynamic.
Faith Sunga recorded the goaltender victory on Friday after Diego Nunes manned the pipes in the team’s previous game.
BV head coach Keith Quigley, who has coached the Barons since their inception in 1998, remarked how proud he was of the team’s effort against the defending South Bay League champions.
The Spartans dropped to 3-5 overall on the season.
In Mesa League game on Friday:
Hilltop 7, Castle Park 1
The Lancers remained in first place in the league standings by rolling past the second place Trojans. Trevor Fune collected four goals for Hilltop, which improved to 6-1 in league play, 8-2 overall. Martin Mari scored the lone goal for Castle Park, which dropped to 4-2 in league play.
In a South Bay League game on Friday:
Mar Vista 6, Southwest 3
Isaac Suarez scored all six goals for the Mariners while Gabby Sanchez scored twice for the Raiders.
CIF-METRO CONFERENCE
2018-19 STANDINGS
Mesa League
(Through Jan. 18)
Hilltop Lancers 6-1 (8-2 overall)
Castle Park Trojans 4-2 (5-2 overall)
Eastlake Titans 4-2 (6-2 overall)
Otay Ranch Mustangs 1-4 (2-5 overall)
Bonita Vista Barons 0-6 (1-6 overall)
South Bay League
(Through Jan. 18)
Sweetwater Red Devils 6-0 (6-1 overall)
Mar Vista Mariners 4-2 (4-3 overall)
Chula Vista Spartans 3-2 (3-5 overall)
San Ysidro Cougars 1-5 (1-6 overall)
Southwest Raiders 1-6 (1-8 overall)
North County League
(Through Jan. 16)
Scripps Ranch Falcons 9-0 (9-0 overall)
Rancho Bernardo Broncos 6-1 (6-1 overall)
Escondido Charter White Tigers 4-3 (4-3 overall)
Westview Wolverines 3-4 (3-4 overall)
Patrick Henry Patriots 3-6 (4-6 overall)
Poway Titans 2-5 (4-5 overall)
Cathedral Catholic Dons 0-8 (0-8 overall)
CIF-Metro Conference Scoreboard
Friday, Jan. 11
South Bay League
Chula Vista 8, San Ysidro 0
Sweetwater 8, Southwest 1
Non-League
Eastlake defeated Mar Vista by forfeit
Monday, Jan. 14
North County League
Patrick Henry 7, Poway 5
Cathedral Catholic vs. Westview (no report)
Scripps Ranch vs. Rancho Bernardo (no report)
Non-League
Chula Vista vs. Eastlake, ppd (wet grounds)
Otay Ranch vs. San Ysidro ppd (wet grounds)
Bonita Vista vs. Escondido Charter, ppd (wet grounds)
Tuesday, Jan. 15
Mesa League
Eastlake vs. Castle Park, ppd (wet grounds)
Otay Ranch vs. Bonita Vista, ppd (wet grounds)
Non-League
Hilltop vs. Mar Vista, ppd (wet grounds)
Wednesday, Jan. 16
South Bay League
Sweetwater 14, Mar Vista 1
San Ysidro 2, Southwest 1 (shootout)
North County League
Rancho Bernardo 17, Cathedral Catholic 2
Escondido Charter 4, Patrick Henry 1
Scripps Ranch 6, Westview 3
Non-League
Poway 6, Hilltop 2
Thursday, Jan. 17
At Castle Park High School
Mesa League
Otay Ranch vs. Eastlake, 5 p.m.
South Bay League
Chula Vista vs. Sweetwater, 6 p.m.
Non-League
San Ysidro vs. Bonita Vista, 7 p.m.
At Escondido Sports Center
North County League
Westview vs. Rancho Bernardo, 6 p.m.
Poway vs. Escondido Charter, 7 p.m.
Cathedral Catholic vs. Scripps Ranch, 8 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 18
At Castle Park High School
Mesa League
Hilltop 7, Castle Park 1
South Bay League
Mar Vista 6, Southwest 3
Non-League
Bonita Vista 9, Chula Vista 6
Photo Gallery by Phillip Brents
COLLEGE ICE HOCKEY:
Spotlight to shine on Aztec ice men as they face off against 12th-ranked Oregon Ducks
SDSU, Gulls to play double-header at Pechanga Arena
The regular season is counting down for the San Diego State men’s ice hockey team and no game looms larger than Saturday’s PAC hockey conference match-up against the 12th-ranked University of Oregon Ducks at Pechanga Arena San Diego.
The teams will face off at 1 p.m. at the 12,900-seat venue as part of a double-header with the San Diego Gulls of the American Hockey League. The Gulls will face off the professional half of the double-dip at 7 p.m. against the Pacific Division rival Bakersfield Condors.
The Gulls are currently the hottest team in the 31-team AHL while riding a club-record 15-game standings points streak (12-0-1-2). The franchise-record stretch for points has catapulted the San Diego team from last place in the division standings to sole possession of second place.
The Gulls enter Saturday’s match-up on Stars Wars Night with a record of 20-11-2-3 and 45 standings points.
The Gulls sit five points behind the front-running San Jose Barracuda (23-8-1-3) in the division standings and have moved one standings point ahead of the Tucson Roadrunners (20-11-3-1), last year’s division champion. Included in the Gulls’ 15-game points streak are four wins against the Barracuda.
The Aztecs, ranked 20th among American Collegiate Hockey Conference Division II West region teams, are having an equally fine first season in the move upward in the competition bracket to the PAC hockey conference, which expanded from eight teams to 12 teams this season. As one of the nation’s major collegiate hockey conferences, the upcoming PAC tournament champion qualifies for the ACHA regional playoffs.
The Aztecs enter Saturday’s game against the Ducks in sole possession of first place in the six-team PAC hockey conference South Division standings after burying the UCLA Bruins, 12-2, in Friday’s match-up at the Pickwick Ice arena.
The win extended SDSU’s 2018-19 season record to 11-4-2, including a 7-3-0 mark in PAC hockey conference games.
The Aztecs have capitalized on the opportunity to play more recognizable teams with larger alumni bases.
“We’ve obviously done well in our move to the PAC hockey conference,” SDSU head coach Phil Bateman said. “One of the things we wanted to do was to showcase our program.”
The Aztecs will be able to do just that this weekend. It’s uncertain how many fans will fill the seats at the sports arena but it’s almost certain the opportunity will allow more hockey fans in the region to become acquainted with a top collegiate program playing in their backyard.
Obviously, SDSU players are excited about the upcoming game at Pechanga Arena San Diego against the Ducks.
“I’ve never played in a building with that many seats before,” junior Aztec defenseman Isaac Miller said. “Even if we only get family and friends, it will still be cool.”
“We can pretend we’ve made it to The Show,” SDSU scoring leader Aaron Mayer chimed in.
Miller, an alumnus of Helix High School, and Mayer, an Eastlake High School graduate, are among a large number of San Diego County high school alumni on the 2018-19 Aztec roster.
The team’s top three scoring leaders, in fact, are all local. Mayer leads the team with 33 points on 14 goals and 19 assists. Patrick Miller, a Grossmont High School alum, ranks second with 24 points on 10 goals and 14 assists, while Otay Ranch High School grad Devyn Taras ranks third on the team with 22 points (11 goals, 11 assists).
This weekend’s series against Oregon marks Miller’s exit from the team after his collegiate eligibility expires prior to the start of the second semester of classes at SDSU. The teams rematch Sunday, Jan. 20, at 12:35 p.m. at the Kroc Center.
He admits it will be a bittersweet experience.
“I think I’ll miss all the road trips the most – that was a chance for the team to bond together,” Miller said. “Every trip we took we learned something new about each other.”
“We’re like brothers,” Isaac Miller offered.
Hot on ice
The Aztecs have gone 11-2-2 in their last 15 games since facing off the season with two losses at San Jose State. SDSU is 8-1-1 in its last 10 games, including a 4-3 win and 1-1 overtime tie against the University of Iowa in its latest two outings Jan. 11-12 at the Kroc Salvation Army Center.
The Aztecs are undefeated in their last four PAC hockey conference games.
San Jose State dropped out of a first-place tie in the PAC South Division standings with SDSU after dropping a 3-1 decision to Cal Berkeley on Friday.
San Jose State is 6-5-0 in 11 conference games and will rematch with the Bears on Saturday. Cal is 5-2-0 in seven conference games. SDSU closes regular season play with two key road games against the Bears, who remain in the thick of the race of this season’s divisional championship.
The top four teams in both the PAC hockey conference’s North and South divisional alignments qualify for the conference championship tournament Feb. 8-10 in South Lake Tahoe.
Oregon is 12-5-0 on the season and sits in third place in the PAC North Division standings with a 6-4-0 conference record.
Eastern Washington leads the PAC North Division standings with a 10-2 record, followed by Boise State with an 8-2 record.
Mayer rang up five points in Friday’s win over UCLA with two goals and three assists while freshman Elisha Reece, a La Mesa resident, matched that with one goal and four assists.
Two other freshmen made a splash in the scoring column for the Aztecs: Santa Clarita’s Derian Theberge collected four points on a goal and three assists while Mickey Sullivan (South Lake Tahoe) netted a hat trick.
Eight SDSU players scored goals in the rout while 13 players picked up either a goal or assist.
Tristan Macalolooy scored two goals. Other goal scorers included Jake Rochford, Taras and Reece Breuckman.
Patrick Miller picked up one assist.
Eastlake High grad Matthew Burbage faced seven shots in the game and made five saves in 27:54 of ice time. Nick Ilvento (South Lake Tahoe) stopped all six shots he faced in 32:06.
Both Ilvento and Sullivan were missing from last weekend’s series against Iowa.
Theberge ranks fourth on the Aztec season scoring chart with 18 points (10 goals, 8 assists) while Reece is fifth with 16 points (four goals, 12 assists). Sullivan has collected 10 points (five goals, five assists) in 14 games.
Theberge, Reece and Sullivan comprise the team’s “rookie line” while Mayer, Patrick Miller and Taras comprise the team’s “grandpa line,” according to Bateman.
Theberge, Reece and Sullivan have scored 19 goals between them, including three game-winning goals.
“It’s going to bode well for us,” the SDSU coach said of the all-freshmen line. “The three of the, are so hockey talented. They have great hockey IQs. They know the game very well.”
Theberge grew up playing for the Valencia Flyers before playing his final season for the Jr. Kings AAA team.
Theberge said he has been impressed by the level of play among ACHA teams.
“This is faster,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mayer, Miller and Taras have combined for 35 goals, including seven game-winning goals. “Aaron has always been good but he and Devyn have something special between them,” Bateman noted. “They play off each other so well. All three of them lead by example. They set the pace.”
The Gulls edged the visiting Texas Stars, 2-1, on Wednesday, Jan. 16, to extend their marathon points streak.
Corey Tropp scored his ninth goal of the season off passes from Adam Cracknell and Trevor Murphy at 15:34 of the first period and Cracknell added a shorthanded goal at 17:32, assisted by rookie Sam Steel, to pace the hosts to a 2-0 lead.
The Stars, last season’s Western Conference champions and Calder Cup runners-up, received a power play goal by Erik Condra at 16:33 of the second period to halve the deficit.
But the Gulls, despite being out-shot 13-7 in the final period, managed to keep the remainder of the game scoreless to earn the two standings points in front of 7,207 fans.
San Diego goaltender Kevin Boyle earned first star honors with 26 saves on 27 shots while Cracknell, with a goal and assist, was named the game’s second star.
The Gulls’ 45 standings points are the most recorded through the team’s first 36 games in franchise history. The 20 wins in 36 games match previous highs in both 2016-17 and 1017-18. The Gulls are 12-5-1-1 in 19 home games this season, marking the most wins and points (26) in club history.
The Gulls have won their last six home games. The crowd was electric during the final period of Wednesday’s game as fans cheered on the home team to keep hold of its one-goal lead while killing off a four-minute double-minor penalty.
“Our fan support is amazing,” San Diego head coach Dallas Eakins explained. “They’re always with us, even on our down times. They’re always out there pushing us along. We’re very comfortable here; we love playing at home. I think our record at home over the previous three years shows that.”
Despite a flux of players in and out of the lineup, the Gulls have still managed to push their record along – a fact that has impressed their coach.
“I’ll tell you what,” Eakins told the media following Wedneday’s game, “the resiliency of this group over this last little bit — lots of guys in the lineup, out of the lineup, guys up, guys down.
“They did get one (power play goal), but I thought our killers came up massive during that four-minute kill.”
AZTECS FACE STIFF CHALLENGE TO END 2018-19 SEASON
Bateman admitted prior to the Aztecs’ two-game series Jan. 11-12 at the Kroc Center against the University of Iowa Hawkeyes that his team would be facing a challenge as the match-ups fell during the break between semesters in which not all of his players were back from winter vacations.
SDSU was missing four players besides its top goaltender for the two games against the Hawkeyes, who had arrived in town a day earlier while awaiting the start of the series.
“It will be a challenge for us,” Bateman acknowledged before the first drop of the puck in the series opener. “It will test our depth and our conditioning. That’s where it will show up in us having players missing.”
The Aztecs won the opening game, 4-3, on the strength of two third-period power play goals while battling back from deficits of 2-1 and 3-2. Goaltender Austin Hathcoat was spectacular between the pipes for the hosts by making 31 saves on 34 shots as SDSU was out-shot 34-25.
The second game proved much more of a challenge as the Hawkeyes piled up a 37-22 shot advantage and led throughout the game until the Aztecs managed to score the tying goal midway through the third period. The teams skated through a scoreless overtime period before the visitors captured a 3-2 edge in a round-round shootout.
The game was logged as a 1-1 tie on the ACHA scoreboard.
Devyn Kelly scored an unassisted goal at the 15:22 mark of the second period to put Iowa up 1-0. Hathcoat and his teammates weathered an almost unrelenting barrage in the second period as the Hawkeyes applied pressure in the SDSU defensive end.
The teams fought to a scoreless stalemate in the period and it likely turned the game around in the Aztecs’ favor – for at least the opening half of the third period.
SDSU regained its step and touch on the puck, with Tyler Smith notching the equalizing goal off passes from Isaac Miller and Devyn Taras at 10:32.
The Aztecs applied additional pressure but the absence of skaters in the lineup finally caught up with the team over the weekend as the hosts found themselves trapped in their own end for most of the final five minutes of the contest while playing defense.
The defensive stand held off the Hawkeyes as regulation time wound down.
The short break into overtime seemed to re-energize the SDSU rank and file and it seemed the Aztecs were destined to score the overtime winner. But Iowa goaltender Ryan Iaciancio made two big saves on point-blank shots to deny the hosts and the five-minutes of four-on-four skating ended scoreless.
Iaciancio made 21 saves on 22 shots while Hathcoat stopped 36 of 37 Iowa shots.
The game proceeded into a shootout. Both teams scored in the opening round – Kevin Horan for Iowa and Derian Theberge for SDSU. Kelly put the Hawkeyes up 2-1 in the second round while Aaron Mayer knotted the score a 2-2 with a third-round tally.
Iowa’s Jake Vennetti scored to open the fourth round to put the visitors up 3-2 in the shootout while Iaciancio stopped Aztec shooter Tristan Macalolooy.
Despite the overtime tie, there was a sense among the SDSU players that the team had managed to salvage something positive from the second game, especially considering how much the hosts were out-played in the middle period.
Hathcoat definitely upped his value to the team after making 67 saves on 71 shots (.944 save percentage) in the two games against the Hawkeyes (6-7-2-3).
SDSU RINGS IN 2019 PORTION OF SEASON WITH 4-3 COMEBACK WIN OVER IOWA HAWKEYES
The Aztecs faced off the 2019 portion of the 2018-19 season with a gritty 4-3 come-from-behind victory against the University of Iowa Hawkeyes.
With the win, the Aztecs improved their 2018-19 season record to 10-4-1.
“One of the big problems of coming off a break is losing your timing,” SDSU head coach Phil Bateman said. “We were chasing the game a lot in the first period. We needed to simply our game.”
Things started to fall into place after that.
Tristan Macalolooy opened the Aztecs’ 2019 calendar portion of the season with a goal, assisted by Derian Theberge and Elisha Reece.
The Hawkeyes, however, scored the next two goals to take a 2-1 by the end of the first period.
The teams would each score in the second period as Iowa skated into the final period with a 3-2 lead. Patrick Miller leveled the score at 2-2, assisted by Aaron Mayer and Tyler Smith. But the Hawkeyes came back to break the tie.
The Aztecs began to play more cohesively in the second period and opened the third period with the same resolve. The hosts were rewarded for their effort with power play goals by Mayer to tie the game and Theberge to win the game.
Mayer scored from a tight angle to the Iowa goaltender’s left to finish off passes from teammates Smith and Isaac Miller to deadlock the teams at 3-3.
Theberge scored with 12:26 left in the period to put SDSU up 4-3. Macalolooy and Miller drew the assists.
The Aztecs’ hero of the game, however, had to be goaltender Austin Hathcoat, who stopped 31 of 34 shots as the Hawkeyes recorded a 34-25 shot advantage. Hathcoat was tested often in the waning stages of the third period as SDSU faced some conditioning issues from the month-long layoff.
The Aztecs last played a full game on Dec. 1.
Final countdown
The PAC hockey conference championship tournament will feature eight teams — four from each division — in a single-elimination format similar to the ACHA Division 2 regionals.
Four games will face off the three-day, seven-game tournament on Feb. 8. The No. 1-seeded team will face the No. 8-seeded team, followed by the No. 3-seeded team against the No. 6-seeded team, the No. 2-seeded team against the No. 7-seeded team and the No. 4-seeded team against the No. 5-seeded team.
The two winners from the opening round will meet in semifinal matches on Feb. 9. The championship game is scheduled for Feb. 10 at noon.
All games will be played at the South Lake Tahoe Ice Arena, located at 1176 Rufus Allen Blvd., South Lake Tahoe. The rink is NHL-regulation size.
SDSU Photo Gallery by Phillip Brents
