CdM dominates Tars in first lacrosse meeting

NEWPORT BEACH — The coaches and players that helped each other’s high school girls’ lacrosse teams get sanctioned by the CIF finally went at each other.

Newport Harbor and Corona del Mar wouldn’t want it any other way.

The Back Bay rivals made their CIF debut in lacrosse Tuesday, with the Sea Kings overpowering the Sailors, 19-5, at Davidson Field.

No hard feelings after 50 minutes of action, as Newport Harbor Coach Carolyn Smith congratulated CdM Coach Kathy Chaix. As Chaix walked away, Smith told her, “We’ll be ready for you guys next time.”

Both coaches smiled and laughed, knowing how far each other’s programs have come in playing their first CIF Southern Section game.

The two coaches from New Jersey said it took more than two years to push the Newport-Mesa Unified School District to institute lacrosse as a CIF sport.

Back where Smith and Chaix are from lacrosse is popular, as it is on most of the East Coast.

The sport is catching on locally, with both schools carrying varsity and junior varsity teams and playing full schedules.

The girls’ teams don’t use shoulder pads and helmets and can’t check each other like the boys’ teams can, but wearing goggles and trying to carry a stick with a ball appears to be cool enough for the girls.

CdM makes it look hip with their potent offense. They scored 14 goals in the first half against Newport Harbor.

Eight of those goals belonged to identical twins, Addison and Alex Hoover.

The junior scoring duo, which finished with five goals each in the game, attended Newport Harbor last year and played on its club team.

But the twins transferred to CdM, making for an interesting game against former teammates.

“There was a little bit of hesitancy, but then we can’t let it effect our game,” Addison said. “They said that they missed us, and we of course miss them.”

One thing Addison misses is not having to defend Newport Harbor’s Shannon Rohan.

The quick and small Rohan scored four goals.

Other than Rohan, CdM freshman goalie Zoe Salaam played well as she made five saves and recorded a shutout in the second half.

“Her first time ever playing was last year,” said Alex of Rohan. “[She’s] by far one of the most improved players I have ever seen. She played soccer and picked up that stick, and I’ve never seen a player catch on to the sport [like that], beside my sister and I.”

Smith attributes the early success to a player like Rohan because she believes lacrosse suits all kinds of players.

“It think it’s a really fun sport, because it uses speed, finesse, it’s got the physical part in it, and you’re not limited by size, where sometimes in sports, if you’re not real tall like [in] basketball, it’s a limiting factor,” Smith said. “We worked in conjunction. Their coaches, and our girls’ team would go to [school board] meetings together to make a real concerted effort versus trying to break the schools up.”

The way Chaix sees it, the plan worked.

“We’re all part of the same thing,” she said, “so it’s always going to be a friendly rivalry.”