SD Prep Sports: Roller Hockey

www.geocities.com/sdprepsports

E-mail us at sdprepsports@aol.com

Home   Swimming/Diving   Cross Country  Track & Field   Roller Hockey   Water Polo   CIF Scorecard

Division II Playoff Preview

Could young but talented Montgomery squad be peaking at right time?

By Phillip Brents

Posted Feb. 24, 2003

Sweetwater won last year’s inaugural Division II championship by defeating top-seeded Montgomery 6-4. Though the Red Devils finished their last five games 4-1-0, head coach Mike Duffey said he feels the Aztecs remain the team to beat.

"They’re returning their whole team while we’ve had a lot of changes. We went 4-1 our last five games and besides that, Montgomery was the hottest team," Duffey said.

The teams met in a pre-playoff preview with the Aztecs winning 5-4. "We were down 5-1 and we came back but too late. We had some penalty problems. It’s up to the players. They can win the tournament again if they play hard."

Favorites? The Division II playoff field could be quite balanced, at least among its top three finishers – Mar Vista (10-8-0), Montgomery (8-9-1) and Sweetwater (7-11-1), with Chula Vista (4-13-1) possibly playing a spoiler’s role – if not more.

The Mariners looked like the top dog entering the second-half split – battling Bonita Vista for the sixth-best record -- and got off to a punishing start in Division II play. However, a late season tailspin found Mar Vista suffering losses to playoff challengers Montgomery and Sweetwater – last year’s Division II championship game finalists.

The Mariners are buttressed by last year’s Division II championship game winning goaltender Louie Valentine, who knows what it takes to win a playoff tournament title. Valentine has been more aggressive this season, not afraid to come off his line to challenge shooters. He has posted two shutouts in second-half play.

Top offensive players include Tony Arciga, Andrew Fisak, Trevor Stutzman and Dan Rumsey. Top defensive players for head coach Ron Cole’s team include Trevin Tuovinen, Brian Dimmock, Ryan Agte and Heather Lamb.

Fisak has scored more than 30 goals this season while Stutzman has scored more than 20 goals.

Lamb is one of the top female players in the conference, registering nine goals and five assists this season.

Javier Cardona also excelled in early round play.

Mar Vista won its opening five Division II second-half season games but enters the playoffs having been outscored 10-3 in recent setbacks to SuHi and Montgomery. Still, the Mariners posted a fine 6-2 second-half Division II mark -- trailing only the Aztecs' torrid second-half run of 6-1-1.

Can the Aztecs put it all together to win the one that slipped away last year?

Montgomery finished as the top-seeded team in preliminary round play last season but coughed up a 6-4 defeat to Sweetwater in the division final.

The Aztecs could be putting it all together at just the right time with victories against both Mar Vista and Sweetwater to close out regular season play.

First-year head coach Jeremy Parker brings seven years of experience as a top-level player (NARCh) to his first varsity high school assignment behind the bench. Parker is coaching his fourth year in the sport, including two years at the YMCA complex in Mission Valley and another year at the Parkway complex in El Cajon. The high school aspect puts a slightly different twist on the game, however.

"It’s a little more interesting. There’s more fan support. Everyone’s out there to see their high school. It’s cool."

Team leaders this season include junior defenseman Chris Troie, junior forward Josh Royal and junior forward Bobby Palma. Royal led all Division II playoff scorers last year with 12 goals. Palma added six goals and Troie had five goals in the 2002 playoffs.

Despite their talent, the Aztecs are still young. Everyone on the team is a junior except sophomore defenseman Mike Palma. Manny Simental is among the first-year players on the team who have posted particularly impressive season. Other newcomers include junior goaltender Fernando Durhart, who is tackling the position for the first time but has had an entire position to grow between the pipes.

Montgomery (6-1-1 in second-half Division II play) shut out Mar Vista 2-0 in the teams' latest encounter to record one of the most impressive team performances in second half Division II play. (The Aztecs fell 5-4 to the Mariners the first time around in second-half action.)

"Our goal is to get a good foundation for next year. We plan on winning Division II," Parker said.

The defending Division II champion Red Devils have the offensive firepower and defensive standouts to repeat as division champions. However, coach Mike Duffey suggested discipline and teamwork would be the key to the winning combination.

Forwards Marvey Ferrer and Brandon Fox  comprise the team’s top line with defensemen Rich Kolerich and Brian Wilkinson. Fox had a hat trick in last year's D-2 championship game while Ferrer added four goals in the Devils' five playoff games.

Chris Hernandez, who had a hat trick in the 9-5 win against Chula Vista, rotates into the top line as do defensemen Marco Munoz and Marcelo Tellez. Other contributors include Abraham Macias, Kenny Villasana and Rodrigo Vega.

The Devils have prospered of late with the insertion of Ivan Arvizo between the pipes. "He hasn’t even been playing three weeks. He’s been doing pretty good," said coach Mike Duffey of Arvizo.

The Red Devils are 5-3-0 in second-half Division II play after finishing first-half play 2-8-0.

Head coach Korry Belmontez wished he had a larger player pool from which to draw but the Spartans have represented themselves fairly well this season, scoring an early 7-6 win against defending Division II champion Sweetwater to set the tone in the teams’ rivalry.

Top returners include seniors David Rodriguez, Michael Foster, Thomas Doran, David Ruiz and goaltender Kristina Villanueva and junior Willie Wiser. Promising varsity newcomers include seniors Gregorio Flores, Dorothy Tomayo and Will Lansdown. Freshman Heath McNerney, a transfer from Michigan where hockey is big, opened the season on injured reserve (broken arm from the football season).

Finding a feeder program may be crucial to the Spartans’ future success with this year’s senior-heavy team set to graduate.

"I was hoping there were more players out there in junior high. But I haven’t found that to be necessarily true. That side is disappointing. It’s kind of tough," Belmontez said.

Chula Vista is 2-5-1 in second-half Division II play after posting a first-half 2-8-0 record. However, the Spartans dropped a 9-8 decision to Mar Vista, tied Montgomery 6-6 and fell 11-8 to Sweetwater in the first round of second-half play.  

"A lot of players are back. Every year we’re getting better," Belmontez said. "Our goal the second half was to come out with a winning record --  more wins than losses."

A solid performance in the four upcoming round-robin games could still meet that goal but Belmontez said basic goals for the team are to learn the game and play competitively.

"We’re not always able to play competitively with every team but our players never give up. They’re working hard. Against the better teams, it’s a challenge," the Spartan coach said.

As for individual talent, Chula Vista has some gems:

Doran has been playing four years and brings ice hockey experience to the court. A forward, he ranks among the team’s top goalscorers. "He plays ice, so basically he’s a year-round player. He’s got a lot of skills. He knows the game. He plays with some of the kids on the Scripps Ranch team, in fact," Belmontez said of Doran.

Foster has played all three years the Spartans have been included in the CIF-Metro circuit and has a nice slap shot befitting his strength.

Rodriguez, yet another senior, bolsters the defensive corps along with long-time player Wiser.

It’s the team’s defensive effort that Belmontez feels will spell out the team’s fortunes in the playoffs.

The Raiders are playing for pride while continuing to learn the game under coach Jerry Nestlerode. Offensive production has increased in the second-half and the sizable gap that existed between Southwest and the rest of the circuit has closed considerably. 

Rostered players to start the season included: Omar Huerta (defense); Leonard Guanco (defense); Michael Freitas (left wing); Jeff Villanueva (center); Chris Sidhu (defense); George Cruz (left wing); Anthoni Ramos (center); Edward Gamboa (goaltender); Edwin Manansala (defense); and Victor Sandoval (left wing).